Overall rating: 4.5 stars

Great origin story!! Really liked the way the story was set up. Really enjoyed reading these characters and how they interacted with each other. Definitely loved seeing a strong main character and reading her story.

I enjoyed the aspect of myth and fairytale in this story and the way they were woven together. The romance was cute too, I appreciated that it wasn't a case of insta love. My last favourable point is the fact that this is a villain origin story, yes please more of these, even if they're heartbreaking.

On the flip side I didn't much care for the plot, it never took me by surprise but rather followed a very clear path laid out from the first. I also found most of the characters annoying, especially when they made pivotal choices that went against earlier behaviours, it felt too convenient and like the story was more about pace then about 3-d characters, which isn't always a bad thing but here it felt rushed and confusing.

I think over all there's the bones of something great here but it felt like it needed to be fleshed out a bit more. It was a good listen but I wouldn't read it again or recommend it.

I enjoyed the narration though, that was a definite positive.

A little repetitive in places with the language used and construction but I’m sure this will be enjoyed by many. A good retelling and you do root for good over evil even when you realise the good character is lost…

Thank you to Netgalley the Publisher, of CamCat Books | Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Audiobooks, and the author Kristi McManus for providing and allowing me to review this book. Which, I'm giving my honest and sincere review.

"Our Vengeful Souls" by Kristi McManus, Narrated by Suzanne Elise Freeman
Suzanne Elise Freeman delivers an exceptional performance in the audiobook adaptation of Kristi McManus's "Our Vengeful Souls." Freeman’s narration is both engaging and emotionally resonant, bringing depth and vibrancy to each character and immersing the listener in the richly detailed world McManus has created. Her voice captures the essence of Sereia's journey, making it an enthralling experience from start to finish.


Plot Summary

Sereia, a magical mermaid, saves her younger sister and inadvertently threatens her brother Triton's claim to the throne. In retaliation, Triton curses Sereia, transforming her into a human and banishing her from their underwater kingdom with a dire warning: if she ever returns, she will become a monster. Left for dead, Sereia washes up on the shores of Atlantis, where she is discovered by a kind merchant with a tragic past.
As Sereia adjusts to life on land, she learns that much of what she was taught about humans may be wrong. Despite needing to keep her true identity a secret, Sereia finds herself drawn to her savior, and her feelings for him deepen. Determined to make a life for herself, Sereia channels her skills into joining the Atlantean army, aspiring to become the respected warrior she always desired to be. During her training, she discovers the existence of a powerful trident, rivaling her father's, hidden within Atlantis. This revelation presents Sereia with a potential path back to the sea and her magic.
However, Sereia is torn between the pull of revenge and the possibility of a new life on land, especially under the watchful eye of a vengeful enemy within her ranks. Ultimately, when a friend’s fate hangs in the balance, she faces an agonizing decision: risk being burned at the stake as a witch or transform into a monster by returning to the sea.


Opinion

Listening to "Our Vengeful Souls" was an incredibly captivating experience. The plot is richly layered with themes of loss, love, and vengeance, reminiscent of classic tales like "The Little Mermaid" and mythological adventures like "Lore." McManus crafts a compelling narrative with complex characters, and Sereia's internal struggles add significant depth to the story. Freeman's masterful narration enhances this, making each twist and turn even more engaging.


Perfect for Summer Listening

This audiobook is particularly fitting for summer, with its enchanting underwater settings and adventurous storyline evoking a sense of wonder and escape. The vivid descriptions of oceanic and Atlantean landscapes provide a perfect backdrop for beachside or poolside listening. Whether you’re lounging in the sun or enjoying a quiet evening, "Our Vengeful Souls" offers an ideal summer escape.
In summary, Kristi McManus's "Our Vengeful Souls" is a must-listen for fans of fairy tale retellings and epic fantasies. Suzanne Elise Freeman’s exceptional narration makes this audiobook a truly enjoyable experience, capturing the imagination and making it hard to pause.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book full of mythical stories many of us may or may not be aware of, Atlas & Posiedeon brought to life through Sereia, Callum, friends, and enemies along the way.

