Member Reviews
This was such an interesting read and I loved the worldbuilding that went into the book and I loved the whole host of characters!
This book had an intriguing concept in that it was based around mermaid lore - focussing on the fact that Zoe, one of the main characters in this book, was a reincarnate of a mermaid queen.
The general backstory of the book and the beginning were fascinating and drew me right in; I settled myself in for a good read filled with mermaid myths, magic and adventure. To an extent, I do feel that the book offered that, I was 25% in when the plot lines with the mermaids really began to emerge.
However, I did stop reading at 25% as I was struggling to continue to be enthralled with the concept of the story. I found that the characters were quite boring and the writing was extremely simple. This book just was not for me But i guess it is very much part of a younger adult genre so I'm sure it'll be enjoyed by many others.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. This was a nice adventure and it was beautifully written. I can say that I felt like reading a rick riordan book. The details and back story was to the point. No info dump to distract from the main story. Nice side characters that do have characters. Zoe was really the heroine, and the action around mythological creatures was really just to the point. Not overwhelming and not shallow.
Thanks!
Mermaids, murder, mayhem. Oh my! Zoe has found her way from college athletic drama straight into chaos among immortal beings in a magical realm. And I'm here for it! Using mythology from all around the world as the foundation, Michelle Sauer has created a unique world that I hope we get to explore again.
I received an ARC of this book for an honest review. I really wanted to give the book 2.5 stars even though I wanted to love it so much! The characters were well-developed and really likeable. We had friends to lovers, friends to enemies, enemies to friends, all of it. We went all over the world. There was "magical technology". There were ghosts, demons, lycans. You name it. It was fun to read and the overall idea is there! I hope this is the first book of a series.
However, some of the writing was so darn confusing! I don't like to discuss things that could potentially be cleaned up in editing when I read an ARC, but it was impossible to ignore. Pretty much any scene that should have been fast-paced was absolute WORK to follow. I would have to reread passages multiple times trying to understand what was happening. Even then, I just had to move on and accept being clueless at times. I hope that there will be some edits made before publication so that this is corrected. It would be unfortunate for a great story to fall flat because of something that could be pretty easily remedied.
Another issue that I had was the lack of tension and magnetism between the main love interests. I know that when reading YA there will be less "spicy". But when reading love scenes between Zoe and Baxter, it all seemed forced and just slapped together. I want the scenes to build and naturally progress. I want them to suffer for each other and then get that release when they are together. I didn't get that from these two. It doesn't have to dirty to be hot.
Overall, I liked the book. I want more. But I want it to be better.
Thanks to Netgalley, the publishing company and the author for giving me the chance to read and review Pacific Tails.
Retelling of Little Mermaid vibes.
I felt like the characters were a little flat and boring, but loved the concept of the book.
This book had such promise, sadly I wasn’t into the whole story line. The characters didn’t seem to have much dimension, but if this turns out to be a series then some redemption can be made!
Mermaids, murder, mystery with a side of a treasure hunt and a smudge of romance, what could be better, right?
This novel was nourishment for my inner child. It has everything you need in a book: adventure, danger, suspense, history, romance, comedy, sarcasm, character building, and a world the reader can get fully engrossed in.
It's a fast-paced and suspenseful story with interesting characters and a nice love story. Once I started reading I couldn't stop. I really enjoyed the story, but wish there was more romance between Baxter and Zoe. I would love to read more into their relationship. I’m so excited for the story to continue in the second book!
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Pacific Tails merges the 21st century with mythological creatures in a unique way, accounting for mermaids from different regions and detailing a humans rise to mermaid queendom. While the premise is engaging. The overall storyline is somewhat predictable and the characters are not given much depth.