This book really creeped me out I was surprised. I don’t read that much horror. ( )

what happens when you mix the culture of the Iron Islands, Cuthulu, the Barbie 12 Dancing Princesses movie, and YA drama? this book is what happens. ( )

I really did enjoy the book. I wish there was some type of family tree to make the understanding of who the sisters where because it was hard to remember who is who. I thought this was such a eery read and it was super compelling. I really did enjoy the setting of the book and also the main character as well. I thought the world building in this book could have been stronger at points and clearer. I really did enjoy the romance that was tossed in and it was very fast pace read. Sometime the framework and the plot was harder to follow, but overall if you are looking for a creepy fall read set at a beach place with fairytale tossed in, this might be the read for you. ( )

I really did enjoy the book. I wish there was some type of family tree to make the understanding of who the sisters where because it was hard to remember who is who. I thought this was such a eery read and it was super compelling. I really did enjoy the setting of the book and also the main character as well. I thought the world building in this book could have been stronger at points and clearer. I really did enjoy the romance that was tossed in and it was very fast pace read. Sometime the framework and the plot was harder to follow, but overall if you are looking for a creepy fall read set at a beach place with fairytale tossed in, this might be the read for you. ( )

Ironically, I came across this book while looking for mermaid stories. The cover is beautiful and so is the title - I was intrigued! Then I found out it was a Twelve Dancing Princesses retelling, a story of a town by the sea, and it had Gods and Goddesses, and part mystery-romance-fantasy-horror? I was sold and couldn't wait to dive in.

Annaleigh Thaumas is one of twelve daughters, who lives in Highmoor, a city by the sea, with her father and pregnant stepmother. Her sisters have been dying one by one, following her mother's death, in gruesome, mysterious ways, and she becomes determined to find out who - or what - is responsible. Along the way, she attends magical balls, falls in love with a mysterious newcomer, and tries to figure out if what she's seeing and experiencing is real. Told from first person POV from Annaleigh's perspective.

I loved the setting and the descriptions. The author clearly is talented in this area! I clearly felt and saw what the author wanted us to feel. The setting is unique...people of the salt. I loved it. There are a lot of twists in this story, but I was able to figure out who the perpetrator was and their motive - it's quite clear from the first moment you meet that character. I also loved the story of sisterly love and how they all banded together to solve the mystery of their family "curse". The descriptions of the outfits and balls were beautifully written and I wanted to be right there with the girls while they danced the night away. That being said, I did like the ending and the big twist at the end. And there's a HEA.

I thought the biggest issue was that since it incorporated so many different genres, each of them felt a little underdeveloped. Personally I wanted to learn more about all the Gods and Goddesses. It just felt like they were touched upon, yet some of them played quite a bit into the plot. The romance between Annaleigh and Cassius was underdeveloped and I didn't feel the chemistry or the undying love between the two. Frankly, I thought the book could have done without the romance aspect, and it still would have been really interesting. And because there were so many characters, I felt like I didn't get a good sense of any of them. Even Annaleigh, whose POV the story is told through. Many times I was getting the characters mixed up. If one was mentioned, then wasn't mentioned again until a few chapters later, I had completely forgotten who they were or what their purpose was. I felt like all I knew about Annaleigh was that she's determined, and loves her sisters, and I didn't get much else from her personality. I also didn't think the book needed to be as long as it did - I felt like a lot of chapters in the middle weren't needed, as nothing happened. I skimmed those chapters and still felt like I didn't miss much.

This story made me want to go back to the ocean and it certainly made me miss smelling the sea breeze. I enjoyed the book and I did want to know what happened at the end. ( )