Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama

“Pastor McKee, do you think we really have a ghost up there in the sanctuary? I mean, does the church even believe in ghosts? Because – if there is a ghost – maybe it's related to this drowning?”

It sounded so ridiculous when she said it out loud.

“Tell me, lassie, have you paerchance heard any local tales o' sea folk?” he said out of the blue.

“Uh . . .” Hester wondered where he was going with this.

“I've haerd tell they live en the deepes' par' of our own bay.”

“Why do you ask?”

He shrugged and shifted his feet, preparing to sit in the chair again. She held his arm while he lowered himself into it. “Jus' tha' tales o' ghosts and tales o' sea folk paersist in the world. Even an educated paerson mus' wonder ef thar's a reason for et.”

“Monstrous Beauty” is another book I came across on the shelves of my local Half Price Bookstore. I hadn't ever heard of it or the author before, but the cover was stunning and the summary on the back sounded just dark and interesting enough to catch my attention. If I remember correctly, this wasn't long after I had read “Fathomless”, so I'll admit I was probably on a bit of a dark mermaid story binge at the time, though I obviously didn't read it until much later.

Hester Goodwin has pledged herself never to fall in love or marry. Most especially, she will never have children. Hester has made this decision because of her family history. After all, if all the women in the last one hundred fifty years of your family history had died within a week of giving birth to their first child, you would be concerned too. Though she definitely has feelings for her best friend, Peter, she suppresses them and pulls away. She can't fall in love. She can't be talked out of it. She doesn't want to die.

Then Hester meets Ezra, a strange and intoxicating man whom she only ever sees on the beach, and suddenly all of her resolve seems to dissipate. He claims he can help her, that her troubles sound more like a curse than a genetic fault and perhaps the two of them can solve it together.

As she begins to look into her family's past, Hester begins to uncover the pieces of a tragedy that took place long ago and may be the cause of her curse, as well as the rumored hauntings that have taken place in the church and its graveyard, where she used to play as a girl. It's up to her to uncover a terrible truth and set to rights that which was tampered with long ago, that is, if the forces that be will let her do it.

The further I sank into this book, the more surprised I was that I hadn't heard of it before. A beautifully written tale that can be dark, tragic, thrilling, and hopeful all in one excellent novel? I was smitten from the start.

I cannot get over how good this book managed to be and I will definitely be singing its praises for months. The reader is caught up along with the protagonist in the mystery that surrounds her and the terrifying adventures she must face in order to get to the bottom of things. Hester is fierce and resourceful and an all-around believable character that I enjoyed getting to know within the pages.

If you're looking for a good, dark fantasy preferably containing mermaids and other supposed myths, this is the book you need on your shelf. I suggest finding it as soon as you can manage.

Rating: ~★★★★★~

She struggled and writhed as the thing switched positions, easily hooking an arm around her neck and swimming her down – headfirst, faceup, deeper and deeper – in a death-spiral version of a lifeguard rescue. It was a distinctly humanlike arm that held her, and Hester clutched it with both ahnds, afraid of the speed, and afraid it would strangle her. The rhythmic thumping and pumping beneath her was the unmistakable action of a powerful tail, propelling them to the depths of the bay. Hester kept her eyes closed, but she knew without seeing the creature: it was a mermaid.

They were real.

McKee was right; E.A. Doyle was right.

And Hester was about to be killed.

Valkyrie Rising by Ingrid Paulson

They were all waiting for me to do something- to lead them. And that thought made me want to laugh and cry and crawl under the nearest bench to die.

Valkyrie Rising was one of those lovely books you spot on the shelf at the library and read the back, decide it looks decent enough, and check out. It was one that I wasn't sure I would bother reading, but checked out of the library anyway because it had mythology in it and I am quite the sucker for mythology. Admittedly, almost all of my "expertise" is in Greek mythology; I have almost no knowledge of Norse mythology. Still, I added it to the stack of books I always leave the library with and took it home with me.

When I did crack open Valkyrie Rising, I couldn't have been more surprised by how much I loved it. If I hadn't started reading so late at night, I could have easily read the entire volume in one sitting. (And not because the book is short- it's a hefty 345 pages.) I was hooked and had to force myself to go to bed so I would stop falling asleep with my face on the pages. Still, I woke up and finished it off in a matter of hours.

In Valkyrie Rising, we meet Ellie, a girl from California with an overprotective big brother, Graham, and some deep roots in Norway. Summer has finally arrived, which means Ellie and her brother will be headed to Norway to visit their grandmother for a few weeks. And Graham's infuriating best friend, Tuck, will also be coming along for the ride.

