Review: Real Mermaids don't wear toe rings - Helene Boudreau

Genre: YA/MG, paranormal
Pages: 224
Published: December 2010 Sourcebooks Jabberwocky

Freak of nature takes on a whole new meaning...

If she hadn't been so clueless, she might have seen it coming. But really, who expects to get into a relaxing bathtub after a stressful day of shopping for tankinis and come out with scales and a tail?

Most. Embarrassing. Moment. Ever.

Jade soon discovers she inherited her mermaid tendencies from her mom. But if Mom was a mermaid, how did she drown?

Jade is determined to find out. So how does a plus-size, aqua-phobic mer-girl go about doing that exactly? And how will Jade ever be able to explain her secret to her best friend, Cori, and to her crush, Luke?

Plot:

Jade finds out she is a mermaid. Her best friend spends a lot of time with another girl, and Luke, her crush, why would he ever look at her. There is a lot to handle.

My thoughts:

This was a short cute book, and I loved the mermaid explanation. That was really original and it almost made me believe it could be true. So here the author really thought about how and why there are mermaids.

Jade is a nice girl, her mum drowned a year earlier and she is trying to cope. She gets her period and her dad goes all out and buys a cart filled with products, hilarious and funny. Then she finds out she can become a mermaid, and she is really scared. Who wouldn't be since she know nothing at all about being a mermaid. There is also friendship drama since a new girl tries to move into their group, and she is not that nice. And of course then there is the crush, and Luke is a really sweet guy. But the teenage drama is never too drama, instead the focus is more on her coping with this new situation and what that brings.

There is also some action, I shall not give any details, but something is going to happen.

All in all this was a sweet book. I started to read and read it in one sitting. I was amused, and the mermaid angle, oh so good. I wonder where she got the idea of their origin?

Recommendation and final thoughts:

A yes there, this is something young girls would enjoy. First there is mermaids, cool, the crush, and issues with friends. The paranormal and the down to earth things all young people go through. It's a 3,5. I enjoyed the book. 

Reason for readings:

Jumped on the mermaid wagon

Cover: 

Cute

review copy from the publisher