Just for Fins by Tera Lynn Childs

Forgive My Fins * Fins Are Forever 

Just for Fins

Publish Date: July 3rd 2012

Publisher:  Katherine Tegen Books

Format: Audiobook, Unabridged

Author: Tera Lynn Childs

Narrated By: Emily Bauer 

Website: Author’s Website

Quick Review

This book is about Lily trying to save the underwater kingdoms that are in trouble because humans suck and are destroying everything unintentionally. She tries her best to perform her royal duties and balance her student life, but it is difficult.

We get to see her go to the different kingdoms and meet more mermaids, which was by far the best part of the book for me. 

I HATE it when books make the characters do three trials. Video games, sure. Films, not so much. Books, please, don't do it. This book is less about romance and more about saving the kingdoms, which was a premise I liked more, but that's just me and I typically don't like romance. So, yeah, go save the world. 

Lily just...forgot about her career storyline? I know she has a lot on her plate but you know...it just got DROPPED. So...she's not going to college anymore? She'll just be under the sea, eating sushi, Netflix and chill'n?

If there was a fourth book, I'd listen to that too. Especially because of what will become of Quince - which was a nice touch.

Fins Are Forever by Tera Lynn Childs

Forgive My Fins * Fins Are Forever 

Just for Fins

Publish Date: June 28th 2011

Publisher:  HarperCollins

Format: Audiobook, Unabridged

Author:  Tera Lynn Childs

Narrated By: Emily Bauer 

Website: Author’s Website

Quick Review

Guilty pleasure read. Well, listen. I listen to these on audiobook. This is a quick review; so, look, you like mermaids? You like YA? You like easy stories that you won't lose sleep over? Right here.

What is this book about? A lot. Lily is all set to not be a princess anymore so she can be with Quince, who is actually a good guy (at least from what I remember), and that was refreshing. (How often do we read about girls throwing away their future for "the one" who is gaaaarbaaaage?) She has to deal with some mean mergirls, but they don't really matter in this book. She's dealing with leaving her world and being on land as an adult who has to pick a job and grow up. Seems like everyone is disappointed in her, but she wants to be with Quince, she has made her choice. That was a great part of the book. 

Oh heeeeeey....Did you know about global warming and all the effects we humans have on ocean life because we're garbage? Mermaids are obviously better.

So, Doe has to come live on land with Lily and Rachel because of something she did DUN DUN DUH. It was mildly entertaining. However...why doesn't Rachel do ANYTHING about it? Fine. Don't expect anything great about Doe's motivations, because it's not there.

What takes off a star from me is Tellin. Alex, I'll take "Situations that could have been avoided with the barest level of communication" for 100, please.

But Tellin is an interesting character with cool colours, so we're just supposed to ignore his/the author's colossal stupidity.

The narrator of the audiobook can't do male voices still, and Quince's voice is dreadful. I'm supposed to like Quince in some way, right?

Did I write this just so I can post gifs of mermaids? Yes. Bye.

The Siren by Kiera Cass

Published: January 26th 2016
Publisher: HarperTeen
Author's Website

Introduction

The Ocean calls them to ships or the sites of disasters to bring a mass of people into their watery graves by singing to them. Kahlen was one of those who heard the sirens' song, and the Ocean decided to keep her, making her siren for 100 years. Along with her siren sisters, she serves Her, the Ocean, through the decades. Kahlen struggles to do what she must, but she obeys because once her sentence is over, she can have a normal life. Fall in love, have a family, go to school, use her voice to communicate. And then a boy stumbles (or perhaps jitterbugs) into her life, and he throws her plans--and the Ocean's--into disorder. 

Genre/Demographic

This book was an interesting mix. It definitely was fantasy (sirens), romance, and it has mass death in it, plus the emotions of being part of that.

While this does fall into the category of  YA on Goodreads, I'd say this is more for an older YA audience, but not quite new adult. There's implied physical relationships, alcohol consumption (but only a bit from the narrator), and most of all, the scenes of shipwrecks. Cass doesn't describe drowning, but you get the horror of a huge ship capsizing with no survivors. The MC, Kahlen, fills in the blanks for the reader by relating the huge amount of guilt she carries, and how she'd rather look away. I think the way the author wrote this so delicately really lets the reader's imagination do its job, and it's so much better than describing it in detail.