When Sereia is cursed as a mermaid by her brother Triton, if she ever returned to sea, she would be a monster she is therefore cursed when Callum finds her as a human on the beach. As a healer, he heals her, helps her, and yes he falls in love as does she. Sereia goes to the library as much as possible, researching trying to discover how to get back to her home in the sea in such a way that can break the curse and avenge her brother.

Within her time in Atlantis, where Callum originally finds her, she goes on to become part of the Atlantean army, much to his distress. This brings its own twists and turns for both characters.

While conducting her research out taking in the views Callum takes her to the fountain where she sees the Trident and discovers the truth of her family history of Atlas and Posideon all of which had been hidden from her by her father.

The story is full of love, friendships, learning, companionship, legends, a time where the unknown are still thought of as wrong, magic was deemed as witchcraft and deemed that the only answer is for them to be burned at a stake.

As she says towards the end to her brother Triton for he is the cause of the death of so much of her grief, pain, and sorrow mainly for the loss of her true love Callum

"You believe you have won and maybe for a time you have for now but I will never forget and I will never forgive, one day perhaps centuries from now I will bring you to your knees, and as your world crumbles and burns I will rise like a pheonix from your ashes"

This part in particular just really hit my heart as much as when Sereia and Callum were at the fountain and she discovered the real truth her father had been hiding from her also hit deeply as pivotal in this tale of origin.

I know many have compared this book to the little mermaid which of course there is a connection however for me there is so much more to this book a deeper message of a history of God's of the seas which I personally feel the little mermaid also connected with. All interlinked possibly, is it too much of a stretch to believe in the mythical that we learn only from books in this day and time we live in? Or is it possible authors write from the soul where somewhere is a remembrance of something that has gone before?!?!?!?

Thank you to Netgalley and CamCat Books for this listen now copy of this audiobook.

This was enjoyable and I loved it as a audiobook. The narrator did a great job with acting the different characters.
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Possible spoiler:
I always love retellings and this story was an origin story of the Little Mermaid focusing on Ursula.
It took me a little bit to realize it was an origin story but I liked that I didn’t know going into it.
I felt for Sereia and I was rooting for her! I also liked the Atlantis setting.
A couple of things I didn’t enjoy were some parts felt drawn out and I didn’t like how some things didn’t get resolved, but overall I enjoyed this and I would recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley, CamCat Books and the author for the audiobook.

Sereia is a mermaid with extraordinary magical powers. Powers that surpass her brother’s, Triton. He is in the hopes to rule the kingdom when their father’s trident is passed down to him. But when Sereia’s younger sister is captured by humans it is up to her to destroy them with all that she has. This incident will forever change her fate. When Triton is outmatched by Sereia he curses her to live life as a human hoping she will never return.
Washing up on the shore of Atlantis, Sereia finds she must adapt to her new life and new found legs. She must find a way back home to exact her revenge. Can she find the twin to her father’s trident and undo her curse? Or will she find love that will make her forget about all who have wronged her?
Overall rating 3 /5
I liked the prequel feeling of this book to the Little Mermaid, and to add the conspiracy of Atlantis. I love a story about a strong willed woman character, and especially if they get their revenge. I do feel like the story lagged a bit in some spots and could have been supplemented with a little more of a slow burn romance. I would also not classify this as a Children’s book, which I thought this was, but more of a YA.

*Thank you to Kristi McManus, Netgalley and CamCat Books | Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Audiobooks for the audio book copy. I am freely leaving my honest review.

This was a fun read. A great great story of how Atlantis became, how the little mermaid started. I really enjoyed. The narrator was great also.

Thank you so much for letting listen to this audiobook. Ariel inspired stories are usually a hit or miss for me. And this one was definitely a hit.

I never write reviews with spoilers, and I’m not 100% sure that this IS a spoiler, but the fact I’m about to share wasn’t explicitly stated in the book blurb (although it was hinted at). So this is your warning to stop reading if you don’t want to know a piece of information about this book that I wish I had known before I started.
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This is an origin story for the infamous villain Ursula (the big baddie in The Little Mermaid). The only description I was given from NetGalley was “A cursed mermaid seeks revenge against the brother who betrayed her while fighting to protect her secrets and her life in the realm of Atlantis.”

