Midnight Pearls (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "The fisherman sat quietly in his boat staring at the darkening skies..." (more)
Key Phrases: Sea Witch, Father Gregory, King Philip (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6 Up-Pearl is rescued from the sea during a storm by a fisherman; he and his barren wife take the child in, lovingly raising her despite her silvery hair, translucent skin, and too-long legs. Pearl lives a lonely life with only a young prince, James, for a friend. Years later, when she is 17, her true identity is revealed. When their boat capsizes, Pearl makes her way to shore, but James must be saved by Faye, a mermaid who instantly falls in love with him. Looking on from the waves is Kale, Faye's merman brother, who realizes that Pearl is actually Adriana, his betrothed who was kidnapped years before. After the Sea Witch becomes involved, Faye becomes a mute human charged to get a marriage proposal from James or die, and Kale becomes a blind human charged to attain the love of his beloved or meet the same fate. Too much of this story is borrowed from other mermaid tales and lends to the predictable nature of Pearl's tale. The language is stilted and there are far too many instances of chills going up or down the spine of one character or another. For a mermaid story that is far better written, recommend Donna Jo Napoli's Sirena (Scholastic, 1998).
Kimberly L. Paone, Elizabeth Public Library, NJ
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Product Description

Once upon a time in the Kingdom of Aster a strange thing happened.

They say the prince married a girl who was not what she appeared and that another girl who saved the kingdom vanished without a trace. Some said it was witchcraft. Some said it was only a legend. For those who knew the truth, it was magic....

Rescued from the sea at an early age, Pearl grew up within sight of the water...and the castle. With her pale skin and silvery hair, she was an outcast in the village. Her only friend was a boy she met on the beach -- a young prince named James, who understood Pearl's desire just to be like everyone else.

Their friendship is viewed from afar by many: a disdainful king, Pearl's worried foster parents, a jealous young mermaid, a lovestruck merman, and the powerful sea witch. Now a storm brews in the kingdom, with a tidal force that could keep Pearl and James apart.

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Simon Pulse (June 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689855575
• ISBN-13: 978-0689855573
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 4.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #461,382 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Points for creativity, July 22, 2003

By	KC (New York) - See all my reviews

With her book Midnight Pearls, Debbie Viguie stays away from what The Little Mermaid gave us and made a completely different story on mermaids. The book's cover itself provides a mystical feeling of enchantment and the unknown.

I do have one wavering opinion. Her story was rushed at times, especially towards the end. I reckon she was rushing to finish up with the story to get it over with. She went over descriptions and action-packed parts too vaguely. She did, however, take her rushed pace down a notch for the dialogues.

I enjoyed the friendship between Pearl and James. It shows how two people from two different social standings can connect and relate. It's a sweet touch.

Midnight Pearls is a nice, light book to read especially for a trip to the beach. It would make a nice gift for those who enjoy stories of such, especially young ones.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally... something worthwhile in the young adult section!, January 25, 2006

By	Karusichan "Karusichan" (Lansing, MI. USA.) - See all my reviews

First off, I work in a book store as administrator of the children section. In a never ending quest to find some decent literature in the young adult section I have stumbled across the "Once Upon a Time" series written for that age bracket. This is a series of fairy tales retold in different settings by different authors utilizing the events from the original stories in new and creative ways. Being a fan of fairy tales as a child it is needless to say that I was excited to discover these.

My first choice of this amazing series was "Midnight Pearls" by Debbie Viguie, a retelling of Hans Christian Anderson's "The Little Mermaid". Set in a small kingdom by the sea the story centers around a fisherman named Finneas and his wife, Mary, a childless couple who long for a son or daughter. One evening on the brink of a storm Finneas happens upon a strange girl floating in the sea, naked, carrying a large pearl of midnight blue in her palm. He takes the strange girl home to his wife, who decides to raise her as their own.

It becomes apparent as the girl, whom they call Pearl, grows up that she is not one of them, but they can never quite bring themselves to admit this fact. Pearl is a strange looking girl, one blessed with pale, translucent skin, silvery hair, and large dark blue eyes. But if that weren't odd enough she also has very long, thin legs that make her stand out from among her peers, so much so that her only friend is the young Prince named James, who she has to see in clandestine meetings on the beach once a week. It becomes obvious that the two are doing what normal adolescents do, developing feelings for one another, however when it also becomes obvious that Pearl is of an appropriate age her parents become concerned that she marry...and the first to come asking for her hand is the local blacksmith. When this happens James decides to let his friendship with Pearl be known to her parents, a decision which ultimately proves to be folly. The day he announces his presence in her life he also takes her on a ride in a rowing boat, which ends in a near tragic accident when the boat springs a leak and they both have to swim for shore, a thing Pearl fears more than anything. When they meet up on shore again James swears to Pearl that she saved his life, even though she barely saved herself. He knows a young woman saved him and vows to wed the woman who performed so heroic of a deed.

Suddenly Pearl's world is in an uproar, because with the marriage proposal and James sudden fascination with his rescuer comes other trials. For one thing there is her conflicted emotions towards James that she quite can't clarify. Second, there is a sudden appearance of a mute young woman and a deaf young man, whom claims to be Pearl's betrothed and is soon taken into custody on accusations of murder. On the same day another suitor comes into Pearls life, a Marquis who is also a cousin of James, who claims to love Pearl. With all these choices in love Pearl still can't get the feeling of the young blind man's passion out of her head, especially considering he looks so similar to her. What connection does he have with her past?

This is a fabulous adaptation of Anderson's masterpiece. As a child I devoured copies of this book, finding more beautiful translations and illustrations of this story. As an adult, I am thrilled to be able to revisit a world which I so loved as a child, especially one that was so well done and encompassed new characters that really drew you in. I adored the inclusion of Kale, the young blind boy, and Faye, whom takes the traditional role of the Little Mermaid to a closer degree than Pearl. This is a must read for anyone who loves fairy tales, and I am definitely going to continue to read the others in this series. (I can't tell you how thrilled I am to find such a treasure in the young adult section either...it's the bane of my existence! However, I will be recommending this book to people who want more than the ordinary high school crush stories we sell.)

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic, October 1, 2003

By	Erika Sorocco (Southern California, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Rescued from the sea as a small child during a vicious, ravaging storm, Pearl grew up in a spendid small cottage, with a gorgeous view of the ocean, and the castle in which the King and Prince live in. Pearl is an outcast of her small village, with her pale skin, silver hair, and long, spindly legs in which she is always tripping over. But Pearl's secret friendship with the Prince gives her solace, as he is misunderstood just as she is. When suddenly two jealous mermaid's come up from the sea, with their eyes set on Pearl and Prince James. Now the two of them have to try to stay together, when everyone is trying to keep them apart.

A fantastic story, based on "The Little Mermaid." Viguie created many lovable characters in this novel filled with fantasy, mystery, suspense, and eventually, a happy ending. A must have for fans of the previous books in the "Once Upon A Time..." series.

Erika Sorocco