Book Review: Florence by Ciye Cho

Title: Florence 
Author: Ciye Cho
Released Date: July 1, 2012
Source: ebook from author
Read on June 1,2012
My rating: 

Seventeen-year-old Florence Waverley is out of her depth. Literally. Kidnapped and taken below the waves to the mer world of Niemela, she is the ultimate gift for merman Prince Kiren: a human familiar tied to his side. But nothing is what it seems amid the beauty and danger of a dark ocean.

Every Niemelan has a role to play, from the mermaids who weave towers out of kelp to the warriors who fight sea monsters. But in trying to survive, Florence will end up in the middle of a war between the mer and the Darkness. A conflict that will push her between two brothers: Kiren, the charmer inexplicably drawn to both her and the monsters; and Rolan, the loner who has been pushing her away since the day they met. But in order to take a stand--and find out where she belongs--Florence will have to risk it all: her life, her heart... and her very soul.


My Thoughts:


I love mermaid stories, and this is coming from someone who loved Little Mermaid as her fave character as a child.

Florence was okay. I loved the realistic way the author told the story. Ciye Cho’s mermaid version is interesting. Using polyps so you can breathe in the water (quite impossible but it was a “logical” explanation). The characters were not bad too. Reading the summary might feel like both brothers were fighting over Florence, but it wasn’t like that at all. There was a tension, but at first, you won’t know the reasons behind the tension until the secrets spillover. I think the story has a great amount of mystery in it considering the whole lot of secrets every character was hiding. If it wasn’t revealed through another character’s point of view, I wouldn’t have guessed the twist in the story. Someone in the kingdom of Niemela is bringing them to destruction ( I won’t tell who!).

Anyway, the first time Florence was in Niemela, I really took pity of her. Nobody wants her there (as if she wanted to be there!), save for sweet Princess. The descriptions of the made-up world of Niemela was breathtaking and very imaginative. Though there were times it bored me already because there were so many “introductions” made and no important events happening in the beginning. However, after that, when the action started, everything picked up.

I hope this has a sequel because the story is still hanging up and ended with many questions in mind. FLorence’s whole being is not yet resolved, and there are still lots of unresolved mysteries.