One of my favorite romantasy books yet!

Soulgazer set sails in July, and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since! Saoirse and Faolan have such undeniable chemistry that it makes them hard to forget. This book will genuinely have you on the edge of your seat as they embark on their adventure, and it’s a wild one!!! I’m so excited for book two, but for now I’ll be sitting here thinking about how much I loved this book!

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

This was a fun, high seas adventure with a man who wants to be a legend and a woman with magic she doesn't want and doesn't understand.

Saoirse is cursed with the magic of a Soulgazer and since a young age has been hidden away until her parents pledged to wed her to the ruthless Stone King. She knows she has to run and when she actually encounters her childhood legend, the Wolf of the Wild she binds herself to him and his pirate crew. He will help her get rid of her magic if she helps him find a lost island.

Their journey in the sea and together are rough but they also find a place where they belong... with each other. They have threats everywhere but they cling to each other through it all, even when they don't understand each other pulls to what they want.

I cannot wait for another book to see what they can become together after that end!

Here I am, once again, and I've managed to read a completely different book than all the other reviewers...because wth.

This story is incomplete. It is missing so much story/world building/character development/romance/magic system/EVERYTHING to be an adequate foundation for a series. AND THIS PREMISE SOUNDED SO GOOD.

The romance is non-existent and TBH I feel like the MMC was kinda a jerk and I was hoping a new love interest would swoop in.

I wanted to like this and I didn't down right hate it but it needs so much more. Most of it just feels disconnected and rushed. I can't say that I enjoyed any piece of it and I don't think I'll be continuing with the series.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to review this title. I attest that I am leaving my review voluntarily and honestly.

In a stunning, Celtic-inspired fantasy world, Maggie Rapier has woven a unique and haunting story of a woman trying to escape the cruelty of her family and the man who saves her in exchange for her help finding an impossible legend.

Saoirse has been confined for the past seven years of her life because of the magical curse that killed her older brother. When she is sent to the kingdoms-wide affair where young people frolic and find their future spouses, Saoirse is content to simply get through the night and enjoy being briefly freed from her cage--as long as she doesn't touch anyone, lest her curse find its next victim. But then she meets the Wolf of the Wild, a gorgeous pirate whose ambitions align with her desire to escape. When her father unexpectedly betroths Saoirse to the cold Stone King, the Wolf helps Saoirse flee the impending horror by agreeing to a hand fasting ritual that will effectively marry them and allow for the protection of the Wolf's monarch. But Saoirse's expectations of their mutually beneficial arrangement continue to be thwarted as their lives continue to become further intertwined, and could prove to either save or damn the world they live in, as well as their own souls.

This book immediately comes at you with gorgeous, lyrical prose. If you're not interested in "flowery language", this one may be harder to read. But the prose is evocative and truly beautiful. The characters feel real, even if their time on page is minimal. The world is viscerally felt, a character unto itself. You feel the emotions and turmoil of Saoirse as she navigates the uncertainties of her circumstances in a way that at times felt almost painful, given her history. Which brings me to one of my first points that I think any potential reader should keep in mind: Saoirse's family, especially her father, is extremely cruel, and the physical/emotional abuse she is subjected to is keenly felt. Her father's inherent hate, and the complicity of her mother and those who work for them, seem to know no bounds, to the point that it felt like I was reading trauma porn. Though I know the story will continue and Saoirse will only further come into her own as an individual and as one with magic, her abuse is a fundamental part of the book that affects almost every aspect of the story. At times, this made it difficult for me to get through; it really feels as though Saoirse is the unluckiest woman of all time. Definitely check content warnings, especially if you don't want to read about extensive psychological trauma inflicted by family members.

All that said, I still absolutely loved my time reading this. The unfolding of the love story between Saoirse and Faolan, while wracked with secrets, omitted truths and transforming expectations of what they are to each other, feels very realistic. Their turbulent attraction to each other lends to fevered scenes of exploration that remain seated in a natural trust and protectiveness that undercuts all of the distrust they have of their lives otherwise. Even when they don't quite trust each other, there's an undeniable pull that makes perfect sense in the wake of their individual traumas, and it is shown beautifully.

