Mermaid of Venice

by Jincey Lumpkin

WHY DOES GIA KILL HER LOVERS?

Dive into the extremely glamorous life of Gia Acquaviva, an ultra-rich Venetian mogul with a portfolio of clubs and casinos around the globe. Gia harbors dark secrets - and an underwater graveyard filled with the bones of her former lovers. Her mermaid roots descend from the mythological sirens of ancient Greece, but she's taken every precaution to protect her anonymity and the existence of other mermaids.

Gia lures in men with a beguiling façade, but inside lurks a deeply troubled soul, severely damaged by a mysterious past. Despite her sinister desires, she longs for true intimacy and believes she may have found her match in Cameron Langley, a successful London-based banker and dead ringer for Chris Hemsworth. He offers Gia her first real opportunity for lasting love. They share an intensely passionate, deeply sensual connection… but is her growing affection for new lover enough to lull the murderous cravings she feels building within?

Fans of 'Killing Eve' and 'Big Little Lies' will love 'MERMAID OF VENICE', a sexy psychological thriller with lush fantasy elements. The setting is modern day Europe with all the chic locales, hot spots and vistas of Patricia Highsmith’s 'The Talented Mr. Ripley' and a juicy splash of the billionaire lifestyle in E. L. James’s '50 Shades' series. This is not the Little Mermaid you grew up with. Gia's out for blood.

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Fiction, Adult

224 pages, Paperback

First published February 17, 2021

About the author

Hey there! I’m Jincey Lumpkin.

Do you like getting lost between the pages of a good book? I sure do. The only thing better for me than reading is writing. That’s why I write Dark Fantasy novels.

By day I work in the Beauty industry as a copywriter and creative director. But in the comfort of the evening shadows, I create fantastic new worlds.

I am the author of the Mermaid of Venice series, a six-book saga about a very rich, very glamorous mermaid who kills men all over Europe.

I am now working on the first book in a new series, Seven Hundred Nights with Seven.

I’ve long been recognized as a thought leader on women and culture. I headlined Sex Week at Harvard University and gave an infamous TEDx talk called, “Are Robots the Future of Sex?”

I’ve lectured around the country at summits devoted to business, creativity and writing. I have been profiled by Dateline NBC, Vice, and GQ, among many others. Out Magazine listed me as one of their "OUT 100", naming me one of the world's most influential LGBTQ+ people, alongside celebrities like Laverne Cox and Ricky Martin. As a long-time columnist for The Huffington Post and Playboy, I wrote over 50 columns on feminism, LGBTQ+ issues and entertainment.

Reviews

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun book with an interesting twist. I’m not gonna lie the mermaid aspect is what initially drew me end, but it ended up being a pretty good, quick, easy read that I enjoyed.

Gia Aquaviva is a mermaid who goes to great lengths to protect her secrets. The ocean floor is a graveyard of her former lovers. She dreams of finding true love and believes she has finally found it when she meets Cameron Langley. Will she be able to let go of her past and the dangerous urges that surge within her to embrace true love?

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

[Oliver Clarke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fabulous delight. A twisted romance about a billionaire mermaid who kills her lovers and the son of a media empire. Weird and unusual but always enjoyable, it reads like a joyous mashup of Jackie Collins and Angela Carter and had me gripped from the first page to the last. I can’t wait to read more in the series.

[Lauren Fleming · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read for people who love Killing Eve or anything Italian.

[Jenniffer Abaúnza · Rating 5 out of 5]

El primer libro de la saga me pareció muy divertido, chistoso, sexy e intrigante. Gia Acquaviva, una sirena con mucha plata que vive en la superficie, asesina a todos sus amantes. Todo empieza a salir mal el día que asesina a Nicolás, un actor español muy famoso.

Este libro dan muchas ganas de viajar, de tener plata y de leer el próximo libro.

[BadassCmd · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not the Little Mermaid you grew up with. Gia's out for blood.

Gia is a glamourous mogul in Venezia, but she has dark secrets. She is a mermaid and has the tendency to bury her lovers under water. But just when she thinks she found a man she can really love, her last victim gets washed up - endangering the life she built and the secret existence of her kind.

„Mermaid of Venice“ is an intriguing introduction to a fresh take on mermaid stories.

