I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I want to start off by saying that as a psychology student and avid reader, it pains me that not enough authors take care to correctly and delicately deal with mental health issues.

That is NOT the case with Coral. Sara Ella took great efforts to make this book a truthful depiction of mental health issues, and for that, I must applaud her

That being said, however, I had trouble getting through this book, and gave up about halfway through. I enjoyed Brooke's narrative, and even Merrick was interesting. However, Coral and her life under the sea made it difficult for me to enjoy the book.

There were too many metaphors and similes used regarding underwater creatures, and that made the book feel inconsistent to read. Moreover, the mystery of the "Red Tide" and structure of underwater life were not revealed for a large majority of the book, making world building a little unclear.

Perhaps this book simply wasn't for me. I do, however, look forward to seeing what else the author comes up with in the future.

5 stars

I went into this book thinking it would be a darker take on The Little Mermaid, but this was much more than that. While it does loosely follow elements of the Hans Christensian fairy tale, it is so much more than just a retelling.

In this book we follow Coral, a mermaid, who is about to turn 16 and become an adult. She is worried that she has The Disease, just like her sister and that The Red Tide will come and get her. We also follow Merrick, the son of a tech mogul, whose family is slowly falling apart at the seams and Brooke, a girl recently admitted to an inpatient home for people with mental illness. These three stories all merge and come to together in unexpected ways.

My favourite part of this book was the exploration of mental illness in this book. It is recommended to check out the warnings the author has put in the beginning of the book or on Goodreads, as she outlines possible triggers for readers. I personally felt that the exploration of mental health was done in such a raw and emotional way that made me feel all kinds of things and forced me to reflect inwards. The descriptions and mental health and other general settings/plots was very lyrical and beautiful. I also enjoyed the multiple perspectives story telling and how distinct each character was from the other.

I can understand how this book will not be for everyone. It deals with some pretty intense topics in an more out of the box way, but for me it all worked and I really enjoyed the reading experience I had.

Ella, Sara. Coral. Thomas Nelson, 2019. Gr. 8 and up. 978-0-7852-2445-7.
Trigger warning: Suicidal acts and death by suicide are discussed and described in detail.
Mermaids cannot cry. So when Coral discovers that her sister, the Crown Princess, has tears it can only mean one thing: Red Death is coming. Afterward, Coral knows it will not be long before Red Death finds her too. Only Coral’s Grandmother seems to understand Coral’s struggle but running away from the family curse also means giving up everything she has ever known. On dry land Coral will have to learn who she is all over again. Merrick, son of a wealthy business magnate knows that it’s his responsibility to uphold the family name in front of the paparazzi. When tragedy strikes and tears his family apart, Merrick is forced to take his sister into hiding while searching for his estranged mother. Brooke appears one day in the same coastal California town as if she just walked out of the sea. All three story lines become woven together in a deliciously unexpected twist. Coral is part fairy-tale, part romance and part tragedy rolled into one unforgettable story about loss and healing. Mental health is handled in a relate-able way as several characters struggle with depression, suicidal thoughts and suicidal actions.The ripple effect of mental health challenges within families is also a poignant takeaway from this novel. The alternating views from narrators keeps the reader guessing until all of the pieces are beautifully woven together into a modern day fairy-tale ending.
THOUGHTS: Although the subject matter is sometimes painful this book also carries a beautiful message about recovery and self-love. I would definitely recommend this title to mature teen readers. I received an ebook version of this title for review from NetGalley.
Realistic Fiction

The Quick Cut: A mermaid is left asking questions when her sister is infected with a disease. Drama unfolds as she interacts with others in her search for the truth.

A Real Review:
Thank you to Thomas Nelson for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Mental illness is such an important awareness topic. Far too often, anxiety and depression are labeled as people being weak when in fact the issue can be traced back to physical issues. In this re-imagination of "The Little Mermaid", this incredible story is told center stage.

