Author: Amanda Hocking
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Publication Date: August 7, 2012
Pages: 309
Source: Hardcover/Library
Fall under the spell of Wake—the first book in an achingly beautiful new series by celebrated author Amanda Hocking—and lose yourself to the Watersong.
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.
Review: I had no idea what to think of this book when I picked it up. I've heard mixed reviews on it and I decided to just read it for myself and form my own opinion. This is the first book I've read about Sirens. I had mostly good feelings about this book. I really enjoyed reading about the little background story on how the girls became Sirens. I do want to know more about the Sirens in general though. I know there was things the girls held back from Gemma about being a Siren after they turned her and I really want to know what those things are! I found the Siren girls creepy at first with how they kept trying to convince Gemma to hang out with them. I also thought it was just rude that the girls just thought they could turn anyone they wanted into a Siren without them fighting back. Really? Lol. I've kinda warmed up to the Sirens though because they are obviously a big part of the book. My fave out of them though is Lexi because she seems to be the nicest and most considerate of Gemma's feelings.
I felt really bad for Gemma! She didn't ask to become a Siren, but somehow she gets stuck with being one. She had to leave her whole life behind because of that and that's so unfair to her. The Sirens may have thought they were giving her everything by making her one of them with how much she loved swimming but they never took into consideration her feelings. And Alex! I really liked Alex! He was such a good boyfriend to Gemma and to have to put them both through the pain of losing each other just sucks! I don't know if I believe that stuff about if how Alex really loved Gemma he would have been able to overcome the Sirens powers. You don't know if they were lying or if they can do something that would make it where he cant overcome their powers even if he tried. We just don't know that. It's not like the girls have been exactly forthcoming with information.
Harper. She tried so hard to take care of Gemma and then all of a sudden Gemma just starts rebelling. If only Harper had known what happened to Gemma she might have understood it. I felt so bad for her. She was constantly worried about her sister and she couldn't do anything to help her. She was right to have bad feelings about the Sirens. They are just bad news all around. I just hope Harper is able to do something to save Gemma in the upcoming books. I loved Harpers little thing with Daniel. It was so cute and funny. It's like she was determined to avoid him even when she knew she wanted to see him. I was seriously like "just admit you like him." It was so obvious! And Daniel seems like a good enough guy, I can't wait to see more of him in the upcoming books as well.
I did really wish we learned more about the Siren girls though. We learned a ton about Gemma and her family but I feel like we know just the basics about the girls and their Siren background. I hope we learn more about them in the upcoming books as well!
4 Stars!
