Losing is dangerous. Winning means everything.Katriana has been waiting for this moment her entire life.Once a century, the Royals hold the Trials. Every Mer of a certain age must participate. The contests are brutal. Survival is not guaranteed. But for the victors, the prize is unimaginable.They are allowed to walk on land.She is forced to work for her evil stepmother, while ignoring the taunts … land.
She is forced to work for her evil stepmother, while ignoring the taunts of her spoiled half-sister. She’s desperate to escape. So desperate, she begins the Trials without armor, or even a helmet.
Not one to give up, Katriana gives the Trials all she is worth, even catching the eye of a mysterious benefactor who is more than he seems.
How much will she sacrifice to become one of the elite? And if she does win, will she be able to halt mankind’s destruction of the sea?
The Mermaid Trials is a new series from author Cameron Drake.
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Oh em gee! I cannot wait for book #2!!! This was very much a Cinderella retelling in my opinion. Tri was “orphaned” at a young age and forced to serve her step mother and sister….she entered the Trials and meets Dane and Starla who quickly become her best and only friends. There are quick feelings between between Tri and Dane much to the chagrin of the other female Mers. In order to not ruin this for others I will stop there!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
It seems like I have been waiting for this book forever. Once this book landed on my kindle I swam right in! I loved seeing Katriana, Dane and the rest of these characters again. I can’t wait to see what Cameron Drake gives us next!
I really liked this book by Cameron Drake about one mermaid’s trials and tribulations to overcome everything in her life to achieve her ultimate dreams and desires. The characters were identifiable, with many you rooted for hoping for their success; and many you rooted against, hoping for their failure. It was also a low-key slow developing love story about friends, family, and mates, and what really matters in life, regardless of their social standing or lack thereof. (04/14/2018 – This is a somewhat late voluntary review of an Advanced Reader Copy of this book from Hidden Gems Books.)
Let me just say that I did not like this book at all… I LOVED IT!! Tri is definitely my type of mergal; she knows what she wants and doesn’t let her circumstances get in the way. She’s strong and loyal and simply an outstanding female lead in this beautiful aquatic creation. Cameron Drake’s version of The Little Mermaid and Cinderella is beautifully written with stunning characters and world building that kept me completely under water until the end. I seriously did not want to come up for air. I wish this book could have gone on forever and the release of the next book in this series can’t come soon enough. -YA/NA Book Divas
{I requested a copy for review purposes and made no guarantee of a favorable review. The opinions expressed herein are unbiased and my own.}
What a refreshing, fun, sweet, and safe story!! This was filled with original ideas, fun new views and one amazing world.
Tri is a young mer-woman (think The Little Mermaid), serving her mean stepmother and half-sister, after her father’s disappearance (Cinderella). She works hard and has a huge heart.
Every 100 mer-years a Trial is held for all young mer-people to decide who becomes the upper elite and the Spark. The Spark gets to walk on land. Tri wants this so bad, just to get out if the live she has been living. It has always been her dream, to walk among the humans and help save the ocean and the lives within it.
Tri enters the Trials and soon finds herself in a different, difficult world. With the help of her familiar (A FANTASTIC great white shark) named Beazil, and her two new friends, Dane and Starla, the Trials commence and life forever changes. The secondary characters were just as vibrant and important to the outcome. The dangers that lurk are potent but not graphic.
I could not get enough of this story it was filled with humor, great world building, a new original take on a few classic stories, and characters that will stay with me for awhile. This is a safe story (brief kissing only), and written for ALL ages to enjoy. I am going to buy my younger family members copies as I think this is a great story for pre-teens all the way through adulthood. I hope there are more stories in this series as there are plenty of characters and action to be had!! Highly recommended for a fun enjoyable read!!
This story is a big combination of many fairy tales put together. I enjoyed reading this story. I can not wait to read more books by this author.
This is the little mermaid meets Hunger Games meets cinderella meets Divergent Series. I really loved this book, it was one of a kind with a bit for everybody. I won’t give anything away so this is a spoiler free review. But for Katarina, the mermaid trials is everything, a chance to escape and the opportunity of a lifetime. The author truly wrote an amazing story that takes you on a ride of a lifetime
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This book was amazing
This was a fun and exciting view of merpeople. Katriana was forced to become a servant in her home when her father passed away. Her stepmother was expecting a child. Her half sister was raised like royalty. Katriana scrapped for everything she had. She had to enter the trials and met Dane and Starla along with some other mer. The trials were brutal for them as individuals, as teams and for their familiars. But Katriana was determined to make it through on top a help those that she loved.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is a very entertaining read that keeps you up at night wanting to know what will happen next. It has great world building and very interesting characters, with an even more fascinating main character. It is a very quick read that you can through rather easily.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
The book was an easy read that felt light despite the trials Katriana, the heroine, faced. The story had elements of Cinderella and loose similarities to the Little Mermaid. The evil stepmother and horrible half-sister was Katrina’s motivation to work hard and win the Trials.mShe also wanted to please her father, who she presumed dead since he never returned from his last mission.