I love mermaid stories, and obviously, most books about mermaids are in a fantasy setting with fictional worlds and magic, or sometimes with historical notes and pirates.
So this very modern interpretation with fantasy and thriller elements and a murderous badass mermaid as a main character was intriguing to me right away.

As an editor, I couldn’t help taking note of some elements of plot and style that could be more refined. I was wondering a bit about where the plot was going in the beginning and would have liked to see the mermaid being more in the water. And while I am always happy to watch powerful or morally gray badass woman conquering the world, I would still have liked to have more insight in Gia’s thoughts and reasoning to be able to connect with her earlier.
But that’s just the curse of my job.

I still really liked the book.

The pace of the writing is good and I liked the short and on-point chapters. I enjoyed the scenery and watching the luxury life Gia lives in Venice and all over the globe. Then it was really cool to see a bit of the hidden mermaid society and I loved the character of Vittore.

I also liked the two different timelines – one in the present day and one in the past, telling the story of Gia’s parents and therefore, Gia’s backstory.

And I don’t want to say too much, but I am not mad about that ending and I am definitely curious to read how Gia’s story continues in the next book.

[Kara Myrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great quick read! I haven’t read a book this quickly in years! Highly recommend to others! I cannot wait until book #2!

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book through a Goodreads giveaway! I really enjoyed this "root for the villain" book. The plot kept me on my toes, and the characters were fantastic. I loved Gia's character and how her character was slowly explored through her actions. Our mermaid of Venice definitely has more to her story, but as a first book, I was really happy they did wrap up most of the plots. The differemt stories in different times and from different viewpoints were also very well done. I'm excited to follow Gia into her next plan in book 2!

[Juliana Abaúnza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mermaid of Venice es un thriller de fantasía protagonizado por Gia Acquaviva, una sirena asesina que tiene una vida super glamurosa y salta de Venecia a Londres, pero también tiene una cueva llena de cadáveres de los hombres a los que ha asesinado.

Si están buscando un libro para escapar del día a día, este es. Advertencia: quizás queden con muchas ganas de viajar.

[Charity (Booktrovert Reader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

Gia is a very well made business tycoon in Venice, Italy. Success, beauty and hardly ages. Actually, it is because she is from a long line of Mermaids.
In vengeance for the death of her mother, she lures men in as her lovers and kills them after some time. Burying their bones in a water graveyard under a Venice hotel.
Until one day, she screws up and somehow the body of her last lover floats in the canal and she is risked being discovered who she is and that she is a murderer.
While fixing that mess, she meets Cameron. A banker she met in London that she starts to develop deep feelings for. As crap hits the fan, she scrambles to hide what she has done and avoid Cameron from discovering who she really is.

This is basically a story of a serial killer. Also the couple having crazy interludes *cough* in almost every chapter that they are in.

There were a lot of flashbacks of her mother and how she was murdered. But it took some time to realize what it was about until you read several of them. By then, I was losing interest in the book. This book isn’t really my thing and I wasn’t truly interested in the story.

[Jenny Jaramillo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este es el primer libro de Jincey y el primero de una saga que tiene como protagonista a Gia Acquaviva, una mujer-sirena que, aparte de ser multimillonaria, tiene la "particularidad" de ser una asesina. Sus víctimas son hombres, algunos han sido sus amantes.
Es muy chévere toda esa fantasía y suspenso, que ya imagino como la primera temporada de una serie.

[Rebecca Hefner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first book I've read by Jincey Lumpkin and I really enjoyed it. The storytelling was fast-paced and I identified with Gia. Some might find her character hard to connect with but I thought the backstory was woven so well, the reader aches to root for her once everything comes to light. I didn't find Cameron as likeable and, dare I say, I'm got a little thrill from the ending? It's tough to write a serial killer mermaid main character and have the reader root for her, but this reader sure did and I definitely recommend this book. A great beach read if you want a fast-moving thriller with a compelling storyline. Enjoy!

[Jade · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

I have a love-hate relationship with this book. I didn't like the characters. Most of them were selfish, cold and unbelievable, namely the main character, Gia. But I did appreciate the writing style and the story was very, very good. I stayed up all night to read the book and am left stunned at the ending.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gia Acquaviva has a high-powered business and a secret - she is a siren that has frequent urges to lure in and kill unsuspecting men. Despite being a killer, she wants love and thinks she may have found it with banker Cameron Langley. But when secrets start getting exposed, will Gia be able to stifle her murderous urges and get a happily ever after?

