Lies Beneath

everyone in this book is an idiot but like....killer mermaids tho...

This story is about a family of murderous mermaid energy vampires. Need I say more? It was a fun, quick read, and I look forward to the sequel.

Enjoyable read about a family of vengeful mermaids, with a bit of romance thrown it. It was also refreshing to read young adult fiction told through the eyes of a male character, in this case, Calder, a merman, who was torn between loyalties for his sisters and Lily, the love interest and daughter of the man the mermaids set out to kill.

Mermen, Mermaids and Promises Broken, that is what started out this whole vengeance drive this not so nice fishes have going on. When you make a promise to the menfolk you better keep it ! Well, of course somebody didn't and the issues trickled down a few generations to the present time where a young father is hunted to pay for the sins of his father. His teenage daughter just happens to be the lucky pawn girl the mermaids direct their revenge towards. Oh what a jumbled mess of love, lies and murder. The merman in charge of making the girl lusty begins to feel more than lusty, and starts to question his evil step sisters and ends up in the fishbowl for it all. This family drama has some funky tones to it that, well you'll see if you read it. There is a lot of self doubt, a lot of should searching and of course budding romance. It all ended with a mild cliffhanger, that didn't leave me clicking immediately for book 2. I enjoyed it, but something was missing.

Pretty solid 4 stars. Far better than some of the other mermaid books I read this summer.

Well crafted story. I'm not a YA fan, but can see how teens would enjoy this book. Sympathetic characters, good tension throughout, nice plot twist at the end that I didn't guess. Excellent pacing.

NOTE: I received this book to review from Netgalley.

I was very excited that I was given this book, and I'm really glad it didn't disappoint me. Granted, it wasn't anything superior, but it was a nice, light read, and I enjoyed it very much. I'm sure I could've finished it in one day, had I not been busy with a ton of other things.

Like I said, this was a very light read. Sure, there were monsters, several murders and such, but they weren't presented in a grotesque kind of way. We didn't get to see people's guts getting spilled out, or hear them scream in terror or agony or something. That was not disappointing at all.

What was slightly disappointing was that the concept didn't seem original to me. I mean, bad boy goes good, good girl goes bad, love spurts where it shouldn't. It's all sort of cliched.

Still though, I enjoyed the story, and had fun getting to know the characters.

*Calder was sweet, and those little urges he had from time to time didn't really mark him as a killer in my book. Honestly. Besides, he was trying to fight it, so that should count for something, right? What I couldn't accept though was how susceptible he was to his sisters and what they wanted of him. And the way he went on stalking Lily... it was creepy. Sort of.

*Lily wasn't the clueless girl who suddenly finds herself in the midst of trouble. She's quite aware actually, and she always seems to ask the right questions. I liked that about her. I also liked her love for poetry, and how she always found those verses that strung a chord in Calder's heart.

*Tallulah, one of Calder's sisters, was just so obvious. And that transformation she went thru... that was so... so... mermish I guess.

*Maris, the eldest sister, was the most ruthless one. I didn't like her, her coldness or her decision to pursue the unnecessary revenge.

*Pavati, the third sister wasn't impressive in any special way. I guess she was beautiful, but I didn't really feel it, nor did I care.

*Jack Pettit, the guy who had fallen in Pavati's nets... his appearances were just so random. I hope we find out more about him in the sequel.

All in all, I would recommend this book to readers who aren't afraid to let their imagination roam freely, and who want to read something light.

It took me a few weeks to finish this book. I wasn't able to connect with the characters the way I was hoping. The story line was great though.

I was confused when I first started reading because the main character is a male, and the cover shows a female. Even with that little aspect, the cover is gorgeous. Calder, the main character, and his sisters are mermaids. Don't expect any singing crustaceans because these aren't the Disney mermaids we are accustomed to. They are ruthless and murderous.

The relationships are odd. Calder and his sisters are pulled together every year. They can hear each others thoughts while under water. However, this only comes through when it's convenient. Calder is very stalker-like,and gave me the creeps most of the time. All of his actions seem forced. Nothing about him flowed with his character.

On to the story. I really enjoyed the author's writing style, and that's what kept me engaged. Her way with words helps move the story along. I definitely liked that the mermaids were sinister. It's nice reading a book where things aren't hunky dory. This book also shows that there are bad people otu there that are capable of having feelings and possibly redemption.

My Thoughts: This is so not the little mermaid but it is sweet and deadly. Jealous merpeople with killer instincts that feed off human emotions is fantastic. Though, I still like the nice mermaid stories,this a refreshing twist to the lore. Calder White is swoon worthy and although he is a killer, just couldn't help connecting with him and wanting him to be able to gain his freedom. He is different from his sisters as he was made rather than born a mermaid like his sisters. I was disturbed by one sister's unnatural attachment to Calder, even though they are not blood related, still gross. Now, the plot begins with his family seeking revenge for the death of their mother after Tom Hancock refused to keep his promise. His unsuspecting son Jason is responsible for paying that debt. The sisters come up with a plan to have Calder woo one of Hancock's daughters in an effort to lure their father to the water, but they never expected Calder to fall for Lily Hancock. He begins to question everything and realizes that the path to justice is not as clear as it seems. What starts out as deception to kill may be the one thing that can save Calder from the life he detests.The pace of this story moved at a steady pace and it was good to see the chemistry between Lily and Calder unfold gradually. The characters are fleshed out pretty well. The ending wasn't what I was expecting at all and I anxiously await the next book to see how things will turn out. So, good read about about family, love, sacrifice and truth.

* Hardcover: 320 pages * Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers (June 12, 2012) * ISBN-10: 0385742010 * Author: Anne Greenwood Brown * Cover Art: I like it. * Overall rating: ** 1/2 out of 5 stars * Obtained: From the publisher in exchange for a review.Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood BrownReviewed by Moirae the fates book reviews.Calder White lives in the cold, clear waters of Lake Superior, the only brother in a family of murderous mermaids. To survive, Calder and his sisters prey on humans, killing them to absorb their energy. But this summer the underwater clan targets Jason Hancock out of pure revenge. They blame Hancock for their mother's death and have been waiting a long time for him to return to his family's homestead on the lake. Hancock has a fear of water, so to lure him in, Calder sets out to seduce Hancock's daughter, Lily. Easy enough—especially as Calder has lots of practice using his irresistable good looks and charm on ususpecting girls. Only this time Calder screws everything up: he falls for Lily—just as Lily starts to suspect that there's more to the monsters-in-the-lake legends than she ever imagined. And just as his sisters are losing patience with him. (Synopsis provided by goodreads)My first thought when I heard about this book, was holy cow awesome! My feeling of glee was depleted rather quickly. It wasn't at all what I was hoping for. I wanted to know more about the mermaids in this novel. What was their history? Why are they the way they are? What's the bottom line?My main issue was the stalking. Yes, stalking. In YA there seems to be a lot of it. There are also books where it seems like stalking, but it isn't. When the stalker is hiding, and watching your every move it's stalking. It's not sweet, it's not romantic, it's illegal all over. Now, I'm the type of girl where I don't want to be stalked, call me crazy, but yeah stalking is a major turn off. The fact that these mermaids "feed" by zapping humans of emotions felt a lot like dementors in Harry Potter. I'm fine with similar things in books, because lets be honest any and all paranormal books have similarities. That's fine, but originality goes a long way.It was very predictable to me and there were just too many creepy quotes in the book. Not creepy in the Stephen King holy-cow-that-is-creepy-I-want-to-sleep-with-the-lights-on way but the eww-what-a- creepy- person sort of way.The writing style apart from the creepy quotes wasn't bad. But it also wasn't a book I couldn't put down. For me this book is one I'll forget in a month or so and I don't think I'll be continuing the series. Please don't let my opinion alone determine if you're going to read it or not, check out some more favorable reviews as well.

