Forgive My Fins by Tera Lynn Childs

Forgive My Fins by Tera Lynn Childs (Book One)


Released: June 2010
Publisher: HaperCollins
Genre: Young Adult - Paranormal - Series
Pages: 304
Source: Around the World Tours

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

Lily Sanderson has a secret, and it’s not that she has a huge crush on gorgeous swimming god Brody Bennett, who makes her heart beat flipper-fast. Unrequited love is hard enough when you’re a normal teenage girl, but when you’re half human, half mermaid like Lily, there’s no such thing as a simple crush.


Lily’s mermaid identity is a secret that can’t get out, since she’s not just any mermaid – she’s a Thalassinian princess. When Lily found out three years ago that her mother was actually a human, she finally realized why she didn’t feel quite at home in Thalassinia, and she’s been living on land and going to Seaview high school ever since, hoping to find where she truly belongs. Sure, land has its problems – like her obnoxious, biker boy neighbor Quince Fletcher – but it has that one major perk – Brody. The problem is, mermaids aren’t really the casual dating type – when they “bond,” it’s for life.


When Lily’s attempt to win Brody’s love leads to a tsunami-sized case of mistaken identity, she is in for a tidal wave of relationship drama, and she finds out, quick as a tailfin flick, that happily-ever-after never sails quite as smoothly as you planned.



---

Growing up, I loved the Little Mermaid so when I heard about Forgive My Fins, I thought for the inner mermaid fan in me who can still bust out A Whole New World, would have to give it a try. And holy crab cakes was I glad I did! Forgive My Fins was such a cute, charming, and fun read!

Lilly is a bit bubbly, a bit stubborn, sometimes childish, but overall a great voice to slip into. I really like how she had her own insecurites when it came to her looks and how she dressed, but it wasn't the overly sappy and whiny voice that some ficitional characters have. Another thing that I have to point out is the uniqueness in words that Terri decided to use. There are many sea references in Lilly's vocabulary, like son of a swordfish, that really add to the mermaid tale, but not so much where you find yourself annoyed.

Then there was Quince. Oh Quincey boy how I adore you and the fact you used the word: darlin'. The banter between Lilly and Quince was amusing and cute all at the same time. Quince has the slightly bad boy vibe to him, but one I think even anti-bad boys can learn to love.

The plot itself is on the predictable side, but I think a lot of people will enjoy the freshness of Lilly's voice and the overall charm the mermaid world has. I really adored Terri Lynn Childs writing. She never gave too much of a character or history dump that sometimes happens when reading any paranormal read. You learn about Lilly's world as the story goes on.  The epilogue was a bit surprising, but left me curious enough to see what else is going to happen in the kingdom of Thalassinian in the second book.

♥amber