3.5 stars

I hadn't killed anyone all winter, and I have to say I felt pretty good about that.

So begins the very first good YA mermaid novel I've ever read--and hooray, they're eeeevil, too! (view spoiler)[I seem to have started a trend in describing this book this way. (hide spoiler)] After trudging through so many books with insipid mermaids or ones that barely qualified as mermaids, it's so great to read a story in which sea creatures have purpose. And deadly intent. And tails. These merpeople aren't drawn to kill people jus More...

If you’re any­thing like me then you prob­a­bly spent a great deal of your child­hood pool and ocean expe­ri­ences try­ing to look like this:



It’s entirely more likely that you looked like a drowned rat because the ocean is a cruel, cruel mis­tress who only allows us to live so that she can pro­long our mis­ery. Just as an aside note, there is a hotel on the top of the Himalayan moun­tains for those who wish to give a metaphor­i­cal “screw you” to mis­tress ocean. After read­ing Lies Beneath, tha More...

2.5 stars.

“Would you please get it into your head that this is not a movie. Forget everything you think you know about merpeople. Forget that freaking Ariel, think Silence of the Lambs, think Friday the Thirteenth.

Initial Final Page Thoughts.
Considering I thought I would absolutely hate this, I’m pleasantly surprised.

High Points.
Boy narrator! Evil mermaids. Lake Superior. Curses. Flirtatious fishes. The Bahamas. BBQs. Hammocks. A lady love interest who wasn’t completely ridiculous. A chance More...

Be sure to check out an exclusive interview and swag giveaway with Anne Greenwood Brown over at Cuddlebuggery Book Blog!

*I almost dropped this down to 1 star, but then I started reading Starcrossed and realized that wasn't fair.

What a disappointment.

I was looking for a new Paranormal creature to love and thought that could be found within the pages of Lies Beneath. But you know what I found? The same old story we've all read before over and over again. The truth is this isn't a badly written b More...

You guys, I gave up :(
Trin and the mers don't mix.

-------------------------

Grabbin some fish chips with my favourite Brit.
Yes it's another TrinJo readalong.

First.

Things to be covered:
1. Can I touch your fishy half?
2. Do all Mermaids have charming crab friends?
3. Is it truly better down where it's wetter?
4. Why do all these things suddenly sound dirty?

Also.


More...

***This book was an ARC provided by the publisher. Thank you!***

This is my first dive (heh, heh) into YA mermaid lit. Unfortunately, while I found this new paranormal genre quite refreshing, I wasn't convinced by Anne Greenwood Brown's rendition of the mermaid myth nor was I impressed with the story itself.


Plot Summary

Calder White and his three sisters are merfolk whose mother was killed many years ago. In order to avenge their mother, Calder and his sisters have vowed to kill their mother's m More...

There comes a day in a reviewer’s life when s/he must write a review to the tune of an ELO song. My friends, that day has come.

(Or more accurately, for some reason, this song kept popping into my head every time I read this book. I can’t explain it).

Thus, I give you: “Evil Woman Merman” as a placeholder until closer to the book’s release and a "proper" review. Here, you can sing along with my..er.. slightly altered lyrics cough.

"You made a pawn of me, but this plotting revenge has got to end.

H More...

4 of 5 stars

Okay. This was the first time I read a merman/mermaid novel. When I started this I didn't have any idea on what to expect here. I even thought it would be a struggle read but no, it was actually an easy and fast-paced read. Lies Beneath was really an interesting and entertaining read. Not to mention that this is narrated in a male pov which I'm a sucker for! It wasn't perfect but the story and the characters were very appealing, there's just something in it that would make you want t More...

“Forget everything you think you know about merpeople. Forget that freaking Ariel, think Silence of the Lambs, think Friday the Thirteenth."

How happy I am that I still have not given up on mermaid books. The strong imprint of my childhood’s obsesssion is still keeping my hope up to find a gleaming mother-of-pearl-treasure among the ocean floor rubble now and then. Rare finds like Anne Greenwood Brown’s soon to be published Lies Beneath justify my unbroken tenacity: Skilled writing, danger, myste More...

(more a 3.5)

Lies Beneath was, overall, a nice read. It wasn’t as intense or fantastic as I was hoping, but in the, I found that I did like it.

