Review: Halcyon

Halcyon by Demelza Carlton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A lone planet filled with chaos – I’m in. Add in the mermaid aspect and you know I’ll eat that book up.

I was excited about this one from the get go. It called out to me, the siren song luring me in. Despite my excitement, I experienced so many mixed emotions towards this book. I was worried it wouldn’t give me what I wanted. It felt like one of those science fiction and fantasy hybrids that are too good to be true. It belonged to a part of a much larger collection, and I feared I wouldn’t be able to understand this story without reading the others. These feelings, however, were unfounded. It was a great mix of science fiction and fantasy, and this book works perfectly as a standalone. In fact, all it ensured was that I want to read the other books that belong to The Complex series. It seems like such a fun world, and I’d love to see what is offered by the other authors.

With this book, we have a typical ‘enemies to lovers’ romance buried under all the drama. From the very start, even though you’re not given all of the details, you know such is what you’re in for. When given a human with such a strong hatred for mermaids, when given a human set out for revenge, in such stories you know how it’s going to end. Such a thing, however, does not prevent you from enjoying the story. Watching as the world slowly comes to life, watching as the characters interact and develop, is so much fun. Honestly, I was pulled into the story and refused put it down.

Admittedly, at first, I wasn’t completely pulled into the story. There were a handful of awkward sentences that distracted me at first, but once the characters started to come to life before me I was really pulled in. Told from two perspectives, we get to see so much of the world, watching as our characters deal with the chaos of the two different species coming together in an enclosed space.

Honestly, it’s such a simple story but it’s so well done. It’s addictive on so many levels, and I certainly recommend you give it a read. It’s a super quick read, something you can complete in no time at all, and it will certainly leave you wanting to read more of this world.

I really could say a lot, but I’m going to stop before I give any spoilers. Just know it’s a lot of fun, and certainly worth the read.

As a final note, I’d like to thank the author for allowing me to advance read this great story.

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