I CANNOT wait for the next book, especially after that cliffhanger. (My lips are sealed; everything is a spoiler).

In an attempt to keep this review relatively short, I'll stop there, only to say that I would highly recommend this book, especially to anyone who wants a tale of piracy, magic, the blood ties of relatives vs. the family we choose, and whether our fates are truly inevitable.

So many thanks to NetGalley and Ace for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review!

🌶️

Rating: 4.75 stars

Review posted to StoryGraph: July 4, 2025 (https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/12e3d092-fead-4858-9ebc-44c7ee59ca4a)
Review posted to Instagram: August 27, 2025 (https://www.instagram.com/p/DN3r5ypYg8L/)

Thank you to Berkley for the free book.
I LOVED this. I cannot wait for more, I could tell this was written with so much thought and care. The worldbuilding unfolded seamlessly.

We have a happy go lucky pirate and a moody emo gal with powers no one understands (including herself) paired up in a mutually convenient partnership. She gets to escape an arranged marriage and her abusive father, and he gets the key to finding lost land that fulfills a bargain made for his freedom. But then of course there’s high stakes messy magic, they end up married to each other, dynamic found family, unwanted feelings (but are they mutual 👀), a quest that didn’t drag at all (I have a high standard for quests I’ve found SO many to just be filler but this is when the seamless worldbuilding came in), complicated bio family dynamics across the board, and at times disastrous twists and turns.

This has tension and steam and I wouldn’t call it fade to black but more like selectively described artistic spice? lol not what I’d call capital S Spicy.

This is the start of a connected series but I didn’t feel like the end was some kind of tortuous cliffhanger, it’s more like I’m just so excited to encounter a Romantasy I truly have no criticism about. It’s really been a minute for me for that 🙏

I am still not over the gorgeous cover on this debut pirate romantasy, it's absolute perfection. Rapier's story within is original and propulsive. The worldbuilding is phenomenal, as is the development of the relationship between sheltered, cursed Saoirse and her silver-tongued pirate Faolan. The ship's crew as found family are the icing on the fantasy story cake. I cannot wait to know what happens in book two of The Magpie and The Wolf duology.

An achingly beautiful story about a girl trapped by fear and a pirate that helps her face it. Maggie has crafted a rich story, using beautiful prose to explore the way that purity culture traps young women and makes them fearful of their desires, their bodies, and their power. I’m hoping we’ll see more of the islands and get a stronger since of how the magic works in book two, but a beautiful way to begin this adventure!

The plot and worldbuilding were very weak, with an ill-defined magic system, settings that lacked descriptive details, and legends and histories that were very poorly explained.

I read fantasy to be transported to a new and fascinating world or setting, surrounded by interesting characters who'll draw me into their story. Unfortunately, this book failed to convince me that I was sailing with a group of pirates. This book also failed to convey the importance of breaking Saoirse's curse and finding the elusive Isle of Souls.

While I liked the FMC (innocent and naive 19-year-old Saoirse and her ever-changing eyes) and MMC (overly confident 26-year-old Faolan), they felt severely underdeveloped. The author attempts to create complex and nuanced characters but fails to do so effectively because the stories of their trauma were spoonfed to the readers in an overly simplistic manner.

Also, being a captain of a ship and talking like a pirate doesn't actually make you a pirate... As far as I can tell, Faolan is not a pirate (despite everyone calling him as such). I believe Faolan is actually a privateer since he's employed by the queen of his island... Because of this fact, he and his crew are basically full of themselves and are not as badass as they think they are.

With that being said, given that this is the first book of a duology, I'll give this series the benefit of the doubt and assume that all my issues noted above would be resolved and expanded upon in the next book. But overall, it feels like the worldbuilding and characters needed to be fleshed out more.