Coral is a mermaid devastated when her oldest sister, the crown princess, becomes Diseased by the Red Tide. Where she was perfect and unemotional, she is now encumbered and doomed. Coral doesn't want to play the political game while everyone pretends everything will be fine, but doesn't know how to move forward without her sister. Brooke is a human living in a mental health center after having attempted suicide. She doesn't see how life could get better and refuses to hear anyone else's perspective. Merrick is a golden boy on the outside, but dying to get his family away from his abusive father on the inside. Playing the game just enough to move forward with his plan to get away from him, he's shocked when his mom disappears and his sister gets in trouble. What do these three possibly have in common?

This book starts off so strong and then manages to completely fall apart about halfway through. Although I agree that the overall message to the book is so important, the backbone known as the story doesn't hold up. I will forewarn of the triggers in this book: there are some very detailed descriptions on depression, anxiety, and suicide. Do not take this one lightly!

The characters themselves also could've used more beefing up. All three were incredibly flat, but Coral was the most developed. The story that began with the King and her royal duties was quickly thrown to the wayside for a very confusing alternative I'm still not sure I understand.

The storyline works extra hard to weave these three together when it could have been better serviced focusing on one character. It felt at moments that multiple storylines were started and then dropped in order to make the message stand out.

As admirable as the attempt is, this book fails to achieve the goal.

My rating: 2 out of 5

As a huge little mermaid fan, I was really intrigued to read this story. Coral puts a unique twist on a classic tale. I enjoyed the nods to the classic little mermaid story. It was hard to get into the story at first but once it transitioned to Brooke's story I was hooked. While the format of the book was unique I felt that it could have been executed better. It was difficult to differentiate from a flash back to present day and I wish it could have been clearer or lined up a little more. The author also tackled the issue of mental health in a realistic and honest way. I felt that she handled the topic really well. Overall, it was a thoughtful read and a unique twist on one of my favorite stories.

This is like a Little Mermaid retelling, but the story focuses more on discussing subjects like depression, self-harm, suicide, anxiety, and death. I'm glad that I've read the author's note because it is helpful for me to get ready what the story will tell me.

I enjoyed the different POV of the characters. It gives me a depth understanding of them. I also can relate to them because I somehow went under the same situations as them. I've lost my favorite grandfather, and in the same year, my life went downhill, that leads me to feel like I'm trapped in an unhappy and dark room. And, this story shows us how one person can act and think when they have these mental illnesses which other people need to understand.

The author has written a story about a complicated subject, but I liked it. It can be complicated and challenging to read for others, especially if they don't understand the story being told. But I hope they will appreciate this one.

Thank his book was intense! I’m honestly still thinking about this book, days after reading it. It’s one of those stories that will be with you long after you finish reading it! The storyline was very complex. I couldn’t put it down.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

Coral by Sara Ella is such a poignant, emotionally gripping read. It's also an important one. Mental Health still feels very underrepresented, even in the increasingly diverse array of young adult lit. Sara's novel does a phenomenal job of weaving anxiety and depression, grief and emotional trauma into the story and treating them with care and respect. One of my favorite quotes is, "You are not nothing, my friend, and neither am I." So beautiful.

The entire book is raw and real. And intriguing. I have an awful habit of forgetting about a book I'm reading halfway through for one reason or another. You CAN NOT do that with this, for your own good, lol. So much of the story falls into place at the end, like this perfect puzzle that you had to complete to be able to appreciate the glorious picture.

A huge thanks to Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for the free advanced copy of the ebook for me to read.

{ I will share this review, along with a styled picture of the book, on my blog and on Instagram on August 13th. }

Coral is a retelling of the classic fairytale The Little Mermaid and approaches the story from a darker point of view, as its main theme is mental health. While I found the message of the book extremely important, I don’t think that Sara Ella created a compelling and well-crafted story to communicate it to its best potential.

