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Thursday, April 1, 2010

Forbidden Sea


The Forbidden Sea
by Sheila A. Nielson

Summary (via Goodreads):
When Adrianne comes face-to-face with the mermaid of Windwaithe Island, of whom she has heard terrible stories all her life, she is convinced the mermaid means to take her younger sister. Adrianne, fierce-willed and courageous, is determined to protect her sister from the mermaid, and her family from starvation. However, the mermaid continues to haunt Adrianne in her dreams and with her song.

Yet, when the islanders find out about Adrianne's encounters with the mermaid she is scorned, for this small and superstitious community believes the mermaid will bring devastation to the island if Adrianne does not give herself to the sea.

Review:
Adrianne is a strong female character - one that has dealt with the weight of loss in more than one way. She holds herself responsible for her father's death and her family's financial ruin - yet she lives up to taking care of her family and being looked down upon by those her age. The aunt that resides with them also gives Adrianne grief on a regular basis -but she takes it all in and keeps doing as she feels she must. And for that reason, I just loved her character. I love my flawed and stubborn characters - the ones you know can survive nearly anything.

I loved how much you felt from the main character without having to be inside her head. Adrianne was easy to relate to - a girl in love with her neighbor and friend, an older sister, a trouble maker always by default without proof, and a girl who loves so deeply you can't begin to fathom her heart.

Sheila does a fantastic job with the setting and eludes to the older times without having to put it right out there. You feel like you're on this island when you're reading the book. I was also a bit surprised about how the story ended up. The mermaid is eluded to as powerful and dangerous, yet there's something more than that to the story. I must say that between the life of a girl struggling to reconcile with her past and the fantastical elements of the mermaid - it really was one powerful novel.

This is one of those books that is wrapped up wonderfully but you ache for what happens next in the characters' lives.

Did I say the word "love" enough in this review? No? I really loved it!

5/5 Roses


Read more about Forbidden Sea and Sheila herself in my interview.

Check out Sheila's blog.

Preorder it on Amazon*
Find it on Goodreads

*If you buy this book on Amazon through the link above, I will receive a small portion of the sales.

10 comments:

  1. Sounds interesting! Thanks for the review :)

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  2. I really enjoy books with strong characters and Adrianne sounds like a character I could connect with. I am also intrigued by your comment about there being "something more" to the mermaids story.
    Thanks for the review.

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  3. O!
    I'm SO green!
    I want this book something fierce.

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  4. The cover is gorgeous. Glad to see it's a good story, too.

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  5. Great review - Forbidden Sea sounds completely original! Oh, doesn't come out until JULY? Thanks for teasing me!

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  6. 5/5 - sounds like it's a must read!!!

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  7. I love mermaid stories, so this one sounds really appealing to me. From your review it also sounds like it has substance. Interesting review.

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  8. Wonderful review! I had an ARC for a while now but had put off reading it so I could read/review it closer to the release date but I think I might have to read it sooner now!

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  9. This sounds like an excellent read.

    -Jess.

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  10. I hadn't heard of this one before! Sounds fantastic.

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