I received this book for free from my own shelves in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: my own shelves
The Siren Saves the Billionaire
by
Kristen Painter
magical realism in a Kindle edition on April 6, 2021 and has 358 pages.
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Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Blood Rights, Flesh and Blood, Bad Blood, Out for Blood, Last Blood, House of the Rising Sun, City of Eternal Night, Garden of Dreams and Desires, Miss Frost Solves a Cold Case, All Fired Up, "Prologue to The Vampire's Mail Order Bride", The Vampire's Mail Order Bride, The Werewolf Meets His Match, The Gargoyle Gets His Girl, The Professor Woos the Witch, The Vampire's Fake Fiancée, The Shifter Romances the Writer, "The Witch's Halloween Hero", The Dragon Finds Forever, The Vampire's Accidental Wife, The Reaper Rescues the Genie, The Detective Wins The Witch, The Vampire's Priceless Treasure, The Werewolf Dates the Deputy, "When Birdie Babysat Spider", Miss Frost Ices the Imp, Miss Frost Saves the Sandman, Miss Frost Cracks a Caper, Miss Frost Braves the Blizzard, "The Werewolf's Christmas Wish", The Vampire's Cursed Kiss, Her First Taste of Fire, The Trouble With Witches, Moody and the Beast, The Vampire's Sunny Sweetheart, Miss Frost Chills the Cheater, Lost in Las Vegas, Wrapped Up in Christmas, Mystified in Music City, Sucks To Be Me, A Sky Full of Stars, Suck It Up Buttercup, The Forgettable Miss French, Sucker Punch, The Suck Stops Here, Nixed in New Orleans, Miss Frost Says I Do and Spider Too, The Witch's Christmas Catastrophe, Death Dates the Oracle
Thirteenth in the Nocturne Falls magical realism fantasy series set in Georgia in a town where you can be yourself. Fangs, fur, and all. The couple focus is on Undrea Seely and Ethan Edmonds.
My Take
I do enjoy Painter’s premise for her series: a town where a supernatural character can be themselves. They can even work for the town as themselves with the tourists thinking the “character” is in costume.
I really like Undrea’s business of setting up and maintaining her aquariums. ’Cause I’d be a total loss in taking care of it. There’s a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at creating aquariums, the pitfalls and concerns.
Ooh, Undrea has a “weakness”. Well, it’s her species’ weakness, really. A voluntary kiss means she must fall in love. Then there’s the peril of her deep dark secret!
Ethan has a conundrum, torn between needing that connection to the world and yet without that busy world’s hurly burly. Then there are his blackout episodes! I do like his charitable interests, wanting to help third world countries as well as people at home.
That description of Bowie knowing “just what level of cute is necessary for forgiveness” cracked me up. He sounds like my Brodie.
I do like Ethan’s preference in women *eyebrow waggle*. He likes a woman who has some meat on her bones! One who is content in her own skin. His mom certainly knows Ethan.
It’s a third person dual protagonist point-of-view from Undrea’s and Ethan’s perspectives, so everything we know is what they think, feel, and experience. I do love how Painter used this to describe that Nina. Ick. Her idea of food is so depressing! She is so incredibly pushy and also hiding one heck of a secret.
There’s plenty of action in this from saving a drowning victim to navigating the emotional shores of love with evil lurking everywhere.
Per usual, Painter’s prose is a fun combination of homey and supernatural, definitely cozy! Her characters are so supportive of each other. Looking out for each other. Exactly what you’d want in your neighborhood!
The Story
Wouldn’t ya know? Those danged doctors told Ethan that exercise could “probably” help with his episodes. And it’s this habit that “saves” Undrea’s life.
One that also sparks Ethan’s attraction to Undrea, despite his engagement to Nina.
The Characters
Undrea Seeley, a mermaid, is a custom-aquarium specialist who owns Tanks A Lot. Poseidon is her beta fish. Aaron Rigby, a former Navy SEAL and a leviathan shifter, does serious tank builds for her. Whitney is an organizer who loves fish and handles the social media. Curtis. The Parkers are a current client. Suppliers include Bright Ocean Breeders and Blue Marble.
