Bellarose and the Captain is a YA fantasy fairy tale retelling full of cursed captains, sea witches, dragons, and a girl whose happy ending might rewrite every story.

The third book in the twisted fairy tale series, The Aerowyn Tales.

Detailed Description:

Fairy tales are real

In Bellarose and the Captain, Bellarose Bonnay, a once privileged French baron’s daughter, is now an orphaned immigrant in New Orleans. She prefers the company of books to people, but the real-world refuses to stay quiet. A mysterious old woman, an enchanted plantation, a pirate captain, and a ruthless sea witch named Callista drag Bellarose into a hidden war between the fae and their own cursed creations.

When a Callista’s storm destroys her chance at escape, Bellarose is rescued from drowning by Captain Modo. He’s a solemn, rule-bound young captain whose enchanted ship, the Notre Dame, sails through both normal seas and magical realms. Modo’s duty is simple in theory and impossible in practice. He must deliver Bellarose safely back to Louisiana while resisting the growing pull of his heart. He must hide the truth of who he really is.

Hero

He begged to be transformed into a hero. The price of the spell may cost him love forever.

Before he became Captain Modo, he was Quinn, the deformed son of a tavern owner. Quinn was mocked and feared for his hunched back and plain face. Bellarose was the only one who ever looked past his appearance. When the fae enchantress, Aerowyn offered to remake him as a handsome, capable captain, he agreed to rescue Bellarose from pirates.

The catch

• Bellarose must fall in love with Captain Modo, not Quinn.
• She cannot learn his true identity, or the spell twists into a curse.
• If she does not love him as he is, he will never find true love with anyone.

Now Quinn Modo lives his dream and his nightmare at once. He can finally protect Bellarose with the strength and skill he always wished for. But now every smile, every accidental touch, every almost-confession risks shattering everything. If Bella discovers that the awkward, kind boy she once knew was the infuriating, book-rescuing captain, it could doom them both.

Mythical Creatures

Sea witches, dragons, and broken fairy tales stand in their way.

As the Notre Dame cuts through shimmering magical seas, Bellarose and the captain face:

• Callista, the vengeful sea witch. She who sends kraken and storms to steal Bellarose, the bargaining chip with the fae king.
• Eira, a former human cursed into dragon form. She is forced to guard Bellarose on a lonely island while the dragon is desperate for her own redemption.
• Aerowyn, a conflicted fae enchantress. Her father’s crusade against selfishness has created monsters far worse than he ever intended.

Curses and Happy Endings

Aerowyn claims that stories in other realms once unfolded very differently, with more hope and less horror. Now, thanks to curses and misused magic, fairy tales have been warped into darker versions of themselves. The only way to untangle them, she says, is for Bellarose to live out her own true fairy tale ending.

But no one will tell Bellarose exactly what that “happy ending” costs.

Is it:

• Returning safely to New Orleans and leaving magic behind?
• Accepting the captain, flaws and all, no matter who he used to be?
• Trading her own life or future to break the enchantments?

When Callista corners them on the open deck and forces an impossible bargain. Bellarose must finally decide what she believes about beauty, worth, sacrifice, and love.

Perfect for readers who enjoy:

• YA clean romantic fantasy with deep emotional stakes
• Fairy tale mashups featuring Beauty and the Beast, Hunchback of Notre Dame, and sea lore
• Fae bargains, morally gray magic, and complex villains
• High seas adventure and portals to hidden realms
• Bookish heroines who find their courage and their voice

Bellarose and the Captain is book 3 in Carla Reighard’s interconnected fairy tale universe, The Aerowyn Tales. It blends heartfelt character growth with whimsical magic, danger on the high seas, and a romance built on friendship, honesty, and hard-won trust.

If you are searching for your next YA fantasy with:

• A cursed, secretly soft captain
• A clever, vulnerable, sword-learning heroine
• A dragon with attitude
• An enchanted, self-stocking library cabin
• And a choice that could change every story ever told

then set sail with Bellarose and Captain Modo today.

 

Books similar to Bellarose and the Captain:

Fairy–tale mashups and cursed heroes

• “The Shadows Between Us”  by Tricia Levenseller
• “Cruel Beauty”  by Rosamund Hodge
• “Of Beast and Beauty” by Stacey Jay

Bookish heroines, portal libraries, and meta-fairy-tale vibes

• “The Ten Thousand Doors of January” by Alix E. Harrow
• “Inkheart” by Cornelia Funke
• “The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea” by Axie Oh

Sea witches, pirates, and magical ships

• “To Kill a Kingdom” by Alexandra Christo
• “Daughter of the Pirate King”  by Tricia Levenseller
• “Sea Witch” by Sarah Henning

Fae bargains, curses, and “happy ending at a price”

• “An Enchantment of Ravens” by Margaret Rogerson
• “A Curse So Dark and Lonely” by Brigid Kemmerer
• “Uprooted” by Naomi Novik (crossover YA/adult)

Christian / redemption-leaning fairy tale fantasy

• “Beast” by Chawna Schroeder
• “The Story Peddler” by Lindsay A. Franklin

Check out Goodreads to see what readers are saying about Bellarose and the Captain.

Goodreads

More

The character, Captain Modo in Bellarose and the Captain acts stiff like Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice, who inspired Carla to write Modo the way she did.

Though he acts like a plank is up his back, the real reason for his behavior is to protect his secret from Bellarose who he rescued from the pirates.

Something about Captain Modo’s no-nonsense nature pulled her toward him, no matter how little sense it made.

Even though, she can’t help but think of Quinn, the man she thought she loved. Since Quinn didn’t attempt to rescue her, she assumed he didn’t care for her the same way. Though this seemingly love triangle has it’s complications, it all works out in the end.

Bellarose III – Interlude is a short book. The author withdrew the book from publication after Quinn’s 2021 release because it contained duplicate content. In 2025, Quinn became Bellarose and the Captain as part of the rebranded series.

BATC Character descriptions