Book Review: Impulse

Impulse (Submerged Sun #2)

By: Vanessa Garden

Published By: Harlequin Teen Australia

Publication Date: December 1, 2014

Page Count: 288

Buy it at The Book Depository

Source: ARC Kindly Provided by Publisher

Genre: YA - Fantasy

Review of Book #1: Captivate

When last we saw Miranda at the end of Captivate, she had returned to the mainland to be reunited with her family. Impulse starts a year later, on the eve of Miranda’s 18th birthday. Having had a year to miss Marko and the mysterious underwater kingdom of Marin, Miranda is making plans to return. She is still worried that Sylvia, Marko’s older sister, does not have his best interests at heart and that the evil Damir will take over the kingdom, but most of all she is worried about whether Marko will keep his word and meet her in the water off Bob’s Bay. 

Of course he does, although her return to Marin is not exactly what she expects it to be. After a year apart she’s not sure of Marko’s continued affections and is insecure in her relationship with him. Robbie has changed too, and is no longer Marko’s head guard. All is not well in Marin, and Miranda may be Marko’s savior, or his downfall. 

 I was so excited when I heard there would be more books in this series. I loved Captivate and the world Vanessa Garden had created. I was not disappointed with my return to the underwater world, but this book did not quite reach the same magical heights as the first. I think in part the “he loves me, he loves me not” musings dampened my enthusiasm a little bit. Miranda seemed slightly less proactive in this book than in the first. 

 The focus is slightly different this time, with even more emphasis on political intrigue and the infertility that plagues the people of Marin. Damir is as evil and cunning as ever, and Sylvia and Lauren are both complicated and ambiguous characters, and I was left wondering whether or not I should be liking or loathing them for much of the book. 

 Yet again, the conclusion left me wanting more. I can’t wait for the final installment!

Summary:

When Miranda Sun returns to Marin on the eve of her eighteenth birthday, this time of her own free will, she quickly learns that her worst fears have been realised. The glittering underwater city is not as she had left it, nor too is Marko, the young king who has dominated her thoughts and heart for the last twelve months since leaving Marin.

Miranda, however, has not made the journey to Marin alone, and now must contend with not only Marko’s evil brother Damir but more surprisingly her sister Lauren who has an agenda of her own.  Marko’s power begins to wane and with cracks beginning to show in the domed Utopian city, and veiled danger lurking everywhere, she quickly learns that in this dazzling city full of beautiful people she can trust no-one but herself.

If Miranda wants to survive, she must decide between the hardened sensibilities in her head and the hungers of her heart. Will her decision cause more heartache or can she help to save Marko’s throne?