Ethan Edmonds is a tech billionaire who’s having blackout episodes. The latest company he sold was Blnk. Bowie is his Sphynx cat with quite the wardrobe. Nina Hascoe is Ethan’s self-appointed fiancée with a fear of water. Elizabeth Willet Hascoe, Nina’s mother, is a witch from an old line of witches.
Cathy and Jimmy Edmonds had been his parents. Sarah Jane is Cathy’s neighbor with a love for baked goods who comes over to visit and cook. Molly is Cathy’s territorial black Lab. Her neighbor, Mr Murphy who is the HOA president, has a roaming cat.
Nocturne Falls, Georgia, is . . .
. . . owned by the Ellinghams, a vampire family. Eleanora Ellingham is the family matriarch with three married sons. The oldest, Sebastian, is married to Tessa (The Vampire’s Fake Fiancée, 5). Hugh is the middle son who’s married to Delaney of Delaney’s Delectables (The Vampire’s Mail Order Bride, 1) — a candy store that makes me drool! Captain Underpants is Delaney’s Maine Coon cat. Alice Bishop is the family witch who helps the town hide in plain sight.
Bridget Merrow, a werewolf, owns Howler’s Bar and Grill where Billy is a server. Ivy Merrow is Bridget’s sister-in-law — married to Hank Merrow, the town sheriff (The Werewolf Meets His Match, 2); Titus is their brother and the fire chief who’s married to Jenna (The Werewolf Dates the Deputy, 12). Birdie Caruthers, a werewolf, is Hank’s aunt and the police dispatcher. Mattie Sharpe, a Celtic witch and gardener who’s Undrea’s best friend, keeps bees and makes mead. Blueberry is Mattie’s imp. Greyson, a vampire, is with Kora (The Vampire’s Priceless Treasure, 11), the daughter of a reaper, Lucien, who’s married to Imari Zephara, a genie (The Reaper Rescues the Genie, 9). Lucien owns Insomnia, a supernatural nightclub.
Pandora, a real estate agent, and Marigold Williams (she owns the florist shop), conventional witches and sisters, are married to Professor Cole Van Zant, a raven familiar (The Professor Woos the Witch, 4), and Wyatt West (The Detective Wins the Witch, 10), respectively. Their mother, Corette Williams, owns the bridal shop and is the secretary for the Nocturne Falls coven. She’s married to Stanhill, Hugh Ellingham’s rook (“The Witch’s Halloween Hero“, 4.5). Willa Iscove, a fae stone and metal worker, is married to Nick, a gargoyle (The Gargoyle Gets His Girl, 3). Roxy St James, a writer of popular paranormal romances, can now shift into a panther and is married to Alex Cruz (The Shifter Romances the Writer, 6). Tessa and Jenna Blythe are Valkyrie sisters.
Caroline Linzer is a feline shifter. Van is a dragon shifter married to Monalisa, a Will-o’-the-Wisp (The Dragon Finds Forever, 7).
Cindy Morgan had been a romantic interest of Ethan’s back in high school. Trevor is a buddy of Ethan’s from their college days at MIT. A rare witch is one with very little magic.
The Cover and Title
The cover is primarily turquoises and reds with a distant landscape between a dawn sky and a pool of water, fish swimming about the red-haired mermaid bobbing in the water. Ethan in a red T, jeans, and eyeglasses is sitting on a rock against some tall trees, holding a red rose. Sparkling stars are scattered overall. Just above Undrea’s head is the series sign, an orange jack-o-lantern atop a two-headed arrow atop a wooden sign with the series info in yellow. At the very top is the title spread over three lines in white with a black outline. At the bottom is an info blurb and the author’s name, both in a black-outlined white.
The title is too accurate, for while the billionaire thinks he saved the siren, actually, The Siren Saves the Billionaire.
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