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3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
Pros: A fast and comparatively light modern-day fantasy-romance read. The romance isn't *entirely* instalove - she does fall for his personality, though very quickly, though that's believable considering her lifelong dreams/fantasies of love and marriage. The novel isn't completely taken over by fluttery-eyed romance, though: Kahlen's relationships with her sister Sirens and her (and their) complicated relationship with the Ocean are the major focus, with the romance serving more as the thing that drives these to a crisis point.
Cons: For the whole novel, the back of my mind kept mulling over how 'Kahlen' seems such a weird name for a rich girl from the 1920s (I'd never heard it before so I looked it up and found it's supposedly an anglicized Irish name. Wasn't Irish still considered a bad thing to be in the 20s? Wouldn't fancy rich socialites therefore avoid it?). Also, although we're told the Ocean needs to periodically consume humans to sustain life, it's never clearly said *why*, or exactly how that works. This could have been a much darker read if it had looked more deeply into the reasons for the whole Sirens/sinkings thing.
In conclusion: not a novel that will stick with me, not a future classic read, but I wouldn't mind recommending it as a light beach/vacation read.
Cons: For the whole novel, the back of my mind kept mulling over how 'Kahlen' seems such a weird name for a rich girl from the 1920s (I'd never heard it before so I looked it up and found it's supposedly an anglicized Irish name. Wasn't Irish still considered a bad thing to be in the 20s? Wouldn't fancy rich socialites therefore avoid it?). Also, although we're told the Ocean needs to periodically consume humans to sustain life, it's never clearly said *why*, or exactly how that works. This could have been a much darker read if it had looked more deeply into the reasons for the whole Sirens/sinkings thing.
In conclusion: not a novel that will stick with me, not a future classic read, but I wouldn't mind recommending it as a light beach/vacation read.
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Genocide, Death of parent, Murder
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-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
I'm on a bit of a mermaid kick right now. This one was sort of cheesy romantic, but in a really good way. I'm not usually in to romance books, but this was just so sweet, and the sirens were fascinating, and the fact that the ocean could "talk" to them was awesome. Fun read.
I really wanted to like this book. Kiera Cass is a wonderful author who really knows how to consume a readers attention and I don’t feel this book was an accurate representation of her ability to do that. I found myself frustrated with most of the characters, there was a lot of build up to a rushed ending, and I didn’t get explanations for things that I hoped for. Overall, I’m still glad I gave it a chance but I’m not sure I would recommend it.
Just not my style. Not a huge fan of the writing style, the plot structure, the storyline.
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Murder
After reading (and loving) The Selection series, I knew I had to read The Siren. Partly because I wanted to read something else by Cass, but also because I love a good re-telling, and I thought it would be cool to read something about Sirens, which don't seem to come up very often. And I liked The Siren, but not as much as I thought I would.
I thought it was a cool idea, and I liked that it wasn't about re-telling the tale of Greek gods/goddesses, but instead focused on re-telling the story of Sirens. We got such a good picture of how girls became Sirens, and what life was like as a Siren. That actually really surprised me, because The Siren is a stand-alone and fantasy and just over 300 pages...and yet you get such a clear picture of the world and the hold that the Ocean has on these girls. For me, that more often than not, spells disaster, and it never seems to work well, but it did with this book.
Could things have been explained more? Of course, but all things considered, Cass did a better job with it than I expected. It has its cute moments, and it goes by fast. And it's an interesting idea, so I definitely wanted to keep reading to see how things turned out.
I thought the Ocean was really confusing at times- She did seem motherly at times, and yes, She did tend to go about it a little weird, but there were also times where I thought She made sense.
I'm not sure how I feel about any of the girls. There's certainly a bond between them, but Kahlen seems so different from Elizabeth and Miaka, and even Padma. She did seem depressed (which I understand why), and she did seem more traditional than the other girls, but that's probably because she's older than the other girls. By how much we're not sure, at least in the case of Elizabeth and Miaka, but definitely a lot older than Padma.
I don't know how I feel about Akinli, and I really wish we saw more of him. I get why we didn't, but the fact that we didn't really see him is probably why I didn't completely love him or their relationship. It felt a little bit too insta-love for me, and I wish we saw it develop more. I think I might have been able to believe in the whole soulmates thing if we saw more of them together.
I was surprised by the ending- I'm not sure how I expected things to end, but it was a surprise, even though I'm not sure how I feel about it.
It was more dull than I thought, and I had a hard time getting into it. Ultimately, I liked it, and the idea of the book was enough that I'm willing to overlook everything else. I wanted more action, and it was definitely a slow-paced book.
My Rating: 3 stars, because the idea is a pretty cool, and more developed than I thought, considering it's a stand-alone fantasy that's on the shorter side. But I also thought it could have been more developed in some areas, namely the romance.
I thought it was a cool idea, and I liked that it wasn't about re-telling the tale of Greek gods/goddesses, but instead focused on re-telling the story of Sirens. We got such a good picture of how girls became Sirens, and what life was like as a Siren. That actually really surprised me, because The Siren is a stand-alone and fantasy and just over 300 pages...and yet you get such a clear picture of the world and the hold that the Ocean has on these girls. For me, that more often than not, spells disaster, and it never seems to work well, but it did with this book.
Could things have been explained more? Of course, but all things considered, Cass did a better job with it than I expected. It has its cute moments, and it goes by fast. And it's an interesting idea, so I definitely wanted to keep reading to see how things turned out.
I thought the Ocean was really confusing at times- She did seem motherly at times, and yes, She did tend to go about it a little weird, but there were also times where I thought She made sense.
I'm not sure how I feel about any of the girls. There's certainly a bond between them, but Kahlen seems so different from Elizabeth and Miaka, and even Padma. She did seem depressed (which I understand why), and she did seem more traditional than the other girls, but that's probably because she's older than the other girls. By how much we're not sure, at least in the case of Elizabeth and Miaka, but definitely a lot older than Padma.
I don't know how I feel about Akinli, and I really wish we saw more of him. I get why we didn't, but the fact that we didn't really see him is probably why I didn't completely love him or their relationship. It felt a little bit too insta-love for me, and I wish we saw it develop more. I think I might have been able to believe in the whole soulmates thing if we saw more of them together.
I was surprised by the ending- I'm not sure how I expected things to end, but it was a surprise, even though I'm not sure how I feel about it.
It was more dull than I thought, and I had a hard time getting into it. Ultimately, I liked it, and the idea of the book was enough that I'm willing to overlook everything else. I wanted more action, and it was definitely a slow-paced book.
My Rating: 3 stars, because the idea is a pretty cool, and more developed than I thought, considering it's a stand-alone fantasy that's on the shorter side. But I also thought it could have been more developed in some areas, namely the romance.
Actual rating- 3.5 a good book to get me out of a long (well, long for me) reading slump. This was much better than the last book I about sirens/mermaids, and it ended more or less how I was expecting it too, buts actually ok. Kiera Cass is one of my go-to-authors for when I need a light and easy read, one that is actually a little cheesy, but in a good way, so this book was rereleased just in time!