Heart of the Sea

by L.M. Stone

Seraphina Blackwell is done waiting for her parents to return. Seven years of absence demands answers. So she eagerly embarks on a trip following her dreams and the memories of her parents to reclaim them or else get answers. Which bring her onto the Silver Cutlass and into Captain Malachi’s life.

Captain Malachi has only known life on the high seas. Piracy is more than his career, it’s his existence. From the time he was pulled from the sea as a baby, he’s only known plundering and life aboard a ship. Now, with a beautiful, determined woman, his allegiance to his title of captain starts to waver. When he discovers their dreams lead them to the same mythical island, he cannot help but take her on the voyage while using the time to explore her more intently.

Aboard the Silver Cutlass, dreams and nightmares swirl in equal measures. Among sirens, storms, and monsters that should be dead, can Seraphina and Malachi uncover the meaning behind their dreams in time for it to help them or will all their efforts be in vain? Can love survive the treachery of nightmares and bloodshed or will it only be a passing tragedy?

Unknown Binding

About the author

Liberty is an indie author who was born and raised in Los Angeles. Writing gives her the chance to bring her deliciously twisted thoughts to life, as well as channel her personal experiences and trauma into captivating stories. Don’t worry, she’s all about keeping those wild ideas safely tucked between the pages. Fiction is where the fun happens, after all.

When Liberty isn’t writing, she’s probably gaming, singing her favorite songs at a karaoke bar, or spending time with family and friends. She has a soft spot in her heart for all animals, an unhealthy obsession with crystals, and a deep love for the moon and stars—living by their magic and mystery.

If her stories have you hooked and begging for more, follow Liberty and stalk her (the friendly way) on social media for sneak peeks, updates, and exclusive goodies. Liberty would love to have you along for the wild ride!

Reviews

[Brooklyn L. Wolves · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG!!! I absolutely devoured this book!! This book reminded me of Pirates of the Caribbean On Stranger Tides Movie especially with the sirens and the characters development was chef’s kiss.

🏴‍☠️ Slow burn
🏴‍☠️ Forbidden Love
🏴‍☠️ Opposites Attract
🏴‍☠️ Forced Proximity
🏴‍☠️ Pirate Romance
🏴‍☠️ He Falls First

[ɢʀᴇʏッ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 ⭐️ 2.5 🌶
📖Pages: 324
🗓Release: 01.25.25

MCs: seraphina blackwell ♡ captain malachi

💭 ok hear me out!! i love the pirates of the carribean movies & my go-to when it comes to pirate romance, but im not fluent in pirate . it took me some time to vibe with this. so make sure u tap into ur jack sparrow lingo with the thick accent before diving in & everything will be savvy😅 i loved the sweet hea & especially the found fam!! she lost some & won some. its def different from the others ive read of ✍🏽LM's writing for sure, but entertaining all the same!! its on the lighter side but its always an adventure reading her books♥️

pirate romance | slow🔥| forbidden love | forced proximity | he falls 1st | found family | $talkıng | swashbuckling | kıdnappıng | praise

[Holly Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

A pirates adventure except the FMC is intelligent and can keep up with the banter and keep a captain on his toes at the same time. I love L.M Stones writing style, and in typical form has twists and turns that hit you. This is a lighter fare from the author, and oooo the steamy scenes are incredible. This was such a great book to feel like I was on the ride with them.

[daddysbabygirlreads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a enjoyable story full of pirates, mystery, tension, laughter and what a hea 🥰
Looking forward to checking out more books like this as it was not a normal troupe for me.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️.5

[Michaella · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC Review: Heart of the Sea by L.M. Stone
Rating 5⭐️ and Spice 2.5🌶️

🏴‍☠️This was my first book by L.M Stone and I want more, this book was hot and yet the banter was chefs 💋 I couldn’t stop reading. All I wanted to do was kiss this pirate haha he is ruthless and yet so loving all at the same time

Dead men still tell lies. They are as real and human as the living, but death is never the end. No adventure can ever end just because ‘life’ isn’t a factor anymore. Goals are as intact as bone. Spite is fuel for the spirit like wood for the fire. Grudges ... they are as immortal as some men.

