Daughter of the Pirate King

It is important to note that Daughter of the Pirate King is only the first installment in a larger duology. The sequel, titled Daughter of the Siren Queen, builds upon the budding romance and larger plotline that is established in the first installment, which ends on a cliffhanger. In Daughter of the Pirate King, Alosa purposefully allows herself to be captured by Riden and Draxen, the sons of a pirate lord named Jeskor, who was known to have been in possession of one third of the legendary Isla de Canta treasure map before his death. Riden and Draxen intend to hold Alosa for ransom in an attempt to gain her father’s third of the map, but they are unaware that Alosa’s captivity is just a ruse to allow her to search their ship for their piece of the map. While onboard, however, she develops feelings for Riden that make her question her loyalty to her father and examine her siren ancestry more closely. Daughter of the Pirate King also introduces many minor characters and relationship dynamics that will become major elements in the sequel. For example, the introduction of various Ava-lee pirates as well as the addition of Kearan and Enwen to Alosa’s nearly all-female crew establish the groundwork for the sequel to more thoroughly explore these characters. Likewise, the first installment establishes that the enigmatic figure of “Theris” is really Vordan in disguise; the fact that he is still alive and in possession of the map at the end of the novel foreshadows his inevitable reappearance in the sequel, as Alosa still needs to locate all pieces of the map before she can pursue the treasure. The brutal nature and unnamed secrets of Alosa’s father are also implied in Daughter of the Pirate King, along with his strange ability to resist Alosa’s siren powers, and these aspects foreshadow the fact that he will become the primary antagonist in the sequel.

In Daughter of the Siren Queen, Alosa continues her chase for the legendary treasure referenced in Daughter of the Pirate King. The power dynamics among the cast of characters also shift considerably because this time, both Draxen and Riden must experience the reality of captivity while the narrative portrays Alosa in a position of power. Alosa’s elevated status as captain of the Ava-lee also highlights the fact that she must operate with much higher stakes; unlike her solitary scheming in the Daughter of the Pirate King, she must now balance her long-term ambitions to find the treasure with the daily burdens of leadership. Thus, in Daughter of the Siren Queen, Alosa capably captains her own crew and enacts her own agenda and, for the first time, dares to work against the will of her father. After Alosa discovers her father’s darkest secret—that he has held her siren mother captive in a secret room for years—she is forced to betray him and confront the part of herself that she has always feared and learned to hate: her siren heritage and powers. Alosa’s character thus undergoes extensive changes in the conclusion to the series, even as her romance with Riden develops further.