Review ~ Makai Queen - Tara Fairfield

Paperback received from author in exchange for an honest review

ISBN: 193775670X

Description
Off the coast of Lanai, far beyond the sailboats, there is a hidden world beneath the beryl-blue sea, the marvelous kingdom of Moku-ola, a place where man and beast live in harmony. Unknown and forbidden to those living above the surface, it has never been discovered....until now.

Tessa, a curious teenager with a taste for adventure roams the sandy beaches of Lanai. Feeling lost and hurt she longs for meaning and a place in this world. By chance, Tessa encounters a mysterious man who appears to be drowning. The attempted rescue puts her own life in danger as she is abducted and dragged out to sea.

Far beneath the oceans surface, Tessa is brought to the frightening and wondrous land of Moku-ola. As the dangers of this world threaten her very survival, Tessa must overcome the barriers of self-doubt to discover the keys to her royal destiny.

My Opinion
Recently I have developed an interest for books that are set underwater so I was glad when the author asked if I would be interested in reviewing the book as well as running a spotlight. The book sounded interesting and exactly what I was looking for so obviously I jumped at the chance to read it.

This book took me only a few hours to read due to its short length, however despite the number of pages there is certainly a lot packed into it. Makai Queen was a fast paced and engaging read with a solid story structure. I loved how the book began and the twist that involved the brothers at the start, it really did make me question who was lying to begin with and I couldn't guess where the author was going to take the novel. As well as this I enjoyed the romance element in the book, it was kind of a love at first sight thing but it wasn't packed with cliches and soppy emotions that overpower a story. Fairfield balanced Tessa's decisions and emotions about becoming queen well with the romance so as not to overshadow the main plot wich was original and interesting.

In general I enjoyed this book, it was a fast and easy read however at points I would have loved more detail, especially into the surroundings they were in. Fairfield created this engaging underwater story but I never really built up a clear picture of what the city/houses looked like due to a lack of description. I would have also loved the author to use the senses more to describe things, especially colours in more detail so I could get immersed in the world more. Instead of getting lost in the world I did feel slightly detached from everything. As well as this the only other problem I had was the ending. I'm not sure if there is a sequel but to me it seems a little rushed and didn't satisfy me when I reached it. It didn't really leave on a cliff hanger but for me it didn't really sum everything up and tie all the loose ends up either, especially with the romance and Donnie. It just seemed abrupt and it kind of left the book on a low point

Overall though, besides the many references to God which irritated me slightly (personal preferences to religion though) and the previous issues mentioned, Makai Queen was an engaging, quick and easy read that was good to relax to on a gloomy day. There were a few sad points and a few funny points which balanced the story nicely and if there is a sequel I would definitely want to see where the author takes the story next. I would definitely recommend this to people looking for something new to read.