Customer Reviews

Catch of a Lifetime

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This light romance is the third in a series of books about the Mer folk and Humans by Judi Fennell. In this book a mermaid who wants to save the world has a forbidden affair with a Human. It is probably a lot of fun to read. Unless you are reading it in the Kindle version plagued with formatting problems.

This Kindle version (downloaded Jan 2011) is very hard to read because of several formatting errors. The most frequent error is splitting words into pieces with a space where no space should be. Reading text with these extra spaces is a visual version of listening to a someone with a heavy stutter read 300 or so pages to you. You get the story in the end but both reading speed and word comprehension are serious impediments. For example you get "miss spelled" when the sense of the sentence and story calls for "misspelled." In the Kindle version you can expect extra spaces in words at least once per 50 words. That is a whole lot of nonsense to stagger through. Er, non sense as Sourcebooks would probably e-print it.

Other formatting problems include paragraphs of centered lines, extra paragraph breaks that sometimes split sentences down to one word per line, and variations on paragraph spacing that leave either zero or way too many gaps between paragraphs. On the bright side for the editors there are very few typos and other errors. But, given the headache problems caused by poor formatting, I advise against getting the Kindle version of this book at any price.

I am wondering who at Sourcebooks was responsible for creating the Kindle-formatted version of the book. I bought this Kindle book because I enjoyed a printed version of Ms. Fennell's book "I Dream of Genies." Based on that print experience I expected, and eventually got, a light-hearted escapist romance story. However the printed text that interested me in this author's work did not have all the formatting errors that show up in the Kindle version. What a disservice was done to Ms. Fennell's work by producing such a sloppy Kindle version. If you want this story to work for you do buy or borrow a print version instead of an e-version. Or wait for the publisher to say that they have fixed problems with converting text to e-text and have issued a corrected version of the book.

Reading the back cover of this book is a bit like revisiting a favorite friend. At last, it's Angel's turn - the Mer (not mermaid) sister who's always been so intrigued by humans in Judi Fennell's previous books.

When Logan Hardington finds the beautiful Angel (now with legs rather than fins) hiding on his boat it certainly seems like the Catch of a Lifetime. The fact that she's naked (she is a Mer after all) and his six-year-old son is standing on the pier is a bit of a problem, but Logan just loans her his shirt - what an honorable man.

Angel's struggles to understand human society, despite all her studies, provide for fascinating and amusing mistakes as Logan takes her shopping for clothes. And author Judi Fennell, knows just how to write those mistakes into delightful dialog, keeping the reader smiling and eager for more. Meanwhile, of course, Logan makes his own mistakes, and the path of true love never runs smooth, especially not when the sharks lying in wait are real ones with real fins and evil intent.

The novel includes all Judi Fennell's trademark creatures and puns, plus a delightful young child in Logan's son, and some fascinating questions about the willingness of children to believe, and adults to disbelieve their ears and eyes. Greek mythology is neatly woven in, providing intriguing reasons to ponder free will, care for the planet, and the way large changes start with tiny steps. Catch of a Lifetime is a fun and worthy follow-up to In Over Her Head and Wild Blue Under and a very enjoyable romance.

Mermaid Angel Tritone wants to be an advisor to her brother Rod the High Councilman on the Mer Council. However, he rejects her dreams of joining the ruling Council as he insists her safety is paramount. Upset, she goes on a swim by herself to get her thoughts straight.

Breaking the truce between their species Hammerhead Harry the nasty shark attacks her, but Angel escapes by climbing onto Logan Hardington's fishing boat. She claims to be a "maritime biology" student, but the single father is flummoxed by her arrival as the beautiful young lady is stark naked. He agrees to employ her as a babysitter since his son Michael likes her and he would do anything to make his child feel wanted by him as he only recently learned of his existence. Michael vows to keep Angel's secret that she is a mermaid from even his dad yet also believes she is the mermaid he wished for his birthday. As they fall in love in between arguments with his offspring matchmaking them, the duo rescues Michael from horrible Harry, but also must battle an evil sea monster with oceanic-forming world domination plans.

The third Tritone sibling Mer urban-oceanic romantic fantasy (see Wild Blue Under and In Over Her Head) is a terrific tale of the tail as the female sister takes the lead with her mission to save the world. The story line is fast-paced from the onset and never slows down for even ebb tide; as the unity of a father, a son and a mermaid who helps being the two males together while saving the earth makes for a fun Catch of a Lifetime.

Harriet Klausner.

My favorite book in the trilogy has human interested Angel Tritone being caught by six year old Matt while he was fishing and she was escaping a shark attack. Knowing what she is he keeps her secret from his dad Logan who find himself entrance by this mystery woman in more way than one when hearing her siren song during Mike's birthday. When he learns what she is however his reaction leaves the reader in tears. Logan and Angel have to put aside their differences and break a few more mer laws when Mike become the prisoner of the mother of all monsters and they have to make a rescue attempt together. When Angel is brought to trial for her crimes only the power or the Gods or at least true love could possibly save her and her chances at immortality.