Our protagonist is a 16-year-old mermaid named Coral who lives in a world where emotions are considered a disease. Brooke and Merrick are people who have known grief and loneliness and they, as well, share their individual, sad stories. As you can guess, the paths of these three will eventually intertwine and we’ll get to experience why and how such a thing occurred and what happens next.

My first problem with this book was the way the author chose to tell her story. It was very confusing and unnecessarily complicated with all those different POVs, timelines and allegories. Everything is explained at the end but until then it’s a very frustrating experience keeping up with the author’s style of narration. Also, I had foreseen the big twist and I didn’t think it needed this kind of build-up for us to get there.

The characters were my second and main issue. They were bland and completely deprived of any unique personality trait. The only thing that characterized them was their mental illness and I was very disappointed I couldn’t relate to or connect with any of them. Basically, I’d be more enthusiastic to finish this book and I’d be willing to ignore the awkward and confusing story-telling if the characters were interesting and their motivations were appealing enough.

Thirdly, I think the romance was rushed and underdeveloped. I wanted more time for our protagonists to develop feelings for one another.

I really wanted to like Coral and I was really excited getting into it but, unfortunately, it didn’t meet my expectations.

I received this e-arc from NetGalley for review purposes.

I appreciate that this book tried to address depression and mental health but it wasn’t that meaningful because the plot became too twisted. A story can’t be impactful if readers can’t, you know, keep to the plot. Also, I think it’s time YA step away from mermaid retellings.

I wanted to read this book because I have heard such great things about it and how it handles the issue of mental health and suicide so delicately. Then I got the book and saw it was written by Sara Ella. I read her Unblemished series which started out good but then faltered which have me some apprehensions about reading Coral.



I was wrong to have doubted this book based on that. Sara Ella has clearly grown a bit as an author as of evident with this book. But there is one thing that kind of bugged me about the Unblemished series that she did in this book as well. Pop culture references, on over load. Mrs. Ella loves to make references to ask kinds of pop culture and she does it way too much. A little bit can go a long way and making the story relevant to time and place, we don’t need the overkill.



Now that that is off my chest left me get to the important part. This book is heartbreakingly beautiful.



There is a line of romance thread through the story that is both realistic and sweet. And though it is a big part of the book it really isn’t about that at all.
The story converges a mermaid fantasy with a reality that deals with the darkness, the abyss, that depression can be. There seems to be a great deal of meaning in this book. Even the title has meaning.



I have had my own struggles with depression and suicide and I felt that this book handles these issues with care. I was not triggered in any way, but that is just me, I can’t speak for others so that judgement would have to be up to you.



This book was really really good and I am glad to have read it. Iferl it can be an uplifting read despite the seriousness of the subject matter. I can, with a clear conscience, recommend this book too the YA community.

So, booklings, yes, read it.

I give this book a 4 out of 5 Star rating.



Thanks goes out to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book for a fair and honest review.



If you are in any way feeling helpless, hopeless or nothingness there is help. Please make the call to seek that help. I know it can be hard, but the help is there. You. Are. NOT nothing.

"𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬. 𝘖𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯."⁣
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So, I’m not able to review this book the way I usually would, because I can’t rant or give away any spoilers.⁣
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CORAL BY @saraellawrites


