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In my house, mermaids are all the rage. In Bad Mermaids Make Waves, the first adventure in the middle grade series by author Sibéal Pounder, mermaids are so much more than just pretty girls with fish tails—and three young mermaids set out to search for answers and save their underwater kingdom.
The story travels under the sea with a trio of young mermaids, whose summer with legs is cut short by an urgent message from the queen of the Hidden Lagoon. The queen has been kidnapped, and the kingdom has been taken over by some seriously bad mermaids with a sinister plan. With the bad mermaids and their pet piranhas keeping watch over the entire kingdom, the girls have to be careful. So they race off in a stolen car with a talking seahorse named Steve to try to save the queen—and their underwater home.
While most mermaid stories focus on pretty girls with fins dealing with things like friendships and fashion, Bad Mermaids offers a fun twist: teenage mermaids solving mysteries and racing around the kingdom in a quest to save the day. Though some of the characters that they meet along the way are obsessed with fashion and pretty accessories, these three girls are more focused on foiling the bad mermaids’ evil plan.
Unfortunately, though, the story doesn’t feel especially solid, and the threat seems rather questionable. In fact, most of the plot points feel strange and random and underdeveloped. Suddenly, the queen is kidnapped, and some evil new mermaid has taken over the palace and given everyone in the kingdom some kind of GPS-tracking fingernail designs to make sure everyone stays in line. It all seems just a little too easy, the conflict a little haphazard. The characters, too, could use more development. Though the three mermaids are likable characters, the only character that truly stands out is the talking seahorse, Steve, who gives the story its comic relief.
Still, this series has plenty of potential—plenty of fun settings, clever comedy, and underwater action. With just a little more development—and some work on the plot—it could be a new favorite series.
If your young readers love mermaids, you’ll want to track this series down at your local library. It may not be one to add to their bookshelf, but the action and mystery make it a likable pick for some light bedtime reading.
Listen to the review on Shelf Discovery:
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