Wake #1: Book One in the Watersong Series

Watersong #1

by Amanda Hocking

Wake is the first addictive novel in Amanda Hocking's romantic YA series, Watersong. Beautiful. Fearless. Dangerous. They're the kind of girls you envy; the kind of girls you want to hate. Strangers in town for the summer, Penn, Thea, and Lexi have caught everyone's attention, including the eye of practical Harper. But it's her sister, Gemma, they've chosen to be part of their group. Sixteen-year-old Gemma seems to have it all - carefree, pretty, and falling in love with the boy next door. But her greatest passion has always been the water. She craves late night swims under the stars, where she can be alone yet belong to the sea. Lately she's had company. Penn, Thea, and Lexi spend their nights dancing, singing, and partying on the cove - and one night Gemma joins them. When she wakes up groggy on the beach the next morning, she knows something has changed.

Suddenly Gemma is stronger, faster, and more beautiful than ever. As she uncovers the truth about her new mythical powers, Gemma is forced to choose between staying with those she loves or entering a dark world brimming with unimaginable secrets.

'Generated an excitement not felt in the industry since Stephenie Meyer or perhaps even J. K. Rowling' New York Times, 'A fast-paced romance ... addictive' Guardian on Switched, 'Drew me in and kept me hooked...cracking pace' Sunday Express on Switched

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Mermaids, Paranormal, Romance, Mythology, Fiction

320 pages

First published August 1, 2012

About the author

AMANDA HOCKING is the author of over twenty young adult novels, including the New York Times bestselling Trylle Trilogy and Kanin Chronicles. Her love of pop culture and all things paranormal influence her writing. She spends her time in Minnesota, taking care of her menagerie of pets and working on her next book.

Several of her books have made the New York Times Bestsellers list. Her zombie series, The Hollows, has been adapted into a graphic novel by Dynamite. She has published over twenty novels, including The Kanin Chronicles, the Watersong quartet, My Blood Approves series, the Valkyrie duology, and Freeks .
For more info about her and her books, here are some other places to check out and ways to contact her:

Website: www.hockingbooks.com
Amazon Author Page: Amanda Hocking
Patreon: Amanda Hocking
Instagram: @amanda_hocking
BlueSky: AmandaHocking.bsky.social
Threads: @amanda_hocking
YouTube: aehocking
Facebook: Amanda Hocking Fans
Etsy: Hocking Books by Amanda
TikTok: @amanda_hocking
Goodreads: Amanda Hocking
Spotify : Amanda Hocking

Reviews

[Booknut 101 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Please Note: SPOILERS AHEAD

I used to think mermaids looked like this:



Only to realise they're actually like this:



Yep. Officially creeped out of sirens and mermaids in general.

Pretty girls that can turn into mermaids? Yep, I can deal with that.
Swimming skills enhanced? I can deal with that as well.
Breathing underwater? Go for it.
Can sing creepily and lure guys? Maybe a bit weirded out, but still doable.

Get peckish and decide to EAT HUMANS???!!!

[s · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this series so much that I just had to read it for the fourth time. It's a blend of contemporary and mythology that delivers a perfect story. The characters, plot, romance are all A+. The sibling, parent and friend relationships are all so well done and honestly?? I always feel satisfied whenever I finish reading this book.

The plot of this book is so intriguing and definitely unlike anything I've ever read before. We have evil, killer mermaids (Sirens) who can also turn into bird monsters and eat the hearts of men in order to survive their curse!!! Penn, Lexi and Thea are the three new girls in town and they are pure fucking evil bitches. Thousands and thousands of years ago when gods and goddesses roamed the earth, and slept with their siblings, parents and children (gross, I know) Penn, Thea and Lexi angered Demeter and got cursed!!! (That's my life goal.)

There used to be four of these girls, but....NOW THERE ARE oNLY THREE!!! Part of the Siren curse is that there must be four girls and they must stay together with each other at all times (The book explains it much more in depth than I am). The full moon is coming and these three evil Sirens need to find a replacement soon, otherwise they're royally fucked.

Enter Gemma. 16. Beautiful. Swimmer. Falling in love. And doing what she loves with the people she loves. Her kind of perfect life is ruined when Penn, Lexi and Thea set their eyes on her.

The story takes a lot of time developing onto the important parts. It takes about 100 pages for the entire mythological and fantasy part of this book to be actually introduced....aka the plot. But even though some people might think it's slow, it's very very fast paced. But, I thought that was awesome because I personally loved how we have a normal summer contemporary for the first 100 pages, showing how Gemma's life was and how it drastically changes once the Sirens choose her. And let me tell you, that shit goes down,,, like my mAth grade.

REASONS WHY THIS BOOK IS AWESOME:
○Harper Fisher is the greatest character to exist and honestly???? I'm willing to five star every book I trashed if she comes to life. (Not really, but you get the point.) Ever since Harper and Gemma's mother got into a car accident that has left her mentally disabled, Harper fit herself into a protective mother role for her younger sister. Harper is literally ME if I was a better person. Harper is such a sweet, extremely caring, worried, intelligent and loving person towards everyone and I don't ever think she's ever like,,,, chewed gum and then stuck it under a desk. Like,,,, she's that pure. Harper is literally the only character I'm willing to give warm and soft hugs to.

Also, did I mention she's a librarian that reads Where All The Wild Things Are to little kids and enjoys the fuck out of it?

