Of Poseidon (Syrena Legacy, #1)

by Anna Banks

[tellemonstar]

Okay, so I liked Of Poseidon. I read it in a few hours and it was an easy read. There were a few issues, which is why it didn’t get a higher rating, but it wasn’t bad either. The mermaid or rather, Syrena mythology was interesting, and so was discovering how Emma was different to a human. The story itself flowed well, although I wish there had been more details in some parts and less details in other parts.

The premise of this book is fantastic. Poseidon and Triton actually being the rulers of two separate kingdoms of mermaids, one more human-loving than the other, and how they each passed on a gift to their bloodlines after a war between the Syrena and the humans. Every third-generation the first-born male heir of one kingdom is expected to marry the first-born female of the other kingdom, to ensure the gifts are shared properly. In this case the first-born heir is Galen’s brother, Grom and he was set to marry the beautiful Nalia – the first time in a very long time that the two Royal heirs being mated actually want to be mated to each other – but there was an explosion involving sea mines just prior to the ceremony and Nalia was lost forever. Apparently.

I would have loved more information about the Syrena and about their history. The things we did learn were great, and an interesting spin on the existing mermaid mythology. The fact the full-blooded Syrena become wholly into their powers by age 9, and because Emma was a half-blood it took her twice that time was interesting. I liked the Archives and the fact that they had Atlantis and an interesting explanation for it’s existence and eventual destruction. The way Syrena bodies work in comparison to those of a human – how their tails split in human form, etc. Hopefully there will be more of this in the second book.

One thing I did like (and my sister, who read this before I did, hated) was the cliffhanger ending. I’m hoping book 2 will be more Syrena history and an actual explanation of why Emma and Galen have the whole insta-love thing would be nice. I also really liked that fact that when Emma fought with Rayna, it wasn’t the typical hair-pulling, scratching girl-fight – it was a proper brawl, so Emma definitely gets points for that.

In all I would recommend this to anyone who likes mermaids and reads enough YA to get past the insta-love, and can get past some of the very old-fashioned attitudes of the Syrena men.

See full review here.