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so_many_books's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
3.5⭐️ rounded up to 4.
This book is okay and fun up until the end.
It's a queer merfolk YA story with an adorable pairing. Crest/Ross is a merperson who goes on their month-long journey to experience life on land and help a human to complete their quest. Sean is a chubby, heartbroken guy who's determined to get his ex back.
The story leans heavily on the fake dating and rom-com tropes. It tries to recreate the vibes of every slightly shallow teen movie ever created with queer representation. Which is actually a nice idea. The characters are very relatable to hormone-fuelled teenagers with emotional burst, feeling like a heartbreak will ruin their lives, being horny all the time, and just generally figuring themselves out.
The story has a good concept, though diving deeper into details and comparisons between life in the sea and on land would've been nice. It would have made the story less shallow.
What I didn't like much was the toxicity of Sean's ex. I know it was part of the character growth of Sean to move past a shitty relationship, but come on. There were so many signs.
And the other thing that was a ig miss is the ending. Up until the 70-80% mark, there was a vague but definite direction the story was going. Where Crest was heading in their journey. Where their relationship with Sean was headed. But in the end , it was just a jumbled up mess of emotions, mistakes, hurtful acts, and don't even get me started on the very end. Instead of explaining how both of them came to their decisions at the end of their month together, it was a moment and then puff. End.
I don't like these types of endings (and I'm not gonna go into detail what I mean because of spoilers). But there was so much potential to make it satisfying. And yet it left me WTF.
The best thing about this book is definitely the representation. It is set in a queernormative world and has some interesting thoughts about gender and gender expression. Crest/Ross is non-binary, Sean is gay, Kavya and Miguel are bi.
I liked it.
All in all, I think this is an okay story with some really great aspects and some mistakes. I enjoyed it because of the characters, but it left me unsatisfied at the end.
This book is okay and fun up until the end.
It's a queer merfolk YA story with an adorable pairing. Crest/Ross is a merperson who goes on their month-long journey to experience life on land and help a human to complete their quest. Sean is a chubby, heartbroken guy who's determined to get his ex back.
The story leans heavily on the fake dating and rom-com tropes. It tries to recreate the vibes of every slightly shallow teen movie ever created with queer representation. Which is actually a nice idea. The characters are very relatable to hormone-fuelled teenagers with emotional burst, feeling like a heartbreak will ruin their lives, being horny all the time, and just generally figuring themselves out.
The story has a good concept, though diving deeper into details and comparisons between life in the sea and on land would've been nice. It would have made the story less shallow.
What I didn't like much was the toxicity of Sean's ex. I know it was part of the character growth of Sean to move past a shitty relationship, but come on. There were so many signs.
And the other thing that was a ig miss is the ending. Up until the 70-80% mark, there was a vague but definite direction the story was going. Where Crest was heading in their journey. Where their relationship with Sean was headed. But in the end , it was just a jumbled up mess of emotions, mistakes, hurtful acts, and don't even get me started on the very end. Instead of explaining how both of them came to their decisions at the end of their month together, it was a moment and then puff. End.
I don't like these types of endings (and I'm not gonna go into detail what I mean because of spoilers). But there was so much potential to make it satisfying. And yet it left me WTF.
The best thing about this book is definitely the representation. It is set in a queernormative world and has some interesting thoughts about gender and gender expression. Crest/Ross is non-binary, Sean is gay, Kavya and Miguel are bi.
I liked it.
All in all, I think this is an okay story with some really great aspects and some mistakes. I enjoyed it because of the characters, but it left me unsatisfied at the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Minor: Infidelity
theaceofpages's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
"Labels everywhere and they all seem to be wrapped around genitals."
Firstly, yay for enby merfolk! DeFINitely one of the things that drew me in. I'm a little older than the target market for this, so please keep this in mind for my review.
Crest (ugh Ross) is forced to go ashore for a moon cycle so that they can become an elder merperson. They expect to hate every minute - humans are terrible after all. But they don't count on meeting Sean, a lifeguard, who shows them that humans can be good. They agree to help Sean get his boyfriend back as their selfless act so that they can return home at the end of the month, but as the fake dating trope goes, they end up falling in love. Crest then has to decide if they want to go back to the home they have always loved, or if they should stay on land with Sean, never to return to the mer world.
I have to agree with Crest. People are terrible. I know that drama is pretty typical of YA books (and this book is very YA - I don't mean that as a good thing or a bad thing but as a simple fact) but oh man, the characters were incredibly annoying. Is it accurate for their ages? Yeah, probably, but that doesn't change the fact that I ended up hating pretty much all of them. I did kind of like Crest (or at least disliked them less) but they too weren't the greatest. (sidenote: I liked the way they referred to people and didn't gender everything!)