※she actually cleans up everything after sister, from cleaning Gemma's hair in the shower drain to doing all her dirty laundry.
※she's willing to go down to the docks to give her dad lunch (when he forgets) every time even if it means having to face dANIEL.
※she doesn't tell ANYONE ABOUT HER CRUSHES aka ME ME ME ME ME.
※sHE WORRIES ABOUT EVERYONE AND IS CONSTANTLY WORRIED SOMETHING WILL HAPPEN TO THEM AND ALWAYS WANTS TO TAKE CARE OF EVERYONE. aka ME WITH ALL MY CHILDREN aka MY FICTIONALS CHILDREN.
※SHE'S WILLING TO RISK HER LIFE FOR HER SISTER AND ALWAYS THERE FOR HER. Gemma and Harper have their fights, but honestly their sister relationship is mad healthy and downright goals. She's literally willing to kill and rip off the heads of evil fucking mermaids for her sister,,, which is shocking because Harper is so nice.
※Also, her father, Brian is actual goals. He's so protective (sometimes too much) of his daughters and is probably willing to have his dick bitten by sharks to make sure his girls aren't harmed. He's so fucking loving, caring and protective and honestly???? adopt me, please.

DANIEL: AKA MY FUCKING HUSBAND, GOD.
Let me introduce to you, the best character in this fucking series that I relate to 200%.
He's a lazy little thing living on a boat but with a tragic past. He's a flirtatious little bean who's loyal, loving and caring and TEASES HARPER. Guys never have I ever shipped a ship so????? fucking??? hard???? Daniel and Harper sCREAM OTP.

DANIELXHARPER
○He's always flirting and teasing her and she blushes and denies it???
i'm screaming.
○Harper's first time meeting Daniel was when he was pissing on the side of his boat aka she saw everything.
i'm screaming.
○At first she thinks he's a loser, no life because he lives alone on his boat and with that v first bad impression, but when he helps out Gemma here and there she starts realizing,,, maybe he's not that bad. He wants to make it up to her and show he's actually a soft little shit under all that muscle. yum???
i'm screaming.
○Sirens start killing, everyone's in danger, Daniel wants to get involved, Harper doesn't want him hurt, Daniel wants to be there for her because he cares and Harper can't save the world alone.
i'm screaming.
○Harper likes him and finds excuses to see him.
i'm screaming.
○Daniel is just a flirtatious asshole and teases her about it.
i'm screaming.
○Harper blushes a lot around him.
i'm screaming

Basically, fuck Gemma and Alex's boy next door and pretty girl romance, Harper and Daniel are the shit and I shamelessly read these books just for these two. And I'm so glad that this book is not just Gemma's POV. We get to read about what happens in Gemma's and the lives of the other character's because everybody is relevant and it adds up to the story amazingly. Also, I could care less about Gemma so,,,, [insert shrugging emoji]

There's so much evil, badassery, blood and killing and honestly, this series reads more like New Adult rather than Young Adult. It has a lot of mature themes and it's not very....Young adult-ish???

But I'm willing to die for the character's and anything that is this series, goodbye and goodnight.

[Kadbury · Rating 2 out of 5]

Let me be blunt I'm not a huge fan of this novel.

I'm going to write a different review for this one because I feel like it ...



The Positives


Harper : I loved Harper! She's Gemma's sister and some chapters are from her point of view. She's a practical and responsible character that I could connect to easily.My main problem is the fact that she wasn't the main character! Harper had so much more spark than Gemma that I was waiting to read her point of view (POV)

Harper and Daniel's relationship: I loved their friendship or should I call it a flirtation? Gemma and Alex's relationship was awkward but Harper and Daniel's relationship had spark and I wanted more!

Mythology: In my opinion the mythology was interesting and engaging. I wanted to know more about the history and the mythology.

Keeps you interested:There were a lot of times that I was seriously considering just abandoning this book and marking it as DNF(Did Not Finish) but the author managed to maintain my interest somehow.I'm still surprised I managed to finish this book.


The Negatives


Gemma: I did not like the main character. Gemma irritated me.The fact that she figured out a lot of stuff so quickly really surprised me because I thought she was too dumb .One thing I couldn't get over is the fact that Gemma took a LIFE CHANGING decision after taking advice from her MENTALLY unstable mother.


Gemma and Alex's relationship: Their relationship was just plain WEIRD. I can think of no better explanation.I felt no spark.The romance was so flat.
They had a conversation which went like this:

Boy:You're pretty
Girl:Did you just call me pretty?
Boy:It kind of slipped out
Girl:...I think you're pretty too!
(*Excuse me for not swooning in delight over the romance *)

At first I thought that maybe the author is not able to write a proper romance but she is very capable of it. Harper and Daniel barely had a relationship but their friendship/flirtation had spark.I wanted Harper and Daniel to be the main characters and not Gemma and Alex.

Story is so slow....: It felt as if for almost 75% of the novel NOTHING was happening and if anything did happen it didn't hold my interest for more than 10 pages..Half the time I was thinking to myself "When will the good part start??" By the time the good part started I was just glad that there was a good part (I hope I'm making sense!)

Voice:I had a little bit of difficulty in understanding whose point of view the story was told from for the first few chapters.I thought it was from Gemma's POV and then there would be two paragraphs from Alex's point of view. Then the next chapter was from Harper's POV and so on. This really confused me.

Overall,I don't think I will be picking up the sequel but if I do pick it up it will be for Harper and Daniel.If you're dying to read this my advice would be to borrow it from the library or a friend.

My Rating:

2/5

[Mimi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

I've only read two-thirds of the Trylle Trilogy so far, but that has already been enough to make me fall in love with Amanda Hocking's books! Her creatures? They're always beautifully captivating, and that's no different in this first book for her brand new Watersong series!

Right off the bat, my favourite thing about this book is the sister relationship between Gemma and Harper. As a girl with her own adoring big sis, I couldn't help but smile at the accuracy — especially about how different they are! Harper is practical, straightforward, and a little overprotective of her little sister; Gemma is carefree, openhearted, and in love with swimming. They're polar opposites, yet their perspectives create a fun dynamic that really works.

