Katie King
Written on Jan 5, 2016
I really like mermaid mythology, but it seems like mermaid stories are few and far between. Those you can find, are usually executed poorly (if anyone has evidence to the contrary, I welcome it). Descent is no exception. When I first saw it on NG, I was surprised. Excited. Then hesitant. Mostly because of what I just stated. But I requested it anyways.
First, the plot. It moves INCREDIBLY slow at first, and is interspersed with sections of infodump. It gives off the impression that the reader has not actually picked up a book about mermaids, but rather one about farm life in Plainville, Oklahoma. Due to a tornado and a family tragedy, our MC Shea McNamara moves to Cape Cod to live with his grandmother, Bleach. Her name isn't Bleach, but every time we see her, she smells like bleach. Shea proceeds to bop around town, take his dog illegally on the beach, hang out with Cardboard Girl, and have weird feelings in his body (not puberty, guys). And for the first 58% of the book, this is all he does. FOR FIFTY EIGHT PERCENT OF A BOOK ABOUT MERMAIDS, HE DOESN'T EVEN KNOW THEY EXIST.
Okay let's switch gears to after that 58%. He finds out all the backstory needed to wrap up the book, takes multiple stabs at resolving the conflict, and finally succeeds IN ONE DAY. ONE DAY. Something I specifically took note of was a certain chapter in the book where not a sentence goes by without something major to the plot happening. Except, when you write like that, nothing really matters to the plot, does it? All you're illustrating to me is that nothing I'm shown matters because in a few pages you'll whip something else out of your ass that completely contradicts the plot.
So here's what goes down in the chapter: some running around in secret, several different family reunions that all amounted to "who's this? omg ur the prince we've never met before!1", two royals are murdered (one is important and one is not, gotta keep things balanced), a seemingly flat-as-all-else character becomes a two bit villain and is defeated within 3 pages, a poisoned monarch is healed by a black Caribbean mermaid with "chocolate skin" (so creative), and everyone pieces together and figures out how to dismantle an entire evil scheme to take over the Atlantic throne by the REAL villain (who read more like an angsty teen). ALL OF THAT IN ONE CHAPTER. And it all just flies by with a paragraph or two devoted to each, like gosh, who needs details or groundwork for anything in the plot??
There was maybe a love triangle, I say maybe because I have no idea if Shea was supposed to like Cardboard Girl or not. He was too busy making lovey eyes at Servant Girl and kissing her at the most inappropriate and unromantic times.
Every single character was flatter than Northern Ohio. I guess if you don't lock your characters into silly things like personalities or motivations, you don't have to worry about them getting in the way of your plot!
And the ending! Like I could even be more upset about this book, but then everyone is patting each other on the back and happy, but HELLO PRINCE DEMYN GOT AWAY?! Didn't anyone notice that??
UGH.