Of Royalty and Rules

Being half-Syrena is a troublesome place. Emma feels out of place in both worlds, but in Anna Banks' Of Triton, she gets to know just how much of an outsider the Syrena really think she is. 

Emma barely adjusted to the idea that she was half-Syrena (mermaid) before finding out her mother was a Syrena princess. In fact, she was THE Syrena princess who was thought to be dead and was the cause of the war between the two kingdoms. When Galen recognizes her, he immediately brings his brother Grom, to the surface to reunite with Nalia, his mate who he thought died in a mine explosion. This could have been a beautiful reunion if Nalia hadn't kidnapped Emma to escape the Syrena she was convinced would imprison her and murder her daughter. 

When Nalia finally sees Grom with her own eyes and realizes she didn't cause his death all those decades ago, she can barely control her love for him. What she didn't expect was that Grom had already been bonded to Paca, the commoner claiming to have the Gift of Poseidon, the ability to communicate with all marine life. With Grom bonded, the next in line to marry Nalia, according to Syrena law, is Galen. Faced with the fact that her mother is supposed to marry Emma's boyfriend, she is desperate to find a way around the law. Unfortunately, that means Nalia and the other royals returning to the water to challenge Grom's bonding and reinstate Nalia as his queen. But the kingdom they return to isn't exactly the one they left, and no one is in more danger than Emma, the abomination in the eyes of all Syrena. 

The first book in this series was seriously funny. I mean laugh out-loud like a fool kind of funny. That was part of the reason I loved it. While I really liked this story as well, it just wasn't as funny as the first book. I missed that. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the back story into the Syrena and the action of everything, but I really missed the spunky, sassy characters and the silliness that made Of Poseidon so very funny.

Still, this was a good story and a great continuation of the series. This series would be great for low-skilled older students, but it is fairly clean and would be appropriate for younger, stronger readers. The books are pretty brief, so the stories fly by pretty quickly. I am looking forward to the third book, but I hope Anna Banks puts more of that snark I loved so much into this upcoming installment! 

First and Lost Loves

In Anna Banks' Of Poseidon, we were so wrapped up in Galen and Emma's lives we barely got to see Galen's brother Grom, the prince who shall inherit the throne and carries all the burden of such a post. Grom is the brother whose marriage and mating has been decided on for generations before their own existence. He is the brother with the least ability to make decisions for his own life. 

But Grom's story is one of young love and tragedy. In Of Poseidon, we know he lost his first mate, Nalia, but you never learn how. In Legacy Lost, you not only find out about the tragedy Grom was victim to, but also how he really loved Nalia. One would think an arranged marriage is awful and loveless, but Nalia's dangerous side and impulsiveness draws the series Grom to her. And finally, even his mother can't hide the knowledge that Grom's love for Nalia is written all over his face. But Nalia's desire for more and more danger will be her undoing... and Grom's.

Sometimes these short stories are pointless, but I was really happy to read Grom's story. I always thought he was a little cold or too devoted to the throne, but it was nice to see him young and in love. Even though this is a prequel, I think the addition of this story will lead very nicely into Of Triton where Grom's position will take on an even larger purpose than in the first story. Nice addition to the series!

Just For You!

I am convinced those people who claim to only read intellectual, stuffy books, magazines, and newspapers secretly have a stash of fun, easy reading hidden under their beds. Why fight the fact that sometimes, a funny, easy, entertaining, endearing read is all you really want? And with Tera Lynn Childs, you are bound to get just that with Just for Fins. 

Lily may be a mermaid queen, but that doesn't mean everyone takes her seriously. In her mermaid kingdom, she tries to use her position to call the other mermaid kings and queens to join forces to help Tellin's kingdom (her "husband" or bond mate, in name only). Tellin's kingdom is on the verge of starvation due to pollution and over-fishing, but that doesn't mean anyone wants to help them. The other leaders scold Lily for not recognizing their own human-caused problems and promptly depart from the meeting, leaving Lily to look like a fool.