There are two sets of romances in this book — one for each sister — and both are love-triangle-free and undeniably sweet! ♥ But while Gemma's relationship with the boy next door, Alex, is too adorable for words, my favourite is of Harper and Daniel's. They meet on hilariously embarrassing terms and continue on a little tense, until Daniel manages to break the safe-playing girl out of her shell. I kept giggling into my hand, it was that fun!

But as adorable as this book is, I kept feeling like it was missing something. The characters are sweet but lack a little depth; the siren lore is cool but nothing mind-blowingly original; and it's very predictable. I never had any problem setting it down before finishing, which is trouble for a girl who's used to one-sit reads!

With a sweet factor that breaks the scale and a sisterly bond that will warm your heart, Wake is a fantastic start to a bound-to-be great series! I wasn't as captivated with it was I was with her other books, but Amanda Hocking is still an author to watch out for. :)

BUY or BORROW?: Flaws aside, I still think this book is definitely worth picking up (and certainly buy-worthy enough with that cover)!

(Original review at Mimi Valentine's YA Review Blog)

[Baba · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book dumped alongside many others on a recycling bin, and alongside a copy of The Power this book caught me eye. Possible future Olympian 16-year old Gemma is just obsessed with swimming, and alongside her older sister and lone parent dad they live an almost idyllic American Dream life in a small coastal town. This summer brings boys, three drop dead gorgeous but creepy young women vacationing in town for the Summer... oh, and murder!

A tidy and entertaining Young Adult fantasy that is much more teen romance than anything else, but that does still work taking the reader on a journey in this interesting constructed reality, so close to ours. 7 out of 12. The real story for me though is the self-publishing success story that is Amanda Hocking's. :)

[Renata · Rating 3 out of 5]

No sabía que esperar de este libro ya que de sirenas yo nunca he leído algo. La cosa es que esperaba que el libro y las sirenas sean buenas como lo pintan las series y la idealización que tenemos de ellas. Pero no es así, las sirenas son malas y crueles y matan personas y son manipuladoras y me ha fascinado.

Los personajes me gustan pero creo que hay muchas partes desde el punto de vista de Harper , la hermana de la protagonista, que sobran ya que es Gemma la que debería explicar más y hacernos saber más sobre todo lo que pasa.

La idea de sirenas en este libro me parece muy original y me está gustando bastante.

[Giulia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Me before I started reading this book: Cool! Mermaids!

Me after I finished reading this book: Fuck... Mermaids.


My 3-stars reviews are usually of two kinds: either disappointed, because I was expecting something more (due to the hype or the author), or perfectly content, because I basically knew nothing about the book, didn't expect a lot and ended up enjoying it. This review is of the second kind.
I decided to buy Wake on a whim, as I often do (but, come on, it was on sale for 5 euros... And I'm not really one to say no to cheap books) because I was intrigued by the creepy atmosphere it seemed to have, and I haven't read a lot of books that deal with mermaids.

Wake is the story of a small town swimming prodigy, Gemma, and of her broken family. Gemma has always loved to swim, and even more so after her mother was involved in an accident, and suffered serious brain damage; swimming is to her an escape, something that lets her forget what happened, the way her father doesn't want to see her mother anymore, her overbearing (but truly caring) sister, Harper, and all of her worries. Sometimes, Gemma thinks about the Olympics, and her heart beats faster. And since going to the swimming pool to train is still not enough, Gemma starts to go swimming at night in the ocean, despite her sister's disapproval.
Harper has been taking care of her family her whole life. While I did not wholly connect with Gemma, I was very impressed by Harper, because even though she was the one who was holding the family together, she never felt like the perfect girl who can do no wrong. She was often bitter, and angry, but loved her younger sister more than anything.

Gemma and Harper live in a small and quiet town... until it's not so quiet anymore. People start to go missing. Four mysterious and beautiful girls appear seemingly from nowhere; no one knows anything about them. Are they tourists? People whisper that they are Canadian movie stars.
There is four of them. And then there is only three, and they begin to take an interest in Gemma; they swim at night and dance in the darkness and sing, so sweetly. Until one day, Gemma falls into their trap.

This was a good start to a series. It's my second Amanda Hocking book, and for the second time I find myself rating her work with three stars. She writes enjoyable stories that are very easy to read; they may not be unforgettable, but they are a nice break from all the epic fantasy I read, and lately I've been finding myself reaching out for urban fantasy more and more.
Even though the story was interesting and the pacing was really good (I read the book in one sitting, because I could not bring myself to stop reading), Wake was not perfect. The main romantic pairing between Gemma and her neighbor, Alex, was the tamest and most boring thing I've ever seen. Zero chemistry. Together, they put me to sleep, and Alex was such a flat and unnecessary character. On the other hand, I was absolute trash for the relationship between Harper and Daniel, the boy who lived on a boat and had no idea how to finally get his life together. Now, that was chemistry. *swoons* Can we have more of them in the next book? Please?
Then, sadly, one of my most hated tropes also happened. Gemma decided to pull the I'm going to tell you I never cared about you in order to protect you bullshit act on Alex. I mean, I didn't care about Alex at all, but still... cheap, cheap "plot twist".
However, I enjoyed both the story and the writing, and the book was very entertaining and fast-paced; it also managed to give me the chills with its eerie atmosphere and unsettling descriptions. It's safe to say that mermaids are not the pretty and innocuous creatures you think they are...

[Maja (The Nocturnal Library) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 stars and an extra star for the terrifying mermaids... errr, sirens.

Some of you may have noticed that I’m not around much lately. That’s because it’s summer, I live by the sea, and I can’t resist spending every available moment at the beach, which made this the best and the worst time for me to read Wake by Amanda Hocking. On the one hand, it’s a perfect summer read, but on the other, I keep expecting an evil siren to show up and eat me while I'm swimming and generally minding my own business. Who’s afraid of sharks? Not me, no siree, I’m terrified of sirens!

