Exclusive Excerpt + Q&A: Katee Robert Introduces Her Pirate Romance Hunt on Dark Waters

Author Katee Robert is likely best known for her Dark Olympus series, a steamy contemporary reimagining of the stories of the gods of Greek mythology that deftly mixes classic legends with familiar tropes and settings. (And don’t worry, the sixth book in that installment, Midnight Ruin, is coming next year.) But Robert is set to set sail into a universe this Fall with Hunt on Dark Waters, the start of a new swashbuckling romantasy series full of unique worldbuilding and compelling characters. 

The story of a chaotic witch who finds herself bound to a pirate ship in a magical sa between worlds and forced to join the crew of its handsome telekinetic captain, Hunt on Dark Waters is an adventurous romp full of everything that makes Robert’s work so much fun, from explosive chemistry and unique wolrdbuilding to compelling characters and fast-paced twists. 

Here’s how the publicist describes the story.

Evelyn is a witch with a perfect storm of impulses: terrible taste in bed partners, sticky fingers, and a lust for danger. After she steals from her vampire ex and falls through a portal to another realm, she’s fished out of the waters by a band of seafarers and their telekinetic captain. She’s immediately given a choice—join their group or die.

Bowen has no memory of his life before he became one of the Cŵn Annwn. He and his pirate crew are bound by vow to patrol through Threshold, the magical sea in between realms, keeping the portals to other worlds safe. When he rescues Evelyn, he doesn’t expect to be attracted to the unflappably brassy pickpocket. The longer he spends in her presence, the more he begins to question if his heart is the next thing she’ll steal.

But as tension heats up between Bowen and Evelyn, danger escalates as well. Because Evelyn has no intention of keeping her vows to the Cŵn Annwn, and if she betrays the crew, both she and Bowen will pay the ultimate price….

Hunt on Dark Waters will be released on November 7. But in the meantime, we’re thrilled to be able to give you an exclusive early look at the book right now —- and a chat with Robert herself about what to expect from the story. 

Paste Magazine: Tell us about Hunt on Dark Waters! What can readers expect from this story?

Katee Robert: This is a romp of a romantasy! It’s all the things my readers love—a strong hero who’s gone for the heroine almost immediately, a snarky heroine who’s not about to compromise on her values, and a sexy good time.

Paste: All I needed to hear was “witchy pirate romance” to be all in on this, but what can you tease for us about the relationship at the heart of this book?

Robert: Bowen and Evelyn are opposites in a lot of ways. He’s got a very paladin vibe in that he’s so sure he’s on the side of good and practically worships the laws he follows. She’s a chaotic witch who’s never met a rule she isn’t ready to break—except her grandmother’s. So you can imagine how she drives him up the wall demanding to know why that rule exists and who it’s serving… And all the while, he just wants to kiss her more than he wants to breathe.

Paste I think a lot of our readers probably know your work best from your Dark Olympus series—how would you say this new Crimson Sails series compares? 

 Robert: It’s got very similar vibes, just more magic and no central location. I suppose every book in the Crimson Sails series is a bit of a road trip romance, it’s just a road trip on a ship. 

But the heat level is absolutely the same, and the character-first story is exactly what fans of the Dark Olympus series will love. And if there’s a corrupt central government at the center of this series that needs to be toppled… Well, I like the themes I like!

Paste: The world of this story is particularly complex — with everything from vampires and witches to portals and magical seas between realms. How did you approach building out an entirely new fantasy landscape like this?

Robert: Pretty chaotically, honestly. I knew I wanted pirates, and I knew I wanted fantasy, so when it came time to build up the world, I leaned heavily on Celtic mythology, specifically Welsh in most places. It just made sense in my brain that the Cŵn Annwn (the hounds of Annwn, the Welsh underworld, that sometimes ride with the Wild Hunt) are the enforcers of this world that hunt monsters…

 Beyond that, it appealed to me greatly that each island reflects back on the realm its portal connects to. It gives me a chance to give each location they visit a little different feel, and really creates endless possibilities for where the story could go once the main arc is completed.