That description didn’t scream “origin story” to me. If I had read the Goodreads blurb, the line “into the life of one of fairy tales most famous villains” would have tipped me off, plus the title is close to “Poor Unfortunate Souls” which is, of course, Ursula’s song.

The reason I wanted to state this is because if I had known this was an origin story from the beginning, I think it would have been a 5 star read for me. I was considering it a five star read up until the last few chapters, and then everything fell apart and I was just SHOCKED at the things that were happening to Sereia. I knew there wasn’t enough time for everything to be resolved before the end of the story, and guys, my heart HURT.

I know what you’re thinking… Don’t you like to be shocked by books, Meredith? Isn’t that literally what you say you want out of a novel? Well, yes… but not in this case. Origin stories are one of my favorite types of stories to read because I love watching a hero become a villain… but I guess I needed to know what I was getting into before I started because I wasn’t prepared for that heartbreak.

Anyway, this was a great read and I highly recommend it, but I know I would have loved it more if I’d realized whose story I was reading from the beginning.

Thank you to CamCat Books for providing this audiobook for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I enjoyed this book and it is beautifully-written. I really like that Sirea focuses on her strength and her ingenuity and that she’s really powerful. And it’s a good story. It was a bit militaristic and violent for my taste, and I didn’t enjoy the descriptions of the fight scenes, but to each their own.

My only complaint is that there were some points at which that beautiful writing felt repetitive and/or just dragged down the pacing of the novel. I felt like we got too lost in description. I was “reading” it as an audiobook, but if I were reading it on the page, I would have skipped a lot that just felt unnecessary. Again, beautifully written, but just not necessary.

Specific to the audiobook, I wasn’t a huge fan of the way that the narrator did the voices. Sirea and her mom sound “normal” and everyone else sounds a bit cartoony. Like, the voice for the “baby sister” was a little annoying, but made sense for a 10-year-old….but then it was also basically the same voice for Kona, who is supposed to be the same age as Sirea. And all the male characters sounded really cocky and yet also spoke really slowly? I was just not really a fan of how it was narrated when it came to the dialogue.

I love a good villain origin story.

With that being said, I'm completely on Sereia's side.

It all starts out with a father who favors his oldest and youngest children and completely disregarding his middle child. I can only assume it's because of his fragile masculinity and how he seemingly can't deal with how strong and powerful she is in comparison to his precious male heir.

This fragile male ego was passed down to his son who couldn't handle that his sister was better than him so he did what he could to get rid of her.

While in exile Sereia learns the truth about her father and gets to experience life away from men who only seem to want to bring her down. However, the fact that she can't get revenge out of her head seems to be her final undoing.

I feel that if she were able to actually let go of things, she would've lived her days happily in Atlantis.

As a grudge holder, I can understand not being able to let go of things, but she seemed to have so much going for her once in Atlantis.

Triton eventually gets his dose of karma, even if it took centuries.

I enjoyed this origin story and I think I like Ursula even more now.

It took me until the end to realize that this is an origin story; prior, I'd just thought it was a "twisted telling" of The Little Mermaid. There are many recognizable elements from the well-known story and this iteration isn't without some dark elements of its own. Sereia and Triton are pitted against each other. There are boundaries in place to protect the merpeople. There's still a romance. There's still a divide between humans and people of the ocean. There's still so many turns where things could've been different... but as soon as the story takes off, it's easy to see how vengeance becomes a motivator for several characters.

While the characters weren't particularly engaging for me, I did appreciate floating along the story and seeing where it all ended up. This is a good YA story.

Overall: 4 stars (I really liked it)

**Thank you to NetGalley & Swift & CamCat Books | Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Audiobooks for the free ALC. All opinions expressed are my own.**

i love a good mermaid story and this one is a little mermaid retelling from ursulas perspective on how she becomes evil. if you enjoyed heartless by marissa meyer you will definitely like this one as well. parts of it were a little predictable and slow paced so it got a lesser rating from me and some things in the book dont get resolved so theres that as well which bugged me. i did love her character arc and thought it was well done and of course ya gotta love the female rage when it comes out

Our Vengeful Souls is a fantastic origin story, which I didn’t realize going into. It’s engaging from the get-go. You’re thrown into a world under the sea where siblings compete for a crown, hoping to outshine one another in their father’s eyes. When the brother becomes overly jealous and worried he’s losing, he curses his sister and sends her on land.
The author's novel had me rooting for our FMC, waiting for her to avenge herself and claim the throne. What disappointed me, though, is that I didn’t care as much for the romance. I know this is a YA novel, but I couldn’t get behind the romantic interest and was unconcerned by his fate.
I did enjoy the narrator. She did a great job acting out all the characters' lines and pulling me into the story.

This would be an excellent book for younger YA and readers looking for clean but whirlwind mermaid book.

Thank you, NetGalley, Independent Book Publishers Association, and Kristi McManus, for the advance listener copy!

** spoiler alert ** I was very surprised at the end. I don't always read the epilogue but this time I felt I needed to because the storyline was kind of lacking at the end. I am so glad I did. The author has great word imagery. She does a great job of explaining the world around them and even emotions.

Now lets' talk about the story itself. This story takes place when triton of The Little Mermaid was younger. It is not Triton's story though. It is his sisters. Sereia is a powerful mermaid. Her parents are thinking of giving her the kingdom but Triton will have none of it. So he attacks her with a poison that turns her human. If she returns to the sea she will turn into a hideous creature and not ever be able to return to her kingdom. As I was reading all of this all I could think is it is similar to The Little mermaid.

She washes up on the shore of Atlantis. She is Saved by a nice gentleman that she eventually develops feelings for. She joins the Guard and has a rivalry with a fellow Guard who eventually gets banished for attacking her during a battle. She is shown the library and the temple. Where she finds another trident that can help restore her and return her to the ocean.

Overall the story is kind of slow and a on the confusing side till you read the epilogue. I would go more in-depth in the story but I don't want to ruin it for everyone. Bit let just say I did not expect who the story was about and it broke my heart how sad her story is.

Overall it is well written and i really enjoyed the story. I did do audiobook and the narrator did an amazing job reading the story.



For those that made it this far down and want the last spoiler the story is about Ursula the sea witch in The Little Mermaid.

I don't want to reveal the plot too much as that's half the fun of this book but it revolves around Sereia, Poseidon's second child, who is betrayed by her jealous and insecure older brother with a curse that renders her mortal. She finds herself in the city of Atlantis and is consumed by her need for revenge.
I really enjoyed this book, it's actually hard to find anything negative about it (my one tiny eyebrow raise was referring to Ashira's power as being her beauty, particularly as this is aimed at a younger audience).
The audiobook is tagged as Middle School, teens and YA and I agree with the latter two but the book is perhaps only for more mature middle schoolers (there is one fade to black scene). Otherwise the author has done well at writing a book that is accessible and largely suitable for teens whilst not feeling immature for adults.
I felt the plot points in the story were well spaced and the ending was really well done, although I certainly wouldn't complain if the book was longer and spent more on Sereia and Callan's relationship.
Sereia is an interesting and complex character and though the ending was not a surprise I found myself wishing the subsequent story ended differently!
I'd also like to note that I thought the narrator was great.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a review copy of novel in audiobook form.

Wow! This book was both a beautiful and tragic tale about love and the consequences it can bring when you put others before your own true heart's desires. There were twists and turns throughout the book that left my jaw dropped to the floor. I truly enjoyed listening to the audio version of this title and I'm really happy that I decided to read outside my normal reading genre. Thanks NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this wonderful YA title. I highly recommend that you check it out!

Great audiobook. Story keeps you enthralled throughout. The twists and turns of the story make it an engaging story to listen too

A little mermaid retelling!! How exciting. I enjoyed this one so much so thank you NetGalley. The author did a really good job at keeping the book engaging and interesting. The ending was such a shock. Definitely check this one out if you want an interesting spin on one of the best fairytales.