by Natalia Sylvester
Libby audiobook 9 hours
read by Frankie Corzo
Published: 2022
Genre: YA realistic fiction
Themes / plotlines:
- hip dysplasia
- Peru / immigrants
- overprotective parents
- teen wanting autonomy and freedom
- swimming
- mermaids
- gender issues
I really liked Alex, the boyfriend. I wish we had gotten to know more of his back story. Her best friend was a gem. I really liked her as a character.
Veronica was a sympathetic character at times and an irritating cry baby at others. Her sister Dani was right when she said everything was always about Veronica . . .
"Her Florida town is home to Mermaid Cove, a kitschy underwater attraction where professional mermaids perform in giant tanks . . . and Veronica wants to audition. But her conservative Peruvian parents would never go for it."
So the obvious ensues . . . deception, discovery, big declarations.
There were parts of the story I truly enjoyed - Veronica sharing her favorite places with Alex, the doctor acknowledging Veronica's desire to have a say about her health care and surgery, etc.
But there were more parts that bugged me. The start of each chapter had a word, the dictionary definition, and the Veronica definition. Sometimes those things really add to the story. In this case, to me, they didn't. The way Veronica complained about being photoshopped (to remove her scars) when she HAD been trying to hide them all the time . . . make up your mind! She was too much of a victim to me.
I found another note with this info:
- Spanish words and expressions - frustrating with no translation . . .
- "Papi" sounded like Bobby. In one scene, I was thinking "Why is Bobby (the maintenance type dude) coming into Veronica's bedroom to talk to her?!?!"
- "lame" joke / her identity / she's oversensitive at times and chill at others . . .
No comments:
Post a Comment