Sexy and filled with swagger and solid world building, The Sea Witch is a great ride. I enjoyed this more than I have any of Leigh’s historical romances – I loved the fantastic way the magic is employed. It’s not a perfect book but it’s a good start to a new series.

It’s 1719, and Alys Tanner is about to be burned as a witch – women are forbidden to practice magic – but she has the power to free herself. When she does, she races away from Colonial Massachusetts with her fellow captives, claims a ship as her own, names it The Sea Witch, and proceeds to commit piracy with an all-female crew made partially of witches across the Caribbean. At least, it’s all female until the group runs afoul of Ben Priestley a year into their journey.

Ben is a navigator for the Royal Navy who’s bowled over to be taken prisoner by a bunch of female pirates. The crown has been chasing these women forever for acts of piracy in the vain hope of controlling the Carribe for themselves. To say he mistrusts Alys is selling his feelings short. But lust soon intervenes – which might become love. Alys and Ben discover that they have much bigger fish to fry. A mysterious force threatens both parties, forcing Ben and Alys to work together. Can they put their differences aside to find harmony?

Well, definitely – in more ways than one. Sensual, adventuresome and enthralling, The Sea Witch is blessed with good characters, a tension-filled romance, and a magical system that actually works and ends up adding to the book. It’s a solid fantasy romance that believably takes the leads from enemies to lovers. 

The book does a solid job of explaining the history of the time, and the horrors that the slave trade wrought upon the world. It also addresses the repressive elements that occur when one ends up trying to battle for their life against puritan forces. Additionally, Ben is more than a little changed by his time with the crew, and it’s fun to see it.

Fans of the Pirates of the Caribbean series – especially those who love Elizabeth Swann – will probably go nuts for this book. It’s a breeze to read and a delight to dig into – and it has me excited for the rest of the series. Considering the glut of mediocre romantasy books now saturating the market, that’s a true-blue miracle unto itself.