Review: Tides by Betsy Cornwell
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- nikki_p
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Review: Tides by Betsy Cornwell
I had never heard of selkies until I picked up this book. Whilst reading the description, I thought it was going to be either about mermaids or sirens. I was pleasantly incorrect. The myth of selkies was probably more magical, mysterious, and heart breaking than any mermaid or siren myths I have read or come across.
What I liked...Everything. I mean I really really really really loved this book. Really. This is officially going onto my favorites shelf because I honestly loved every single thing about the story, the characters, the plot, the mythical creatures, the romance, it was all there and I felt my heart growing with warmth every time I turned a page or finished a chapter. It was written exquisitely well. The characters were so unique and they way they developed throughout the book was done beautifully. The story is also written in different perspectives. It's all in third person, but each chapter is written from a different point of view. Almost every character in the book gets their own chapter, all but one. The villain. Because nobody gives a crap what he has to say in the end anyways. And it's kind of funny because he ends up telling the "exact" same Selkie Myth from an entirely different point of view of the original, and it really says a lot about his character. It was just really well written. Oh and one more thing!! This amazing author, Betsy Cornwell, managed to add a lesbian relationship and a girl suffering from some serious eating disorders. And she handled it SO. WELL. Oh and that's not all! One of the characters is a person of color, and adopted, and it isn't even mentioned until some inconsiderate jack ass in the story had to address/comment on it in a really rude and offensive way. Which, by the way, was written so freaking well. Diversity representation to the max! I loved it so much.
What I disliked...Nothing. Except that it had to end. As a matter of fact, I loved the ending very much, and that's saying something because an ending is difficult to write and it's sometimes what really makes the whole thing fall apart. SPOILER MAYBE, not really but idk??? Let me just say that this ending is not exactly the traditional happy ending, but rather, it leaves you with a little bit of wonder, sorrow, but also contentment and closure. (this was supposed to be the part where I talked about the things I disliked, but I ended up writing more about how great it was!)
My favorite characters...Lo is my absolute favorite character. I loved all of them, but Lo really brought it home. Just a brief description of Lo, she struggles with an eating disorder and is adopted. So there's a crap load of things going on with Lo and to me she ended up being the strongest, bravest character of them all. And, out of all the other characters, she showed the most emotional growth than any of them. I love Lo. She's perfect. And even though Noah wasn't exactly my favorite character, I adored his relationship with Lo. I could really feel the love that he had for his sister, but what was most important was the fact that Cornwell managed to write how frustrating it can be to deal with someone that has an eating disorder. It was wonderful seeing it from both sides. Lo on one side struggling and fighting with herself with no one that understands her, and Noah on the other, wanting nothing more than for his beautiful sister to get better, love herself as much as he loves her, but at the same time getting angry and frustrated because he genuinely does not understand what Lo is truly going through.
So basically I have no choice but to give Tides by Betsy Cornwell five stars. It was beautifully written, really easy to read and follow, magical, mysterious, dark, emotional, just everything you can think of. I definitely recommend this book to anyone that enjoys fantasy, mystical creatures, romance, and of course it is a great coming of age story. I wish everyone would read it since it also addresses some pretty controversial topics such as same sex couples, depression/anxiety/eating disorders/obsessive compulsive disorders, and diversity.
Okay I need to stop talking about how amazing this book was. Just read it, okay? Just...just do it. Five stars, would recommend, pick it up when you can and tell me that you love it.
- Norma_Rudolph
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