Prince of Endless Tides: Darkmourn Universe, Book 4

This is my first read from the Darkmourn series, and it can definitely be read as a standalone, but I will absolutely be reading the rest of the series… starting today. *I just bought them all to dive in to this world more throughly.It’s said that “there is nothing new under the sun,” which I know means that everything we see & read today is inspired by something else. This wonderful book takes the old and *makes it new* — it has warring gods inspired by traditional pantheons, definitely some nods to the Hans Christian Andersen’s *Little Mermaid*, as well as supernatural bargains and magic and romance tropes. All these fantasy & adventure elements are embellished with witty dialogue and delightful character development.Even some of the plot twists are a surprise. (A few you can guess at through foreshadowing, so you get to feel clever. 🤓 But there were at least two that surprised me, personally.)Finally, Alderson delivers an HEA that feels clever and fair without an unfulfilling deus ex machina loophole.…and the Epilogue!?! Yep. It’s very cool.

I’ve read several of Ben Alderson’s books and they’re reliable entertainment. His fantasy world-building is good, his plots twist and turn in satisfying ways, and his spice levels are through the roof. I honestly wasn’t sure how this book was going to play out. I like an author who can keep me guessing without making me feel cheated. I don’t know if he’s building up to an Avengers-style crossover with all of his Darkmourn characters, but I’m here for it.This book would certainly appeal to anyone who ever did an idle Google search for fan art of Prince Eric hooking up with King Triton.(Review based on ARC, but I still bought the book.)

Starting my reading goals for this month on a good note. This installment has got to be my favorite within the Darkmourn Universe series so far. Towards the climax of the plot once everything started clicking, Alderson’s choices of dialogue impressively made me teary eyed. Hats off to him! (If you ever read this, I am wishing you the best of luck in your writing. You deserve every bit of success you have! <3)

Ok so I read the first three Darkmourn books in a matter of like a week and a half. They were so so interesting and drew me in quickly and the drama and spice were *chef’s kiss*. But ultimately I really enjoyed how each story was its own, while still having ties to the overall series. Like there was a defined timeline that I could easily work out between the first three books, there were character callbacks and overlaps, and the creatures all tied together somehow. But then I got to POET and it was a bit different. The story was just as good as the others, don’t get me wrong! But the whole time I was like “ok but how does this really relate to the other stories and characters? When the heck does this even take place??” There was really only one or two recurring details throughout the novel that even hinted at this being in the Darkmourn universe rather than a truly standalone story… Until the epilogue, that is. And then I was like “OOOOHHH!” So yeah! If you liked the first three books, definitely give this one a read. It’s a bit different and a tad bit slower to get to any real spice if that’s what you’re looking for. But by the end I was squealing at how it all started to weave together. I’m ready for a next installment, pleeease! :)

Another incredible installment to the series!! I absolutely love that they are stand alone but still clearly from the same universe as the other books in the series. I highly recommend this book! Likeable, well rounded characters, exciting plot, and plenty of very HOT scenes! Can't wait to see what Ben Anderson comes up with next!!

I can get behind a slow burn, but this was too slow! Sorry!! I enjoy the universe and the writing and the characters but it took over 300 pages for anything to happen!

Full disclosure: I'm a writer and an editor, so I look at things with an extremely close eye. I did notice many editing errors in the ARC I was sent, which hopefully were corrected in the final proof. I doubt they'd throw off someone who cared less about such things, but they threw me off because of the nature of my work. That said, I enjoyed the world building here quite a bit and want to explore more of Alderson's other books. While the romance between our "mermaid" and Sea Witch was expected, the tenderness and compassion were added bonuses. Thanks for a fun read!

How I read the book: E-bookRomance: Enemies to loversFavorite quote: “‘Princeling, you are my choice. My decision. I don’t say any of this because I’m in debt to you. I say it because I can. Because I want to.’”Favorite Character: KillianReading rating: 4.5 ⭐️Other rating: 4🌶Review: Wow! I will say this is the first book in the darkmourn universe that I am reading, however I will not be my last! Killian and Ernest are the cutest couple and I cannot believe that they were truly as intertwined with each other as they were but I hope to see more of them and what lies ahead in the next book for sure! Definite must read.

Wow great book this is the first I read from this author and I throughly loved it can’t wait to read the next book in this series,,I know one thing this author really has a great imagination to write this book.

I must say after the last two books I read this one felt like a treat. I forgot how much fun reading a book is when I don’t dislike the writing style lol. Although dear Ernest made me wanna bang my head against a wall a few times and Killian acted kinda of weird at the beginning… well I loved it haha. I liked the story and the character and how they grew with the story. I could barely put the book down.

I finished it in one day! I love Ben's books, his characters are so charming and the plotwists are god tier (in my opinion, of course). This was definetly my favourite Darkmourn book!

This review feels very disjointed, but I had a lot to say and I didn't want to miss anything out, so I apologise in advance for that!In this "Little Mermaid" retelling, in a world with gods and monsters, Prince Ernest of Ire, who was gifted magic by a god, uses his voice to keep the people in a trance, to believe him and his father to be the true king and heir of the kingdom and love them, to keep his father happy. When his father is not happy, people die. He even threatened the life of Ernest's not-so-secret lover, Hadeon, early on in the book! Very dramatic, very quickly. Without spoiling too much, things go sideways, Ernest ends up bitten by a Mer, which means that in just a few days, he'll be a monster, just like them. Then he meets Killian Metropoli, nicknamed "the sea witch", and they make a bargain to help each other out.I found Ben Alderson on TikTok a few months ago, and I've got some of his other books on Kindle, but I haven't got around to reading them yet, so POET was my introduction to his writing. I've seen so many videos about his books, and frankly I wasn't sure what to expect, and I worried that it had gotten hyped up in my mind and that the actual story would leave me disappointed. Let me tell you: it did not!! From chapter 1, I was intrigued. From chapter 2, I was hooked. From about 30% through, I couldn't put it down!!You can definitely see the influence of "The Little Mermaid" on this story, from the names to the sea creatures to descriptions of people, yet this is nothing like the Disney version! Trigger warnings for blood and gore, and explicit adult content. But this isn't just violence and smut - there's a story! A really fascinating story, where I kept wanting, needing, to find out what happens next—frankly, I would describe this book as "unputdownable"!There are two narrators: Prince Ernest who, for the majority of the book, is in the process of becoming a Mer, and Killian, who's half man, half monster. The story is told in first person from both narrators, and the chapters are not very long - all of which get big bonus points from me, as that's exactly how I love for my books to be! The narration is wonderful, I highlighted so many thoughts, feelings and events that just were beautifully written and made me feel all the feels! I loved the main characters so much, they're so dynamic, they're strong yet vulnerable, their chemistry was wonderful, and I would 1000% read another story about them!This is the 4th book in the Darkmourn universe; however, all the books are standalones, and I seem to remember reading somewhere that this is a good introduction, if you've not read the rest of the series. I had no issues working out what's what in this world, and it read entirely as a standalone novel to me! The epilogue is where it ties in with the rest of the universe - and thankfully, I already have books 1 and 2, which I will definitely be reading soon!TLDR: Read this book if you want a "Little Mermaid" retelling with a gay prince, a male sea witch, gods and monsters, violence and spice! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars!

Where do I even start?!Move over Marvel Cinematic Universe, here is Ben Alderson's Darkmourn Literary Universe! The DLU if you will.This 4th installment of the series was a fantastic reimagining and blending of the inspo material, I loved the character development and world building, the crescendo of the story, and OMG that "post credit scene"!!!Looking forward to what other tales await us from the DLU and the workings of Ben.