Book Review - Never Forgotten

Happy Wednesday, everyone! I have a book review for you today. *grin* This title will go into the 2014 Time for Books Review Team pool (I'm finally up to 14 reviews this year). If you haven't been over there to check out the reviews these awesome ladies and gents have read, you gotta check it out. With today's book, it'll make 340. I'm blown away by their commitment. Here are the bloggers involved:

Me (obviously)
Kelly Risser
Ashley Simpson
Maria Pease
Elizabeth Newton
K. J. Farnham
David Rose
Tia Bach
Ren Reidy
Beth and Tiffany
Samantha
Ashley Bodette
Rachel Barnard
Karen Metcalf
Autumn Nauling

Be sure and check them out. Great reviewers up there!

Let's get on to the book on the table for review today.

Title: Never Forgotten (Never Forgotten Book 1)
Author: Kelly Risser
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance
Length (print): 314 pages
Buy link: Amazon Kindle FREE

Blurb:
How can one day go so very wrong? One minute Meara Quinn is making plans for how she will spend the Summer before her senior year and the next she's finding out that her mother's cancer has returned and they are moving away from the only home she's ever known.

Now every day is a struggle as Meara is trying to cope with her mother's illness, being forced to move to another country to live with grandparents—whom she thought disowned her mother—and having weird visions of a father who was absent her entire life. Top it all off with one whopping secret that everyone seems bent on keeping from her, and Meara has the perfect ingredients for a major melt down.

The only things keeping her from coming unglued are some new friends and Evan—the son of her mother's childhood friend—who seems to know Meara almost better than she knows herself.

Together with Evan and her friends, Meara embarks on a new journey to unlock the secrets that will not only tell Meara who she is, but what she is.

***Will not appear in review elsewhere. You all know what a book cover lover I am. This one speaks so much to what's inside. That lighthouse provides a turning point for the main character, and the softness screams inner turmoil. I love the font, love the boldness of the text, and appreciate the author's name being a definitive part of the overall design. Nicely done.***

Moving on to the review!

I grabbed this book a couple of weeks ago on Amazon and dove right in. I've never read a book that dealt with sea creatures, and I was super intrigued. I liked that the author based the tale on well-known myths, and I learned about some new things I'd never heard of. Anyway, let's get to the juicy stuff.

From a Reader's Perspective:
Character wise, I liked Meara. I thought she and her mother had a beautiful bond going on, and every time something horrid would happen, I held my breath as I waited to see if it would be "the" moment. I found myself torn between relief and exasperation several times because I wanted the story to move forward at the same time I wanted the mother to survive just a little longer. Pacing was steady, but slow. It's like a simmer that never reaches the boil it's threatening. When the big moments were happening, I wanted more emotion from Meara. I'm intrigued by her father, her aunts, and the guys at the club. All the members of the family seem to have a lot of mystery surrounding them.

There's one place where Meara is getting a pedicure, but I knew she was self-conscious of her feet, and I wondered if that was something she'd do. Seemed out of character.

Plot wise, it was most excellent. I could clearly see the main character experience change from page one to the end. She started out as a shy girl who didn't take risks ever. By the end, she was still scared, but willing to take a leap of faith to discover herself.

If you're looking for answers to any of the mysteries of the family, you won't find them in this series starter. It's more of the day to day life of Meara as her future hangs in the balance. Like I said before, the pace is slow, but it seems more about discovery and raising the questions to be answered in later books.

Yes, there's a cliffhanger, and I want to read book two so I can have some answers. Luckily, all three books in the series are already out.

From an Editor's Perspective:
It needs a proofreader with a really good eye. There are a number of misused words, and some repetitive scenes that would be cleaned up with one more run through. Example: She caught herself, and her checks grew red. Other than those, it was clean on the pronouns, punctuation, and structure.

Rating:
1 Star for giving me a mother/daughter relationship I loved
1 Star for plot and a growing MC
1 Star for introducing me to new myths and making me want more
-1 Star for pacing and never quite hitting full boil
.5 Star for editing
-.5 Star for editing
Overall, 3.5 out of 5 stars. I round up when clicking stars, so this book will get a 4. Recommended if you enjoy a book that takes its time and leaves you wanting more.

What do you think? Have you read it? Plan to?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo