Wake (Watersong, #1) by Amanda Hocking - Review

Now I have to tell you that I feel as though I've mislead you all. This will not be a full fledged review because I did not make it all the way through Wake by Amanda Hocking. Please continue reading to find out why...

First and foremost, let me give you a little background on what her first novel in the Watersong series is about. I don't normally copy and paste the synopsis from Goodreads, but I feel like I have to for this book to give you a fair representation of the plot since I did not complete the book:

Gorgeous. 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, Lexi and Thea have caught everyone's attention—but it’s Gemma who’s attracted theirs. She’s the one they’ve chosen to be part of their group.

Gemma seems to have it all—she’s carefree, pretty, and falling in love with Alex, the boy next door. He’s always been just a friend, but this summer they’ve taken their relationship to the next level, and now there’s no going back. Then one night, Gemma’s ordinary life changes forever. She’s taking a late night swim under the stars when she finds Penn, Lexi and Thea partying on the cove. They invite her to join them, and the next morning she wakes up on the beach feeling groggy and sick, knowing something is different.

Suddenly Gemma is stronger, faster, and more beautiful than ever. But her new powers come with a terrifying price. And as she uncovers the truth, she’s is forced to choose between staying with those she loves—or entering a new world brimming with dark hungers and unimaginable secrets

Let me preface my review by reminding you that I am an Amanda Hocking fanatic. She's great! I started reading her books when they were 99 cents on Amazon and had spelling mistakes. Today, they still remain some of my favorite all time books. I'm talking particularly about her Trylle series... literally to die for and if you haven't picked them up, I recommend that you do.

Since that is out of the way, I have to tell you that I was supremely disappointed in this story. One of the best parts of Hocking's novels are the way that they make you feel. When reading one of her books, you are completely wrapped up in her stories emotionally and almost physically. I've cried numerous times and I've felt that tugging on my heart as the characters she created went through hardships. With Wake, I felt like I could never dive deep enough into the story (sorry for the lame play on words).

Her characters lacked personality which made them very hard to connect with. Gemma, our female lead, didn't have very many characteristics of a good heroine and I didn't find myself feeling sympathetic for her situation nor did I pull for her to succeed. There wasn't anything there for me to grab hold of. I did like the male lead, Daniel (kind of). He wasn't anywhere near one of my book crushes but I found him to be endearing and he had more personable qualities than the other characters.

In the small amount of book that I read, I felt like the story moved so slow. There were interesting moments, sure, but overall I was bored and kept putting the book down. In fact, I first tried reading this book the day it came out and told myself I simply wasn't in the mood. Today, I picked it back up and intended to finish the book, but I didn't get very far as you've probably guessed.

Overall, the idea of this story really drew me in. I was intrigued. This was a different kind of mermaid story and I thought it may just be up my alley. Unfortunately, it wasn't anywhere near my alley. I tend to be pretty picky with stories about merfolk, Of Poseidon by Anna Banks being the only  one I've liked so far (don't get me started on Lies Beneath). Maybe it was my aversion to mermaid stories or maybe I compared Wake to Hocking's older books, but either way I will not be picking this book up again.

Don't let this review turn you off of Amanda Hocking's other books, please! The Trylle series, The Hollows and  My Blood Approves series are so fun and original!

Happy Reading :)