The Mermaid by Christina Henry – Review

Published: June 19, 2018

Publisher: Berkley

Series: Standalone

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 336 (Paperback)

My Rating: 4.0/5.0

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis:

Once there was a mermaid who longed to know of more than her ocean home and her people. One day a fisherman trapped her in his net but couldn’t bear to keep her. But his eyes were lonely and caught her more surely than the net, and so she evoked a magic that allowed her to walk upon the shore. The mermaid, Amelia, became his wife, and they lived on a cliff above the ocean for ever so many years, until one day the fisherman rowed out to sea and did not return.

P. T. Barnum was looking for marvelous attractions for his American Museum, and he’d heard a rumor of a mermaid who lived on a cliff by the sea. He wanted to make his fortune, and an attraction like Amelia was just the ticket.

Amelia agreed to play the mermaid for Barnum, and she believes she can leave any time she likes. But Barnum has never given up a money-making scheme in his life, and he’s determined to hold on to his mermaid.

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The Mermaid was a lovely book that basically just made me hate P.T. Barnum. He was such an inconsiderate, money-hungry turd and I felt bad for his associates, his family, and Amelia who became his resident mermaid. That aside, I think the first paragraph of the synopsis is enough to catch a potential reader’s attention. Plus, don’t you want to know why this book made me dislike Barnum so much?

The Mermaid was a really good book and the beginning was really touching. I loved that a mermaid came out of the ocean for curiosity and loneliness and actually fell in love and had a good experience. Her fisherman husband loved the sea just as much as she did and even the villagers protected her fiercely from prying outsiders. It was WHOLESOME. Then Barnum hears rumor of a mermaid along the coast of Maine and sends his rep to bring her back to New York City. Amelia goes of her own accord so she can have money to travel the world and see what the land has to offer and Barnum, being the desperate businessman that he is, tries to manipulate her at every opportunity. But Amelia pushes back and she has her own allies (Barnum’s wife included) and her own mind.

I liked getting both Amelia’s and Levi’s (Barnum’s legal assistant, procurement guy) POV. It was nice to see that Levi was sticking up for Amelia and it was a good way to show Levi’s feelings for Amelia. Much better than having it from only Amelia’s side of things. I also really enjoyed the ending of this book as it didn’t turn out the way I thought it would.

Overall, I’d say this book is worth giving a go, especially if mermaids are your mythical thing. I haven’t read any of Christina Henry’s other books, but they seem to have been well received by the general bookish community. I probably will forgo reading her other books, especially since I’ve never cared for Alice in Wonderland and would doubtless not appreciate a retelling nearly as much as I should.