The Emerald Isle (Fascination Island) [Kindle Edition]

Working as a lifeguard in Fascination Island was Audyn's way of dealing with a cheating boyfriend. She whisks herself away from the busy life of New York, calling in a favour to work for a family friend. She establishes a "no boys" rule over the duration of this job/vacation. Things seem fine until she sees herself caught in between Levi and Tristan, and a feud she only discovered when they came into picture. Just as suddenly, things are getting all crazy around Fascination Island, and it's up to Audyn to fix it...

What's my first impression of Emerald Isle? I thought it was just a simple chick lit about a typical love triangle over the summer. Little did I know, there was more than just that involved. I don't know why it didn't click on me that this was a story with mermaids in it. Somehow it happened to slip my mind until recent events in the book gave the hint of it. Well, that was unexpectedly a good kind of surprise for me. Not that I haven't read any mermaid books recently (I have. Quite a few in fact), but catching me off guard over book plots is a rare thing as of the moment (let's just say after having read a number of books, I tend to easily guess what a book's about. I'm sure most of you booklovers there can relate to what I feel), so kudos to that!

I'd have to say I like Audyn's thoughts and the way they were expressed through the Kate Hinderer's writing. However, I find it hard to relate with Audyn most of the time. As much as I like her voice, I don't like the way she makes choices. Sometimes she says one thing but does another, like she can't stand firm on her own decision. She also comes out a bit full of herself (she drop dead gorgeous, with a rockin' body to boot, and she knows it) that I'm not really keen of, but I welcome the change in a protagonist's self-esteem. They don't always have to meek and modest.

I didn't buy Audyn's and Tristan's relationship, something just feels odd over how it progressed; one time Audyn's telling Tristan to get off her case and the next thing you know they're kissing each other passionately. I don't mind the love story, but I question the development.

Now speaking of Tristan, I find him too cheesy with his words. That had me puzzling over if his "bad boy" image is even appropriate for the setting. I mean, I know bad boys fall in love too, but his lines just seem too much. Levi seems to have won personality-wise, he may have been deceiving and all in the beginning but his loyalty to Audyn is seen in the end. Although, I'm not picking a team over these two at all, and quite frankly I'm leaning more on Falcon over all this. Teehee!

What caught my interest the most is the feud between Tristan and Levi's mer tribes. I was both agitated and excited over what exactly was the enemy's plan. I love it when I couldn't guess how it would turn out! Summing things up, I think Emerald Isle is a good and pleasing book to read. It has less than 200 pages or so you can finish in a few short hours that leave you smiling at the end.

Few books really surprise me. This one did. I wasn't sure what I was getting into, but I am so glad I decided to review this book.

First off, this is probably young adult. Our main character is in her teens. But, it's doesn't read like most YA's. That's not to say the topic is overly mature, just that the writing doesn't seem to target the age group. Audyn is also very mature for age in many ways, although she's not in others. The job she takes on Fascination Island, is basically an excuse to run away from her problems. Although, I really admired her need to take a job at such a high profile location were she has previously stayed as a guest. She wants to be treated just like all the other staff. I can't say many rich kids would escape their problems this way.

The storyline is definitely interesting and honestly one of the best ones for this type of book. I've read quite a few of them, both good and bad. I didn't take me long to figure out what was going on, but I don't want to give it away! The explanations given in the story were great too. There were so many intricate details woven in.

The romance was a little off for me for part of the book. There was one guy, and then a triangle, and then the other. For a girl who swore off guys during the summer, she sure was drowning in them for the get go. I think I also had a hard time with it because I never really liked Levi.

Overall, a good book with some interesting lore in it. Well worth the low kindle price.

I'm not into YA novels. I get this feeling in my mouth like I stuffed too much honey, peanut butter, and banana in my mouth. Too sticky, too sweet.

But halfway through Emerald Isle, I changed my mind about this particular YA novel. Audyn ends up being a likable and dynamic character. The journey of her learning to see different sides of a situation ends up making her a hero. While this book has some fluff, it also has actual heart.