Calder is a merman who, with his three sisters, set up a plan to exact revenge upon the man who was the cause of the death of their mother. Their plan is to have Calder cozy up to the family they’re hoping to destroy. But when Calder gets to know the older daughter, Lily, he begins to feel something, and finds that he can’t imagine himself causing her pain More...

3.5 Stars

I was pleasantly surprised by this story because I'm not usually attracted to tales involving mermaids. Yet, I was drawn in and mesmerized by this dark and sinister world.

Calder White and his sisters are merpeople, creatures of the sea. These are not the harmless fantastical creatures we see in a Disney cartoon, and they are far from reproach. You begin this story knowing that they are all killers. They pull unsuspecting humans down to the bottom of the ocean while they feed off their More...

Read This Review & More Like It On My Blog!


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 (but kinda sorta totally loved them), 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 apt More...

I have tons of book boyfriends.
I have JEM from ID.
I have Jace from MI.
Both are nephilims.
I have Noah Shaw from Unbecoming of Mara Dyer.
He's human. At least in the mean time I think he is.
I have Prince Ash from Iron Fey series.
He's my fairy bf.
I have Jacob from Twilight Series.
He's a werewolf.
I have Peeta from HG.
I have another human BF.
I also have Lucas from Starcrossed.
He's descendant of Paris of Troy.

When I read Lies Beneath, I knew I found a new book bf. :D
A mermaid BF this time.

Its a super c More...

Lies Beneath is a dark thrilling world filled with, dangerous mystery, undulating romance, and creative deceptive inhuman creatures. Anne Greenwood Brown's world of mermaids is extremely dark, rich, and complex. She does not shy away from showing just how cruel, callous, murderous, and full of spiteful venom they are. They are fueled by revenge and will stop at virtually nothing to get it, come hell or vapid high water. It is simply a dark and delicious world full of tension and terror.

Anne Gre More...

Check out moer of my reviews at ***Singing and Reading in the Rain***!

When you start reading a mermaid book and immediately think: "How do mermaids reproduce? They must reproduce the same way that fish do! How do fish reproduce?" And then launch into a conversation on Twitter about fish sperm and how any wet area inhabiting fish must be full of this fish sperm, you know you're in for a good ride!

Lies Beneath is not your average mermaid book. It's not where the main character happily jumps into t More...

So this was the first ever ARC that I got approval for and I have to say, I was pretty darn giddy. I started reading this book as soon as I got it on my Kindle. I was also pretty stoked because this book was about mermaids and since I saw The Little Mermaid as a kid, I’ve loved them. Lies Beneath comes out on June 12, 2012.

Lies Beneath is about Calder White who is a mermaid on strike. While he’s on hiatus from Lake Superior, down in the Bahamas, he’s trying to refrain from killing anyone for th More...

Find more reviews on It's A Hardcover Life

Lies Beneath is the first mermaid Young Adult novel I’ve ever read. Mermaids seem to be a popular creature feature lately, especially in the summer, and it’s not hard to understand why. Unfortunately, this rendition of a mermaid tale really wasn’t for me.

Into the story: Calder is a merman who is mentally dragged, every year, to Lake Superior where he and his three sisters are from. The merfamily, since their mother died, have been on a mission to kill th More...

Look at it. Are you looking? That cover is awesome! F-I-N-A-L-L-Y! Yes, I know, you're looking at me thinking 'Am I off my rocker?'. Well to answer your question, No. I'm just super thrilled to see a little difference in a YA cover! I know, I know, it's still a girl in a dress. YET it isn't JUST a girl in a dress. It's not a cover model photo. That's a girl who just dove into the water, her dress looking like a dark mermaid tail. The water bottom is peddle filled with light breaking into the liq More...

For this review and more visit my blog

*The publisher provided me with this book for review, via Netgalley*

This is the first Mermaid book I have read. I know there are a few of them around but I have always been a bit sceptical of them. Mostly, I have heard bad things about the genre so Lies Beneath was a real surprise to me because I really quite liked it.

I liked the idea of deadly and dangerous mermaids. Seductive, mesmerizing, beautiful but treacherous. They were really quite horrible and it t More...

“Mother, may I go out to swim?
Yes, my darling daughter.
Fold your clothes up neat and trim,
But don’t go near the water.” - Anonymous

Lately, I’ve found myself holding back from reading the synopsis of a book. I don’t want any spoilers, so all I knew about Lies Beneath was that it involved merpeople, which I gathered from that gorgeous cover. I admit that my experience with mermaids didn’t reach beyond Ariel and Prince Eric, so I thought Lies Beneath would be a light, funny, albeit, slightly mor More...

