The Siren

The Siren by Kiera Cass. I ran across this book a few months ago on goodreads, after reading the blurb, I knew this was going to be epic. I would absolutely love to get my hands on a copy of the original 2009 publication to compare notes and because I am now a super fan, but they tend to be rather pricey and rare to come by.

I have this slight obsession with mythological creatures and books about them. Mermaids and Sirens are my top two faves!

I thought this would be strictly a romance, but it was so so much more. This is a story of friendship and sisterhood. True love and heartbreak. Loneliness and fulfilment. The connections between mother's and daughters. This book was such an emotional merry-go-round. I never knew what was going to show more happen next.

"She told me to live...I didn't know how to tell her that simply being alive was not enough to be called living."

This is the story of Kahlen. She is a siren. A servant to the ocean. Singing, along with her fellow siren sisters, to lure unsuspecting victims to their death. Hypnotizing them with their beautiful voices, leading them to their watery graves.

For hundreds of years the ocean has been taking lives and giving second chances to young beautiful women, willing to serve her for a hundred years in exchange for a second chance. The rules are simple, no talking to anyone other than your siren sisters and the ocean. You belong to the ocean. You must love and obey the ocean, and save yourself for only her. For one hundred years you will stay frozen in time, you won't age, or get sick or hurt. When your hundred years are up you will be given your life back, but remember nothing of you previous life or your time as a siren.

Kahlen is different from other sirens, she loves the ocean as she would her mother, and visits her often.
While her "sisters" embrace their beauty and immortality, by going out every night and taking lovers; Kahlen prefers to spend her time in solitude, often reading. She feels immense guilt and remorse over the lives her voice has taken and devotes much of her time studying the victoms and making scrapbooks in their honor. Having served 80 years of her 100 year sentence, she longs for the day her heart can be free to love and find companionship. She patiently bides her time, knowing that when the time is right and the stars align true love will find her. What she doesn't expect is that she will find her soulmate before her time is up...

Akinli and Kahlen hit it off immediately, he doesn't mind that the only way they can communicate with each other is through passing notes back and forth. He sees past her beauty and is interested in getting to know her for who she is. It doesn't take Kaheln long to realize she is falling for him and fears she is placing him in danger of facing the oceans wrath, so she and her sisters move away, so that she can finish her sentence in peace. But Kahlen's feelings run deep. Time is all Kahlen has but, when the unexpected happens, Kahlen is forced in a race against time and death. Will her love be enough to overcome a raging ocean? This is the story of how one girl tamed the untameable, loved when love was forbidden, and conquered time in the wake of death.

Whimsical. That's the word that comes to my mind when I think of this book. I knew instantly, before ever reading this book that I was going to love it, but I didn't know just how much. To call this book my favorite is an understatement, this story is something I will treasure forever in my heart. Something I will visit over and over again.

Kahlen. Sweet, spirited, courageous Kahlen. So many times I deeply connected with her character. Her fierce and selfless love she had for her sisters. Her willingness to put herself aside make sure they were happy. How deeply her heart ached, how she longed for a life she always wanted and never got to have. The love and hate she felt for the ocean, how she always returned to her for her guidance and acceptance. The way she felt for Akinli. She was sure and determined.

The bond she shared with her sisters was nothing short of pure and utter devotion. For 100yrs. These are the only friends and company they would have. The ties they had to one another are more than that of a sisterhood, it was almost as if they shared one heart, one soul and one mind and each one did the best they could to make sure the others didn't suffer.

The love story between Akinli and herself could be considered borderline insta-love, however it was built on more that physical attraction. The feelings they aquirred for one another stemmed from a deeper connection, the time they spent together, they spent talking or writing rather and simply learning more about one another. While the romance in this story is one major part, the story has so much more to offer.

The ocean, I loved the ocean. She loved her sirens fiercly, with a jealous yet forgiving love. She wanted them as well as needed them, but made sure they knew that thier existence depended completely on her. Her intentions for them were mostly good, but at times her love for them was overwhelming and suffocating. In the end though, it becomes clear that her heart truly lies with them and she just wants their loyalty.

I'm a very avid reader and it's not too often that a book comes along and enthralls me the way this one did.

This book was like everything and nothing that I expected. Enchanting, witty and beautifully woven together. Your heart will break and leap for joy all within the same paragraph. This one you don't want to miss out on! show less

After reading this story, it is taking everything in me to not totally gush; it is that good. The Siren is the story of Kahlen, mostly, along with her sisters and the Ocean. A siren is a singer, a singer of the Ocean. In order to maintain herself, the Ocean must feed; sirens help her to do that.

Kahlen and her “sisters,” Marilyn and Aisling, begin the story and you find out quite a lot of how sirens and their lives work. They are beautiful, they can live around regular humans, they can live semi-normal lives, but there’s a catch - they cannot age, which means staying in one place for more than a few years isn’t possible, and they cannot, under any circumstances, speak, laugh, scream, or make a sound outside of a sigh or breath show more around a human person.

