Author: Alexandra Christo

Genres: Fantasy, YA, Romance, Pirates?

# of books: 1

Format Read: Audiobook (so don’t rat on my spelling of names fam cuz I tried)

One Sentence Synopsis: A retelling of the Little Mermaid with much more violence than the Disney version and less melodramatic than the Hans Christian Anderson original.

Fav Quote: “We are not naive little heirs to be molded as they wish. We are warriors. We are rulers.” 

OVERALL REVIEW:

Rating: 4/5 little crowns – Definitely enjoyed this book (and the audible narrators were great)! Would def re-read.

A great simple, clear, and relatively short read that always keeps the reader engaged. 

Writing: 2 POVs – Lira’s and Elian’s (#lovemultiplePOVs)

Honest Feelings: While the plot was pretty straightforward (I mean it’s the little mermaid guys – just with a very violent Ariel and a much less basic Eric), it still kept the reader engaged. I wanted more plot concerning Lira and the Crew’s relationship (I know her and Madrid got some good page time but more with Tarik). I wanted to see Lira changing her ways not just because of Elian, but because of the rest of the crew as well. I wanted evidence/scenes of the change progressing over time – little considerate things she would do or say during the journey between her “I’m heartless and evil” and “I’m human but still a f*ing badass” stages. Ultimately, I feel like we got the beginning of the story, pieces in the middle and the conclusion, but not in a clean flow.

Talking about the ending… that freaking last chapter is a freaking tease. I loved it and how it concluded the story, but I wanted more! I needed explanations and elaborations. I needed something in between the end of the story and this untitled epilogue – I think I listened to it like 5 times just to feel better.

Character Development fam~ *slight spoilers* Ok so, since our murderous princess and prince had such differences I was expecting some MAJOR development and I feel like I got enough, but again, I just wanted more.

Let us start with Elian. Elian is the development that I felt missed the mark. It was more than we gained an understanding of who he is as a person than seeing a developmental growth. Where we would have gained his growth is when he confronted his parents about no longer being able to take the throne but instead decided to travel the sea (*SPOLIERS* even if this was under treaty/ he couldn’t because he’s basically married to the Queen of the Sea… which if he does that mean he is technically a King… IS THAT WHAT THEY MEANT IN THE EPILOGUE?!?!). Also seeing his decision to stay with Lira after she became Queen would’ve given us a bit more – not in him actively deciding to stay with her because let’s be honest – it was obvious he was going to, it’s not like there was ever a question – but him telling this to his crew and his family. Basically, I think a lot of his growth was hidden in his relationship with his family and we never really got to delve into that (I don’t think we really ever got to scratch the surface of it). He grows in the end but I feel he had much more potential to grow as a character.

Next up: Lira. Lira had some strong development – as we can obviously see from her change from murderous, soulless outlook to murderous, considerate outlook. As I said above I wish we got some more details/a couple more milestones of this growth throughout the story, but the overall development was strong and clear.

The side characters: yeah, they didn’t get much at all – I mean Madrid and Kai kinda did but yeah no…

Overall I thought it was a strong novel and I love the angle the author took with the retelling. I absolutely loved Lira and Elian’s relationship and banter (although I wanted more). I wanted more character development and a little more depth to the plot, but I also concede that it was only a 350 pg. novel and there probably wasn’t a lot of room to squiggle. It has its limitations as a novel but I thought it was well-done.

 

Highlights:

The Characters (even if we didn’t get a lot of character development). I love Lira and how even after she gains her humanity she’s still a cutthroat badass. I love Elian and his ability to be both a no-nonsense self-titled murderer, but also a lovable, sarcastic guy. Kai and Madrid and their hella cute relationship (need I say more?). Each character had their own personality and I really appreciated that.

I love the sarcastic banter like legit my favorite thing (does this count as its own highlight…?)

This book had a surprising amount of violence and I loved it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

DO NOT THINK IT ESCAPES MY NOTICE HOW CLOSE THEIR NAMES ARE TO ARIEL AND ERIC – I mean Lira is basically Ariel backward and Elian… starts with an E… ok maybe its just my fantasy…)