Of Poseidon (Syrena Legacy, #1)

by Anna Banks

Galen, prince of the Syrena, is sent to land to find a girl he's heard can communicate with fish. He finds Emma and after several encounters, including a deadly one with a shark, Galen becomes convinced Emma holds the key to his kingdom.

Galen, the prince of Syrena, is sent to land to find a girl who communicates with fish. He finds Emma and after several encounters, including a deadly one with a shark, Galen becomes convinced Emma holds the key to his kingdom. Book #1

• ISBN10: 1466802561
• ISBN13: 9781466802568
• Publish Date: 22 May 2012 (first published 1 May 2012)
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Feiwel & Friends
• Format: eBook
• Pages: 336
• Language: English

Reviews

[Raven]

Galen, a Syrena prince, is on land searching for what might be the key to the survival of his species. He believes he finds what he seeks in the violet eyed Emma. After witnessing her talk to a shark, he knows she must of Of Poseidon, possessing the abilities of the long dead general. Now he must help her discover who she is, try to help her shift into her form and prepare her to mate with his brother Grom, all while trying not to fall in love with her himself.

This book was wonderful. It jumps right into the story, and while a lot of it shouldve been predictable to me, I was pretty blindsided at the ending.

I loved all of the characters. Seriously, every one of them were pretty perfect to me. The banter was funny, the random thoughts they had were entertaining, I laughed through so much of it.

The writing flowed well in my opinion. I had a nagging feeling that Emma accepted what she was a bit easily, but at the same time, I feel like she sort of knew. Besides, with the length of the novel she wouldnt have had time to angst about it and I think it wouldve made me like her far less if she did.

I had been needing a really good mermaid story for a while and this one just took the cake and made me so happy to read.

[Angie]

I received a free digital copy through Net Galley.

Of Poseidon was a major disappointment. I was very excited for my first mermaid novel, and I was sadly let down. However, it wasn't a case of having too-high expectations. I truly just did not like this book from the writing to the characters. I'm glad it was a quick read.

First, I was immediately put off by the writing style and had trouble getting into the book. It has an alternating POV, which I normally love, but in this case I hated it. Emma's chapters are in first person, which is my favorite type of narrative, but then Galen's chapters are in third person. Why?! I always have trouble adjusting to third person after finishing a first person narrative book, but with this book, I had to get use to it every other chapter. Flip-flopping between two completely different narratives, seriously disrupted the flow and made it hard to stay in the story.

The second thing that bothered me was Emma's best friend Chloe. Well, not Chloe herself, but how she was portrayed. She's black, which is great, since there seems to be a shortage of people of color in fiction. Unfortunately, her brief appearance is hindered by lines such as:

"I pinch the bridge of my nose and count to ten-Mississippi, but fifty-Mississippi seems more appropriate. Fifty allows more time to fantasize about ripping one of Chloe's new weaves out. (1% eARC)"

"Great, Emma! You got my new hair wet! (4% eARC)"

They're at the beach...in the water...surfing! Why does she have a "new weave" at the beach?! If she didn't want to get her hair wet, then she should have stayed out of the water! This made it seem like the author just wanted to make sure that we knew that Chloe was black, but she resulted to using frustrating stereotypes and lack of common sense! But we don't have to worry about Chloe's new weave after about 5% since she gets killed by a shark. My third issue with this book was how Emma handles her best friend since childhood's death.

"In a few weeks, they won't even realize something's missing. They'll just move on. Forget about Chloe. (10% eARC)"

"I'm not in any danger of crying today. [...] Funny how a little sleep, a little makeup, and a lot of contemplation can make you feel like a different person- a stronger version of yourself. (17% eARC)"

I'm glad Emma accepted her friend's death and is moving on, but seriously?! She watched her friend get her leg ripped off by a shark, right up close and personal, but there seems to be no lasting effects from that. She puts on some makeup, and her biggest problem becomes trying to convince her mom that she's not having sex with Galen. In fact, the few additional times Chloe is mentioned is only in relation to Galen in some way. I had trouble accepting that Emma is that callous, and it made it hard for me to care about anything that happens to her. I also felt like Chloe's death was just included in order to have Emma go through something tragic, rather than having any important impact on the story.

"Emma, you threw my sister through hurricane-proof glass. (35% eARC)"

Yep, she did, and Galen does NOTHING to stop it and yet he scolds her for it later on. That just doesn't make any sense. He just stands around talking about maybe stopping the fight, but ultimately just hangs out. Sure he knows for sure that his sister wouldn't be hurt, but what if Emma wasn't also Syrena? Things would have ended quite badly, but Galen knows everything, so no worries.

"So what if he thinks I'm some sort of peasant fish who has to obey him? Why shouldn't I use him the way he used me- to get what I want. It's just that what I want is holding me in his arms... (37% eARC)"

"I've turned into "that girl." [...] That girl who exchanges her dignity and chances for happiness for some possessive loser who beats her when she makes eye contact with some random guy working the hot dog stand. Not that Galen beats me, but after his little show, what will people think? He acted like a lunatic tonight, stalking me to Atlantic City, blowing up my phone, and threatening my date with physical violence. (89% eARC)"

I don't like Emma, at all. I also didn't like Galen too much either, although some of his ignorance about humans was kind of cute. Anyway, I'm not sure how I feel about those above quotes. Either Emma is spineless and is willing to do whatever he says, or she's trying to take matters into her own hands and "use him." She also doesn't like Galen's behavior, but at least he isn't violent toward her. I just don't get it. She says everyone thinks she's sweet, but she completely forgets about her best friend for a boy and tries to murder said boy's sister (and boy wanted to murder her date, double tempers!). She's a very inconsistent character and extremely unlikeable, and Galen isn't much better.