Coffee Beans: 2.5/5Spoilers: Not reallyFavorite Line: I hadn’t killed anyone all winter, and I have to say I felt pretty good about that. (pg 10, ebook), Maris chose her words like a surgeon chose a scalpel (pg 18, ebook), The sky darkened like ink spreading through a shirt pocket… (Pg 86, ebook)Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for this honest reviewOkay – First, I felt this book had a lot of promise. The cover is suh-weet (although I was confused as to why the put a mermaid on the cover when it’s told from the point of view of Calder , a merman). The summary is dark and awesome. The first few chapters were more than I could have hoped for. Which is why I was so confused by all the two and three star reviews on GoodReads (I didn’t read any of them, just looked at the ratings). I thought to myself, “Pft! These weirdoes don’t know a good book when they read one!” and proceeded on my merry reading way. I mean, a book with an opening line like this, had to be good, right? RIGHT?!?! I hadn’t killed anyone all winter, and I have to say I felt pretty good about that.”WRONG.What I liked:I liked Brown’s take on the traditional mermaid myth where mermaids were bad and killed people (anyone else notice that YA books are turning more dark when it comes to fairy tales? I like it). The fact that they fed on the happiness of humans because they couldn’t produce their own. The fact that deep down, they were primal and instinctual beings.The author does a great job of dropping tidbits of information relevant to the mythology behind the story as well as the mermaids’ motivation for what they’re doing. It flows so well and feels so natural. But at some points, I was thoroughly confused and wished she’d dropped a little more clues. Like the revenge they felt for their mother. Were they just really pissed, or was their drive more paranormal and instinctual? I’m leaning towards the latter of the two, but we’re never really given a good picture. The writing, for the most part, was really great. Good descriptions and flow (…my stomach twisted like a snake in a jar, pg 30, ebook). Dialogue was natural and engaging. I liked Lily’s tattoo: No coward soul is mine but that’s beside the point. The story had so much potential to be a really good book.What I didn’t like:The book opens with Calder telling us he’s abstaining from taking human lives. But why? All we’re given is the reason of “because he wanted to see if he could.” *Shrugs shoulders* Yeah, okay. I guess that’s good. Enough. But I would’ve liked to be given a better reason than that. Something that actually had more significance to him, so that way when he’s tempted to kill Lily we know the battle he’s fighting and the strength it takes to resist. (But now that I think of it, there really wasn’t that much of a struggle for him. C’mon, dude. You haven’t eaten ANYTHING in over NINE MONTHS. It’s okay to be thinking your girlfriend looks a little tasty).There also seemed to be a couple of scenes that weren’t important because they didn’t add to the plot what-so-ever and then were never mentioned again. And WEIRD things happened in them, and in the “real” world, the events would have been brought up and shunned. (I put “real” in quotes because in a REAL world, Calder’s fishtail of a rear end would’ve been kicked to the curb and would’ve been served with a restraining order by the biggest, baddest, meanest looking delivery person I could find).For the most part, I got a really good, 3D sense of the characters, especially Maris. Calder, though, was a little ambiguous. I couldn’t help but get a generic feel for him. And therefore, generic, non-committed feelings for him. Good-looking guy. Strong. Smart. Funny. Possessive. Protective. (Anyone else seeing the clichéd cookie cutout “main guy” image so prevalent in today’s YA books?) I want something, SOMEONE real! I really thought I’d get it with Calder, but no dice. And Lily…flat. And a 100% WEAK character. No, let me take that back. She’s far from weak. Loves her family, would sacrifice herself for him, thinks Calder’s muy estraño from the beginning. So she’s not weak, I guess. But the fact that Calder’s pretty much STALKING her, and she KNOWS IT, and she doesn’t follow her first impression that he CREEPS HER OUT, is pretty aggravating. So maybe she’s just a DUMB character?I would have liked it so much more if she was put in a situation to be forced to partner with him against her better judgment in order to save the greater good instead of falling for him after he keeps pestering her. To me, it would’ve been a much more plausible evolution of a relationship. I also think that part of the story being told from Lily’s POV would have been VERY beneficial for me as a reader. Then, at least, I’d have had some sense of reasoning behind her decision to go out with this complete creep that is Calder.Girls (or anyone, really): If a boy is stalking you (showing up at your house in the middle of the night with lame reasons, ends up getting a job where you applied, is following you around), and you already have a bad feeling about him, please don’t perceive that as flattering. I’m so fed up with books that portray this kind of behavior as right or acceptable. There are real people out there who do these kinds of thing and are dangerous. The fact that authors are portraying this as something to be attracted to or desired is horrible. *Steps off soap box. Dusts hands off* There, I feel better. I hate delivering BRs like this one. It hurts me to give my honest opinion because I know how much love, blood, tears, and pieces of ourselves an author puts into their books. They love it. Their agent and publisher love it. But it’s my job to give my honest opinion about what I read. And I DON’T love this book. I don’t even really LIKE it. I feel meh about it. I know there will always be people like me out there, but it doesn’t make this any easier. Ever. Anyway, you may like it. Pick it up and read it, deciding for yourself. Me? I won’t be recommending it to anyone. Happy reading, my friends!

Mermaids with some interesting background, and a male character with more depth than I expected. Lies Beneath is great in that our main character, Calder, is also a villain – he’s a killer, sucking the happiness and emotion right out of people as he drowns them. Though admittedly he seems to be on a forced diet, just for experimentation’s sake. What a way to possibly die – dragged to the watery depths in the embrace of some fabulously hot merman. *dithers a little bit in la la land* I admit, I liked him more because he was a bad guy but not the “bad boy” that so many girls fall for.