I liked this book (on my rating scale, 3 means liked). This is not your childhood Little Mermaid. Overall, the story was fast-paced and kept me interested. I liked the setup premise that mermaids live among us and thought the siren angle was particularly fascinating. Gia is one of those anti-heroines that you wonder if you should be rooting for. Her moral ambiguity in certain instances is intriguing - do you root for her, or not? The inclusion of a Rupert Murdoch-type news family added another interesting facet to the story.

I would characterize it as a mild thriller with good pacing that leaves you wanting more. Since it ends with a cliffhanger, I definitely want to read on to know more.

Thanks to NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for this e-arc. All opinions my own.

[Read 4 Me · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Review:- It is not easy to execute a book with mixed genres or any book of that nature where a single plot is shown with numerous of genres and emotions and is not stick to any monotonous approach. 

📚One such book is this Mermaid of Venice: Gia's Lost Lover (Mermaid of Venice Series Book 1) where the author has pulled up strings to put together such interesting genres like fantasy, fiction,  thriller and mystery with some matured content served in 1 wholesome book.

📚Author Jincey has written a scandalous yet entertaining story of Gia, a women of today, living an ultra rich life, but her glamorous lifestyle is shadowing her inner self and all her not so good deeds including countless hidden truths and secrets, one for the fact that her ancestors roots arrives from the mermaids from Greece. 

📚The book was actually an wholesome intriguing experience to read which kept me hooked till the end.

[The Starry Library · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mermaid of Venice is a unique story about a modern day mermaid and her glamorous and sometimes deadly antics as a socialite in Venice.

If you think of Why Women Kill meets Splash, then you will have a pretty good idea of what this book is about. I wasn't sure what to think about it once I finished reading it, because as campy as it was, it kind of worked. The storyline was interesting, a modern day mermaid with a killer instinct with a crazy backstory. There were some fantasy elements that were very creative and the writing was well paced. This story doesn't take itself too seriously and I think if it had, it would have the potential to be a good dark fantasy.

Overall I thought it was okay. I didn't like it enough to continue on with the series, but I didn't dislike it enough to give it a low rating. It's weird, outrageous, and suspenseful.

[Gabriela · Rating 3 out of 5]

The genre of this was so hard to understand because I thought it'd be very quirky and over the top and it ended up being rather sad and contemplative. I did enjoy it, especially for the mermaid element. The writing was good and the characters interesting.

[Nat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had such a unique concept. A mermaid that isn’t just a shiny, pretty tail and clam shell bra but instead a genuine, albeit murderous, character? Yes, please and thank you. And what a character Gia is. She has all the cool, aloofness I would expect from someone with such a secret to hide. The personality is not so standoffish that you don’t connect with the character, in fact I absolutely loved her and her development through the book. The struggle in two worlds mixed in with the past story weaved within the pages, and this book kept me reading cover to cover. There was just the right amount of mysticism, history, and intrigue to hold me captive. Mermaid of Sicily can’t come soon enough!

[Marlou Klijn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh my god, this was bad. This might be the worst book I've read in a while. I was at least expecting something smutty/spicy, but noooooo. I just get a verrry badly written whatever. Yes, a whatever, this cannot be called a book. What a joke.

DNFed at 15%

This book was provided to me by Netgalley.

[alex (existential crisis™️) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whewww where do I start with this one.

Firstly thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to be an eARC reader.
Also let's take a minute to appreciate the cover. It's so pretty and simple.

4⭐️/5

This short novel follows Gia Acquaviva who is a beautiful, wealthy Venetian women who’s actually a mermaid. Even though she’s a mythical creature which basically forces her to lead a private life, she’s one who lives on the edge by killing her lovers whenever they start to want more, something that comes to be after a particular traumatic incident that happened in her childhood. But the thing with aging slowly, being alone can get real lonely real quickly.

Even though Gia resigns herself to the fact that she’ll never have a normal love life, she falls for him… Cameron. And she wants a relationship with him and the whole happily ever after. But life is never that easy, is it?

Lemme just say, I think Gia is a girlboss. I don't care what anyone says, she's THAT women, getting her bag and running her empire. I respect that she gets what she wants, and she doesn't take crap, but sometimes I just wish that she treated people who were trying to help her (La Nonna) better. What I will also say is that she is so warped, what happened to the good old breakup when you no longer wanted commitment? She's really taking the more permanent route.

