Daughter of the Pirate King

Growing up, I LOVED the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. The idea of exploring an ocean full of monsters and treasure on a pirate ship was my dream adventure. Elizabeth Swann was my hero in those movies, and I laughed every time Jack Sparrow was on screen. 

But once the movies were over, I wanted more. Even when it came to fantasy books, where the only limit was one’s imagination, there was a shortage of stories that were centered around pirates and their thrilling adventures.

Then I stumbled across Tricia Levenseller’s Daughter of the Pirate King. Levenseller’s gripping sword fights and thrilling treasure hunts instantly got me hooked.

Alosa is an incredible example of a girlboss done right. Her character initially comes across as a ruthless captain loyal only to her father, the Pirate King (hence the name). But she will always put her life on the line for her crew, especially seven-year-old Scout, who will instantly steal your heart like a true pirate.

The book opens when Alosa and her crew are immediately overpowered by Draxen, the nepo baby of one of the pirate lords and enemy of the Pirate King. Alosa is taken aboard Draxen’s ship, the Night Farer, as a hostage. While Draxen is salivating at the possibility of ransom money, Alosa is scheming in the ship’s brig. 

Turns out that getting captured by Draxen’s men was part of Alosa’s plan all along. She was sent to sneak aboard the Night Farer to steal the pirate lord’s map leading to an ancient treasure. 

Unfortunately for Alosa, not everyone on Draxen’s ship is a cocky idiot. Riden, Draxen’s first mate, becomes increasingly suspicious of her. In this gripping game of cat-and-mouse, can Alosa find the map and escape the ship before Riden catches her, or will she face the wrath of Draxen, or worse, the Pirate King?

Even though Alosa is ship-bound captive for most of the story, she’s still a badass. Alosa is calculating and willing to get her hands dirty (in more ways than one) to get the job done. 

While there weren’t as many fight scenes as I’d hoped, Rider and Alosa’s fast-paced banter was really entertaining. Both characters had a witty comeback to each insult hurled at them and their conversations were sometimes just as intense as a fight scene. Kudos to Levenseller for the excellent dialogue.

That’s my personal take on Daughter of the Pirate King. Let me know if there are any books you’d want me to talk about in the comments. I hope you enjoyed another of my book-fueled rants and have a happy reading!