About the Sinker Duology
The Little Mermaid crosses paths with Captain Hook in an upcoming young adult fantasy duology where a siren princess accidentally saves an enemy from a shipwreck.
Sinker is the first book, which is set in the Fair Faurine universe.
This duology is perfect for fans of The Cruel Prince and Pirates of the Caribbean.
Artwork by @illustratinghan
COMING 2025 / 2026
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As the eldest daughter of the merfolk king, Ula is expected to be the perfect heir. But behind the mask, she is a Sinker by night, using her siren abilities to capsize human ships with a ring of specialized knights. Her father would never allow it if he knew, but Sinking is the closest Ula can get to escaping the life she never wanted— and she will do anything to protect her home from pirates.
Seamus “Hook” Arrigan is not supposed to exist. As the illegitimate heir to the lochfolk throne, Hook lives with a bounty on his head, issued by his own father as a political ploy. Forced to flee his home at a young age and seek refuge in saltwater territory among human sailors, Hook has made a dangerous name for himself as one of Fair Faurine’s most notorious pirates.
When a galleon capsizes on its own, Ula tries to help the innocent survivors, accidentally saving the fabled heir to the enemy throne instead. But the rescue goes wrong, and after Ula’s secret is exposed, she is forced to abandon knighthood and embrace her role as heir through an arranged marriage.
In a desperate escape attempt, Ula and Hook find themselves on the same ship. Although an alliance would go against everything they believe in, they strike a deal: they’ll work together to find the Eye of the Sea— the legendary artifact fueling the war between their kingdoms— and destroy it, ending the conflict and hopefully their problems.
Ula and Hook begin to rely on each other for survival, and perhaps something more. But as stakes rise, the two are quick to realize that there are greater things to fear than each other— and trusting every tale told is a dangerous game.
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Here’s how Sinker was born.
I started the first draft of Sinker at the end of March 2023. However, the idea had been floating in my head for about a year before that. I’ve always wanted to create a collection of fairytale “mashups”—books that contain bits and pieces of inspiration from classic stories we know and love, but with a new or interesting twist.
The first idea that came to mind was actually Fable and Blight, the first book in the Foxfire trilogy. Back in 2021, after I finished writing the first draft of Lone Player, this visual popped in my head—a giant tree in some sort of fantasy setting with fae and other fun creatures—and I thought of how interesting it would be if this group of folk were connected to it somehow.
Foxfire’s characters and plot developed quickly after that, with the help of my brother. The summer before I started taking classes at the JC, we’d go on daily walks to the picnic table at the park to brainstorm ideas. We still call this “the Fable and Blight table.”
Jack was born from this idea, who you will meet in Sinker.
Fable and Blight was put on hold for a while, since I was busy getting Lone Player ready for publication.
However, sometime in the middle of that, I had another idea.
I always thought it would be fun to write an alternate version of The Little Mermaid, and somehow I ended up throwing Captain Hook in there too. That idea lived in my head for months, nothing more than a premise and a few songs on a Spotify playlist. But I kept it in the back of my mind, and by late March 2023, I had pretty much the entire thing plotted out in my head. I eventually realized that I wanted it to be a part of the Fair Faurine collection, and that it made a lot more sense for Sinker to come before Fable and Blight.
I started the first draft in Spring of 2023 and I’ve been slowly working on it ever since, between Lone Player and Cut Deck drafts.
Sinker will be published in 2025. The official release date has yet to be announced, so stay tuned for updates!