What helped make this not just another fluff young adult romance was that it WASN’T just another, girl and boy falls immediately and helplessly in love sort of a tale. Lucky us, Calder has to work to win some trust and affection from Lily. I know I’m not the only one who hates it when “love” is so easily come by.

More importantly though, there is a good story behind how all of the characters come to interact. What drew all the players together? Death and Vengeance. The family unit portrayed for the mermaids is so drastically different than that of the human family they are plotting against. What helps really suck you in is the little details you get about mermaids and how they live.

There are some interesting twists and turns in this book that I really enjoyed. Overall it was a quick and very enjoyable read. A nice choice if you’re looking for a mermaid book this summer.

Celeste, Christina and Ana gave Lies Beneath 4 stars!

Our Review: We were lucky enough to all get a copy of this book from Net Galley and, of course, we decided that instead of fighting over who got to do the review, we do it together!!


The Beginning

Ana: This book caught my attention at the very first line. The description of the mer people surprised me but was good in that it helped me understand that these are not the mers of fairy tales. I liked Calder immediately and felt for him being tied to things and people that he didn’t want to be tied to.

Christina: This was my first venture into anything mermaid-related. I’ve never even read any mermaid books with the fairytale-ish aspect, so them being portrayed as evil was certainly unlike anything I’ve ever seen. I was pretty much sucked in from the beginning, but the plot definitely took a bit to move along. I did like the we knew exactly what we were getting ourselves into from the get-go, though.

Celeste: Me too! I haven’t read any mermaid/mermen books yet but finally gave in because the premise sounded great. Revenge killing romance = sign me up! I was curious straight away and loved that the book is from Calder’s point of view, it was really refreshing.

Likes

Ana: I think that the characters were well developed. I loved Calder from the beginning (how could you not love a sexy, handsome, sweet merman?) and really liked Lily’s personality. I especially enjoyed the fact that she was unique in her thoughts and how she presented herself. I loved to hate Calder’s sisters but enjoyed the fact that these mer were just a bit evil. The description of how they change from mer to human was very well done…it made me cringe every time. I really enjoyed that the book was written from Calder’s point of view because stories from a male POV are so rare.

Christina: Agreed on all points. I definitely liked (or liked to dislike) all of the main characters. Each one seemed relatively fleshed out and added their own bit of intrigue to the story, especially Calder’s sisters. There were a few like Lily’s little sister and the Pettit’s that kind of made me wish there was a tad more to them.

Another thing I liked about the story was that Lily didn’t completely fail for Calder the very first time she saw him. Yes, she was able to admit he was attractive, but she knew something was slightly off about him. She called him out on his stalking, tried to distance herself from him initially, and even when everyone was saying she was crazy, she still stuck to her opinion and instincts instead of going with popular belief.

Celeste: My biggest “like” was the angsty-ness between Lily and Calder. There was an undeniable attraction on quite a few levels right from the start. I liked the frankness between them, and may have even gotten the butterflies feeling myself. There was definitely some sexual tension but at the same time felt like a natural progression of a romance. (I didn’t feel like it was too fast! )

I also liked how Calder described Lily’s style of clothes “weird” but he thought she was still so beautiful. It made her have a fabulous whimsical feel and I loved it! She was a great heroine; strong yet gentle and passionate. The secondary characters were good too, I would have liked to get to know some of them even better, hopefully that will happen in the next book.

Dislikes

Ana: I felt that the relationship was too fast on Lily’s end – at first I didn’t think she really liked him all that much and then, suddenly, she’s in love (but I guess that’s how all these books are).

Christina: YES! Dear young adult writers, enough with the insta-love. Insta-lust I can understand, but you can’t have the characters go from this person makes me nervous even though he’s pretty to look at & then after one date, be an absolute goner. I want depth, general attraction built to more.

Ana: Not sure what the purpose of making Lily’s mom sick was…

Christina: Maybe to add guilt to Calder’s decision because she relied so heavily on the dad?

Ana: Could be. Also, I thought the sister situation was a tad creepy!

Christina: Agreed, but I guessed that pretty early on.

Ana: I also thought Lily’s younger sister would play a bigger role in the story but she was only there in certain parts to move the plot along. I would have liked to see more of her especially since I got the impression that she was very perceptive. She could have definitely thrown a wrench into a few of the situations.

Christina: What is it with the paranormal love interests/pursuers being so creepy and stalkerish? I don’t know, maybe it’s just me, but if I found out a guy was spying on me all the time, I’d be really skeptical and wondering if he was planning on locking me up in his basement and torturing me or something.

Celeste: The whole revenge thing. It was such a focus for Calder and his sisters that was all consuming and just didn’t make sense to me. I just wasn’t sold on it….till the end. However, I read paranormal stories all the time, so I made peace with it in the beginning and accepted the rest of the story (which I loved). But then it did all come together and make sense.

The End

Ana: The twist at the end was really unexpected! The book left me with a lot of questions about what would happen next and how the characters would move forward. I’m not sure how I felt about it… I was a bit confused by some of the details and how some of this could work. Maybe it’ll all be explained in the next book.

Christina: I also was a bit stunned by the revelation at the end. As for the continuation of the series, I’m curious to see how things will play out amongst the sisters when certain spoilery things are discovered. I read on Goodreads that the next installment will pick up where this one left off, but will be told in Lily’s POV. I’m not sure how I feel about that yet.

Celeste: Sealed it for me! I was kind of hedging around a 3-3.5 stars, but the ending was great and I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. There was more than one twist and turn, which were outrageous! It totally got me past the focus of the merpeople’s revenge, and everything came together for me. I’m not sure how it will go forward, but I’m anxious to see how Lily and Calder can have a relationship, what happens with the sisters *bites nails….I’m sure there will be revenge*, and even what happens with Lily’s family. The story ended in a great spot though, no major cliffhanger, with the ends tied up enough for now, but I can see how it is nowhere near finished and I’m excited for the next installment.

