Marina and the Kraken (Mythics #1) by Lauren Magaziner

What worked:

The swift-moving story makes this book a quick read. The basis of it is the five main characters called Mystics must find their familiars, animals they bond with to develop powers. An arrow appears on each girl’s hand that points in the direction where her mythie will be found. Marina’s arrow glows brightest so it’s decided to search for her familiar first. This first book in the series is all about finding Marina’s mythie although the author doesn’t make it smooth sailing, literally.

Many complications are added to the adventure to keep readers engaged and wondering what will happen next. The girls are given the mayor’s boat without any instructions about how to sail or where they’re going. Luckily, Marina has experience on the water so she becomes the leader of the group. The boat itself is in terrible condition so the girls must immediately come up with ideas about how to fill the many holes. Socks aren’t the best solution. Also, a mysterious boat is following them with the intention of stealing the girls’ mythies to harness the raw power.

Marina’s character suffers from anxiety with the potential to paralyze her. She’s nervous about the whole bonding ceremony and anticipating which animal might possibly become her familiar. She’s hit with additional worry from not being chosen by any creature, an unprecedented occurrence in Terrafamiliar’s history. She feels more apprehension when the other Mystics look to her for guidance. Her fears reach their peak as things literally and figuratively fall apart in the middle of the ocean. If she can’t over her anxiety, she’ll need to learn to persevere through it.

What didn’t work as well:

The plot moves quickly so character development is lacking and details in the conflict aren’t shared. The five main characters even say they aren’t given any information about what they’re supposed to do before heading out into the ocean. They’re told they’ll need to use their new mythies to solve brewing trouble in the world with no knowledge or clues about what that means.

The Final Verdict:

The main characters are ten years old and that seems to be the age of the target audience. The simple framework of the plot makes it entertaining and easy to follow, although more experienced readers will find it too simple. The overall story is cute and creative so I recommend you give it a shot.