What do you think?
Rate this book
The Coastal Realm #1
Seabound
Prince Frederic has no interest in crowns.
He much prefers the company of drunken gamblers to the nobles of Lenovair, and with his father obsessed with hunting down every pirate on the Larrow Sea, the prince can easily slip away.
Until the night of Prince Frederic’s twenty-first birthday.
When pirates crash the celebration, the prince’s place in the realm starts to change. Dragged aboard a pirate ship, Freddie learns that his title means nothing on the Larrow Sea. Because out there, everyone is prey.
***
Captain Alaena came for the king. And left with the carefree, sarcastic prince.
Alaena is tired of protecting a kingdom that treats pirates as nothing but thieves and murderers. For ten years they have been blamed and hunted, making the sea less of a home and more of a deadly prison. And now the prince might be the only way out.
But can a prince and a pirate really be allies? And seriously, what kind of a prince is named Freddie?
He much prefers the company of drunken gamblers to the nobles of Lenovair, and with his father obsessed with hunting down every pirate on the Larrow Sea, the prince can easily slip away.
Until the night of Prince Frederic’s twenty-first birthday.
When pirates crash the celebration, the prince’s place in the realm starts to change. Dragged aboard a pirate ship, Freddie learns that his title means nothing on the Larrow Sea. Because out there, everyone is prey.
***
Captain Alaena came for the king. And left with the carefree, sarcastic prince.
Alaena is tired of protecting a kingdom that treats pirates as nothing but thieves and murderers. For ten years they have been blamed and hunted, making the sea less of a home and more of a deadly prison. And now the prince might be the only way out.
But can a prince and a pirate really be allies? And seriously, what kind of a prince is named Freddie?
351 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 31, 2026
About the author
Hannah R.M. Kerr
1 book11 followersHannah R. M. Kerr is a new author from Ontario, Canada. She finished writing her debut novel Seabound after graduating from university where she attained a BA in English and Creative Writing. She hopes to put her degree to good use by continuing to write fantasy and romance books, which are two of her favourite genres.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Author
I received an advanced copy of Seabound by Hannah R.M. Kerr in exchange for an honest review.
A charming witty man and a girl hardened by life at sea, what could be better than that?
No but seriously, Seabound was an exciting read that brought real world human emotions and vices into a world of fantasy allowing for relatability, which I find many fantasy authors forget to do.
Not only did it focus on serious topics such as anxiety, alcoholism, anger, loss, and love, but it was also extremely funny and had me laughing out loud at the interactions between Freddy and Alaena
I also admired the focus on family and friendship and how it grows and bends when going through difficult times in life.
Seabound was very well paced allowing for ample world building, so the reader fully understands the relationships and conflicts within the kingdom of Lenovair. It also offered a new and interesting take on why pirates are pirates and what keeps them on the sea, which was refreshing in a time where pirate fantasy books are on the rise!
Everyone should have Seabound on their TBR for summer 2026!
A charming witty man and a girl hardened by life at sea, what could be better than that?
No but seriously, Seabound was an exciting read that brought real world human emotions and vices into a world of fantasy allowing for relatability, which I find many fantasy authors forget to do.
Not only did it focus on serious topics such as anxiety, alcoholism, anger, loss, and love, but it was also extremely funny and had me laughing out loud at the interactions between Freddy and Alaena
I also admired the focus on family and friendship and how it grows and bends when going through difficult times in life.
Seabound was very well paced allowing for ample world building, so the reader fully understands the relationships and conflicts within the kingdom of Lenovair. It also offered a new and interesting take on why pirates are pirates and what keeps them on the sea, which was refreshing in a time where pirate fantasy books are on the rise!
Everyone should have Seabound on their TBR for summer 2026!
July 23, 2026
I absolutely DEVOURED this book.
As someone who has just started getting into fantasy books recently I cannot recommend this book enough!
The way the characters were written had me laughing, crying, and kicking my feet. The humour and banter were unmatched, while also allowing for serious topics like anxiety, grief, and alcoholism to receive respectful representation.
Don’t even get me started on the cliff hanger!! I will be reading book 2 as soon as it comes out.
If you’re looking for a pirate fantasy world that you can easily get lost in pick up Seabound ASAP!
As someone who has just started getting into fantasy books recently I cannot recommend this book enough!
The way the characters were written had me laughing, crying, and kicking my feet. The humour and banter were unmatched, while also allowing for serious topics like anxiety, grief, and alcoholism to receive respectful representation.
Don’t even get me started on the cliff hanger!! I will be reading book 2 as soon as it comes out.