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales.Quick & Dirty: A mermaid falls in love with the daughter of a revenge target. Filled with a sweet romance, loving family, a not-so-caring family and a boy wishing for freedom.Opening Sentence: I hadn’t killed anyone all winter, and I have to say I felt pretty good about that.The Review: Told from Calder’s point of view, this story explores the monsters lurking underneath the waves of Lake Superior. Calder tries to escape from his sisters – key word: tries. While his three sisters stick together around Lake Superior, Calder opts to vacation in the Bahamas during the winter, but every spring, Calder is pulled back to the lake and forced to spend an entire summer with his sisters. But this time it’s different. The sisters call him back earlier because they think they’ve finally found their mother’s killer’s son – Jason Hancock. Calder reluctantly returns from the sun to the cold waters of the lake. Determined to exact revenge on the man who killed their mother, Calder and his sisters plot to seduce one of Jason’s daughters – only, when the time comes, it’s Calder’s choice of which daughter is taken from him. Now the only way to get Jason into the water is though his oldest daughter – Lily. Try as he might, good looks and savvy flirting skills aren’t going to win over Lily – instead he might just end up falling.I read this book while on the beach…while it was cold…and found myself looking for something that might just resemble a mermaid (although I did see several cute guys). Even though I didn’t find a lick of the paranormal, I did discover this amazing world of mermaids, revenge and family. I’m always welcome to guy narrators, but usually they are either completely boring or way too graphic. Calder’s voice was a perfect balance of the scramble of his thoughts and narration. As for the character himself, he was well developed and we could see his motives change as he begins to question his way of life (sucking all emotion from humans – that’s the way mermaids eat).The girls in this book were amazing, even from the point of view of a guy. I found it ironic that Lily was the mysterious girl who catches the eye of the guy, and I was laughing when Calder tried to figure her out. After reading so many girl-narrated books, I found Lily quite easy to decipher, but with Calder, he was completely clueless on the matter. Just an ironic twist to the YA world. The sisters in their own right were each well developed, even for minor characters. Each one had their own motives for doing whatever they were doing, but they were all connected by the familial bond and the drive to kill. Complete sirens in themselves, but this book would not be nearly has interesting without them.Overall, this was a great book. The twists in this book I did not see coming. There were things I was confused on, like how the sisters could blame Hancock for the mother being caught in a net, but hopefully it’ll dive into more detail in the next book. MAJORish cliffhanger at the end, but the next book Deep Betrayals comes out soon! Notable Scene: That was what had drawn Pavati to the old man the other day, and all three of my sisters to the college kids. That was what had drawn my mother to Lily’s own grandfather. I almost wanted to tell her the story. How he’d been so happy he was a magnet to her. How she capsized the boat and brought him down, but he fought back. How he regained the surface and pleaded with her. How she offered him the life of a merman, but he rejected her, so she demanded an exchange, another life for his. How he offered his son–only one at the time. How she swam him back to shore and waited by the dock.How a second later the family was running for the car and racing out of town. How she followed the road along the shore. And then finally how she was strangled in a fisherman’s net.What would Lily have thought if I’d laid it all out there like that? Would she have run away screaming, knowing that we were here to collect on that promise?Lily wasn’t so obtuse that she couldn’t see something was bothering me. She leaned out of the kayak and draped her arm around my shoulder, laying her cheek against mine, comforting me without really knowing how wrong this was. I jerked away, not realizing I’d come close enough for her to touch me. A spark jumped through the air between her arm and my back.I could choose not to kill Lily Hancock. That choice was still mine to make. I could protect her from my sisters. But there was one thing beyond my control. In the end, I would still deceive her. Jason Hancock was still marked for death.FTC Advisory: Random House Children’s Books provided me with a copy of Lies Beneath. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.

As a little girl, I was, of course, a huge fan of The Little Mermaid, and the 80s movie, Splash, featuring Darryl Hannah and Tom Hanks. There is something mystical and wondrous about these magical sea-creatures and I think every little girl dreams about being one at some point or another. I’ve only read one other mermaid tail (pun intended) and I wasn’t terribly impressed with it, but like the siren’s call, I was drawn to Lies Beneath, by both the shiver-worthy synopsis and the beautiful cover.

As far as Paranormal YA novels go, Lies Beneath may be one of my favorites. Anne Greenwood Brown has burst onto the book scene with a splash and manages to get just about everything right: the budding romance, the hesitation between characters, the snark and wit. Brown really makes the characters come alive and especially makes the mermaids feel very real and, not to mention, dangerous. Plenty of myths and legends have mermaids as predatory creatures, luring men to their deaths with just a call on the wind. Brown plays on that, but gives us even more, fleshes out her merfolk. She humanizes them with agendas and revenge, but also love, family bonds and silliness. In fact, the silliness and family bond between the merfolk is what really connected me to them. Brown wrote them in a way as such I was able to identify so easily with them that there could very well be mermaids in Lake Superior. Monsters in the lake, anyone?

And the monsters were, in and of themselves, something else. Even their names were like songs: Maris, Tallulah (is the author a Bruce Willis/Demi Moore fan? LoL), Pavati, and Calder. Brown likened them to a school of fish, but at the same time, they had their own thoughts and secrets. They also had unique abilities and I really liked what Brown did with her creation of these merfolk and these abilities (I don’t want to spoil them for you – half the fun was learning about them).

Lily, one of the only human teenagers in this story, was also a joy to read. She’s much smarter than anyone anticipated and I couldn’t not like her. She was intelligent, witty and not afraid of – well, anything. She was an anomaly to Calder and I enjoyed every scene they had together. His frustration was so entertaining; it must be a real pain in the butt to not get what you’re used to getting right away (ie – the girl).

While I always love a good story, I am a firm believer that each should come away with a message and Lies Beneath didn’t disappoint me. The saying goes, “Revenge is a dish best served cold.” But Mahatma Ghandi once said, “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.” And here we are. Revenge. You can taste it on your tongue as it drips drips drips down, sweet as candy. It’s tantalizing and tempting, but it takes a strong person to forgive and forget and I think that’s what Brown is showing us here.

That’s not to say I didn’t have a quibble about this book. It left me thinking and thinking and thinking. Something niggled at me for about 12 hours after I finished it, left me scratching my head, saying, “There’s just something that doesn’t make sense.” This is a spoiler, so I’ve tagged it here. You can click to open it or continue with the rest of the review.
4/17: Update - I spoke with this amazing author and she filled me in on what I wasn't thinking about. Spoiler removed.

Overall, I really enjoyed this story. It has redeemed my faith in mermaid books and I can't wait for the sequel to Lies Beneath. If you’ve never read a Mer-tale, or just really love them, read this now!

