Reviewed by Donna
TITLE: Eternity in the Tides
AUTHOR: Freddy MacKay
PUBLISHER: Mischief Corner Books
LENGTH: 206 Pages
RELEASE DATE: February 24, 2016
BLURB:
Autumn has always been Zak’s favorite season for hiking and camping. Not to mention breathing in all that crisp fall air and sitting around toasty bonfires. That all changed a year and a half ago when a rich prick high on prescription pills sideswiped Zak while he was out biking.
Now his days are filled with pain and limited mobility. No more camping. No more trails. Zak’s life as he knew it is gone forever.
Back at his beloved stomping grounds, Zak is ready to say hello and goodbye one last time. But when a cry from the frigid Lake Superior waters throws him into the role of a rescuer, more than just his life hangs in the balance. Little did Zak know how much one person giving a damn mattered to him.
REVIEW:
As you can see from the release date above, this book was released a month before this review is posting. The book has been in my possession pretty much that whole time, but it’s taken me this long to decide what I want to say about it. I’ve discussed this story with my husband and I’ve discussed the story with other reviewers at Love Bytes. The “f” word was definitely dropped a few times. There were tears, lots of tears, and there was anger and grinding teeth. But now that I’ve calmed the hell down, and yes, it took me this long (I’m rather stubborn) I have to admit, first and foremost, that this is a very good book.
I’m not going to rehash the blurb, but one very important word is missing from it – merman. I had no idea that this book was about a merman. And so right now, you’re probably looking at the book cover and thinking – well duh – but I hadn’t seen the cover before agreeing to read this. I’ve never read a merman story before. I will probably never read one again – wolfmen = yes / fishmen = no. But serious props to Freddy MacKay, her mermen are f**king brilliant. What this author has managed to do is take a fairytale creature and make it entirely plausible that they could exist. I can only assume that serious thought went into this story. These are no underwater dwellers with scaly tales, but humans who walk around on land like you and me. This was brilliantly done by the author, and even those readers who dislike fantasy should have no problem with this story. In fact I’d be tempted to tag it as contemporary rather than fantasy.
But contemporary/fantasy what is my greatest issue with this book. Amazon has labeled the book a romance, and though I can’t argue that there are definitely strong elements of romance throughout the story, I think that 90% (if not more) of romance readers will have a problem with the ending of this book. In my experience, most romance readers expect, want or even need a HEA or strong HFN at the end of a story. All I can really say about Eternity in the Tides is that both men are happy at the end but readers won’t get the traditional HEA they’ll be expecting.
I can’t deny that this story dragged emotions from me, even though most of them were not pretty. The desperation and despair that Zak experiences combined with the imagery of the most perfect setting made for an intense beginning to the story and that level of skillful writing carried on through to the end. The end – that left me simultaneously swearing and sobbing.
So should you read this? Well, you need to decide that for yourselves. Like I said, I think the concept of this story is fascinating and the execution was pretty flawless. But, and that is one big fat but…I know certain readers who would never trust me again were I to recommend this to them. Readers who need fluff and happiness should definitely look elsewhere. But those other readers who love having their hearts ripped out and danced upon, well here it is, your next favourite read.
RATING: 
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