3 reasons Crown of Coral and Pearl stands out from the fantasy pack

Mara Rutherford’s Crown of Coral and Pearl may contain elements that feel familiar to YA fantasy fans, but this tale is anything but ordinary.

In the current world of YA fantasy, many stories deal with similar themes and tropes. There are a lot of oppressive kings, women fighting for lost birthrights, and couples finding love in unsanctioned and/or unapproved places. But, sometimes, an author manages to take a lot of familiar pieces and combine them in a way that still manages to feel exciting and new, and that’s exactly what Mara Rutherford’s Crown of Coral and Pearl accomplishes.

On paper, this feels like it’s probably a story you’ve heard before. But its dedication to world-building and detailed relationships between characters makes this fantasy debut a must-add to your TBR piles for Fall and beyond.

Crown and Coral and Pearl follows the story of twin sisters Zadie and Nor, who live in Varenia, a poor fishing village full of homes on stilts where its residents survive by diving for pearls. According to tradition, every generation the Elders will select the most beautiful girl to marry the Crown Prince of the nearby kingdom of Illaria. For most, this is a high honor, as it means a life of luxury on land, and the marriage secures the essential trading partnership between the two realms.

Zadie has long been expected to be Varenia’s choice, ever since an unfortunate accident scarred her twin sister’s face. But Zadie is deeply in love with a local boy, and it is Nor who has always longed to see the world beyond the sea outside her door. The sisters conspire to arrange an accident to keep Zadie home and send Nor in her place, but neither of them could have ever predicted that the vaunted world of Illaria is dark and damp, ruled over by a sickly king and a cruel prince determined to experiment until he figures out why the Varenian people live longer lives than his own.

Not exactly the happily ever after this situation was advertised as.

Now, a spunky young heroine finding herself in an arranged marriage that she may not necessarily want in order to protect her people isn’t exactly a new trope in the world of YA fantasy literature. Yet, Crown of Coral and Pearl manages to take this story in an entirely new direction, by focusing on that same heroine’s connection to the world – and family – she’s leaving behind.

There are a lot of solid reasons to recommend this story, but these are three of the most compelling.

A heroine with a complicated story of her own

Thanks to the injury that renders her less than perfect in the eyes of her village, Nor is allowed to grow up in relative freedom. She’s brave, strong and opinionated, and knows that her worth and ability has nothing to do with the way she looks. This is, of course, something that sets her apart from many of her fellow countrymen, and has generally caused her to want something more for herself than the life she’s been told she can have.

Once it’s determined that Nor will take her sister’s place as the future queen of Illaria, she’s excited. But as she learns more about the conditions that the Illarian royal family place upon her people and the burden the increased resources they demand involves, she takes it upon herself to fight back in any way she can, frequently smuggling information to a family friend at the local market.

As a heroine, Nor is both likable and relatable – someone who is very easy to root for and care about. Sure, she’s stubborn on multiple occasions, but she’s so brave and self-sacrificing that it’s easy to see what kind of queen she might grow up to be if given the chance. Is it annoying when she falls in what feels like insta-love with her betrothed’s handsome brother? Yes. But we should probably remember that this is also the first man who’s ever shown any interest in her for her own sake, outside and apart from her twin sister, and that’s got to be an amazing moment for her. Also, it just means Nor is human. And that’s not a bad thing.

A lovely, complex sibling relationship at its core

Nearly the first half of Crown of Coral and Pearl takes place in the ocean kingdom of Varenia, as we learn about Nor, Zadie, their family and the history of their people who regularly send their most beautiful daughters off to never be seen again. It’s fascinating, and the world-building is rich and detailed. (In all honesty, I might have been fine with a version of this story that never made it to Illaria at all, because there’s just so much stuff going on here.)

But the heart of the story is undoubtedly the relationship between Nor and Zadie. It’s  a complicated, messy, and extremely real portrait of sisterhood, with all its associated love, competitiveness, jealousy and forgiveness. They hurt each other, help each other, and defend each other by turns. The complex sequence of events that result in Nor’s decision to help her sister arrange the accident that will keep her at home is both shocking and moving, but ultimately nothing so much as a reminder of how much these sisters love one another.

The two girls legitimately seem as though they are halves of the same whole, and the idea of them never seeing one another again is heartbreaking several times over. (Don’t be surprised if you actually cry when these two say goodbye to each other.)

An original villain who is both frightening and strangely sympathetic

Prince Ceren, the Crown Prince of Illaria, is ostensibly every girl’s dream man. At least, on paper. He’s rich, about to inherit a kingdom, and will marry a beautiful woman as soon as he comes of age. Plus, who doesn’t want to marry a prince? Be a queen?

No one should be terribly surprised to learn that Ceren isn’t exactly something out of a fairytale. He’s cruel, and selfish, and openly revels in the discomfort of others. He’s engaging in some rather terrifying experiments in secret, and he has some rather unfortunate plans for the people of Varenia if and when he should become king in his own right. He’s certainly not the sort of man we’d ever wish for Nor, that’s for sure.

But he’s also not a completely evil stereotype, despite how terrible that description sounds. Much of his awfulness is driven by his own insecurities and obsessions and even though you’re unlikely to find yourself truly rooting for Ceren during the story, it’s at least easy to understand why he does the things he does. And, sometimes, that’s enough to almost make you feel something like pity for him, and the life he could have had if just a few things had gone differently.

Crown of Coral and Pearl is available now.