Harper is not much older than her sister Gemma, but their responsibilities are vastly different. Their mother became institutionalized after suffering severe brain damage, and Harper started taking care of their father and the house, but most of all, she assumed the role of a parent for Gemma. She is serious and organized, and she has her life planned to the smallest detail. Gemma isn’t quite as put together as her older sister, but she’s hardly problematic either. She is good at school, very beautiful and completely dedicated to her swimming career. She is so good, in fact, that her coach is aiming for the Olympics. When three strange girls show up in their tiny town, Gemma is the only one who sees that there’s something wrong with them, but she can’t really avoid them when they’re around water and her favorite cove all the time.

If there’s one thing I loved about Wake, it’s the villains. I fear Hocking’s sirens for the same reason I fear the fae – they’re gorgeous and alluring, but deceitful and rotten beneath the surface. The sirens may be stunning on the outside, but if you look closely, their teeth seem to elongate and sharpen and there is a coldness in their eyes that stands in stark contrast to their wonderful, inviting exterior. Penn, Lexi and Thea showed up in town one day and everyone just assumed they’re early tourists. No one questioned their presence, not when they’re young, frail-looking and heartstoppingly gorgeous, not even when three young boys went missing one after the other. Gemma, however, was very uncomfortable around them, at least until they turned her into one of their own.

What would a summer read be without romance? No worries, there is a double dose of swoon-worthy boys in this one! Personally, I preferred Daniel – he is somewhat older and definitely more charming, but I think younger girls might find a perfect book crush in Alex. Just like the sisters are as different as they can be, these two boys are nothing alike, which means there’s something there for everyone!

Third person omniscient narrator is a rare and strange choice for young adult literature, but it’s also a welcome change. Younger readers might find themselves uncomfortable with it as it creates a certain barrier between the reader and the main character(s). Having insight into thoughts of all characters can be quite useful, but it also weakens the connection with the protagonist. I do think it worked great here and it’s one of my favorite things about this book.

All in all, Wake by Amanda Hocking is a surprisingly dark tale. I’m so glad I decided to read it after all.

[Jena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amanda Hocking always finds a way to lure me into her completely unique stories. She has such a creative mind, and Wake is no different. She takes a creature we all know and makes them dangerous, more so than normal and I loved every bit of it.

Wake revolves around two sisters: Gemma and Harper. Gemma lives for swimming and being in the water. She's beautiful and carefree. Harper on the other hand has resumed the role of "mom" and constantly is working hard and looking out for her family. One night Gemma hangs out with Penn, Lexi, and Thea... three beautiful strangers that most people tend to steer clear of. The next morning Gemma wakes up changed and she knows something happened to her. It doesn't matter that she has a loving family or a new boyfriend, she's changed and unfortunately her only options just may break her and her sister's heart.

With most duel perspectives, you get a girls voice and a guys voice, but not with Wake. Instead, Amanda gave the view points of two sisters and I really liked how it was done. We were able to get inside both of their heads and see how different their lives actually are. I loved how Harper was so protective over Gemma. Harper is one of those characters where you look at her and you go "she carries the weight of the world", yet you love her for it. Another thing I loved was that Amanda gave each sister a love interest, yet both boys and both relations are so different.

Alex, is the boy next door. The geek who turned completely sexy and sweet. I loved Alex and how he cared for Gemma. Then on the other side was Daniel and Harper. Their relationship starts off completely different than Alex and Gemma's. It's slow, and clumsy, and yet somehow perfect. Daniel is such a good match for Harper and he was always there for her when she needed him and I'm so excited to see where their relationship goes.

Once you start getting into the story of Wake, it really picks up. You start to fall in love with all the characters. You wonder what dangers could possibly be lying around the corner. The way Amanda spun her lure was so unique and slightly freighting. And, with the way the story ended I'm dying to read Lullaby so I can find out what happens next!

[Brie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sigh.

I don't know where to start or what to say about it all without giving away spoilers.

Don't get me wrong, if you have half a brain you can figure out what it's about. And I liked the general story idea, I really really did, but the execution of the idea left me angry and going, "WHAT THE FUCK?!?!"

I can say that this is another one of those stories where the heroine is dinosaur-shit deep in a massive life-threatening murderous mess and what does she do? What does this brain-trust do?

I can't tell you that.

I can tell you what she doesn't do. She most certainly doesn't confide in anybody to help her. Oh no, cause that would be too damn easy. And makes too much sense! She most certainly doesn't find her inner badass from deep within her soul and kick some serious ass. And most certainly doesn't make me NOT want to facepalm. Every 5 minutes.

This epidemic is driving me batshit crazy. If I have weird paranormal shit start happening me, I'm gonna drag every miserable bastard who cares about me into my life to help me fix it.

Gemma is annoying. She really is.

I love her sister, Harper, and I love Daniel. And with it being written in third person, you're not trapped in the narrative of Idiot Gemma the whole book. So, I may have been a wee harsh.

[✦BookishlyRichie✦ · Rating 4 out of 5]

[SPOILER FREE]

"Sirens exist, Mermaids don't." - Penn "Wake".

Thanks to St. Martin's Griffin for sending me an ARC of "Wake" by Amanda Hocking! I was wary on reading another Amanda Hocking book because I really didn't like Switched, but I didn't request Wake. St. Martin's sent it because I'm on their reviewer list, so I was surprised to see it in my mailbox last week. After looking over the synopsis and reading the prologue, I decided to go on another Hocking adventure and this adventure I truly enjoyed. If you enjoy books that are mythology reboots, then pick up Wake when it comes out 8/7/12.

Now on to my book thoughts!

