Coverlicious: The Mermaid's Mirror by L.K Madigan

Coverlicious is a feature that sporadically I hold here featuring everything to do with covers from covers I love to cover reveals.

 The gorgeous cover of The Mermaid's Mirror, which I reviewed on Thursday, was what initially grabbed my attention. It captures the essence of the book so well with the feel of the spray of the stormy sea and I love the way the girl's damp and messy hair has been pulled back in a stylish and loose way, The water droplets over her hair look like pearls adorning it and really adds to the effect. Also, the blue glow surrounding the title contrasts really well with the grey colour of the sky and adds a warmer tone to the cover. The cover designer could have done some fantasy mermaid shot but I'm so glad that the cover ommits the mermaids because I think The Mermaid's Mirror is so much more than just another mermaid book.




Image courtesy of Melissa Walker: The Blog- thank you!

 

Above is a shot of the cover jacket, which is even better! The moody ocean continues onto the back cover and I love the way that the gir's shoulder expands over to the back cover naturally with the little yellow swirl feeding out of it. Often I find that photos from the front cover leading onto the back doesn't work but I think it does for thid cover. Even the small details have been thought out well such as the green shells on the spine. A difference to the cover image at the top is that the aqua blue glow around the title has been removed. This adds a lot to the dark, story and windswept look of the cover. Also, the quote from Malinda Low on the ocean doesn't ruin the cover effect for me either because it's quite unobstrusive. 

 Whilst looking for a picture of the cover online to go with my review, I found a cover story post with the author on the blog ReaderGirlz. L.K Madigan shared the original cover design, which is on the left. I'm SO glad that the designer changed it because this design doesn't incorporate any of the sea/mermaid elements of the book except from the title and isn't anything special.

 

 I also discovered a look-alike cover on my search on Dreaming Of Amelia by Jacyln Moriarty as the stock image of the girl has been used. This cover has much brighter colours than the final design for The Mermaid's Mirror so the cover has a very different atmosphere and the girl is positioned centrally instead of to the side. I do like it on this cover but I love it more on the Mermaid's Mirror.

 What do you think about the two The Mermaid's Mirror covers and the lookalikes? I'd love to find out!

 

Super Snippets (2) : The Mermaid's Mirror by L.K Madigan

Recently I've seen quite a few quotes that I love in books so I thought it would be a nice idea to start a new feature here sharing and commenting on all of my favourite quotes or 'snippets' from the books that I have been reading/reviewing on the blog and so Super Snippets was born. I hope that the snippets from the books that I share will whet your appetite for more and give you a better taster of the book so you can decide whether you would like to read it or not. Any suggestions for the feature would be welcomed!

Today's snippets are from The Mermaid's Mirror by L.K Madigan, which I reviewed yesterday.

Goodreads description

Lena has lived her whole life near the beach — walking for miles up and down the shore and breathing the salty air, swimming in the cold water, and watching the surfers rule the waves — the problem is, she’s spent her whole life just watching.

As her sixteenth birthday approaches, Lena vows she will no longer watch from the sand: she will learn to surf. But her father — a former surfer himself — refuses to allow her to take lessons. After his near drowning years ago, he can’t bear to let Lena take up the risky sport. Yet something keeps drawing Lena to the water . . . an ancient, powerful magic. And one morning Lena catches sight of this magic: a beautiful woman — with a silvery tail. Now nothing can stop Lena from seeking the mermaid, not even the dangerous waves at Magic Crescent Cove.
And soon . . . what she sees in the mermaid’s mirror will change her life forever.

Some of my favourite 'snippets' (with help from my book club)

'Lena's world had become a tangle of broken sleep and waking dreams...voices in her head and mermaids in the water...locks and keys and calls from the sea.'

I love this beautiful imagery that appears frequently in Madigan's writing because it makes Lena's world so vivid and feel more alive.

Lena's heartbeat slowed as she gazed out at the sea. Her breathing calmed. She didn't try to study the conditions; she just drank in the soothing ocean breeze and the hypnotic sound of the surf.'

'She could hear a mournful, sweet song reaching up to her ears from the depths of the sea. It was like no human song she had ever heard, sounding more like a thousand violins and flutes playing at once.' 

How are those quotes for appealing to the senses?

"Lena," persisted Cole. "What do you want to be when you grow up?"

Her parents and Grandma Kath had stopped talking and were looking at her now. Lena raised her eyebrows at them and said to Cole, "Happy."

 
This one really stood out to me because it made me pause for a minute and think about what she said. It's a memorable quote!
  

Book Review: The Mermaid's Mirror by L.K Madigan

I love the 'sea' feeling of this
gorgeous cover.

Goodreads description

Lena has lived her whole life near the beach — walking for miles up and down the shore and breathing the salty air, swimming in the cold water, and watching the surfers rule the waves — the problem is, she’s spent her whole life just watching.

As her sixteenth birthday approaches, Lena vows she will no longer watch from the sand: she will learn to surf. But her father — a former surfer himself — refuses to allow her to take lessons. After his near drowning years ago, he can’t bear to let Lena take up the risky sport.

Yet something keeps drawing Lena to the water . . . an ancient, powerful magic. And one morning Lena catches sight of this magic: a beautiful woman — with a silvery tail. Now nothing can stop Lena from seeking the mermaid, not even the dangerous waves at Magic Crescent Cove.


And soon . . . what she sees in the mermaid’s mirror will change her life forever.

Review

The Mermaid's Mirror is one of those books that I felt myself flowing along with the ebb and tide of the plot because I wasn't constantly guessing what might come next and I think this is because the plot builds up to a climax in the fantastical world and I gradually became more captivated by Lena's world as the book progressed. By the end I began to see what a vidid and detailed world Madigan had created without me realising it as I read. Although, there was one major plot line that I guessed nearer the beginning but it didn't really affect my enjoyment of the story.

