I
liked Water and Fire, but I loved Ocean’s Gift. It was fascinating seeing
Belinda in her mermaid setting, as I had got to know her in the first novel
even though I knew little of her background. But in this novel, I adored the
character of Vanessa. She had an innocence and yet a matriarchal power that was
really enticing. I felt as though there was an opportunity to really get to know
her. Demelza Carlton has struck the perfect balance between the archetypal view
of mermaids and that of the sirens of old, blending the two to make a tender
and yet dangerous species of females.
The
storyline is awesome and frighteningly plausible. The earth is dying and nature
will have seen the tell-tale signs long before man pulls his head out of the TV
and realises it.
Joe
is a decent man in a world full of typically bawdy males. He is solid and honourable
and bashful without losing any of his sex appeal. He is reassuringly male
without the unappealing baseness of the other fishermen, which is probably why
Vanessa picks him. The mermaid race seeks liaison with men as a duty, but
Vanessa is different. She has previously known love and it presents a
vulnerability within an otherwise fearsome character portrayal.
I
love how truly Australian this novel is. It has all the raw beauty of a
stunning corner of the world. I appreciated the descriptions of the geography
and the oceans; they were colourful and well-drawn and made the reader feel as
though they were taking part in the novel. I was there in Joe’s hut and Vanessa’s
boat. I liked this novel enough to read it in one sitting, not wanting to put
it down and miss anything. It had enough of a hold on me, to keep me from doing
the myriad other things that I actually should have been doing and I felt sad when
the last page had been finished and savoured. I would have felt more
devastated, had I not known that there were other books in the series to pick
up.
It
was incredibly well written and refreshing clean editorially - not a single
distracting flaw to spoil the reading experience. I would definitely recommend
it.
Get your own copy of Demelza's awesome book on Amazon:
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