Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Midnight Pearls: A Retelling of "The Little Mermaid" by Debbie Viguié

        
Midnight Pearls: A Retelling of 
"The Little Mermaid"
by Debbie Viguié
Summary from Goodreads:

"In a quiet fishing village seventeen years ago, one lone fisherman rescued a child from the sea. He and his wife raised the girl, Pearl, as their own daughter, never allowing themselves to wonder long about where she came from -- or notice her silver hair, usually pale skin, and wide, dark blue eyes.

Pearl grows from a mysterious child into an unusual young woman, not always welcomed in the village. As all the other girls her age find husbands, she has only one friend to ease her loneliness. One very special, secret companion: Prince James.

But their friendship is shaken when trouble erupts in the kingdom -- a conspiracy against the royal family combines with an evil enchantment from beneath the sea. Now, just when Pearl and James need each other most, bewitching magic and hints about Pearl's past threaten to tear them apart...forever."

Rating:
Two happily-ever-after tale endings. 

I’ve made presumptions that Pearl and James would be the couple in this tale but the author mixed in two characters that twisted this tale into a whole new level.

I love the concept and how sweetly this tale was retold. My only problem was the climax. I was anxiously excited to know how Pearl and the Sea Witch would end up when they faced each other, but the event was rather too abrupt and short; one moment it was happening then, like with a snap of your fingers, it was finished. 

This tale was entirely simple and nothing that enwrapping but either way, I enjoyed it.