TSUNAMI BLUE by Gayle Ann WilliamsReleases March 30, 2010
With her badass rain boots, her faithful dog, and the ability to predict the monster tsunamis that have reduced the US to a series of islands, Kathryn O’Malley isn’t afraid of much. Cut off from all society, she takes to the airwaves as Tsunami Blue, hoping to save something of humanity as the world around her crumbles. But Blue should be afraid—because her message reaches the wrong ears.
Now she’s the target of ruthless pirates known as Runners who want to use her special talents for their own profiteering—as soon as they can find her. Blue’s only shot at survival lies with the naked stranger who washes up on her rocky beach. A man who might just be working for Runners himself. Torn between suspicion and attraction, the two will have to navigate a surging tide of danger and deceit if they hope to stay alive.
Publisher: Dorchester Publishing Co.
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Single Title/Series: TSUNAMI BLUE is a single title, stand alone novel.
Cover Thoughts: I love, LOVE, love this cover and after reading the book, I love it even more. The cover model portrays Tsunami Blue to perfection with her oceanic blue eyes and black as night hair. There's a distinct hint of her confidence as well as her innocence and I'm really lovin' that. The tribal bands and wave are also a lovely portrayal of Blue's tattooed sleeve that's her namesake. And lastly, the bright teal absolutely captivates the eyes. All and all, I think this is a stand out cover and if I saw it at the bookstore, I wouldn't hesitate to pick it up.
Why I Read It: I was offered a copy for review by the publisher.
My Review:
There was something about TSUNAMI BLUE that caught my attention before I'd even read the back blurb. The cover and the title were both so compelling that it managed to catch my attention and never let go. Generally I rely heavily upon author posted excerpts to determine my overall yearning for a book but TSUNAMI BLUE had no excerpt to speak of. All I knew was that it was about a girl that could predict the most deadly of all waves and a naked pirate that washes up on her island shore. Somehow that was all it took to steal my reader heart and imagine my surprise when it blew my already high expectations out of the water.
In a world torn asunder by giant tsunamis, Tsunami Blue is a voice that echoes upon the airwaves across the now dotted island canvas of Earth. The soft confidence of her voice carries either relief with the reassurance that for the moment the sea is calm or she can relay the most dire of warnings: A wave is coming. Sadly, Tsunami Blue can only predict the feared waves, not stop them, as they continue to batter the world's people as they cling desperately to their dreams in addition to what land remains.
Kathryn "Blue" O'Malley rose to fame as the child who predicted the first giant tsunami in Thailand that killed billions including Blue's mother, father and twin brother. Now more than a decade and a half later, Blue - along with her giant dog, Max - is marooned upon the New San Juan Islands which are just one of the many island chains making up what was once Washington State. While the situation may appear desolate, the isolation is truly the only means that Blue has for staying safe.
In a world consumed by fear, people don't necessarily enjoy Blue's company calling her evil and a witch for her feared abnormal ability to talk to the sea and predict the exact place and time of a tsunami. Along with their fear comes their acute hatred and anger because they misguidedly believe that Blue can but won't stop those very same tsunamis from destroying their homes and families. Even worse, there are those that want Blue for their own gruesome purposes. In a world where now only the fittest survive, a stronghold of men called Runners have slashed their way to the top of the food chain. Likened to pirates, these men steal, rape and kill for the goods they want and Tsunami Blue is the ultimate treasure for whomever controls the destination of the waves, controls the world.
With their ritual midnight walk upon the beach, Blue and Max look for the gifts that the sea periodically washes upon their island shore. With past treasures of beautifully colored Japanese floats or traps full of delicious lobster, the sea appears to have a sense of fate the night this reader meets Blue for it gifts her with a nearly dead, dark angel of a man that sets off the adventure of a lifetime. Having grown up with Runners, Blue knows their kind and while the man appears angelic, he bears the mark of his murdering brethren. But Blue is tired of death, tired of loneliness after having to always loose those she loves and as her desire for finally having her own guardian sets in so does her survival training and the knowledge that she can save this mysterious man that's been gifted to her by the sea.
When Blue's captive patient - captive because she handcuffs him to a cast-iron stove - awakens, he brings with him the blaring sirens of Runners. Enjoying the view of their prey scattering, Runners blast their distinctive sirens into the bays signaling the pillaging to come and they've finally managed to find Blue which she highly suspects is due to her beautiful "friend". Rethinking her determination to save her dark angel, whose name ironically is Gabriel Black, Blue decides he must die. She's killed once before and she resolves to do it again but when her sinfully delectable prey manages to escape his bonds, Blue knows her life's in danger and when Gabriel demands her trust that he can save her from the blood thirsty pirates that are on their way, Blue fears more for her sanity than her life when she agrees.
Gabriel Black is a true mystery for much of the adventure. While he may have the face of an angel, his Runner ties has Blue appropriately on her guard. He's a constant conundrum with his agile moves and swift kills alongside his careful attention to the young souls whom Blue later learns rely on him. Blue's internal image of Gabriel is continuously changing with each new facet that is revealed. Having survived for most of her childhood with Runners, Blue has developed an uncanny ability of recognizing evil and Gabriel contests her past experiences with Runners with his unfailing ability to disarm her with his own brand of justice and kindness. But no matter how smooth his charm and brave antics may be, Blue soon learns that Gabriel is the Runner's bloodhound and its her blood he's promised them he'd catch. How can she possibly trust him knowing that despite the fact he continues to hide her directly beneath the pirate's gruesome noses, he also could at any point deliver on his supposed promise?
Developing a plan, Blue watches Gabriel's maneuverings upon his black-hulled sailboat with the intention of learning everything she can so that when she steals it, she'll survive the raging sea. But before she throws her dark angel overboard, Blue wants answers and while she's doing that, maybe she'll dispense with her pesky innocence as well. Why not? Gabriel is the sexiest thing to sail seas and he's also the first man to make Blue's hormones stand up and pay attention.
One thing Blue has always known is that the sea is never kind and it reaffirms that valuable knowledge when it forces Blue to not only contend with her raging hormones, Gabriel and a band of ruthless Runners, but it's also chosen this as the time to tell Blue that the mother of all tsunamis is about to strike the Pacific Northwest. And this time it might finally succeed in stealing her away to its darkest depths like it did her family all those years ago.
My Thoughts:
TSUNAMI BLUE, told in first person narrative by Blue, explores the condition of humanity after nature has destroyed modern civilization as we know it right now to be true. It shows that at the core, human beings are capable of such villainy, such evil in the desperation for their own survival that nothing can be beneath them. Able to live in the filthiest of hovels, we can easily develop a penchant for cruelty, the destruction of innocence and the glorifying of death and greed. Blue, however, is a ray of light and a beacon hope. She's living proof that good can survive against even the greatest of evils and that it requires determination, bravery and a little self-deprecation for one can't possibly take themselves too seriously in the wake of disaster.
In the simplest of terms, I fell in love with Blue, her voice and her heart. She's both smart and hilariously clumsy and no matter how seasoned she may be with the depravity of mankind, she's managed to hold on to an endearing innocence and a trusting nature despite all the that the sea has stolen. I especially love that even at the risk of losing her own life, Blue can be afraid but also fierce in her determination to save those that can't save themselves. She's who I could only hope to be if I were forced to survive the life Blue inevitably conquers.
Gabriel Black...sigh...he's that dark and dangerous pirate that every girl has one time or another longed for. He's unfailingly gentle with Blue and despite the fact that his motives were at times questionable - mainly due to Blue's distrust, I never doubted his honor. A master strategist and cunning opponent, Gabriel did in fact live up to Blue's nick name of a dark angel. He did what he had to with regards to Blue and his desire to make her his and keep her safe. He's definitely a pirate but a beautiful one and he stole my heart as quickly as her stole Blue's.
This is truly paranormal romance at its best. The plot is raw, emotional and wonderfully action-packed. The villains are evil while the heroes are incredibly heroic with a gentle yet beautiful romance swirling heatedly at its core. Be prepared to laugh but also to cry for there are moments of deep sadness and hopelessness - all of which make for one amazing roller coaster ride upon murky and raging seas.
A-
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