It was also a fast read--I was able to read most of it in one day when I was volunteering at a reception desk. I appreciated that the book doesn't dwell on details like the houses they live in, clothes they wear, partying, etc., which I believe are some complaints that Cass gets for her other series, The Selection (the film rights were sold for a film for this in 2015, if you are interested). Each of Kahlen's sisters is unique with their hobbies and mannerisms, and I enjoyed reading about all of them. We get just enough of everything to fill in ourselves and continue on.

Insta-Love

10 days.

That's how long they knew each other for.

10.

Days.

No. 

This is from page 160 of the 2016 paperback (I blacked out the love-interest's name). I got serious Edward Cullen vibes. What's with people thinking this is endearing?

Essay Ideas

An easy idea is to compare this to other mermaid/siren stories, such as the Han's Christian Andersen fable, Amanda Hocking's Watersong Series (which I reviewed some of), Forgive My Fins, and...that's all I can think of. But Goodreads has these two lists: YA Mermaid Novels and Best Mermaid Books.  

Some more ideas can be an exploration of the Enthralling Siren trope and the Femme Fatale trope, as I don't necessarily think they fit the bill for it (reluctant femme fatales?). A paper can probably be written about the subversion of these tropes.   

A bigger topic can be exploring nature personified (the Ocean, which is so motherly She gets unbearable sometimes). 

Upcoming Mermaid Films

Like Mermaid films?

Three "Little Mermaid" Movies are in the Works

2018 film (Wikipedia)

Final Thoughts

It is the most mature book on sirens/mermaids I have read thus far. I recommend it for an older YA audience. I suspect that a younger audience might become bored. Cass is a popular author, so I think including this in the YA section of a library is an easy yes. 

The Ravenous by Amy Lukavics

Published: September 26, 2017
Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Introduction

The Cranes are a family of five sisters that look picture-perfect from the outside. What the world doesn’t know is that their home life is less than ideal. When tragedy strikes, it threatens to rip their world apart, but their mother steps in with a mysterious fix that has disastrous consequences. The dead don’t have to stay dead, for a price.

NB: If you don’t want spoilers, don’t read the book blurb! I know the jacket blurb isn’t up to the author, so she gets a pass. It’s a poor decision on the publisher’s part to spoil the entire plot if you read the dust jacket. I’m very glad I didn’t read the whole thing before I read the book.

Family Dynamics/Characters

The Cranes are so dysfunctional it’s hard to read at times. If you’re looking for a book to compare and/or contrast family life in literature, this is a good pick as there is lots of evidence. The mother is mentally ill and an addict, and not equipped to be a caregiver. The maternal responsibilities fall to the eldest daughter, Juliet, which causes resentment. Next in line is Taylor, who cannot separate herself from Juliet, and she really doesn’t have any other outstanding character traits. Anya uses...illicit substances, but is otherwise fine. Mona, the main character, has her own problems. The youngest, Rose, is too young to have any real problems, yet, and she is loved by the family. Their father is in the military and is deployed or otherwise engaged outside of the house.

What I did like about this family is how each of the characters has their own personalities. Have you ever read a book that has many characters but they are all flat? Where you could easily cut 50% of the characters because they don’t add anything? It is not the case for this book, as all of the characters add something and move the plot forward.

Writing

Just as with The Women in the Walls, the horror scenes were fantastic. They elicited a visceral reaction that you don’t always get with horror novels. Unlike The Women in the Walls, the other writing was mostly improved. When there wasn’t guts and gore being thrown around, the story was just as engaging. My only point of contention here is the swearing. Yes, young people swear. It’s true! But it’s inserted in here so much it’s awkward. It’s a part of speech that needs to flow, but it’s jarring here and disrupts the regular patterns of speech.

I do have to say, the inciting incident was poorly written. It is reminiscent of a main character’s death in Sever. I stopped and asked, what actually happened? I can’t envision it. It’s also unbelievable. I can think of a few ways to at least make it more believable, but we got what we got, and it’s disappointing.

Military Aspect

I had written A LOT on this, and ultimately, I took off a star from my review. I have chosen to remove the critical bits because the last thing we need is the military calling my husband because they don't like what I wrote on the internet. I'll only give my briefest comments, but it is something that really took the novel down a peg for me.