Catch of a Lifetime is the third in Judi Fennell's series with the Mer. I liked this one best of all, largely because of Angel Tritone. This time, the woman in the romance is the Mer and she's organized, powerful, and caring.

Her mission of improving Mer-Human relations to reduce pollution makes sense and it's interesting to read her reactions to life on land. Her fascination with the "girly things" like fabrics and all sorts of clothes that aren't waterlogged is pretty funny as well. Her love interest Logan is also likable as he struggles with suddenly becoming a single parent and trying to win the child's affection.

Overall, Catch of a Lifetime is a fun, light romantic read with a twist of the unusual.

ISBN-10: 1402224281-Paperback $6.99
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca; 1 edition (January 5, 2010)384 pages.
Review copy provided by the publisher.

Humans are wreaking havoc on the ocean. Angel is a mermaid who is determined to stop the destruction. When a shark tries to make Angel it's meal, she narrowly escapes by hopping into a boat. The boat belongs to Logan and he cannot believe his luck. Like any good father, Logan wants to give his son Michael what he wants most in the world. It just so happens that what Michael wants has found it's way into Logan's boat. That's right, Michael wants a real mermaid. This couldn't have worked out more perfectly. Angel is ready to recruit people to fight for her cause and Logan might be the inspiration she needs to get started. The more Logan and Angel learn about each other, the more they realize that they are kindred spirits. When Angel's life is in jeopardy, Logan must decide between the comfort and familiarity of singleness or to give his all for the woman he loves.

I'm addicted! I loved the creativity that was necessary to write such a book. Judi is a master of romance and fantasy. If you are a fan of romance and want something different than your average human loving human story, I recommend Judi's books.

As I read Catch of a Lifetime, I'm suddenly reminded of the movie Splash. You know, the one with Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah? But of course the characters in this book oh sooooo much hotter (yeah...Tom Hanks just doesn't do it for me...lol). Although I COULD imagine Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson in this one. They're such hot "beachy" people! LOL

Book 3 of the Tritone trilogy, Catch of a Lifetime, was a cute read with an adorable little boy and hot papa that will have you reeled in from the beginning. Like the rest in the series, I'd give it 3 stars because I enjoyed them but doubt will keep them on my shelves. It's a fun read to pass along to others who enjoy a fun fantasy romance.

If you'd like to read more about Judi Fennell and her other 2 books in the Tritone trilogy, go here:

* 1/27/2010 - Judi Fennell Author Guest Post ([...])
* 11/13/2009 - Wild Blue Under Book Review (Book 2) ([...])
* 5/25/2009 - In Over Her Head Book Review & Author Interview (Book 1) ([...])

Angel is the youngest Tritone sibling and is out to prove herself and to her brother Rod. After being almost attacked by a shark Angel wakes to find herself naked and on the boat of hunky Logan Hardington. She realizes this is her chance to learn more about humans and maybe even help the planet.

Catch of a Lifetime is a heart warming tale. Angel and Logan's story is filled with wonderment and adventure. They have a great connection that is hard to deny. Not to mention sizzling hot! I have really loved, the series as a whole. Especially the first book, In Over Her Head. Ms. Fennell has created a delightful world that, I have enjoyed escaping to. It is both dangerous and fun. If you like mermaid stories and don't mind talking sea creatures, I definitely recommend giving this one a try.

Overall, Catch of a Lifetime was another great addition to Fennell's series and I can only hope she plans to write more involving this great world. Not only is this a great series to read, but it's a light and quick read, which is perfect for the upcoming summer months.

For my full review, please check out Literary Escapism.

This is another different sort of book for me. It was free, and the reviews were good, so I gave it a shot. It was a very sweet read. Well written. Only nitpick about the writing itself was that it lacked enough visual description. I had trouble picturing everything that was happening. The characters were likable. Logan was a wonderfully strong character and the son was adorable. I had a bit of trouble connecting to Angel. She felt a bit weak to me, almost cardboard, and because of that, I couldn't connect, emotionally, with her. She wasn't as strong of a character as Logan was. A light hearted read, very easy to read, and it hooked me from page one and kept me reading.

The format was a bit off. Words were split in two, which jars you out of the book, and sometimes paragraphs started in odd places, but that's not the author's fault, and it didn't stop me from enjoying the book. My biggest beef was the constant reference to how we humans were ruining the planet. It got to be a bit over the top and after a while I felt like I was being preached to.

All in all though, I enjoyed it. Not something I'd consider a keeper, but definitely worth the read.

Edit:

Have to add in here that when I wrote this review I hadn't quite finished the book. The ending really is quite touching. I actually teared up. Definitely worth the read. Very good emotion in this one. So I upped my rating to four stars.