Part Of Your World: A Twisted Tale Book Review

 Part Of Your World: A Twisted Tale Review

Book Name: Part of Your World: A Twisted Tale

Author Name: Liz Braswell

Genre: Fantasy

Release Date: September 4, 2018

Page Number: 482 pages

Review:

    What if Ursula had won?

    Five years after Ariel went to the above world and was defeated by the sea witch, Ursula. She has lost everything; her father, her voice, her carefree life, and Eric… Now she rules the Mer-people of Atlantica voiceless. But one day a message arrives from Scuttle; Ariel’s father, King Triton, is alive! He is being held hostage by Ursula.

    Using the powers of the trident, Ariel returns to land to save her father. As she looks for a way to free him, Ariel learns that Ursula has turned Eric’s peaceful land into a military force.  The sea witch also plans to conquer surrounding countries. It doesn’t help that in a rash decision, Ariel gets her voice back by smashing Ursula’s necklace. Now Ursula knows she has returned, putting everyone Ariel loves in danger, but it also releases Eric from Ursula’s spell. Eric and Ariel team up to end the sea witch; but will they succeed?

    This is author Liz Braswell’s best Disney Twisted Tale book in my opinion. I was interested and excited throughout the book, hoping Ariel would get her father back. I also had fun with Ursula’s schemes. I feel the characters are slightly changed for the better while keeping their movie selves intact.

    Ariel is still Ariel but acts more mature thanks to ruling Atlantica for the past five years. She has times when she still does things even if it might turn out bad. Like how she smashes Ursula’s necklace to get her voice back even though she loses the element of surprise over the sea witch. Also, it’s cute to read her thoughts about her feelings for Eric. It’s fun to read Eric’s and Ursula’s interactions as well. The dinner scene is just hilarious! Seeing Eric’s super-good guy ways and how it makes Ursula underestimate him is also sweet. I wish there were more parts where we read his feelings for Ariel as they were adorable what little was there.

    The new characters were fine, but they needed more page time. Argent is a fun tattoo artist and a ‘not what she seems’ granny character and Jona gave some interesting interactions with both Ariel and Eric. Vareet as Ursula’s maid was a good concept but needed more exploration. There are some things that are brought up that mess with both this story and the original. For this story, it’s that Ursula says Ariel’s power wains due to the tides and moon. This leads to thinking Ariel leaves when her power is weakest and comes back when it's strong again many times, making this plot point a bit worthless. It also messes with the original movie plot. Does this mean Ariel would not be able to be with Eric as a human-like she wanted? This version does say Ariel will spend time in both worlds, but it still affects the original poorly.

    Though Conceal, Don’t Feel is still my favorite Disney Twisted Tale book, I feel Part of Your World has become my second! It’s a good twist on The Little Mermaid and I give this book four out of five stars.

Rating:

⭐⭐⭐⭐✰

I Song Like This Book: 

Running Up That Hill by Kate Bush

 The Little Mermaid: Against the Tide Book Review

Book Name: The Little Mermaid: Against the Tide

Author Name: J. Elle

Genre: Fantasy/Mystery

Release Date: April 11,2023

Page Number: 320 Pages

Review:

    Ariel is so excited; she’s about to be crowned Protector of her own region of the great sea! Her six other sisters already rule their own sections of the sea as Protectors. But sadly, they seem so busy with their duties that they never get together and the times they do they are always fighting. When Ariel finds out her father, King Triton, is able to arrange for her sisters to attend her Protector’s ceremony, she is determined to fix the sisters’ relationships.

    The night before the Protector’s ceremony Ariel convinces her sisters to accompany her to their mother’s memorial. The sea queen passed when Ariel was a little girl, making her remember very little of her. Her sisters on the other hand swap fun tales of times spent with their mother, finally starting to mend their sisterly bonds. Ariel Is thrilled her plan worked and hopes the family can start moving forward together.

