Chasing Atlantis

by Kelly Coughlin

Chasing Atlantis is riveting and exciting until the very end. A story that keeps you guessing and questioning the very framework of humanity. One girl's courage to face the truth about her family and her past will reveal what Atlantis represents. Amy believes her yearly pilgrimage to the beach will be just like every other time, but she is wrong--dead wrong. As she comes of age, she finds herself surrounded by people who want to use her, but for what purpose is still undecided. Whom can she trust? Her family friend since childhood? Or this strange mystery boy who can drown her with his eyes? Only time will tell.

Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Fantasy

282 pages, Paperback

First published July 16, 2013

Reviews

[Dianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Atlantis, is it really a mythical city lost under the sea or is that just a human tale meant to tantalize explorers and the world? Chasing Atlantis by Kelly Coughlin may just answer that question! Seventeen year-old Amy (don’t call her Amy Jane) is less than thrilled to have to spend her summer with her mother and her husband in Vero Beach, Florida with all of their money, pomp, poise and affectations. Leaving her home with her father in San Antonio, Amy’s off for what she is sure to be a disastrous summer, what with her mother always trying to set Amy up with the rich, but dorky Adam Grey. But what a shock! Adam was still kind of dorky, but he was now gorgeous, as were his parents and her mother! Had her plastic surgeon step-father been hard at work? Escaping the social schedule her mother had planned for her, Amy seeks peace at her favorite beach, only to be mesmerized by the most amazing eyes she has ever seen, on an Adonis-like lifeguard. Too bad those eyes were full of anger and, well, something else, and it was all directed at Amy. But there was something about this boy, something that blocked out the rest of the world, until it was just the two of them. But why couldn’t she put her finger on it?

What unfolds is a tale filled with creatures that are not human and Amy becomes a valuable human pawn in a world filled with dragons, and merpeople and even vampires! Could this be possible? Who can Amy trust? How is her mother involved? Why does she keep getting these terrible headaches and feelings that there are memories she has lost, a boy she loves soul deep, and why do the eyes of the lifeguard haunt her? Is anyone who they claim to be? Is she losing her mind?

Upon finishing this book, my first thoughts were what an incredible imagination author Kelly Coughlin has! How could she nail the “teen” attitude and strength of Amy so well? I was inside Amy’s head, as Ms. Coughlin steered me through that colorful maze of snark, disbelief, mental self-defense, determination and often biting honesty. Trust me, when the lightbulb came on for Amy, she had guts and I was there, cheering her on! Kelly Coughlin also paraded a hugely diverse cast through her tale, devious characters, quirky and charming characters, purely evil characters and even some who tried to atone for their ways. Did I mention how many of them were not completely human? She had a sweet and sometimes painful romance for Amy that brought out the best in her character. Ms. Coughlin even threw some humorous moments into the mix! I completely enjoyed this fantasy for young adults or even the young at heart! And the cover, beautiful!

Want to discover a new truth about Atlantis? I like the one I found in Chasing Atlantis!

Publication Date: July 19, 2013
Publisher: Outskirts Press
ASIN: B00E2TJT2A
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance/Fantasy
My Rating: 5 Stars
Available at: Amazon / Barnes & Noble
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[Miranda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I try to approach any novel I have yet to read with an open mind, even if it is compiled of a style I am unused to reading in. Despite knowing that the book Chasing Atlantis; written by new author Kelly Coughlin, appeared to be out of my comfort zone, I sat down; made myself comfortable, and began. I came away from the completion of the book pleasantly surprised in some ways, and in other ways, exactly how I was expecting to feel. Moving on to the review….

It is easy to tell that teenagers who enjoy the Fantasy genre will love this book. Amy, our heroine is full of vibrant energy. Although as an adult, I could not relate and connect on a personal level with her fierce, opinionated nature, I found myself amused at her antics, and thought processes. I struggled a bit with the first person perspective, as I tend to prefer receiving third person P.O.V while navigating a novel. However, Chasing Atlantis had a nice steady pace flowing from the introduction of the heroine, (and her humorous breakup of her current boyfriend) to the location of where our journey will take place.

In no time at all, I found the fantasy buff within me intrigued with the mystical ”beings” of Ms. Coughlin’s world. It was piercingly clear once Amy arrived at her Mother’s home, that things were not as they appeared. Including her Mother, and her stepfather, Steve themselves. Feeling out of sorts and an instinctual need to put space between herself and the parents who feel like strangers…Amy gets into her vehicle and drives. Finding herself inexplicably drawn towards the beach.

