Marin is a supply runner who asks no questions and delivers anything: letters, flour, the occasional enchanted lemur. It's a solitary life, but the sea is hers and that's enough. When she arrives at the city of Alyssium to find it burning and an empire in ruins, she pivots without hesitation, ferrying refugees to safer shores. Among them is Dax, a composer who refuses to abandon his instruments no matter how urgent the crisis. As Marin navigates debt, danger, and an unexpected crew (including a sailor shrub named Ree), she starts to wonder if the life she's built for herself has room for something more.
My Review
I never expected to be happy crying over a sea serpent named Perri, and yet here we are.
I was so happy to be transported back into the Spellshop universe. Sea of Charms follows Marin, a supply runner who sails from island to island delivering whatever anyone will pay her to carry: letters, flour, the occasional enchanted lemur. Her only companion is Perri, a sea serpent she rescued from a fisherfolk’s net. When Marin arrives at the city of Alyssium to find it in flames and an empire collapsed overnight, she does what she does best: she keeps moving, this time transporting refugees to safer shores. One of those refugees is Dax, a composer who absolutely refuses to leave his instruments behind no matter how dire the situation, and watching Marin’s exasperation slowly soften into something more was one of my favorite things about this book.
If you’ve read The Spellshop and The Enchanted Greenhouse, you already know what to expect from Sarah Beth Durst’s corner of this world: cozy fantasy that wraps around you like a warm hug and refuses to let go. Sea of Charms fits right in, and the island-hopping structure makes it feel immersive, like you’re right there on the boat with Marin, Dax, Perri, and a sailor shrub named Ree. There are familiar faces woven throughout that made me want to immediately reread the first two books, and a teaser for book four that I am not emotionally prepared for.
I experienced this one via audiobook, and Caitlin Davies is doing the Lord’s work as narrator. Every creature, every character, every magical moment landed with so much warmth and personality.
If Sarah Beth Durst writes it, I’m reading it. Full stop. Start with book one if you haven’t, and then come find me so we can cry about Perri together.
Thank you to Macmillan for the ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.