Finally! A mermaid tail (sorry, couldn't resist a bit of fin, I mean fun) tale that I can finally, actually say I enjoyed reading; one that I didn't hate the main characters, or their romance, or even the mythology behind the sea creatures. Lies Beneath is a success in a genre that has so fat yet to offer many noteworthy titles; this is thanks in part to presence of, as the great Wendy Darling of GoodReads so aptly put it: eeeeevil mermaids. Not the Disneyfied version most common on film and in YA novels (Between the Sea and Sky, I am looking at you) but the twisted, covetous, murderous sirens of Greek mythology. These sirens mermaids have bite; the three females (dominat matriarch Maris, affectionate Tallulah, flawless Pavati) especially typify the kind of mermaid I apparently like to read: vengeful, deliberate and deadly. Lies Beneath also is one of the few all-male POV young-adult novels I've read - unexpected, and very welcome when I realized it.Calder (have you even seen a caldera? Hmmm....) White is both a creeper and, oxymoronically but believably, a good guy. What's nice about Calder, and reading from his view, is that he's a very self-aware creeper. He doesn't misrepresent his actions (breaking and entering, stalking, etc.) as romance or love, but readily admits his actions are more in line with a "serial killer" than a boyfriend. I liked Calder from the start: his is a strong and distinguished voice from the outset, with just a touch of that self-deprecating humor that I always enjoy. He's obviously and clearly different from his sisters: winter migrations, self-denial disguised as self-control, desire for isolation. The title itself is also doubly clever when viewed in reference to the male lead character: not only does a monster lie beneath the waters of the placid looking lake, but there are lies beneath his motivations that even he is unaware of. Figuring out Calder's personal history is a recurring subplot throughout, that though it doesn't have the high dramatics of the 'kill Jason Hancock' main plot, has more than enough punch at the end. Lily was sadly a weaker effort than her love interest for much of the novel. She found her footing before the end, but on the whole my love for this book is based on Calder, not Lily. I found her wardrobe choices a bit try-hard and the love for Victorian mermaid-espousing poets was a little bit of a reach but I was won over. I was won over and I know the exact moment - it wasn't when Lily slapped Calder's hand for trying to 'hook her hair behind her ear' though I did love it, it wasn't when she was smart and suspicious of the boy she catches following her everywhere she goes - it was when she used a bad Russian accent. Everyone has a bad Russian accent, everyone I hang out with, at least. That was when she stopped being a character and became real. It was also refreshing to read a family with a strong and loving dynamic, one that actually seemed to love each other (the only other recent read I can recall that did the same was The Alchemy of Forever), though that served its purpose as well. Lily's family represents a lot of what Calder lost in his 54( if I mathed that right) 18 years of life: family, love, security, normalcy.Back to the sisters three most vengeful: Maris, intimidating if somewhat mystifying by the end, Pavati, whose name I read as 'Parvati' nine times before I realized my mistake, and the only-kind-by-comparison Tallulah. (Thematically-relevant/appropriate names? Nice touch, Greenwood Brown.) Their individual characterization is severely lacking, but as a force they are impressive. Even the number of them (school of them? shoal of them? swarm?), three, is reinforced by the Greek legends they pay clear homage to; the most accepted number in tales is between two and five. The girls are born mermaids, as Calder is not. They prey on humans, though not for flesh or for ships as the ancient version did, but for the victim's emotions. They are, as Calder claims to ignorant ears, monsters, not the typical Disney princesses I've come to read and cringe about. Here, in their motivation and craving for human feeling as well as the creation of 'reinvigorated' (made, not born) mermaids, is where Brown diverges from traditional reasoning and branches out into her own version of motives for the watermonsters.To her creative credit, it is both a logical and elegantly simple answer. But first, in order to show why I thought this so great, allow me to wander a moment. This next paragraph may wax slightly spoilery, so avoid if you don't want minor details before reading.I read a lot of vampire novels; they're heavily published and a lot of my friends, both online and off, read them as well. They seem to be dropping off in favor of dystopias/post-apocalyptic (or have just adapted, like Darwin predicted) but for a few years there, they were ubiquitous. So either in solidarity (Morganville series) or out of masochistic curiosity (Twilight series), I've more than read my fair share of the genre full of bloodsuckers. Some of those books went out their way to fashion a coherent/unique reason for why the vampires needed blood; others...did not. I enjoyed one type of these books more than the other. For example, one novel postulated that vampires need the oxygen present in living humans blood to keep their bodies/cells alive 'after death'. (I don't remember what book this was, but even if it was Twilight, love the concept, hate the execution. But I doubt it was). It was original, it was clever, and it has stuck with long after the book itself was lost. (Someone remind me? Or someone with more powerful Google Fu than I can figure it out?) Anne Greenwood Brown has done something similar with her mermaids: they cannot manufacture their own positive emotions, so they covet and murder and plot to absorb ours/our aura in water. Emotions like joy, hope, excitement, love are more than just sustenance; they're what keep the mermaid/man from falling into an endless depression, and eventually, insanity and death. Clever, right? Without delving into consumption of humans themselves. Random side-note: These Lake Superior merpeople are also apparently somewhat part eel - all four in Calder's 'family' have some electrical abilities both in and out of water that are referred to as 'eel-like' or similar. Major personal kudos for the author and her clever adaptions to the mythic creatures - these are definitely her own version.Lies Beneath is good, just too short. This is convoluted. This is original and fun and easy to read. It's a fast-paced novel where events happen quickly so this far from a boring read, ever. The conflicts in Calder's life - family versus freedom, nature versus nurture, choice versus requirement, revenge or forgiveness - are all executed so well. His emotional pull between personal happiness and a desire to set something right is never melodramatic. There is a sequel, Water Lily, set for a 2013 release and from Lily's view. All I know is my next mermaid read, Of Poseidon, has a lot to live up to. Also, lastly, superficially: how AWESOME and creepy is that cover with the touch of bloodred? So appropriate and foreboding. Dun dun duuuun. Read this one, guys.

Calder White was perfectly happy in a nice warm climate when his sisters called him back to the icy waters of Lake Superior. Being a merman, ignoring this call is impossible. He is bound to his sisters and reluctantly returns to them as slow as possible. When he gets there, he is offered the opportunity to be released from his bond if he helps them murder the son of the man responsible for their mother's death named Jason Hancock. Calder agrees and plans to use his good looks and hypnotic merman suggestion power to manipulate one of his daughter, but things don't go as planned. He didn't think he would fall in love. Torn between being free from his family and wanting to be with his new human love, Calder doesn't know what to do.I had high hopes for Lies Beneath even though I wasn't crazy about the cover. Mermaids are one of my favorite mythical creatures, but these aren't really mermaids. They are basically aquatic vampires, which takes away everything that makes these creatures interesting. Vampires have overflooded the YA book market and I was looking for something different. These mermaids prey on people and feed on their positive energy and emotion because they can't produce them themselves. They can also communicate with each other telepathically, manipulate humans with their beauty and hypnotic powers, and produce electricity similar to eels. This would have been interesting if it didn't make the relationship between Calder and Lily into a carbon copy of Twilight. He wants to eat her but he's in love with her and it's going against his nature...blah blah blah. I have seen this so many times before that it's ridiculous. Plus his stalker status rivals Edward's in Twilight and he kills people regularly to survive. It got really creepy. The murder aspect seemed to be justified by the fact the he doesn't kill anyone during the course of the book, but that doesn't make his past murders disappear. The romance did not wow me because it was the typical instalove with no development at all.The characters are fairly flat and uninteresting. Lily is a rebellious girl who wears weird clothes and doesn't mind that her boyfriend has killed people in the past. His sisters are the most interesting characters in the novel, but we don't get to see much of them. All the characters could have done with richer backgrounds and dimensions. The two things that did work for me are the writing and the poetry in the novel. Despite not being very invested in the characters or the plot, I kept reading because the writing really moved and kept me interested. I am a huge sucker for classic literature cited in books. I get to discover new things I didn't know about or nerd out over things I like. I had no idea about some of these poems and it was nice to discover them. Lies Beneath is a mediocre teen novel that had a lot of promise with the dark mermaids, but it turned into a Twilight rip off. The ending is definitely open for a sequel and I'm frankly not interested in reading it. Hopefully some of the other mermaid books will be less disappointing.

