Book Review - Elegy - Amanda Hocking Book 4 in the Watersong Series

Title:  Elegy

Author: Amanda Hocking

Review:  This is book number 4 in the Watersong series and I think it was a good ending to the series as a whole.  The sirens could be really scary at times and creepy at others.  I don’t think I ever liked them even Thea, she was weak and let thing happen instead of doing anything about it…at least until the end and the she did get a back bone…finally. 

Notice the page count and you will see this is a book that will take more than an afternoon to get through.  I think at times it felt long and drug on…I wish Amanda had cut a bit more out.  I found the background interesting, but just too much information that did not seem relevant to the on-going plot line…interesting yes…needed no.  I love long books, but every word needs to hold my attention if I am going to read close to 600 pages in the 4^th book in the series.

I don’t want to spoil it for anyone, but I enjoyed the series and look forward to Amanda’s next project.  This book took a step up from the teen romance and added sex to the equation which makes me glad my 13 year old is still on the second book and doesn’t read that fast….I would not recommend this series to younger than 15 or so, but we went to a book signing and Cenneidigh insisted she had to read the series after meeting Amanda.

Good series and worth the time to read if you enjoy young adult romance/supernatural.  Mermaids, mythical monsters, goddesses and the like fill the pages and it was fun to escape to a small seaside town to see life from a different point of view.

Publisher: Published August 6th 2013 by St.Martin's Griffin (first published January 1st 2013)

ISBN: 9781250005670

Copyright: 2013

Pages: 542

Quick Review:  4 stars out of 5

Where did I get the book:  Purchased at Amazon.

Synopsis: Readers won't want to miss the explosive final book in the Watersong series by New York Times bestselling author Amanda Hocking

Now that Gemma holds the key to breaking the siren curse, the stakes have never been higher. At last, a future with those she loves—and a romance with Alex—is close enough to touch...but not if Penn has anything to say about it. Penn is more determined than ever to have Daniel for her own and to destroy Gemma and Harper along the way, and Penn always gets what she wants. Now a final explosive battle is about to begin, and the winner will take everything Gemma holds dear.

Author Biography:  I live in Minnesota, and I write young adult paranormal romance and urban fantasy mostly. The My Blood Approves series is about vampires in Minneapolis, and its available now. I also wrote the Trylle Trilogy, which is a paranormal romance without vampires, shifters, mermaids, fae, angels, dragons, ghosts, or ninjas.

My latest book is Hollowland - a zombie urban fantasy set in the dystopian near future. It's a bit more violent and gritter than my other books, but there is still romance. Mostly though, Remy kicks a lot of butt.

I also enjoy Red Bull, Jim Henson, Batman, Jane Austen, Star Wars legos, and I absolutely hate long walks on the beach out of my intense fear/hatred of wet sand

My favorite authors are Kurt Vonnegut, Chuck Palahniuk, Bret Easton Ellis, Alan Moore, and J. D. Salinger, but I don't write anything like them. I have an obsession with River Phoenix, and I've seen Silence of the Lambs more than any other movie, even The Dark Knight. If I were trapped on a deserted island, the one thing I'd take with me would be a boat capable for taking me home.

I'm also the guitarist in a band called the Fraggin Aardvarks, and even though its even twice as cool as it sounds, we haven't had a practice in like two years, so I'm not sure that technically we are still a band. But we never broke up, and it's an awesome thing to tell people, so I'm sticking with it. (We even had a synethesizer!)

Other Reviews:

Jenna Does Books "Much of the book is spent both mending and fracturing the relationships between sisters, Gemma and Harper, and their love interests, Alex and Daniel. Honestly, I could not believe the turn that the relationship between Harper and Daniel had taken toward the end of the previous book in the series, Tidal. This “twist” seriously made me question the appeal that Daniel previously had on me as a reader. I liked him, and now… I just couldn’t help but think that the author was playing with both Harper’s and the reader’s emotions in the most absurd way when it came to Daniel. The most absurd way. But then again, this [spoiler] does align with the legend of the siren, so c’est la vie. Unfortunately, that one “twist” that I am referring to lasts for most of the novel, right on into the climax."  4 stars

Examiner.com "Hocking's imagination and her deft handling of dialogue make this series not only fun reading for the action and the romance, but for the clever historical and mythological references. She keeps the perfect balance of action (good versus evil with lots of fighting and some death), character development, humor, and romance."

Icey Books " Although the Watersong series wasn’t amazing, it was pretty good. And I couldn’t help but smile through the last couple of pages, it was pretty sweet. All in all, I’m glad I read through the series – while the middle books suffered a bit, Elegy was a perfect ending."