Review: Teardrop by Lauren Kate (Teardrop #1)

Publisher - Doubleday Children's
Publication Date - 24th October 2013
Paperback - 441 pages
Genre - Young Adult/Paranormal Romance

Source - Received from publisher for review

Rating - 3.5 out of 5: I liked it.

Reviewed by - Chrissie

Book Info - Seventeen-year-old Eureka won't let anyone close enough to feel her pain. After her mother was killed in a freak accident, the things she used to love hold no meaning. She wants to escape, but one thing holds her back: Ander, the boy who is everywhere she goes, whose turquoise eyes are like the ocean.

And then Eureka uncovers an ancient tale of romance and heartbreak, about a girl who cried an entire continent into the sea. Suddenly her mother's death and Ander's appearance seem connected, and her life takes on dark undercurrents that don't make sense.

Can everything you love be washed away?

My Thoughts - I am a fan of Lauren Kate's Fallen series so was very excited when I heard about the release of this book. Add to that the gorgeous covers that are a given with any book from this author, I knew I just had to read it. And for the most part it was an enjoyable read.

I loved how the legend of Atlantis was brought into this story, with all the mystery and intrigue that surrounded it, as it's not one I've really come across in novels before so it was a new twist on the paranormal romance genre for me. And as more was revealed about the war between the Atlanteans and the Seedbearers, I found myself getting pulled into the novel more and more as I wanted to know how Eureka was involved with it all.

I really liked the characters of Brooks and Ander. They were both good friends to Eureka and did everything they could to help her through all the difficulties in her life. If I had to pick between Team Brooks or Team Ander, I'm really not sure I could do that right now as they are both very much in love with her and want nothing but the best for her. And I'm sure that Eureka is just as divided between the two as I am.

The pacing of the novel however seemed a little off. It felt as if it took a long time for the story to get going so it took quite a while until I really started to enjoy it. At first it did feel like rather hard work. But then nearer the end, as the action picked up and a lot of the threads of the story started being pulled together, I was dragged into the novel and couldn't put it down. Also, even though I guess this is a minor complaint that may not bother others, I found it quite distracting to have a main character with such an unusual name as Eureka. I almost cringed every time another character called her by her name and I still wasn't really used to it by the end of the novel. But this is just a personal peeve. Others might enjoy reading about characters with unusual names.

Summary - Although it took a long time to get going, this was a good beginning to a new series with lots of groundwork being laid around a very interesting legend. After the ending of this book I am very much looking forward to seeing what happens next in the lives of Eureka, Brooks and Ander.