Review: Pearl of Magic

The final day of the fairy tale advent calendar contained a generous offer of four books from Emily Deady's Fairy Tale Royals series. This author was new to me, so I decided to check one of them out. Although I was going to start at the beginning with her "Cinderella" retelling, I settled for Pearl of Magic because it's hard to find good retellings of "The Little Mermaid." This was another adaptation that did not contain mermaids, but it still had some magical properties. The main character is a type of sorceress whose race is oppressed by other kingdoms. She is silenced by a magic necklace and must get to know her captor through hand gestures alone. The story is similar to The Prince's Captive by Celeste Baxendell.

Aizel is a Majis who uses her voice to command power. When her people are persecuted and her sister's life is on the line, she must agree to kill an enemy prince that she rescued from drowning. Meanwhile, Prince Erich, whose kingdom is in political turmoil, is charged with escorting Aizel to be executed due to her magical background. He does not know much about her race or that the necklace that suffocates her power also prevents her from speaking. Both are uncomfortable with their tasks and must find ways to communicate with each other despite Aizel's inability to talk. The more they get to know each other, the more they realize it would be impossible for them to complete their missions.

Although I wished this adaptation contained mermaids and undersea kingdoms, it was an interesting concept for a love story. The two are forced together because of political circumstances beyond their control and forced to overcome their prejudices and even fall in love. It was a nice twist for Aizel to sacrifice her powers to save her sister instead of to be with the prince, but she came to care for him as well over time. Erich came off as a passive character who was only doing as he was told until Aizel opened up his eyes and made him realize there was more to the Majis than he realized. Both were presented as victims of circumstance, but those same circumstances brought them together.

The worldbuilding is this book's greatest strength, and I can easily see how it is part of a bigger series. With so many different kingdoms and races, there is a great deal of potential for more stories and star-crossed lovers between those who can use magic and those who are ignorant of its potential. The persecution of the Majis created high stakes, but it didn't feel like Aizel and Erich had a lot of time to get to know each other, especially when Aizel couldn't speak for most of the book. They did the best they could under the circumstances and eventually fell in love deeply enough to be willing to risk everything for one another.

Pearl of Magic is an intriguing retelling of "The Little Mermaid" that trades in underwater kingdoms for a richly detailed world of magic and politics. While it didn't quite capture the essence of the original tale, Emily Deady's unique spin on the story is engaging and full of potential. The romance between Aizel and Erich is sweet, if a bit rushed, and the worldbuilding is undoubtedly the book's strongest aspect. Fans of fantasy romance and fairy tale retellings will likely find Pearl of Magic to be a compelling read, and the larger Fairy Tale Royals series shows promise for more magical stories to come.