I dived right into "Wake" expecting a love triangle, a bitchy protagonist, and over caked romance. I was pleasantly surprised. There is no love triangle, Gemma is a likable protagonist, and the romance was set at the perfect amount. I loved the writing style! Amanda needs to write more books in third person POV. The book starts off with Gemma at the bay, swimming. You get to know her right away and then you are introduced to her sister Harper who is an overprotective, motherly gush-bear. The sisters's mother is in a home with mental issues and their father works on the docks of the town. Alex is our love interest for Gemma and I loved him. Daniel is Harper's love interest and I was drooling over him. Then we are introduced to the new girls in town. Penn, Thea, and Lexi. The boys in town can't get enough of them, so much so that some even begin to go missing. Let me tell you now, I hated these three girls. I wanted to smack Penn so bad. They reminded me of the plastics in Mean Girls, except these girls can rip your head off and can breathe underwater. Things begin to grow tremendously intense once Gemma decides to hang with the girls for one night... and wakes up the next morning feeling too different. From there the story takes off and I enjoyed every bit of it.

That is where I will leave off, spoiler free! So I hope you pick this book up when it comes out and I can't wait to read the second in the Watersong series. Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin for this ARC and I will gladly accept more in the future ;)

-R.D.

[Drew Tuá · Rating 2 out of 5]

So much better than I thought, I thought It will be more like a fairy tale with cute mermaids, love and cheesy stuff, but it has murder and some cool stuff, it was pretty cool! I really like Harper :)

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 out of 5 rating

I am always fascinated by mermaid stories (I just know its because of my love for The Little Mermaid) and that flows over into a love of siren stories as well.

I really liked the characters in this story. Harper was the older sister with the tough outer shell. She's had to step up to become the mother-like figure, protective and worrying, and can't let anyone see the softer side of her. Gemma is the typical younger sister--more relaxed and free except with her hobby of swimming and goal of being in the Olympics. Then there's the boys- Alex and Daniel. Both great guys and one for each of the sisters (no love triangle in this story!) Even the sirens are well written.

The one thing I didn't like was that the book left you hanging. And while I guess it could be considered a cliff hanger, I felt more like the story didn't wrap up well. I don't know how to explain it, but usually with cliffhangers I get the feeling of it being in the right spot (if that makes any sense). But I feel that in this book, more needed to be told before the cliffhanger.

Anyways, I will defintely be picking up the next book in the series when it comes out!

[Leslie Santillan · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.2 Estrellas ⭐
La historia es bastante extraña y hubo situaciones que me parecieron demasiado irreales. Siento que el libro comenzó bien, pero a medida que avanzaba todo se fue hundiendo. El final de la historia es algo abierto y tiene sentido, pues es una saga, solo que fue aburrido, podría decir que la historia siguió plana y no tuvo ningún suceso que me emocionara o sorprendiera. No me gustó ningún personaje, no conecté con ellos.

[Farren · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars (and that's being kind)

Ugh. I hated Harper so much. She was entirely too controlling, neurotic, and abrasive. Gemma, on the other hand, was naive and childish, and not much better a character than her sister. The dialogue was lame and cringy, as were the love interests, and the plot moved slowly for how obvious the story would play out. Everything was just so blah.

[carolina · Rating 5 out of 5]

este libro me da exactamente lo mismo que me dan las twilight movies. it's so bad it's good, el pace es increíblemente perfecto, el plot is so stupid and silly goose pero in the most perfect way. this book literally feels like a movie. the romance?? AMAZING. the characters?? LOVE THEM ALL. comedic timing?? ASTRONOMICAL. neta podría leer este libro 50 mil veces y nunca aburrirme lo quiero mucho

[Terri · Rating 1 out of 5]

If I could have abandoned this book, I would have. I have talked all year in booktalks to my students about the current popularity of mermaids and the like in young adult books. It is not my trend of choice, but the students in my Book Club decided that we would try a mermaid book so I struggled through our book of choice, Amanda Hocking's "Wake." Though the concept had potential, the story was banal, poorly written to the point of being laughable, predictable, and yada yada yada.

Let's start with the opening line of Chapter 1: "The engine made a bizarre chugging sound, like a dying robot llama, followed by an ominous click-click." Really? A dying robot llama? Who even knows what a llama sounds like? Let alone a robot llama. That is just a preview of Hocking's bizarre attempt at imagery. I got to the point where I just read dialogue (which was at times laughable as well)because the descriptive passages were so clunky, and I just wanted to get it over with.

The story focuses on sisters Gemma and Harper Fisher. Since a car accident that led to her mother being placed in a group home, older sister Harper has taken on the responsibility of caring for younger sister, Gemma. Gemma is a beautiful, supposedly a smart, driven young lady who excels as a swimmer. For being so smart, however, she sure does a lot of stupid things like swimming alone after dark in the bay. She is interested in the geeky older boy next door, Alex. When four beautiful tourists show up in this seaside community, strange things begin to happen, including the disappearance of one of the four girls and several teenage boys. We eventually find out that they are sirens who are interested in Gemma because of her beauty and love of the water. There is a confusing, awkward, didactic attempt to explain the mythology from whence the girls came, but even lovers of all things mythological will find this a stretch. Then, when one of the girls turns into a monstrous emu, the book completely went over the cliff for me.

Character development is also weak. The motivations and actions of the characters are not fully explored and, consequently, are often not believable. It is very difficult at first to determine which sister is which, as point of view shifts between the two are awkward and sudden. I found myself having to go back and read passages as a result.

In terms of themes, Hocking gets pretty didactic at times. Any attempt at a lesson is not subtle at all. For instance, Daniel tries to teach Harper that she is not responsible for what happens to her sister, Gemma. The conversation, intended to teach us that "You can't protect people from themselves," is so obviously stated that it is ludicrous. Daniel gives an example from his own life that completely refutes the message that he's trying to get across to Harper: "'It took me years to accept the fact that it wasn't my fault that John died...I don't know if I'll ever truly forgive myself for what happened. But that doesn't mean you should feel the same way.'" What?

