I honestly could not bring myself to waste any more time on something I was not enjoying much.
I prefer more action in my stories. And the writing is too simple and makes this feel like a middlegrade (in a really bad way).

FINAL VERDICT : SKIP IT. (there's plenty fish in the sea) ( )

No joke, I had tears in my eyes at the end of this book. ( )

okay. this is a complicated one.

i undertsand why so many people liked it so much- i really do. its sweet, and the fact that its about selkies definitely adds a lil something, because there are not a lot of those (unfortunate!! make more selkie books, you cowards!!) and from the get go the whole thing feels new and spicy. however! i do have a couple issues with it. namely:

morgan, the seal boi, is absolutely clueless about the human world -understandable. hes full with curiosity and permanently awestruck, which yea, i also would be if i were a seal my entire life and raw fish were all i know and then all of a sudden i had legs and a partner and potato chips. but the execution of this awe is... questionable, in that it comes off as childish. which would be fine in, say, a middle grade or something along those lines. but these characters are hormonal teenagers and all that childlike innocence doesn't really fit with the scenes that involve butt stuff. no, really, butt stuff is fine and all, and nothing is explicit, but morgan is about to turn seventeen... yet he doesn't feel a day older than thirteen. so the entire ordeal just doesn't strike the way it's supposed to.

also, along with this awestruck attitude comes a big serving of not knowing social cues to any degree or capacity. and though morgan is cute and i did come to love him, the first version of morgan that kevin knows, thinking hes just a regular human being... unfortunately wouldn't be likeable. imagine you just met this guy, right?, and you've hung out maybe twice and he's already introducing himself to your mom by going "hello im morgan and i love keving luong. sir, what?? thats not a person you keep hanging out with! we, as readers, can like him because we know where the cluelessness comes from, and kevin may come to like him over time, but the initial reaction simply wouldn't be as positive as it was. there's no way. not a chance.

so, the first half is worse than the second one. its also not as compelling, a little slower, which is fine. once kevin comes to actually know morgan and a rhythm is established, the dynamics get better and more normal and you can actually focus on the plot. is there a plot? alas! there is one! there's several, actually. im still not entirely sure which one is the MAIN conflict, because there's like, three of them. and one of them i simply never understood the resolution of -the one at the very end. im genuinely still puzzled. pleased, but bamboozled regardless.

other points i would criticize: 1. the descriptions of the scenery were really vivid and pleasant, and i enjoyed them because, the sea, duh. but, although the narrator switches between morgan and kevin, at no point do we get a vivid physical description of either of them...? which is confusing considering how much time they spend oggling each other (good for them)!

also, 2. i had read that in terms of representation, this book had a mlm relationship, an asian bisexual male character, and a chubby male character. i would assume morgan was the latter, but nothing actually pointed there...? which was disppointing!! he was a seal!! it would make sense, since, you know, fat for the cold and all that- i think it would even be expected. but the only mention regarding the topic was when kevin says "morgan doesnt have a six pack (and hes still the hottest selkie he's ever seen)", and then morgan pokes his tummy or something along those lines, which is fine and nice, but not exactly how body positivity works or what i had expected. i think its time we get more chubby characters that get the love story and are considered beautiful and i think it should be blatant and unapologetic.

3. at times the narration seemed inconsistent or confusing? like, at one point its daytime, and kevin is just doing his thing, and the he has two conversations and suddenly its midnight, and youre like wait, what? how did THAT happen? and then also- did i mention i didnt understand the ending? either the terms of the bargain weren't clear from the get go, or the changed in the middle of the entire thing. so, which is it? (or am i simply dumb and cant read? also an option)

4. some of the characters feel like caricatures that are just there to fill the gap. like kevin's older sister, and his ex/asshole little grimey neighbor. the rest are okay but not super relevant or poignant. also, morgan's mom's name is linette. shouldn't selkies get cooler names? why linette?

5. im not sure whether the plot twists were supposed to be twisty or simply plotty, but they're not super sleek. i can safely say one of them i called immediately, and another i knew would happen, just didnt know exactly in which way. that doesn't bother me, but its not a thriller (which is fine!)

the lore is handled really well- props to that. it kind of ties in all of the versions of the stories, but it doesn't seem jumbled in a messy way. it makes sense, and i like that, because selkies truly deserve it.

all in all, i know im really picking at it. i didnt not enjoy it. i dont regret reading it to any degree or capacity, i think its a sweet story, and a brave one at that (once again, give me more selkies please im begging). i also think it could have been better. i have bones to pick because my expectations were over the roof, but its still a cute, comfy book! i'm in the middle of the lane with this one. i give it a pat on the back for a good afternoon. ( )

I admit I am a bit biased, because I love selkies. I have long wanted a selkie paranormal romance book, so I was excited to read this. Overall, it was cute and I enjoyed it. I did think the romance felt a bit rushed, and it felt lacking in conflict. I would recommend it, if you like selkies, or want to read a cute gay romance. ( )

Apparently this one might require hand holding. ;) BR with Marco.

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