I’m not big into fairy tale re-tellings to be honest. They are the same story over and over, and you already know the ending. When I read the below description for the book it appealed for being different. ( Plus I cant really remember the whole little mermaid story)
The fairy tale you thought you knew…
The story of the Sea Witch, the villainess from Hans Christian Anderson’s classic tale The Little Mermaid, told from the viewpoint of the Sea Witch when she was a 12 year old girl
Evie, besotted with her best friends cousin has magic, unfortunately magic is forbidden and she needs to hide the secret from everyone. When Anna dies she loses her love for life but slowly get pulled back by Nik, and her growing interest in the magic she can do.
One day a girl turns up, who is just like Anna, but shes a mermaid. She tells Evie she is in love with Prince Nik and has four days to capture his heart. Evie wants to help her but we all know that magic can do many things, but it has no power when it comes to True Loves Kiss.
The story is up and down, some parts are quite fast paced others a lot slower. I expected it to be quite dark and moody, but I felt like it was more about social standing, royalty and ballgowns. Even the chapters where things dont turn out so everyone is happy has an ooops oh well feeling to them, rather than a sense of foreboding.
I liked that the story wasnt really about mermaids, but it didnt feel like it was really about magic. It was two girls who were trying to win the hearts of two princes; who both came across as fun and romantic lads, aware of their royal responsibilities but also wanting to have fun. Iker, Evies love interest could have been the bad guy, the evil prince but its nice that he wasnt. Its unusual to have no visible agenda from that angle and I really like the change in generic storylines for that.
The epilogue at the end felt like it was an attempt to tie everything up and relate it to the original story, fast forwarding us to a new time. It made me feel like the end of the story wasnt really finished or fully explained, which sometimes is just how life can be.
I enjoyed the read but I think this book will come up with mixed reviews. If you’re looking for a mermaid story or magic story this isnt really for you. If you’re looking for an origins story then pick it up from 31st July.
One More Chapter 