Merm-8

by Eric J. Juneau

It doesn't matter if you believe in mermaids. She believes in you.


Gene is a rogue-for-hire, using his one-man ship to make a decent living on the flooded Earth. Most of the population has been driven out to Seaplexes--artificial islands glutted with poverty, commercialism, and organized crime. His AI companion, Stitch, does most of the work of their salvage and smuggling jobs. Life is good.


Until a mermaid crawls into his ship's exhaust port.


Now it's not enough for Gene to avoid the mafia he's in debt to, enforced by bio-engineered hulks. Everyone wants to know what this fantasy creature is doing on a dying planet. Corporations want to exploit her. Old friends want to capitalize on her fame. Gene has to choose between protecting her and keeping himself safe. And all she wants is to return home.

Genres: Fantasy

ebook

First published September 25, 2014

About the author

Eric Juneau is a software engineer living in Minnesota with his wife and two daughters. His hobbies are writing, video games, reading, and eating as much barbecue as he can find. His writing philosophy is "Fairy tales do not tell children that dragons exist. Children already know dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children the dragons can be killed." (G.K. Chesterson)

He blogs somewhat regularly about his quest to become a 'capital-A' Author at http://ericjuneaubooks.com.

Reviews

[M. C. (MagsTheBookWorm) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Merm-8 is a dystopian fantasy/adventure tale taking place in a mostly flooded future Earth. The main character Gene, is a salvager just barely scraping by, his only company being a spunky AI program dubbed 'Stitch'. One day he finds a mermaid has gotten sucked up into his ship. Thinking this is his lucky day, he takes her to a floating outpost for a scientist friend to examine. But the more he gets to know her, the harder it becomes to leave her. What is her story, anyway...?

I would first like to state that I received this through NetGalley for an honest review. This was a bit of a slow starter for me but once it picked up I flew through it. It was a tale of adventure on the high seas - full of action, plot twists, and the fantastical imaginings of a mad scientist. While the ending left a bit to be desired, overall I rather enjoyed the story. This was a touching and bittersweet novel of personal growth, loss, and love to the very end.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The premise of dystopian fantasy meets sci-fi was a well-done combination in the tale of Gene and Ginger. I really felt the dystopian vibe added something new and enhanced the human/ mermaid love story. I loved the mermaid Ginger and I love that they tried to make her authentic ( as in she couldn't speak a human language but a vibration one based on being in the water). She was essentially a blank slate to the ways of humans. Gene was a harder character to like, especially at the start of the novel. He does seem to develop as a person as the book progresses. I really like that Eric Juneau had Gene at first not care for the mermaid, but had it develop over time. I usually tune out if the characters magically fall in love immediately upon looking at each other, I prefer a natural development and this book had it.

Like many dystopian novels, this book had lessons for current society and the future. The fact that everyone was wanting a piece of the mermaid rings very realistic to our current society and also towards the future ( even in a more technologically advanced society) would also act the same. I enjoyed this book although at times the writing style seemed a bit juvenile, it did not detract from the story but was noticeable at times.I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Star]

Gene lives in a post-apocalyptic world where most of the land has flooded and a majority of the remaining population lives in Seaplexes which are overrun by organized crime families. Gene is an independent contractor who has a reputation of being able to get out of tough situations. Gene’s only companion is his AI, Stitch, who does the ‘heavy lifting’ on their runs. Gene and Stitch are working on escaping from a man to whom Gene owes a lot of money when Gene finds a mermaid in the ship’s exhaust port. Then everything gets crazy. Gene is trying to outrun the mafia, corporations, and his old friends who all want to get their hands on the mermaid. MERM-8 explores the issues of identity and what it means to be human. Gene is a man who is used to fending for himself and looking out for number one. He’s forced to choose between himself and the mermaid, which causes him a moral dilemma. MERM-8 has a lot of action and intrigue, with characters which I grew to care about deeply. Watching Gene grow during MERM-8 was very rewarding. Readers of science fiction and fantasy will enjoy MERM-8.

[Neil · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy via Netgalley in exchange for a honest review.
I really enjoyed this as it was something totally different.
The characters were engaging and there was enough action and surprises to keep you guessing.
I really hope there is a sequel.