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Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Breathless by Cole Gibsen

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...Breathless
Cole Gibsen

Synopsis: Obituary-reading emo girl Edith Small is broken - the end result of forcing herself inside a mold that doesn't fit. All she wants is to conform to her strict sergeant stepfather's rules long enough to make it to graduation day.

But a boat accident threatens to unravel the life Edith has worked so hard to keep. After waking up in a hospital with a lacerated shoulder, Edith fakes amnesia. Because admitting she received her injuries from a blue-haired girl who breathes underwater is all the reason Sir needs to send Edith on the first bus to military school.

Safe at home, Edith struggles to put the nightmare behind her. But the mysterious creatures that live in the ocean aren't about to let her forget.

After meeting Bastin - a strange boy with silver hair and black eyes - on a secluded dock, Edith learns about the war raging undersea to end human existence. A war that Edith, unwittingly, has become the key to winning.

In a world where death is an ever-present shadow and motives are as dark as the bottom of the ocean, Edith must decide if her life is worth risking for a love that can't survive past the shore.

Poor Edith is just trying to make it to graduation so she can get the hell out of her dysfunctional home. Her little brother died some time back, but her family never recovered. And it seems to be Edith's fault...or at least they have no problem making her feel that way. Her step-father no longer allows her to call him father - it's Sir now - and the way he treats Edith and her mother was even emotionally draining on me as the reader. I was quite enraged with Sir, and it sometimes made it difficult for me to read at times, because I just wanted to beat the crap out of him since Edith and her mom were too emotionally damaged to do it themselves. It's kind of sad as a reader because Edith comes off as such a weakling at times, and I don't particularly care to read about characters that just roll over like that.

Luckily, Edith's new friend Morgan helps her become a little more defiant and shake loose some of this weakness. As does Bastin, a merman who begins appearing at her window soon after she's involved in a collision at sea where she's pretty certain she saw some things she shouldn't have - like mermaids ripping the people in the water a new one. Fear gets her to ignore him for a few nights, but once he leaves a gift for her, she's suddenly willing to speak to him. Uh - hello! Can you say bait? {Ladies! Never fall for a pretty trinket. It'll only get you into trouble later! As Edith will prove...}

Bastin's a little weird to me in the physical sense - like really long silver hair - so it's hard for me to relate to Edith when she finds herself so attracted to him...but hey, to each his own. He finds himself drawn to her as well and they spend every night hanging out. Of course this doesn't go unnoticed for long, not by his people - who detest humans and who ache to flood the world to drown them all - or by Sir, who's itching for any little mistake so he can validate shipping her off to military school. The jerk even has her bag packed and won't let her unpack it...he just leaves it in her room, taunting her every day and reminding her she's as good as out the door. But Sir's the least of her problems right now. Since the mermaids have become wise to his attraction for her, Edith becomes bait to force Bastin, the future king of one of the tribes, to trade something precious for her survival: the tool necessary to flood the world. So it leaves Bastin forced to choose between the life of the girl he's come to love, or life of all humanity. No pressure or anything...

Breathless is a pretty good read with an absolutely gorgeous cover. My only issues are the interactions with Sir and his desperation to get rid of his remaining child, and a mother that does nothing to heal their family dynamic. I look at my little boy and I couldn't ever imagine pushing him away and denying him love like that. I guess that's why the family interactions are so hard for me to stomach. But check it out anyway!



Novel provided by author for honest review.

16 comments:

Read for your future! said...

Great review. I will definitlay pick this one up

Anonymous said...

Anything that involves mermaids of some sort is good enough for me! The cover for this book is gorgeous!

alicia marie said...

That makes me sad that Edith is stuck with her step-father and her and her mother can't do anything. I can see how that would be hard to read. Sir just sounds so so evil with all the things he makes Edith do. I usually like books about mermaids but this one sounds really intense. Thanks for the great review! I didn't know much about this book, but after reading your review I know what to expect.

Anonymous said...

Sounds awesome!! I just got my copy from amazon yesterday!!!! Can't wait to get started :D Whoo mermaids!

Iva said...

I've never read any book about mermaids (excluding Ariel by Disney :D), but this book plot sounds interesting and original. Definitely would love to read it!

Sarah Elizabeth said...

I really like the ideas behind this book, and I can't wait to read more!
It does sound a little silly that she's letting some random, possibly murderous boy into her house just cause he leaves her a gift!

Lizz said...

OMG

Can't wait to read it

bookbitereviews said...

sounds really really interesting. I haven't read too many mermaid novels but they definitely get my attention and i want to read more. Thank you so much for your honest review, i know sometimes when i read a book there is a certain topic mentioned that just doesn't sit well with me and i always feels its my duty to mention it to future readers lol.

Helen said...

a scary mermaid book sounds interesting

Anonymous said...

Great review! Sounds like an intriguing story. Long silver hair just makes me think of old ladies, though. haha!

Bookie Bee said...

Sounds absolutely amazing! Have added ot to my TBR list, thanks to you.

Lea Krnjeta said...

This book sounds awsome!

What's Beyond Forks? said...

I haven't heard of this book before, but it sounds good and I love the cover. I'm going to have to check it out. :o)Great review!

Anonymous said...

I REALLY want to read this so unfortunately this won't be meaningful because I don't read reviews of books I want to but haven't yet read. However, I'm psyched you're having the giveaway and am keeping my fingers crossed because this looks awesome!! Thanks for the opportunity!

Mandee @ compelledbywords.blogspot

Anonymous said...

I haven't read a good novel that has involved mermaids in a long time. I would love to read this one. It seems so interesting. I am always open to reading a good book.

Imel Cullen said...

I Haven't read yet breathless but that cover is beautiful and your review make me want to read that :D