Katrina makes a few friends during the Trials with her shark, Beazil, nappng nearby. I smiled while reading parts of this story and cringed at other parts. I think this is a cute YA read that leaves you wanting more. I thought it was predictable but enjoyable, because it’s about the journey. I thought the characters could have developed more, but this is the first book in the series and that may happen in the coming stories. As soon as I started readingvthe story, I knew I wanted to root for Katriana. I liked the “mer way” of saying unfamiliar things, like limon, and teeter. I liked this clean read and would share it with my children. 3.5 stars
I received a free copy of the book from BookSprout in exchange for my honest opinion.
This book was amazing.
I haven’t read a lot of mermaid books but The Mermaid Trials will likely reign as my favorite for a long time. Maybe even forever. The worldbuilding, the characters, and the trials themselves were all very interesting.
I’ll be reading book two for sure.
Wow this had me totally hooked from the get go! Well written this is full of excitement, adventure, strength, great relatable characters and was a cross between Cinderella and the little mermaid! A fun read!
The Mermaid Trials
Cameron Drake
This was a fun book to read, and although I am past my young adult stage, I really enjoyed it.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I really enjoyed this mermaid tale. Different from what I’m used to but I really liked it. It’s well written and great characters, especially Katriana. I recommend this book!!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Cinderella meets Hunger Games… Under the ocean.
This book is an interesting Mermaid/Cinderella mashup, with a Hunger Games twist. The book reads like it is geared toward a YA audience. The setting is really interesting, but I’d like to have seen more in-depth development. It is an interesting realm with its own interesting magic.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
The Mermaid Trials by Cameron Drake is an amazing story that I have read. This was an amazing story that I have read and I highly recommend this story to everyone who loves to read fantasy and paranormal romance in their stories.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This was such a great book! I thoroughly enjoyed all of the characters, the plot, the shark, the enticing descriptions…in short, just about everything about this book.
However, my inner biologist can’t help pointing out that octopuses regenerate new arms to replace amputated ones.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This book has a little bit of many familiar stories that makes it feel like you’re already familiar and comfortable with the story line. It was an interesting book to immerse yourself into, letting the reader see the difficulty of a determined mermaid’s arduous task in overcoming all obstacles in her path to achieve her ultimate dreams through a brutal contest. It was actually very inspiring.
The characters’ natures were revealed by their actions and the reader could relate to them accordingly, whether as good or bad. Katriana had deep inner strength and an attitude for survival as far back as childhood that would not admit defeat. The story was focused on relationships and the important life things that really matter among all of us. Katriana’s struggle pulled the reader in to become her personal cheerleaders. Would she reach those dreams at last? How much would she have to sacrifice? What would it ultimately teach her? Grab your copy and learn how her life made her into the determined woman she was becoming and see if you agree with her choices!
This book is a cross between Cinderella and the Hunger Games. It’s about the underwater world of mermaids and mermen who are forced by their laws to participate in some events (trials) to see who is worthy to work with the Royals and who may work to visit and study the “two-leggeds” on land. The trials are very dangerous even, and it’s entirely possible for a mer to die during them. After Tri’s father, a royal messenger, died when she was a child, she is left with a hateful stepmother, and a stepsister who receives all the benefits of their wealthy life while Tri is forced to live as a servant, serving her own stepmother and stepsister. She is determined to win the trials so she can leave that life behind. Along the way, she meets and friends Dane and Starla, and the three of them work together the best they can to survive the trials. Even with the story’s similarities to the above, this was still a very unique one. The mers all have familiars, whether it be starfish, stingrays, etc, and there is magic, and all that gave it an almost witchy feel to the story also and added to the originality. The story did end with a little bit of a cliffhanger (you will find out who wins the trials though), but there is supposed to be a second book on the way, so I’m looking forward to seeing where the author takes it.
I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily giving my honest review.