Ripple - Mandy Hubbard

Title: Ripple
Author: Mandy Hubbard
Release Date: July 21, 2011 hardcover
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin

Group: Young Adult Literature
Rating:★★★★

Lexi is cursed with a dark secret. Each day she goes to school like a normal teenager, and each night she must swim, or the pain will be unbearable. She is a siren - a deadly mermaid destined to lure men to their watery deaths.

After a terrible tragedy, Lexi shut herself off from the world, vowing to protect the ones she loves. But she soon finds herself caught between a new boy at school who may have the power to melt her icy exterior, and a handsome water spirit who says he can break Lexi's curse if she gives up everything else.

Lexi is faced with the hardest decision she's ever had to make: the life she's always longed for - or the love she can't live without? 

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Ripple was a very fast, fun read. There were a lot of unexpected turns and some plot twists that Mandy Hubbard put in there. I was not expecting some of that at all. This book is unique to me because I haven't read any other books about sirens before. It was interesting to see how they are different from mermaids. I also liked the mythology that the author put in there. It made the understanding a lot easier. This is your typical YA paranormal read. Although, I believe it stands out on its own with realistically flawed characters, unique love story, and how the main character is a siren!

 First off, let me talk about how beautiful this book cover is. It is absolutely gorgeous! It was the first thing that drawled me to read this book. I did not know what to expect when I started this book. It captures your attention right away. It is so easy to get into the story and lose track of the time you have been reading. The writing is simple, but I really liked how Mandy Hubbard described the characters and made them more realistic. At first, I did not like Cole at all. I thought he was way too cheesy. I actually liked Erik……….. and boy, was I a fool. I totally fell for it. DANG IT!

 Anyways, when it came to the end of the book I actually learned to like Cole a lot more. I also really liked her friend Sienna. She was hilarious at times, and seemed like somebody I would have been friends with. I am sad with how it ended between them. The flashbacks were great! I really liked learning about Steven and what happened to Lexi on her sixteenth birthday.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I wouldn’t say that it was the best paranormal book that I have ever read. However, I think that this book holds a lot of potential to be one of the big books in the YA world. I really hope that Mandy Hubbard write a second book! I couldn’t tell if this was a stand-alone or not. I want to learn more about what happened to Lexi’s curse!

Plot: ★★★★★

Characters: ★★★★

Writing:★★★

Ending: ★★★

Cover: ★★★★★