{REVIEW} FATHOMLESS (FAIRYTALE RETELLINGS #3) by JACKSON PEARCE

 

Series: Fairytale Retellings #3
Publisher: LB Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: Sept 4, 2012
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 304 pages
Source: Received from publisher for review.

Celia Reynolds is the youngest in a set of triplets and the one with the least valuable power. Anne can see the future, and Jane can see the present, but all Celia can see is the past. And the past seems so insignificant -- until Celia meets Lo.

Lo doesn't know who she is. Or who she was. Once a human, she is now almost entirely a creature of the sea -- a nymph, an ocean girl, a mermaid -- all terms too pretty for the soulless monster she knows she's becoming. Lo clings to shreds of her former self, fighting to remember her past, even as she's tempted to embrace her dark immortality.

When a handsome boy named Jude falls off a pier and into the ocean, Celia and Lo work together to rescue him from the waves. The two form a friendship, but soon they find themselves competing for Jude's affection. Lo wants more than that, though. According to the ocean girls, there's only one way for Lo to earn back her humanity. She must persuade a mortal to love her . . . and steal his soul.

Wow. I almost have no words for Fathomless. Actually, that's not true at all. I have a lot of words for Fathomless, but am having a hard time sorting them.

In a nutshell, it was fantastic, creepy, scary, and beautiful. This is the first of Jackson Pearce's Fairytale Retellings that I've read so I really had no idea of what to expect. I'm not always a fan of retellings because I typically find them confusing. There were some aspects to the lore that did confuse me, but I'm going to put that down to my lack of knowledge of the original stories.

Fathomless is a retelling of The Little Mermaid. Now, I know you're thinking "Duh, Andrea. There's a mermaid on the cover." But let me tell you, if you're expecting happy girls wearing shell bras and a singing lobster, well, you're not going to find it here. These girls, mermaids, nymphs...whatever you want to call them, are hardcore dangerous. They are girls who have been forced into the ocean, ripped from their lives, their memories washed away, bit by bit until the become soulless, monsters.

Lo is an ocean girl. She holds only the foggiest of memories of her past. She's waiting to become an angel. But one night changes Lo's grip on her existence. When she rescues Jude and meets Celia, she is given an opportunity to reclaim pieces of her memory. But the more she remembers her past, her former life and name, Lo becomes two people. Two girls warring for control. But who will win? And who will pay the price for control? The dual personality aspect was fascinating. I felt for both girls, Lo and her former self. It was so, so sad.

Celia, the girl who helps Lo, has her own issues. As a triplet, Celia is the odd girl out. One sister can read the future. Another can read the present. Celia can read the past, which she finds useless until she realizes she can help Lo. Lo, who helped her rescue Jude from the ocean.  The closer she gets to uncovering Lo's past, the closer she gets to danger, because ultimately, Lo is becoming a monster. A monster who needs a human soul in order to become free. Celia, such a loving girl, refuses to give up on Lo. Her selflessness, though, may cost her, or Jude, their lives.

Just thinking about Fathomless has me all worked up again. The story had me ripping through the pages. How was it going to end? Who was going to survive, the monster or the girl? Would the ocean girl claim Jude or Celia? Fathomless was fantastic until the very last page. The story stole me away from the world for an entire day. I can't recommend it highly enough.


Favorite Quote:

"I sigh, fall back in the shadow of the pier-I remember watching the boy with the gray eyes fall from here just last night, when everything was perfect and I as just a girl waiting to become an angel."
(pg 64)

" 'No one has ever risked anything for me or...' He shakes his head. 'But you went after me in the ocean, in the middle of the night. And you didn't even know me. So...yes.That's why I'm here. Not because you saved me, but because you're the kind of person who saved me." (pg 194)

You can purchase Fathomless at:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Book Depository