Book Review: Deep Blue

Author: Jennifer Donnelly

Publication Date: May 6, 2014

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Series: Waterfire Saga # 1

The first in a series of four epic tales set in the depths of the ocean, where six mermaids seek to protect and save their hidden world.

Deep in the ocean, in a world not so different from our own, live the merpeople. Their communities are spread throughout the oceans, seas, and freshwaters all over the globe.

When Serafina, a mermaid of the Mediterranean Sea, awakens on the morning of her betrothal, her biggest worry should be winning the love of handsome Prince Mahdi. And yet Sera finds herself haunted by strange dreams that foretell the return of an ancient evil. Her dark premonitions are confirmed when an assassin's arrow poisons Sera's mother. Now, Serafina must embark on a quest to find the assassin's master and prevent a war between the Mer nations. Led only by her shadowy dreams, Sera searches for five other mermaid heroines who are scattered across the six seas. Together, they will form an unbreakable bond of sisterhood and uncover a conspiracy that threatens their world's very existence.

Deep in the black mountains, deep in the Romanian night, deep beneath the cold, dark waters of the ancient Olt, the river witches sang.

Daughter of Merrow, leave your sleep,

The ways of childhood no more to keep,

Wake now, child, find the five

While there’s time, keep hope alive.

The princess lifted her head, swam through the doors to her antechamber, and joined her court.

“In olden days, royals had their unruly nobles beheaded. What a pity that custom fell out of use.”

It seems that mermaid books are few and far between, but everyone I have ever read has given me great pleasure and I have finished them in one to two days. This wonderful book comes with a lot of hype because it is going to be this elaborate series made up of four books all about beautiful, imaginative tales of mermaids in the depths of the ocean. The cover is absolutely gorgeous and sets a nice tone for the rest of the book. The cover makes readers wonder about the world building, especially since we are dealing with merpeople, and I must say that the cover is a great interpretation of the novel. The colors are beautiful and the world is completely and utterly fascinating!

The first half of the book is the strongest part. We are first introduced to Seraphina and the world she is very much a part of. I loved reading about her interacting with other mermaids and following her as she explored her own world. Her characterization was fantastic, but it did become more confusing as the book continued because we are introduced to more and more mermaids. Seraphina is a great character. She is under a lot of pressure from her mother and all that is expected of her. She is believable and realistic, even though she is a mermaid.

Being the first book in this saga, a lot of information is frontloaded, and I have read several reviews in which several bloggers did not care for this. I, however, did not mind it at all. I loved all the information about Seraphina’s world and I felt that it was necessary in order to fully understand the plot of the story. Jennifer Donnelly, along with the publishers at Disney, have created a world that will fascinate any reader with even the hint of an imagination. I cannot wait for the next book in this series!

***A free copy of this book was provided to me by the publishers at Disney in exchange for my honest review***