OVERALL RATING: 5/5 STARS⁣
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FEELINGS: Oof this book is a rollercoaster. It’s not simply a retelling of ‘The Little Mermaid’ or a book about mental health: it’s a story that encompasses everything ranging from love to understanding how mental health is perceived now. There are literary references throughout which is every readers dream-I really loved recognizing quotes and references-and it’s a love letter to Hans Christian Anderson’s writing. ⁣
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Initially, I did think the book was simply going to make mental health seem like something glamorous, something like the trend it is becoming now. But it doesn’t. The fairy-tale setting, the characters struggles illustrate how difficult the struggle with mental health can be. It emphasizes hope as well as the journey it takes to get to your version of balanced and ‘normal’.⁣
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The characters steal your heart in this book, there is no one that you will be able not to feel something for. Sara Ella did a phenomenal job at tugging at your heartstrings and forcing you to reflect on how you treat others. There are twists and turns which makes the plot even more compelling because it’s not just a story about people dealing with mental health but it’s also genuinely intriguing. You are curious, sorrowful, ready to scream, and just plain old obsessed. ⁣
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I finished this book in one sitting, it took me three hours and when I was done, my heart felt spent. There is nothing greater than a book being able to make you feel physically worn out, as if you were on the journey with the characters themselves. ⁣
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TW: sexual assault, depression, suicide, generally dark themes.⁣
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RECCOMDNED FOR: everyone and anyone who wants a genuine story on mental health that isn’t romanticized or glorified, but plainly explained with a fairy-tale backdrop. ⁣
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This story takes a new approach to suicide awareness and mental health. However, the story was very confusing for most of the book and took too long in weaving the three perspectives together. The ending is the best part of the story and concludes the story very well. The story follows Coral, Brooke, and Merrick as their stories collide with each other. Coral is a mermaid who is terrified of having a disease that killed her older sister called the Red Tide. Mermaids have no souls and the Red Tide is explained as giving human emotions to mermaids. Brooke is a patient at a psychiatric ward who is coping with her sisters suicide and eventually trying to commit suicide herself. Merrick is the son of a CEO of a million dollar company and does not want to do as his father wishes. These three slowly come together and secrets are revealed, even if that happens at the very end of the story. It is an amazing story that helps to spread suicide awareness.

Ughhhhhhh I wanted to like this book so bad!!

<img src="https://media1.tenor.com/images/e87d01bb8fcc8c506a0449dfdc3366a0/tenor.gif?itemid=4613605" width="300" height="226" alt="description"/>

Listen, before I get into this review, I want to applaud Sara Ella. Mental health is so complex, and people who don't deal with it just <i>don't understand</i>. What the author tried to do here is fantastic, she tried to spread an awareness and <i>understanding</i> of people who struggle with loss and poor mental health.

When I picked up this book, and one of the first lines was, "You are not nothing, my friend, and neither am I." I wanted to cry!! I have struggled with anxiety, depression, and suicide, it's why I READ books, it's to escape, to find characters who are like me. I want there to be more books that promote an understanding of what anxiety/depression is, and how it affects people, and how to help. And I truly am thankful for people like Sara Ella who are writing stories and spreading awareness for help.

<b>And this book almost, almost, almost nailed it.</b>

<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/l378w70Nxv0alv2qk/giphy.gif" width="480" height="230" alt="description"/>

<i>"I've discovered the secret to breathing underwater, she wrote. Don't. Hold you breath as long as you can. Count to ten, then twenty, then thirty. Don't breathe. Don't surface until the nothing comes..."</I>

UGH such beautiful quotes wasted on such boring characters!! I think that's what got me the most about this story. For one, the main characters themselves don't have definitive personalities. It's almost like they are defined by their mental illness, and I <i>hate that</i>. If you ask me who Coral is, I'll say an anxious mermaid. Merrick? His sister, who doesn't have that much of a personality either, tried to commit suicide (literally, what are his other traits?? I don't even know). Brooke? .... okay well Brooke was the better of the bunch, she's a suicidal girl who loves the sea. Her love of the sea is the only thing that marks her a deeper personality, whereas Merrick & Coral? They just didn't feel <i>real</i>. They weren't complex, other than Coral's want for revenge on her sister and Merrick looking for his mother, they didn't have anything else to them.