The Cranes live on a military base, but it is evident that the author doesn’t have substantial knowledge of the military. Maybe don’t rely on only one person to give you info for the setting of a book. There are many parts of this novel that I cringed so hard because it was wrong by varying degrees. Every gif is at least a paragraph that I removed.

The end. I rolled my eyes so hard it’s a miracle I can still see. The military police would have been involved MUCH more than the regular police. You live on base, that’s it. And in all probability, their dad wouldn't have his job anymore. That's all I say.

The dad being deployed/posted, considering their family situation. Unlikely. All this information is readily available on the internet, btw.

Yeah, there was more. This whole page would be gifs if I kept going. So, below are some spoilers. Feel free to go to the Final Thoughts.

Other Issues

I expected THEM to drive the convertible to their mom and Harlow to see what was keeping their mom/get the cure themselves. To me, this is the obvious course of action that just isn’t taken. I don’t recall it ever being suggested, either.

End of Spoilers

Final Thoughts

Despite all the gripes I have against the setting, and some of the holes I found, I really did like this book. Could it be better? Yes. (Instead of the military setting, he could travel internationally for business.) Aside from the compare and contrast with this dysfunctional family, I can’t think of other ways to utilize this for academic work. The military aspect should have been axed-Lukavics needs to stick with what she knows if she can’t be bothered to research properly. But for a horror story with a dysfunctional family, it was great. If your library is alright with horror for a YA audience, such as Lukavic's other book, Women in The Walls, I recommend this book.

The Salbine Sisters by Sarah Ettritch

*ebook from NetGalley-much thanks!

Published October 2010

Publisher: Norn Publishing

Website: Author’s Website 

Introduction

Maddie entered into the monastery of Salbine Sisters, a religious order of offensive mages that draw on the elements to defend their country. She begins her lessons with a mistress that she has taken as her lover, and discovers that she cannot draw on the first element, fire. With the news that there is something different about her, she travels to another monastery to find her answers.  

Story

It takes too long to establish how this world works, and I still have questions. Most of all, I want to know more about their religion. At one point we get a run down about Lina from a tapestry, but what about Salbine? It’s the name of their God/Goddess, a central aspect to this story, and I know nothing about Her.

The story was supposed to be about Maddie travelling and researching her condition. The story takes another turn and in the end I was left asking BUT WHAT ABOUT HER CONDITION? Nope, we have just forgotten about that. The book ends. Thanks, Book, for disregarding what you set out to do.

With this said, it was not a terrible story. It meandered all over the place, and it presented itself as fantasy. It’s really a romance. Straight up romances usually aren’t my cup of tea, but this story had me wondering about Lillian and Maddie’s relationship. How can it survive the awful conclusion that she cannot draw on the elements? So much happens consecutively after that, it made me anxious to read what would happen next in their relationship. There are many instances of dialogue that had me smiling or sad-the book was exceptionally moving to me, at times. Aside from a romance, the story accomplishes very little.

Characters

There are a ton of characters. For the most part, they are terribly flat. Because the story is concerned with an order of women, the characters that the reader is concerned with are women. It’s too bad that none of them have a convincing personality-the author populates the covenant with people whose only traits are that they are women. Gwendolyn is evil for about 10 minutes, and she has to most personality out of all the women.

Message

            The author’s website says that this is “A story about faith and love.” The faith, the religious kind, was alright until I felt like I was being hit in the face with everyone has a purpose set forth by a higher being. That became old quickly. Because I don’t want to spoil it here, Maddie’s purpose is the kind of thing I rail against with a feminist fervor.  

Verdict

Yes, it has two women as lovers, labeled lesbians (though the term is not used in the text), so some people will gasp, cover their mouths, and be offended. In this instance, it would be best to know a person’s sensibilities before you recommend this book. I recommend this book as a love story, not a fantasy. Because there is no fighting against a society that wants them to conform, I don’t even recommend it for people looking for LGBT literature that is about breaking free from society’s rigid structure. It's an nice love story of two women, one older, one younger, struggling against a series of unfortunate events, and I found it to have some wonderful moments.

