Sound of Sirens (Tales of Skylge #1) by Jen Minkman

Blurb: On the island of Skylge, electricity is only for the Currents – the rich ruling class who once came from across the sea and brought the holy fire of St. Brandan to Skylge. Ever since, the light in the Brandaris Tower has protected the islanders. Heeding the Siren’s call will drown your body and steal your soul, but the sacred light in the Tower will chase the merfolk away.

When Skylger girl Enna welcomes her brother back from a long sea voyage, he gives her a special present from the mainland – an electronic record only playable on a Current device. The problem is that Royce Bolton, Current heartthrob and the town’s most gifted pianist, wants it too. After she stubbornly refuses to sell the LP featuring his favorite artist, he suggests sharing the record by secretly meeting up in his private summer house. Taken aback yet thrilled, Enna agrees – and discovers that there’s more than meets the eye when it comes to Current society and the history of Skylge. Why do the Sirens tempt the islanders to give themselves up to the sea? And where does the Currents’ monopoly on electricity really come from?

While struggling with these questions, Enna begins to fall for Royce, risking everything to be with a guy who is clearly wrong for her. She will learn that the sound of Sirens isn’t the most treacherous thing out there to haunt her dreams.

3 Stars

The beginning was pretty cool.  About halfway though was a solid 4 star for me.  But then, once I got to the part where Royce kissed Enna it kinda started to go faster into the romance part and it felt too insta for my tastes.

He tells her shes cute and she all of the sudden likes him a lot?  They don’t really know each other that well except to want to listen to music together.  It was very odd for me. I didn’t see the attraction at all.  She didn’t seem like a very strong herione to me and I don’t really flock to the weak ones that much.  Thats just not how I roll.

Its gotta decent flow to it. I had a bit of a problem with the words that were being used as descriptors.  The words weren’t given any context, they were just thrown in to replace other words but it just didn’t fit.  Other then that the story was good, I liked the best friend and the brother.  The forbiddeness of there romance was appealling, it just blossomed too soon for me for a YA.

Now, I have it on good authority that the second book is better so I think I might give this series another shot.  But not anytime soon, I think I need to step away and let my mind clear so I don’t have any emotional transfer to the next book.

Favorite quotes

The unbidden thought makes me blush.  What is wrong with me?  I’m making up stuff because he’s hot, I know that.  I mean, I didn’t exactly bond with Royce.  I was angry with him half of the time we were talking.  He’s so infuriatingly above all of us.  So different from me.

“We call Brandan a saint because his Light saved us from death by the Sirens,” he answers.  “If someone is so preoccupied with averting death and making earthly life as comfortable as possible, I can’t believe he took life after death very seriously.”

And suddenly, I want nothing more than to fling my arms around him and disappear into my father’s embrace.  Let him shield me from this world with so many dangers and heartache lurking in every corner.  But I can’t – I can never go back, because I crossed that threshold when I thought I was ready, and now the door has fallen shut behind me.  I’m no longer a child, and we’ll have to assume new roles and get to know each other again.

This book fills in my Book Bingo YA Fantasy spot from a fellow bloggers reading challenge Just Another Girl and Her Books.