Deep Blue by Jennifer Donnelly (review)

As the heir to the underwater kingdom of Miromara, mermaid Serafina prepares for the ceremonial testing that will prove her fitness as a ruler and ensure her betrothal to the crown prince of a neighboring realm. Unfortunately, just as the successful ceremony comes to an end, Serafina and her people are attacked, her mother and father are killed, and Serafina and her childhood friend Neela are forced to flee. The girls realize then that they’ve both been having prophetic dreams of a great evil disrupting the underwater world, and they follow the instructions in their vision to search for four other young mermaids who may hold the keys to defeating this new threat. A skilled hand in historical fiction, Donnelly (author of Revolution, BCCB 11/10 and A Northern Light, BCCB 7/03) incorporates elements of classic history and the myth of Atlantis into her construction of this fantasy under the sea, but she also makes room for modern touches, especially in the details of Serafina’s daily life. The plot, however, is overly stuffed, with the girls facing off not only with several villainous creatures but also traveling through an alternate mirror world that is discordant with the rest of the underwater mythology; an increasingly unwieldy cast of characters also makes it difficult to determine who’s a significant player and who’s just emotional bait to add drama. Still, the relationship between the two friends is often touching, and their banter has a cozy intimacy that will likely resonate with young girls and their BFFs. Hand this to middle-graders who have outgrown Disney’s The Little Mermaid but who aren’t ready for the darkness of Porter’s Lost Voices (BCCB 9/11).