What began as a mediocre read quickly turned into a fast paced story in which the line between good and evil are very easily blurred. Calder White is a mermaid, but not like the Little Mermaid. He drowns humans for the fleeting moment of experiencing their happiness. When his sisters relay news that they've finally found the son of the man who killed their mother, Calder is too happy to quickly kill him so that he can carry on his merry little way-away from his sisters. Except Lily happens and killing her father gets a lot more complicated. To be completely honest, I did not think that I was going to enjoy this book. After 86 pages I set aside the book to tackle other books on my TBR list but I eventually came back. And something happened. Maybe my mindset changed or the book picked up but I was turning pages quick as ever! I loved the idea of murderous mermaids a la mythical sirens and Calder was as heartless as they come. The characters were very interesting especially Calder's three sisters led by the ever-planning Maris. If there was an award for the Most Dysfunctional Mermaid Family I'm pretty sure the White's would have no competition. Maris is just so downright evil she makes Calder seem tame. Overall, Lily Hancock, the love interest, was an interesting and stable character but I found the story involving Calder and his family more appealing. The writing was very strong as well. What made this novel so unique is that it is told from a male perspective which was a something I personally don't come across too often in the young adult genre. In my opinion, the book starting off very rushed and unsure of itself (ie the sisters initial plot to get revenge on the Hancocks) but once it decided on a plot, I really enjoyed it. Lies Beneath is a great introductory novel and I cannot wait to find out more about Calder and his blooming love with Lily. With great characters and a revenge-driven plot for revenge, Lies Beneath will makes waves (yes I just did that) this summer!I recommend this novel for fans of mermaid characters and REVENGE.

Calder White is a merman emotionally tethered to his mermaid sisters who are out for bloody revenge for a long-ago debt.If you think this sounds like a weird premise for a book, you are right. But, if you think it is all fluff and pretty, twinkling light- filled images, you are wrong.I bought this book at a YA festival held at my local library. I admit that the cover pulled me in. Of all the books for sale on the table, this one called out to me.It is not a typical story of sirens luring sailors, rather it is a dark, deep tale of undersea creatures who can metamorphasize into humans when required.Calder is promised that the bonds to his sisters can be broken if he assists in luring the daughter of their intended prey. His actions set a chain of events that ripple not only the water, but his heart as well.Recommended.

Awesome! That's really all I can say about this book - Awesome! Unfortunately, that's not really enough words to write a review so I'll try to expand on that a little bit. First off, I LOVE stories about mermaids! Most of them are about nice, friendly, beautiful mermaids who go out of their way to help humans, but this one sets itself apart from the others from the get go. As Calder (the male narrator, which I also loved) explains it, "She seriously did not get this at all. She obviously had some Disney version of mermaids in her head. I wondered how she'd respond when I told her the truth. That we were murderers, monsters, fiends. That I'd lured her out here to kill her. That I was doing everything within my power to fight against nature."Merpeople can't produce their own emotions apparently, so to prevent them from going into a deep depression, they "steal" the good emotions from humans, killing them in the process so they can "wring out" every last drop of happiness! I really love that the author took a much darker look at merpeople and made them predators. It really worked for this story and I was hooked almost from the beginning. I have to admit that Calder and his three sisters, Maris, Pavati and Tallulah, weren't really likable at the start of the book, but that made Calder's transformation and growth stand out even more. There was definite character development there! I also thought the pacing was great, and there were just the right number of action scenes vs. emotional ones. In summary, I really enjoyed this book and find it very hard to believe that this is a debut novel, but it is! I will definitely be reading more from Anne Greenwood Brown in the future, and can't wait to read Lies Beneath #2 to find out what happens with Lily and Calder :)

Calder White is a merman whose family lives in Lake Superior. For years they've been searching for one man, a man whose life they were promised and who they believe is to blame for the death of their mother. When Calder's sisters find the man, they summon him home and task him to become close to his daughter, Lily. Of course, Calder falls in love with Lily and doubts if he can be part of a plot to murder her father without destroying her too. Calder also wants his freedom from the link to his sisters which he has been promised once the vengeance is complete. A quick read and enjoyable story, although it feels familiar with a novel murderous mermaid twist.

I really had mixed feelings about this one. It was one of those reads that I enjoyed, but only because I put it down and read a whole nother book and a half before I could finish it. And the only reason I picked it back up, is because I had brought the purse with the Nook in it rather than my current read. But it was well worth it. What made it worth it, was the different view on mermaids. It was very different from anything I had ever read about them. In this they were murderous creatures who lived off human's emotions and trying to get revenge on them. BUT, even with that, it wasn't enough action in the story, which is where I was lost. I was expecting Brown to use those murderous mermaids and use them WELL..... Like have a couple battle scenes or SOMETHING. Don't get me wrong, the plot included some surprises, but not enough for me to say OMG I loved it. As I stated earlier, it was a read that I finished after putting it down for a few days. One thing that I actually did enjoy though, was the romance. What I missed out on in action, I fell right back in the story with the romance that came about. It was way more than I was expecting and I did enjoy every minute if it.

