Sleeping with the Fishes, by MaryJanice Davidson

Posted by admin in Book Reviews, Mythology, Paranormal | 1 comment

Sleeping with the Fishes, by MaryJanice Davidson

reviewed by Cedward

Let’s be honest with one another here. A good portion of the female population, hell, maybe even same men, at one point or another growing up wanted to be a mermaid. I was one of those girls having grown up watching Disney’s The Little Mermaid, to Daryl Hannah and Tom Hanks in Splash.

Skip forward a decade and then some, I am now 24 going on 25 and still love the idea that some mythical being that’s half human and half fish exists. But alas, I am no cryptozoologist or marine biologist so I can’t go and find the truth, but what I can do is read about them.

This review does contain a few spoilers, but nothing too gasp worthy. Also, while the review itself is PG-13 in nature, this book is intended for the adult readers and some of the scenes are pretty, eh, nice.

The book in review this week is called Sleeping with the Fishes by MaryJanice Davidson.

First and foremost, any preconceived notions of mermaids is out the door.

Fredricka, or Fred, is the books heroine. One hot night while on a beach her mom gets down and dirty with a male mermaid and nine months later little Fredricka is brought into the world.

She is now 29, a marine biologist with the Boston Aquarium with blue hair, though most people think that it’s green. She’s also obscenely vulgar and cranky, and she also hates the idea that her mother has sex.

Not to mention, she’s also obviously a mermaid who can’t swim with her legs, gets sea sick and is allergic to shellfish. The only people who know the secret of what Fred is are her mother and step father, and her best friend, Jonas, a metro sexual, you’re so sure is gay, but ends up hooking up with Fred’s boss Doc Barb.

The story is simple. A new marine biologist is in town by the name of Thomas, who also happens to have a side project of writing erotica under a feminine penname. He has been sent to the Boston area to find out what ‘s been polluting the harbor.

One day however, her secret of being a mermaid is found out by Thomas. He decides to stay late and catches Fred in the water of one of the tanks, tail and all. He immediately falls in love with her and is the one exception that can see her true hair color.

Enter Artur, Prince of the Black Sea. He too has been sent to the harbor to find out what’s causing the pollution in the harbor.

Working as a team, the trio do end up solving the case and put an end to the pollution, all the while Thomas and Artur rival for Fred’s affections.

Clocking in (or would that  be paging in?) at 304 pages, this book is an easy read and I had the trilogy of books pounded out within days.

If you’re looking for something deep and meaningful, look away from this book. It’s laid out and straight to the point and does lack a little bit of a plot. If you’re looking to read something that is just for fun by the pool, this is the book for you. You don’t have to think hard while reading it and what makes this book so much fun is that way Fred is written, her dialogue seriously had me busting out laughing out loud at some of the things that were said.