The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw

🌟🌟🌟🌓 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Synopsis:

Welcome to the cursed town of Sparrow…

Where, two centuries ago, three sisters were sentenced to death for witchery. Stones were tied to their ankles and they were drowned in the deep waters surrounding the town.

Now, for a brief time each summer, the sisters return, stealing the bodies of three weak-hearted girls so that they may seek their revenge, luring boys into the harbor and pulling them under.

Like many locals, seventeen-year-old Penny Talbot has accepted the fate of the town. But this year, on the eve of the sisters’ return, a boy named Bo Carter arrives; unaware of the danger he has just stumbled into.

Mistrust and lies spread quickly through the salty, rain-soaked streets. The townspeople turn against one another. Penny and Bo suspect each other of hiding secrets. And death comes swiftly to those who cannot resist the call of the sisters.

But only Penny sees what others cannot. And she will be forced to choose: save Bo, or save herself.

I had heard good things about The Wicked Deep. People seemed to be very excited about a book that had witches that were a bit like sirens. I decided to give it a try because I have been wanting to find a good fantasy novel to sink my teeth into. I loved the eerie, creepy tone to it and the characters in the story were interesting. It felt like each of them had a secret and I wanted to read more so that I could uncover it. 

While I liked this book, the direction that the author took the story in wasn't for me. My problem was the romance and how everything happened for Penny, Bo, and the three sisters. The ending that the author leaves readers with is more of a depressing or bittersweet ending. The romance was quick to begin with but then feels forced towards the very end. There was a feeling of Bo settling for second best that I didn't like that made the ending of the book feel like no one really got a happy ending.