Book Review: Forgive My Fins by Tera Lynn Childs

Forgive My Fins, by Tera Lynn Childs
Release Date: May 19, 2010
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Pages: 293
Received: Library
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars 
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Summary

Lily is a teenager with a secret: She’s actually a mermaid princess and if she doesn’t find a mate and bond with him through a kiss before her eighteenth birthday, she’ll lose her claim to the throne. Lily isn’t worried though, she has the perfect mate picked out. Brody is handsome, athletic, and suddenly single. Before Lily can get up her nerve and tell Brody her feelings she is kissed by her irritating bad boy neighbor Quince. The kiss sets in motion the mermaid magic and Lily and Quince find themselves bonded with Quince rapidly turning into a merman. Lily and Quince must now travel to Lily’s underwater kingdom and petition her father for a separation. Lily knows she can’t stand Quince and Brody is her true mate, so why is she finding herself increasingly attracted to Quince?

Review

This is such a feel good book! Light and frothy, Forgive My Fins has likable characters and one of the hottest PG romances around. Billed as a “bad boy” because of his motorcycle, leather, and aloof nature, we really only ever see him as a complete sweetie.  I don’t usually go for the nice guy next door, but I can’t but help making an exception for Quince. He is so sweet. He treats Lily like she’s the only person he sees, even when she’s chasing after Brody and calling Quince a jerk.

Sometimes nice guys can be boring, but Quince is not boring. There are a few simple scenes that never go beyond PG and sometimes don’t even include kissing, but they are nonetheless hot. I positively melted. I wanted to reach into the book and shake some sense into Lily. How could she not see how amazing Quince is?! And spending her time mooning over Brody? Brody? The girl is blind.

While Lily’s constant Brody-chasing got tiresome and a little unbelievable after a while, I did still like her. She was so genuine and sweet. I remembered when I was young and crushing on a cute boy in school. Her nervousness and the way she got all excited when he looked at her or said something completely innocuous made me remember my own teenage years.

There wasn’t a whole lot to the plot. This is pretty much 100% a character-driven story with very few actual events. Did I care? Not a bit. The characters were strong enough and likable enough that I was content to read about their conversations and growing feelings. This book is total fluff, but it is fluff at its finest. I definitely recommend this one if you’re looking to be swept up in a light Disney-style romance.

There is a sequel, Fins are Forever (set for release in July 2011), but this book can easily be read as a standalone. The epilogue is the only indication that there is something unresolved, and hints that there may be a lot more conflict and action in the second book. I’m looking forward to the sequel but will luckily have Childs’ other offerings to keep me busy until its release.

 Explanation of rating system: Star Rating Key 

Looking for more books about mermaids? 
Real Mermaids Don't Wear Toe Rings by Helene Boudreau

Looking for more books with a love/hate relationship? You might like: 

The Ghost and the Goth, by Stacey Kade
My Fair Godmother, by Janette Rallison

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