A deadly merman with an avenging heart and an innocent girl dreams to be a poet, when the two different worlds collides, love happens.



Unlike every other spring when Calder was called back home, to the cold water of Lake Superior at earlier than usual, he had no idea Jason Hancock, son of the man who was responsible for his mother’s death had came back too. This could be the perfect opportunity of retaliation to Calder and his mermaid sisters for their mother’s death and end the bargain Tom Hanc More...

BookNook — Young Adult book reviews

This book is what you get when you mix mermaids with vampires. The idea of deadly, killer mermaids is awesome! It's a cool twist that I enjoyed. But I wish the author went further into the mermaid lore. Where do they come from? How do they live? What about the other families of mermaids? I think the little details like that could have been better developed.

The plot also felt a little slow at times. On more than one occasion I felt my mind wandering and I got a More...

3.5 stars

Killer mermaids/mermen!!!

Now this was a very different take on mermaids. Step aside Ariel and let author Anne Greenwood Brown tell us all about her mermaids. Lies Beneath's mermaids are predators that feed upon humans’ positive emotions, leaving shriveled husks of their prey behind. These mermaids have special abilities: they are able to communicate telepathically with other animals, they have speed, they have beauty, they are able to compel and persuade, and they are able to transform More...

My feelings for this book are a surprise and a delight. Despite a male protagonist, despite his murderous family and ill-intent, Caulder won me over as deeply and as surely he seduced his way into Lily's life. Brown's world building is utterly magical, I never expected that she could intertwine mermaids with the modern world. She does just that, without sacrificing one iota of their cold, inhuman mythology.

Though Caulder and his sisters start out bent on revenge, but book's end many assumptions More...

Lies Beneath is the first mermaid book I have read. I didn't really know what to expect but I was looking for something new so I gave it a shot. I REALLY enjoyed it. In a time where vampires, werewolves, and angels fill the shelves, Lies Beneath was a breathe of fresh air. Have we come to the era of the mermaid/merman? I don't really know but if they are anything like Lies Beneath I am on board!

Calder isn't your typical merman. He wasn't born into the mermaid life and doesn't enjoy the killing l More...

This review can be found on The Midnight Tea Party

'Forget everything you think you know about merpeople. Forget that freaking Ariel, think Silence of the Lambs, think Friday the Thirteenth.'

Yes, forget what you think you know about merpeople. Forget about The Little Mermaid and Ingo. This isn't your favourite fairy-tale story. These merpeople are dark; the only way they can survive is by feeding off of human energy. They're jealous of our emotions -- happiness, love, joy, etc., so they take them More...

What happens when you must put an end to a life that means so much more to others, even when that life is a debt that should have been paid all those years before. Calder White knows that for a wrong to be right he must do what his sisters say, the one thing he isn't supposed to do is fall in love. Seducing Lily Hancock was just by chance but him falling for her was just another thing his sisters hold over him because love is a very strong weakness. The target they have searched for is Lily's fa More...

More Reviews And Interviews Bookmarks & Bookshelves


I actually finished this book some time ago but had no idea how to write up review that would explain the epic-ness of this book.

This was the first ever mermaid book I have ever read and I'm so happy it was "lies beneath" that I chose to read! The whole idea and concept of the story was just original and so entertaining to read.

The book for some reason was so very predictable-to me- But still was able to shock me and keep me reading, any st More...

Lies Beneath is a wickedly dark novel that will have you reconsidering going for that swim. Just when you thought it was safe, Anne Greenwood Brown gives you Calder White and his sisters. These serial killers mermaids make Jaws look like a sweet little goldfish. Finally, Brown has gave me the sadistically dark merfolk tale I’d been waiting for. Disney can have their fun loving Ariel. Brown introduces me to the true nature of the mermaids of the deep, and they are Calder, Maris, Pavati and Tallul More...

Unpaid supernatural debt. Bitter, murderous children itching for a mother's revenge. Merman point of view. Gorgeous cover. Sounds like a winner right? Sadly, Lies Beneath doesn't win the desirable 'Homecoming Queen' and will probably only be remembered as 'Also Ran.' First off, I'm not quite sure why there's a mermaid on the cover since our main character is male. They have the perfect opportunity to stand out in the crowd. Give us a drool-worthy merman underwater that's totally unique in today' More...