This story was well-told and engaging throughout. I think it will definitely find its right audience and continue to inspire.

A well-paced, differently abled protagonist who has a good mix of inner strength and vulnerability. This story is really about family secrets. Meranda doesn't understand why they never go to see her family on the other side of the country. Her grandparents and aunts and uncles only ever visit her family in Calgary. When her uncle dies, she finally travels to the town she was born in and discovers why her mother and father were so eager to leave. As well as why her strong and independent mother becomes a big ball of crazy anytime she thinks Meranda is in danger.

This book is firmly in the land of magical realism and other than being set on a Canadian Island, I didn't think the comparison to Anne of Green Gables gave the right tone for the book. All in all it was a good read, an intriguing mystery, and full of mermaid lore.

Meranda is a strong young protagonist. She doesn't let her weakened legs stop her from growing up and learning the truth about her family home. I loved following the mystery as it unfolded. Very quick and sweet read about family, and mermaids.

Meranda and her family return to the town she was born in after the tragic death of her great uncle. The town is known for mermaids and tourists come to try to catch a glimpse or take some time living among the folklore. However, things have been going wrong for the town and many think that the mermaids have turned against them.

I loved Meranda. She was a very well written and developed character. She has cerebral palsy and her parents are always hovering over her. Meranda's disability is shown throughout the book and included in the story as a normal part of her character. They were shown positively throughout the book. I loved the central themes of this book, which included themes directed towards parents of disabled children. The writing is great and descriptive. I also loved getting to know the other characters featured in this book.

I would like to thank Owlkids for providing me with an ARC.

This wonderful book had authentic voices, characters who think critically, and a mystery that unraveled with a twist. I thought I had the premise figured out but the author was very deft in her build-up and breakdown of the readers' theories. It was a fun read for anyone who likes mystery, fantasy and life by the sea.

I hope to read more books by Meagan Mahoney because the storytelling was enchanting and it made me want to visit Canada to see some of the sights she described.

This would be a hit for tweens and teens, and I think adults would enjoy it as well.

Meranda is an 11 year-old girl whose parents moved away from their Nova Scotia home and close-knit family to live in Calgary when she was only 3. While she has regular video visits with her dearly loved relatives back in Cape Breton, her helicopter parents have always been cagey about returning, until the death of her mother's beloved Uncle Mark sends them all home for his funeral.

Meranda has long been fascinated with her hometown, whose main claim to fame is its relationship with the mermaids who allegedly live in the surrounding waters. But her mother Beth is extremely nervous about her getting too close to the lake, and perhaps not just because Meranda uses crutches to get around, a result of the cerebral palsy that makes her legs difficult to rely on. Meranda's also painfully near-sighted, using thick glasses to help her see; between that and the fact that her coloring is completely different from her parents, she can't help but suspect that she has closer ties to a mermaid heritage than her parents are willing to let on.

Unfortunately, this is only one of the many things her parents don't care to discuss with her, and so Meranda spends the days leading up to Granduncle Mark's funeral feeling increasingly confused by the weird reactions, if not downright hostility, of some of the townsfolk to their return. Fortunately, she makes a friend, Claire, who's willing to help her get to the bottom of things, with perhaps the foremost issue being the mystery of what actually happened to Granduncle Mark. Did he really fall overboard from his ship or was he pulled into the waters and drowned by the lake's increasingly combative merfolk, as some are claiming? It'll be up to Meranda to figure out what's going on, in the process helping her family's small town find peace with its own mythic legacy.

First and foremost, I loved the disability rep in this middle grade book. It's wonderful to see a brave, resourceful heroine with cerebral palsy who isn't some sort of saint. Meranda gets justifiably irritated and angry when she feels left out or behind because of her disability, but is also realistic about her own limitations, having a much better gauge on them than the people around her.

The fantasy aspects of the book were also really well done: are merfolk real or a collective fancy? What really has Beth so nervous all the time? (Tho I did wonder at the interchangeable use of the term "merfolk" with "selkie" as I always thought those were two completely different things.) The pacing of the mystery is just right for middle grade readers, and touches on deep and important issues without being too overwhelming for its young audience. Kids who love mermaids will adore this book, which will definitely also strike a chord with any disabled reader whose parents' attempts at protecting them wound up making them feel excluded from their own families instead.

Meranda And The Legend Of The Lake by Meagan Mahoney was published September 15 2021 by Owlkids Press and is available from all good booksellers, including <a href="https://bookshop.org/a/15382/9781771474344">Bookshop!</a>

“𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒚𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔. 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒂𝒅𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔. 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓. 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒚 𝒊𝒕 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒉𝒐𝒘. 𝑰𝒏𝒄𝒍𝒖𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒆.”

A middle school novel described as “Anne of Green Gables meets Song for a Whale with a touch of Nancy Drew?” I’m in! Meranda and the Legend of the Lake is a fun fantasy read set in a beautiful part of Nova Scotia.

When Meranda’s great-uncle dies, she and her parents must return to Cape Breton, a place where her grandparents live and she hasn’t been since she was three. Once they arrive, mysteries begin to unfold: was Mark’s death an accident? Why do strangers call Meranda a “miracle baby?” And why does everyone in town seem to be scared of the legend of the mermaids that live in the surrounding lake? Meranda and her new friend Claire begin to investigate, finding more answers then they thought possible…

I really liked that Meranda may have cerebal palsy, which adds an interesting dimension to the worries of the characters around her, but her physical abilities were celebrated, rather than seen as disabilities. She is a character that has boundless goals and accomplishments. Meagan Mahoney touches on many themes that I think middle schoolers can relate to, including feeling alone, feeling curious about the people around you, not wanting to be seen as fragile, and looking for support with family and friends. The merpeople (selkie) elements add a touch of whimsy and fantasy, while the mysteries behind Meranda’s family kept the narrative rolling. This book feels like a love letter to the beauty of Cape Breton too - it definitely touches on how special that part of Nova Scotia is.

I greatly enjoyed Meranda and the Legend of the Lake; I will definitely recommend it to my middle school students as a mystery-fantasy novel, with power of family at its heart. Thank you to OwlKids and NetGalley for the Advanced Readers’ Copy!

This book was interesting. While it had a lot of great surface characteristics (mermaids!), it never dove deeper. The events felt rushed and were never developed in a satisfying way. The grand conclusion wasn't so grand. However, the writing was enjoyable and the main character was easy to root for. In the end, I can't really see myself recommending this to anyone... The world was lush, the characters vibrant, but everything else? Not so much. #netgalley

There are things that were really interesting about this book, and I thought it looked like something I would have been interested to read when I was a kid. I liked the excerpts from the book of legends and mysterious news clippings, and I was very relieved that (spoiler?) Meranda's disability wasn't unnecessarily "fixed" or "solved" in a way it might have been in an older book. I found the writing a little clunky and wished it would show rather than tell more often.

Meranda, uses crutches, but that is not what defines her. She is a well-written and full character, not a caricature of a handicapped person. She is relatable and her legs and crutches are mentioned, but in a normal and descriptive way that really helps bring life to her character and adds to why her mother has so many insecurities and fears when it comes to keeping her daughter safe. Meranda is crying out for freedom and independence that her family is very hesitant to give. This novel is really excellent at describing the family dynamics as well as the scenery. The quick chapters make for an easy and enjoyable read. As the story unfolds, a more sinister and farfetched reality comes to light. Will Meranda gain independence? Will she find out the truth of her family and their secrets? I enjoyed this cute story. 4 stars.