Fathomless: A Book Review.

*SPOILERS ABOUND. MUST I CONTINUE TO TELL YOU TO PROCEED IN CAUTION, IF AT ALL?*

Way yonder, back in July, you may remember that I wrote a book review on Jackson Pearce's Sweetly. Recently, another book in the series came out, and so I decided to read it because though I did complain and whine unnecessarily on the Sweetly review, I actually did like it.

Fathomless is a retelling of The Little Mermaid, by Hans Christian Anderson. I could catch very subtle hints that this was a retelling (like in the fact that when the mermaid, Lo, walked on land she'd cut her feet on imaginary knives and she'd start bleeding--and in the old fairy tale it was like there were knives in the little mermaid's feet when she walked), and I thought that it was very well done.

I couldn't put this book down. It was compelling, and the plot moved fast, and the pacing was SO much better than with Sweetly. There were a few imagery problems, like she had trouble just honestly telling us that Lo had feet, and not a tail. And so I spent the first 10,000 words or so thinking, "That's great but how did she get up on land like that with a tail?"

As I was expecting, this book is very... strange, for lack of a better word. The mermaid-type creatures blend well enough with the fenris (the werewolves, if you will). It didn't bother me, since I'm naturally strange. 

... AND THEN we get to the part about the shells, which did not fit in at all in Sweetly. But then they did, because they made sense suddenly.

The romance was PHENOMENALLY improved. It was almost refreshing. I was caught between which girl the dude was going to choose, because I couldn't decide which one he liked more. I thought that he acted a little sleezy, though he was cute. I like the name Barnaby, by the way (this sentence will make more sense when you read the book. If you do).

I definitely recommend this book to anyone who's looking for a good story. But first you must read both Sisters Red and Sweetly, as this is a series book and half of the components won't make sense unless you read in order. 

Romance: 3.5 stars

Creepy Aspects: 5.0 stars

Plot Hole Explanations From Sweetly: 5.0 stars

 Overall: 4.5 stars

Well done, Jackson! You're up a star. Let's hope your retelling of The Snow Queen is stunning. I'm looking forward to it!