I also objected to all of the sexism in the book. Boys following girls like drooling idiots because of their attractiveness. Or this line, "'But the thing is, when you live long enough, and you see things, you realize that it's impossible for mortal men to really love anyone. Knowing this will save you heartbreak.'" Ugh!

I could go on and on but, frankly, the book isn't worth the effort. It is, however, a good exercise to read a really bad book once in awhile. It reminds me what a good book is, and that writing one is truly an art.

Not recommended. I will be curious as to what my Book Club kids have to say. Stay tuned...

[Luzie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unfortunately I did not enjoy this book as much as I'd hoped for. The story was flat and unexciting, which made it hard to follow through reading the book. The events happening in this book were just so meager, it lessened my opinion. Also the language was underdeveloped and one could tell that this book was published some time ago. I did not like any of the characters. They were poorly portrayed and I felt no connection between any of them. I'm sorry, but that's just how I feel. I did like the siren aspect but it was barely discussed, just a little toward the end. The mainpart of the book was flat-out boring, and I'm not trying to be rude here, but I have to say that this is not a book for me. That however, does not mean that others won't enjoy it.
2/5 stars

[Sleepless Bookworm · Rating 1 out of 5]

So, so stupid, I can't believe I managed to get through the whole thing. Mind you, I did skip past some paragraphs of Harper's POV. She was so annoying it was making my brain bleed.

I thought the premise of the story sounded interesting, but the writing was just horrible. I'm really disappointed, I really like Amanda Hocking's "The Hollows" series.

Oh well.
I'm going to delete Wake from my e-reader and hopefully never think about it again.

[Frank Phillips · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Stars...Definitely a starter book in yet another YA series. Nothing bad about this read, but nothing that stood out either. I might continue in the series at some point in the future.

[James Tullos · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was surprisingly decent.

[Maggie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't like this one as much as Hocking's Kanin Chronicles, but at least the creepy mermaids twist was interesting. I also liked that it was told from more perspectives, even though a bit messily written. I also ended up likeing Harper and Daniel a million times more than Gemma and Alex neither of whom I gave a shit about since they lacked any kind of personality. There was a lot of tropes typical for 2010/2012 paranormal books, but mostly in bearable amount. I didn't hate any of the characters, but didn't love them yet either. The plot was way, way too slow. And I think it's because the author wanted to stretch out the story into more books than maybe there should've been. Only the last few chapters really started being interesting and the ending was pretty good.

[Whitley Birks · Rating 3 out of 5]

See this review and more on Whiley Reads

Ah, what can you say about Wake? I’m not really sure. The best I can come up with is to damn it with faint praise. It was very…booky. It left little impression on me, although it was an easy enough, quick read. The whole thing was extremely straightforward and lacked any sort of plot or passion.

The first half of the book was romance. Just straight-up romance. To be fair, it was pretty cute romance. But there was no drama to it. It was the sort of romance that gets set up quickly, so that more interesting stuff can happen later, except then we were stuck with it for hundreds of pages. I really had no objections to the romances here other than their overwrought presence.

Well, that’s not accurate: I take issue with Alex being muscular and ripped despite that fact that he does no physical work. The book itself even pointed out that this is impossible, but always treated it as a “oh, goody, that weird occurrence worked in our favor, didn’t it?” It didn’t feel like a mysterious thing, just an awkward thing.

The second half of the book had potential, but then botched it. What could have been a genuinely interesting story about Gemma learning about her new state was hobbled by the fact that there was so very little mysterious about it. It took only a few chapters before she had most of the answers, and the final “twist” was bleedingly obvious. She spent more page time waffling about what to do than she did coming to terms with what had happened, and that made the pacing drag terribly. Everything about this book was laid out in a very clear, straight line which made it almost impossible to get invested in the story. There was no tension, no curiosity, no…nothing.

The only point at which I felt anything was when Gemma’s TBI-suffering mother was brought in. Natalie was treated…very poorly. She has a traumatic brain injury, but she was displayed as a misbehaving tween. Near the end, Gemma decides to share the truth with her mother, because if Natalie tells people about mermaids, who would see that as odd?

How about EVERY MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL THAT SHE WORKS WITH? Natalie does not have a mental illness and even if she did delusions are not part of every mental illness out there. She has a defined set of symptoms, and if a new one crops up, that’s going to cause concern. Since she lives in a group home that specializes in TBI, the people taking care of her would know that.

This book has no fucks to give on the matter and instead treats it as a joke when it says “Natalie told everyone her daughter was running away to be a mermaid.” That’s not funny. That’s the precursor to a whole bunch of doctors and nurses trying to figure out what’s wrong with her, when nothing is wrong, her daughter is just a selfish jerk who didn’t think this through. Really think about that: this woman already has trouble interacting with the world, and now a bunch of authority figures are going to come by and tell her that something she knows is true is in fact a fantasy. That’s terrifying.

On the same note, we were never given an explanation for why Gemma didn’t tell someone else in her family. Just straight-up, never. There’s a throwaway line about them not believing her if she tried, but it’s not like it’d be impossible to prove. In fact, her sister didn’t take much convincing at the end there.

I will say, as a positive, I did really enjoy the relationship between Gemma and Harper. It’s always nice to see those kind of strong family bonds. Overall, the book was just a nonentity. It was mostly unobjectionable, but at the same time, a lack of badness doesn’t actually make it good. There was very little here that would lend itself to actual recommendation.

