Upon a Starlit Tide
Ratings2
Average rating4.5
Upon a Starlit Tide is a dark and enchanting historical fantasy combining elements of "The Little Mermaid" and "Cinderella" into a wholly original tale of love, power, and betrayal.
*The hardcover edition features beautiful custom endpapers.*
Saint-Malo, Brittany, 1758. To Lucinde Leon, the youngest daughter of a wealthy French shipowner, the high walls of Saint-Malo are more hindrance than haven.
While her sisters are busy trying to secure advantageous marriages, Luce spends her days secretly being taught to sail by Samuel, her best friend—and an English smuggler. Only he understands how the waves call to her. Then one stormy morning, Luce rescues a drowning man from the sea.
Immediately drawn in by the stranger’s charm, Luce is plunged into a world of glittering balls and faerie magic, seduction and brutality. Secrets that have long been lost in the shadowy depths of the ocean begin to rise to the surface, but as Luce wrestles with warring desires, she finds that her own power is growing brighter and brighter, shining like a sea-glass slipper.
Or the scales of a sea-maid's tail.
“Kell Woods is a born storyteller with a wonderful imagination.”—Natasha Lester, New York Times bestselling author of The Three Lives of Alix St. Pierre
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Thank you to Tor for providing me with eARC.
I requested Upon a Starlit Tide on Netgalley first because the cover absolutely drew me in, and second because it was described to me as A Little Mermaid mushed up with Cinderella. I'm a sucker for fairy tale retellings so I was absolutely drawn to this book. To my surprise (it's been a bit) Tor accepted my request, and I dove right in.
Upon a Starlit Tide is an absolute wonder. Kell Woods is a phenomenal writer – you're dropped into 18th century magical France and every ounce of you believes it. I loved the main character, Luce. She's got quite a wonderful life, seemingly only soured by the fact that her feet are ruined. She's in pain every second that she walks around. However, she is sweet despite her pain. She cares for her sisters, her mother, and most of all, her father. Luce and her family are extremely wealthy – her father owns a bunch of ships and is a merchant. There's some interesting family dynamics that I won't get into because I don't want to spoil anything.
Luce is torn between wanting to remain a loyal daughter, and wanting to go out and explore the world. She is in love with the sea, and wants nothing more than to be a ship's captain. Of course, this is impossible because she's a woman. She's also torn between two young men. Morgan, the rich shipmaster's son whom she rescues from the ocean, or Samuel, a master smuggler who's been her friend for years. Yeah, there's a love triangle. Ish. You'll prefer one man over the other very quickly, or at least I did.
When I got to the end of Upon A Starlit Tide, I was terrified that it was going to end on a sad, but happyish note. HOWEVER, there was an epilogue and I can confirm that there is a true happy ending. So don't worry about that too much – enjoy the journey for what it is. I absolutely recommend Upon A Starlit Tide to anyone who loves fairy tale retellings, mermaids, or historical fiction! Four and a half stars.
