The sea gives life, but it also takes it away ... A dark and thrilling tale about mermaids and sea-magic, love, betrayal and revenge from the Sunday Times bestselling author of After the Forest

Winner - Best Fantasy Novel at the Aurealis Awards 2025

Saint-Malo, Brittany, 1758. To Lucinde Leon, the youngest daughter of a wealthy French shipowner, the high walls of Saint-Malo are more hindrance than haven.

While her sisters are busy trying to secure advantageous marriages, Luce spends her days secretly being taught to sail by Samuel, her best friend - and an English smuggler. Only he understands how the waves call to her. Then one stormy morning, Luce rescues a drowning man from the sea.

Immediately drawn in by the stranger's charm, Luce is plunged into a world of glittering balls and faerie magic, seduction and brutality. Secrets that have long been lost in the shadowy depths of the ocean begin to rise to the surface, but as Luce wrestles with warring desires, she finds that her own power is growing brighter and brighter, shining like a sea-glass slipper ... Or the scales of a sea-maid's tail.

PRAISE

'A magnificent blend of reimagined fairytale and epic adventure, anchored by excellent research and buoyed by brilliant writing. This is a must-read!' Juliet Marillier, award-winning author of the Sevenwaters and Blackthorn & Grim series

'A dark and enchanting twist on two fairy tales in one, Upon a Starlit Tide will draw you into its depths

from the very first page' Genevieve Gornichec, author of The Weaver and the Witch Queen

'A dark, glittering blend of history, fairy tale, and romance, steeped in magic and shot through with adventure. Absorbing, beautifully written, and utterly spellbinding' H.G. Parry, author of The Magician's Daughter

'Upon a Starlit Tide firmly establishes Kell Woods as a master storyteller, with an ability to manipulate the most appealing archetypes and legends into a fantasy uniquely her own. Starlit Tide is the perfect cocktail of historical detail, myth-stery and magic, with characters and a setting so wildly romantic you won't want the heart-rush to end' Jo Riccioni, bestselling author of The Branded and The Rising

'A tapestry of sea and starlight, romance and heartbreak, a journey to the truth of self. Utterly enchanting' Angela 'A.G.' Slatter, award-winning author of The Briar Book of the Dead

'I was absolutely enchanted, immersed in a world of shipwrecks, smugglers, and magic stone. Intricately plotted with a twist as powerful as a mermaid's kiss, this novel will be on every fairytale lover's wishlist' Lauren Chater, bestselling author of The Winter Dress and The Beauties

'To enter a world fashioned by Kell Woods is to be entirely won over by magic and history. Upon a Starlit Tide is enchanting in every sense of the word. Drawing on stories we know well, Kell Woods presents us with something deliciously and thrillingly new, alert to women's secret desires ... I could have floated in the lagoon of this story forever' Hayley Scrivenor, bestselling author of Girl Falling

'A beautiful, dark and magical tale that cleverly weaves together several classic stories and overlays them with a fresh feminist lens. Woods' writing is rich and her storytelling compelling. The sea and the Saint Malo setting are characters in their own right - enchanting and mercurial - and I was completely swept away' Vanessa McCausland, author of The Last Illusion of Paige White

'An enchanting read, as rich with historical detail as it is with magic, with surprising beings around every corner and a sea-foundling with special gifts and a grand, dark secret. The novel mines the material of fairy tales in a unique and delightful way that fantasy fans will love' Louisa Morgan, author of A Secret History of Witches

'A gorgeous, atmospheric tale full of glittering fae and wild magic, Upon a Starlit Tide will sweep you away in its waters and bury your heart at the bottom of the sea' Mary McMyne, author of The Book of Gothel

'Upon a Starlit Tide shimmers darkly, like polished sea glass, as hauntingly beautiful in the ocean's depths as in the grandeur of aristocratic courts. With an intoxicating blend of history, magic, and forbidden love, this lyrical fairytale reimagining sweeps you away on tides of enchantment' Lyra Selene, bestselling author of A Feather So Black

'I was spellbound from start to finish. Kell Woods' lyrical prose dances off every page, sweeping the reader into a world of delicate opulence, stormy desire, and knife-sharp betrayals. It is historical fantasy at its absolute best, a lush, nuanced depiction of 18th Century France that sparkles with magic' Sarah Street, author of A Curse of Salt

'Woods enchants in this sophisticated fairy tale that riffs on both The Little Mermaid and Cinderella ... Readers will be enthralled' Publishers Weekly Starred Review

'Full of adventure and romance and dripping with mythos and legend. This poetic, passionate, delightful, delicious fantasy is pure literary honey for the fairy-tale hungry heart!' Cindy L Spear, writer and reviewer

'An evocative blend of fairytale and history that had me hooked from the very first page. A mesmerising tale of mermaids, high seas adventure and finding the courage to be yourself against all odds' Pamela Cook