 Paste: I  know you (probably) love all your children equally, but which character do you think readers will like/respond to most?

Robert: It will surprise no one that Evelyn holds my heart. She was so much fun to write and her banter with Bowen was just delicious. But internally, she’s still on a bit of a journey in grieving her late grandmother, and has a lot of conflicted feelings about her ex situationship, Lizzie. It creates a really unique character that has flavors of other characters I’ve written, but she’s very much wholly herself. 

Paste: What particular element of this book excited you the most while you were writing it? Do you have a particular moment from this book that you are most excited for readers to experience?

 Robert: I really loved Evelyn’s tattoos. She has her spells inked onto her chest, so she can trigger them at a moment’s notice with a little blood, and it was such a fun component to include. And it allowed me to write a particularly delightful scene in which she needs to re-ink the spells that have been used and Bowen decides to help out…

We’re especially thrilled that we can offer you a sneak peek at the very scene Robert references above in which Evelyn needs to freshen up her magical tattoos, and it’s a job that’s much easier to accomplish with a little help. (And some extra sexual tension,, obviously.) Enjoy. 

I find Evelyn with several small bowls emitting colorful smoke and strange scents. I close the door softly behind me. “What’s going on here?”

“It’s all a little hocus-pocus.” She doesn’t look up from her mixing. “I have expelled a number of my tattoos, and since they are my heaviest-hitting ones, I don’t feel comfortable getting off this boat without having them recharged.”

All of my earlier concern and stress falls away, replaced by curiosity. Obviously, I knew her tattoos were magic, but getting to witness her set them up feels like the closest sort of intimacy. Or maybe I’m reaching for stars.

She pricks her thumb and holds it over the first bowl. The moment her drop of blood hits the contents, she speaks a single word. My skin prickles at the magic that rises in response. It’s gone just as quickly, pulled in by her spell. She quickly repeats the process with the other bowls.

“There.” She sits back and put your thumb in her mouth. Evelyn winces. “That shit always stings more than it has the right to.” She holds up a small stick with a needle attached. “Since you’re here, how steady is your hand?”

“Steady enough,” I say cautiously.

Evelyn smiles. “Then get over here, big boy. Tattoo me!”

I know how it works, but I can’t pretend I have any skill at it. “Surely there’s someone else who’s better suited.”

Evelyn waves it at me. “Maybe, but I trust you more than anyone else on the ship. All you have to do is follow the lines that are already there. It’ll be fun.”

“Fun,” I repeat. “You have a strange way of viewing things.”

“I would think you’d stop being surprised by that after all this time.” She rolls her eyes. “Look, technically I can do it myself, but it’s a pain in the ass and I need a mirror. It will take me twice as long as it would take you. Please, Bowen.”

She’s asking me for help. More, she’s trusting me to ink her spells onto her skin. The very things to keep her safe and allow her to fight and protect herself. If I was smart, ruthless, I’d force her to drain all of her spells so that she’d stop being a threat.

But that’s the Cŵn Annwn way of thinking.

Without Evelyn’s magic, the cat-sìth likely would’ve killed me. Lizzie, too. And her shield gave the necessary time to really think about what we were doing with the dragon. The chain of events might have lost me my ship, but the more time that goes on, the more I wonder if that wasn’t a blessing in disguise.

There’s no one relying on me right now. No one except Evelyn. No crew to weigh in the balance of my decisions. No dozens of lives who might pay the price for my questions.

I could no more leave her defenseless then I would toss my sword into the sea.

“Show me how.”

Her smile lights up the room. “You’re the best.” She hands me the first bowl and tattoo instrument, takes off her shirt, and lies down on the bed on her back.

I stop short, all of my attention narrowing on her breasts, shadowed with marks from my beard and mouth, her pretty pink nipples practically begging for another round of pleasure. “Evelyn.”

“Oh.” She blushes a deep read. “Right. I can cover up if—”

“Absolutely not.” I drag the small table over and set the things on it. Then I take the time to kick off my boots and shrug out of my coat. It takes several attempts to find the best position. After a bit of frustration, I end up straddling her torso. I’m careful to keep the majority of my weight off her, and there’s no help for the hard length of my cock making its presence known. Other than raising her brows, she doesn’t comment on it. So I don’t either.