Pair the bad characters with the bad pacing...and you got yourself something rough. This book is incrediblyyyyyy slowwwwwww, at the 48% mark I made a note on my Kindle: "What's the plot?" Once you GET TO the plot (takes an eternity), I hate to say it, but the writing flopped. It's the little things that irritated me, like the fact that in EVERY SINGLE CHAPTER the author would talk about the Red Tide, and NEVER TELL US WHAT IT IS! Hiding something that is so important to a story for literally no reason doesn't make it a <i>mystery</i>. Like there was no reason why Coral talked about the Red Tide so much--it KILLED her sister and started the whole fiasco--and we don't know what it is. Once I'd reached the 75% I wasn't intrigued by what the Red Tide was, I was just tired of being kept in the dark the whole damn novel.

Alright, alright, alright, let me take a deep breath. I know what kind of picture I am painting, and truly this book wasn't ALL bad. Like I mentioned, the mental health part of the story was nailed on the head. I felt the author depicted what anxiety/depression felt like quite well. I liked the immersion of the sea world with the real world. I like the...ambition this story had.

But it just wasn't my favorite for execution. I would recommend to pick it up, for all I know you might react to it differently and it might help you on your journey with mental health! For me personally, I just could not look over the execution mistakes.

With that said: keep spreading awareness! Keep spreading kind thoughts!

<img src="https://media1.giphy.com/media/3odxXG6oUNRVhsdcLK/giphy.gif" width="480" height="360" alt="description"/>

<img src="https://scontent-dfw5-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/67360940_451007995456289_6312270382179024896_o.jpg?_nc_cat=104&_nc_oc=AQkYvw0Xk_emL-hXXHIBsGHI0v_DrrEB3NzT2grZR5BMGkjMjDUPbiZNGX2KkfXmUmY&_nc_ht=scontent-dfw5-1.xx&oh=b2425483bacc4f2bb111a5332b7c25d2&oe=5DAA6CEA"/>
<i>ARC acquired by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>

“There’s more than one way to drown. I’m drowning and no one even notices.”

"Coral" is a "very" loose retelling of Hans Christian Anderson's "The Little Mermaid." It is told in three perspectives, showing the effects of mental illness, specifically suicide, from all three points of view.

"Sometimes you have to swim through a bit of darkness if you're going to surface in the light"

Coral - The youngest of three mermaid princesses. She fears the Red Tide is coming for her because she carries the "disease" that is slowly killing her oldest sister. This "disease" is human emotions. Mermaids have no souls and turn to sea foam when they die (this ties the story in with HCA's story).

"Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgement that something else is more important than fear."

Brooke - Is a patient at Fathoms Ranch psychiatric ward coping with the loss of her sister. After attempting to disassociate herself with everyone at the facility, she eventually warms up to Hope, a very young girl who attempted to take her own life.

"Who knew a person could drown without ever stepping foot off land?"

Merrick - The son of the CEO of a million-dollar company who does not want to bend to his father's wishes. Certain events lead Merrick to rebel against his father and learn some hard truths along the way.

These three souls collide in a way that I was not expecting. I appreciate this story for what it is trying to do. I think Suicide Awareness needs to spoken about more. Sara Ella did a great job telling the effects of suicide from two of the perspectives. However, I feel that the plot could have been executed a little better. It starts out really slow with each chapter being a different character's POV. For more than half of the book, I was confused as to why we needed three perspectives. The ending wrapped all of the up, but as a reader, not knowing the ending, I felt like there were too many loose ends until the end. I also felt a little left out when Coral makes her transition from mermaid to human. She acclimated to human life with no problems and never mentioned her life under the sea again. I feel like the majority of the plot lines had too much going on to keep my attention. Jumping from one character to the next was confusing until the big reveal toward the end.

Overall, the ending of this novel was my favorite part. Sara Ella wrapped up the story beautifully. The love story intertwined with suicide awareness is not a romantic happily ever after. This love story shares the ups and downs and being with someone who carries mental illness with them everywhere they go. It shows that love can happen between two people who are willing to work for it. Together.

"This was her world. And she was drowning in it."

First of all - Thank you netgalley for providing me an e-arc of this book. The opinions expressed are my own.

