The Girl Who Never Was

The Girl Who Never Was 
by Skylar Dorset
The Otherworld, book one

Selkie Stewart thinks she’s a totally normal teenager growing up in Boston. Sure, her father is in an insane asylum, her mother left her on his doorstep—literally—when she was a baby, and she’s being raised by two ancient aunts who spend their time hunting gnomes in their Beacon Hill townhouse. But other than that her life is totally normal! She’s got an adventurous best friend who’s always got her back and an unrequited crush on an older boy named Ben. Just like any other teenager, right?

When Selkie goes in search of the mother she’s never known, she gets more than she bargained for. It turns out that her mother is faerie royalty, which would make Selkie a faerie princess—except for the part where her father is an ogre, which makes her only half of anything. Now, with enchantments dissolved and prophecies swinging into action, Selkie finds herself on a series of mad quests to save the people she’s always loved and a life she’s learning to love. But in a supernatural world of increasingly complex alliances and distressingly complicated deceptions, it’s so hard to know who to trust. In order to survive, Selkie realizes that the key is learning—and accepting—who she really is. (Description from Goodreads.com) 

I really liked the start of this new series.  Skylar Dorset managed to take a lot of elements of traditional faerie lore (things like Elemental magic, running water, bells, goblins and ogres) and give her world a very unique spin.  It made reading feel familiar enough to be a breeze, but also kept me riveted as new elements were introduced to Selkie's world.  

I enjoyed the characters a lot, too.  I liked Selkie and felt for her as her world spun out of control.  I felt that Ben was a great love interest and was fascinating in his own right.  My favorite character, though, was Selkie's spunky human friend, Kelsey, who ends up becoming a sidekick because she doesn't care who or what is messing with her bestie, just that Selkie's in trouble.  We ALL need a friend like that! 

I am beyond curious to see where things go in book two.  There are multiple storylines that have to be explored and a certain prophetic statement made by a psychotic mom that needs to be avoided at all costs!! An excellent start to a series I will absolutely be reading til the end. 

Full disclosure: eARC received from Netgalley