Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Review: Son of a Mermaid by Katie O'Sullivan

Goodreads Summary:

Shea MacNamara's life just got complicated. After a freak tornado devastates his Oklahoma farm, the fifteen-year-old orphan is whisked away to Cape Cod. Struggling to make sense of his new surroundings, he's trying hard to deal with feelings of abandonment... and the emotions stirred by a girl he meets along the shore. Kae belongs to an undersea world hidden from drylanders. The daughter of royal servants, she knows the planned marriage of her Princess to the foreign King should put an end to the war between the clans. But two things stand in the way of lasting peace: the ambitions of the foreign King's regent, and rumors of the Princess's bastard child. Sparks fly when she meets Shea, but could the cute drylander really be the Son of a Mermaid?

Publication Date: May 15, 2013


When I started this book, I was actually very surprised to realize I never read a book about mermaids. What a fun concept for a YA novel! I wasn’t sure if I’d relate to a male teen narrator, but I ended up really loving Shea along with the rest of the characters.

Shea really grew as a character throughout the book. He has to deal with a large number of obstacles, including the devastating loss of his dad and a move across the country. I liked how well he rolled with everything and tried to make the best out of the situation, like picking up trash along the beach in his new town.

I love sweet romances and Son of a Mermaid featured a great one between Shea and Kae. I liked how the author decided to switch narrators so that I got to learn more about the hierarchy of the mermaid kingdom. I loved the descriptions of the kingdom. I grew up next to the beach and it was cool to imagine a whole world existing in the depths of the ocean.

The story really started to pick up after Shea’s transformation. I liked how Kae and Shea began to rely on each other in order to take down the baddie Demyan. The second half of the novel was filled with plenty of action and adventure.

The book is definitely clean enough for younger teen readers. Fans of young adult action adventure stories will definitely love Son of a Mermaid.


Rating; 4.5/5 Stars

4 comments:

  1. I've read a handful of books involving mermaids and I find them interesting. I'm glad you enjoyed it! Great review :)

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  2. I've read several Mermaid books. Some fantasy and a couple of scary ones. They have always been so alluring and mysterious. Wouldn't it be awesome if they did exist!
    Thanks for your thoughtful review. This is going on my TBR.

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  3. So glad you enjoyed the story, Heather! Thanks for the great review!

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  4. I think Amanda Hocking made it big with mermaids... I've never read one, either :) This sounds like a really cool book! Have to check it out. Thanks for sharing, Heather! WRITE ON!

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