** spoiler alert ** As I first started reading this novel, I fell in love with the premise of the plot. The author uses her skills to create a fascinating new myth on the creation of mermaids that I enjoyed. The main character,Luce,is strong in her convictions and her choices whether or not they go against the ancient laws. I felt close to both her and the mermaid queen at first. Sadly the plot falls short. I understand the author wants to immerse the reader in the aquatic beauty and terror that it takes to be a mermaid, but I feel it drags on. The book as a whole reads like a dying pulse. There is so much detail and (I feel) repetition between the action that with each important plot event I felt less and less moved by it. So by the time one of the mermaids die, not only was it predictable but I felt no emotion towards her death(although her burial scene was more moving). Not one tear fell. The last few chapters brought me back to the story as Luce became more rebellious and the tribe reached its breaking point, but the end result was sadly missing something that I can't put my finger on. Unfortunately this tale of tails gets 2 1/2 apples.