    But the next day tragedy strikes! Ariel’s oldest sister, Mala, Is kidnapped right before Ariel’s Protector ceremony! Chaos ensues with merfolk, sea creatures, and sea monsters turning on each other. The note Found in Mala’s bedroom does not help matters. It reads: King Triton must give up the throne in exchange for Mala, or else!  It does not help that a growing group of the sea want a new ruler. With the help of her sister Perla, Ariel sets out to find Mala before it’s too late.

    This was a fun companion book to the live-action Little Mermaid by Disney. Well, more of a prequel really. This book really is about grief and holding it in. We read how each member of Ariel’s family suffered from the passing of her mother and learn the different ways they tried but failed to manage it. For example, Ariel’s sister Tamika, who was closest to Ariel when she was young, shut herself away for years and made very little contact with the outside world. Or how Ariel realizes she never really showed sadness for her mother, just tried to stay happy and upbeat for other's benefit. I liked how Ariel was able to reach and pull each of her family members out to properly grieve. She is also very determined, not giving up on the quest to find Mala no matter how little clues she has.

    I find it interesting and a bit disappointing that the author decided to have a lot of things iconic to Ariel first shown in this book. It only takes place a little before the movie, but Ariel is not friends with Flounder. In fact, they do not meet until one-third into the story. Also, Ariel is not really interested in human things, but it does grow as the book progresses. She finds her hidden grotto in this book as well. I just feel some of these points should have been established beforehand, like having Flounder and Ariel already friends.

    Overall, I think this is a good book, especially if you are a fan of the new Disney live-action Little Mermaid and want to enjoy more adventures with this version of Ariel. Also, I feel it is a great way to explore grief and the different ways people deal with it. I give The Little Mermaid: Against the Tide a four out of five and look forward to reading more books written by J. Elle.

Rating:

⭐⭐⭐⭐✰

Song Like This Book: 

Lend Me Your Voice By Kylie McNeil

Mermaid Book Recommendations

 Mesmerizing Mermaids!!!

    Found in many cultures worldwide, Mermaids are a staple of folklore. The mythical creature is often shown with the upper half of a woman and the lower half of a fish. They can be benevolent like in the famous tale The Mermaid, where a mermaid falls in love with a human, or terrible. Some tales depicted them luring men and ships to tragic fates. They’re better known as Serins in those stories. These have led to tons of stories starring these beings throughout history and here are five I am recommending you should read!

Book 1: To Kill a Kingdom

    This first book features great characters along with fun and exciting scenes that will have you on the edge of your seat as you read this cool twist on the Little Mermaid tale.

Book Name: To Kill a Kingdom

Author Name: Alexandra Christo

Genre: Fantasy Retelling

Release Date: March 6, 2018

Book Number: Standalone

Number of Pages: 344 pages

Book Description:

    Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all. With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection, she is revered across the sea. Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own. To punish her daughter, the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most—a human. Robbed of her song, Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen or remain a human forever.

    The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home, even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world. Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby—it’s his calling. When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean, she’s more than what she appears. She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of Siren's kind for good—But can he trust her? And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy?

Book 2: Part of Your World - A Twisted Tale

    Next is a book part of a series that takes some parts of Disney movies and twists them to completely change the story! This one takes on Disney's version of The Little Mermaid!

Book Name: Part of Your World - A Twisted Tale

Author Name: Liz Braswell

Genre: Fantasy

Release Date: September 4, 2018

Book Number: 1 of 13 (More in development)

Number of Pages: 475 pages

Book Description:

    What if Ariel had never defeated Ursula?

    Five years after the (twisted) events of the film, Ariel is now the queen of Atlantica, and Ursula is running Eric's kingdom on land. But when the sea witch threatens Atlantica once more, Ariel finds herself returning to a world (and a prince) she thought she'd left behind forever.

Book 3: Skin of the Sea

    This book follows a mermaid having to try and make amends after doing the unthinkable: saving a human.

