Lies We Sing to the Sea

Sarah Underwood

A fantasy romance, by dazzling new talent Sarah Underwood, inspired by Greek mythology and the tale of Penelope's twelve hanged maids.

'A lavish epic of power, vengeance, love and fate.'
YA Book of the Month in The Observer (2/4/2023)

'A lovely, lyrical fantasy which takes the fate of the hanged maids of the Odyssey and weaves something brand new. A story overflowing with emotion and full of magic.'
Jennifer Saint, bestselling author of Ariadne and Elektra

In the cursed kingdom of Ithaca, each spring brings the hanging of twelve maidens, a gift to the vengeful Poseidon. But when Leto awakens from her death on the shore of a long-forgotten island, its enigmatic keeper Melantho tells her that there's only one way the curse can be broken. Leto must kill the last prince of Ithaca . . .

In Lies We Sing to the Sea, debut author Sarah Underwood delivers a thrilling and breathtaking tale that will enthral readers from the very first page as they are transported to the cursed shores of Ithaca.

A reclamation of a story from thousands of years ago, Lies We Sing to the Sea is about love and fate, grief and sacrifice, and, ultimately, the power we must find within.

'Gorgeous, tragic, and timeless, Underwood's LIES WE SING TO THE SEA makes an age-old story feel new again. This is Greek tragedy at its best: sweeping in scope yet deeply intimate in characterization. This book will break your heart.' – Grace Li Sunday Times bestselling author of Portrait of a Thief

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• ONE: ANOTHER FEAT OF GODS AND HEROES
• TWO: IN A FIELD OF FLOWERS
• THREE: BY WORD OR DEED
• FOUR: THE BITTEREST TONGUE
• FIVE: WHITE BONES AT DAYBREAK
• SIX: BIRDS OF THE SAME FEATHER
• SEVEN: WHAT MORTAL TONGUE
• EIGHT: THE SONS OF PRINCES
• NINE: A BREATH OF AIR STIRRING
• TEN: THE WANING OF MOONS
• ELEVEN: TINDER THE SHADY QROVE
• TWELVE: WHERE DWELL THE SOULS AND SHADOWS
• THIRTEEN: THE ILL-OMENED NAME
• FOURTEEN: BUT NOW THE STORM-WINDS
• FIFTEEN: TOWARDS THE SUNSET
• SIXTEEN: THE MERCY OF THE WINDS AND WAVES
• SEVENTEEN: THE LIGHT OF THE SUN
• EIGHTEEN: IN THE LAIROF A LION
• NINETEEN: THE SUN EITHER, SETS OR RISES
• TWENTY: THE FAIR FIELDS
• TWENTY-ONE: FALL TO, AND WELCOME
• TWENTY-TWO: CHILD OF MORNING
• TWENTY-THREE: ON ONE AND ALL OF THEM
• TWENTY-FOUR: PREY TO THE TIRDS AND WILD BEASTS
• TWENTY-FIVE: BY FAIR MEANS OR FOUL
• TWENTY-SIX: THE MOST ILL-STARRED OF ALL
• TWENTY-SEVEN: A DUST UPON THE PLAIN
• TWENTY-EIGHT: THE MEMORY OF SORROWS
• TWENTY-NINE: AS AUTUMN WINDS WHIRL THISTLEDOWN
• THIRTY: NOTHING BUT DEATH
• THIRTY-ONE: FIERCE AND FULL OF FURY
• THIRTY-TWO: CRY ALOUD FOR SORROW
• THIRTY-THREE: THE GOING DOWN OF THE SUN
• THIRTY-FOUR: OUT TO SEA AGAIN
• THIRTY-FIVE: HEART, BE STILL
• THIRTY-SIX: AMONG THE ASHES
• THIRTY-SEVEN: THE LONG WATCHES OF THE NIGHT
• THIRTY-EIGHT: THROUGH PATHS OF DARKNESS
• THIRTY-NINE: CURIOUS AND UNACCOUNTABLE THINGS
• FORTY: AS LEAVES AND BLOOMS IN SUMMER
• FORTY-ONE: TO LIE IN SECRET
• FORTY-TWO: OF THE SUN AND MOON
• FORTY-THREE: IN SPITE OF SORROW
• FORTY-FOUR: AGAIN BY TORCH LIGHT
• FORTY-FIVE: THE CHILD OF ANGER
• FORTY-SIX: A BIRD IN THE AIR
• FORTY-SEVEN: CHILDREN OF THE GROVES AND FOUNTAINS
• FORTY-EIGHT: THE GATES OF THE SUN
• FORTY-NINE: A WILD BEAST IN THE FOREST
• FIFTY: THE END OF THIS MOON
• FIFTY-ONE: THE BEGINNING OF THE NEXT
• FIFTY-TWO: TERRIBLE ARE THE SEAS
• FIFTY-THREE: A NAME IN STORY
• FIFTY-FOUR: OF EVERY WIND THAT BLOWS
• FIFTY-FIVE: UNWAKED AND UNBURIED
• FIFTY-SIX: TELL ME AND TELL ME TRUE
• FIFTY-SEVEN: A LEGACY OF SORROW
• FIFTY-EIGHT: MAKE TRIAL OF THE BOW
• FIFTY-NINE: MANY A WEARY WAVE
• SIXTY: FROM BEYOND THE SEAS
• SIXTY-ONE: I MAY ENDURE STILL
• SIXTY-TWO: THE STARS HAD SHIFTED THEIR PLACES
• SIXTY-THREE: THERE IS DAWN AND SUN-RISE
• SIXTY-FOUR: THERE FALLS NOT RAIN
• ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS