Welcome to my party-in-a-blog! I’m Mary Mecham, a high stakes, high swoon, no spice author who LOVES fairytales and romantasy. I have lots of fun things for you today, so let’s get started!!!
What’s Your Favorite Fairytale?
Let’s begin with a super quick and easy poll: just vote for your favorite fairytale! I’m really excited to see which of these people like the most. There are too many fairytales that I love, so I can’t choose a favorite of my own.
Meet Mary and Her Books
Now on to a quick intro of me and my books! I LOVE adventures, meeting people, trying out anything that gives me an adrenaline rush, and disability advocacy! Swing by my social media—I’m most active on Instagram and love answering questions on my stories there, and I like to think that I’m funny sometimes, so check out my reels and posts for some giggles.
My Books
My main series is Legends of Neverland, which can be read as standalones, but I do recommend reading in order for optimal enjoyment! The others can be read in any order because they aren’t interconnected at all.
Here’s a brief rundown on my books:
Legends of Neverland
- Becoming Hook: Captain Hook’s villain origin story where he sacrifices his hand to save Tinkerbell’s life and Peter Pan is drugging the Lost Boys with pixie dust to stay eternally young
- Hunting Sirens: A gender-flipped Little Mermaid where she is the Deaf siren hunter tasked with exterminating all the sirens (but then one saves her life…)
- Betraying Korth: A villainous Goose Girl retelling told from the handmaiden’s POV, and she was raised to start a civil war, and will do anything to succeed
- Escaping Pirates: A seafaring Cinderella (arrives Aug 2025) where Elena must serve the pirate captain’s two daughters. Oh, and there is a fairy godpirate
Standalone Books (Not interconnected, so read in any order)
- Assassin of Fire and Sacrifice: An enemies to lovers assassin romance where she is the assassin sent to marry an enemy prince so she’s positioned close enough to kill him
- Poisoned: Snow White’s story focused on AFTER the poisoned apple. Turns out her prince isn’t so charming after all. Is it too late to change her happily ever after?
- Scarlett and the Dark Woods; A dystopian Red Riding Hood Retelling with a cheeky wolf shifter and a shunned grandmother who needs to be rescued
- A Curse of Gold and Beauty: A FREE Rumpelstiltskin retelling when you sign up for my newsletter (and the miller’s daughter is falling for her best friend…Rumpelstiltskin)
- The Midnight Blizzard: Cinderella and Jack Frost are falling for each other…but it is illegal, and if they are discovered, their futures will both be ruined.
Want to know what’s coming next?
I have a new fairytale retelling that I haven’t talked about much yet, BUT it will be EPIC and villainous, and the announcement is coming very soon! Need a hint? Solve this puzzle and see if you can spot any clues about what retelling this will be!
Fav AI plus Quote Posts (1080 x 1350 px)-14
Make sure to sign up for my newsletter so you are the first to know about this release! (Hint: the announcement is coming within a month!!!)
Let’s Talk CONTENT LEVELS!
Every reader has different comfort levels, so let’s talk about them and find the right book for YOU! Personally, I LOVE visuals, so I put together some graphics to help you understand the content levels of my books. As a reminder, NONE of my books have or will EVER feature:
- Open-door/ sexually explicit scenes
- Gory/ gruesome violence
- Swearing (other than “in world” language)
- Mocking the disability community
Now, here are some things that I LOVE putting into my books and you will frequently find sprinkled throughout my writing:
- Witty, flirty, and snarky verbal banter
- Enemies to lovers and “damsels who distress others”
- Swoony kisses and heart-pounding romances
- High stakes and intense plots
- Positive and accurate disability representation
So yes—all no-spice books, but I DO write the “edgy side of clean” books. What does that mean in terms of violence and grit level? Basically, think of it this way: if it is worse than a PG-13 movie, you won’t ever find it in my books.
I do have awesome battle scenes, BUT they always stay gore free! Need more info? I have an FAQ page on my website that goes over trigger warnings, which books are on audio, which are disability inclusive, etc. Make sure to take a look!
Not all “grit-level” is based off violence. It sometimes correlates, but not always. Now, my Legends of Neverland deals with some morally grey characters that aren’t always violent, but do deal with ethical reasoning issues like:
Should people steal? Of course not.
What if your children are starving and the only way to feed them is to steal? Well then, that changes the story. Human life is more valuable than whatever possession you may steal.