Book Name: Skin of the Sea

Author Name: Natasha Bowen

Genre: Fantasy

Release Date: November 9, 2021

Book Number: 1 of 2

Number of Pages: 336 pages

Book Description:

A way to survive.
A way to serve.
A way to save.

Simi prayed to the gods, once. Now she serves them as Mami Wata--a mermaid--collecting the souls of those who die at sea and blessing their journeys back home.

But when a living boy is thrown overboard, Simi goes against an ancient decree and does the unthinkable--she saves his life. And punishment awaits those who dare to defy the gods.

To protect the other Mami Wata, Simi must journey to the Supreme Creator to make amends. But all is not as it seems. There's the boy she rescued, who knows more than he should. And something is shadowing Simi, something that would rather see her fail . . .

Danger lurks at every turn, and as Simi draws closer, she must brave vengeful gods, treacherous lands, and legendary creatures. Because if she fails, she risks not only the fate of all Mami Wata but also the world as she knows it.

Book 4: Sea Witch

    We always read about the mermaid that swapped her voice for legs to be with the human she loves, but what about the Sea Witch? What's her story? This book explores just that.

Book Name: Sea Witch

Author Name: Sarah Henning

Genre: Fantasy

Release Date: July 31, 2018

Book Number: 1 of 2

Number of Pages: 368 pages

Book Description:

    Everyone knows what happens in the end. A mermaid, a prince, a true love’s kiss. But before that young siren’s tale, there were three friends. One feared, one royal, and one already dead.

    Ever since her best friend, Anna, drowned, Evie has been an outcast in her small fishing town. A freak. A curse. A witch.

    A girl with an uncanny resemblance to Anna appears offshore and, though the girl denies it, Evie is convinced that her best friend actually survived. That her own magic wasn’t so powerless after all. And, as the two girls catch the eyes—and hearts—of two charming princes, Evie believes that she might finally have a chance at her own happily ever after.

    But her new friend has secrets of her own. She can’t stay in Havnestad, or on two legs unless Evie finds a way to help her. Now Evie will do anything to save her friend’s humanity, along with her prince’s heart—harnessing the power of her magic, her ocean, and her love until she discovers, too late, the truth of her bargain.

Book 5: Prince of Song and Sea

    When you watch Disney's The Little Mermaid, did you ever wonder about Prince Eric's side of the story? Then this is the book for you! it is also the first in a new series exploring the Disney Princess movie from the love interest point of view!

Book Name: Prince of Song and Sea

Author Name: Linsey Miller

Genre: Fantasy

Release Date: October 4, 2022

Book Number: 1 of to be determined

Number of Pages: 352 pages

Book Description:

    Before Prince Eric’s mother, the Queen of Vellona, went missing two years ago, she reminded him about the details of the deadly curse that has plagued his entire life. The curse? If he were to kiss someone other than his true love, he would die. With a neighboring kingdom looking for any excuse to invade their shores, and rumors of ghost pirates lurking on the seas, Eric is desperate for any information that may help him break his enchantment and bring stability to Vellona. The answers he has been searching for come to him in the form of a letter left from his mother that reveals Eric must find his true love, the one with a voice pure of heart, or kill the sea witch responsible for cursing him in the first place.

    Now Eric is on a quest to find the Isle of Serein, the witch's legendary home. But after he is rescued by a mysterious young woman with a mesmerizing singing voice, Eric’s heart becomes torn. Does he enter a battle he is almost certain he cannot win or chase a love that might not even exist? And when a shipwrecked young woman with flaming red hair and a smile that could calm the seven seas enters his life, Eric may discover that true love isn’t something that can be decided by magic.

Conclusion 

    Do any of these books sound interesting to you? Have you read any of these books? Let me know in the comments below! You can also drop any of your own mermaid book recommendations. Who knows, it could lead to a part 2 mermaid recommendation post!