It’s not until I’m dipping the needles into the ink that I realize what I’m about to do. “This will hurt.”

“Tattoos always do.” She points to the glyph just under her collarbone. “That bowl goes with this one. We’ll have to clean the needles before you switch to the other bowl.”

“Okay.” I press the needles to her skin. She tenses beneath me, and I almost ask her if she’s sure, but she’s right; tattoos always hurt. The very least I can do is ensure her pain has purpose—and that it doesn’t last longer than necessary. Even so, it’s slow going. The glyph is more complicated than it first appears. To distract her, and myself, I ask, “Where did you get all these materials?”

Evelyn carefully sets her hands on my thighs, which would be a distraction all its own if not for concern keeping my thoughts in order. She winks. “I bought it off one of the crew. I don’t know if they were a witch, or just had an apothecary worth of supplies, but they had everything I needed to restock.”

I consider that as I keep inking. “Do I want to ask where you got the money to make these purchases?”

“Probably not.” She somehow manages to laugh without moving. “But I didn’t steal from you or Dia, if that’s what you’re wondering. Or Nox, for that matter. They’re too perceptive and their hands are even quicker than mine.”

With how often she lifts things off me, I probably should have been wondering if she’d done it again to serve her purposes. It never crossed my mind, though. I don’t know if that’s naive . . . or progress. Still, if she’s creating enemies on the crew, I need to know. “Tell me.”

“Okay, fine. I stole a tiny little ring off the captain. But it’s not like I have it any more, so no one can prove it.” She grins. “Easy peasy.”

I don’t comment that the crew member she sold it to could use that as proof of her thievery. I suspect if they were going to do that, it would’ve already happened. There is no honor among this crew, and Hedd has no one to blame but himself. “Do you think you can manage to restrain yourself until we get onto another ship? Hedd is a bastard, and he’s vicious when he’s crossed. I wouldn’t lose sleep over killing him—if I’m even capable of it—but it would complicate things and draw further attention to us.” Evelyn is silent for so long that I pause and look up to meet her green eyes. “What?”

“Bowen,” she says slowly. “Did you just offer to murder the captain for me? How did you know that was my love language?” Before I can come up with a suitable response to that—if there even is one—she points to the second bowl. “Clean that off and then start on the next one.”

I finish inking the first glyph and sit back. “I mean to keep you safe. No matter what that requires.” I quickly wash off the tool and settle back to start the second glyph. “I know you’re joking, but it’s the truth.”

“I know.” She strokes her fingers lightly over my thighs. “I appreciate you and the lengths you’re willing to go. I know I came into your life and dropped a bomb. You’ve been adapting better than I could’ve expected, and frankly, I’m a little surprised you don’t hate me.”

I frown, concentrating as I work along a trio of fine dots. “It would be incredibly unfair of me to hate you for asking questions. You didn’t create the Cŵn Annwn, and you didn’t create their laws. You certainly didn’t have anything to do with how Threshold itself is set up.”

“Of course not. But there’s that old saying about shooting the messenger, and all that.”

“I can infer what you’re talking about, but I have no idea what you’re referencing.” I pause. “I think it would be best if you stop stroking my thighs. It’s incredibly distracting and I don’t want to do this incorrectly.”

Evelyn’s smile takes on a mischievous lilt. “You’re so blunt. I love that. Maybe next time you can practice with paint and we can see just how much distraction you can handle before you start making a mess.”

“Evelyn.” I have to pause and take a long breath to still my shaking hand. “Please.”

Her laugh is music to my ears. She bites her bottom lip. “Okay, okay, fine. I’ll be good so you can finish the job. But unless I’m mistaken, we have a few free hours after this. I think we both deserve a reward . . .”

 Hunt on Dark Waters will hit shelves on November 7, but you can pre-order it right now. 

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Lacy Baugher Milas is the Books Editor at Paste Magazine, but loves nerding out about all sorts of pop culture. You can find her on Twitter @LacyMB