However, the scene of Emma talking to the whale was really cute, and I loved how Galen earned money by finding treasures and pieces of history in the depths of the ocean. His surprise for Emma was also pretty darn awesome. While I did like the set up of the Syrena lifestyle, I was a bit confused about the political situation and what exactly was going on there. I did really enjoy the parts about their history though. The twist on mythology was pretty clever. The Syrene biology lesson was also pretty interesting.

So, in short: I did not enjoy this book at all. The narrative didn't flow, and the characters were unlikeable. While the ending was a major cliffhanger, it was also extremely predictable; the hints dropped throughout the book were not subtle at all. I'm still not even sure what the point of the story is. Is it the question of Emma's heritage? Who's suppose to be queen? The mystery of Nalia? This book felt like it was a really long prologue and that the main story is still to come. I probably won't be continuing to find out what that story is.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[kimbacaffeinate]

Of Poseidon is the debut novel of author Anna Banks. It is the first in a new paranormal series, filled with mythology and legends of the fall of Atlantis. Of Poseidon is beautifully written. It delivers romance, suspense and an interesting twist on merpeople. While I felt the content was more geared towards a younger YA audience, I enjoyed the tale and will read book two to see what happens.

The tale begins in Florida when eighteen year old Emma is on vacation with her BFF. On their way to the beach with a surfboard in tow, Emma collides with swoon worthy Galen. The contact sends a current through her and both of them sense a connection. They are both shaken by it. He is convinced she is hiding who she is and is in violation of their laws. As a prince of Syrena he may just have her arrested. Then a horrific tragedy involving Emma occurs and he is confused. He thinks she genuinely doesn’t realize that she is Syrena. He quickly makes arrangements to follow Emma back to the coastal shores of New Jersey. Together with his snarky sister and human friend they set up a home near Emma and he enrolls in her high school. An unknown Syrena is lurking in the waters off the coast and Galen fears they mean to harm Emma. The tale that unfolds delivers a suspenseful mystery, a romance and an interesting look at Syrena and their history.

I enjoyed the characters in Of Poseidon. Emma is funny, sensitive and slightly naïve for an eighteen year old. Galen is a prince and of course is totally swoon worthy. His interactions with Emma and others was at times a riot, since he doesn’t really understand human lingo. His sister Rayna is a hoot and her relationship with Toraf was sweet and funny. There are other characters that add to the tale. Overall I liked and connected with all of them, but felt their conversation and behavior read more like a middle school novel.

The world-building created by Banks really held my attention. I love Greek mythology and have always had an interest in Atlantis. The Syrena divided into two groups those who loved humans and interacted with them and those who did not. I found the information Galen uncovers about King Triton and humans fascinating. This information helped piece together the mystery that twisted throughout the plot. There are rules in place to reunite the House of Triton and the House of Poseidon. Emma may have the gift that can reunite the houses but the cost will be high.

I recommend Of Poseidon to fans of mythology, and paranormal romance. While I didn’t flip over this novel I enjoyed aspects of it, which will have me reading book two. I will be sure and updated you when I have news on book two. I have placed Anna Banks on my authors to watch list.

I want to thank netGalley and Macmillan for providing this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

[Suz @ Bookish Revelations]

Of Poseidon is a light-hearted breezy story that sparkles vividly with life and wonderful moments of humor. Told from alternating points of view, this is a beautiful fish-out-of-water tale that will captivate readers and dazzle them with witty dialogue, suspenseful intrigue, and a sweet blossoming romance. It's such a fascinating nod to Greek mythology, making it even more appealing to those who enjoy a clever spin on Poseidon. Banks creates this wonderfully crafted underwater world filled with so much passion, loyalty, and brimming with life deep under the sea unknown to man. It's filled with such deep history all its own, unknown secrets and lies, and mystery sure enough to tantalize readers to discover more as they delve further into the depths of the story.

Galen is tasked with find a girl who possesses the gift of Poseidon, meaning she has the power to communicate with fish. Emma, while on vacation in Florida with her best friend Chloe, literally runs into him. Almost immediately he senses the connection between the two of them, though not entirely sure it takes a few more encounters and the death of her best friend before he's actually convinced she has the gift of Poseidon. Now it's up to him to convince Emma that she, does in fact, hold the key to his underwater kingdom and could potentially be what changes everything for the better.

Emma is one tough cookie. She's a wonderful heroine for young girls to look up to in young adult fiction. She's recently experienced the death of her best friend and now she's trying to discover who she really is. Galen, on the other hand, is adorably handsome in that swoon worthy way and also super jealous. He's also sweet and kind, and incredibly protective of Emma. It's obvious that he loves her, but because he's bound to his loyalty and duty it takes him a while to admit what everyone else already knows.

The supporting characters bring a lot of spirit and personality flavor of their own to the story. Despite the fact that Rayna can sometimes come off as a selfish brat, I do think that she always has her brother's best interest at heart. I also enjoyed how loyal Toraf was to Galen and the small scenes that he was given with Emma. It made the novel that much more fun to read. Banks did a fantastic job of penning a perfect balance of sweet and fun moments with the tense and emotional ones. It helped to make Of Poseidon such an engaging and compelling read that was easy to follow along with.

I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys the writing styles of Meg Cabot, Tera Lynn Childs, or Tricia Rayburn.