But Tellin's dying kingdom isn't Lily's only concern. An ancient law is dug up that states Quince, Lily's true love, must pass three trials in order for them to remain together. If he fails, she will be banished to the water, he will be banished to land, and neither can come together ever again. Now Lily finds everything she ever loved on the line with little hope of fixing things. But it is about to get worse when the merpeople consider acts of sabotage on oil rigs and ships perfectly acceptable revenge to save the oceans humans have so carelessly destroyed. As a half-human who is in love with a human, Lily can't imagine the losses and devastation such acts could cause. But how can one teenage mermaid stop generations of oceanic destruction all by herself?

I just love Tera Lynn Childs. She never disappoints. Her stories are witty, fun, and just make me smile. This was a good conclusion to the mermaid tales (pun intended), but I wish the trials for Quince weren't so rushed. With the focus on the environmental issues, the trials we stuffed into a few short pages them forgotten about for a long stretch. It seems like it could either have been more developed or left out altogether instead of making a big deal out of it then ignoring it. Still, the environmental issues were a great, serious element to these fun stories, and whole-heartedly appropriate for a modern day story of the sea.

These are fairly young books and would be best for middle readers or an immature young adult reader. Although, if you can get a stronger young adult reader to pick them up, they would most likely enjoy the entertaining stories. They do have a great joy to them, and I know I have enjoyed every book I read by Childs!

Poseidon Blows This One Out of the Water

Have you ever felt like there was something different about you? Something that can't easily be explained? In Anna Banks' Of Poseidon, Emma finds out there is more to that feeling than she ever thought possible.

Emma is enjoying her final summer with her best friend, Chloe, on the beach in Florida, but when she crashes into a haunting stranger with the same strange purple eye color as Emma, she can't help but be intrigued. When a freak accident finds Emma fighting with a shark to save Chloe, she doesn't realize the stranger, Galen, witnesses her ability to talk to fish... because as a Syrena (mermaid), Galen has the ability to cloak himself underwater. 

Galen suspects Emma is a Syrena from the Poseidon clan, but some things don't add up. She can hold her breath for an inhuman amount of time, she has tough Syrena skin, but she can't shift into a fin. And the worst part of it all is that if she truly is Syrena, she must marrying Galen's brother Grom, the royal heir, to prevent an all out war between the two clans. Galen knows he owes this to his people and his brother, but he can't help but be distraught about the idea of Emma marrying another man. But before anything can be settled, they have to first get to the bottom of Emma's origins... Is she really Syrena?

You know that feeling you get when a book surpasses your expectations? Well I totally experienced that with this book! Not only was it a fun, intriguing story, but it was also hilarious! I found myself laughing out loud throughout the entire story! Not only were the main characters good fun, but the supporting characters, Torif and Rayna have such a great story line. They are officially married, but Rayna doesn't want to be married. Torif loves her, but can't get her to admit she really wants him. despite her constant rejections, Torif just cheerily plods on with his affections, even when she splits his lip and threatens to kill him! I loved Torif! He was hilarious and endearing. The characters really do drive this story.

I also really appreciated that the love story between Emma and Galen isn't as "I met you two seconds ago but I know we are soul mates and I would end my life for you" like many YA novels these days. They certainly were intrigued by each other at first, and they grew on each other over time, but Emma wasn't afraid to tell him where to go when he deserved it. I loved that about her. This is a good story for any middle school through high school student. It's fairly clean and appropriate for a wide range of ages.  This was a really fun story, but I warn you, there isn't much of an ending. You will find yourself flipping that last page back and forth looking for more chapters that just aren't there! But there has to be another story... there just HAS to be!

Dark and Murderous Mermaids

After reading Tera Lynn Childs' mermaid series, I was expecting this to be a light, fun story about cute mermaids. Couldn't have been more wrong! Don't be fooled by the beautiful cover on this book. It is dark and sometimes disturbing. This is not a mermaid story for the sensitive readers out there. Sarah Porter took her mermaids to a whole new level in Lost Voices.