Those are the sorts of issues that are in my books, and here is a grit vs fluff sliding scale to help you determine how heavy the themes are in each book. Again, they all stay teen appropriate. In fact, these books are GREAT ways to open conversations about ethics and morality!
Ready for me to let you in on a little secret? The little nursery rhyme “Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary” is super accurate for me because I have a bit of a rebellious streak! I only write no-spice romances, BUT I also LOVE molding traditionally spicy tropes into my no spice books. Want some examples?
Which of Book Character are You?
Now you know a little about my books, but let’s find out something about YOU!!! Are you a grouchy introvert? Spunky advocate? Sneaky and seductive spy? Take the quiz to find out!!!
Help Me Name Some Pirates!
Coming up in August, I will be releasing Legends of Neverland 4, Escaping Pirates, and I NEED YOUR HELP! I need names for crew members, and there are TWO crews, so I need lots of suggestions. Drop your ideas for names into the comment section below!
7 Books for $7!!!
You’ll find most of these these on the last page, of course, but here are my free / discounted books! I wanted yall to get a bunch of great deals, so I put up:
- Scarlett and the Dark Woods for $0.99
- The Midnight Blizzard for $0.99
- Legends of Neverland Box Set for $4.99
- To Defy a Dream is FREE
- A Curse of Gold and Beauty is FREE with newsletter signup
Pro tip for AUDIOBOOK Listeners:
If you are in the US (not sure for other countries), you often can get about a 60-65% discount on audiobooks if you already own the ebook or borrowed it on Kindle Unlimited. That is with WhisperSync, an automatic program that links Amazon and Audible purchases. So if an audiobook was originally $19.99, you end up only paying $7.49 if you already own the ebook.
Let’s do the math with The Midnight Blizzard as our example! If you buy the audiobook first, you end up OVERpaying:
Normal audiobook price: $19.99
Normal ebook price: $3.99
Total cost: $23.98
When you buy the ebook first and take the WhisperSync discount:
Discounted ebook: $0.99
Discounted audiobook: $7.49
Total cost together: $8.48
My books on sale that ALSO have audiobooks:
That’s all I have for you this year! I hope you have a lot of fun and got some great deals—there are SO many talented fairytale authors!
Ready for the next event? Prepare for more awesome games and fun!
Pirate names
The butcher of butter hill
Gangplank Sam
Bob the bard
Ten toes Ton
Sinkum sally
I got 1.38 on the puzzle and Scarlett on which character you are.
As for pirate names
Private Shivington
Lieutenant Leander
Private Flavious ( from one of your videos)
Dinglesnot lol it popped into my head
Duggys
Weeden
Jonjun
Runlel
Vinten
Clyde
Shon
Antin
Muddles
Ripley
Runter
Snorrt
Mophead
Slicksno
Eppy
Net
Lol having too much fun so I will quit
Pirate names:
Rourke, Drake, Zane, Zander, Vale, Kai, Drimmel, Bash, Ronan, Quinn, Tor, Winn, Jost, Laken, Link, Corden, Korr, Ezra, Rowe, Parr, Xavier, Ike, Rosh, Theo, Porter, Mal
I got Eva for a princess.
Hiram
Shark
Rut
Sneedle
Boot
Axle
Krank
Pirate Names:
Edgard, Swashbuckling Joe, Buccaneer Beauregard, Steven
I got 1:34 for the puzzle, and apparently I’m Scarlett.
Pirate names:
• Acheron – (Latin), “river of sorrow,” (Greek) “river name”
• Brody – (Irish, English, Scottish) “broad eye or broad island,” “dirt”
• Caddock – (Welsh) “eager for war”
• Dagon – Philistine mythology: devil of the sea (sometimes portrayed as part man, part fish – merman?)
• Draven – “one who emerges from the shadows”
• Effiom – (African) “crocodile”
• Fordon – (German) “destroyer,” variations: Fordan, Forden, Fordin, Fordyn
• Hadeon – (Croatian) “destroyer,” (Hebrew) a form of Gideon, “hewer; or, having a stump for a hand”
• Kedron – “shady & dark”
• Kerrim – “dark”
• Perran – (Cornish) “little dark one”
• Sephtis – “eternal death”
• Tavor – (Hebrew) “break, fracture” (Aramaic) “misfortune”
Full disclosure: many of those names are ones I’m using in various stories 🙂
I got Snow White! As for pirate names, Billy is a possibility. Especially if he’s the only pirate with a average name.
