Proceed With Caution:
This book contains death, blood, kidnapping, and mentions of slavery.
The Basics:
Skin of the Sea is narrated by Simidele, a Mami Wata. She was reborn as a mermaid to bless the souls who have died at sea. Then she finds Kola who is still gripping to life. Instead of finishing her task, she rescues him. When her creator learns of what she's done, she sends Simi on a quest of atonement. She must find a pair of powerful rings after returning Kola to his home. Unfortunately, the rings are gone, along with Kola's siblings and the two must head out together to find them, or else Simi and the other Mami Wata will be unmade and the human world will be plunged into famine.
My Thoughts:
I feel like a broken record at this point, but I have to mention this again. I don't like mermaid books, and yet I keep getting drawn in by pretty covers and amazing blurbs. I went into Skin of the Sea with simultaneously high and low expectations. Low, because no mermaid story has wowed me despite my love for the creatures. High, because it just sounds amazing!
Unsurprisingly, I didn't enjoy Skin of the Sea. I was bored and simply not interested in Simi's task. There was never any true sense of urgency as Simi and Kola's travels are relatively uneventful. They always meet exactly who they need to in order to move on to the next task. The romance was also super low stakes, because it only exists in other characters' heads. We're told by the villain that Simi is in love with Kola, but that they are forbidden to be together. But Simi never tells us this herself. We don't see any emotion from Kola's side either. Even that supposedly heartbreaking ending was just lacking.
The only thing I did find interesting about Skin of the Sea was the mythology and some of the world-building. We're told some pieces about how the different races came to be and that sets up for the slavery side plots. I also liked the twist on mermaids and other magical creatures, even though Simi spends most of the book in her human form. I just wish the emotion had been there to make me care about these characters.