Prince of Song & Sea

Before Prince Eric’s mother, the Queen of Vellona, went missing two years ago, she reminded him of the deadly curse that plagued his entire life. The curse? If he were to kiss someone other than his true love, he would die. With a neighboring kingdom looking for any excuse to invade their shores, plus rumors of ghost pirates lurking the seas, Eric is desperate for any information that may help him break his enchantment and bring stability to Vellona. The answers he has been searching for come to him in the form of a letter that reveals Eric must find his true love—the one with a voice pure of heart—or kill the sea witch responsible for cursing him in the first place.

Now, Eric sets off on a quest to find the Isle of Serein, the witch’s legendary home. But after he is rescued by a mysterious young woman with a mesmerizing singing voice, Eric’s heart becomes torn. Does he enter a battle he is almost certain he cannot win, or does he chase a love that might not even exist? Then, when a shipwrecked young woman with flaming red hair and a smile that could calm the seven seas enters his life, Eric discovers true love isn’t something that can be decided by magic. 

Prince of Song & Sea retells the story of The Little Mermaid from Prince Eric’s point of view. However, most of the story focuses on Eric’s backstory, allowing Eric’s personality to become fully formed. Eric hasn’t been able to have normal relationships because of the witch’s curse. However, he does have two close friends who follow him in his quest to find the sea witch. His two friends add humor and depth to the story. Although Eric wants to break the sea witch’s curse, his reasons aren’t purely selfish. When he discovers that the sea witch wants to control Vellona, Eric puts the needs of his country above his own. Ultimately, Eric’s quest allows his bravery and compassion to shine.  

Anyone who loves The Little Mermaid will find Prince of Song & Sea a fun read. While it stays true to the Disney version of the story, focusing on Eric’s life adds an interesting perspective that allows readers to understand why Ariel was willing to risk her life for Eric’s love. Ariel is not portrayed as a love-sick teenager but as a curious, brave, and selfless woman. While some readers may miss Skuttle and Sabastian in this version of the story, Ariel is still a loveable character. 

Fans of fairytales will be swept into Prince Eric’s life and enjoy seeing what the world looks like from his point of view. While Prince of Song & Sea is an enjoyable read, it mirrors The Little Mermaid, which makes the story less suspenseful. Despite this, readers who love fairytales and mermaids will find Prince of Song & Sea entertaining. 

Sexual Content  

• Eric thinks about kissing Ariel. Eric thinks, “She was wild and beautiful, hair damp with the sea. As they stared at each other, her tongue wet her lips, and Eric couldn’t help wondering what they would feel like against his own. They both leaned closer, her eyes fluttering shut. Eric reached for her, and – the boat tipped.” 
• One of the female pirates flirts with another girl, and later, the two marry each other. 

