Thursday, June 2, 2011

MerBook Review: Fathom (Fins Trilogy, #2) by Ashley L. Knight



Fathom puts a darker, edgier twist on Ashley Knight’s mermaid “tails” that began with the magical Fins. As the story unfolds, Morgan and her merman fiancé Thayde are living in New York City about to start college. But there’s trouble brewing. Morgan’s powers appear to be taking a dark turn, and Thayde is succumbing to an illness that only one person will be able to reverse. That person just happens to be Limus, Morgan and Thayde’s sworn enemy.

Unlike Fins, the characters have definitely grown up and matured in Fathom. Throughout the novel, Morgan and Thayde are forced to deal with adult issues, which can be tough for a mermaid who has just started college. Morgan contemplates her future with Thayde: will she ever get married, have a child, and be with the one person who shares half her soul?

But Fathom also deals with issues that most YA novels tend to shy away from. For example, this novel deals with the Big One: religion. Do angels really exist? Is there a God? I found it interesting that Knight manages to bring magic and religion together. As Morgan finds out more about the existence of a higher power and her own inner spirituality, one might think this book would veer off into Christian fiction territory, but not at all. Morgan doesn’t start preaching her beliefs to the reader, but instead she wonders if killing her enemy to protect the mermaid world is immoral and against her faith.
The romance in Fathom was much more developed as well. Morgan and Thayde deal with the problems of any other couple--sex, break-ups, etc.-- which adds more realism and depth than the “love at first sight” relationship they had in Fins. And there are definitely Morgan/Thayde moments in Fathom that are probably going to get the girls swooning!

I loved slipping back into Ashley Knight’s wonderful, mesmerizing undersea world and reuniting with my favorite characters, as well as meeting some new ones. I definitely can’t wait to immerse myself in Forever, the third installment of the series, because there are still some loose ends to be tied up that I can’t wait to see how they are resolved.

So, dive into the second book of the Fins Trilogy and experience the magic and wonder that first began with Fins and is taken up a gigantic notch with Fathom!

2 comments:

  1. great review. i have this and still need to read it. no time lately.

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  2. Thanks! Hope you enjoy it! :)

    ReplyDelete