If you’re looking for a pirate fantasy world that you can easily get lost in pick up Seabound ASAP!
August 12, 2026
What a wonderful debut novel! This book took me on a fun adventure with characters I fell in love with. I’m so excited for book two to find out what happens next!
September 6, 2026
A delightful romp into a fairy tale of kingdoms and pirates. The themes of friendships and courage were heart warming. The cliff hanger end was satisfying and a great setup for Book Two. I could possibly take off one star because the slow beginning was a little long and I wanted more detail about living on a ship. Congratulations on a bright debut!
October 15, 2026
If you’re looking for a completely immersive pirate fantasy, Seabound is the book for you! Seabound is the debut novel by Hannah R.M. Kerr, and honestly, you would never guess it was her first published book based on the sheer mastery of her writing. This was a 5-star read for me, and I have SO much to say about why!
1. Characters who feel REAL.
I know that might sound silly, but one thing I sometimes struggle with in fantasy novels is the characters’ lack of tangibility. Sometimes, characters feel so unmistakably fictional that it’s difficult to imagine them existing in the real world. Seabound completely changed that for me.
Every character felt tangible, flawed, and deeply human. While the challenges they faced were complex, their reactions and approaches to solving them felt so incredibly REAL. Hannah wasn’t afraid to show that, just like the rest of us, the characters in Seabound can be flawed, emotional, and, at times, completely irrational. And honestly, I found that SO refreshing. It added a layer of humanity to the story that made me feel deeply connected to the characters and their journeys.
2. A beautifully human portrayal of grief.
Let’s talk about grief, because this was one of my favourite aspects of the entire book.
I loved that grief wasn’t always portrayed as loud, explosive, or impossible to ignore. Instead, it was often loud behind closed doors, hidden beneath carefully constructed walls and the determination to keep moving forward. I think so many readers will find this relatable.
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE the classic “I’m going to burn the world to ash to make you pay for what you’ve done” kind of grief. Give me the vengeance, the rage, the destruction! But grief doesn’t always look like that.
Sometimes, grief means learning to live with the weight of your losses while continuing to show up for the people you still have. Sometimes, it means burying your pain deep inside yourself because the world doesn’t stop turning just because yours has fallen apart.
Hannah captured this so beautifully, and it resonated with me on such a personal level. It brought so much depth and humanity to both our FMC and MMC, making their struggles feel all the more real.
3. World-building and pacing done RIGHT.
World-building and pacing are HUGE factors for me when it comes to fantasy, and Seabound absolutely delivered on both.
Rather than throwing us headfirst into a complex world and expecting us to figure everything out, Hannah takes us on a journey. With each chapter, we gradually learn more about the lands across the Larrow Sea, their social structures, and the world these characters inhabit.
Nothing felt rushed, and nothing felt unnecessarily drawn out. The pacing was fantastic, and at no point did I find myself skimming pages of information that felt irrelevant to the story. Every detail, every piece of information, and every character interaction felt intentional.
It’s clear that so much thought went into the construction of this world, and I genuinely appreciated being able to discover it organically alongside the characters.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Seabound gave me everything I want from a fantasy novel: immersive world-building, complex and believable characters, emotional depth, and pacing that kept me invested from beginning to end.
But more than anything, I loved how HUMAN this story felt. Beneath the pirate fantasy, the adventure, and the world-building were characters navigating grief, making mistakes, and trying to find their way through circumstances that were anything but simple.
For a debut novel, Hannah R.M. Kerr has seriously impressed me, and I cannot wait to see what she writes next!
1. Characters who feel REAL.
I know that might sound silly, but one thing I sometimes struggle with in fantasy novels is the characters’ lack of tangibility. Sometimes, characters feel so unmistakably fictional that it’s difficult to imagine them existing in the real world. Seabound completely changed that for me.
Every character felt tangible, flawed, and deeply human. While the challenges they faced were complex, their reactions and approaches to solving them felt so incredibly REAL. Hannah wasn’t afraid to show that, just like the rest of us, the characters in Seabound can be flawed, emotional, and, at times, completely irrational. And honestly, I found that SO refreshing. It added a layer of humanity to the story that made me feel deeply connected to the characters and their journeys.
2. A beautifully human portrayal of grief.
Let’s talk about grief, because this was one of my favourite aspects of the entire book.
I loved that grief wasn’t always portrayed as loud, explosive, or impossible to ignore. Instead, it was often loud behind closed doors, hidden beneath carefully constructed walls and the determination to keep moving forward. I think so many readers will find this relatable.
