Ratings

Content Ratings based on a 0-5 scale where
0 = no objectionable content and
5 = an excessive or disturbing level of content

Guide to Rating System

LANGUAGE

VIOLENCE

SEXUAL CONTENT

ADULT THEMES

Ratings Explanation

Language:  There are quite a few hells and damns, one instance of the B word, a couple uses of ass, and many exclamations involving deity.

Violence:  Quince hits Brody in the face and knocks him to the ground.

Sexual Content:  There are several kisses between Quince and Lily.  Quince calls and claims he can see Lily in the bathtub.  Lily calls Quince a “perv” on several occasions.  Lily enters the water and takes her shorts and underwear off.  Quince takes his shirt off.  Lily admires his abs.  Lily says Quince is trying to look at her cha-cha’s.

Adult Themes:  Lily’s mother dies shortly after she is born and she doesn’t remember her.  She was hit by a drunk driver.  Lily’s parents were not bonded (married) before she was born.

Synopsis

Seventeen year old Lily may look like your average teenage high school student but looks can be deceiving.  Thanks to her merman father and human mother Lily is able to live easily in both worlds and has been living with her aunt on land for the past three years.  Lily is more than just a mermaid though, she is a princess and heir to the throne of Thalassinia.  For three years Lily has had a major crush on Brody, the hot swim star of her school.  She is sure he is the guy to bring home to Thalassinia to be bonded with forever.  If only he would notice her.  For as long as Lily has been crushing on Brody, Quince (the boy next door) has been tormenting her.  Lily can’t figure out why all of a sudden Quince wants to help her win Brody, but she decides to trust him.  That leads to a kiss that changes everything.  Once Lily kisses a guy, he begins to change into a merman.  A bond begins to form that becomes stronger every day.

This is like a PG-13 version of The Little Mermaid.  It was a fun story and a nice diversion from the usual paranormal reads with vampires and werewolves.  It is light, easy young adult reading.  I enjoyed the fishy phrases throughout, they were quite clever.  My favorite line from the books is, “Well, that’s one thing in a row that’s not a complete disaster.”  The ending was satisfying  but definitely left things open for another book to follow.  Booklist and School Library Journal give reading levels of 6^th-10^th grade.  As usual, it’s my opinion that because of the language this is may not be appropriate for 11 year old children.