The Sea Witch by Sarah Henning

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 368

Publisher: Harper Collins Children's Books 

Released: 1st of July 2018 

Everyone knows what happens in the end.

A mermaid, a prince, a true love’s kiss.

But before that young siren’s tale, there were three friends.

One feared, one royal, and one already dead.

~~~~~~~~~~

Ever since her best friend, Anna, drowned, Evie has been an outcast in her small fishing town. A freak. A curse. A witch. 

A girl with an uncanny resemblance to Anna appears offshore and, though the girl denies it, Evie is convinced that her best friend actually survived. That her own magic wasn’t so powerless after all. And, as the two girls catch the eyes—and hearts—of two charming princes, Evie believes that she might finally have a chance at her own happily ever after.

But her new friend has secrets of her own. She can’t stay in Havnestad, or on two legs, unless Evie finds a way to help her. Now Evie will do anything to save her friend’s humanity, along with her prince’s heart—harnessing the power of her magic, her ocean, and her love until she discovers, too late, the truth of her bargain. 

What I Have to Say 

This was a lovely story with a really great ending that tied so beautifully into the original fairytale, but I found it very hard to get into. I think it's because this is the third retelling of the Little Mermaid that I've read this year. It's funny how trends happen like that, but I can't deny that it effected the way I took to the book. Still, by the end of the book, I was immersed in the world and relishing in the way it concluded, so it all worked out for the best. 

I loved the Nordic society that Henning built. The way she pulled so much culture into the story by setting it everything in the big festival that celebrated the goddess and the food styles they ate and everything important in society. It conveyed the setting in a way that gave so much life and information into it all without just dumping a load of boring information into the readers lap. It made for a lively story and showed the relationships forming between the characters really well. 

But as I said, I think there is a point where you can't find interest in another retelling of the same story. It's a shame, as I think I would have really liked this book a lot more if I'd read it at a different time. It may be one to reread in a couple of years 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Harper Collins for providing me with this copy for review.