Book Type: Adult Romance
Author: Shana Abe
Pages: 581
Summary(goodreads.com):
Shana Abe has entranced countless readers with her passion-filled novels of adventure, intrigue, and romance. Now the author of The Secret Swan delivers a gift from the sea: three hauntingly beautiful tales connected by a legend, a locket, and a love beyond time. 531 a.d.: The tiny island of Kell is said to be enchanted, inhabited by an extraordinary creature who comforts shipwrecked sailors passing into the next world. Prince Aedan of the Isles believes in no such nonsense until he awakens on Kell itself and meets the sensuous siren who rescued him from the sea. 1721: Ronan MacMhuirich, Earl of Kell, is the target of an unlikely assassin: Leila, a mysterious woman from an exotic land. But his irresistibly beautiful would-be slayer is in just as much danger as Ronan when she falls for this man with a magic of his own. 2004: What do you do when you inherit a Scottish island you never knew existed and find yourself pursued by a handsome stranger who wants to buy it from you? That's what happens to Ruri Kell when she accepts Iain MacInness' invitation to visit her birthright, and listens to a proposition as sinfully tempting as everything else about him. Three seductive love stories, three passionate couples, all linked by one of the most romantic myths of all.
My Review:
A haunted island filled with generations of merfolk searching for love...
This was one of my favorite adult mer-romances to date! Besides the incredible romance, it had a heartwarming yet tragic plot, and the novel was filled with incredible imagery. Within each "book" or section, there were aspects I enjoyed and others that left me wanting more.
For this post, I'll review each book and give it a star rating, then provide a final summary at the end.
Book 1:
First, the prologue was written like a forgotten fairytale in an ancient manuscript. It was lyrical and enchanting, then ends with a foreboding curse that started the events within the novel. It was amazing and made me want to continue!
Clan Warriors and Forbidden Love: The Positives
This first novel has elements and themes similar to King Arthur, Camelot, and Scottish folklore with a competition to maintain the clan throne. The setting detail was richly described, and I felt as if I traveled through the frigid seas to the island of Kell, a warm paradise with lush coral reefs. Just like the prologue, I was immediately captured and thrilled to learn more about Aedan, the Scottish warrior and prince. But first, let's discuss Ione, the first mermaid.
What I loved about Ione is that she was sweet, gentle, and alluring, but also reminds me of Ariel. She has long red hair and fins of silvered green. I envisioned her as a Grecian muse. She is also naive yet curious about her human lover. Because Aedan is the only human she's had contact with, she is charmingly oblivious to normal interaction.
And speaking of Aedan, he's hot! A hardened Scottish warrior prince-- what more could you want? There love slowly developed with sporadic sensual moments that left the reader waiting for that one scene where they finally let their inhibitions go.
With most adult romance, there is a significant lack in plot details just for the sake of sex, but Abe crafted an incredible story of changing thrones and challenged royalty to different clans. After Aedan leaves Kell, the plot reminded me of the battle to be earl on History Channel's Vikings.
Head Hopping and Aedan's Attitude: The Negatives
Throughout the book, there was a lot of head hopping that made the POV (point of view) confusing. Chapter 7 starts in Ione's perspective on human life and love, then changes Aedan's views without a scene break.
Also, even though Aedan is hot, he's a dick to Ione! First he sees her as a beautiful demi-god and then she's a mere woman who he can control and sexually take advantage of. During this scene, he grabbed her arm and tries to make her "submit" and "obey." To clarify, this type of behavior was deemed acceptable during this time period, so I suppose he was acting normal.
Even with these minor issues, this was my favorite Book within The Last Mermaid, and I give it(*****) 5 stars.
Book 2:
Rich Scenery and Great Character Development: The Positives
Jumping ahead in time, the second book focuses primarily on an assassin named Leila around the year 1770. She is a female assassin who touches people to get a sense of their aura! In a male-dominated world set in 1770s Europe, she takes care of herself using weapons or poison.
The problem? Her primary target is Ronan MacMhuirich, the Earl of Kell, a charming aristocrat who enraptures her. I loved Ronan's character! He is charming and dangerous with long blonde hair. I pictured him like a Scottish warrior a bit older than Aedan. He is a gentleman who is kind, considerate, and quietly charming with a restrained Scottish roguishness. Very hot!
(picture from Pinterest. Not mine!)
In this Book, the setting detail was absolutely gorgeous and diverse. The reader starts in the shadier streets of London to a rich English party with trim gardens. But Kell is always there, and this time its described during the winter like an enchanted forest.
Oh, and instead of a mermaid, we have Ronan the merman. Yes please :D
The Characterization and Change in Details: The Negatives
The first few scenes in this Book were very confusing. Just like the first one, there was a lot of head hopping and choppy scenes that weren't fully explored.
I don't know what happened to Ronan, but he turned into a jerk just like Aedan. Instead of treating Leila with respect, she becomes his prisoner on Kell. He takes advantage of her poverty and weakened state by bribing her to be his bodyguard and protect him from usurpers. I partially wondered if this was the siren in his blood making him thirst for love. With Leila, I expected more out of her character because she's an assassin. She has one scene where she poisoned someone, but it was minor and didn't involve a lot of action. In fact, there weren't a lot of scenes that showed her dangerous prowess!
Their sex scene was pretty tame and way too quick. I literally said, "that's it?" at the end of the scene.
Lastly, the ending where Leila faces the antagonist was also anti-climatic. Again, she is an assassin who is supposed to be the best, but the fight is very short and she almost died. While the ending was sweet, I found the character's dialogue ambiguous. Just say what you mean and stop making it so cryptic!
I give this Book (***) 3 stars.
Book 3:
Relatable and Rich Detail:
Unfortunately, this is where the book declined. Everything was very rushed with a significant lack in important detail. For example, it's now 2004. Each book is supposed to continue the siren legacy with descendants, but there wasn't any mention of the previous couple having children until later on. What happened? I had no idea how this story connected. Oh, and you don't learn how Leila got her powers until now.
This Book follows Ruri Kell, a girl of mixed heritage that seems primarily Japanese and shows how Clan Kell continued to intermingle with the world. Interesting! Ruri has deep brown hair and is somewhere between tall and skinny. She works as a phone operator psychic that barely pays the bills.
Just like the previous Books, the setting detail is gorgeous. When she travels to Scotland, Abe describes the rolling green hills and quaint village nestled between granite cliffs with an overcast sky. Abe is a master at bringing a setting to life and making the reader feel as if they were already there.
(photo from Unsplash. Not mine!)
But that's all I enjoyed about this Book. The ending was so ambiguous that I had to re-read it.
Short Ending and Bad Characterization:
Once again, the Book had a head hopping problem. The perspective changed mid-scene, which left the POV rather confusing. One minute I looked through Ruri's eyes then Iaian's.
Out of all the main love interests, I didn't like Iaian at all. He gave me the creeps with his constant stalking and showing up to Ruri's house unannounced. When he makes an offer on Kell, he literally says he's very, very rich. Wow.
Honestly, I'm torn between liking the ending or not. I thought I understood parts of it, but most was enshrouded in mystery and I had to guess what happened. The romance was beautiful and tragic, but the ending had indiscernible moments when this was the time for clarity.
Final Thoughts:
The Last Mermaid had some mesmerizing and gorgeous setting detail that took me along each of the character's journey. The romance had sweet and seductive moments as well. However, there were head hopping POV moments and an unclear ending. For these reasons, I give this entire book 3.5 stars.
-Sirenita The Selkie