Title: Hunting Sirens

Series: Legends of Neverland #2

Author: Mary Mecham

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Retelling, Romance

Rating: 4.5 stars

Review:

She was destined to hunt sirens to extinction… but can she complete her mission before one of them captures her heart?

Trapped on an island nation and surrounded by bloodthirsty sirens, the starving people of Haven Harbor are losing hope. Treva, a Deaf blacksmith immune to the tempting call of the sirens lurking in the deep, steps into the perilous role of Siren Hunter. If she can rid the waters of enough sirens, her people could be free at last.

Unbeknownst to her, another creature dwells in the sea, even more ferocious than the dreaded sirens. When Treva faces the monster and loses, her life is saved by a handsome siren who has no voice. Can mortal enemies set their differences aside long enough to unite their nations? Or will Treva ignore her growing feelings and finish what she started?

Treva is certain of one thing—that the famed Siren Hunter of Haven Harbor would never fall for one of her prey. – summary from Goodreads

Hunting Sirens is an action-packed take on the Little Mermaid with secrets, disability representation, and romance!

This book was so good! I loved this book so much, and I highly recommend it. Everything about this book worked for me, and is an absolutely amazing Little Mermaid retelling.

This book takes place after the events of Becoming Hook. You could read this as a standalone, but Captain Hook, Tinkerbell, and Peter Pan make an appearance, and their story wouldn’t make a lot of sense if you didn’t read the first book.

I liked seeing Captain Hook and Tinkerbell again. They were not big characters, though they played a role in the story. I just loved seeing them married!

There is wonderful disability representation in this book! The main character, Treva, is Deaf, so there are no sound descriptions in this book. Treva used sign language to communicate with others, and there was a lot of reflection on how many people couldn’t communicate with her. One of the things I really liked was that she never got frustrated with other people’s struggles with communicating with her. She was patient with them. Another aspect that I really liked was that Treva didn’t complain about being Deaf and people didn’t treat her like a victim because she was. They treated her kindly, and Treva pointed out that being Deaf had some benefits in certain situations. I just really like that this representation was present and positive! The other main character, Bayne, was mute, as well. I also loved this representation!

Treva was an amazing character! She was strong and tough, but also caring for others. She could be gruff, which I loved seeing in a female main character. Sometimes these gruffer personalities can feel forced or overdone in books, but Treva felt like a natural and realistic character. She was also a blacksmith, which I found interesting. I loved her character arc as well. She came to care for others in a deeper way, as well as understand the siren culture.

Bayne was the absolute best! He gave off golden retriever energy and I loved it! He was so sweet and caring, and I loved his relationship with Treva. He truly cared for her, and I enjoyed his curiosity surrounding human culture. His learning to walk was definitely one of the best scenes! And the twist surrounding him at the end of the book wasn’t totally shocking, but still a surprise!

I loved the relationship between Treva and Bayne! They were so cute together and I loved them. They were enemies to lovers, and I liked how this was done. There was true animosity and fear between the two cultures, and that didn’t go away quickly. It felt realistic. They were so protective and sweet with each other, and I loved this relationship so much!

I love how Mecham twisted the tale of the Little Mermaid so much! It was so interesting to read. Treva was the Siren Hunter to protect her people. We got to see her enter into this role through the course of the book, and we got to see her deal with the emotional consequences of this role. It was a very interesting take on the Little Mermaid, and I loved it!

One other thing that I really liked about this book was the positive family members! Anybody that has followed me for a while knows that I love family relationships that are positive, and I find it missing from most media. So, I loved Treva’s family, including her extended family. They all cared about and loved each other so much, and there was wonderful conversations. I also love that there was a nice parent/child relationship between Treva and her parents. She sometimes disagreed with her mother, but they still got along wonderfully, and I loved that.

Hunting Sirens is a fascinating gender-bent retelling of the Little Mermaid, with action, romance, and secrets!

Quotes:

“‘I will follow you, Treva. Whether I need legs or a tail, on land or the sea, into battle or during peace, I want to be with you.’”

“‘If you are going to kill me, Treva, then do it quickly. I don’t want to live without you.’”