Book Review- Tempest Rising

By Tracy Deebs

Published by Walker Books for Young Readers/Bloomsbury

Released on May 10th, 2011

Source- ARC from TLA/Book from publisher to review

5 stars- I loved it!

Tempest Maguire wants nothing more than to surf the killer waves near her California home; continue her steady relationship with her boyfriend, Mark; and take care of her brothers and surfer dad. But Tempest is half mermaid, and as her seventeenth birthday approaches, she will have to decide whether to remain on land or give herself to the ocean like her mother. The pull of the water becomes as insistent as her attraction to Kai, a gorgeous surfer whose uncanny abilities hint at an otherworldly identity as well. And when Tempest does finally give in to the water's temptation and enters a fantastical underwater world, she finds that a larger destiny awaits her—and that the entire ocean's future hangs in the balance (quoted from Goodreads).

I am in love with this book! It is such a well written, tight, clean book with a fabulous mythology, wonderful world building, and has a cast of characters I completely fell in love with. Tracy Deebs sucked me right into Tempest Rising.

Tempest herself is a fabulous character that I loved getting to know. She's athletic, down to earth, and is stuck between choosing between two worlds, the human one and the one she's drawn to but knows little about, the Sea. One of the things I loved the most about Tempest was how grounded she was. Though she's secure in her human skin, she fights becoming something she fears, a Mermaid. It wasn't hard to understand why, after all it's what made her mother leave her, her father and younger brothers behind six years ago.

Tempest not only has to pick between staying human or becoming a Mermaid, but she has to learn to control her abilities. She has a power within she knows little about. The fantastic love triangle is a breath of fresh air to me. I felt just as torn as Tempest was between two wonderful guys, Mark and Kia. Being from two totally different worlds puts these two guys at odds. Mark is Tempest's on/off again boyfriend from the last two and half years, and someone she's really close to, and Kia is the swoon worthy guy from the sea who helps her in understanding the world she feels drawn to. I really liked the differences and similarities with the two guys. There's an intense connection and a wonderful chemistry that Tempest has with both of them. I absolutely loved the direction the relationships took.

There are so many elements that I loved about this story. It's richly detailed mythology, the strong family dynamics, the friendships, the beautiful under sea world, as well as the stretch of coast Tempest lives on and of course the awesome romance. It's also a story about choices, heart ache, learning to let go, and following your heart. I want to take just a moment to mention my love for this cover, which matches the story perfectly! Tempest Rising is an amazing debut and one I highly recommend picking up. I am really looking forward to reading more about Tempest, Kia, Mark and the rest of the Tempest Rising characters.

Be sure to go here to see the rest of the stops on the Tempest Rising tour.