Book Review: "Blood of a Mermaid" by Katie O'Sullivan

Just a quick note: this was actually the book I was originally asked to review by the author. However, since I had not read the first book (this one is a sequel), I waited to read "Son of a Mermaid" first. That's why I'm doing two book reviews in a row by the same author.

Amazon link:
http://www.amazon.com/Blood-Mermaid-Katie-OSullivan-ebook/dp/B00KAKMPV2/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1402251335&sr=8-4&keywords=katie+o%27sullivan


Amazon description:
Mermaid blood.
When Shea MacNamara fell into the ocean for the first time, he found he could breathe underwater. The son of a mermaid, the sea is in his blood. Literally. The best part of Shea’s new life? His girlfriend Kae, who also happens to be a beautiful mermaid.
But darkness lurks under the sea. When evil mermen kidnap Kae, the king reminds Shea that having royal blood means making tough choices.
An Arctic dungeon, a fiery plane crash, the legendary halls of Atlantis…and narwhals?
Having mermaid blood just got a lot more complicated.

My review:
3 out of 5 stars--I liked it, and would read it again.

This sequel picks up a couple of weeks after the first book ends. Shea is still adjusting to the knowledge that mermaids really exist, and that he's a part of that underwater world. The future is looking bright for him, though. The villain Demyan is on the run, making the contentions between merfolk clans easier to heal. His relationship with Kae continues to blossom, and he looks forward to attending University (the merfolk school) with her in the fall. However, Shea's role in the underwater world's political struggle continues to be a problem. Kae is kidnapped as leverage against Shea, and the teenage boy is launched into yet another adventure where he must try to balance his drylander upbringing with his new life as a merman.

As I have said in the review of "Son of a Mermaid," I am not normally a fan of paranormal fiction. But again, I quite enjoyed reading this book. This sequel is able to delve deeper into the world that the author has created, and I liked learning more about the different mermaid clans and the nuances of underwater life. I liked the overall story of "Blood of a Mermaid" better than the first book, mostly because the story has already been set up and the author can jump right into the meat of the story. The author's storytelling continues to be easily engaging and descriptive in a manner that includes all of the senses. Some of her descriptions made me smile because of how simple and funny and true they were. Sharing in Shea's personal struggles was like remembering some of my own at that age--trying to figure out who you are (and who you want to be), trying to understand relationships (both romantic and otherwise), coping with change, and so forth. The author finds ways to make the reader understand how the characters feel, even though the situations (like being a mermaid) are very different. I appreciate a writer that can do that. There is only one criticism that comes to mind as I think about the story, and it's a very small one. The author makes a point of stating that mermaids speak a bit more formally and do not understand some of the slang that Shea uses. Then a subsequent conversation between two merfolk is filled with several bits of modern slang--terms like "buddies" and "hanging out"and so forth. It's a small thing, and it didn't affect my enjoyment of the book, but it is something that seemed out of place in my mind. Setting such nit-picking aside, I would say that this is a fun book to read and I look forward to seeing where the rest of the story goes.

For more information on my rating system, click here.