A young woman cursed with a fatal heartbreak-induced sickness must race against time to find a cure and protect her family legacy from the ancient finfolk that would destroy it, the fiancé that would kill her for it, and the boy who would love her if she forsook it.
I have a wildly specific book for you! Looking for a book with a magical whaling industry, a family curse, and furious merfolk? Break Wide the Sea by Sara Holland has all of the above (and more)!
As someone who’s gone through mermaid and sailor/pirate reading eras in my past, I was thrilled to read a book that blended the two in a new and unique way. The story follows a young woman, Annie, who is struggling to balance her role as the head of her family’s whaling company and as the eldest sister of her orphaned siblings. And while trying to keep everyone happy, Annie is also hiding a terrible curse that could ruin her life and her siblings’ lives.
There were a lot of key factors that made this book work for me, especially with the magical realism world-building, the sailing crew’s dynamics, and the classic YA romantasy love triangle. Woven together, Break Wide the Sea is an enthralling nautical fantasy. My only caveat was actually that I felt like there wasn’t ENOUGH of the sailing and daily life on the whaling ship. The storyline spends a solid 50% on the ship, and I was still wanting even more!
If any of this book’s wildly specific traits caught your eye, you should definitely give it a shot! I’d also recommend it if you’re looking to dip your toe into the pirate/sailor/mermaid fantasy world! And again, this is a YA novel, so the romance is definitely PG-13 at most!
Thanks to Macmillan Audio for the free advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review!
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