Forgive My Fins by Tera Lynn Childs

Forgive My Fins * Fins Are Forever 

Just for Fins

Publish Date: May 19th 2010

Publisher:  HarperCollins

Format: Audiobook, Unabridged

Author:  Tera Lynn Childs

Narrated By: Emily Bauer 

Website: Author’s Website

Quick Review

Introduction

Lily is not an ordinary teenager. She’s the Thalassinian princess. The thing about Thalassinia, is that it is a kingdom of mermaids, making Lily a mermaid princess. A few years ago, she discovered she is half human, and has since been living on land and going to high school. As the princess, she has to find her mate to ascend the throne, and Lily has picked Brody, a boy she has had a crush on since she walked on land. But her next door neighbour, bad boy Quince, is getting in her way.

Story

Mermaid stories are difficult to pull off. Especially when the characters are in high school, and you have to believe that a mermaid is in high school, navigating a crush and homework and school dances. Then she goes home, and it's like The Little Mermaid show from the 90s. There's underwater furniture and buildings and court proceedings...put in a human without a tail and it's hard to take seriously, but, it's a mermaid story. Yes, it will come off as a bit silly, and you have to take it for what it is. Some people, especially teens, are ok with that.

However, the story was really predictable. There were no twists or turns. It was very light. I listened to it during a full day trip and it was good while I was walking around and waiting. There are some audio books that need 100% of your attention. This is not one.

Lily

                For a girl that keeps saying that mermaids are peaceful, she gets angry enough that she wants to get physically violent with people. She does, on a few occasions, though she is just pushing. She’s not a perfect protagonist, which I like…and a lot of people hate. Yes, she’s selfish, narrow-minded, and judgemental. And at the end, she overcomes at least a few of her faults. What’s wrong with that? Still, I will say that along with the narrator of the audiobook, she is so spoiled and angry at everything.

Also, she likes a boy who is a human, and doesn’t know that she’s a mermaid princess. She thinks together they are like this:

But she is actually like this:

Sea Puns

                The cursing are sea puns. Childs can get around having to censor her work, but it also means that she actually has a mermaid princess swearing frequently. If you put what she actually means instead of the substitute, she’d be swearing constantly, in her head or aloud. If you need some laughs, substitute a “higher level” four letter word in your head, every time she uses a sea pun. It makes for good times, though people on the street will look at you if you’re walking and listening.   

               

I don't know why, but I like the “damselfish” one. Like you’d turn away from the situation and whisper to yourself as though no one could hear you.

Narrator

The narrator can't do male voices, or secondary female voices. She has one voice, and that belongs to Lily. It gets annoying to listen to the narrator try to drop her voice and be gravelly for the men. Actually, it’s annoying. Also, the girls you hate in high school don't actually have those nasally high voices - we just pretend they do when we talk about them. I would much prefer a natural, though pretentious, voice of the mean girls.

Besmirching of my Name

The bully is named Courtney. She is financially demanding and selfish, slaps her boyfriend, gossips, judges people…all the stupid “girl bully” stuff. Of course, her name is Courtney. That's the go-to name for terrible people. Can we think of a better name? And where did this trend start? I’d like to know.

Final Verdict

Read or listen to this because you like mermaids, not for the story. I don’t recommend this for people who dislike characters that are not completely perfect or extremely likeable. Will I listen to the next installment, Fins Are Forever? Maybe. It would make an ok summer pre-teen movie, though there’s way too much underwater mermaid stuff happening for this to ever happen. 

 Also, I'll just leave this here...and no, I didn't make this. 

If You Could be Mine by Sara Farizan

Twitter Username: SaraFarizan

Publish Date: August 20th 2013

Publisher: Alqonquin Young Readers

Format: Audiobook, Unabridged

Narrated By: Negin Farsad

Introduction

Sahar is sixteen-years-old and in love with her best friend, Nasrin. They share secret kisses and promise each other their love. The problem is that they live in Iran, and homosexuality is forbidden under the threat of hanging. Then it comes to light that Nasrin has a marriage arranged by her family. Nasrin wants to continue the secret affair, but Sahar wants Nasrin exclusively. Sahar discovers a loophole in the law for them to be together, but the journey to that conclusion is complicated.