However, when Ellie arrives, she isn't greeted with the usual hospitality and friendliness the small town of Oslo. Instead, she's regarded with suspicion and even her fair share of violence. Reports of the disappearance of young, strong boys has been enough to scare the townspeople into hostility, especially because, for some reason, her grandmother is the prim suspect- and least in the eyes of the public.

It isn't long before Ellie is also being accused to being a Valkyrie, one of those mythical beings whom people believe are snatching up their boys. As much as she wants to deny it, when she saves a friend from being taken by the Valkyries, she sees them for herself and they call her one of them. Even as they say it, she can feel the tug within her, the call to join them.

Yet when Graham is taken next, Ellie knows she'll do anything to save him, even if it means taking down the Valkyries and losing her life in the process. Tuck joins her, eager to save his best friend and keep Ellie safe; but, considering who they're up against, they might as well be running toward death itself.

Like I mentioned above,  I was pleasantly surprised by just how much I enjoyed this book. Ellie is a great heroine who experiences her fair share of self-doubt, yet is too focused on saving the people she cares about to let it conquer her. She's strong and fierce, yet profoundly human, and I love that. Tuck is wonderfully protective, even knowing that Ellie could easily take him out, and perfectly comedic. His comments had me laughing out loud more than once.

The Norse mythology peppered throughout the novel was deeply interesting and definitely pushed me into wanting to learn more about it, and the story itself was fast-paced and left me wanting more. I think this is the first time I've read a stand-alone novel and wanted to bang my head against a desk when I realized there would be no sequel.

Oh well, I suppose I'll just have to be happy with what I was given. After all, at least I'll have plenty of opportunities to reread it.

Rating: ★★★★★

Then Tuck stepped right into the middle of that mess, shielding me completely. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" He shoved the ringleader in the chest. While Tuck definitely had a temper, it always came out sideways through jokes. It took me a second to recognize the look on his face as absolute fury. "I don't know what happens in this hick town, but where I'm from, we don't push girls around." He knocked the boy back one more time, driving his point home.
"She's not a girl," Margit said, glaring at me with so much hatred that it almost hurt. "Filthy Valkyrie."

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson & The Olympians, #1)

Gabe turned toward me and spoke in the rasping voice of the Oracle: You shall go west, and face the god who has turned.
His buddy on the right looked up and said in the same voice: You shall a what was stolen, and see it safely returned.
The guy on the left threw in two poker chips, then said: You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.
Finally, Eddie, our building super, delivered the worst line of all: And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end.

I was one of those who was introduced to the Percy Jackson series when the movie, Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, came out. I adored the movie and was absolutely stoked when I realized it was based off a book series. Even still, it took a while before I actually got around to reading it. I must have checked it out from the library at least three times before I finally cracked it open and got to reading.

Percy Jackson never realized he was different. Sure, he had a smart mouth on him and a bit of a rebellious nature, he struggled with dyslexia as well as ADD, but nothing too strange. At least, not until his teacher turned into a harpy and tried to kill him. At the end of his sixth grade year, Percy learns that he is actually a half-blood (or a demigod), son of a human mother and a father who happens to be an Olympian god. Now that he has begun to realize his true heritage, the monsters who make it their mission to take down these half-blood heroes are onto his scent.

As if that weren't enough, it's not long after this new discovery that Percy learns Zeus's master bolt has been stolen and all Olympian eyes are on him as the prime suspect. If he wants to clear his name and save the Western World from the wrath of the gods, Percy and his friends are going to have to find the real lightning thief and find the motive behind the theft before it's too late.

This series is often likened to that of the Harry Potter series in more ways than one. While the two series are vastly different in content, I do have to say this: I think the Percy Jackson & The Olympians series is on par in becoming Children's/YA classics for decades to come. Maybe this is a little pre-emptive of me to say. After all I've only read the first two books so far (#2's review will be up in the next 2-3 weeks), but I've got a feeling about this one. We'll just have to see if I feel the same when I reach the end of the series, won't I?

The point is, I loved this book and I think it's an extremely promising start to what looks like an amazing series. I've definitely enjoyed it. (How can I not? Let's keep in mind that I've been fascinated by Greek mythology since I was in elementary school.) I deeply look forward to getting to know Percy, Annabeth, Grover, and the others as the series continues.

Rating: ~★★★★★~

[Click here to see my review of book 2: Sea of Monsters]

"So if the gods fight," I said, "will things line up the way they did with the Trojan War? Will it be Athena vs. Poseidon?"
She put her head against the backpack Ares had given us, and closed her eyes. "I don't know what my mom will do. I just know I'll fight next to you."

Forgive My Fins by Tera Lynn Childs (Fins, #1)

"Let me get this straight," he says, recovering himself. "I'm turning into a mermaid because I kissed you?"
"I don't remember asking you to kiss me," I retort.
He scowls and I regret my snide remark. He didn't ask for any of this to happen, either. There was no way he could have known what he was getting himself into.
"Technically I explain, "you're turning into a merman."

