THE WICKED BARGAIN

There’s nothing more treacherous or binding than a deal with the devil.

El Diablo sent the storm that sank La Catalina, one of the last pirate ships in the Caribbean. Mar León de la Rosa grew up hearing how their father traded his soul to save Mar’s life and gain 16 years of prosperity, but they never believed it. Not even Mar’s magia, their secret, dangerous powers of fire and ice, could save their family and shipboard home. Fished out of the sea by Bas, the son of a pirate captain, 16-year-old Mar flounders to hide and control their magia so they can make a new life aboard La Ana, a ship that aids revolutionaries fighting Spanish colonization. Then el Diablo returns with a new bargain: Mar can hand over their own soul to free Papá’s. Set in the summer of 1820 but written in language that feels contemporary, this romantic coming-of-age fantasy offers endearing, flawed heroes, an enticing villain, and high emotional stakes. Bas, Mar’s romantic interest, swaggers with characteristic piratical charm that’s all the more appealing for his earnest eagerness for friendship, gentle kindness, and moments of sweet dorkiness. Novoa heightens the suspense by introducing key details that both foreshadow the danger ahead and reveal more about the world. The characters are primarily Latinx; Cuban and Mexican Mar’s magia is connected to their Mayan heritage. The crew of La Ana includes formerly enslaved Black sailors.

An alluring high-seas adventure.