Lo lives in the water. She knows she used to live on land, but her memories of that time are fading quickly.
Celia is one of a set of triplets. She and her sisters have interesting powers. Celia can see glimpses of people's pasts if she touches them.
Jude loves to write songs and play the guitar. A freak accident causes him to fall into the ocean and almost drown, until someone save him. He thinks it was Celia. But was it?
There's more to the story. Celia and Jude and Lo build strange, tenuous relationships as they try to help each other. Jude is in love with Celia -- but is it only because she saved his life? Lo longs to be human again, especially since Celia has helped her remember her past. But can she ever return to that life? She needs someone to fall in love with her -- could it be Jude? Why can't she remember what happened to make her live like she does now? She's been told by the other water dwellers (her "sisters") that she was brought here by angels, but why does Celia always hear screams when she looks into Lo's past?
It's complicated, and the relationships are intricately developed. There's a web of deception that complicates things also. The romance was OK, but for me not the best part. As these three main characters try to work out a future, Fathomless take us on a ride through the water as well as the sandy beach.
The story is well told. The setting was sometimes so vivid I felt the sand on my feet and the salt air on my skin. I really wanted everything to be OK for these three. I did care about them, and I didn't understand what was going to happen in the end, which kept me quickly turning the pages.
The only part of the story I didn't like was the lore about the "angels" that brought the girls to the sea and supposedly took them away to live happily when they were "old." I didn't really get that part, and the ending that included a showdown with these "angels" was kind of confusing to me.
Fathomless isn't a happily ever after "Little Mermaid" Disney-type tale. It's dark and at times depressing. The mermaids aren't nice -- somewhat like those in Lies Beneath. They can be deadly. The parts where Lo is fighting back and forth with her human alter-ego were some of my favorites. This was a unique and interesting spin on the mermaid theme.
All in all, Fathomless is a worthwhile read, but I don't think its a book that will stick with me or leave a lasting impression. I enjoyed the experience, and I will recommend this to my mermaid and fairy tale fans.
Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, September 4, 2012
ARC obtained from Library Media Connection Magazine for review
304 pages
Rating: 3/4
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Awesome review. I cannot wait to get my hands on this book, although I think I will lower my standards, just in case I don't like it as much as Sisters Red or Sweetly. :) Sometimes I wish they would stick the parts of the myths that make sense and the readers know. I have not read it so I am not sure how angels would fit in. I am not sure I will after I read it either.
ReplyDeleteI liked Sweetly better than this one. I've not read Sisters Red yet. Note that "angels" is in quotes -- that's just what they call them -- they aren't your traditional angels....
DeleteYou had me intrigued and then when I saw you gave it 3 stars it made me reconsider. I'm not a YA fan anyway but the dark fairy tale like had me. I will have to keep it in my mind.
ReplyDeleteI don't consider 3 Hats a bad rating. It's above average... If you like dark, I'd recommend it.
DeleteFathomless sounds great! I'm quite into these dark kinds of reads, so this one might be perfect for me. I just finished one of Jackson Pearce's other books, Sweetly. She has a great writing style.
ReplyDeleteWonderful review Annette (:
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