[Kristi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wake by Amanda Hocking was no surprise, I got exactly what I expected: pure imaginative brilliance! I’ve followed Amanda since the early days when ‘My Blood Approves’ series was full of grammatical errors and you know what? I didn’t care! The story line was just that good that I bought one after another on my Kindle and wanted to cry when the series was over. Then Hollowland came along and The Trylle Trilogy and a few others and things just kept getting better and better.

Amanda is a natural born story teller; I can imagine her in the days of old-spinning tales in front of a fire place or a camp fire and scaring the crap outta everyone or putting forth a tale of love that would have the maidens swooning. To me, this puts her in a rare category of authors, those that are remembered long after they’re gone and our great-great grandchildren will still be reading her works long after we’re gone.

Wake was no different and a trilogy that I’m highly anticipating, especially if the next 2 books follow in Wake’s footsteps. I really don’t want to rehash the book but let’s just say it’s like the movie Mean Girls on steroids but without the humor and something extremely weird about the clique.

Two sisters very close, the oldest one, Harper has basically given up everything so that the younger and gorgeous sister Gemma get’s to live a more ‘normal’ life after their mother dies when they are extremely young. Living in a tourist town they get their share of different strokes kind of folks but a group of drop dead beautiful girls come to stay for the summer and there is just something not quite right about them. When they start pulling Gemma into their clique, Harper starts to worry…and she should be, she should be very worried.

I cannot wait for the next addition as Amanda did leave us with a cliffy, I have a love/hate relationship with those! Wake is full of thrills, eerie suspense and mystery as I watch the spiders start to weave their evil nest and wonder just do these girls want with Gemma? There’s some seriously scary moments and some romance but not to heavy on that yet. Amanda just did a magnificent job making Wake a book that is incredibly difficult to put down.

THE FAERY SAYS ‘WAKE’ BY AMANDA HOCKING ROCKED MY WINGS!

[shady boots · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review is also available over at my blog.

____________________

Actual rating is 3.5 stars.

So this book is round three of my Mermaid Marathon (even though this is a book about sirens, but still). Starting it, I expected the worst, after seeing quite a few negative reviews for it. And also because Hocking's other novel that i read, Switched, was painfully bad. I had low hopes for this book, but I read it anyway because I do like siren YA books. Imagine my surprise when I actually ended up enjoying this book.

Harper and Gemma are sisters that live in the town of Capri, where there are three new mysterious girls visiting that has caught the attention of everyone in town. Penn, Thea and Lexi seemed to have set their sights on Gemma, and one night they lure her into the cove that they hang out in, and next thing you know Gemma ends up waking up on the beach feeling like something is wrong with her. She soon realizes how that one night changed her, made her stronger, faster, and more beautiful. But the three girls expect Gemma to leave her whole life and everything she's ever known to join their dark world, or else.

The book is told in third person and has multiple points of views, but mainly Harper and Gemma. Being the older sister, Harper acts as a mother figure to Gemma, since their mother became mentally ill after a car accident. I liked the two sisters, even though sometimes they may annoy me. Harper can be a tad too overprotective and Gemma can be just plain annoying, but I can't say they were completely unlikable.

There are two love interests in this book, one for each sister. Gemma's love interest is Alex, the geeky boy next door that she has a crush on. I found it a little weird how Alex is described as this sexy, toned, broad-shouldered guy even though it's apparent that he doesn't like to exercise, and that he spends most of his time in front of the computer, but oh well. He was just an okay character. Their romance was boring, so I didn't pay much attention to it at all, really.

Harper's love interest is Daniel, a guy who lives in a boat and who has this type of, and I quote, "grungy" sexiness to him. Now I can genuinely say that I liked Daniel a lot. By the way his appearance is described, he could have been the badboy character, but he's far from it. He seems like a really sweet guy, and I thought the romance between him and Harper was cute, cause there was a lot of denial and awkward moments. And it never moved too fast, like Gemma and Alex's romance did.

The three siren girls remind me of the Plastics from Mean Girls. Penn is the Regina George of the group, and I thought she was a rather cartoonish type of villain, especially near the end. I was surprised she didn't just do an evil laugh. Thea was I guess the Gretchen Wieners of the group, but to be honest, Thea never really did much of anything the whole book. She was just... there. I sometimes forgot she was there, to be honest. And then there's Lexi, who is hands down the Karen Smith of the group, all dumb and happy-go-lucky. We find out some back story about these girls eventually, and how they became what they are and why they do what they do.

The ending was a pretty big cliffhanger, and I can't deny that I'm looking forward for the sequel's release. This was overall a pretty enjoyable book and a quick read, although it does fall into my "guilty pleasures" category, cause before I read it, I was expecting to hate it. Well done in proving me wrong, Amanda Hocking.

[Katie (Kitkatscanread) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gemma is a very beautiful girl & loves the sea. It gives her freedom, and she feels safe there. Gemma then starts falling in love with the boy next door, Alex, who was always the best friend, but this summer, they have decided to take their relationship to the next level. Harper, her sister, has a caring bone inside her, and has looked after Gemma ever since their Mum had a terrible accident. Three strange girls have arrived in town. They are fearless, gorgeous and enticing, and although they have captured everyone's attention, it's Gemma they are interested in, and they want her to be part of their group. One night, Gemma decides to take a swim, when she finds the three girls having a party on the cove. They invite her, and draw her in into drinking a mysterious concoction. The next morning, Gemma wakes up feeling different, and immediately knows something is wrong. Gemma is faster, stronger and beautiful than before. As she tries to uncover the truth, she ends up being torn between leaving her family, or going off with the strange girls, and entering a world with so many different possibilities.