The good news first. This story is unique. The mermaids in "Lies Beneath" are killers. They kill people in the water and feed off their emotions. It is the only way they can find happiness. Right off the bat this makes an unusual concept that I was drawn to. How the world was the author going make a leading man out of Calder, who has murdered innocent people for years?The story starts with him feeling guilty about his killings and he has been six months without a kill and is beginning to feel the effects of that change in his lifestyle. He is called back to his home in Wisconsin near Lake Superior by the annual pull he has that urges him to get back home to his family. His family consists of three nasty, murderous sisters. They have found the man they have been searching for, Jason Hancock, the man they believe is to blame for the death of their mother. To get into Jason's good graces and eventually lure him out into the water, Calder makes nice with Jason's teenage daughter Lily. And since this book is a YA novel, you can probably guess that Lily and Calder become interested in each other. Not only does he want to keep poetry reading Lily safe from his crazy sisters, but he also worries about how she will feel after he murders her dad.I was fine with this story and found this book incredibly easy read. The writer definitely spun an interesting and unique tale and I really love this cover. The cover is amazing although since told by Calder, I think it probably should have featured a merman. But this book, in my opinion, had more than its share of problems.First off, I had no emotional connection or interest in Calder. I can't for the life of me figure out why Lily ever became interested in him. He stalked her, pestered her, and talked down to her. He found out she liked poetry and took up reading it. She applied for a job and Calder immediately got a job at the same place. He had no interests of his own, and little could be said for his actual personality. She must have been drawn in by good looks and mysterious aura. Lily wasn't a horrible character but she didn't seem to be fleshed out very well either.I was very interested in seeing how the author would redeem Calder from a murderous merman. As I closed the last page, I still wasn't sure the author was successful in her attempt to do this. Anything he did good was solely for Lily. I didn't see him change as a person and that was disappointing.I'm sure this series will attract many admirers and I am not positive I wouldn't read a sequel but I wouldn't go out of my way for it. The idea for this story was excellent but I just don't feel like the execution was as good as it could have been.

LIES BENEATH, by Anne Greenwood Brown, is a story about the darker side to the mermaid folklore. Calder is roped in by his sisters to take revenge over one man whose family betrayed theirs in the past by seducing his daughter. But Calder finds himself enamored by the daughter and has to decide who to betray in the end his family or his first love?I wanted to love this book, I really did. The premise is really unique and the actual story is pretty awesome. But sadly, when I closed the book I found myself scratching my head...which is never a good sign.For one thing, the cover shows a female mermaid when the whole book is narrated by a male? Also, the only characters I found myself connecting to were the sisters. They knew exactly who they were and what they wanted. I found myself hating and loving them at the same time. They were cruel and wicked but their motivations were true to their personalities. I didn't connect at all with the two leads. For a main character, Calder was an enigma...that's not supposed to happen! With his POV I should have known all his motivations, etc. I knew he loved Lily and found himself attracted to her but I felt I should have seen more of him through his thoughts and words. And for him to "abstain" for months at a time I felt he should have possibly slipped with Lily or at least "eat" somebody. And Lily was a pretty dumb girl in the end. Initially she struck me as strong and independent when she shooed away Calder and his stalking tendencies but then one day she was just okay with it? Did her parents teach her nothing?And I will be quite delicate because I don't want to ruin the end but the narrator was not even present for the *big battle*, which in my mind is a big no-no. The ending was weaker to me for that reason.Okay it may seem like I hated the novel but I really didn't. I felt there was a lot of potential that just was never realized. I think if the book was from Calder and Lily's POV it would have been phenomenal. From his POV there was a lot missing in terms of story movement which helped in my head scratching at the end.I really liked the mermaid/merman lore though! It was definitely darker and cooler than a lot of the frilly mermaid books out there now. I would recommend this book as a more mature YA since I think all the killing might scare some kids (it would have scared me when I was younger!).I am definitely going to read Book 2 in this two book series since I enjoyed the first (to a degree) but I do suggest you try it for yourself...I am only one opinion.

While not quite as dark and tense as I expected I really loved reading this novel, another from the male point of view, merman Calder White. Calder was not as dark and as menacing as I thought he'd be. I figured he be exactly like his sisters, but from the beginning, he's in the Bahama's while the Sister's are already in the cold midwest. But the pull to go "home" is too irresistible for any of them to deny. Maris is the oldest sister and she keeps their memories of their mother alive for them. She's held the "family" together all waiting for this moment. They've found the Hancock. The one that was supposed to be given as a debt when their mother allowed Thomas Hancock to live and he promised his first born son in return. Instead he fled with his family that night. Their mother died in fishing nets trying to go after him. Calder investigates the family as they leave their old home for the shores of Lake Superior. He looks in a photo album, catches glimpses and confirms to himself that it's the same Hancock. He can barely say the name without rage overtaking him. He and his sisters make the long trip to Lake Superior.Calder and the sisters make a plan to get Hancock on the lake and Calder extracts a promise from Maris the "mother" of the family to be broken free of the family if he executes his plan. Things don't go his way and his charms don't work the way they do on all the other girls on Hancock's older daughter Lily. She's wary of him and try as he might, he isn't able to change her mind about him. There probably wasn't a guy that's tried harder to get her attentions, but she just didn't trust him. Rightfully so. Instead, things work the other way around and Lily's charms work on Calder.The tension I was expecting and the suspense wasn't really there in the story. However, despite the lack of that, I really enjoyed the story. There was a lot of mistrust between the sisters and Calder. A lot of little secrets that had never been revealed and things about Calder that he'd never dreamed possible. But as he got to know Lily, she made things seem possible that he'd never seen, even the nature of merpeople. As you know from the summary, he fell in love with her, something he didn't think possible for merpeople. And how do you kill the father of the girl you love. The man whose first name you can't even say. The man who is responsible for your mother's death, in a way.I loved the mermaid mythology in this one. It's different in every story I read and I love how vicious and devious these mermaids are. They are brutal. They kill people. Pavati, one of his sisters, is said to play with her victims like toys. And Maris, well she just isn't likable no matter how pretty she may be. And they kill people to eat their essence, their happiness, their joy. That's what they feed off of, not even their bodies. Seriously messed up!So, you add it all up, it's got romance, backstabbing, mystery, forgiveness, secrets, sacrifice, murder. I mean what else can you ask for in a great story? And this is just the beginning. According to Goodreads, the next book is told from Lily's point of view. Can't wait to see what she thinks about all this.I read an ARC of this novel provided by the publisher Delacorte Books for Young Readers through Net Galley. This in no way influenced my review. This book was a clean read with the exception of underage drinking and sleeping together in a nonsexual way. I can't recall any strong language, but there might have been a little, it wasn't excessive if there was any.

Lies Beneath is not the Disney mermaid tale that you might have been expecting. Calder and his mermaid sisters are vicious killing machines intent on taking revenge out on Jason Hancock. I loved that Greenwood Brown did not soften this aspect of Calder's character and that is where the strength of this story is. Calder begins as an unapologetic killer. He believes that his way of life is just a that, a way of life. Yet, there is a part of him that realizes that his life could have been entirely different, and that he could have been normal. It's this part of him that makes him a character the reader can like. As the story progresses, Calder becomes less sure of the brutal life he and his sisters lead, and this builds a new dimension to his character, making him into one that the reader can actually cheer for.Lily was a frustrating character for me. She started off really strong, distrustful of Calder, suspicious of who he was and what his intentions were. I really liked that she wasn't falling all over him just because of his looks. But midway through she became Twilight's Bella, convinced that despite what Calder had done in the past, what he was, and what he told her his intentions were, that he would never hurt her. It was just too much for me, and I was glad that I didn't need to read things from her perspective.Despite Lily's about face in character, I really enjoyed the story and am finally being forced to realize that I do like reading from a male's point of view. I am definitely looking forward to reading more of this series.

