Gah, I'm not sure where to go with this review! I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley through their romance section, but in spite of a romantic element, it's really sci-fi with a touch of fantasy (because mermaids). (Actually, while the characters are adults, the story reads a lot more like a YA dystopian novel, so if that's your jam...) Anyway, I almost lowered it a star, but then I just saw the author's post on Goodreads, and she clearly says it's sci-fi fantasy and not romance. So any disappointment with the direction the story goes in the last quarter of the book is really because of a misclassification and not the author's intent.
I don't like spoilers, but I feel like--for the sake of the romance lovers out there--I have to at least let you know POSSIBLE SPOILER: There's a not unhappy ending, but there's no HEA here. END SPOILER.
For me, I suspected what was happening pretty much immediately, and I was disappointed to be right. Apart from that, the book is well written, and I suspect that sci-fi fans especially will find the book to be solid and satisfying.
So how to rate it? As a romance, it's zero stars for me, but it's not supposed to be a romance. I don't read a lot of sci-fi, so how it compares within the genre, hmm, dunno? So I'll just go with how the story flowed for me. Mostly good characters, a fast and exciting plot, an original idea, and a decent ending (with a possible sequel) = 4 to 4.5/5.
I received an ARC of this book from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion. Thanks!
