Book:  Tempest Rising
Author:  Tracy Deebs
Release date:  May 10, 2011
Publisher:  Walker BFYR
Pages:  352
Source:  Publisher

Tempest Maguire wants nothing more than to surf the killer waves near her California home; continue her steady relationship with her boyfriend, Mark; and take care of her brothers and surfer dad. But Tempest is half mermaid, and as her seventeenth birthday approaches, she will have to decide whether to remain on land or give herself to the ocean like her mother. The pull of the water becomes as insistent as her attraction to Kai, a gorgeous surfer whose uncanny abilities hint at an otherworldly identity as well. And when Tempest does finally give in to the water’s temptation and enters a fantastical underwater world, she finds that a larger destiny awaits her—and that the entire ocean’s future hangs in the balance.

I am not usually a fan of mermaid stories but every now and then I find one that I truly enjoy.  Tempest Rising is one of those few.  Tracy Deebs’ young adult debut creates a wonderful underwater world that I hope to read more of in the future.

Tempest Maguire has no desire to be a mermaid.  Sure, she loves the water but that doesn’t mean she wants to leave her friends, family, and boyfriend to live in it.  Too bad she doesn’t seem to have much of a choice.  As her seventeenth birthday nears, strange things start to happen to Tempest.  She knows what’s wrong with her but she doesn’t know how to stop it.  Kai does though but he may not want to help her stop it and the more time Tempest spends around him, the more she realizes maybe life under the sea wouldn’t be so bad if she had someone to share it with.

Mermaids are not my favorite creatures.  A lot of the time they are very hard to relate to and they are kind of mean.  Tempest was not that way at all.  She was just like every other teenage girl just with more problems than mere puberty.  It was hard not to like her and be drawn into her story.  Kai was also a wonderful character.  He was not a merman but I won’t tell you what he was.  Let’s just say that I never guessed.  I loved him completely though.  He was so sweet and sexy!  I could understand why Tempest was torn between him and Mark though.  Mark was a great guy, I just liked Kai more.

The underwater world was amazing.  Trccy Deebs made it so vivid.  I felt like I was there with Tempest.  All the animals and creatures were wonderfully detailed.  I would have liked to have seen more of the merpeople though and learned more about them.  That was probably my only complaint with the whole book.

Overall, Tempest Rising is a wonderful new paranormal story without all the vampires and zombies.  It’s a sweet story and I hope you will take the time to check it out!

First line:  I was ten the first time I saw her.

Rating:  A

Cover:  A-