There can be no more than four sirens at a time, and not everyone will choose to live the lives that these girls have agreed to. Their sentence is 100 years, after which the Ocean will return them and they will become normal again, and begin aging from whatever age they are frozen into (almost sounds like a dream come true at times). With only their “sisters” for company, it can become lonely, and for Kahlen that causes daydreams. That is, until one day while sitting on the beach she meets a man. He is beautiful, sad, lonely, in pain, and yet there is something about him that Kahlen can’t let go.

The Ocean warns Kahlen that no matter what happens, those must stay daydreams and she cannot chance their secret by letting her fantasies run away with her. Kahlen decides she wants to make a difference and takes up sign language, which transforms into spending a few years at schools for the deaf teaching children, and later teenagers, that being deaf isn’t always a bad thing.

Kahlen gets new “sisters,” Miaka and Elizabeth, who help transform her into something better than she ever imagined she could be. Miaka is creative and she is also Kahlen’s first “little sister,” while Elizabeth is wild and crazy, and brings out the fun and slightly mischievous side of Kahlen. Aside from Aisling being withdrawn and bitter (think Mr. Scrooge), you don’t know much about her for the most part, but she is a very important piece of Kahlen’s puzzle.

Once this human, Akinli, enters Kahlen’s world, nothing else seems to mean as much. Not even the secret that she is bound to keep, and with less than 20 years left on her sentence, will it all be destroyed because of this? Now Kahlen has found the one thing she has always wanted. Is the life she could have worth destroying the life she does have? Or can she have both?

More than anything, this is a story of love and hope. Whether that love be between sisters, family, lovers, strangers, or even love for yourself; it covers all the bases. Once I started, it was hard to stop, and I really didn’t want this story to end. There were numerous parts where I actually found myself tearing up, and that never happens! Some of these situations made me want to become a siren, and then there would be a moment that broke my heart.

Kiera Cass may be a first-time author, but I pray this is not her only book. This is truly a beautiful story all the way through. I love the imagery; it is phenomenal and almost makes you feel like you’re really there (and let me tell you, there were many times in the Ocean descriptions where the song Dark Blue by Jack’s Mannequin got stuck in my head. Thanks Kiera!).

It’s been a long time since I have seen a first-time author whose writing style is as beautiful as this, and she definitely has not only the talent to be a wonderful writer, but also the imagination to successfully tell a story that is not only entertaining, but also touching.

If there was one book that I would recommend this year so far, it would be The Siren. Just make sure you have time on your hands, because once you start you won’t be able to stop until the very end. Even then, I flipped back and forth over the final pages, hoping that there would be more magically appear before my eyes. After all, this is a fantasy! show less

If you don't go into this book expecting some epic fairytale-esc love story, but an intriguing twist on the siren tale and a sweet innocent love story.. then you will like it!
I was so in love with how Cass portrayed the lore of a siren! I've not seen any other portrayal of it in this way in any movie or book etc. and that made it interesting. Besides that, it felt like a short, simple, sweet read with found family elements and a good ending to a love story.
I know I keep mentioning that it's sweet so I also want to add that it does deal with loss and some more in-depth emotions, it's not just a fluff piece.
okay, that's it, enjoy :)

3-3.5 stars

Kahlen is a Siren and is unable to speak to humans without luring them to their death so she chooses to distance herself from them. In comes Akinli, a sweet boy who is able to break through her defenses and makes her feel accepted. There was so much potential there but I'm sad to say I wasn't feeling the romance. It felt too rushed.
In addition to Kahlen there are a few other Sirens who serve the Ocean who is presented as a type of mother figure to the girls. The dynamic/relationship between the Sirens and the Ocean was interesting and I wish that had been expanded upon a bit.

While the first half was a bit too slow and uneventful for my tastes the rest certainly makes up for it. In fact, I really love how it ended.

The Siren is show more a good choice if you're looking for something light and quick to read. It was nice to be able to read and envision the ocean instead of the 2ft of snow surrounding me.

*ARC provided by HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review. show less

Here is one of those books that makes me wish I could award half-stars. This one is a 3.5. It's the story of Kahlen, who at nineteen years old was saved from drowning in the ocean ... by the Ocean. In exchange for her life, Kahlen pledges herself to a century of service as a siren. As the book opens in present day, she's made it through eighty years. Years of singing ships to their wrecks, singing people to drowning. She's waiting for the day her sentence will be fulfilled, the day her memory of all this darkness will be erased and she will have the chance to live a normal life. To fall in love, maybe. Because she certainly can't allow herself to fall in love now...

A lot of this book worked for me. The mythology of the sirens is show more interesting. Their bond of sisterhood, their willingness to sacrifice for each other, is one relational strength of the story. The other is the devotion/resentment quandary the siren sisters feel toward the Ocean, who is sentient, can speak to their minds, and performs the roles of jailer, judge, punisher, nurturer ... sometimes she is like a misunderstanding child, sometimes like an angry abuser. Her interactions and motives are layered and twisted, and she's easily the deepest character of the book.

