Book Review: Lies Beneath

 

Title: Lies Beneath

Author: Anne Greenwood Brown

Genre: Paranormal YA

Format: I was provided an ARC through Netgalley

Publisher: Delacorte for young readers expected publication June 2012

 

Synopsis (via Goodreads)

Calder White lives in the cold, clear waters of Lake Superior, the only brother in a family of murderous mermaids. To survive, Calder and his sisters prey on humans, killing them to absorb their energy. But this summer the underwater clan targets Jason Hancock out of pure revenge. They blame Hancock for their mother’s death and have been waiting a long time for him to return to his family’s homestead on the lake. Hancock has a fear of water, so to lure him in, Calder sets out to seduce Hancock’s daughter, Lily. Easy enough—especially as Calder has lots of practice using his irresistable good looks and charm on ususpecting girls. Only this time Calder screws everything up: he falls for Lily—just as Lily starts to suspect that there’s more to the monsters-in-the-lake legends than she ever imagined. And just as his sisters are losing patience with him.

 

I hadn’t killed anyone all winter, and I have to say I felt pretty good about that.

Any book that begins with that sentence has got my attention immediately. There was no, “ugh, I’m so evil because I kill people” or “ugh I really hate myself” it was just this is who I am and what I am. I love that.

Mermaids intrigue me because they are part of another world, yet also part of my world too. So, I was super excited to get this book for review.

Lies Beneath isn’t like the little mermaid but this is the way I think that a real mermaid would be. This is how I imagine them. Even better, the POV was from a male mermaid. Calder is a character that really draws you in. His thought process is unique and it’s something that I felt like I was (very appropriately) drowning in. It was so, so easy to just sink into his words and forget the world around me.

This book is a lot darker than I expected but it was a good thing. The mermaids in this book were a lot more like predators than people most of the time. I think this portrayal makes things seem all the more real. Surprisingly it didn’t make me dislike them or even fear them. That would be like hating a dog for acting like a dog. It certainly made me want to keep reading to learn more about them, to understand them better. I liked how they went through the change, I liked how they affected people and I liked how they basically were like nomads. It all made perfect sense.

Calder was a little different than the others and I like how he went through a change in the book – a change that he chose. He learned that he could be who he wanted to be not who he thought he was supposed to be.

Lily was also a character that I thought was unique. She dressed kind of strange and it became endearing. She read poetry and cares for her family and she doesn’t apologize for any of it. I like that that she didn’t really like Calder at first, she wasn’t mesmerized by him or drawn to him – he was just there and he made her uncomfortable. It was a refreshing dynamic between the two lead characters.

The plot of this story is really well done. It kept me reading, kept the pages turning until the end. I liked all the characters in this book  – I actually feel like I got to know every single one of them. They weren’t just in the background but active participants in the story. A whole world was created that worked together and weaved through the story.

The ending wasn’t what I was expecting. I’m not really sure I like how things were left. I was a little disappointed because I am still unsure where things will go from there. But, I am certainly looking forward to the next book and to see what else is in store for Calder and Lily.

I would recommend this book to any Young Adult reader and anyone who wants a unique refreshing twist on a paranormal book. This is definitely a series to read and to watch. I think great things are going to come from Anne Greenwood Brown.

Before I officially end my review I want to share a quote from my favorite scene in the book. I still can see it clearly in my head and I thought the moment between Calder and Lily was beautiful…

Lily has just run from the ocean and was dripping wet with cold water….

 Her skin glistened and goose bumps rose all over her body. I reached behind me and pulled my sweatshirt over the top of my head. Lily put her arms in the air, and I pulled the shirt back down over her, inside out.

Maris’s voice growled in my ear. Remember why you’re here, Calder.

I remember, I thought, dragging my finger around Lily’s ear to secure a lock of hair.

Paints a nice picture, huh? It’s a nice way to close this review.

So there you have it. My opinion.