Luce is only fourteen, but she has had a tough life for a girl so young. Her mom died when she was little and her father was a nomad and a thief, dragging Luce from ratty motel to ratty motel, barely letting her stay long enough to enroll in school. She didn't mind it, though. Then her father decides to move to Alaska so Luce can have a normal life and be closer to his brother. When Luce's dad's boat is lost at sea while fishing, she is left to her uncle's protection. Her uncle is a mean, abusive alcoholic, but when he goes to far and actually tries to rape her, something happens to Luce. She changes. She becomes a mermaid.

Mermaids are young women who are given a second chance after being hurt and tortured by human beings. Every girl mermaid Luce meets has her own horror story of how she got there- burned alive, thrown from a moving vehicle, sold by her parents, etc. Most of the mermaids are between 5 and 16, but there are baby mermaids- babies hurt by humans who become mermaids and are stuck as babies, never growing old, unable to defend themselves. The other mermaids call them larvae and know there is no way to help them. They will never grow up and can therefore never survive in the cruel ocean. Most of them are eaten by orcas, but there are always more to replace them. The larvae are the hardest thing for Luce to accept... until she learns what the purpose of the mermaids.

Mermaids sink ships. Their song is so beautiful it draws ships into the rocks and breaks them apart. People ob board are so enchanted, they leap into the water to be closer to the the mermaids, jumping to their deaths. Luce struggles with this, even though she is the second best singer and instantly propelled to Catarina's, the Queen of the tribe, second in command. As a large group of mermaids come and then one of the mermaids convince Catarina to turn a girl on a yacht, things begin to change. Catarina loses her authority to control the mermaids and only take down small ships in places where the humans won't become suspicious. Soon Anais, the girl from the yacht, is getting girls to take down boats to get jewelry and clothes and useless electronics. They are endangering the mermaid way of life, but can Luce and Catarina save the tribe before they call too much attention to themselves?

This is an incredibly dark, and sometimes morbid (especially with the ever-present larvae) story. It is not for delicate readers who can't handle dark stories. The most interesting aspect of this story for me was the fact that, although vengeful, the mermaids were given a second chance at life. For Luce, it was the first time she had real friends and the first time since her father's death she felt loved. It is a beautiful idea that after so much pain, they could find peace somewhere. I also like the idea that while the other mermaids took down ships to get vengeance on evil humans, Luce couldn't bring herself to do it- she remembered that while some humans like her uncle were evil, others were good to her. It is a nice twist to the story that gives hope for people and mermaids alike.

Because this story is full of some very serious and violent situations, it might be best left for an older student. I would recommend grades 10-12 unless you know a younger student who is comfortable with darker material. The book might be best used in conjunction with non-fiction material and discussions about the situations in the story that lead to the girls changing into mermaids. The book will be a great catalyst for some serious discussions on vengeance and violence.

Funny Fins and Merry Mermaids

Lily is really Princess Waterlily of Thalassinia, an underwater mermaid kingdom where her father is the king. But Lily has chosen to give up her throne in order to stay on land with the boy she loves, her next-door neighbor and once archenemy, Quince. Now, in Fins are Forever by Tera Lynn Childs, Lily prepares to officially give up her throne, graduate high school, take the SATs, and follow through with a life above the surface as a "terapod" (mermaid on legs).

It was only a short few weeks ago when Lily chose to be unbound from Quince in order to give him freedom from being a merman and solidify her life on land. When a strong earthquake hits her small Florida town, it raises suspicions when the epicenter isn't even on a fault line- it is close to Thalassinia. But Lily doesn't have time to worry about that with the SATs coming up and being her only hope for college and a future as an un-princess on land. When her annoying, self-centered cousin Dosinia arrives at her doorstep having been exiled from Thalassinia, Lily's father makes her responsible for teaching Doe to respect humans. Although Lily can't get out of Doe what she did to get exiled, she knows it must be bad since the king never uses exile unless totally necessary.

Doe insists on making Lily's life miserable in small ways, but really crosses the line when Lily finds her with Brody (Lily's 3 year crush until she realized he wasn't her type and she was really in love with Quince). Doe and Bordy had clearly made out which is of course in direct violation of girl-code, but more importantly for a mermaid means now Doe and Brody are bonded and Brody is slowly transforming into a merman. For a girl who hates humans so much, being bound to Brody seems like punishment for Lily rather than something Doe really wanted. Now Lily must take Brody down to Thalassinia to be unbound.

