Love in the Deep

Underwater Love Month

In our latest dive into romance novels, we explored the mysterious and enchanting world of underwater love featuring mythical sea creatures and their complex relationships with humans. Our focus for the first podcast episode of this month centered around two distinct novels: “The Kraken’s Sacrifice” by Katee Robert and “The Selkie” by Melanie Jackson.

Meghan Leigh’s Book: The Kraken’s Sacrifice by Katee Robert

“The Kraken’s Sacrifice,” published in 2022, introduces readers to Catalina and Thane. Catalina is a woman with profound insecurity issues stemming from childhood neglect. Thane, is a widowed Kraken King still mourning his husband after five years. The novel presents a fascinating premise where Catalina signs a contract with a demon, exchanging seven years of her life for a substantial cash payoff. The contract specifies no harm may befall her during her service, and any intimate relations must be consensual. This surprisingly ethical approach to demon dealings creates an intriguing foundation for the narrative.

Through an auction process, Catalina is matched with Thane, initiating an unexpected relationship where both characters begin healing from their respective traumas. What makes this novel particularly distinctive is how it addresses gender identity, bodily autonomy, and emotional healing while simultaneously featuring extensive tentacle-based intimacy. (Meghan jokingly suggested the title should be renamed to “Tentacles and Trauma.”) The book presents a progressive view on relationships, emphasizing consent and mutual respect between species, while also delivering substantial spice that earned it a “habanero” rating on our Spicy Scoville scale.

Nicole Danielle’s Book: The Selkie by Melanie Jackson

In contrast, “The Selkie” by Melanie Jackson takes readers to 1920s Scotland, blending historical and paranormal romance elements. The story follows Hesiod “Hexy” Garrow, an American of Scottish descent, and Ruairidh “Rory”O’Uruisg, a Scottish Selkie prince. For readers unfamiliar with selkie mythology, these are creatures that transform between seal and human form by removing or donning their seal skin.

Through a series of coincidences involving spring allergies and mistaken fur coats, Hexy unwittingly summons Rory and temporarily separates him from his selkie skin. Their forced proximity leads to a whirlwind romance developing over mere days — complete with instant pregnancy detection abilities and revelations about Hexy’s mixed Fae and Selkie heritage. The novel incorporates additional sea creatures. This includes finmen (mermen) and marrows, creating a rich mythological landscape rooted in Scottish, Irish, and Norse traditions. (Nicole feels those readers familiar with Outlander, The Secret of Roan Inish, and Trueblood will find connections in this novel between the fae, selkies and Scottish elements.) Nicole ranks this novel somewhere between a reen pepper and a poblano in terms of spiciness.

Underwater Romances

While both novels center on underwater romance, they represent vastly different approaches to the subgenre. “The Kraken’s Sacrifice” offers a more explicit, contemporary take with progressive themes. “The Selkie” presents a more traditional paranormal romance steeped in Celtic mythology. The former delivers its story in a concise 170 pages, while the latter takes a more expansive approach yet struggles with pacing and clarity issues.

What unites these seemingly disparate works is their exploration of connection across different worlds and the healing power of understanding someone fundamentally different from oneself. Both stories suggest sometimes the most profound connections occur when we embrace the unfamiliar — whether that means accepting tentacles or seal skins as part of the package.

Next Up

Our underwater romance exploration continues next with “Whispers of the Deep” by Emma Hamm and “Call of the Sea” by Emily B. Rose, both published in 2024. We anticipate these newer releases might offer fresh perspectives on underwater romance while building on the rich tradition of mythological sea creatures in romantic fiction.

Have you read either of these underwater romances? What did you think of them? Comment below! We’d love to hear from you. Interested in reading these Love in the Deep-themed, romance novels yourself? You can purchase “The Kraken’s Sacrifice” using our affiliate links for The Ripped Bodice here and Amazon here. And you can buy “The Selkie” from The Ripped Bodice here or via Amazon here. To learn more about bestselling author Katee Robert, click here. And to learn more about author Melanie Jackson, click here. Want to listen to the podcast episode? We’re available on pretty much all your favorite podcast streaming services. Or you can visit our podcast player page here.

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