A spellbinding new novel that will leave you breathless!The setting for this book was unique and perfect for the mystery behind these siblings. This story was very well written and had some of the most beautiful imagery I have read yet. It was very descriptive and gave off the somewhat ominous feel that went so well with this book. “Lies Beneath” is told from the point of view of Calder which is an interesting change since most books from this genre are told from the female point of view. I really enjoyed hearing from Calder’s point of view and seeing how he lived. Even though he started out as the villain it was easy to identify with him. He has problems of his own and tries to deal with them the best that he can and I believe that he is inherently good and his struggle to stay true to himself even in the face of his sisters was one of the things that intrigued me and made me fall in love with this character. Lily was sweet and a perfect match for Calder, these two really made the story for me.You’ll never look at a lake the same way again.

This is the first mermaid book I’ve read and from what I understand, mermaids are the new vampires.  We go through bursts of obsession in the literary world and it looks like a new one is beginning.  The mermaid has emerged.I had a hard time adjusting in chapter one to this world of the mermaid.  This book is different from others because it takes the point of view of Calder, our merboy.  Rarely do we see the point of view of the “monster” (and I only use that in the “they’re-not-human” sense).  We didn’t read from Edward’s point of view in the Twilight series.  We explored the world of Harry Potter as Harry saw it – going through the process from non-magic to magic.  Anne Greenwood Brown throws the reader into the mermaid world and we’re left with very little reference.I expected mermaids to live in the water all the time.  These mermaids can walk on land and drive cars and fly in planes.  These mermaids are also villains.  I wasn’t particularly fond of them and thought they were quite psychotic.  Even our hero was terribly flawed and hard to root for at times.  However, we saw the glimmers of humanity and when he started developing feelings for Lily, I could finally relate.  Lily, on the other hand, is a fantastic character who steals your heart the moment you meet her.Lies Beneath is a dark read and a really interesting and unexpected take on the mermaid culture.  I didn’t devour the book, but I couldn’t stop thinking about the story when I was away from it.  Since this is a debut novel, I am interested to see what Brown comes up with next.

I have never read a mermaid book before, and I never thought I'd want to. However, this story sounded too interesting to pass up, and I'm glad I made the decision to give mermaids a try. Lies Beneath completely submerges you in mermaid life, and it's a lot darker than one might imagine. These mermaids aren't from the Disney cartoon movies. They are serial killers, and they hold a grudge. Lies Beneath is told from Calder's POV, and it was a bit hard for me to adjust to that, being a female and all. Once I got into the story, though, I barely noticed the gender of the narrator. A few things that bugged me were the fact that the everyone called people by their first and last names 99% of the time. Seriously, no one talks like that. It got on my nerves and pulled me out of the story at times. Another thing that bothered me was the fact that Calder called Victorian Era poets "the Victorians," like these authors were in some bad indie rock band or something. Other than that, though, the book was wonderful. It took Calder awhile to grow on me, but once he did, I could definitely sympathize with his character. He wasn't created to be a killer, and he didn't want the life he'd been given. I felt bad for him in that aspect. He also had a good heart, and always tried to do the right thing. He did the best he could with the lot he'd been given, and I couldn't fault him for the mistakes he made. I never really related to him, but I did sympathize with him. I cared what happened to him and wanted to finish his story. Lily was a very brave character, and I enjoyed learning about her through Calder's eyes. I wish I could have known what she was thinking, though. She made some strange, and sometimes not-too-bright, decisions, and I would have liked to have known what motivated her actions. I do understand why this book was told from Calder's POV, though, and the story wouldn't have been complete had it not been from his perspective. I wish Brown had switched back and forth or something, but it may not have had the same effect. In this aspect, I'm leaving it at the author knows best. If there is a sequel, maybe we can get to know how Lily's mind works.The other characters in this story weren't incredibly well-developed, but they definitely weren't stereotypes, which was a relief. Also, the book wasn't set in a high school, and that made for a nice change. I didn't realize how tired I was about reading books set in high schools until I read one that wasn't set in a school. I know high schools are part of daily life for teens, but sometimes, a change of scenery is nice. The story itself is a bit slow moving at first, but by the middle, it's impossible to put the book down. I had the basic idea figured out, but I wasn't sure how it'd play out. Brown also rewarded me with plenty of surprises along the way to keep me interested. I wasn't bored at all while reading this book. Brown's writing, for the most part, is very good and believable. The story has a nice flow to it, and the pacing was pretty spot on. The ending wrapped everything up nicely, but managed to leave the possibility open for a sequel, should the author and publisher so choose to produce one. Over all, I would recommend this book to people who love mermaid tales and those who are new to the genre, like I am. I think most people would enjoy this story. So if you're looking for something different in the YA genre, check out Lies Beneath. You won't regret it.

*Sigh* Mermaid books. Mermaids are such an enticing legend and lend themselves to so many different possibilities, however, I have had a hard time finding a mermaid book that I really enjoy. Lies Beneath was definitely my favorite mermaid book so far. Calder and his three sisters are mermaids (mer-people?) who have a debt to collect. These four are not the mermaids we have come to know. They feed off of the energy of happy humans, they transform in water which allows them to travel on land, and their bodies radiate signals to draw innocent souls to the water. Years ago a promise of a child's life was broken to their mother. Now they've come to collect, and the girls will stop at nothing to reach their goal. What what about Calder? I really appreciated how everything in the novel was explained well. I feel that with supernatural/fantasy books there are often aspects of the world that don't make perfect sense to the reader. With this world, everything makes sense. I had questions at certain times, like why the heck Maris (Calder's sister) was the leader of their family? and can they hear each others' minds? Every little question like this was explained in time. I also appreciated how the whole Little Mermaid-esqe understanding of mermaids was addressed and not just ignored.My biggest problem with the novel was Lily, the girl who was used as a tool to get to her father. I liked her well enough for most of the novel, but at the end she just didn't make sense to me. There was no way that any person would act the way she did. I am trying to be vague here... But all in all, her emotions and reactions were completely unrealistic. Overall, Lies Beneath made great strides in the mermaid category. These mermaids are darker and hunger for death. They are definitely mermaids, but I would personally consider them Sirens. I don't know what you think, but Sirens are pretty bad ass.