Seagrass Maggie

by Charles Allen

Ireland 1841. As her parents sleep, an infant girl is snatched away by the hands of the creatures from the Deep Dens in the western ocean—the fomori. Years later, she is mysteriously saved from them, and surfaces near the shores of Kilkee. New to the 19th century world where she once belonged, she uncovers that a changeling has taken her place and stolen her life.

To get justice, Maggie must find and face the changeling before the King of the Fomorians locates her. As the serpentine blood runs through her veins, Maggie fights her animalistic tendencies as it begins to change her body back into its monstrous form. She finds the changeling in Dublin, but a powerful banker with ties to the Dublin underbelly, practices sorcery to use the changeling for his own transcendence toward godhood, making the hunt far more dangerous. As the fomori manipulate the circumstances to draw her into a trap, she must escape them or be taken back into the hellish depths of the sea and suffer its terrors for the rest of her life.

374 pages, Hardcover

Published September 15, 2023

Reviews

[Park Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first thing to say about Seagrass Maggie is that the first thing it reminded me of was Nancy A. Collins' Sonja Blue series. Not that it's derivative, or even all that similar, but it's just such an EASY read (like Sonja Blue was). The second thing is that it is chock-full of the supernatural-- like Sonja Blue was, but honestly even slightly more so. This is because Seagrass Maggie benefits from its setting in a very specific time and place in the past, whereas Sonja Blue was kind of "and what if it was all real and happening today?!" On the other hand, Seagrass Maggie always has something happening. It is just one damn' thing after another with Seagrass Maggie-- which is more than I can say for the first Sonja Blue book, which hit the ground hard and fast and well and then... sort of lagged to catch up with itself until the not-as-strong-as-the-beginning finale. Seagrass Maggie's achievement of never making you look at your watch, figuratively nor literally, is even more impressive given that it's just over 100K words. Readers who really want to lose themselves through full immersion in another world are definitely the people who should grab Seagrass Maggie as their next read: 5 out of 5 stars.

[Chris Hookway · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has a little bit of everything, and should appeal to a wide audience. There is romance, horror, intrigue and fantasy, all rolled into the story. The story allows you to get to know each well developed character, and you find yourself cheering them on the deeper in you get. For me the best part was the use of Irish folklore all throughout which gives the whole story a fantastical richness. I highly recommend this one, and look forward to it’s sequels.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Charles Allen for providing a review copy.
For fans of: dark fantasy, deep sea horror, Irish mythology
What an achievement this book is! It seamlessly genre-blends and kept me on the edge of my seat. I genuinely cared for the characters, and I'm so thrilled that this book is part of a forthcoming trilogy. The blending of Irish myths and horror worked perfectly and I can't wait to see what happens next.

[David Charleston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Horror, Irish mythology, dark fantasy and a period setting! I loved it all! A little Stephan King and a little Neil Gaiman. I loved Maggie and her relationship with Cuan is fun to watch.

[Isabella Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked the book. I was hooked on the book in the first few pages. It was nice of Seagrass Maggie was nice enough not to go to her parents and tell them who she was and what happened to her. I also liked how they worked together thru the story. How they became good friends. This is the kind of book I like to read.

[Joan Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank You Charles Allen

Here is my review on the second book of the Seagrass Maggie Trilogy.

Seagrass Maggie
The Order of the Red God
A Graveyard of Ships


Sawgrass Maggie introduces the reader to the Legend of Seagrass Maggie. Irish / Norse Mythology is blended with Classic Horror Creatures in this fast pace adventure story. This is part one of a three part trilogy. All three books can be read as standalone or in the order they fall in the trilogy.

I really fell for many of the characters. Some Villians were written so well, you wanted to take action to help the protagonist yourself.

This is a perfect read for St Patrick's Day holiday. I would love to see these characters on the Silverscreen or the smaller screen.

Supernatural
Occult
Profanity/ Adult Content
Irish / Norse Mythology and Folklore

Ireland

[Hailey Owen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adored this novel! It was super fast paced and the multiple perspectives were done so well! I enjoyed the Irish Lore and fell in love with all the characters. This was all new to me as I have never read Irish lore before.

Usually books that are jam packed with characters and different timelines can get confusing for the reader but I felt that the story flowed smoothly. The story continued to do so even as the timeline jumped. (That’s a huge plus in my book!)

I know this novel is bordering on dark fantasy. This was for good reason as it was horrific in many parts! There were times I was biting my nails, tearing up from happiness, and genuinely terrified. Chas is very descriptive with his writing. I can’t wait to see where the rest of the trilogy brings us!

Thank you so much for the novel and I can’t wait to read the rest of the trilogy!