What would any YA premise be without a mysterious, darkly handsome boy? Enter Ty and his two brothers. Patrick, the eldest, silent and brooding by nature, and Henry, who is quite the jokester. All three present a veneer of civility to hide their secrets, and all three seam to know exactly who Amy is. How could these brothers know her when she only just met them? And why does Ty feel familiar? It is only a matter of time before our heroine finds herself in the middle of personal agenda’s, coming at her from many different directions.

I enjoyed attempting to discover who was friend, and who was foe alongside our female lead. The backstories of Ty, Amy, the brothers, and the frightening Adam, was well written. Yet I found it all a little too far on the vague side. It feels as if this was deliberate on the part of the author? Perhaps there are plans for more adventures with Ty and Amy. By the end, I felt as if I lacked a complete grasp on why Amy was caught between the power struggle.

Despite no specific “Ah-ha” moment; where all the pieces of the puzzle fell in place for me, the ending was filled with action, and suspense. Thank you Kelly Coughlin for showing me that sometimes it is okay to step outside of my literary bubble and look around. I will be keeping an eye out for Ty and Amy in the future.


Review also available at www.thereadingcafe.com

[Candace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chasing Atlantis, by Kelly Coughlin, is an intriguing Young Adult novel that has a mixture of romance and paranormal elements. Chasing Atlantis is Coughlin's first novel and it is easy to see that she has a great imagination and storytelling capabilities. At first Chasing Atlantis seemed like a regular YA romance, however I was surprised as the novel unfolded when Coughlin introduced readers to many creatures of the night including vampires, mermaids, and dragons.



At the start of every summer Amy must leave her father's home and fly to Florida to visit her mother and stepfather. Never something she looks forward to, Amy is especially resistant this year and is preparing herself for the feeling of being not good enough for her perfect mother and stepfather. However, things at her mother's house seem even stranger than normal and Amy begins to find ways to escape spending time there.



On one such occasion, Amy finds herself at the beach and being watched by Ty, a lifeguard. She automatically feels a pull towards him, but is confused by his familiarity with her. Has she met the mysterious lifeguard before? As she embarks on getting to know Ty better, Amy realizes that there are many strange things going on in her mother's small town, and it would seem that they are starting to revolve around her. As Amy's mother pushes her towards a romance with the young and insolent Adam, Amy must figure out just what is going on in Vero Beach before she is swallowed whole.



Without giving away the story, they characters in Coughlin's Chasing Atlantis are not as they first appear and it seems everyone knows but Amy. I felt most sorry for Amy's mother. When Amy was a little girl her mother doted on her. However, everything changed when her mother met and married youthful and perfect Steve. From that day on everything her mother did revolved around making Steve happy and being the picture perfect wife to the plastic surgeon. Amy and her needs were placed on the back burner, and as Amy became older they grew more apart. I really felt horrible for Amy at the end of the novel with how things ended between her and her mother.



If you are a fan of both Young Adult Literature and paranormal novels, Chasing Atlantis is for you. Kelly Coughlin does a great job in revealing the secrets of Vero Beach and it's inhabitants at a pace that will keep readers interested. She also succeeded in writing a very creative story. While parts of the novel seemed a little out there, the scorching romance that is between Ty and Amy make up for it. I personally can not wait to see what Coughlin comes up with next!


The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of the book, Chasing Atlantis, for the purpose of review.

[Gayle Pace · Rating 4 out of 5]

REVIEW

Once again Amy is spending her summer with her mother and her husband in Florida. Any teenager would love to be in Florida with all its beaches and chances for tanning, but not for Amy. She just wants her mom and step dad to quit pushing Adam on her. Adam is their friends' son. Amy thinks he's cute and all, but he's just not for her. She heads to the beach and meets Ty, hunk of a lifeguard. She leaves upset because he's rather mean to her. She just can't stop thinking about him. Amy is your typical teenager, immature, flighty and can get on your nerves really quick. I believe that this book will capture the interest of the YA group. That's not saying that the young at heart won't like it, because I did. The author wrote with a nice smooth pace which made the book easy to read. She introduced some very interesting characters, supernatural beings. Some of them were not what you would expect at all.This is a tale filled with creatures that are not human and Amy is in a world filled with dragons, and merpeople and even vampires! Is Amy a valuable human pawn? Could this happen? Who can Amy trust? She doesn't understand the terrible headaches she keeps getting. She feels that she can't remember some things. Why do the eyes of the lifeguard haunt her? She wonders if she is going crazy. Is she? I had a little trouble trying to figure out who was for and who was against Amy. The backgrounds of Ty, Amy, The brothers, and Adam were missing something. Maybe we'll read more about them in the next book. Hopefully there will be a next book????? I feel it was a good book overall. I feel the author, Kelly Coughlin wrote a good book for being her debut. I would recommend this book to the young and young at heart. Follow Amy into the mythical world of CHASING ATLANTIS. Beware though, nobody appears to be who they say they are.

