Welcome to Week 10 of the Mermaid Lit Summer Reading Challenge! Below is my review for this week. If you have one of your own, feel free to link up with us and be sure to visit the others to see what they thought of their reads for this week! You may join the challenge anytime you like. See rules HERE. (Follow Friday below!)
This week for the challenge I read Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama.
I'm having a hard time writing a review of this book. It's the first mermaid book that I haven't really enjoyed. I didn't hate it, but it was kind of meh.
First of all, it's not so much a YA book. More adult. And you guys know me--I generally prefer adult to YA, but in this book...I don't know. It just didn't sit right. Maybe mermaids by nature always feel a little YA because they're so far from reality. And the characters in this book are of suitable age to be YA, but then they randomly--and quite vulgarly--drop the "F" word and talk about sex in a very casual, grown-up way. Which reminds me: WARNING: there's a rape in this book. It's not overly explicit, but I found it to be very bizarre. Aside from the obvious reasons for it to be disturbing (the actual rape) it was a mermaid being raped by a human man and it was just...bizarre.
Anyway, the story cuts back and forth between two time periods. It's one of those stories where the people in the present are trying to understand what happened in the past and we see both stories back and forth. I actually thought this aspect of the book was fairly well done. I did want to know what happened back then, and that's really what kept me turning pages.
Hester, the main character in the present, is flawed, but not terrible. Overall, though, I just wasn't very compelled by her. I felt like I should have been but I just couldn't make myself care that much.
I also had some issues with the writing. There were places where the author changed POVs in the middle of the scene, which was disconcerting and made the writing seem choppy. And then there was the dialogue. It just didn't seem very realistic. I'm mean, it was, but it seemed trite. Like, "Oh. Yes. You're right. I see that now. Thank you for pointing that out to me." People just don't talk like that. It was obvious to me that the author was trying to use the dialogue to flush out the story, but it felt very after-school-special at times.
Anyway, the mystery was interesting, the mermaids were actually really awesome--dark and kind of icky, but well described--and overall the story was good. But for some reason I found it really hard to wade through the book.
I've seen a lot of good reviews for it on Goodreads, so maybe it's just my taste. If you want a dark, trying-to-be-adult mermaid book with a historical mystery thrown in, this book may be for you. Personally, I didn't really care for it.
I'm having a hard time writing a review of this book. It's the first mermaid book that I haven't really enjoyed. I didn't hate it, but it was kind of meh.
First of all, it's not so much a YA book. More adult. And you guys know me--I generally prefer adult to YA, but in this book...I don't know. It just didn't sit right. Maybe mermaids by nature always feel a little YA because they're so far from reality. And the characters in this book are of suitable age to be YA, but then they randomly--and quite vulgarly--drop the "F" word and talk about sex in a very casual, grown-up way. Which reminds me: WARNING: there's a rape in this book. It's not overly explicit, but I found it to be very bizarre. Aside from the obvious reasons for it to be disturbing (the actual rape) it was a mermaid being raped by a human man and it was just...bizarre.
Anyway, the story cuts back and forth between two time periods. It's one of those stories where the people in the present are trying to understand what happened in the past and we see both stories back and forth. I actually thought this aspect of the book was fairly well done. I did want to know what happened back then, and that's really what kept me turning pages.
Hester, the main character in the present, is flawed, but not terrible. Overall, though, I just wasn't very compelled by her. I felt like I should have been but I just couldn't make myself care that much.
I also had some issues with the writing. There were places where the author changed POVs in the middle of the scene, which was disconcerting and made the writing seem choppy. And then there was the dialogue. It just didn't seem very realistic. I'm mean, it was, but it seemed trite. Like, "Oh. Yes. You're right. I see that now. Thank you for pointing that out to me." People just don't talk like that. It was obvious to me that the author was trying to use the dialogue to flush out the story, but it felt very after-school-special at times.
Anyway, the mystery was interesting, the mermaids were actually really awesome--dark and kind of icky, but well described--and overall the story was good. But for some reason I found it really hard to wade through the book.
I've seen a lot of good reviews for it on Goodreads, so maybe it's just my taste. If you want a dark, trying-to-be-adult mermaid book with a historical mystery thrown in, this book may be for you. Personally, I didn't really care for it.
Follow Friday
The Feature & Follow is hosted by TWO hosts, Parajunkee of Parajunkee's View and Alison of Alison Can Read. Each host will have their own Feature Blog and this way it'll allow us to show off more new blogs!
How does this work? First you leave your name here on this post, (using the linky tools -- keep scrolling!) then you create a post on your own blog that links back to this post (easiest way is to just grab the code under the #FF picture and put it in your post) and then you visit as many blogs as you can and tell them "hi" in their comments (on the post that has the #FF image). You follow them, they follow you. Win. Win. Just make sure to follow back if someone follows you!
Book Vacay: Where is the best destination reading spot for you? (Where do you like to go to read other than your home?
I haven't done it in several years, but I used to go hiking with the fam as well. When we got to the top of whatever hike we were doing, we often stopped for a while to rest and maybe have lunch. I loved finding a grassy spot or a nice, comfy (he,he) rock to read on for a while. :D
How about you? What's your favorite destination spot for reading?
Sounds like you had a nice time at Bear Lake even if you didnt't get to read too much.
ReplyDeleteMy FF @ Marilyn's Mystery Blog
Sounds nice! I can read anywhere really as long as I am comfortable!
ReplyDeleteHere's my Follow Friday
Have a GREAT weekend!
Old Follower :)
I can read almost anywhere, on a balcony anywhere is always nice as well :)
ReplyDeleteNew Follower, Following via GFC & Bloglovin
You can find me here : http://readerwriterauth0r.blogspot.com/