I found that Lena's feelings were very well described and realistic so I was able to empathise with her and she was a sweet but serious girl. However, my one problem was that I wanted her to have more personality to flesh her out a bit as a person, rather than everything about her coming from what is going on in her life.This would have helped me to forge a connection with her better and for her to be a more memorable character.

One aspect of Lena's character that I particularly liked was the close relationship she had with her family and the different bond she had with her mum, dad and sister. The reason why I liked this is because it is unusual to find YA books where the parents are at the front of the plot and not blended into the background or forgotten about most of the time. Lena's good and loving relationship with her stepmother was great because I would never have guessed she was her stepmother if it had not been mentioned before and usually in books step mothers are perceived as enemies. Her father is the one she goes to for advice and her younger brother Kye was adorable. Despite this, her family is not without problems of its own and there are many secrets behind the outside appearance that cannot remain hidden forever.

I read and absolutely loved the mermaid series, Ingo by Helen Dunmore, a couple of years ago so I was excited to read another mermaid story. However, I think that I would have loved The Mermaid's Mirror so much more if I hadn't read the Ingo series because the underwater world was really good  but the one in Ingo was amazing. I am in no doubt that the descriptions were enchanting because of their strong imagery and helped me to imagine the underwater domain of the mermaids but I didn't feel as immersed in the world as much as I did in Ingo. For that reason, I liked the part of the book set on land better even though it seems strange saying that about a mermaid book.

One of my favourite things about the book was the way the ehiliration of surfing was captured in writing because it made me feel like I was out by the sea with the wind blowing through my hair carrying the smell of salt as I watched surfers ride on the waves. It really made me want to try out surfing (not that I think I ever will!)

There were several unwrapped plot lines left at the end and I know that L.K Madigan had a sequel planned but like many bloggers have heard, she sadly passed away about a month ago at the time I was reading the book. When I came back from holiday after finishing it, I was very sad to hear this news because a wonderful author, family member and friend to other people has been lost.

Verdict: The Mermaid's Mirror is a creative and enchanting book that has an interesting and unique take on mermaids and I looked forward to returning home to my holiday cottage whilst I was away to curl up with it. However, it isn't the best mermaid book I have read but then again, I think that it is so much than that because the contemorary side is strong.

Rating: 4 stars

All I Want For Christmas Is... (Part 1)

All I Want For Christmas Is... a feature held by the lovely Danya at A Tapestry Of Words where bloggers spotlight the books that they are hoping to get for Christmas. I have enjoyed looking at every one's picks and thought I'd join in myself this week.  I'm starting to feel very Christmassy now as it's snowing outside right now- YAY!

My picks (more than one because it's so close to Christmas now). All summaries are taken from Goodreadrs.

Cate Of The Lost Colony by Lisa M Klein:

Lady Catherine is one of Queen Elizabeth's favorite court maidens—until her forbidden romance with Sir Walter Ralegh is discovered. In a bitter twist of irony, the jealous queen banishes Cate to Ralegh's colony of Roanoke, in the New World. Ralegh pledges to come for Cate, but as the months stretch out, Cate begins to doubt his promise and his love. Instead it is Manteo, a Croatoan Indian, whom the colonists—and Cate—increasingly turn to. Yet just as Cate's longings for England and Ralegh fade and she discovers a new love in Manteo, Ralegh will finally set sail for the New World.

Seamlessly weaving together fact with fiction, Lisa Klein's newest historical drama is an engrossing tale of adventure and forbidden love—kindled by one of the most famous mysteries in American history: the fate of the settlers at Roanoke, who disappeared without a trace forty years before the Pilgrims would set foot in Plymouth.

Why: I have had my eye on this one ever since I chose it as a Waiting on Wednesday pick and it's YA historical. I love stories set in Queen Elizabeth I's Court and the Roanoke mystery sounds so interesting.

The Mermaid's Mirror by L.K Madigan

Lena has lived her whole life near the beach — walking for miles up and down the shore and breathing the salty air, swimming in the cold water, and watching the surfers rule the waves — the problem is, she’s spent her whole life just watching. As her sixteenth birthday approaches, Lena vows she will no longer watch from the sand: she will learn to surf. But her father — a former surfer himself — refuses to allow her to take lessons. After his near drowning years ago, he can’t bear to let Lena take up the risky sport. Yet something keeps drawing Lena to the water . . . an ancient, powerful magic. And one morning Lena catches sight of this magic: a beautiful woman — with a silvery tail.

Now nothing can stop Lena from seeking the mermaid, not even the dangerous waves at Magic Crescent Cove. And soon . . . what she sees in the mermaid’s mirror will change her life forever.

Why: I love mermaid stories and this cover is beautiful!

Prisoners In The Palace by Michaela MacColl

London, 1838. Sixteen-year-old Liza's dreams of her society debut are dashed when her parents are killed in an accident. Penniless, she accepts the position of lady's maid to young Princess Victoria and steps unwittingly into the gossipy intrigue of the servant's world below-stairs as well as the trickery above. Is it possible that her changing circumstances may offer Liza the chance to determine her own fate, find true love, and secure the throne for her future queen?



Meticulously based on newly discovered information, this riveting novel is as rich in historical detail as Catherine, Called Birdy, and as sizzling with intrigue as The Luxe.

Why: I have loved Queen Victoria  and the Victorian era ever since I visited her holiday home Osbourne House when I was two. That and the world below stairs at the time has to be a brilliant combination!

If you'd like to join in and post about what you want for Christmas head over to A Tapestry Of Words and link up!