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jgintrovertedreader's review against another edition
4.0
Alice has always been the odd one in her small Appalachian community. She loves water, her hair grows incredibly fast, her feet are slightly webbed, and somehow her personality has just never "fit in." She's done her best all her life to blend into the background, but she gets quite a bit of publicity when she rescues someone. She hates being in the public eye, but ultimately it brings her to the attention of some women who can give her answers about her past and why she's so different.
Let me say right up front that I won this book in a GR giveaway. I don't think that's affected my rating and review, but in the interest of full disclosure, there it is.
The book started off a little disjointed for me because I wasn't very clear about what to expect. But by the time I was 20-30 pages in, it was all coming together and I was starting to enjoy the book. It only got better all the way through. I liked the characters and the mystery of what happened the night a boat sank, 40 years ago. I liked the family histories and legends of the characters. I particularly liked the way that the fantasy element was woven in like it was no big deal. Just make this one little leap of faith and all of a sudden you've got the real world with a little more magic in it. That's always fun.
The book had a feel (but not a plot) a little like the movie Practical Magic and the book Garden Spells, with maybe just a little of the drama and mystery of The Pilot's Wife thrown in. Fans of these books would certainly enjoy this one.
Let me say right up front that I won this book in a GR giveaway. I don't think that's affected my rating and review, but in the interest of full disclosure, there it is.
The book started off a little disjointed for me because I wasn't very clear about what to expect. But by the time I was 20-30 pages in, it was all coming together and I was starting to enjoy the book. It only got better all the way through. I liked the characters and the mystery of what happened the night a boat sank, 40 years ago. I liked the family histories and legends of the characters. I particularly liked the way that the fantasy element was woven in like it was no big deal. Just make this one little leap of faith and all of a sudden you've got the real world with a little more magic in it. That's always fun.
The book had a feel (but not a plot) a little like the movie Practical Magic and the book Garden Spells, with maybe just a little of the drama and mystery of The Pilot's Wife thrown in. Fans of these books would certainly enjoy this one.
felinity's review against another edition
5.0
A unique and beautiful story of secrets, sorrow, love, acceptance and family.
bnewson's review against another edition
4.0
I read this one fast enough that it never even made it into my "currently-reading" list. I thought it would take a few days, but the type was set somewhat larger than I'm used to, so the pages went by pretty fast.
It was a magical sort of story - mermaids exist! Only not in the storybook fantasy (Disney) sort of way they're typically portrayed. A young girl with strange abilities feels like a freak and an outcast, until one day her relatives find her, and she must go on a journey of self-discovery. She finds romance and new family ties along the way, as well as solves a mystery of her family's past. In fact, the one thing that really kept me reading was the constant, slowly developing mystery. Hints and clues are dropped subtly through the whole book, until the full story pieces together in the end. I'm not usually big on mystery, but it really worked for me in this romantic/fantasy setting.
A few short but graphic descriptions of sexuality included, a warning for the cautious reader.
It was a magical sort of story - mermaids exist! Only not in the storybook fantasy (Disney) sort of way they're typically portrayed. A young girl with strange abilities feels like a freak and an outcast, until one day her relatives find her, and she must go on a journey of self-discovery. She finds romance and new family ties along the way, as well as solves a mystery of her family's past. In fact, the one thing that really kept me reading was the constant, slowly developing mystery. Hints and clues are dropped subtly through the whole book, until the full story pieces together in the end. I'm not usually big on mystery, but it really worked for me in this romantic/fantasy setting.
A few short but graphic descriptions of sexuality included, a warning for the cautious reader.
ancequay's review against another edition
3.0
Parts of this were a little trippy or a little lyrical for my taste, but I mostly enjoyed it. I probably wouldn't read it again.
scorpstar77's review against another edition
4.0
I thought this book was delightful. It's magical and womanly and mysterious and utterly fascinating. A woman with strange abilities is estranged and reclusive in a tiny town in the Georgia mountains. She is happy to be ignored, and everyone is happy to ignore her, until she rescues a little girl under impossible circumstances - a little girl who turns out to be the governor's granddaughter. Then it seems no matter how much she wants to, she can't get out of the spotlight - and three strange, beautiful women from the Georgia coast show up to tell her about her mysterious past and sweep her away. It's lovely, it's heart-wrenching and romantic and beautiful.
