Genre: Publication Date: February 18, 2014 Pages: 394 Published By: Author Website Rising Tide on Goodreads Claudette Melanson Website My review copy: From Author in return for honest review in event
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Synopsis
Could Maura's life get any worse? ...turns out it most certainly can.
Isolated and sheltered by her lonely mother, Maura's never been able to make friends. She seems to drive her classmates away—except for the odd times they pay enough attention to torture her—but she doesn’t understand why. Maura considers herself to be a freak of nature, with her unusually pale skin and an aversion to the sun that renders her violently nauseous. Her belief is only worsened by the fact that almost everyone around her keeps their distance.
Even her own father deserted her before she was born, leaving Maura alone with her emotionally distant mother, Caelyn. Even though Maura is desperate for answers about her unknown parent, Caelyn remains heartbroken and her daughter can’t bring herself to reopen her mother’s wounds. Or is there a more sinister reason Caelyn refuses to utter a word about her long-lost love?
When a cruel prank nearly claims Maura’s life, one of her classmates, Ron, rushes to her rescue. Darkly handsome & mysteriously accepting, Ron doesn’t seem to want to stay away, but Maura is reluctant to get too close, since her mother has announced she’s moving the two of them to Vancouver…nearly 3,000 miles away from their hometown of Indiana, Pennsylvania.
If life wasn’t already challenging enough, Maura begins to experience bizarre, physical changes her mother seems hell bent on ignoring, compelling Maura to fear for her own life. Vicious nightmares, blood cravings, failing health and the heart-shattering loss of Ron—as well as the discovery of a tangled web of her own mother's lies—become obstacles in Maura's desperate quest for the unfathomable truth she was never prepared to uncover.
Sure to become of the Books to Read of the year, Rising Tide: Dark Innocence isn’t the usual tale of vampire erotica. This novel is a YA Vampire Romance that is certain to become one of the classic books of its time. Maura doesn’t live in Castle Dracula in Transylvania, but she must still discover the bloodlines constructing the creature she is destined to become.
(Goodreads)
Quotes
I got into the car quickly. My weirdness had scared off enough people. I didn't want him to become yet another one of my lost causes.
When Ron and my mother came into the kitchen I had one of the worst moments of my life.I saw Ron's mouth drop open in shock as he observed the girl he had spent a mostly typical, pleasant day at the amusement park with, greedily chomping into a raw piece of beef.
So ironically sad that now I had new friends I could hang out with at any time, I was leaving them very far behind. It was my life, so yea, that figured.
My Thoughts
Rising Tide piqued my interest when I first spotted it on Goodreads. This is the kind of book that you can easily go into and will have you considering all that you thought you were getting yourself into. There is predictability and unpredictability, angst and change. There is so much packed into just under 400 pages, and yet I am craving more. Melanson undoubtedly created a trilogy that will pull readers in and have them waiting anxiously for the next book.
I found myself in the start settling into the story quite easily. There is a simple flow that pulls you in, almost feeling familiar. There were some points that I felt that the story was following so many other plots, but there were so many little twists that Melanson placed throughout that reflecting I find this story anything but common. There are so many little clues as to what was happening and I was sure that I knew, and yet some clues made me think maybe it was something else entirely. It was these little bits of change and doubt on how sure I was that kept me going at times. The plot though interesting did have some spots that were I felt the plot did slow down a bit. However, the author did use the points to develop either the characters or the plot with more depth and dimension. There was a wonderful foundation poured in this book, and I can only imagine what the next book will bring.
Maura has a lot going on. She is very much the typical girl that has grown used to being alone. However, the changes occurring are bringing attention that she is not prepared for, and maybe she likes the ability to feel like a normal teenager for once. In some characters this would irritate me to no end. The girl just accepting that everyone has decided to be kind, but there are so many circumstances that surround her choice to believe. It is also a platform in which Maura starts to change her own life and see that maybe she just isn't the same as everyone around her. The changes that she is experiencing is even new to her and she seems to be trying to just accept things as they come at her. I mostly enjoyed Maura's awkwardness and that she knew even as she was acting on impulse, that she should not be doing so and experienced so many feelings that I believe any person in her shoes would.
Ron was kind of an anomaly. I couldn't figure him out, yet he made a good romantic interest. He always seemed to be there when Maura needed him, and witnessed some of her less flattering moments and he never seemed to show how odd he thought some of this was. I would be lying if I didn't say that his lack of questioning didn't concern me. There must be something that is missing and is yet to be added to the story, both his and Maura's. His devotion to Maura and the way that he helped her gain some of her own confidence is admirable. It is in these things that I found myself being okay with how quickly they came to rely upon each other, more so Maura relying on him. Maybe relying on him is not the right words, but it was most definitely the biggest help in Maura's life having him. There is so much that I feel I can't put into words with Ron and the romance Maura and him have, but I do know that there is something with them that I am excited to discover.
Overall Rising Tide has me curious as to how everything will play out. There are questions answered and so many that are still not. I look forward to discovering what is behind the reasoning for certain peoples roles. Claudette Melanson has a unique writing style and has the ability to keep you guessing, even when you are sure that you know what is going on. I recommend this book to fans of the paranormal, vampires and that are looking for something a little different from the rest.
About the Author
Claudette Melanson lives in Guelph, Ontario, with her husband Ron and four bun babies: Tegan, Pepper, Butters & Beckett. She graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a BA in English and an MA in Literature. Vampires have been a passion since age five. She hopes to one day work full time as an author, since there are many, many books living inside her head.
In her spare time--what's that???--she loves to watch anime, game the XBox 360--especially Silent Hill Games, read great works of fiction & play with the bunnies. Coffee Lover, occasional blogger, Keto eater & movie watcher. RA changed her life in Dec of 2011 but she's fighting back every day with dietary changes and Enbrel!
Thanks to Claudette we have
1 PB copy of Rising Tide open INT!!!
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