That being said, this was a fun and easy read. Between being annoyed at everyone and the dragging middle I had a good time reading this. I think queer teens will enjoy this one! Just be prepared to be annoyed at everyone. And hey, queerphobes aren't really a thing in this book so if you are looking to escape that this would be a good choice.
Firstly, yay for enby merfolk! DeFINitely one of the things that drew me in. I'm a little older than the target market for this, so please keep this in mind for my review.
Crest (ugh Ross) is forced to go ashore for a moon cycle so that they can become an elder merperson. They expect to hate every minute - humans are terrible after all. But they don't count on meeting Sean, a lifeguard, who shows them that humans can be good. They agree to help Sean get his boyfriend back as their selfless act so that they can return home at the end of the month, but as the fake dating trope goes, they end up falling in love. Crest then has to decide if they want to go back to the home they have always loved, or if they should stay on land with Sean, never to return to the mer world.
I have to agree with Crest. People are terrible. I know that drama is pretty typical of YA books (and this book is very YA - I don't mean that as a good thing or a bad thing but as a simple fact) but oh man, the characters were incredibly annoying. Is it accurate for their ages? Yeah, probably, but that doesn't change the fact that I ended up hating pretty much all of them. I did kind of like Crest (or at least disliked them less) but they too weren't the greatest. (sidenote: I liked the way they referred to people and didn't gender everything!)
That being said, this was a fun and easy read. Between being annoyed at everyone and the dragging middle I had a good time reading this. I think queer teens will enjoy this one! Just be prepared to be annoyed at everyone. And hey, queerphobes aren't really a thing in this book so if you are looking to escape that this would be a good choice.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Infidelity, Fatphobia, Mental illness, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Sexual content
People assume Sean will be a bad swimmer because of his weightmattyb's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Car accident, Cursing, and Sexual content
Minor: Animal cruelty, Mental illness, and Vomit
evelynyle_88's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Holy crap!
I never knew I needed a book of merfolk that came out so perfect like this. Out Of The Blue was just a perfect light fantasy with a gentle touch of magic for me. This is perfect for me who love The Little Mermaid in general.
This book has a sweet and cute story (but with some heartfelt moment) that made me; who read it... cry. I just love Sean and Ross (a.k.a Crest). I love them so much equally. They're made for each other. A fantasy dream book of merfolk and brief their history for me.
Oh! And I love Kavya too.. also Elder Kelp! We can't forget about them and their wisefulness. Thank you for bringing this book to life, Jason. I appreciate you. Can't wait to read Jay's Gay Agenda as my other read for your book!
I never knew I needed a book of merfolk that came out so perfect like this. Out Of The Blue was just a perfect light fantasy with a gentle touch of magic for me. This is perfect for me who love The Little Mermaid in general.
This book has a sweet and cute story (but with some heartfelt moment) that made me; who read it... cry. I just love Sean and Ross (a.k.a Crest). I love them so much equally. They're made for each other. A fantasy dream book of merfolk and brief their history for me.
Oh! And I love Kavya too.. also Elder Kelp! We can't forget about them and their wisefulness. Thank you for bringing this book to life, Jason. I appreciate you. Can't wait to read Jay's Gay Agenda as my other read for your book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Cursing, Car accident, and Sexual content
Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Alcohol
rubadubindabathtub's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Fatphobia, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship
rickireadss's review against another edition
3.0
i REALLY wanted to like this but it ended up just being very mid. the idea was cool, the execution was subpar. i liked our mcs but also wanted to just shake them because wtf were some of those decisions. i think the ending was severly lacking - i just didn't like it. the narrator for cress/ross had a very annoying voice, which made me not want to continue listening (sorry not sorry). i think the LGBTQIA+ rep was good though! just the plot and actual story was ehhh, so-so.
⚠️: infidelity, toxic relationship, car accident, body shaming, mental illness (depression, sc), fatphobia
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Car accident, Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Mental illness
bashsbooks's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
Out of the Blue is cute, and I love that one of the main characters is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns. But I don't think it successfully pulled off the subversive ending that it was going for, sadly, and I think the reason why pervades the whole book: it gets distracted by being preachy.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual content, Car accident, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Body shaming, Transphobia, Alcohol, and Fatphobia
-Explicit description of drowning -The transphobia is specifically some very brief misgenderingasparagusisreading's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Rep: nonbinary character, gay character, bisexual indian character, bisexual latinx character
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Cursing, and Mental illness
Moderate: Car accident, Body shaming, and Sexual content
fanboyriot's review
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A non-binary MC that just so happens to be mer?? Sign me up. I really liked so much about this book even if I have somewhat mixed feelings about how it ended. I easily fell in love with the characters, the humor, and all the merfolk stuff. It was really cute.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Cursing, Sexual content, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, and Car accident
Minor: Fatphobia, Body shaming, and Alcohol
theghostly's review
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Toxic friendship