Sea [Hardcover]

Heidi R. Kling (Author)

Book Description

Release date: June 10, 2010

Still haunted by nightmares of her mother?s death, fifteen-year-old Sienna Jones reluctantly travels to Indonesia with her father?s relief team to help tsunami orphans with their post traumatic stress disorder?something Sienna knows a lot about. Since her mother?s plane went missing over the Indian Ocean three years before, Sienna doesn?t do anything if it involves the ocean or planes, so this trip is a big step forward.

But the last thing she expects is to fall for Deni, a brooding Indonesian boy who lives at the orphanage, and just so happens to be HOT. When Deni hears a rumor that his father may be alive, Sienna doesn?t think twice about running away with him to the epicenter of the disaster. Unfortunately, what they find there could break both their hearts.

A compelling summer romance, Sea marks the arrival of a stunning new voice in YA.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up—Sienna is afraid—of airplanes, of the ocean, of life. She has had these fears for three years, ever since her mother's plane disappeared over the ocean while on a humanitarian aid trip in Thailand. On her 15th birthday, she gets the worst present she can imagine: a plane ticket to accompany her dad and two other doctors on a two-week trip to an Indonesian orphanage—one housing children and young adults who are survivors of the December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. Sienna doesn't want to go, and the cultural differences and deprivations do not make her any happier once there. On her first night, during a welcoming program hosted by the orphans, she meets Deni, a 17-year-old from Aceh, the tsunami's epicenter. Their relationship develops quickly and leads to actions and decisions that are ill-considered and dangerous—both in a Muslim culture and during a state of civil unrest. Sienna loses her fears much faster than one would expect, and her return home to a friendship that is evolving into a romance, so soon after she was in love with another boy whose life was filled with tragedy, makes her seem emotionally shallow. Teens who like relationship novels will overlook these flaws, but the book is definitely an additional purchase.—Suanne Roush, Osceola High School, Seminole, FL
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From Booklist

“I’m sitting alone on the other side of the world talking to a sea turtle that might be my mom.” So begins Kling’s debut novel, the story of 15-year-old Sienna (Sea to her friends), who lost her mother three years earlier when her plane disappeared over the Indian Ocean. Her body was never found, and Sienna secretly believes she could still be alive. Joining her father’s psychiatric team helping child victims of the 2004 tsunami, she spends two weeks in an Indonesian refugee camp where she meets the gorgeous and enigmatic Deni, with whom she has an instant connection and a bittersweet romance. Kling blends facts about Indonesian culture and the wake of the tsunami with a lyrical story of loss and daring to love again. The evocative cover art (a couple silhouetted against watery blue tiles) and exotic locale will attract readers, although the cultural details sometimes lack elegant exposition. Sienna’s loss, newfound courage and eventual acceptance of the changes in her life ring true in the satisfying and wholly believable first-person narrative. Grades 7-10. --Debbie Carton

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Juvenile; First edition (June 10, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399251634
• ISBN-13: 978-0399251634
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #980,399 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Heidi R. Kling is the bestselling author of WITCH'S BREW SPELLSPINNERS 1 (Coliloquy), SEA (Putnam/Penguin) and more.

WITCH'S BREW: SPELLSPINNERS 1 launched The Spellspinners of Melas County series January, 2012. A serialized saga of estranged witches and warlocks, set in a modern, but fantastical world and told in an innovative "active fiction" format not unlike the "Choose Your Own Adventure" books we loved as kids, is followed by the second installment, which launches Spring, 2012--with eight more magical adventures to follow, including THE GLEANING: SPELLSPINNERS 2 December, 2012.

SEA, which launched June 10, 2010, is a bittersweet love story set in the aftermath of the devastating 2004 Indonesian tsunami. Heidi's first novel, SEA was a finalist for "Northern California Book of the Year", an IndieNext Pick, Goodreads "Mover and Shaker" and a Gateway Reader's Award Finalist among other generous accolades.

When not penning novels, Heidi contributes short stories and essays to teen lit aimed anthologies such as TRUTH AND DARE, THE FIRST TIME, A VISITOR'S GUIDE TO MYSTIC FALLS, and TWO & TWENTY DARK TALES and feeds her Thin Mint addiction.

After earning her MFA in Writing for Children from the New School in New York, she returned to her native Californian where she lives with her husband and two adorable children, right over the coastal mountains from the sea.

