Early Review: Forgive My Fins by Tera Lynn Childs

*FORGIVE MY FINS will be released on June 1, 2010*

 

Book Description

Lily Sanderson has a secret, and it's not that she has a huge crush on gorgeous swimming god Brody Bennett, who makes her heart beat flipper-fast. Unrequited love is hard enough when you're a normal teenage girl, but when you're half human, half mermaid, like Lily, there's no such thing as a simple crush.

Lily's mermaid identity is a secret that can't get out, since she's not just any mermaid—she's a Thalassinian princess. When Lily found out three years ago that her mother was actually a human, she finally realized why she didn't feel quite at home in Thalassinia, and she's been living on land and going to Seaview High School ever since, hoping to find where she truly belongs. Sure, land has its problems—like her obnoxious biker-boy neighbor, Quince Fletcher—but it has that one major perk: Brody. The problem is, mermaids aren't really the casual dating type—the instant they "bond," it's for life.

When Lily's attempt to win Brody's love leads to a tsunami-sized case of mistaken identity, she is in for a tidal wave of relationship drama, and she finds out, quick as a tailfin flick, that happily ever after never sails quite as smoothly as you planned.

Review:

I may fantasize about falling in love with a vampire or werewolf, but I dream about being a mermaid. A mermaid princess would be even better, and Lily Sanderson gets to be both.

In the tradition of Disney's The Little Mermaid and more recently Aquamarine, FORGIVE MY FINS is about a mermaid princess torn between two worlds and the problems that accompany each, like having to find a mate before her eighteenth birthday or lose her claim to the throne, putting up with a irritating yet suddenly attractive neighbor who delights in tormenting her, and finding the courage to reveal her true identity to the guy she's secretly loved for years.

The mermaid world in FORGIVE MY FINS is a fully flushed out sea kingdom. Mermaids have their own distinct culture, rituals, magic, and even slang. Tera Lynn deftly weaves in elements from mythology and antiquity in creating the merkingdom of Thalassinian. And the underwater world contrasts nicely with the out of water world of Seaview high.

I did get a little annoyed with Lily's attitude especially as it was constantly directed at the too-good-to-be-true Quince. He gives new meaning to the word long suffering. I never understood why he fell for her. To borrow some of Lily's sea slang, she was a complete seawitch to him. He does one romantic and selfless thing after another for her and she treats him deplorably.

Lily’s behavior aside, there are several scenes that will make the hearts of teenage girls everywhere race, and while not a teenager myself anymore, I got swept up the the romance between Lily and Quince too.

What's a better summer read than a mermaid story about first love? FORGIVE MY FINS is a sparkling splash of a story full of crush worthy guys, adolescent teen angst, and magical romance. Lily tends to transform her attitude almost as often as she does her scales, but I really enjoyed this story. The epilogue hints that we'll be seeing more from Lily and Quince in the near future. I'll post the details when they are available.

Sexual Content: kissing.

My Rating (out of 5):
Good - A fun read with minor flaws. Maybe read an excerpt before buying.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books (June 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061914657
• ISBN-13: 978-0061914652 

*Disclosure: I received this book courtesy of Harper Collins

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