As for the romance between Akinli and Kahlen ... the explanation and resolution of this element , namely their wasting away without each other because "the fate of their souls is bound to one another" aren't really my thing. I did enjoy the human moments between them, especially their creativity in communicating despite Kahlen's muteness (since a spoken word from her would compel Akinli to go drown himself). I'm not sure it's fair to deduct a star because a novel about sirens includes a mythological construct in its love story. But three stars means "I liked it," and I did. I didn't love it the way I have loved my 4-star reads this year, but that's probably because YA romance is in itself a genre departure for me. On the whole, the Ocean is the character who makes this book worth reading. show less

Kahlen was given a second life by the Ocean 80 years ago. Saved from a shipwreck, she is in service for 100 years to the Ocean as one of her Sirens. Made to sing thousands to their death each year to sustain and feed the Ocean, Kahlen has resigned her time on her sentence to taking care of her sisters, completing her scrap books with all the people who have perished under her song, and most importantly, keeping to herself in the human world so as never to disclose her secret. Forbidden from speaking to humans lest their secret be reveled, many Sirens have had flings but none have ever had a relationship with a human, until now. Kahlen finds herself drawn to the human boy Akinli in a way she never thought possible. Torn between her show more growing affection for Akinli and her duties as a Siren, Kahlen finds herself in an impossible position, one which may have deadly consequences.
I was absolutely sucked into this story from page one. The ocean is always something that has seemed so wonderful and majestic while at the same time dark and dangerous and this book really captured that essence for me. Watching Kahlen and Akinli fall for each other in their brief snippets of time together was heart warming and endearing. Akinli stole my heart from the beginning with his mild mannered sweetness and playful disposition. Their separation and Kahlens subsequent heartbreak and torn loyalties was gut wrenching. My only complaint about the book as a whole was the Ocean as a character was very reminiscent of an abusive significant other at times and I sometimes had a hard time really feeling sorry for Her, even in the end. The possessive and fierce love She had for Kahlen was at times overpowering and frightening. Overall, this story was so well written, eloquently capturing the deadly beauty of the ocean and the powerful force of love. show less

First complaint is a petty one: dang it, the cover advertised on this site is so pretty and intriguing. I want to read -that- book. I got a copy with a typical Kiera Cass cover--pretty girl in an elaborate dress and a beautiful color scheme. That is not a bad thing! I read her books for their covers and cotton candy content. Please note this is coming from a horror/psychological thriller reader. Sometimes I need cotton candy, and Kiera Cass and authors like her are my go-to. It's intended as a compliment.

I was eager to read a book about sirens written by Kiera Cass! I had ideas on what she would do, and was happily proven right. I read the inside cover summary, thinking it'd be typical. It was. "She's a siren, she fell in love with a show more human boy, and she sings about--"
"Pasta, and she is so thankful for some variety for once," I giggled, referencing a Twitter joke about asexual pirates and sirens. Then I had to recite the entire joke and couldn't stop laughing.

The narrator-protagonist, I am sad to say, does not sing about pasta, nor is she thankful for variety. She never mentions what she sings about. Maybe she does. I got so bored with cliches--white female protagonist describes POC's skin as "cinnamon," ugh, hetero relationship, instalove, you're eighty years into siren-hood and devastated over some human boy for -the very first time-? I call bullshit. She describes the other sirens as her sisters, but they seemed more like roommates, and the relationships weren't fleshed out, so it seemed unrealistic. She is bossy, probably because she's the oldest, and she seems to get her way a lot. Boring. The author, I think, was genuinely trying to bring in diverse characters, but it felt shoehorned in, or a checklist of races. It kills me to type that. I am so sad that I think that. Everyone had a tragic backstory, which is understandable, but I noticed the POC had particularly violent ones, rather than the white women who just were in storms. Her relationship to Ocean...she almost had me. There was something missing, though. It felt--off. I wanted to believe.

I loved the details about the salt gowns. I wanted to read more about swimming from place to place. I wish the setting of the ocean had been described using more senses. I focused on something rather odd, and uh, I feel kinda skeezy but--one of the sisters has lots of lovers. Good for her! That's wonderful. Their relationships are always exclusively physical, or it's presented as such. Um, if she can't talk--what happens if she makes noise? Does she just have incredible self-control to be entirely silent? I got so hung up on this. If she can't talk, how does she negotiate consent during acts, which can be negotiated/withdrawn at any time? I got like, worried about this side character and her love life.
And then I got bored when the narrator-protagonist kept whining.

I wanted a Calypso and Iliad (or Homer, or Odysseus, I cannot remember his name) retelling. I did not get that. I'm disappointed. I didn't want guilt over murders, I wanted to read about the power these women had, and seen sisterhood more explored, and various comparisons of darkness and light, and why both are necessary.
Sounds like I'd better get started on a Calypso fanfiction. show less