cmbohn's review against another edition
1.0
I don't see what others liked about this book. It started off with an interested opening, but I lost interest pretty soon. Alice was a good character with a background that made me care about her, but what's with all the other stuff going on? And then more explicit content than I wanted to be reading. How old is Alice, anyway? I got confused and lost interest. No thanks.
ldwcameron's review against another edition
3.0
This was a quick read with an interesting take on the people of the water, the mermaids. Alice has always been different, but she can't quite put her finger on why. Then she saves a small girl from drowning and is thrust headfirst into a new and confusing family and way of life. The prose wasn't always what I wanted it to be, but this was still an entertaining story.
kailey_luminouslibro's review against another edition
2.0
In this book, Alice discovers that her extraordinary swimming abilities, her webbed toes, and the fact that she can breathe underwater, all mean that she is a half-human descendant of a mermaid. When her half-sisters come looking for her, and a mysterious man appears to her in a vision, Alice must decide if she really can believe in a new type of magical life, or if her damaged past will keep her from accepting the love of her new family.
I wanted to like this book because it's about mermaids, and I kept reading the book because of the mystery surrounding a shipwreck, but I didn't enjoy it that much.
The writing is odd and strange, and I skipped a lot of random explanations of things.
A better title for this book would be "Mermaids Having Sex", because even though there's only one sex scene that I had to skip, every character in the entire book is overly sexualized, as if everyone's primary characteristic is their sexual identity, and they have no depth beyond that. And that got boring really fast.
The only part I liked was the mystery about the shipwreck, and even that was a disappointment at the end. The plot is too straightforward, and I was looking for more complexity and depth.
I wanted to like this book because it's about mermaids, and I kept reading the book because of the mystery surrounding a shipwreck, but I didn't enjoy it that much.
The writing is odd and strange, and I skipped a lot of random explanations of things.
A better title for this book would be "Mermaids Having Sex", because even though there's only one sex scene that I had to skip, every character in the entire book is overly sexualized, as if everyone's primary characteristic is their sexual identity, and they have no depth beyond that. And that got boring really fast.
The only part I liked was the mystery about the shipwreck, and even that was a disappointment at the end. The plot is too straightforward, and I was looking for more complexity and depth.
lisadee's review
4.0
This is an enchanting tale of mermaids, but not the traditional Disney-like character with interchangable fins and legs. This story asks the question: what happens when mermaids live among us, Sometimes not even realizing the truth themselves?
First, I want to thank the author for making this book a Goodreads giveaway. I might not have picked it up on my own, but think it deserves to have the word spread of its worth. Even adults sometimes need a fairy tales to tempt their imagination.
First, I want to thank the author for making this book a Goodreads giveaway. I might not have picked it up on my own, but think it deserves to have the word spread of its worth. Even adults sometimes need a fairy tales to tempt their imagination.
book_grinch's review
2.0
Disclaimer:
I read the ebook edition, so it's possible that the new edition corrects some of the issues I mention in this review.
And here it is: Another story with an interesting premise but which, in the end, falls short due to an abundance of the most clichéd paranormal traits.
As a magical realism story this had great promise... had the development been more focused on the characters, and ultimately on their interactions; instead of endless descriptions of clothes and bracelets.
Alice, as a character, was interesting to read about. And I was particularly interested in seeing her breaking the bonds to her old life.
But an author can't expect their readers to believe _and no, I'm not going to mention the more fantastical bits! _ that someone who has been basically mistreated by her family for as long as she can remember, would fall into a relationship _as magic as it was _ just like that.
Thirty four years old is a long time to have acquired some strong protective barriers against "third parties".
The what was to be the sensual elements _ and I'm far from being a prude!_ were overdone. The description of that part of their connection was basically ...
What was that? Mental connection sex? o_O
lol Between scrunching my face and just laughing at it, well you can see my reaction.
I wanted more from Alice and from the three women.
I wanted to feel real bonds between all of them. not cliché descriptions of stereotyped characters:
The older one with her wise woman role, the middle sister, the warrior, and the younger sister with her kind easy ways.
Of the three, Mara was undoubtedly the one I wanted to read and to know more about. Her relationship with C.A. could have been used to let us watch them actually interacting, and not telling us about it.
This is not my first book by this author.
It is, however, the first fantasy book by this author that I've read, and it shows.
Basically I want to say: There's a gem hidden in this story, so, delete all of this, and rewrite it once again.
And forget about the over the top drama...
Also the cover art, could use a very necessary update to our day and age...