I had no idea what to expect when i started this book - I happily went into it thinking 'Yaay-It's a mermaid book - I've got to read it!' and oh gosh - was I left confused.
This isn't an ordinary loose retelling of the little mermaid. This book handles suicide, depression and mental health. The story starts with three perspectives and to be honest, i only enjoyed Coral's perspective. She was confused but strong and willing and I liked her.
I enjoyed the take on Brooke and the 'Red Tide'. However, I flipped through Merrick's pages as he didnt seem very interesting.
I liked the book, but I wish there was more intensity to it. I wasnt grappled or struck by emotion. GIven that it was based on mermaid retellings, my expectation was not blown.
Please take care while reading the book - because of mental health triggers.

Thank you Netgalley for a digital ARC of Coral in exchange for my honest thoughts and review!
I was SO excited to get to read Sara Ella's new book before publication. I followed this book all the way through its creation, which was so much fun to follow!
I really did enjoy this story! I really loved following these characters' stories and I was invested from the start.
The romance was so cute, though it was missing out on just a little bit of development. However, they were in no way a perfect couple and had their struggles and disagreements.
My biggest issue with Coral is the timelines, which really got confusing about halfway through the book because of spoilers. The way events happened without explaining until later confused me and I wasted time flipping back through the book, which is annoying in an E-copy.
Overall though, this book really gave me a new respect for mental illness, and I appreciated the way Sara handled writing it.

Coral, Brook and Merrick.

Three seemingly different characters, are thrust together in a "Hans Christian Andersen-esque story."
Each harboring their own struggles and demons, "Coral" takes a deep look into metal illness and the way is affects not only those suffering from it, but those around them.

This book carries some pretty heavy subjects, depression, suicide and taking care of ones mental health.
Books like this are so important in today's society and I praise the author for breaking down the stigma that mental illness should be tucked away and not spoken about.
However, I did find the actual flow of the story to be quite confusing. And even when it was explained, I still felt a little lost.

Although a little choppy it was still a good read.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Using a fairytale approach to address mental illness is a fitting vehicle. While the storyline does get confusing at times, it helps to see the darkness a person must journey through to recover from trauma. There are also some good coping techniques that provide valuable touchstones for those who have experienced trauma. What gets a bit rough is the youngest character in the book's seeming self-awareness - this character doesn't seem real because they are presented as wise and witty. In 18 years of working with this age group, I've never met a child who is like this. As this is the reality part of the book, I wish the characterization was a bit more authentic.

“I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.”

Coral interested me for two reasons:
1. I wanted to see how well it handled the topics of depression and suicide.
2. Mermaids are cool.
Clearly, one reason is more adult than the other. Did I feel like I got what I came for? Yes, because hello, MERMAIDS.
Okay, slightly more serious talk now.
I’d call Coral a hard-hitting contemporary with an essence of magical realism. In real life I’m close to people who struggle with these sorts of problems and so I felt the topics were handled well in the story and it was insightful.
The story has three points of view it jumps between, Merrick, Brooke and Coral (the mermaid). All three POVs seem unrelated at first and so the book does require some patience, it’s not massively fast-paced but a story that lets you get to know the characters and makes you root for them to solve their problems.
Coral is our fantasy element, a mermaid who is worried to feel because that’s not what mermaids do.
Merrick is struggling to mend his broken family, or at least the pieces he cares about and tries to do the best he can.
Brooke is struggling with depression and perhaps the hardest point of view to read but the people she meets throughout makes it so much more rewarding to read about as we see how they affect her as a character.
Overall the story comes together like a puzzle, which makes it a fulfilling read at the end. I loved it by the end, it’s one of those novels that’s a journey. Sara Ella handled the topics brought up well. I seriously loved the book quotes Hope and Brooke share, they’re from modern stories like Divergent and it made the characters feel more modern and rooted in the real world.