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3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
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:
Complicated
I really enjoyed reading this book. I am a huge fan of Kiera Cass and her novels so I was very excited to hear that she was coming out with a revamped edition of The Siren. I love a lot of things about this book. For starters, I absolutely love the cover art!! If I didn't already know about this book and was just strolling in the book store, the beauty of the cover alone would have gotten my attention. We all know not to judge a book by its cover but in this case, the cover was actually a good representation of the story. I loved that this story was completely unique. The siren follows the story of a girl named Kahlen who is a siren sentenced to 100 years of serving the Ocean. Despite all odds she ends up falling in love with a boy named Akinli, and this book is about the journey of their impossible love. It may seem like a stereotypical young adult novel all about romance but this book takes it in a totally new direction. I loved that this book explores new elements of the classic myth and even explored new aspects of what it means to love someone. There were definitely a lot of ups and downs in this book and I have to admit that it took some turns that I wasn't immediately on board with but in typical Kiera Cass fashion she drew the story together nicely in the end. I would definitely recommend this book to any fans of Kiera Cass as well as any fans of sirens and mythology, you will not be disappointed.
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
DNF @page 40
The concept is weird and confusing. I've tried so many times to understand it, but I just couldn't. The characters are also unlikeable and felt plain.
Overall, it was so boring that I couldn't even continued reading it.
The concept is weird and confusing. I've tried so many times to understand it, but I just couldn't. The characters are also unlikeable and felt plain.
Overall, it was so boring that I couldn't even continued reading it.
“Life was just a collection of small decisions”
As a big fan of The Selection series, The Siren was something completely different. This was Cass' first novel that was edited and re-published earlier this year. This novel, I felt was more real even though it had the mythological element of the girls being sirens. While the blurb makes it seem as if this novel is about soulmates and true love, it wasn't the only theme. There were many themes that made the book not feel like a giant cliche, such as motherhood, family, sisterhood, and self-discovery.
“There’s always room for love. Even if it’s as small as a crack in the door.”
Kahlen has accepted her life as a siren, but never liked having to kill thousands of people to help feed the Ocean. We see how killing affects Kahlen deeply and what she does to manage her depression. When she meets Akinli, Kahlen starts to really live again. I liked how it wasn't an instantaneous love, but a gradual process. When she realized the danger that she put on Akinli, Kahlen left him so that he could live a normal life without her. This to me made the love and the character feel more real.
Kahlens sisters-Maika, Elizabeth, and Padma- were a major part of the novel as well. We got backstories on them, and saw them grow as characters as well. At first their sisterhood was very centered around themselves, but as the story continued they grew closer together.
“Books were a safe place, a world apart from my own. No matter what had happened that day, that year, there was always a story in which someone overcame their darkest hour. I wasn't alone.”
This story didn't have a real villain of sorts. The Ocean, who acted as their mother, for the most part could be considered the main villain. The Ocean is portrayed as only taking lives and demanding a lot from the Sirens, but She is constantly telling them that She doesn't enjoy making them do this. Even though She puts them through a lot, and you want to hate her, you can't help but feel pity for the Ocean. Everything she does, she does for her Sirens.
If you are looking for a quick standalone read, you should definitely check this one out. I devoured this book in almost one sitting, and I didn't even realize that half the day was gone by the time my husband came home with dinner.
I give this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.
“I picked up another book, and we sat there in the happiest silence I’d ever known.”
As a big fan of The Selection series, The Siren was something completely different. This was Cass' first novel that was edited and re-published earlier this year. This novel, I felt was more real even though it had the mythological element of the girls being sirens. While the blurb makes it seem as if this novel is about soulmates and true love, it wasn't the only theme. There were many themes that made the book not feel like a giant cliche, such as motherhood, family, sisterhood, and self-discovery.
“There’s always room for love. Even if it’s as small as a crack in the door.”
Kahlen has accepted her life as a siren, but never liked having to kill thousands of people to help feed the Ocean. We see how killing affects Kahlen deeply and what she does to manage her depression. When she meets Akinli, Kahlen starts to really live again. I liked how it wasn't an instantaneous love, but a gradual process. When she realized the danger that she put on Akinli, Kahlen left him so that he could live a normal life without her. This to me made the love and the character feel more real.
Kahlens sisters-Maika, Elizabeth, and Padma- were a major part of the novel as well. We got backstories on them, and saw them grow as characters as well. At first their sisterhood was very centered around themselves, but as the story continued they grew closer together.
“Books were a safe place, a world apart from my own. No matter what had happened that day, that year, there was always a story in which someone overcame their darkest hour. I wasn't alone.”
This story didn't have a real villain of sorts. The Ocean, who acted as their mother, for the most part could be considered the main villain. The Ocean is portrayed as only taking lives and demanding a lot from the Sirens, but She is constantly telling them that She doesn't enjoy making them do this. Even though She puts them through a lot, and you want to hate her, you can't help but feel pity for the Ocean. Everything she does, she does for her Sirens.
If you are looking for a quick standalone read, you should definitely check this one out. I devoured this book in almost one sitting, and I didn't even realize that half the day was gone by the time my husband came home with dinner.
I give this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.
“I picked up another book, and we sat there in the happiest silence I’d ever known.”
medium-paced
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked this book more than I expected and it felt original to me. Even if this book is tagged as romance, I feel like the realationship between Kahlen and the others girls is much more emphasized here. It gives you a really great feeling of found family, which was the best part of this book. The love story was very sweet and of course unrealistic and cliché, but still enjoyable.
This book isn’t too mystical/fantasy/sci-fi. I’d avoided it for years based on the description, but am sorry I waited... the supernatural aspect (she is a siren) in only a small part of the story (needed to make the plot work) and for me, it felt like symbolism or an analogy; she’s basically trapped in family dysfunction—stuck in a family glued together by secrets and lies and “don’t let outsiders in” with a controlling and narcissistic mother who won’t let her go. Or you could say she was in a cult...
Overall it’s YA. Fluffy, easy to read, cute, fun with a total Hallmark channel/romance genre ending (“true love” “soulmates”).
You can’t expect much from this book. I think those that did not like it were probably expecting an adult story/adult novel.
Overall it’s YA. Fluffy, easy to read, cute, fun with a total Hallmark channel/romance genre ending (“true love” “soulmates”).
You can’t expect much from this book. I think those that did not like it were probably expecting an adult story/adult novel.
So... This only took me a few hours to read. But wow.
Akinli is my favorite guy. He's so adorable!! This book was so incredibly good oh my gosh. I loved Kahlen and her relationship with her sisters.
The Ocean was so annoying sometimes.
But what really killed me was the obvious answer to fix Kahlen and Akinli. I was like REALLY C'MON PEOPLE.
To the fans of The Selection series, I would recommend this book. It's different from that series but it's equally as good.
Akinli is my favorite guy. He's so adorable!! This book was so incredibly good oh my gosh. I loved Kahlen and her relationship with her sisters.
The Ocean was so annoying sometimes.
But what really killed me was the obvious answer to fix Kahlen and Akinli. I was like REALLY C'MON PEOPLE.
To the fans of The Selection series, I would recommend this book. It's different from that series but it's equally as good.