Forgive My Fins was another book I picked up a few weeks ago when I was getting ready for Teen Book Con. Tera Lynn Childs was there and I was hoping to read one of her novels before seeing her there. As you can tell, I didn't manage to read it beforehand, but I did finally finish it.

When Lily discovers that she is half human, she decides to live ashore for a time, living with her late mother's sister and attending high school, maybe even finding that special boy that she is going to spend the rest of her life with. After all, if she wants to inherit the throne from her father, she has to have bonded by her eighteenth birthday and that is quickly approaching.

High school is tough for a girl who's half mermaid, half human, but she loves exploring this part of herself. Likewise, she loves Brody, the boy she's been working up the courage to share her feelings and her secret with. Only, when she finally gets close, he rejects her and breaks her heart.

Quince, the boy next door who has done everything in his power to irritate and humiliate Lily, takes this as his cue to step in. He devises a plan with her so that she can win Brody, though he's outspoken in his belief that Brody is not worth a second of her time. But the plan backfires and Quince steps in to be her "knight in shining armor" and kisses her in Brody's place.

Only, Quince didn't know she was a mermaid. And he certainly didn't know that kissing her meant bonding to her and it jumpstarted the process into his becoming mer too. Now, they have to get back to  Thalassinia and fast, before the change and bond are permanent and the two of them are stuck together forever.

Forgive My Fins was, to me, one of those books in which the ending is predictable, but in a totally unpredictable way that makes it totally worth reading. It was a fun, light tale about mermaids and learning who to trust that I really enjoyed reading. It's definitely what I would call a beach read, quick and playful, with some great scenes and interesting characters that I really enjoyed getting to know.

All in all, it's not the best book I've ever read, but one that I'm glad I did. I'll definitely have to keep an eye out for the second book in the series. I'd love to find out what happens to Lily next.

Rating: ★★★☆☆

As if I'd conjured him with magic, the door above swings open and Quince is filling the doorway with his leather-jacket-clad self. 
I practically sag with relief . . . until I sense the fury pounding through his blood. He felt my fear and now he's here to protect me. By any means.
This can't end well for anyone.

The Lost Code by Kevin Emerson (The Atlanteans, #1)

The morning after I arrived in Eden, I drowned for the first time.

I got my hands on The Lost Code via a contest on Authors are ROCKSTARS!, which is a podcast that interviews YA authors. I absolutely love listening to their podcasts and following their blog, so I was quite excited when they had a contest for a signed ARC of this book. I'm sure I don't have to tell you I won. Otherwise, I wouldn't have started out this post with that story.

When Owen ends up at a summer camp that he would really rather not have come to, he assumes he's just going to have to deal with his misfortune and tough it out. That was before he drowned. Owen spent ten minutes at the bottom of the lake floor, surrounded by plastic plants meant to reflect the plant life of old, looking up at the dome that kept the toxic ozone from burning them all as badly as those nomads that had the misfortune of being outside one of the seven domes placed around the world.

Owen's drowning ought to have killed him. Instead, he wakes only to discover new gifts that he could never have imagined and new friends that have found similar gifts of their own. Overnight, Owen grows in confidence and begins to relish in his newfound friendship. He had never known a companionship like the one he shares with others like him, but it doesn't last long.

Things aren't at all what they seem in Camp Eden. The more Owen learns, the more suspicious he becomes- and for good reason. Someone is on to their secret and if he doesn't figure out a way to save each of them, they'll all go down together.

I'm usually not a big fan of the post apocalyptic themes that lean heavily on "We ruined the world!" It feels overdone and starts to great on the nerves after a bit. However, I really enjoyed the way Emerson handled this one. It wasn't nearly as straightforward are I had first believed it: he made it complex without becoming incoherent. I really liked the protagonist and his somewhat awkward relationship with Lilly, as well as the other campers. He starts out not really knowing his place and we get to watch as he slowly morphs into the hero everyone's looking for. He still has a lot of growing to do, but that's why it's a series!

This book definitely caught my attention and I look forward to seeing where the author goes with it. It could easily go both ways, but Emerson sees to have a handle on the mythos he's created and I'm definitely eager to see more.

Rating: ★★★☆☆

My mouth was open, my tongue pushing around against a stream of liquid pouring in, but not reaching my lungs. My cheeks were expanding and contracting, creating the flow. I could feel the water passing into my throat, then pouring out of me in currents, causing movement on the sides of my neck. Fluttering, like the light waving of fingers. I felt there, felt the wounds . . .
That they weren't wounds at all. They were--
Gills.