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE the classic “I’m going to burn the world to ash to make you pay for what you’ve done” kind of grief. Give me the vengeance, the rage, the destruction! But grief doesn’t always look like that.
Sometimes, grief means learning to live with the weight of your losses while continuing to show up for the people you still have. Sometimes, it means burying your pain deep inside yourself because the world doesn’t stop turning just because yours has fallen apart.
Hannah captured this so beautifully, and it resonated with me on such a personal level. It brought so much depth and humanity to both our FMC and MMC, making their struggles feel all the more real.
3. World-building and pacing done RIGHT.
World-building and pacing are HUGE factors for me when it comes to fantasy, and Seabound absolutely delivered on both.
Rather than throwing us headfirst into a complex world and expecting us to figure everything out, Hannah takes us on a journey. With each chapter, we gradually learn more about the lands across the Larrow Sea, their social structures, and the world these characters inhabit.
Nothing felt rushed, and nothing felt unnecessarily drawn out. The pacing was fantastic, and at no point did I find myself skimming pages of information that felt irrelevant to the story. Every detail, every piece of information, and every character interaction felt intentional.
It’s clear that so much thought went into the construction of this world, and I genuinely appreciated being able to discover it organically alongside the characters.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Seabound gave me everything I want from a fantasy novel: immersive world-building, complex and believable characters, emotional depth, and pacing that kept me invested from beginning to end.
But more than anything, I loved how HUMAN this story felt. Beneath the pirate fantasy, the adventure, and the world-building were characters navigating grief, making mistakes, and trying to find their way through circumstances that were anything but simple.
For a debut novel, Hannah R.M. Kerr has seriously impressed me, and I cannot wait to see what she writes next!
September 2, 2026
I believe anyone who begins reading this book will see the potential for a story of fantastical magic, compelling relationships and action filled adventures. For me, unfortunately, it fell short. Plot aside, the novel suffers greatly from a lack of proper editing. The text is littered with spelling errors, grammatical errors, missing punctuation, etc., which makes for a difficult reading experience. In terms of layout and pacing, the novel is incredibly slow due to unnecessary repetition of events and feelings and overly long segments of introspection or reflection. Much of the reflection in the novel serves to describe events and action which occur off screen instead of describing these scenes as they occur. It was disappointing not being able to experience these exciting moments with the characters. The novel lacked tension as there was almost always an immediate, convenient solution to every problem as well as little to no consequences to any of the characters' actions. I believe there could have been something interesting in what this novel was trying to do but unfortunately it did not take off. This book would have benefited from a far more thorough round of editing as I think the bones of a good story are there.
August 30, 2026
I absolutely loved this book. The characters, the story, the world- everything was amazing.
The characters developed so smoothly throughout the book that it just felt natural, and I loved seeing them grow from who they were at the beginning to who they’re becoming.
Kaylee is by far my favorite, and I really hope we can see more of her hilarious behavior in book two!
The twists were so unexpected, and I have to admit I was definitely panicking a little towards the end- but it was so worth it!
I can’t wait to see what happens next!
The characters developed so smoothly throughout the book that it just felt natural, and I loved seeing them grow from who they were at the beginning to who they’re becoming.
Kaylee is by far my favorite, and I really hope we can see more of her hilarious behavior in book two!
The twists were so unexpected, and I have to admit I was definitely panicking a little towards the end- but it was so worth it!
I can’t wait to see what happens next!
September 2, 2026
This book was such a wonderful read!! I found myself falling in love with the characters so easily. The plot twist at the end had me GAGGED!!! 10/10 ABSOLUTELY RECCOMEND!!! Especially if you love a stabby Pirate FMC ;)
October 19, 2026
Pirates & magic - loved this one from the very beginning. Can't wait for the 2nd book!
September 22, 2026
WOW for this to be a debut novel is truly amazing! Hannah created a truly enchanting world. The cast of characters are just perfect! Freddie is such a sweetheart and I love how he is able to chip away at Alaena’s walls. The crew is one of my favorite group of people. This really is a found family and I hope we get to learn more about them in the next book!
The ending had me SHOOKED. I need to know how this unfolds! I am eagerly awaiting for what comes next!
The ending had me SHOOKED. I need to know how this unfolds! I am eagerly awaiting for what comes next!
August 31, 2026
This is a great story filled with action, some romantic tension, witty banter, and so much more. It's story of self discovery and acceptance and, of course, pirates. The main characters both cause and find themselves in plenty of chaos. It will keep you guessing until the very end.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews