Impicciche breathes new life into a classic tale with her fin-tastic, swashbuckling debut!

“Voice of the Ocean” follows a daring young siren who defies her people to save a human prince. With no other choice than to assassinate him to right her wrong, Celeste agrees to become human. As she finds her place aboard Raiden’s ship, a dangerous attraction begins to grow amidst treacherous waters.

Celeste is my kind of FMC! She is soft and more sensitive than her fellow sirens. At first she views her emotions as a weakness, but the more she allows herself to feel, the more she realizes that strength comes in many forms. As a soft girl myself, I really resonated with Celeste and was empowered by her journey of self-acceptance.

Any kind of relationship between a siren and a human is strictly forbidden, creating a push-pull dynamic between Celeste and Raiden that I could not get enough of! The tension and pining as they are forced to work together to find the lost treasure on Lunapesce is positively swoon-worthy. Their connection and Celeste’s internal conflict surrounding it drives the story in a way that makes it impossible to put down.

I really enjoyed the fast-paced, high stakes atmosphere aboard the Red Revenge. Even more so the family Celeste finds in Raiden’s rag-tag crew. The fantastical elements woven into the story pertaining to the sirens take this pirate adventure to the next level. Impicciche’s song-based magic system adds depth to her world and showcases just how fierce Celeste is in taking up the sword instead of relying on her voice to see her mission through.

This is a siren adventure, a mermaid adventure, and a joyful exploration of what it means to find your place in the world. Celeste is a 17-year-old siren whose interest in the human world leads her on a pirate adventure that will impact her world as much it does the humans she meets, including a diverse crew of pirates that give this fantasy adventure a cozy, found-family theme.

Voice of the Ocean is a perfect example of a complex Young Adult novel that does its inspiration justice while staying true to the author’s own unique voice. From the beginning, Celeste seems like the typical “little mermaid” protagonist, but her journey is about more than unrequited love or being a princess. This is a tale about emotions and humanity, who we build relationships with and how. This is a book that young readers can look to to feel seen and that older readers can find their own adventure and catharsis in.

Thank you, Blackstone for the opportunity to get an early look at this piece and to discuss the book with Kelsey for Showstopper Magazine. My complete review and interview with Kelsey can be found on Showstopper Magazine Online.

Daring and romantic, Voice of the Ocean did not disappoint! This book had all the charm of a Disney favorite and the magnetic pull of an instant classic. Impicciche is a bright new voice I look forward to reading more from.

I've been a fan of Kelsey's youtube channel for so long, and this book really showed off her love of storytelling.

I had so much fun with this, the combination of the Little Mermaid and Pirates of the Caribbean was a match made in heaven! There was a good amount time devoted to both sides, under the sea and on land.

The romance was SO good. Raiden the man that you are. Even without the FMC speaking, they somehow still had great banter and a wonderful connection. I lived for all of their interactions.

I loved spending time on the ship with the crew, and then the action at the end was so exciting! It set up some really exciting things for the future that I can't wait to see.

Overall this is a fun YA adventure for lovers of both mermaids and pirates that romantasy lovers will probably enjoy as much as I did!

Thanks to the publisher for the early copy.

"To the girls who are told they cry too much, and to my dear friend who helped teach me it's okay."

The first ~10% was a bit slow and predictable. At some point, I think I said to myself: "Is this literally just a rewrite of The Little Mermaid"?
Aaaaaand then it picked up!

Celeste is wonderfully complex, human, and relatable. Her character development is rich and the journey as she uncovers secrets and truths is wonderfully done.

And Raiden! It's easy to see how and why Celeste develops feelings for him 😉 In contrast to the red-headed mermaid we (90s babies) grew up with, Celeste is beyond just morbid curiosity and fascination with the human world and I love that about this story.

Voice of the Ocean by Kelsey Impicciche is a good debut novel. The story was engaging although at points felt cliche and predictable. It was enjoyable to read

*I received a copy of this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this opportunity*

As the youngest daughter of the siren queen, Celeste has struggled her entire life to find where she belongs. She's too emotional and stubborn for the taxing scrutiny of public life as a royal, and now that her favorite sister is gone, the young princess finds herself drifting farther and farther away from her family. For a while, she'd hoped a role in the Chorus, the prestigious army that protects the waters of her kingdom from humans, would fill the void in her life, but even after several rigorous cycles of training instilling routine and order, Celeste finds herself unable to quiet the discontent in her heart.

A chance encounter with a boat of humans, ,Celeste discovers she doesn't believe the teachings of the Chorus and her people fully-- the humans she observed didn't seem as one-dimension as she'd been led to believe. They danced and sang, the same as her kind; they cared for each other and bonded with other animals; they seemed... kind.

But an impulsive decision marks Celeste as a traitor to her kingdom, with only a single chance for redemption: to assassinate Prince Raiden Sharpe, the same man she saved from the Chorus and has her questioning the teachings of her kind. Will Celeste be strong enough to kill the charming man who easily envelopes her into his life? Will she find a way to stay true to her own heart, while finding her way back home?

.

VOICE OF THE OCEAN was a strong debut by Impicciche, it's a fun and fresh re-imagining of The Little Mermaid with the adventure and romance of the Pirates of the Caribbean. Geared toward younger young adult readers, I think this book will be successful; it's got pirates and romance, found family and an intriguing new fantasy world to explore. As a middle schooler, I would have <I>loved</I> this book.

However, as an adult, I can't help but notice a few glaring issues: the first, and most troublesome for me, was the pacing. As several other reviewers have pointed it-- the first half of this book dragged due to the sheer amount of world building and character development; but then, it felt like the entire climax took place in a few chapters and left the readers on a cliffhanger. I also found myself struggling with Raiden as a character. His personality was very hot-and-cold, and it felt like he had two distinct personalities-- the cold and strict captain, and then the kind and warm love interest; and while this kind of shift in personality can work, it's only believable (to me) if you can see glimmers of each personality in the other.

While VOICE OF THE OCEAN wasn't a slam dunk for me personally, I can tell that Impicciche will only improve as a writer and storyteller, and I look forward to reading her future books.

Voice of the Ocean || Kelsey Impicciche

"Look at you," he said. "The blood thirsty siren." Tears pricked her eyes, but she did not falter. "And you, the backstabbing prince."

Celeste is the youngest princess of the Siren queen, who plans to be part of the Chorus, a group of sirens who defend siren territory from predators. She's been taught her whole life that humans are evil, and her grandmother was even killed by the Pirate King. Celeste begins to question her beliefs when she spies a ship with a lively group of humans, not seeming like the monsters they've been made out to be. When the Chorus attacks the ship, Celeste decides to save two humans, one of which is the son of the man who has killed her fellow sirens, and their furry companion. Due to this, Celeste is banished, until she's able to bring back proof that she killed the prince she saved. To do so, she agrees to a bargain to gain legs, and ends up joining the prince at sea on a mission that will put her life, and heart, at risk.

This was a fun adventure, and as a debut novel, I thought Kelsey Impicciche did an excellent job with her descriptions, world building, and developing the story. Although this was portrayed as a "The Little Mermaid" retelling, I found myself comparing it more to "Tangled". From the morally gray love interest, the group of seemingly "bad guys" who have squishy soft interiors, and the found family, I found the crew of the Red Revenge mirrored the patrons of the Snuggly Duckling. This book is very young adult and the romance is clean. Although there is death and occasional violence/gore in this book, I will spoil the fact that the adorable dog Admiral lives. If you're looking for a pirate adventure, with a little romance and enemies to lovers storyline, check this one out.

-young adult
-Little Mermaid retelling
-pirates
-enemies to lovers
-forbidden lovers
-clean romance
-3rd person POV
-1st book in a series

I've followed Kelsey on twitch BECAUSE of her storytelling skills. I typically hate Little Mermaid retellings, but absolutely loved this one. She is fabulous at character development and telling the traditional tale in a manner I actually cared about.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3.
This book was a fun read, perfect for the mermaid kick I've found myself in. I loved the obvious care the author took with Celeste-- she was very well developed and written with so much love. The dialogue was entertaining and the romance was fun. However, I thought the pacing, stakes, and motives was a bit off. Some parts felt like nothing was really happening and I never really felt the stress of Celeste having to kill Raiden. For being the start of their relationship, it was barely a background thought and I never fully believed Celeste was going to do it, or was even grappling with it. The same goes for pretty much every motivation. I think the motives should have been much more compelling and made the story hard to get invested in. It would have been the perfect place to add more tension, but I didn't feel it. However, the romance was cute and I was rooting for Celeste and Raiden regardless. Plus, seeing Celeste find a place she belongs in the crew was delightful.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher, Blackstone Publishing, for providing me an ARC for an honest review.

2.5 rounded up.

A retelling of The Little Mermaid (both original and animated). Celeste is a siren and a princess, trained as part of the elite fighting force known as the Chorus. She commits the forbidden act of going up to the surface, and she sees a young man on a ship and is captivated by him, only to learn the young man is the son of a hated human and Chorus has ordered to attack the ship. Celeste of course rescues the young man and makes a deal with a sea witch. And then the story diverges from its sources even more…

There’s a lot to like, especially for readers who seek out books based on tropes like enemies-to-lovers, found family, deals-you’ll-regret, heroines-with-unusual-hair-colors like in addition to a fairytale retelling, mermaids, and pirates. There are some unexpected plot twists and a few moments of levity, like the newly belegged Celeste trying to walk like a crab. I think a number of readers will enjoy this.

But.

This retelling borrows heavily from the Disney adaptation– among other things, we can see this with the rescue of the turtle at the beginning of the book, the reference to eels near the Sea Witch’s lair, and the presence of the prince’s dog. The small tributes are actually pretty cute and I appreciate the author not drawing from the Disney version more heavily (I have a personal distaste for retellings that use the Disney versions of stories). But. The Disney adaptation does something extraordinarily powerful by giving Ariel a clear “I want”, epitomized in the song “Part of That World”. Celeste, by contrast, doesn’t have a clear motivation, and it ultimately makes her a much weaker character. Yes, some desires are expressed– to breach the surface of the water, to join the Chorus, a fondness for human artifacts, general desire for “adventure”– but Celeste’s drives pale in comparison to Ariel’s and even the original Hans Christian Andersen heroine who’s so clearly motivated by her infatuation for the prince. It makes Celeste a very wishy-washy character –a remarkably passive one who goes along with the tides (couldn’t resist, sorry) and who only has a vague plan at best but barely takes any steps (hah, can’t stop) on her own.

Other parts of the book feel similarly unmoored (sorry, sorry). The prince recognizes his rescuer when she appears again but the two just dance around each other for half the book. Like both the Andersen original and the Disney version, Celeste is mute. Here, it’s simply because she doesn’t want anyone to hear her accent. Lame, especially since her voice is a weapon.

My favorite quote from the book: “How boring, she thought with awe.”

60/100 or 3.0 stars

I wanted to like this so much, since Kelsey is a YouTuber that I watch from time to time. When I saw she wrote a book, I was excited to check it out, since the transition from being on YouTube or any social media platform to an author that people take seriously is not easy. This just didn't work for me, unfortunately. The writing style didn't work, and its such a bummer because I was hoping to love this. I wish her the best, and I can see how many people will love the story, though!

I really enjoyed this retelling of The Little Mermaid! It followed the basic story line of the original story, but it had many twists and plot lines that make this a very unique and intriguing retelling! The fmc had some very good character development and the adventure that she embarked on was very fun! Honestly kind of felt like a mix between The Little Mermaid and Pirates of the Caribbean! Would definitely recommend!

Thank you Blackstone Publishing and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

With a magical gift of song, Celeste intends to join the elite mermaid warriors. On the eve of her final test she encounters a human ship with a handsome prince, but when tragedy strikes she defies mermaid law and saves the prince. Upon returning home she finds herself at the queens expense. While her punishment should be death, the queen gives her an ultimatum - she may save herself if she becomes human and assassinates the prince herself. Taking the plea she becomes human but discovers the human world is not what it seems and neither is the prince.

Mermaids and pirates? Sign me up! I absolutely loved this book! While this is a little mermaid - pirates of the Caribbean cross over, it did feel like it mirrored the little mermaid quite heavily in the beginning (which personally threw me off a little). However the adventure Celeste must go on to save herself is swashbuckling and such a ton of fun. I cannot wait to see what adventure Kelsey writes up next!

This book was masterfully clever and appealing to the YA fantasy reader. I might not be the exact audience as I am not YA but still I found that it was exceedingly engaging, poignant, and emotional. The story was not derivative as many retellings can be, but instead was a new take on a beloved classic. Ultimately this book had me hooked from the first page and I will definitely be recommending it to friends and my audience.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Voice of the Ocean by Kelsey Impicciche is a third person-POV YA fantasy romance retelling of The Little Mermaid. Princess Celeste is a member of the Chorus, a siren military, but struggles to hold back her big feelings. When she saves two young men and a dog instead of letting them drown, her only chance to fix it is to kill them. But she finds it difficult to actually do so.

The use of ‘siren’ instead of ‘mermaid’ could have more to do with the Chorus using battle tactics that greatly resemble the sirens of Greek mythology; using songs to hypnotize sailors and drown them. There is also larger mythology involving a sea goddess and a land god as well as a Romeo and Juliet-type story between a moon princess and a sun prince. My favorite bit of worldbuilding was the peeling back of layers of the mythology of the world with the land and sea having different pieces.

Celeste and Raiden’s relationship is complicated by Celeste needing to kill him and his own personal goals and secrets that he’s keeping from her. When Celeste saves him, she not only reveals that sirens are real (sirens have made sure to use magic to keep their existence secret), but Raiden sees her, remembers her, and she lets him live. This is the basis for his attraction to her while her infatuation with him starts much sooner when she sees him on his ship and witnesses him saving his friend. But his personality plus her whole reason for meeting him again do keep them apart for a while longer.

Like a lot of YA fantasy and Romantasy, this is sitting in more of the epic fantasy subgenre sphere. It doesn’t really read like a fairy tale even if it is a retelling of The Little Mermaid as the grander stakes of the world at large make everything feel more open and less claustrophobic. The Little Mermaid has a lot of epic fantasy potential so I am curious to see how the next book expands the world and story out further while developing the romance further. I want more The Little Mermaid retellings and I will definitely be reading the next book

I would recommend this to fans of The Little Mermaid looking for a YA epic fantasy romance

Voice of the Ocean is an impeccable debut by Kelsey Impicciche! I loved the political intrigue and world-building! Kelsey has put so much thought to the world and the characters present! I loved the Little Mermaid retelling with he retaiin of an original voice! Definitely recommend to fans of The Little Mermaid and generally those who love banter & tension in their books! Can't wait for the sequel!

I have always been a fan of Kelsey Impicciche and was scared that this book was going to one that exists due to her fame. This is not the case. I inhaled and devoured this book. This Little Mermaid retelling was fresh, sweet, and so romantic. The fact that I have to wait for the next book is so upsetting.

I’m a sucker for a good fairytale retelling, and this one definitely scratched that itch! For a debut novel, I was really impressed by the world-building and character development. Celeste was such a great main character—her journey of self-discovery and finding her found family was genuinely heartwarming, and it felt like something younger me would’ve loved to see.

My only gripe was with the pacing. The beginning was pretty slow (though I have to give it credit for being thorough), and it didn’t really pick up until the last 30% or so. But once it did, it was hard to put down! There was just so much action and so many reveals in that final act that it felt a bit overwhelming. I wish some of that information had been sprinkled throughout the story instead of being dropped all at once during the big battle.

Overall, this was a solid debut and a cozy fairytale read with just the right amount of action. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing where the series goes from here!

I was really hopeful for this one, because I absolutely adore Kelsey Impicciche and I love fantasy books. But this one just missed the mark for me, unfortunately.