Praise for Rising Tide:“This captivating and commendable work had me immersed from the beginning. The story flows from scene to scene with ease, and the author shows exceptional skill when it comes to storytelling.”“Mrs. Melanson’s writing is so descriptive and talented. Throughout the entire story, I felt like I was watching a movie.”“Melanson grabs you from page 1 and doesn’t let you go until … doesn’t let you go until the very bitter end, only bitter because the book is finished.”
“I found pure delight in this book and will recommend it to other readers.”
“The writing by Claudette Melanson in this novel is top notch and I can see the movie rights for this being grabbed in no time.”
2015 Readers’ Favorite Gold Medal Winner for YA Mystery
2015 RONE Award Finalist for YA Paranormal
2015 New Apple Top Medalist for Young Adult Ebook
Chosen as one of 400 for the second round of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award for 2014!!!
Rising Tide will sink its fangs into you, keeping you awake into the wee hours of the night
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 one of the Books to Read of the year, Rising Tide: Dark Innocence isn’t the usual YA tale of vampires. Full of Mystery and Suspense, this Vampire Mystery Thriller packs just enough Romance & Humor, while delivering plenty of Dark Fantasy served with a side of the Supernatural. Maura, in the midst of her vampire awakenings is unarguably a vampire in denial. It is a novel that is certain to become one of the classic paranormal and fantasy books of its time–the series is not only for Teen & Young Adult readers, but has been well-received by many adult readers, as well. Maura doesn’t live in Castle Dracula in Transylvania, but she must still discover the bloodlines constructing the creature she is destined to become, while overcoming social issues, such as bullying, that rock her world while coming of age. She is an strong Urban Scienece Fiction & Fantasy female protagonist readers love. A preview is available using the Look Inside feature for the ebook and print copies, above. Scroll up to read a sample now!
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Fabulous Vampire Novel!!! I was in love from the get go. It’s a new, refreshing vampire tale. I was immediately in love with the main character, Maura DeLuca. Maura is living alone with her Mom since her Dad left them. Maura knows nothing about him because it’s too painful to her mother whenever he’s brought up. Maura is a young adult with a lot of the awkwardness most teens feel, yet hers are a bit more than odd. She finally falls for a handsome young man who also takes a fancy to her; but her mother is relocating them to Canada for a job opportunity. Figures, right? Her Mom is pretty strict but has been acting strangely and poor Maura is trying to sort this all out. I don’t give up spoilers, but there is so much going on in this book at a furious pace; it’s a true page-turner. I highly recommend this book for anyone who loves vampire stories or anyone looking for a new, interesting take on the standard vampire novels. Appropriate for all YA readers & adults alike. Ms. Melanson has a huge new fan. Now to sink my teeth into the next book in the series….
Cute story
Loved the entire series
Rising Tide: Dark Innocence by Claudette Melanson is a wonderful story to read. This is book number one in this wonderful start to a brand new series writen by a brand new author for me to read. I highly recommend this story to everyone who loves reading about suspence and paranormal romances.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Maura is coming of age and changing and now her over protective mother is making her move just when she meets Ron who she knows she loves. Ron has always wanted to be with Maura since the first time he saw her. He’s wanted to protect her. Now that they are together she has to move and she is having all these weird changes. Fun and exciting read
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I loved this tale!
“Dark Innocence” is an original and interesting tale on a vampire tale. The characters are fresh and realistic the storyline is well-written and holds your interest while keeping you entertained through the end of the book. This is a really good read and I highly recommend this book.
I received a free copy of this book. This review was posted voluntarily
4.5-Stars
I’ve been out of touch with the YA vampire genre, and Rising Tide Dark Innocence brought me back to it in a big way. I love the cover, so full of bright colors and a wonderful character. The writing is strong and well-done with good description that keeps you reading.
I love how Claudette Melanson sucks you into the main character’s transformation and discovery of her vampire roots. The book opens with a familiar trope in YA with a misfit, Maura who is befriended by the most popular girl in school, but it’s a trap. There is a good guy, Ron who saves Maura’s life and becomes her boyfriend.
Personally, I didn’t care for the flashbacks to establish characterization. I felt those could have easily been worked into the present with dialog, and there were some uses of filtering words that I thought weakened the scene. However, this did not take away from my overall enjoyment of Rising Tide Dark Innocence at all.
This is wonderfully written, coming of age story with vampirism. Love it!
Something A Little Different
Rising Tide is an intriguing paranormal romance that is somewhat different from all the other high school vampire novels. That unique element kept me turning the pages.
The Opening
The first chapter opens with an interesting hook and quickly establishes Maura as a sympathetic character. It also features an intriguing end that hints there’s more going on that we realize.
The Characters
Maura is an instantly sympathetic character because of the imposed move introduced in the first paragraph. As the first chapter progresses, it’s clear she’s an underdog and also suffering from a debilitating skin condition, which helps to increase the readers’ interest. In later parts of the book, we become more invested in her as she has more and more to lose.
Mom (Caelyn) is a complex and interesting character. There are elements of her character that I find illogical within the context of the story. For example, the name she gave Maura and the reasons for that as well as the reasons for her depression and anxiety.
Initially, it all seems to make sense. However, by the end of this book, some of the reasoning has been eroded to the extent that her initial personality becomes somewhat implausible. I may be too harsh about this. There are reasons for Caelyn to feel as she does. It’s just that the reasons are not nearly as good toward the end.
Katie Parker and her brother are well introduced and sketched. In some ways, she’s the most interesting character. She is a caricature of the popular girl in school, but I liked her backstory.