This is such a breathtaking cover and so captivating.
Saoirse is a captive princess useless to her father other than making alliances and everyone else is scared of her.
Her alliance with a pirate to escape was full of banter and charged moments. Faolan the Wolf and his crew were all too ready to welcome her aboard . They were all keeping secrets from their pasts and of their abilities.
I really enjoyed the time on the ship. Love a one bed situation. Though it was more of a slow burn, they didn’t know where each other stood for a while. Really loved the moment when they let all their feelings known.
There were mythical isles, soul stones and plotting kings.

4.5 stars!!!

truly the pirate romance i've been CRAVING!!! if you enjoy pirates of the caribbean but wanted something a little spicier with a whole lot more magic, then you NEED to read this book!!!

i went through every single emotion reading this book. i was laughing, swooning and maybe even tearing up. i love both saoirse & faolan so much!! each are going through their own struggles and overcoming obstacles, learning how to be happy. & their relationship together is so sweet !!!

i really like how unique this book was! the plot twists kept me on the edge of my seat. but it was easy to pick up the world building without losing sight of the story (which i love)

i'm stressed for book 2 & need it asap plssss

thank you so much Berkley Romance, Berkley Pub & Ace Books for the eARC & the gifted finished copy! this is my honest review.

Rating: 4.5⭐️ | Spice: 2🌶️ | Audio: 5🎙️
What to Expect:
Romantasy
Marriage of Convenience
Gaelic/Irish gods
Found Family
Fate/Curses

Thank you so much @acebookpub for the ARC @prhaudio for this gifted audiobook!

“Daughter of the knowing sea, Gaze sworn long ago to me Captive soul, your blood shall free The Isle of the Lost.”

Review Title & Vibes:
{AYE IT’S A PIRATES LIFE FOR ME} This is an epic tale of the Gaelic gods and their descendants, of royals and pirates, of bargains and backstabbing.

It gave Pirates of the Caribbean vibes and I loved every second of it. Faolan “The Wolf” is the silver tongued pirate obsessed with stories and adventures. Saoirse “The Magpie” is the delicate princess bound by “a curse” who finds freedom and strength in the end. Their journey to find the Isle of Lost Souls is fraught with disaster and desire. The multiple timelines and magical elements were unique and captivating.

Things I Loved:
-The belonging and found family (complete with matching tattoos)
-The slow burn - marriage in name only.. until she’s curious. (And I love that she gets curious.)
-Some justice but not enough to satisfy me completely (In fiction - I’m a vengeful beast) -The set up for Book 2 (I’m hooked that’s for damn sure.)

Audio Notes:
{dual} I loved the narration. I was completely immersed in the storytelling. The emotion bled through my headphones (too graphic?! I don’t care.) Plus a little pov switch up with Eric Nolan in the epilogue - Chefs kiss. I highly recommend this audiobook.

Recommended to... 
Anyone looking to spice up their romance reading with pirate-y yumminess.

Narrated by @alanakerrcollins @ericanthonynolan
Produced by @prhaudio
Published by @acebookpub

There are definitely elements of this book that are inspired by Ireland and the myths of Ireland. A lot of the names and titles and all of that are pretty much pulled straight from Irish history, and I’m not complaining. I love stories inspired by the myths and folklore of Ireland and Scotland.

I was also intrigued by the idea of volatile magic, though the synopsis doesn’t give any other clues about what kind of magic it is. I’ll be honest, this is part of what brought my rating down a bit. It took so long to start to get an understanding of Saoirse’s magic, because it took Saoirse until probably the mid-point of the book before she started trying to understand the magic more instead of being afraid of it and thinking of it as a curse.

Yes, I understand that if you’ve been told your whole life that something is bad and wrong and a curse, you definitely hold onto that mentality, even after being told by others and even learning that it might not be as bad as you’ve been trained to believe. But it was still just a long frustrating build.

Speaking of a long build, it took quite a while before Saoirse and Faolan allowed themselves to really start getting physical with each other. Oh man, the tension of that build up…because it was pretty clear that they were interested in each other from the beginning.

