The Coral Kingdom
By Suzanne Ponsford
Discover a new world beneath the sea in this stunning, middle-grade (years) fantasy.
The Story
Flipper was a loner. At eleven years of age, he was fascinated by marine life and regularly went out with his pet dog Osmo exploring the wildlife of the coastline where he lived at Seacove. His parents had a sailing boat, the Dragon, and he had become a competent little sailor. The only friend he had was a retired Sea Salt called Sam who used to fascinate Flipper with yarns of his life at sea over the last fifty years. One night he met a marine Undine Elf Prince who had lost his pet Sea Hare, and later on his pretty Elfin sister from an underwater world called The Coral Kingdom. Flipper and Osmo magically travelled south through the ocean with him and his companions in a Giant Nautilus.
Flipper and Osmo finding the Sea Hare at Seacove
At first, Flipper struggled to understand the Mer Elves he first met, as they spoke in a quaint, old-fashioned sort of English, but in a while they almost adapted their speech to his. In fact, they were quite like humans and he ended up really liking them, and their fun way of life. Gradually, he found out that the most unusual thing about them was their ability to tune into their innate power which was based on their spiritual skills, and that also changed Flipper’s awareness, not only of them, but of the amazing creatures he met in the ocean, and it was exhilarating. The Marine Elves on the Giant Nautilus were of two races; the Undine Mer and Undine Kelps, and all of them were kindly, courteous, and on the whole, gentle. That is, except for one of them, so it was not all plain sailing!
They had many adventures, the most dangerous was one where Flipper and the Marine Mer and Kelp Elves nearly lost their lives in a human-generated massive plastic pollution ocean gyre. But luckily, they were saved by the intervention of a Tibetan Lama who was associated with the Elves. The Lama told him that once he was in The Coral Kingdom, he would meet Orion, advisor to the Undine Mer Elf King and Queen there, parents to the Elven Prince and Princess. He was an Undine Elvish wizard and would give Flipper further helpful knowledge. This was exciting!
Their journey came to an end with the Nautilus stopping at the edge of a massive, beautiful coral barrier reef. The Elfin Prince and Princess showed Flipper their stunningly wonderful City of Shells. He was introduced to the Mer Elf King and Queen who showed an incredible affinity to the dolphins. There were many different types here which was strange and Flipper wondered why. He was treated to a magical picture show of the exploits of a daring cousin of the Mer Elf Prince and Princess. This was celebrated with a great feast, and Flipper was shown many wonders of The Coral Kingdom. But it seemed that due to human pollution and interference, the marine Undine Elves future might not be secure there.
Flipper woke up aboard the Dragon, and was found by his dad. Secretly, he was amazed that he had only been away for a short time, but his parents had been worried. On the way home Flipper and Osmo were involved in a near fatal accident, but both were unharmed due to a miraculous mini tornado initiated somehow by Orion.
Flipper regained consciousness at home, with his alarmed mother fussing over him, but his dad seemed curiously unaffected. Once he had more or less recovered, with time to himself, he vowed that he would never forget the Undine Elves, nor the danger they were in. Somehow, he would help human people to live more simply and live in a far less wasteful manner. But how was he to do this? Maybe he could join some groups who were active in showing people how to reduce their waste. He had high hopes and was very determined.
Suzanne Ponsford was born near Cambridge, UK, to a Welsh miner-turned-civil-engineer and a Belgian mother. She travelled to the Far East by ship when she was little where she became entranced by the sea. She later studied Marine Biology at Bangor University, N. Wales, returning to her Celtic roots, and afterwards developed her imaginative, passionate ideas for young adult fiction; introducing a young boy’s overriding interests and isolation, his love of nature, and introduction to spiritual, ecological sustainability. Suzanne moved near Bannau Brycheiniog, South Wales in 2021, and completed The Coral Kingdom, her first novel, inspired by the magical, misty landscape.
To request an advance reader copy—digital or print—email dcdesignteamvt@gmail.com
21st April 2026 – Publication date.
SPECS
The Coral Kingdom
Middle-grade Fiction
Paperback Original with B&W illustrations
Trim Size: 5.5 x 8.25
Page Count: 264
Price: £13.13
ISBN: 979-8-9985170-1-3
Publication Date: April 21, 2026
Distributor: IPG/Chicago, Ingram, Bookshop.org
Rights sold: All rights available.
Rights & PR: Dede Cummings, dede@greenwriterspress.com
Distributor: IPG; also available through Follett/Baker & Taylor, Ingram, and other wholesalers.
Individuals can pre-order directly from Bookshop.org, or contact your local, independent bookstore.
Booksellers, libraries, colleges/universities, gift shops, etc., can order through IPG:
Independent Publishers Group
814 N. Franklin Street
Chicago, IL 60610
Order Placement: The Coral Kingdom
The Coral Kingdom 