The book starts out fast paced, just throws us into the story and then slows down with glimpses into the past, and then picks back up. It fluctuates a but until half way through and then it stabilizes following the fall-out of the perfect world Gia spent so long building.

Truth be told I didn't feel the chemistry between our MC and the LI. The romance felt rushed and fast paced and I wasn’t seeing how or why Gia was ‘falling for him’. In fact I didn’t feel even the relationship Cam had with his sister either. It felt strained at times it felt like they were just acquaintances rather than siblings. Truth be told the everyone in Cam's family is a bit unhinged, but at least to some degree they know. But nearing the end when Cam started baring his true feelings to her, I smiled at that.

I was more drawn to the thriller aspect than the romance truth be told, I loved the whole idea of a female serial killer, just not who were the victims, they deserved better #RIPNico.

All in all, it was a good read.

Can't wait for book 2.
Mermaid of Sicily, here I come!

Side note: I have a strong dislike for Kostas.

[Cathy Demming · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gia Aquaviva is a wealthy and ruthless business mogul, who lives in Venice. Despite having had many boyfriends, she chooses to live alone in order to keep her secrets safe. One, that she usually ends her romantic relationships by, well, permanently getting rid of them. Secondly, that she was a mermaid.

Her routine form of "breaking up" however comes to a halt, when she falls in love with a banker named Cameron. With having to keep an eye on one of her theiving family members, and keeping her killer urges at bay, will she finally have the life of love and romance she'd always dreamed of? Or will her hopes sink to the bottom of the ocean floor, like her previous lovers.

I've read paranormal books before, but this was my first mermaid. A dark tale ( pun intended ) that I wasn't prepared for, but kept my interest none the less.
At the very start I got a slap in the face with who Gia really was, with very unexpected scenes. The story itself was gripping and had me intrigued. I've never read a novel where the protagonist was also an antagonist. I felt like I shouldn't of been routing for her, but when I got into the traumatic event that led to her being who she was, it was well understood. Not accepted, but understood.

One other reason I breezed through these pages was because the chapters were short, ( I LOVE SHORT CHAPTERS!) and the pace was steady. The big twist in the end got me mad as hell, didn't like it one bit. However, because it's a series, I still want to know what's become of Miss Gia.
So you know what that means...book 2 here I come!

A huge thank you to the Author, NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for this series, in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
HAPPY READING!❤

[Daniele Kasper · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up all three books in this series after reading the back cover blurb and being very intrigued by the unique mermaid premise. I went into it thinking that it was going to be a wild romantic action adventure but I was very wrong. This is not the little mermaid grown up. This book is a dark psychological thriller with a killer siren as it’s main character. Gia lives an ultra extravagant life in Venice, but despite the modern woman persona she displays she cannot escape her bloodline. The ancient siren blood causes the bloodlust she feels, leading her to kill her lovers. Until one man comes along and could change it all. The story was fast paced, and definitely a very unique one. I had picked it up hoping it was more of a classic romance but it definitely leaned heavy into the realm of thriller. I don’t typically pick that genre and it wasn’t what I expected at all but I did ultimately enjoy it enough to read book two and see where Gia’s story takes her.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

The murderous mermaid Gia definitely piqued my interest. Stories from the perspective of a villain are surely difficult to write and despite Gia objectively doing some awful things I was hoping for her not to get caught. Gia’s glamorous and magical world was fun to imagine, from flying around the world by private jet, to secret underwater mermaid cities. The story moves very fast and I actually wish some of the scenes and dialogue had been expanded upon. I didn’t feel totally clear on what exactly what her motive for the kills was, other than the thrill of the chase and the high of the kill/some kind of misplaced vengeance for her mother’s death. The ending felt somewhat rushed to me and it was a pretty big cliffhanger, but there are more book slated for this series though so I’m curious to see what happens to Gia next.

[Christine LaBatt · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first in a new series about real mermaids in the world. Gia is descended from the sirens and is a real mermaid. Historically, she has found comfort in murdering her lovers when she grows tired of them. However, she then meets Cameron and finds herself falling in love with him. At the same time, there is a new threat to the mermaid world as the truth starts to leak out to the human world.

