Most of the time, mythical creatures and love stories, combined with promising concepts and action, are totally my thing. I crave them, it's plain and simple.

But such was not the case with this book.

Nadia, a mermaid sort-of-princess (?), is looking for her lost nephew. She feels she's responsible for losing him in the first place, and when she finally finds a lead, she's determined to get him back. But Gregor, a man who has sworn to protect the royal heirs - one of whom also happens to be Nadia's nephew - is standing in her way. Together, they must overcome obstacles not only set by their different races, but also by those who wish to use the child for their own purposes...

I dare say, the concept was really nice. There's the idea of five gates, magical ones, that are connected to five sisters - my guess is Nadia and her sisters. The baby also has some connection to it all, but I'm not gonna give any spoilers on the matter. Add to that the fact that mermaids are quite a rare sight in adult fiction these days, and you got yourselves a winner.

However, the characters felt a bit... flat, in my opinion. They had a lot of interesting features that could have been explored, but didn't exactly make it for us to see. Nadia was too stubborn on some matters - namely, her being at fault for the abduction and then deciding for everyone else stuff - and that didn't do justice to a heroine that could have been so much more. And Gregor was too conveniently fascinated with her kind - though that was his main flaw for me, otherwise the man was pretty much perfect!

My other main concern was the world history. There were parts that I felt were missing, and some things were taken for granted for a world we were trying to get a grasp on - all the while following the story between the characters and the plot developments. At one point I just stopped trying to make sense of it, and it was like having them on a blank canvas - at least it was easier for me to focus on them that way...

I'm not sure whether I should love or hate this book - but I am sure I'll pick up the next in the series. Maybe it will clear things up a bit for me, who knows?

***I was given an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinion stated in this review is solely mine, and no compensation was given or taken to alter it.***

<b>I received this book from Netgalley for my honest review.</b>

At the beginning I had the feeling that I missed a previous book. Things were happening and I was like...
<img src="http://www.relatably.com/m/img/confused-face-memes/Confused-Baby-Meme-Blank-09.png"/>

But, I soon grasped what was happening and who was who. Still during the whole book, I was forcing my imagination to fill the missing pieces. So, it could be said that this book was the opposite of those books where there's too much info-dumping. Here some more info would have been much appreciated!

The story as a whole is interesting and the world built too. The idea was good, but the execution not so much.

The heroine, Nadia, was portraited as a strong, intelligent and honorable woman, but she was obsessed with some strange notions like the one that she was guilty of her nephew's abduction, when she was assaulted and redered unconscious. Also, she alone was deciding what other people should do thust taking away their free will to decide for themselves. If all this is not enough, she didn't listen to her friends and stubbornly defended others who were indeed her enemies. Mah...

I also didn't understand the reason of her exile. Who exiled her, when her sister was the queen and kept in contact with her and tried to help her...

She made appearances as a princess, as a spy, as a tavern keeper, as a mystery guild master... And nobody ever suspected her. It seemed strange and unbelievable to me...

I would have like to know more about the religion, about the guardians, about the m’ami, about the different kind of of creatures... How all that come to be... What happened to divide the two worlds... Things like that would have made the story more understandable and more enjoyable.

As it is now, it's just a lot of people running around and a lot of things happening leaving us to find the reasons by our own. I must admit that I somwhat enjoyed it. It was an excellent exercise of my imagination!

I received an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. This the first in the Gatekeeper Chronicles by author Sabrina A. Fish. This is the first full length novel by this author.
Nadia de Quinones was exiled from Diomere when her nephew, the crown-prince, was abducted while under her care. Twelve years have passed since Nadia was exiled to Thuno's. Nadia is determined to atone for her actions and find her nephew. Time is running out as mer people can only survive for so long cut off from m’ami (the source of their power.) Discovering the lost Gate of Thuno's and discovering she is one of the missing gatekeepers adds to Nadia’s quest. She must now find her heartbond to open the gate.
Lord Gregor Cyrene is charged with protecting the Royal family. Close friends with Prince Stefan since childhood, Gregor takes his role to protect Prince Stefan and his illegitimate brother seriously. When threats to Prince Reis (the illegitimate Prince) surface, Gregor is determined to protect him at any cost.
Drawn to the mysterious Nadia, Gregor finds himself torn, whether to follow his heart or his loyalty. Gregor is certain there is more to Nadia that she lets on. He believes she is connected to the young prince and is determined to discover the truth.
I struggled to follow the story initially and found myself losing interest. It suffers from a lack of word-building. For much of the first chapter I was lost, there is no backstory given. No description is given of previous events, Nadia’s current whereabouts are not detailed, no information is given on m’ami. I would not have struggled through if I had not agreed to review the book. This is the only downfall to the book.
The author really hits her stride once the action gets going. The plot is fast paced and action pact. While the book does suffer from an excess of secondary characters, the main antagonist is cleverly concealed by the author until the very end. Gregor was a favourite of mine. He is intelligent courageous and while there were plenty of opportunities for him to act first, think later he gathers all information and is not quick to judge.
The sex scenes in this book between the two protagonists is hot and steamy. A word of warning to sensitive readers, there are several scenes of sexual violence in this book and there is depiction of rape in the opening chapter.
I would recommend this book to lovers of fantasy, stick with it and you will be rewarded with an action-packed adventure.