Violence  

• Pirates attack the ship Eric, and his friends are sailing. “A footstep cracked behind Eric. He twisted away, the blade of a short sword piercing the railing where he had been. . . Eric rammed his hilt into [the pirates’] temples.” 
• Eric’s adviser, Grimsby, fights a pirate named Sauer. “Grimsby plunged his hand into his coat. A shot rang out. Sauer fell backward, blood splattering across the rail. They steadied themselves, blood dripping down their badly grazed cheek, and covered their faces with a hand.” Sauer is injured but doesn’t die. 
• The pirates tie up the crew. “A purple welt marred Vanni’s cheek, and Gabriella’s bottom lip was busted. Not a single person had died, but neither were they unharmed.” The pirate battle is described over five pages. 
• After the pirates capture Eric and his crew, they encounter sirens, which can make people see what they most desire. One of Eric’s friends, Gabriella, “lunged toward the edge of the ship…A wide, glassy grief lit her eyes, and she choked back a sob.” 
• A supernatural storm batters the ship. “Another wave washed over the ship, rocking it to its side, and half the crew vanished in a blink.” The ship breaks up during the storm, and everyone climbs into a rowboat. Eric hears his dog, Max, and climbs back onto the ship. “His foot plunged through the wood, and he tossed Max as hard as he could. The dog vanished over the side of the ship. . . Pain shot through his ankle, and his heart stopped with each clunk of the loose barrels rolling across the fiery deck. . . And the world exploded.” Eric reawakens on the beach. 
• The crew is attacked by “a malformed tentacle made up of eels. Hundreds of them were knotted together in one monstrous mass, the tangles so tight that blood rained. . . The tentacle curled over the ship, snapping rope and ripping away part of the sails, and gripped two of the masts tight.”  
• The eels are able to generate electricity. “A terrible crack split the air. . . suddenly the eels along the tentacle bared their teeth. Eric lunged at it, butting through one of the small eels.” When Eric kills the eels’ leaders, “they untangled themselves from the knot of eels, and the electricity fizzled out.” No person is seriously injured. The scene is described over five pages. 
• Ursula, the sea witch, disguises herself as Vanessa and compels Eric to marry her. But before the wedding, seagulls attack. “The flock swooped again, dropping half-eaten fish and seaweed on the deck. Vanessa shrieked, and the guests scattered. . . the world became a swirl of white feathers. . . A pair of sea lions barreled through the crowd, sliding across the deck and into Vanessa.”  
• Ursula changes into her true form, grabs Ariel, and jumps into the sea. Eric follows on a dinghy. Ursula “had pinned Ariel against a rock, jabbing the trident at Ariel’s neck. . .[Eric] hauled his arm back before launching the harpoon. It sliced through Ursula’s arm, drawing a hazy cloud of blue blood.” Ariel escapes. 
• Ursula’s eels grab Eric and “pulled him deeper and deeper, and salt burned in Eric’s eyes. He struggled against his hold, but teeth nipped at his hands every time he tried to break free.” A fish rams into the eels, and Eric gets free. 
• Ursula causes a whirlpool that “pulled Eric in, sucking him beneath the waves and the holey hull of an old ship passed over him.” Eric pulls himself onto the ship. Before Ursula can kill Ariel, “Eric screamed, muscles aching at the grip it took to keep the ship steady. . . the bowsprit cut through her stomach, impaling her, and the pale waters ran sapphire blue with her blood.” Ursula dies. The battle is described over 14 pages.  

Drugs and Alcohol  

• None 

Language  

• When a storm arrives, a crew member asks, “Which one of you pissed off Triton?” 

Supernatural 

• Eric’s mother “saw a body floating in the surf. It was a child, small and chilled to the bone. . .” Eric’s mother saved the child, but a witch claimed that the child was hers. When Eric’s mother refused to hand the child over, the witch cursed her unborn child. The witch said, “If that thing in your belly ever kisses someone without a voice as pure as their spotless soul, someone who isn’t its true love, then it will die, and I will drag its soul to the bottom of the sea.”  
• Before going on a voyage, Eric’s friend Gabriella “tipped a full bottle of wine into the sea before they left the bay as tribute to King Triton of the Sea, and there had been clear skies since.” 
• Eric hears rumors of a Blood Tide and a ghost ship. “Once you acknowledge the ghosts are there, they ensnare you and force you to make a deal with them. Used to be they just offered. Now you have no choice.” The ghosts use their voice to control people.  
• The legend behind the Blood Tide and the witch is explained. People would “make a deal with something in the depths so they could live their wildest dreams. The costs, though, were always souls.” 
• There is a debate about whether ghosts are people who are dead. The pirates capture a ghost, who is “as translucent as a spiderweb in the wrong light.”
• The witch captures souls, and “they require no maintenance other than a space to store them.” The witch turned Eric’s mother, Eleanora, into a ghost. “A ribbon of seagrass burrowed into her chest. Her form spun and shrunk, bones cracking and mouth open in a silent scream. She condensed. . . all that was left in her place was a ragged brown blade of grass with two branches like flailing arms. It shimmered with trapped magic.” 
• The witch knows how to use magic in various ways, including how to compel people. At one point, the witch changes into a beautiful woman who uses her voice to control Eric. In addition, “the witch can transform people into whatever they want.” 
• Nora discovers that one of her parents was from the mer world. Because of this, Nora transforms into a mermaid when she goes into the ocean. A merman explains, “You should’ve been taught how to control the transformation so that it became as natural as breathing. Most children who are part human and part merfolk transform every time they leave or enter the sea, but it can very much be controlled.” 

Spiritual Content  

• None