Pirate names:
Biggs, Phineas, and Stinky Sue
On Pirate names:
I had some good ideas for bad guy names, and I figured, why not share them?
Raze (as in to raze to the ground)
Xandren
Sterling
Ithamar
Scarn
Hope those help!!
Favorite fairy tale is Beauty and The Beast
There are soooooo many good names already here so I’m not even going to try. lol
(I tried to sign up for newsletter because I don’t remember seeing any in over a year since I changed emails. Said I unsubscribed. Now I’m sad)
Pirate names:
Ryan, Slip, Rigger, Shorty, Black-eyed Jean, Armand, Flinch, Dover
Unsurprisingly, my favorite fairy tale is Beauty and the Beast, but I got Scarlett for the quiz haha
1:07 for the puzzle
May I suggest “Steele” for a pirate? I can’t say why, but let’s just say he’s someone his crew mates would love to see walk the plank 😉
OK, pirate names:
Theobald, Lucky Harry, Eight-Fingered Diego, Young Mortimer, Ivan of the North, Roger Espinar, Spuds (the cook).
Dragmir, Mervin, Jarvin, Wilder, Wickham
Pirate names:
Sebalaster (I was gonna do Sebastian or Alabaster but then I thought ‘why not both?’) – handy with thread and leather.
Young Mcgimmons – early teens cabin boy; sneaky, but puts that ability to use by helping crew mates do anything from pull a harmless prank to stealing from the captain
Babby – Mcgimmons’ younger friend. She’s observant and good with locks. Very sweet and innocent appearance.
Nev – hates being outdoors, so he keeps below decks as much as possible. On the night watch. A bit more refined than the others.
Pablo Nevair – no one calls him by his name, despite his insistance. Instead, he’s referred to as different fabrics (i.e. silk, cotton, velvet) because he used to work as a tailor. He and Sebalaster frequently work together.
I really like The Frog Prince as a fairytale, but it seems like most don’t. But then again I always love a good King Thrusbeard fairytale, and that one isn’t even on the list.
Apparently I am most like Treva. And here are some pirate names:
Pickled Pete
Right-hand Ricky
Bald Bubba
Limp Lenny
Talentless Tammie (Tom, Tim, Tina, etc.)
Tangy Tim
Jumping Jerry
Crab-hand Crusty
Reckless Reese
(I like alliterations! 😁)
Good luck!!
It’s SO hard to choose a favorite! Ugh, I think I’d have to narrow it down to top 3: Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and the Little Mermaid (with Rapunzel so closely behind!) </3 I picked Sleeping Beauty for the poll because it was my childhood favorite – so it's been my favorite the longest XD
Your swoon-o-meter and charts are EPIC! Genius! Also, the character Treva sounds super cool – I can't wait to read about her!
Oh man, I love pirates! There are already some fantastic ideas here. I'll just throw out a few off the top of my head. Hmm, Scar or Sebastian maybe?
Pirate name Garrett
Also I’m Snow White and I think the upcoming book is about Sleeping Beauty
Pirate name: Artful
I got Noelle!
I really like your visuals for gore and steam levels☺️
If you have some female pirates:
Salome
Bonnie Bonnet (Stede Bonnet was a famous pirate of Barbados where I am from)
Henri (short for Henrietta)
Roxanna Bess
Lovelace
Male pirates:
Jamaica Stevenson
Seven McGee
*city name from your story* Jack (like Cincinnati Jack)
James *Lucky* Peterson
I got Snow White on the quiz!
For a pirate name, maybe Fishnet or Striker?
I got Scarlett!
Hmm…for pirate names…Rust, Filch, Lick, Char, Nex, Jet, Sawk, Butch, Cleaver, Flint, Hawk, Sly, Stingy, Raspy, Schwarm
I never try to choose a favorite fairytale because I honestly love them all. I got Scarlett. Does the pirate we name have to be male? I think Mairead or Meghan would be good names. They both mean pearl.
pirate names: Xander, Iggy, Ichabod, Scuffy, One-Eyed Pete
My favorite fairy tale is The Little Mermaid!
I don’t know if I can compete with so many good names, but here are my pirate ideas!
– Rhys
– Conner (this just said pirate to me lol)
– Nereus
– Dylan (girl)
– Loid
– Merissa
– Hawk
– Crow (maybe for lookout)
– Floyd
– (Captain) Scourge
These are quite tame (and common) names, but I hope they spark some ideas!