Quick Facts
My Rating: 4 stars
Series: N/A
Date Read: January 15, 2015
Source: Free review copy from Netgalley
Publication Date: February 2, 2015
Publisher: Jelly Bean Press
Genres: Young adult, fantasy
Summary (taken from
Goodreads): I'm choosing not to share the Goodreads blurb here on the blog, because I personally find that it gives far too much of the story away. However, if you would like to check it out for yourself anyway, it can be found here.
Review
Emma is a changeling. When she was an infant, she was dropped off with a human - her Gran - to live on land for eighteen years. After this time passed, she would be physically forced to return to the sea.
This left Emma living with her parents and her younger brother. The only person who knew about her condition was Gran, who insisted they not tell her parents until the change happened. Emma, attached to her life and the people she loved on earth, did not want to leave for a mate and a new home in Atlantis.
I expected much different things from this story. Admittedly, that's not the book's fault. Going in, I thought that Emma's life would be split more evenly between water and land, when it actually all happened on land.
The lack of mermaid parts were disappointing, but I quickly got over it and took the story for what it is - which is, primarily, a young adult romance. Once I accepted this, I fell in love with Emma's story. And that is why the ending to this book upset me so much.
Without giving spoilers, I can say that this ending left a lot to be desired. I don't think the concept is bad, although it's disappointing. But my problem is how many plot points get started in the end, but don't follow through. There are connections that began to come together, then were left alone. A character did something completely unexpected, and that action was never explained.
I don't think this is a book that, if ended right, would have needed a sequel. I don't think the main story line requires a sequel, although I would love one for that too - but there were several important side plots that need more explaining. The side plots needed an ending too, and they just did not get one. As far as I know, this is a standalone, which disappoints me.
Still, I focused a lot on the negative in this review - and that is not entirely fair. While I had problems with the ending, the rest of the story was wonderful. I loved following Emma and her life, and I admired her strength throughout the story. I fell in love with James - although he thought far too much about Emma being 'different from other girls' because she was complex, which all girls are. I was rooting for them the entire way.
Ultimately, I cannot give this any less than four stars. But if a few more things had been wrapped up, I would easily give it five.
This left Emma living with her parents and her younger brother. The only person who knew about her condition was Gran, who insisted they not tell her parents until the change happened. Emma, attached to her life and the people she loved on earth, did not want to leave for a mate and a new home in Atlantis.
I expected much different things from this story. Admittedly, that's not the book's fault. Going in, I thought that Emma's life would be split more evenly between water and land, when it actually all happened on land.
The lack of mermaid parts were disappointing, but I quickly got over it and took the story for what it is - which is, primarily, a young adult romance. Once I accepted this, I fell in love with Emma's story. And that is why the ending to this book upset me so much.
Without giving spoilers, I can say that this ending left a lot to be desired. I don't think the concept is bad, although it's disappointing. But my problem is how many plot points get started in the end, but don't follow through. There are connections that began to come together, then were left alone. A character did something completely unexpected, and that action was never explained.
I don't think this is a book that, if ended right, would have needed a sequel. I don't think the main story line requires a sequel, although I would love one for that too - but there were several important side plots that need more explaining. The side plots needed an ending too, and they just did not get one. As far as I know, this is a standalone, which disappoints me.
Still, I focused a lot on the negative in this review - and that is not entirely fair. While I had problems with the ending, the rest of the story was wonderful. I loved following Emma and her life, and I admired her strength throughout the story. I fell in love with James - although he thought far too much about Emma being 'different from other girls' because she was complex, which all girls are. I was rooting for them the entire way.
Ultimately, I cannot give this any less than four stars. But if a few more things had been wrapped up, I would easily give it five.
Hmm...I think the concept of this book sounds intriguing enough, but I wish it would've focused more on the mermaid aspect because I'm not a big fan of books that are primarily romance. And books that leave too much open annoy me a little bit. Oh well. At least the cover is gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteI has the same problem -- I really went into the book because of the mermaid aspect, so it was disappointing. The cover is beautiful!
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