Mermaids (which for the record they don’t like being “presented” as in this book) have never really been on my radar. As a matter of fact, I THINK the word “mermaid” and almost instantly my “better watch out this is going to be cheesy” alarm goes off.
Let’s think about this for a second. Pop culture has the ability to make or break folklore.
Vampires? Shiny, mysterious lovers of the night. (ie: Twilight, The Vampire Diaries…)
Zombies? Incredibly gooey, (Yes, I said gooey.) ambling takers of human innocence. (The Walking Dead, 28 Days Later.)
Mermaids? They sleep in bathtubs and think forks are brushes. (Splash, The Little Mermaid)
So the simple fact that I decided to pick up this book (regardless of its Greek God connotations in it’s title) shows that my midnight Amazon surfing has really (REALLY) gotten out of hand.
That said, I really enjoyed it. (Go figure.)
“Galen, a Syrena prince, searches land for a girl he’s heard can communicate with fish. It’s while Emma is on vacation at the beach that she meets Galen. Although their connection is immediate and powerful, Galen’s not fully convinced that Emma’s the one he’s been looking for. That is, until a deadly encounter with a shark proves that Emma and her Gift may be the only thing that can save his kingdom. He needs her help–no matter what the risk.“
While the story itself needed a little work, (it was a tad predictable in parts) and it wouldn’t hurt for Banks to streamline her “facts” (in regards to the “mermaids society” – which were haphazardly thrown in as parts of conversation and felt rushed.) the characters were so well written that it didn’t even matter.
There are 2 leads in “Of Poseidon” Emma and Galen, and each has a VERY distinct voice (which is emphasized through companion narration.) Emma (the “human” lead) is incredibly snarky (mostly due to some recent drama in her life) Galen (the, uh..merman?) is pompous and boldly self gratified externally (probably because he is royalty) and horribly skittish (or confused) internally, (which makes for some interesting “good angel” vs “bad angel” moments.) Together this combination (with the help of 2 very funny (and pesky) external influences – Rayna (Galen’s sister) and Toraf (Rayna’s mate & Galen’s BFF) – make for some very dynamic/funny/painful conversations and encounters.
And…despite it’s 336 page length, this was an incredibly fast read. There were very few lulls in the actual story (regardless of its almost non-existent action scenes) which made the plot move along quickly without much time to dwell on pages of unnecessary verbiage, (which people tend to skim over anyways.)
My final thought… (after the cliffhanger ending that will have me picking up book 2) this was a solid start to a promising new YA series. I guess my midnight coffee fueled subconscious knew what it was doing after-all.
Happy Reading my fellow Kindle-ites and remember: If you see a shark, haul ass! Duh!
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[Rating:3.5/5]
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