This definitely has a Romance build up, but I felt like I could have used a bit more on the Fantasy side of things before starting to call this a Romantasy. I wanted to know more about the world and the culture and the history and the magic….basically I’m a fantasy reader who wants all the Worldbuilding and such. And since the romance aspect was a slow build up, I think there was time in the beginning to really expand the reader’s knowledge of the world.

But, maybe that’s just me. I know some Romance and Romantasy readers will be just fine with what is established in this story and world so far. Me? I’m hoping we’ll get a little more info in the second book of the duology.

I read this book pretty quickly, only taking two reading sessions (although one reading session was while I was at work so there were multiple brief interruptions to do actual work-related duties).

Also, let’s just give a shout out to that cover, because Saoirse is staring straight into the reader/viewer’s soul, which is very fitting considering her magic and the book’s title.

Overall, I had an enjoyable time reading this, and I am looking forward to seeing how complicated everything gets in the conclusion novel.

I tried multiple times to get into this book and only ever made it to around 20%. I found myself lost in the plot and didn’t ever really feel like I was going to get it

3.5 stars
This was an interesting read and at times I found myself glued to the pages to learn more about Saoirse and Faolan and their quest to find the isle of lost souls. It has one of my favorite tropes (marriage of convenience) and I was loving all those moments. But some of the world building was a bit confusing and it all added up that I was a tad confused pretty far into the book and it kept me disconnected from the story. I’m hoping with hindsight, I can return to the story in the future and understand more. The story arc of this book was wrapped up, but we’re far from a happy ending and I’m curious to see what will go down in book two!

I had a blast with this book! I am always down for a pirate x princess story and this one did not disappoint! The marriage of convenience aspect of this book was so fun. I was rooting for Saoirse to carve a life for herself away from her horrible father and was so happy to see her use a handsome pirate to do it. I loved her dynamic with Faolan! It was so fun to watch them fight their feelings because the marriage is "temporary" and "not real". It warmed my heart watching Saoirse come to terms with her value despite all the work her dad did to make her doubt it. Faolan and Saoirse make such a great pair. It's clear they are well suited for each other and I can't wait to see what happens in book 2 because that ending definitely let me wanting more.

DNF..I couldn’t get into the storyline. I tried but it just wasn’t for me though. I won’t be leaving a review on other sites.

I think that everyone need pirates, romances, fantasy all mixed together and escape to this world.
This did and excellent job and I thoroughly enjoyed it
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

📣 marriage of convenience romantasy. Sign me up!

Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary ARC. All opinions provided are my own.

📖 what are your Sunday plans? We went to visit family in Kentucky this weekend, but I pushed through & drove us back last night. So glad I did, because now we have a relaxingly productive day ahead of us! I’m probably going to clean my floors & maybe make homemade pasta with my husband later. Hopefully fit in some couch time too 💁🏻‍♀️.

Although this book took me a while to get into, once it picked up for me, it picked up in a great way. Soulgazer by Maggie Rapier is a yummy marriage of convenience romatasy set on the high seas. The stakes are high, the secrets are big, & the “my wife” references are killer.

Saoirse has been isolated from her family after a tragedy they all blame her curse for. Promised to the Stone King, she chooses her own path instead, winding up with The Wolf of the Wild. The Wolf is a charmer with a lover in every port, but his rep is no match for our heroine.

This book has so many things romance fans love, including a sickbed scene. Though it was confusing for me at first, listening on audio really helped. By the end, this romantasy really delivered.

4.5 ⭐️, out now.

CWs: death, ghosts, branding, violence.

[ID: Jess holds the ebook in front of a pond with trees.]

Rapier's descriptive writing, compelling characters, and visceral setting immediately sucked me into the story like the tide, and it still has yet to remove its claws from my mind. Saoirse is not only a relatable hero, but she is also someone to aspire to. Both grounded and surreal, this story continues to haunt me long after reading it. I know it won't be long before its sweet siren's call beckons me back beneath the waves.