Tempest Maguire wants nothing more than to surf the killer waves near her California home; continue her steady relationship with her boyfriend, Mark; and take care of her brothers and surfer dad. But Tempest is half mermaid, and as her seventeenth birthday approaches, she will have to decide whether to remain on land or give herself to the ocean like her mother. The pull of the water becomes as insistent as her attraction to Kona, a gorgeous surfer whose uncanny abilities hint at an otherworldly identity as well. And when Tempest does finally give in to the water’s temptation and enters a fantastical underwater world, she finds that a larger destiny awaits her-and that the entire ocean’s future hangs in the balance.
One of the first reviews posted here at A Midsummer Night’s Read was of Karen Hooper’s Tangled Tides, and if you’ve read that review you know how much I love mermaids and adored Hooper’s story. (If not, you can check out the review HERE.) So, when I saw some decent reviews on Deebs’ Tempest Rising I knew I had to check it out.
So, the whole idea behind Tempest Rising is somewhat similar to that of Tangled Tides. Main character is a girl who has ties to the Mer-world, but isn’t a huge fan of it…Main character is important to the survival of the entire underwater race…there is a secret place in the ocean where the sea creatures live separate from the humans…There’s a love triangle that involves two ridiculously good looking men…different rankings amongst the mer-people…etc. You get it, there are a lot of the same things at play in both narratives.
Either way, since I did enjoy Tangled Tides so much, it was almost impossible for me not to enjoy Tempest Rising since they are so similar. However, there are a few things in Tempest Rising that were much weaker than in Hooper’s debut novel.
Number One: Since the point of view is strictly in first person (Tempest) the reader is left to wonder exactly what is going on in other character’s minds regarding Tempest’s future in the mer-world. Although, I have to say that Deebs did well with this because it helped the reader feel the frustration within Tempest.
Number Two: The men. Mark really just irritated me, mostly because he was very possessive, and what happened in the end really cemented my negative opinion of him. Kona, on the other hand, was delightful. I did not like how determined he was that he and Tempest were destined to be together, because insta-love can be so cringe worthy (and reminds me WAY too much of Twilight)
Number Three: The mythological aspects. Tangled Tides has a clear myth that the origin of the mermaids, selkies, and other sea creatures are based on. Tempest Rising, however, doesn’t really explain their existence or even where the prophecy that influences the entire story originates. I hope this is remedied in the sequels.
Overall, I enjoyed Tempest Rising, just not as much as I loved Tangled Tides. I recommend it for those who are looking for a quick read that has some great development to it and definite potential for the next books in the series. I’m going to go with 4 Bards (it’s a little generous, but I can’t help it. I enjoyed it.)
Moving! 