📕 Title: Sea of Charms
✏️ Author: Sarah Beth Durst
📖 Genre: Fantasy / Romance
⭐ Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
📝 Part of The Spellshop series

“Betrayed by love, Marin lives and works as a supply runner, sailing from island to island, delivering an array of goods with Perri the sea serpent and Ree the sailor shrub as her crew. On one of her routine trips to the capital, Marin finds a revolution underway—and her friend Dax in the line of fire. What starts as a rescue evolves into a deal: She will keep Dax on as a member of her crew if he pretends to be her boyfriend at the End-of-Harvest Festival back home. But against her better judgment, Marin finds herself intrigued by his stubbornness, his passion for stories, his charming smile—and realizes that perhaps she isn’t saving him. Maybe it’s the other way around.”

REVIEW

Thank you Bramble for the digital copy of Sea of Charms by Sarah Beth Durst!

Sea of Charms is a standalone fantasy novel written in third person from a single point of view. While there are connections to other books in The Spellshop series (including character cameos), this can be read as a standalone novel. The story leans cozy but there is serious danger due to the ongoing revolution.

I love that each of the books in this series has a different setting, with this story exploring the magic of the Sea of Charms, the capital city, Alyssium, and various islands. The author beautifully builds out this part of the world, describing everything from magical sea creatures, to natural landmarks, to the weather. I especially loved Perri and the winged cat, and also appreciated how music and storytelling played a big role in the story.

Marin quickly endeared herself to me, with her love of the sea and her big heart. The story begins with the fallout after Marin broke up with her controlling ex-boyfriend, a person who tried his best to dim her light, and at its heart this story is about her reclaiming her passion and finding a partner who supports her dreams. I love that Marin and Dax had an established friendship before it evolved into a romantic relationship, and Dax was super sweet and kind.

Sea of Charms is another lovely addition to the Spell shop series!