When she gets to the kingdom, Lily's father agrees to the unbinding, but tells Lily she must do it since both Doe and Brody must be present. While in the kingdom, Lily runs into a guppyhood friend, Tellin, who is a prince of a neighboring mermaid kingdom. He begs Lily to bind with him, in formality only, in order to bring their kingdoms together and allow her to keep her throne. Lily is tempted, but her love for Quince is too strong to bind with another man. When Lily returns to land, she realizes the best way for Doe to have respect for humans is to stay bound to Brody (the same "punishment" her father gave her!). Now she must find a way to help Doe (without strangling her int he process), study for the SATs, and stop feeling so sad about losing her place as the next Queen of Thalassinia. Can she keep it all together?

This was a very cute follow up to the first book. While these aren't ground-breaking stories that will win countless awards, they are certainly fun and exciting reads. It is a good book for a young middle school student or an immature high school student. The content is completely clean, as is the language. The story is engaging enough to hold onto even the most unengaged reader. This is probably more of a "girl" book, but the content might be fine for either gender. I love Tera Lynn Childs. Her books are like a good chocolate milkshake on a warm summer day- a perfect guilty pleasure that will put a smile on your face!

Mermaid Fun and Full of Fishy Puns

Tera Lynn Childs entertained me her fun Greek God stories, and now she does the same with a new mythology- Mermaid Lore! What better for a fun, quick read than a story of mermaids and oceans and teenage angst! Forgive My Fins is a fun-filled story full of some goofy puns, but at the heart of the story are great characters and an interesting new world.

Lily is a mermaid, but she lives on land with her aunt and attends high school like a normal girl. As the princess of her underwater kingdom, she has a lot riding on her time as a terapod (person with legs who lives on land). She must find the boy who she wants to spend the rest of her life with. When she kisses him, they will be bound together forever and he will transform into a mermaid. Her crush, Brody, is finally single and she is ready to tell him all her secrets... and ask her to join him at the bottom of the sea.

When Lily's annoying neighbor Quince offers to help her catch Brody, something goes terribly wrong. Instead of meeting Brody in the dark library, Quince comes and gives Lily her first and fateful kiss. No she must explain to him why he keeps coughing and craves salt water like a dried up jellyfish. She takes him back home to her kingdom with the hopes that her father will break the bond. It must be undone quickly so Lily can go back to the boy she really wants. But when she gets home, her father surprises her by insisting she remain bonded to Quince for a week (then another week) to be sure she wants to be unbound from him. Lily and Quince resurface and Lily must face the glaring truth about her feelings for both Quince and Brody. When she finally returns to sea, her father agrees to the unbinding, but it means they must go through a series of tests before it can be completed. Will Lily recognize her feelings for Quince or hide them beneath an unrequited crush for Brody and lose Quince from the ocean forever?

At first, I am not going to lie, I was completely annoyed with the cheese factor of this book. The first few chapters are completely riddled with lame fish puns and ridiculous ocean cliches. In fact, I didn't think I was going to make it through the book at first, but I am glad I stuck with it. As soon as the story really begins, the fish nonsense dies back a bit (or becomes less annoying) and the story gets really, really cute. Granted, it isn't the most unique story out there (boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy fights to get girl back), but it is a really fun, flirty story that just makes you smile. This story won't be bulldozing over any awards panels anytime soon, but it will certainly keep the reader engaged and interested.

The language is fairly simplistic, although a few made up words (like terapod) might be confusing to a younger student. The book is completely appropriate for a much younger student, but will definitely be great for an older, low-skilled student who isn't as mature as her peers (or just likes a good, cheese-tastic story). It is more of a girl book than a boy book, but I am pretty sure the cover will not appeal to most boys anyway. My favorite part about Childs is that she isn't afraid to invoke the Gods of Cheese and Romantic Comedies- in fact, she even throws them a party with each of her books. I am looking forward to the sequel for some fun, easy reading that makes me want to swim out to a kingdom in the sea!