Overall, I liked this book. I struggled to connect with the characters some, as I didn’t find them too likable. I also wish we had more mermaid background but maybe that will be in a future book. It does end on a cliffhanger so I do definitely want to read more to find out what happens!

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Will · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story that makes worry about the characters when I'm not reading is special. Gia, as naughty as she is, is wonderfully compelling to be around. I was instantly caught in her tractor beam. So, Ms. Lumpkin, thank you for that and for taking me on a trip to a new world bubbling with fascinating people I'd never have a chance of meeting, much less having a Bellini with. The story is perfectly constructed with stunning (and believable!) surprises, killer dialogue, and, what's enchanting, an overwhelming rooting interest in a character who misbehaves. Well worth the time. I hope Book #2 comes soon!

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh Jincey that last half was a virtual roller coaster! So here we have Gia. She's a mermaid and a serial killer. When the body of her last lover surfaces, Gia's cushy little life threatens to be uprooted. Her sexy new beau, Cameron, and his reporter sister, Harper, are not really helping the situation either. The one thing I didn't like about this book was that it took me a REALLY long time to actually like and want to root for Gia. I was super confused for a while. Does she hate men? Does she like men? Does she just like sex? In the end though, all the questions were answered for me, and I ended up liking her. Recommended.

[Adrienne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book in a GoodReads giveaway

My attention was captured in the prologue and it was hard to put down. It was definitely a page turner, with plenty of twists along the way. The author did a great job of world building. Beautiful prose. The story jumped around timelines, and I enjoyed that we got Gia’s backstory this way. Around two thirds of the way through, I figured out some of the ending, but there was enough that I didn’t to keep me interested. The author was clever enough to provide a satisfying ending but leave enough open to make me want to read the next book in the series.

[Maci D · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.95 stars hehehe! I was thrilled to receive this book from the author in exchange for an honest review:


Gia is a mermaid and a killer. She lives a glamourous and devilishly dangerous life in Venice. Strolling the streets for her next victim to add to her underwater graveyard.

This was delightful! It was sexy , fast paced, glamourous and also a bit fantastical. The ending left me on the edge of my seat!

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gia Acquaviva is a beautiful and rich Venetian woman with a portfolio of clubs and casinos around the globe. She also harbors dark secrets - she's a mermaid and an keeps an underwater graveyard filled with the bones of her former lovers. Her family’s roots descend from the mythological sirens of ancient Greece, but she’s taken every precaution to protect her anonymity and the existence of other mermaids. Gia lures in men with her beauty and wealth, but inside lurks a deeply troubled soul. She's still haunted by witnessing the murder of her mother at the hands of an obsessed man, and this trauma manifests itself as a thirst for killing her lovers when they become too needy or attached. But when her latest kill floats free from his final resting place, all her secrets begin to unravel, risking her carefully crafted life, her family, and the first real healthy relationship she's over had with someone. This mermaid is less The Little Mermaid, more femme fatale.

I'm so glad I took a chance on this book - I don't read a lot of fantasy, but I was too intrigued by the comparison to Killing Eve to pass it up. Mermaid of Venice is the first book in the Mermaid of Venice series, and each book is a novella or short novel that serves as a chapter for our main character in whichever city the action is taking currently set. I really liked how easy these books are easy to pick up and read in just one evening without interruption. They are very fast-paced, so there isn't a lot of words spent building up the action or scenery, but I didn't really mind the lack of excessive page space spent on pretty words. The characters still felt well-developed and the scene set. I also got a bit of an underlying current (no pun intended!) of earth conservation and climate change.

[Melissa Chambers · Rating 5 out of 5]

The gorgeous prose of Laini Taylor meets the unapologetic darkness of Gillian Flynn in this grim, above and below the sea thriller. From the glitz and glam of Venice nightlife through to the mermaid empire at the bottom of the sea, Lumpkin grounds the reader in a fantastical world full of intrigue. The time slip element helps the reader understand Gia Acquaviva’s unrepentant deeds, though she is certainly not your typical antihero. This book is a sexy thriller you won’t want to put down through to the very last delicious page.

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick easy read by an author I have never read. She did a nice job of building the characters in her book and keeping my interest I don’t usually read paranormal books but it was good. I won it as a Goodreads giveaway, my first time of winning the giveaway.