This is the first book I have ever read from the author Amanda Hocking. It is the first book in the 'Watersong' series. I have heard a load of good things about this new series from her, and I decided to take the plunge, and I'm glad I did.
All the characters are like-able in this. The story mainly revolves around the two sisters Gemma and Harper, and the things that their life encounters. I feel sorry for both of them because their Mum had a terrible accident, and is now in a home where they occasionally visit her, normally on a Saturday. The Mum has to be constantly reminded who they are and why they're there upon every visit. You then have the three mysterious girls: Penn, Lexi and Thea. They seem to have a certain danger about them, and when they enter a room all eyes are on them. The Dad only plays a minor part in this story, as he is normally working a lot, and he tends to be very forgetful with his lunch for work, which Harper normally makes for him and brings to him. Finally, you have the two guy interests of the sisters. Alex is the typical friend who suddenly becomes hot, and he begins his relationship with Gemma. Daniel lives on a boat by the dock, which was left to him. There are definite romantic sparks between Harper and Daniel, but because Harper is going to study in a couple of months, she is holding back.
There is a nice size to this book. The chapters aren't too short, nor too long. Not a lot happens in this novel, and it probably seems that way as it is being spread across a series.
I wouldn't say there was anything I disliked about the story, as I do enjoy books about mermaids and sirens, etc. I can't wait to read the next book from this series.
I really like the cover design to this. Not only is it blue, which is my favourite colour, but it holds a certain mystery behind it.
Overall, I give this book five stars because I liked the storyline, would recommend, and would most definitely read again, if given the time.
Add this book to your "to read" list, because I give it two thumbs up.

Happy reading =)

[María · Rating 1 out of 5]

La verdad es que cuando comencé a leer este libro no esperaba encontrar lo que me terminé encontrando.
Primeramente, he tenido la sensación de que prácticamente no había historia, que no estaba pasando nada. Se qué este libro es el primero de una saga, pero creo que es demasiado introductorio. La verdad es que me ha terminado aburriendo y eso que es bastante corto.
Lo poco que ha pasado en este libro ha sido súper predecible y aburrido. Además había cosas que no tenían sentido. No me puedo creer que la policía esté buscando a algunas personas desaparecidas y de repente dos adolescentes que van paseando por un sendero se los encuentran a todos. ¿Pero cómo me voy a creer eso? Esto me dio la sensación de que realmente la autora no se esmeró mucho a la hora de construir la historia.
Los personajes me han parecido horribles y no porque me gustaran o no, sino porque me ha dado la sensación de que estaban muy mal construidos. Me parecían muy estúpidos, ya que todo era súper evidente y ellos no se daban cuenta xD. Además, la historia no profundiza en ninguno de los personajes. Es todo súper superficial.
El libro está lleno de "casualidades" y de situaciones muy forzadas que no me han convencido para nada.
Es posible que todo lo que he comentado se deba a que la autora decidió hacer el primer libro muy introductorio, pero tengo la sensación de que realmente es la forma de escribir de esta mujer.
Lo único que me ha gustado del libro ha sido la historia de las sirenas. La verdad es que me intrigan algunas cosas sobre eso, pero probablemente no vaya a continuar la saga.
Por último, sólo decir que le doy 1.5 estrellas ya que no me ha gustado mucho.

[ManDIY's Life · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bei dem Buch bekommt man einfach solche Lust mal wieder ins Meer zu springen oder am Strand zu liegen. Ausserdem mochte ich es viel lieber als Meeresflüstern, mit dem ich es jetzt mal vergleiche, da das einzige Meerjungfrauen Buch ist, das ich sonst noch gelesen habe.
Hier geht es relativ schnell zur Sache und die Geschichte verliert auch nicht an Action. Ausserdem liebe ich Amanda Hockings Schreibstil. Es lässt sich so gut lesen ohne dass man dabei das Gefühl hat ein 08/15 Buch in der Hand zu halten.
Echt empfehlenswert für all die Meerjungfrauen/Sirenen Bücher lieben.
Und weiter gehts mit Band 2 ;D

[Abigail · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ehhhhhhhhh.... I have heard great things about this book but it was not my cup of tea. I felt like the characters weren't well written and neither was the storyline. It felt rushed and didn't provide enough detail. I might continue with the series, but I am not sure. I just wasn't immersed in this book.

[Ruby Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book 162 this year, HOW THE HECK DID I READ SO MUCH????

First off this book had so much violence. This is like the dark take on all the siren stories, and I like that. It also gave me some more greek history background which is wonderful because I mean who gets bored with greek mythology right? Anyways, this book was a wonderful addition to my read list for 2020.

WARNING: Spoilers may be throughout this next part... skip down to see my age recommendation for content.

Penn, Lexi, and Thea:

Oh. My. Gosh. Don't get me started, this might be the one time that I want to actually use a bad word to describe book characters. But I won't, because I am a good person who doesn't swear. Lucky for them. I, as a big sister, feel so bad for her. I mean come on. Loose your mom, and then your younger sister... it is so sad.

ROMANCE!!!

Yessssssssssssssss! This was the perfect clean romance! I was so happy for a change of hitting everything in the past 5 books I have read. This one was a bit more on the pushy clean romance but it wasn't intence pushy romance. So that is why it isn't on my pushy romance shelf... it is between regular clean romance and all the content in the more pushy books I have read.

But anyways... who can deal with the whole falling for the neighbor story. Though I did like the other romance a bit better.

(Also, sorry, I am forgetting names right now for some reason)

You would think that they boy in the boat just wanted to pull her up, because, as everyone who reads romance knows, the boy almost always has the crush first for some reason... I mean there are a few that have the girl first but most the time it is just the girl obsessing and the guy has a crush on her or has liked her already.

AGE RECOMMENDATION: 6-9/10 (Violent moments, and some murder, violence is a bit gory, a more mature reader that can watch/read the later Harry Potter books should be fine but I would be weary. Check my profile for how I rate.)

That's all. Thanks for reading my review! I love recommendations and I LOVE even more to give them, so just ask if you want some :) Follow me for more reviews like this one. Happy Reading! -Ruby Rose