Please visit Heidi on the web at: http://heidirkling.com, on Facebook (Heidi R. Kling) and at her favorite hangout, Twitter!

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful concept, sweet romance June 12, 2010

By Tiger

Format:Hardcover

When Sienna goes to Indonesia as part of her father's relief team (helping tsunami orphans suffering from PTSD), she doesn't know what to expect. She's resistant to going, but there's not much to keep her at home: her mother died three years ago in a plane crash over the ocean, and since then Sienna's stopped surfing, flying, or doing much of anything. The one bright spot in her life is the hint of tension with her guy friend Spider, a surfer who still calls her by her old nickname "Sea" (painful irony there, as she's now afraid of the ocean). But once she gets to Indonesia she meets Deni, a 17-year-old orphan who takes care of the other children from his region and has problems with the orphanage leader's authority. The two of them grow closer together as they help each other emotionally overcome their past losses.

With this wonderfully unique premise, Sea engages with the trauma of a fairly recent world tragedy and spins a compelling YA romance from it. The Indonesian culture is portrayed in respectful detail, the love story rings true, short chapters keep the pace clicking along nicely, Sienna is a sweetheart and Deni...well, it's easy to see why Sienna falls for him.

An observation: though there's plenty of peril in the story (psychological, physical, sanitary), the scariest moment in novel for me was when Sienna rides off into town with Deni on his motorcycle. I was thinking, Girl, you are so lucky you're in a YA romance, because under any other circumstances, driving off with a cute boy you recently met in a country where you don't speak the language, without anyone knowing who you're with, where you're going, or when you're coming back is a baaaad idea. The trip with Deni was fantastic and really advanced the story and the emotional arcs, but my big sister alarms were going crazy anyway.

Lastly, when reading Sea, you can look forward to a fantastic and very unexpected ending. Usually, when a book takes an unexpected turn toward the end, I'm upset by the imbalance, and ready throw the book against the wall, but in Sea, the change is totally satisfying. I highly recommend it.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Lahv lahv lahv August 10, 2010

By Khy

Format:Hardcover

I've been pretty unenthusiastic about quite a few of the books I've read this year, but Sea not one of those books. I liked it so much that I rounded up some of my buddies and made a video about it: [...]

I'll get my few negatives out of the way first: I would have loved to see more of Sienna's work with the kids. The scenes where she interacted with the children were some of my favorites- they were sad but sweet and a nice break from the romance, even though I loved that aspect of the novel. I also don't see what the big deal about Spider is. Many of the other reviews I've read have made a point of mentioning how much they love him, but he's in the book for like 30 pages. Maybe I don't see the hype because surfer boys totally don't interest me, but I really don't see the appeal.

On to the happy lovey stuff: While I don't see the Spider appeal, I definitely see the Deni appeal. He's kind of totally awesome and sweet and ahh. Lovely. The romance between him and Sienna is completely believable, and I'm SO glad that it wasn't love at first sight (I'm over that plot element). Their relationship was sweet to begin with, but as it developed it became even more lovely to read about. I also liked that their time wasn't perfect- there were plenty of obstacles in their way that made their story all the more realistic.

Most of the other story elements were excellent as well- Sienna's back story and grief were written beautifully. I totally understood why she was so distraught over her mother and father's developing relationship with a new woman; seeing her try to overcome her issues gave the story much more depth- SEA's not just a fantastic romance.

And the ending? Broke my heart. That twist! I may have cried. Maybe.

In short: LOVED IT.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Magical Look into Tragedy and Finding Yourself... August 8, 2010

By Sarah Woodard

Format:Hardcover

Sienna is a strong character. She has to find closure in her mother's death and also if she has true feelings with Spider. I like how caring and driven she was. She also travels to Indonesia to help people and I really like all of the courage that she had. I really liked Spider and Deni. They were great characters and I found Deni's past to be interesting and amazing. Elli was a cute character that made my day and I really loved how sweet she was. The plot of Sea was a quick read. It was addictive and I wanted to know what was going to happen next. I loved how the culture and setting were pulled into the book. The originality of Sea was amazing. It had a lot of great characters and plot. Kling created a grand book. Her writing is magical and graceful. I felt that I knew who Sienna was by the end of the book. I would recommend this book to anyone. Sea is the journey of Sienna to find out who she is and what her place in the world was. I can't wait to read more from Kling.