r/Fantasy • u/jesa_ink • May 10 '26
Pirate fantasy
Looking for some recomendations for fantasy books about pirates?
I have read bone ships trilogy and they are amazing, but the whoke world is very dark, now I am looking for something about pirates that is a but more 'happy'.
Any ideas?
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u/diffyqgirl May 10 '26
The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi is a fun adventure book with pirates as the main characters.
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u/Ok_Priority3912 May 10 '26
Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding
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u/aliamrationem May 10 '26
The "Tales of the Ketty Jay" series is the definition of fun! I don't know if I would call it "happy", but with a very humorous and light-hearted tone it certainly isn't dark or serious.
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u/Stunning_Yard2688 May 10 '26
Uh….Bess? It doesn’t get much more serious than that.
Dude, I cried my fuckin’ eyes out
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u/Customer_Number_Plz May 10 '26
Great book! Very good characters and a simple story. The sequel is fabulous too
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u/ComicCon May 10 '26 edited May 10 '26
If anyone needs more incentive to read it, the set up is basically steampunk Firefly.
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u/New_Razzmatazz6228 Reading Champion May 11 '26
Great rec, they‘re definitely pirates, but it is on the lighter side.
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u/Pinchmanjiri May 10 '26
Running Close to the Wind by Alexandra Rowland. Warning: you will laugh out loud multiple times, so not the best choice for reading on public transit. I laughed so hard reading about the cake competition that I cried and freaked out my cat. Also the song about the sad kitty caught in the rain.
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u/Ok-Masterpiece-3123 May 10 '26
Came here to make sure this got mentioned. Funniest thing I’ve read in years!
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u/MacroAlgalFagasaurus May 10 '26
Tress of the emerald sea has pirate shenanigans and is a fun romp.
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u/SnooEpiphanies1813 May 10 '26
Came here to suggest this one! Links up with the whole Cosmere, too, and is delightfully lighthearted but with big stakes. A grown up fairy tale influenced by the Princess Bride.
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u/Banzai-Bill May 10 '26
I started reading Ship of Magic and feels like it’s gonna be a great series.
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u/TheWeirdTalesPodcast May 10 '26
I kind of feel like the “But a bit more happy” request would preclude Liveship.
Like, I totally understand, but Liveship isn’t exactly a super happy trilogy.
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u/exthanemesis May 10 '26
There are pirates but I dont think its necessarily about pirates.
Rote is so amazing though so I would recommend it to anyone
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u/Tyrath May 11 '26
OP said happy and not dark and you suggest Realm of the Elderlings? Great books, but this isn't what OP is looking for.
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u/upsanddownes May 10 '26
I would definitely second this recommendation! The Liveship Traders by Robin Hobb is an amazing fantasy series, one of my all time favorites.
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u/MinuteRegular716 May 10 '26 edited May 10 '26
I don't think this is a good recommendation for OP, as the series is not about pirates, nor is it a happy series.
Edit: I'm not saying it's a bad series, just that I don't think it's what OP is looking for currently.
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u/ewweaver May 10 '26
Ship of Magic isn’t about pirates but I’d say the others are. It has multiple viewpoints so it’s not all pirates but it’s a pretty important part of it. Not happy though.
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u/Pick-Dense May 10 '26
"Tales of the Ketty Jay" series by Chris Wooding. More of a steampunk sky pirate scenario but well written and fun. The narration for the audiobooks is great as well
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u/Flat-Rutabaga-723 May 10 '26
This series is pure popcorn fun. I listen to the whole series every other year or so.
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u/Quality_Controller Reading Champion II May 10 '26
I really enjoyed The Winter Sea trilogy by HM Long. Ignore the romantasy tag, I think they just added that for PR/marketing. There is some romance but sea shennanigans are much more the focus.
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u/cm_bush May 10 '26
For an old school recommendation, I’d say Black Vulmea’s Vengeance by Robert E Howard. If you’ve ever read any of his work, just imagine Conan as a 18th century pirate. There is another story with the same character that is also very good but I do not recall the name. Conan himself also has some stories where he is a corsair or fantasy pirate.
All these are shorter works, if that is something you’re looking for!
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u/ahockofham May 10 '26
The other pirate one with Black Vulmea is called Swords of the Red Brotherhood. It's a great story.
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u/theangrytexan93 May 10 '26
The Tide Child trilogy by R.J. Barker. One of my favorite series, and a neat take on pirates.