I would give this book 4 STARS.

I received a complimentary copy of CHASING ATLANTIS from the author, Kelly Coughlin for this unbiased review.

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its summertime and Amy is once again spending it at her mother’s house in Florida. Sounds like the ideal summer for a teenage girl, but it turns out to be anything but. Her mother and stepfather are acting strangely, and they won’t stop pushing her on their friends’ son, Adam. Amy thinks he is cute and all, but he just isn’t for her. Amy heads out to the beach one day and meets a really attractive lifeguard, Ty. He’s kind of mean to her, and she leaves upset, but she still can’t stop thinking about him. Turns out, no one is who they say they are, and everyone has something to hide.

This book started out okay, with a lot of spelling and editorial errors. I just hate when there are a lot of those because it pulls me right from the story. I felt like the story was being told in the beginning, instead of being shown, if you get my gist. However, as the book went on, I feel like it got better and the author grew and improved, and I finally did end up enjoying it.

I think I would have like this book a little better if I could connect to the main character, Amy. I know she was a teenager in the book, (and I’m in my 30’s), but she seemed a bit immature and annoying. I didn’t like how she didn’t stand up to her mom and stepdad for a while about dating someone she didn’t want to date. That got to me, but hey, maybe I’m just getting old!

Chasing Atlantis has a bunch of different kind of supernatural beings. Some expected. Some not. It was definitely a different story and didn’t feel familiar at all; that’s a good thing. All and all, I would say it’s a good book. I think author Kelly Coughlin did a great job on her first book, much better than I could have done.

My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

~Pam

*****I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review.*****

[Nicky_K · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I selected Chasing Atlantis to read, I did so with the expectation that the story would focus on a typical teenage girl (Amy) who falls in love with a merman (Ty) during her summer vacation with her mother. I anticipated fluff and whimsical young adult romance, and a splash of mermaid lore. What I ended up with was an intense tale bursting at the seams with supernatural creatures and an interesting approach to what/where ‘Atlantis’ really is.


As I have read supernatural tales my entire life, I found it humorous that Amy, the tales protagonist, took so long to figure out what was dangling right in front of her face. To her credit though, (and some skilful character development by Kelly Coughlin), once Amy did figure out what was going on, she took it all in her stride. Without giving too much of the plot away, it was the revelation of the family friend’s son Adam, whose true identity surprised me and really won me over, leaving me to devour the remaining chapters in order to discover everybody’s fate.

If you love supernatural fiction as much as I do, and you enjoy teenage romance at it’s best than Chasing Atlantis is a perfect fit for you.

I gave Chasing Atlantis a mystical 3 out of 5 hearts.

[Mary-ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the back of the book:

Amy isn't like most girls her age who dream of spending all summer on the beach. In fact, she dreads it. The yearly visit to see her mom seems even more ominous than usual. In the quaing town known as Vero Beach, many bizarre things begin to happen that leave her perplexed......

This book was great! It keeps your attention, and you don't want to put it down. A very easy read, and well written. The subject matter was very unique and interesting, with the intrigue, mystery and the usual teenage love story.

This is a great fiction novel, and it gets my recommendation. Thank you Kelly Coughlin for the chance to review your first novel.

Author's Outskirts web page



I received this book free from the Author . I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

[Marie Sinadjan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm not quite sure how I feel about this book. I wasn't really won over by the revelations (or the supernatural beings that the characters turned out to be), but things were intriguing enough to keep me turning the pages anyway. I guess it's the narrative style that threw me off the most; it seemed kinda forced and disconnected at times.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

What crap! Seriously I only got to 16% but boy am I done with that.