Narrator

            At first, I was weary of a narrator with a strong accent. My hearing isn’t always the best, and I knew there would be an abundance of unfamiliar words. As the chapters went on I was surprised that I was enjoying her voice and that I had no problems. Farsad delivers all her lines with the correct emotion, and she does dry humour very well. She is of Iranian decent, born in the United States, so I believe her voice to be authentic (as opposed to an English speaker attempting to impersonate and fail miserably).

Love Story

            The two main women are beautifully written for each other. Nasrin is confident and occasionally the target of the morality police because of her flashy clothes. Sahar is more conservative and she is intelligent. I can definitely see why they would fall in love. Of course, each has their pit falls. Nasrin is selfish. Sahar believes she can fix everything herself. A perfect couple? Of course not, but who are? Perhaps they are staying with each other because they have been together since they were children and perhaps because they are the only lesbians they know (highly probable for most of the book). What we do have is a couple that want to be together in a country that has forbidden their love.

That said, I don’t think I have ever disliked a love interest more than I have disliked Nasrin. But before everyone starts hating on Sahar for her target of affection, I bet most people have had a partner that they loved and a lot of people hated. It’s the eye of the beholder.

But Nasrin did aggravated me. As much as I wanted to pull my hair out at her stupidity, she is well-written. I get why she does most of the things she does, even if I hate her decisions. As I wanted Sahar to succeed I felt like Nasrin was the one impeding change and it was so frustrating in a good way.

Cousin Ali

This charismatic man is my favourite character. Sure, he’s a convenient character, another homosexual in Iran who knows the ropes and who has enough power in the underground to keep himself and his friends safe. I still like him – he does want everyone to be happy as they are. A little too easy going, but he’s an interesting layer in this story. And he is funny – my favourite line was when he said Sahar should leave and go to Turkey to find a particular kind of woman.

 

Story

Spoilers Ahead!

It is true that Sahar has no idea what she’s getting into, though I argue that the information must be difficult to come by. While it is not illegal to get sex reassignment surgery, it probably isn’t widely accepted, so you can’t just ask your parents about it. Sahar is desperate, and yes, her plan could work, and that’s what gives this novel the extra layer. It is plausible. What if she goes through with it? Will Nasrin still love her? Will Sahar’s family still love her, or will they shun her?  

Topics for discussion or a paper could be gender identity in an oppressive society or LGBTQ love in an oppressive society. These are fairly obvious topics, but there is so much content here. Plus, this novel takes place in modern-day Iran, so a student can do a lot of research about Iran and its policies. Something interesting that can be written about is a person’s ties to a country that is oppressing them – if they leave, stay to make it better, or stay and live with how the country is.

 Book Club

            An older audience would be the best audience for this. I have seen reviews of people saying that it is inappropriate for middle-graders, and I have not seen anything saying that this book is marketed towards middle-graders. It’s like taking Hamlet and getting huffy about it not being suitable for kindergarteners. Have you read the back of the book?

            Also, you should probably know your book club audience because of the subject matter.

            Something interesting for a book club would be to also have a display of Iranian architecture, clothing, and food, like those mentioned in the book, around the book club meeting space. This could perhaps cross some of the cultural barriers we have. This book lacks description about how Iranian society is visually, and pictures could be an excellent accompaniment. 

Ending

Spoilers Ahead! (And a bit of a rant.)

To anyone who wants to argue that Sahar should have left to Istanbul with Ali…she doesn’t want to leave her father. She also believes that Iran is her home, and she doesn’t want to abandon it. And ultimately, she doesn’t want to leave Nasrin either, even if she can’t have her. I’m not sure why this confuses people. It would be hard for me to leave too. There are many people, especially women, who will explain why people stay in situations that are not ideal or even dangerous.  

A book isn’t going to end the way you want it so it will suit you. Personally, I loved the ending because it was so bittersweet. The last 30 minutes or so of audio gave some small hope to Sahar, even though it is still not an accepted relationship in Iran. I think she can be happy and wow that make me happy for her.

Final Verdict

            I listened to If You Could be Mine as an ebook, but I think I should have first experienced it as a paper book to get the language ingrained in my head properly, though listening to the proper pronunciation was helpful. I was rooting for Sahar even though I didn’t know if she should follow through with her plan or not – I just wanted her and Nasrin to be happy. I highly recommend this book to older teens or teens that are interested in LGBTQ relationships or issues, or oppressive governments. However, be cautious with the subject matter.