Ron is cute. I like the little things he does for Maura and his faithfulness toward his mom. Through his interaction with Maura, speaking about music and other interests, both characters are made more three-dimensional with a distinct life beyond the plot.
The Plot
For much of the novel, the plot follows the countdown archetype. Maura and her mom are moving to Canada, and there is a set future date when this must happen. Much of the conflict and tension revolves around the timing of this move and its implications in Maura’s life.
Also, it is clear that Maura is going through interesting hormonal changes in this coming-of-age tale. But said changes are a little more extreme than average. Running in tandem with these changes we have Maura’s serious health issues. These also subscribe to the countdown archetype in that set times are given for events to occur, and we’re working toward them.
The health-scare approach to the paranormal elements is unique. I like the novelty of how Maura’s supernatural biology and abilities are introduced slowly throughout the story. In that way, there are many similarities to Stephen King’s Carrie. However, I did find some elements of the health scare conflict frustrating.
It becomes clear pretty soon that mom is hiding something, and I felt throughout that if Mom would just be open and transparent, most of the tension would disappear. That would be a good thing if it were not for the fact that Mom’s withholding of the information is illogical. The longer she keeps secrets, the more dangerous the situation becomes.
There are a few tiny hiccups in the plot. For example, Maura receives a dentist appointment before she gets her health card after it’s been stressed that she can’t made any appointments or take any medical tests until after she gets said card.
Another issue is regarding Maura’s newfound mental abilities. At the end of her stay in Indiana, her abilities help her to stay ahead of the curve in school. In Vancouver, it feels as though they all suddenly disappear.
I find it implausible that Shane doesn’t know about Ron’s extended family and situation when they’ve been friends their entire life. I also don’t much like the simple resolution of the final relationship conflict. It just seems too easy.
The resolution of the health scare plot line feels rather deus ex machina. Most of the remaining conflict is resolved by an external agency that is only a background element of the preceding story. However, to be fair, said agency is well foreshadowed, so it doesn’t come entirely out of the blue.
The ending does generate a nice hook encouraging the reader to continue on to the next book. I wonder what will happen to Maura next and how she will deal with her relationship with Ron. It’s all very intriguing.
The Setting
The physical setting is well sketched. The magic system is pretty cool and is well introduced through the changes in Maura and small incidents that occur throughout the story.
The Prose
Generally, the prose is clear and this story is successfully shown rather than told. There are a few small things I didn’t like.
The story as a whole feels slow paced to me. I can’t put my finger on exactly why, but it just seems to drag a little between the action scenes.
I do like that the paranormal elements are small and scattered and introduced slowly, but not the long gaps between where relatively little seems to happen. The relationship is definitely slow burn and not your typical teen-hormone-driven fast-paced romance.
Within Maura’s first person narrative, I don’t like that she calls her mom Caelyn. If she calls her mom Caelyn in dialogue, I would be fine with it. However, if she calls her mom “Mom” when addressing her or when speaking with other people about her, then she should also call her Mom in her thoughts. Otherwise, it distracts me from the story and somewhat spoils my immersion.
My Opinion
I enjoyed the growing relationship between Maura and Ron, the magic system, and Maura’s slow discovery of herself. However, I would have preferred a faster pace and a better reason for Mom to keep secrets. I am going to rate this YA paranormal romance 7 out of 10, which will translate to 4 out of 5 on Goodreads and Amazon.
I am not a fan of Romance Novels or Young Adult, that being said. I can appreprieciate the rich flow of Claudettes story-telling and technically brilliance within that genre. She makes it look easy. I wish you expand beyond the YA audience thou Claudette, your much too talented for only one genre.
I enjoyed this YA book. It’s a good first step into finding out Maura’s background. It gives you lots of information that tells you what she really is without saying it. Can’t wait to read more of this series to continue Maura’s story.
Engaging, suitable teen subjects
I enjoyed this book and the entire series. The main character is a bit whinny but overall this is a great series. I must admit I have stayed up until 2 and 3 in the morning reading and listening (I bought the audible companion also). However, the audible version could use some improvement. I feel it is read rather slowly, and had to set my reading speed faster. Also, sometimes the narrator repeats herself. (Example: “you know how I feel about that…you know how I feel about that Ron.”). This mistake takes place throughout every book in the entire series. Another issue the audio narration has, and I don’t mean to be petty but it is very distracting is that throughout the entire series words are mispronounced. What I mean by this is words that should have the short A sound are constantly pronounced with a long A sound. (Examples: hand, fashion, practice, slammed, pass, mass, smashed, mashed, happen, dance and so on. Ugh! So irritating and distracting) At first I thought this was because the narrator was possible Canadian, but as I listened I did not hear the usual Canadian pronunciations for other words. So I don’t know what is going on.
This trilogy is one of those that you want to read from beginning to end without stopping.
The storyline is fantastic and flows seamlessly from one book to the next. The plot is well thought out, with great twists and turns throughout, and I loved the multi-dimensional characters.
I really enjoyed theses books, and am looking forward to reading the first book of the follow-up trilogy, The DeLuca Vampires.
A well-written supernatural series for readers of all ages.
The book grabbed me from the very beginning with its simplicity of understanding teenage angst and bending it into a story that cannot be put down until the bitter end is reached…I say bitter because the book just ends. Quite a let down after the immersion into the lives of the characters and discovering the depths of them throughout the story. The end is fairly obvious as you read through the book although there is a nice twist to the end which possibly isn’t expected by the reader.
Unbelievable characters. Read 45% and put it down. I wanted to like it but it just wasn’t my writing style.