(28) Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama

Book Type: Novel
Author: Elizabeth Fama
Pages: 295

Summary(goodreads.com):
Fierce, seductive mermaid Syrenka falls in love with Ezra, a young naturalist. When she abandons her life underwater for a chance at happiness on land, she is unaware that this decision comes with horrific and deadly consequences.

Almost one hundred forty years later, seventeen-year-old Hester meets a mysterious stranger named Ezra and feels overwhelmingly, inexplicably drawn to him. For generations, love has resulted in death for the women in her family. Is it an undiagnosed genetic defect . . . or a curse? With Ezra’s help, Hester investigates her family’s strange, sad history. The answers she seeks are waiting in the graveyard, the crypt, and at the bottom of the ocean—but powerful forces will do anything to keep her from uncovering her connection to Syrenka and to the tragedy of so long ago.

My Review:
When I first picked this book up, I was pretty excited to read it! I was interested in how the historical fiction and the mermaid themes would intertwine. The artwork on the cover also enticed me to read. There were some elements that I liked about the book, but other elements... I just didn't expect it. Let's take a look at some of the plot elements of Monstrous Beauty.

Breathtaking, Gorgeous, Aching Love! What I Loved:
When I started the prologue of the book, I loved the vivid imagery Fama was able to create. I felt the pain of Syrenka's first love, and I instantly felt a connection to her. I also loved the longing-for-true-love vibe; I have felt this woman's pain before! Syrenka the mermaid is described as having very fish-like qualities. She has sharp teeth, and very sharp, spiny fins with scutes instead of scales and a dolphin's fluke. Cool!

These are scutes on a sturgeon,
 which is what Syrenka's tail looks like!

Later on in the setting, Hester starts to discover her family's dark secret. As she continues to unravel her family genealogy, it starts to become a thriller. I loved how the book jumped back and forth from historical fiction to thriller that excites the reader! I also loved the romance; it was beautiful and sweet.

I must warn you, mer-readers, the book is very graphic at times.

Tormenting and Painful To Read! What I Hated:
I would just like to warn some readers that this book contains many graphic scenes that made me wince.  The first scene that surprised me involved a very graphic rape, followed by a very graphic death scene. But that's not the end of it. This book involves a lot of death scenes that are described and at times were very painful to read, especially when it involved children. I just felt that it wasn't necessary. The ending was a bit weird, and not to spoil the book, but the ending was depressing and left me saying, "That's it?" It just left me wanting more for Hester!

Overall, this book was pretty good, but I found the graphic scenes a bit unnecessary, especially the way they were described. I give this book (***) 3 stars.
-Sirenita The Selkie

(24) Wrecked by Anna Davies

Book Type: Novel
Author: Anna Davies
Pages: 336

Summary(amazon.com):

A mysterious stranger holds the key to Miranda’s fate in this contemporary retelling of “The Little Mermaid.”
Ever since the death of her parents, Miranda has lived on Whym Island, taking comfort in the local folklore, which claims a mysterious sea witch controls the fate of all on the island and in its surrounding waters. Sometimes it’s just easier to believe things are out of your control.
But then a terrible boating accident takes the lives of several of her friends, and Miranda is rescued by a mysterious boy who haunts her dreams. Consumed by guilt from the accident, she finds refuge in late-night swims—and meets Christian, a boy who seems eerily familiar, but who is full of mystery: He won’t tell her where he is from, or why they can only meet at the beach. But Miranda falls for him anyway…and discovers that Christian’s secrets, though meant to protect her, may bring her nothing but harm.
Seductive and compelling, Wrecked brings a contemporary, paranormal twist to a classic enchanting tale.

My Review:

First off, I would like to point out, that I don't know who constructed this Amazon.com summary, but seriously, this book had nothing to do with The Little Mermaid. And seductive? I think not. Let's review why this book should be taken off your Summer Reading List of 2014.

Before It Went Downhill: The Good Points I Liked:

Although there wasn't much that I liked about this book, I found that Davies did include some interesting elements to her plot. As soon as the teens have a bonfire, you get this reader's intuition that something bad is going to happen, especially when Genevieve, Miranda's friend, starts playing around with tarot cards, and they get skeletons. As sick as it is to say, the book didn't pick up the pace until the boating accident. 

It was also an interesting element that the souls of those who die on the sea, float down to the bottom of the ocean where the evil queen Sephie captures them for her own use. It reminded me of Davie Jones locker. I think the most gut wrenching part of this element is when Christian calls out the name, "Fletcher?" and one of the soul orbs glows for a minute before falling to the bottom of the sea. When I read this, my face looked like:

I also think Davies did a good job of understanding how some people cope with death, especially when it involves family or friends. Miranda doesn't, or cant, process what has happened and how everyone is treating her. She blocks out any feelings she has, and stops herself from crying. Although this did make it difficult for me to connect with her, it made the situation realistic. Death is a common YA theme, and this can help young teens who have lost someone special in their life, and how to adjust to this new lifestyle. At times, I really did feel as if I was grieving for the characters.

Now... let's not be so nice. This book had some major issues.

This Is No Love Story! And What Is With Christian?!

Although Miranda and Christian do have this cute, runaway teen romance, they both annoyed the hell out of me. Miranda seems like the girl who always needs a man in her life. As soon as she says goodbye to her boyfriend, and gets some closure, she immediately rushes into a new "relationship" if you can call it that.

Christian weirds me out. As soon as he sees Miranda, he thinks he is instantly in love with her, and becomes obsessed with her. Hello? You don't even know her! (Is this what the author meant by "a twist on The Little Mermaid?" No. Just No.) Christian does not even mention any deep qualities he loves about Miranda. All he mentions is that she is beautiful, the way she falls asleep on his arm and how mischievous she is. 

This is not love, this is infatuation.

Oh, and Christian seems to have this habit of shushing her! Seriously! Everytime she needed to vent he just said "Sshhh." Can't a girl vent? Christian is also, not a merman. He is a betwixtman. In the book, this is a creature that is basically half human and half Mer. 

Did I mention he sparkles in the sun?.... Oh the Twilight Horror!!!

Too Sad, Too Depressing!

Lastly, a lot of the story has to do with how Miranda is treated like a murderer, and how she is coping with all of the grieving. This got to be a little too much after a while, and the book is also very, very VERY depressing. It got to be uncomfortable after a while.

 Although this book was extremely depressing, it makes you appreciate how fragile life is, and also makes you appreciate the people around you. Overall, I don't think this book worked very well. I give this book (***) 3 stars, and that is being generous compared to other goodreads.com users!

-Sirenita The Selkie