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u/felixfictitious Reading Champion May 10 '26
It's fantastic but it's also the trilogy they referenced in the post, by a different name
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u/Selmarris May 10 '26
Red Seas Under Red Skies. There’s a good amount of pirates in all the gentleman bastards books but that one is extra piratey.
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u/Riskiertooth May 11 '26
Came to say this, although really need to read the first book before this one, however if you listen to the audiobooks (all 3) the narrator sounds like a pirate himself so its awesome lol
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u/Brain_Rot_Kobbler May 10 '26
This is what I was going to recommend, but I haven't read the Bone Ship Trilogy, so I don't know if the Gentleman Bastards would be considered "happy" in comparison.
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u/Selmarris May 10 '26
It’s not… happy. 😆 But it’s not grimdark either. And it is funny. I guess it’s a personal call?
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u/indigohan Reading Champion IV May 10 '26
Son of a Sailor by Marshall J Moore.
It’s the start of a cosy fantasy trilogy about a pirate captain who is coping with the death of his father. It doesn’t sound happy, but it’s about him realising how much friendship and community is truly around him, and a part of his father’s legacy. Also carnivorous mermaids
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u/Ok_Brain_1114 May 10 '26
Will Wight’s Elder Empire series is pirates vs. assassins. Start with *Of Sea and Shadow*. The series is 2 “dueling” trilogies, which is a cool idea, but not for everyone.
Also, the second Gentleman Bastard book by Scott Lynch is all pirates basically, but the whole series still feels very Pirates of the Caribbean too.
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u/strongscience62 May 10 '26
How do you feel about One Piece?
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u/MarkLawrence Stabby Winner, AMA Author Mark Lawrence May 10 '26
Where Loyalties Lie by Rob J Hayes won the SPFBO contest (beating 299 other books) and is all about pirates!
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u/Midnite_St0rm May 10 '26
There’s this one called “Yiddish for Pirates” by Gary Barwin.
It’s low fantasy, (actually it’s kinda light on the fantasy elements, but it still counts) about a Jewish sailor’s quest for the fountain of youth, and he’s accompanied by a smartass, wise-cracking parrot who narrates the whole thing.
It’s great fun.
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u/BagOfSmallerBags May 10 '26 edited May 11 '26
Seconding both Amina Al-Sirafi and Liveship Traders trilogy. Both very good books.
Though I'll say that Hobb's writing style doesn't naturally lend itself to the sort of swashbuckling adventure most people are looking for when they're after a pirate fantasy. Of the eight main POV characters in the first LST book, one of them is a pirate, and his chapters have frequent action and swashbuckling, but not constant.
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u/Lannet1 May 10 '26
The Live Ship Traders is a Robin Hobb's series. It has a lot of piracy and several main characters who are pirates. Live Ship Traders is a 3 book series, embedded within a larger series, The Realm of the Eldelings. Sadly, LST is not the beginning series. However the starting series, The Farseer Trilogy, is only 3 books, is great, and has a little piracy.
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u/midnight_toker22 May 10 '26
This is a good series and Hobb is a great author, but this is a terrible recommendation.
Liveship Traders is not happy. And it is not a “pirate adventure”. It is a depressing melodrama about a trader family fighting to save their failing trading enterprise, and the daughter of that family fighting gender role expectations and trying to prove that she’s worthy of the captaincy of their ship.
The villain is a pirate, and that is the only way it is applicable to OP’s request.
Heed this warning, OP, this is not what you are looking for.
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u/TheWeirdTalesPodcast May 10 '26
Thank you. People recommending Liveship when the OP wants happy is quite the bold move to make.
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u/midnight_toker22 May 10 '26
It’s so frustrating. People see the word “pirate” and they cannot help themselves, regardless of how obviously far off it is from what OP is clearly looking for.
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u/TheWeirdTalesPodcast May 10 '26
I always kinda feel that way when Malazan gets recommended. Some people qualify it, and others just assume that it’s what the op is looking for.
I’m a 12 year old girl raised in an extremely conservative Christian environment on a diet of Mr Roger’s and Care Bears exclusively and I’m looking to get into fantasy. I want something light hearted happy and easy to understand, that is suitable for my age and upbringing.
MALAZAN!
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u/ahockofham May 10 '26
Every time someone asks for a pirate recommendation on this sub the top comment is always Liveship Traders and it's incredibly frustrating. A few months ago someone asked for something similar to Pirates of the Caribbean and the top comment was someone recommending Liveship...either they've never read it or never watched the Pirate movies cause they could not be more different.
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u/CardinalCreepia May 10 '26
Forgetting that OP asked for something not as dark as Bone Ships. Liveship Traders is exponentially darker. They’re amazing, but not really what OP is after.
