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Sep242010
BOOK REVIEW: Water Bound by Christine Feehan
by Carolyn • Posted in 3 Star Reviews, Authors A-D, Book Reviews, Christine Feehan, Paranormal Romance
Title: Water Bound (Sisters of the Heart #1)
Author: Christine Feehan
Publisher: Piatkus (UK) / Penguin Group (US)
Publication Date: July 2010
Paperback/Ebook: 400 pages
Genre: Paranormal Romance
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REVIEWED BY LAURA
RATING: 6/10
BACK COVER SUMMARY:
For Lev Prakenskii, the last thing he remembers is being lost in the swirling currents of the ocean and sucked deeper into the nothingness of a freezing black eddy off the coastal town of Sea Haven. Just as quickly, just as miraculously, he was saved – pulled ashore by a beautiful stranger – but Lev has no memory of who he was – or why he seems to possess the violent instincts of a trained killer. All he knows is that he fears for his life, and the life of his unexpected saviour.
Her name is Rikki, a sea-urchin diver in the small town of Sea Haven. She always felt an affinity for the ocean and the seductive pull of the tides – and now, for the enigmatic man she rescued. But soon they will be bound by something even stronger – each other’s tantalising secrets that will engulf them both in a whirlpool of dizzying passion and inescapable danger.
REVIEW:
I have to confess to being quite a closet Christine Feehan fan. I’ve read nearly all of her Carpathian books and every one of the Sea Haven series. It’s no secret that they can be quite formulaic and dare I say it, a little bit cheesy! But when you’re looking for some escapism and indulgence, they’re perfect.
‘Waterbound’ is a new series, which is a spin off from her Sea Haven books. Although, a lot of the characters are mentioned and pop in the narrative, I don’t think you need to have read them before picking up this one.
Rikki is a sea urchin diver. She is scuba diving for urchins, when a giant, unexpected wave hits. Underwater she becomes disorientated. Out of nowhere she sees a man in the sea. Obviously thrown over board, he is in normal clothes and has no breathing apparatus. With no choice but to try and save his life, Rikki shares her air with him and drags him onto her boat.
But, Lev is a ruthless man with many secrets. Saved by Rikki he has no idea who he is. But when his first instinct is to kill Rikki and steal her boat he begins to realise that he may not exactly be a very good person.
Despite his tendency for violence, Lev is inexplicably drawn to the different and charming Rikki. I loved Rikki. She’s unusual for a romance lead because she’s autistic. This made the love story different and engaging, and added an interesting dynamic to the book.
Additionally, Rikki is one of six sisters. Not sisters by blood, but as the series suggests, ‘sisters of the heart’. Women pulled together by friendship and circumstance. Who all met whilst attending a specialist grief counselling group. We meet each of the sisters briefly in the novel and while we are told each of them has a paranormal gift. We only discover Rikki’s in this book. But, the brief glimpse of the relationship between them all is compelling, and I look forward to learning more about each of them in their own stories.
For those of you who have read the Drake sisters’ stories, you will recognise the surname Prakenskii. It is of course the surname of Joely’s husband Ilya. And also, a sinking boat and a large wave may ring some bells. Yet, despite the obvious connections, very little is done with them in the story. Which made me wonder why they had been drawn in the first place.
This aside, I have a couple of comments on the story. Firstly is that the beginning is very slow moving. I loved the fact that despite his ruthlessness, Lev was very gentle and patient with Rikki. And because of her autism the romance needed to grow slowly, but at times it crawled a little too slowly.
The second is the action. There are two sinister plots shrouding Lev and Rikki’s story. Both of which are grown throughout the book, the tension carefully developed. Then comes the ending and it’s all over simply too quickly and easily for my satisfaction. I wanted the edge of the seat action to be drawn out for longer, or even better laced into the narrative earlier in the book.
VERDICT:
Despite some reservations, I still did enjoy this book. If you’re a Feehan fan, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. If you haven’t tried any of her books, and fancy a sweet and while I say it affectionately, yes somewhat cheesy romance then give it a go.
SOURCE: Thank you to Piatkus for sending BCC this book for review.
6 Comments
I enjoyed it a tad more than you did. It is slow in the beginning but Christine has always done that when starting a new series (though with this one there is some built in history). Great Review
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Hi Laura! Thanks for the review…I also loved how gentle Lev was with Rikki. And I thought the paranormal descriptions of Rikki's water "powers" were fabulous. I just adored this book. I hope CF keeps it up with the rest of the series.
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Thanks for reviewing this one for me, Laura – It does sound good, but with a rating of only 6/10 I think I will wait a while.
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LOL… nothing wrong with a little cheese sometimes. I haven't read anything by Christine as of yet, but that doesn't mean I won't, in spite of the cheese!
Thanks for the review!
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I got my copy in the mail just the other day. Glad to see it's what I expect. I'm sure I'll enjoy it.
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@Felicia I did enjoy it, It was a nice romance & was just what I wanted to read at the time. Christine does have s definitive way of writing. But I mean it affectionately as I have read nearly all of her books.
Hi @Penelope
Rikki pretty much made the book for me, it was great having a female lead that was a bit different. I too plan on reading the rest of the series.
@BookChickcity Christine Feehan has a very distinctive way of writing, and sometimes they're perfect & cosy if you know what I mean? I could probably suggest another of hers to try first if you haven't read any before…
@justoeachy oh know, I love some cheese, don't get me wrong
sometimes her books are just what the doctor ordered!
@carols notebook yep if you like her books, you'll like this one – I hope you enjoy it
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