“Y tú. Mi hermosa joya. Eres mio, solo mio. El mar no puede robarte de mi,” ("And you. My beautiful jewel. You are mine, only mine. The sea cannot steal you from me”)

—-TROPES—-
⚓️Fear Play 🌊praise ⚓️Primal Play 🌊Pirates ⚓️Edging
🌊Forbidden Love ⚓️Slow Burn 🌊Forced Proximity

SERAPHINA BLACKWELL— she is a Lady and a Mayor and she wants to find her family, she boards the captains ship and can’t seem to keep away from him, he speaks to her soul more than any man has ever been able to

CAPTAIN MALACHI— he is a pirate of the Silver Cutless, he sees her and knows her heading and wants to help all the same but he is drawn to her whether she turns out to be bad luck, a siren, a spy, or just fate

“I’ll love you like you love me, care for you as you deserve care. Mine and mine alone–stolen by the sea and returned. Come away, come away with me. Into the night, to the sea.”

“Mi preciosa joya. Hermosa. Perfecta,” he croons, his voice in tune with mine. (My precious jewel. Beautiful. Perfect)


“She lifted up his bloody head, Down a down, hey down, hey down. And kissed his wounds that were so red With a down. She got him upon her back And carried him to an earthen lake.” ………“She buried him before the prime, Down a down, hey down, hey down. She was dead herself ere evensong time. With a down.”

[DJJarvisReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heart of the Sea by L.M. Stone is a story about Seraphina, a girl whose parents went on a trip and never came back, but she will not allow anyone to tell her that they are dead, so she comes up with a plan: Find a crew that will take her to the island of her mother’s stories, where she believes her parents are. What she didn’t plan was running into the Captain of a Pirate ship, Captain Malachi, who is willing to take her wherever she needs, and she definitely didn’t plan to fall in love with said Captain…

This story was nothing less than amazing. I loved every second of this book. It has such a great plot, very well written characters, so much witty banter and so much tension! I really enjoyed Seraphina and Malachi’s dynamic throughout the whole story. I would be lying if I said this book wasn’t an emotional roller coaster, and that I didn’t cry happy tears AND sad tears!

L.M. Stone did really good with Heart of the Sea, and I definitely recommend it! This is definitely one of my favorite books now! L.M. Stone’s books never disappoint me!

[Lariza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pirates, banters and romance

Pirates don’t get a lot of love in the realm of romantasy. You see a lot about fairies, royalty and what not.. while pirates tend to be portrayed as villains that have quick exits.

In Heart of the Sea, I love the backstories and dynamics of Seraphina and Malachi. The tension and bantering heightens the spice in their romance, but makes a fun read. This story is filled with twists and emotions in LM’s true fashion, but I wouldn’t want it in any other way!

I enjoyed that this is different from LM’s other books. I’ve indulged in a lot of her thrillers, horrors and spice. Though I haven’t read all of her books yet, this is the first of hers that touches on fantasy and I would love to see more of it. Heart of the Sea invoked just that.. fantasies, like wanting to drop everything and take a long sail into the open sea in hopes to be swooned by a handsome pirate.

I highly recommend this! Future readers, please be sure to consider the trigger warnings before reading. Enjoy!

[Whitney · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I was reading this book, something that really stood out to me was that the writing style had a melodic feel. Everything flowed and the transitions felt smooth. Plus the dream aspects of this book really added to that overall feel and I liked how both Seraphina and Malachi had trust in their dreams. Having both the main characters have vision like dreams and intuition was a nice twist, as it helped create some additional tension. Speaking of tension, the chemistry between Seraphina and Malachi was a spicy slow burn - they just could not get a break. It almost became comical how many times and different ways they were interrupted. While I loved the entire pirate crew, the character that stole the show for me was Piglet (Pig) the pirate's captain dog - this dog was smart and sassy.

[Gem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seraphina & Malachi. She’s the confident, higher born Lady with a past to unravel. He’s the successful pirate, Captain of the Silver Cutless. Together they embark on a journey of mystery & how although opposites, their attraction may be more powerful than either expects.

𝚃𝚛𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚜:
Historical romance
Feisty FMC
Pirate Captain MMC
Mystery
Treasure
Chemistry
Slow burn

𝚃𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚜
This was a step out of my comfort zone but I was glad to do it with a book from one of my fave authors. A historical romance (with a Liberty twist, no less!) & a delicious slow burn. The MC’s navigate not only the seas but their growing connection as the plot unfolds with tension, banter & fun supporting characters along the way. Plus, I absolutely adore that cover!! One to check out!

[Tashii Sainsbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️

Where do I begin! I absolutely loved this book!

The way the story was portrayed is amazing! I love a pirate romance and this is a perfect pirate romance!

The multi pov makes the story complete! All I kept thinking of was Johnny Depp 🙈🤣.

There was a lot of emotions from wanting to throw my kindle to tears!

The way scenes were described felt like I was on the ship with them and on their adventure! I couldn't put it down! It is a slow burn but it is definitely worth reading!

This is a MUST READ!

Please read the TWs!

[thekatz_meoww · Rating 4 out of 5]

I adored this story!! Full of adventure, banter, tension, pirates, a determined FMC, and an animal sidekick who was too smart for his own good…was happy to see Malachi and Seraphina get the HEA they fought so hard to get 💜💜

[Tiffsbookcorner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Malachi and Seraphina struggled! tooth and nail through the story and to see the HEA they got made my heart happy! Lots of pirate adventures reminds me of pirates of the Caribbean haha 😆 loved it 🥰

[Jessica B · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so good! I love it and all the characters ! I loved the ending , it was perfect. 😍

[Sara Norris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very adventurous book with Pirates and love at sea. I love a good pirate book 🖤

[Jess Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love pirate romances, then this one is for you! This is a slow burn but so worth the wait🥵
I absolutely loved the dual POV's, it completed the story for me & the emotions this story took me on was an absolute rollercoaster!
This is definitely a must read🖤

[wwgrn · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 ⭐️ 2.5 🌶️

[Natalie’s_world_in_books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this book!
Such a great read!
This was my first pirate romance, won’t be my last!
Loved it!
The writing style is amazing! I actually felt like I was there, on the ship!
The characters are brilliant!
There’s times I laughed out loud, other times I said WTF!
Definitely an emotional rollercoaster.
Love the banter!
Malachi reminded me of Johnny Depp!
This is a slow burn but definitely worth the wait 🥵
I couldn’t put it down.

[Nikolett Berkiné Varga · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love L.M. Stone’s books. They’re the kind that pull you into their world and then leave you thinking about them for days hell even months after you finish. Heart of the Sea is absolutely no exception.

We meet Seraphina, a lady and the Mayor of Port Royal, and wow she is strong, sassy, resilient, and completely unforgettable. I adored her from the start. Then there’s Malachi… and listen, I need my own Malachi, please and thank you. He’s the pirate captain of the Silver Cutlass ruthless when needed, fiercely loyal to the sea and his crew, and utterly swoon-worthy, with a dirty mouth. The banter between these two? Freaking phenomenal. I loved every second of it. And the slow burn oh my goodness was deliciously done. The tension between them was next level and had me practically feral. Holy smokes!!

But what happens when someone tries to take a pirate’s treasure? Hehe… you’ll have to read it to find out, my lips are sealed.

And can we talk about the side characters? Because I loved them. Piglet was hands down my favourite (no contest), though Apollo is a very close second, and I am absolutely crossing my fingers for a book about him.

In all seriousness, this is the kind of book that stays with you. The ending alone has me spinning through theories, and honestly? I love every single one of them. Liberty’s writing shines as it always does, delivering emotion after emotion, with a pacing that never slows down. The revelations had me gasping with that “ohhh daaaamn” lightbulb moment.

This book here is an unforgettable pirate romance with incredible characters, razor-sharp banter, and tension that hurts so good. I’ll be thinking about this one for a long, long time.