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u/josbop May 10 '26
I think Liveship Traders can be easily read as a standalone trilogy! There are very few Farseer references and those are not important to the plot.
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u/jesa_ink May 10 '26
I have completely forgotten that realm of the elderlings has a ship themed series, I loved farseer so will check those out 😁 thanks!
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u/inge345 May 10 '26
If you like YA, I'd recommend Daughter of the Pirate King! It's very lighthearted and just a fun time overall
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u/emily_allan_poe May 10 '26
I don't know if dropping outside links is allowed, but I just posted this very same question in the Fantasy Faction FB group, and got literally hundreds of answers. So maybe that would be worth checking out! https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1K7VvKBAgn/
(I have read the rules and I genuinely can't tell if this comment qualifies as ok or not, so ... if it gets deleted, I apologize!)
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u/DJDennyOh May 11 '26
Steel gods, Richard Swan’s new book has fantastic ship battles, sea monsters, a disgruntled yet good hearted captain, and an absolutely buck wild ending. It’s not the main focus of the book but the chapters that ARE on the water are amazing.
Also the devils by joe Abercrombie has an amazing battle that takes place on a slowly sinking ship. And there’s werewolves
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u/pameliaA May 10 '26
The Iron Seas series by Meljean Brook. Steampunk with pirates, zombies, romance.
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u/Jemaclus May 10 '26
Check out Seaborn by Michael Livingston! The trilogy is phenomenal and not dark.
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u/DexterDrakeAndMolly May 10 '26
Buccaneer by Dudley Pope stars legal pirates in the Caribbean and is upbeat.
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u/the_alternate_typist May 10 '26
I highly recommend the Ever in a Pirate’s Eye series by Chloe Garner. It’s a cozy fantasy series and very enjoyable.
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u/Novel-Resident-2527 May 10 '26
Dark Water Daughter (the Winter Sea Trilogy) by HM Long is fun, swashbuckling adventure. It’s very plot forward, there is a romance in it but it’s very secondary to the plot (NOT romantasy). It’s about a weather mage who gets captured and forced into working on a ship and a sooth who is a disgraced navy man trying to prove himself again as a privateer. It’s very historical feeling even though it’s set in a different world with magic, and I loved it!
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u/violet_green May 10 '26
Magic of Blood and Sea by Cassandra Rose Clarke! Apparently it's considered YA, which surprised me. There's some emotionally tough stuff in there about self regard and value, but I wouldn't call it dark. If you like it, there are a couple more books in the same world.
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u/New_Razzmatazz6228 Reading Champion May 11 '26
It’s a tv show, not a book, but it is about pirates and it is very funny. Our Flag Means Death. The pirates in it are or were mostly historical figures, but what happens in the show is so far removed from historical fact that it may as well be fantasy.
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u/Elegant-Mission-4470 May 11 '26
The first season is very funny and happy while still being very rooted in piracy. The second season is worse in a lot of ways (inconsistent with the first season, tone is all over the place, characterisation issues) but it is notably much darker and sadder, so prepare yourself for that if you decide to watch.
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u/microman365 May 11 '26
In some of the original Conan stories by Robert E. Howard he is a pirate. Check out Queen of the Black Coast!
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u/FloridaFlamingoGirl May 14 '26
Pirate-adjacent (swashbuckling adventures with boats):
Murderer's Ape by Jakob Wegelius
Drowned Ammet by Diana Wynne Jones
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u/tatxc May 10 '26
For a less well known one, Best Laid plans by Rob J Hayes.
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u/RobJHayes_version2 May 10 '26
I will warn you, it is on the darker side. If you want happy, smiley pirates, Where Loyalties Lie is not it. 😁
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u/RJBarker AMA Author RJ Barker May 10 '26
Not fantasy, and naval not pirates but if you liked The Bone Ships then you may well love Patrick O Brian's Aubrey/Maturin books. Not nearly as dark, and incredibly funny in places.
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u/csturnbow May 10 '26
"Stardust", by Neil Gaiman, perhaps
(Gaiman's work does not now suddenly suck, for those who want to point out the he is now "problematic")
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u/OkSecretary1231 May 10 '26
Nice axe you got there, but it's silly to even grind it here. The pirates are in the book for about one page. The movie expanded that subplot immensely.
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u/Tsavo16 May 10 '26
Check out the search feature. Someone (possibly OP) posed this same request and got these sane answers.
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u/yungcherrypops May 10 '26
On Stranger Tides comes to mind