Meh, I wouldn't really say this book is about mermaids. There's only a couple scenes in this book that involve the ocean or mermaids. But the story was relatively okay even though I felt like I had read it before in other books. I'd recommend it for someone who's looking for a nice quick read. ( )

Sheila Nielson did a fabulous job with her descriptive details and I loved the spin she put on the myth of the mermaids. This story has a classic Cinderella feel to it and at the beginning, I'll admit I was slightly depressed at how hard Adrianne's life was--that's a good thing though--it means the author did her job well of making the main character so realistic that I felt genuine sorrow for her.

My thirteen year old niece recommended this book to me. She's right, I do like it. The writing is interesting, the character draws me in, it's got Irishy stuff happening. The mermaid is cool.

The story falls apart for me when we actually go under the sea. That aspect comes too late to be an integral part of the book, and I found myself bored down there when I was meant to be in awe. I wanted to hurry up and get back to the real story--(SPOILER)--she may have had doubts, but I never had the slightest belief that she would stay down there. I didn't find that part was handled with anything near the interest of the other, major portion of the book, and was glad to return to land.

The dilemmas the character has to deal with are well done, even the bit undersea (I just would have cut it down by a factor of ten, that bit), and the ending satisfied. She has had some important insights and will live her life very differently now. A quietly compelling read. ( )

From my blog



Forbidden Sea by Sheila A. Nielson is a more of a coming of age story than anything else, don’t let the mermaid on the cover fool you. I read it for the Mermaid Summer Reading Challenge, but quickly found myself wondering when the mermaid was going to show up again. I enjoyed the medieval setting as a break from all the modern day mermaid stories that I’ve been reading, but wished that more time had been spent on the cool other culture and less on the daily goings-on of the townspeople.

Strengths:
The mermaid lore and world in Forbidden Sea was wonderful to read about once it finally showed up. The merpeople’s living arrangements and history made sense and the whole human breathing underwater was internally consistent. Just what I look for in a fantasy!
While there was potential for a love triangle, it was completely bypassed, proving that YA doesn’t actually need love triangles to function ;-).
I enjoyed a number of the secondary characters and the depth that was given to them. If it wasn’t for the layers building up with Auntie and Cecily, I would have been even less entertained.

Weaknesses:
Some books save the world overly dramatically; Forbidden Sea is not one of those books. At the end of the story, I realized that basically nothing actually changed from the beginning except for one improvement that doesn’t even get mentioned in the wrap-up.
The first 2/3 of Forbidden Sea were quite slow. There is a cool opening scene with the mermaid, and then it’s all about the sad lives of peasants for a while….
Speaking of sad lives, you know how sometimes an MC is just too tragic? Adri is in a horrible situation both financially and socially, but she continues to nobly suffer to help her family (who don’t really appreciate her). She was just too noble in too horrible of a situation to be believed.
During the boring 2/3 another plot line with horses and a job unfolds, but gets shoved aside for mermaid story time. I wasn’t happy with the lack of conclusion or the detour (even though horses are cool).

Summary:
I frequently found myself with a puzzled expression while reading Forbidden Sea, since I just couldn’t care about the events as much as I apparently was supposed to. There was a rich world of merpeople to explore and Forbidden Sea would have been much more fun to read if that storyline had been the focus throughout. If Forbidden Sea hadn’t been so short, I definitely wouldn’t have finished it unfortunately. ( )

Adrianne's father died a few years ago, leaving her and her sister, mother and aunt practically destitute. Adrianne blames herself for the family's misfortune. She works hard and tries her best to take care of everyone. One night, her younger sister runs out of the house and gets caught in a raging storm. Adrianne goes to the shore looking for her and finds her in the arms of a mermaid. The mermaid scratches up Adrianne's wrist but eventually lets Cecily go. This is only the beginning of Adrianne's entanglement with the mermaid.

I really enjoyed this. It has the feel of a fairy tale, and is influenced by a few, but it was still something I truly enjoyed reading. But then, I'm a huge sucker for fairy tales.

Adrianne is a great character. She's trying so hard to provide for her family, but she's only about 14 years old. Mistakes happen. She keeps trying and trying but she can't seem to catch a break. She's hopelessly in love with a boy who only has eyes for the village beauty, something that Adrianne in her dirt and rags will never be. She looks out for her sister, mothers her mom, and is a saint for putting up with her nasty aunt. She's a character that I would like to know. In fact, I wanted the story to go on just a little longer; I wanted to know what her life was going to look like in the future.

I ripped through this book, but about 3/4 of the way through, the story got bogged down in description. If I were an author, I would have a hard time reining in the descriptors in a book like this too, but honestly, the story started to drag for me. I'm pretty good at filling in the scenery. I'd rather have the story move forward a little more quickly.

The other thing that bothered me is that, while I adore this cover, this is not how the mermaid is described. Oh, most of it is right, down to the tiniest details. But her hair is supposed to be light green. It's a small thing, but it's been bugging me. I read an ARC. Maybe it's been changed for the final copy. I don't know.

Anyway, if you like fairy tales, I think you'll be happy with this one. It's on the younger side of YA, but has a bit more depth than I expected. ( )