The Mermaid's Mirror

The Mermaid's Mirror
by L.K. Madigan

Lena has lived her whole life near the beach – walking for miles up and down the shore and breathing the salty air, swimming in the cold water, and watching the surfers rule the waves – the problem is, she’s spent her whole life just watching.

As her sixteenth birthday approaches, Lena vows she will no longer watch from the sand: she will learn to surf.

But her father – a former surfer himself – refuses to allow her to take lessons. After a near drowning in his past, he can’t bear to let Lena take up the risky sport.

Yet something lures Lena to the water … an ancient, powerful magic. One morning Lena catches sight of this magic: a beautiful woman – with a silvery tail.

Nothing will keep Lena from seeking the mermaid, not even the dangerous waves at Magic Crescent Cove.

And soon … what she sees in the mermaid’s mirror will change her life …
(description from Amazon.com)

This was an extremely well written and enjoyable fantasy book. Lena is a truly believable teen...keeping secrets from her parents, trying to please everyone to the best of her ability, loving her younger brother... I was really happy to also see that each of Lena's parents, her father, her mother, and her stepmother, were loving, supportive well-rounded characters.

When Lena learns of the merfolk, she travels to their world. L.K. Madigan does a lovely job describing their village. It's tangible and believable. The merfolk have interesting day to day lives and customs. Each merperson that Lena meets is just as well thought out and presented as her human friends.

*I do have to say that though, I really, really enjoyed this book and felt the merfolk were really well-done, they felt a little..."darker"...than I prefer. Not that it detracted from the plot of the story, at all! I just like to imagine merfolk as slightly more magical.

I do not want to spoil the ending at all, but I will say that it was realistic and touching and totally fit the tone of the book. I really enjoyed this one.