• Ink: A Dark Waters Mermaid Tale

  • By: Melanie Karsak
  • Narrated by: Kristin James
  • Length: 3 hrs and 20 mins
  • 3.9 out of 5 stars (47 ratings)

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Ink: A Dark Waters Mermaid Tale  By  cover art

Ink: A Dark Waters Mermaid Tale

By: Melanie Karsak
Narrated by: Kristin James
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Publisher's summary

A mermaid princess destined to wed a handsome king....

It sounds like a fairy tale, but the reality is far murkier.

Ink, Princess of the Florida Atlantic mers, is slated to wed the ancient enemy of her tribe, the King of the Gulfs. After years of war that led to countless mer deaths, as well as the genocide of aquatic shapeshifters and the freshwater mers of Florida, Ink's marriage will bring lasting peace.

Or so it seems.

Mere hours before she's supposed to leave the ocean for her customary year as a drywalker, Ink meets Hal, an alligator shifter who warns her that a storm is brewing. There is malicious intent behind Ink's marriage - and worse, meeting Hal has also caused a storm to rage in Ink's heart. Nevertheless, loyal to her tribe, Ink will put aside her feelings and journey to Miami to marry the decadent King Manx.

Ink soon learns that her only hope of surviving the crashing force swelling around her is to tap into a power deep inside - a forbidden power that might destroy them all.

©2015 Clockpunk Press (P)2015 Clockpunk Press

What listeners say about Ink: A Dark Waters Mermaid Tale

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

WOWSY WOW!! CANT WAIT FOR BOOK 1 NOW!!!

Would you listen to Ink: A Mermaid Romance again? Why?

Yep...it was good...great story!

What other book might you compare Ink: A Mermaid Romance to and why?

I have never listened to a mermaid book before...so I was pleasantly surprised!!!

Which character – as performed by Kristin James – was your favorite?

Ink, she is brave and beautiful!!!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Hate this question...But this could make a good movie!!!

Any additional comments?

** I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review **

I love Melanie Karsak's writing, and this book was wonderful! Ink is a mermaid, and she can dry walk also...she has markings on her back that tell a prophecy of her being the chosen one...Her Uncle is king right now due to some shady happenings and he gives Ink to another tribe with the intention of bringing them together as one, or so she thought...she does not like this...she is not attracted to the king of this tribe...and yearns for the sea....and a mystery man she briefly meets and rescues...This is a great story, and I cant wait for book 1! Highly recommend!!


Thank You Audiobookblast(dot)com

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

One of the best mermaid stories I've read

Ink is novella with a surprising amount of substance! At only 3 hours in length ( 124 pages) Melanie Karsak manages to fit in enough of a story that I felt completely fulfilled at the end, though definitely hungry for more!

It’s been a long time since my last mermaid book, mostly because like angel books I tend to end up with some sort of issue. But Ink was one that knocked it out of the park and made me wish that this was a series instead of a novella. The story starts off in the literal deep end, with Ink a mermaid as she struggles to find her cousin amid a vessels illegal fishing. Right away I loved her. She is not some pretty woman with a fish tail who sits about and bats her eyelashes at men on boats, her instincts make her want to drag them into the water they are slowly destroying and end them entirely. These are the sort of mermaids I need in my life. And I’m happy to say she stays that fearsome and independent, even with the introduction of a possible love interest. I will admit that portion of the story needed a bit more time to get use to, but I didn’t feel like it detracted from the enjoyment overall. I loved the lore involved and the different types of mermaids, and the fact that it didn’t just end with mermaids but included other water faring creatures like shapeshifters of unconventional means. And this is by no means half a story, we get the whole thing and it actually didn’t feel all that rushed along plot wise. It does go without saying that I would have love to have a full 300 page book with Ink and the others, but this novella was definitely a great read without the additional 200 pages.

The narrator was really great as well and I enjoyed her voice and pacing. I wasn’t too fond fond of the voice for mermaid king of the Gulf though, but only because it was a bit too obvious a voice for a somewhat spoiled King.

I really enjoyed Ink and I’m definitely going to check out the other books in this novella group (by other authors) and see how they go.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Better than Expected

This novella was more substantial than I expected. The story was interesting, and was as much thriller as it was romance. The 'style' of romance in this book (love at first sight) isn't something I generally go in for. But like I said, the story was interesting and it kept me listening. I don't think I'm going to go out of my way to read another book by this author, but I wouldn't skip it if it were in an anthology. The narrator did a good job, bringing personality into the characters.

I received this book free of charge from the author, narrator or publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

great story

Love this story! really grabs you and keep you interested! I love suspenseful romance stories. whish it was a little longer but also I think it cut off at the right time. hopefully she decides to make a sequel to this story! love the characters.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Surprisingly different

I have to start by saying this is not my genre. Still, I really enjoyed this story. This is a novella, yet I felt the story was developed and not rushed. I liked Ink's strong character, the vivid descriptions of the mer world. Ink, our protagonist, is thrust into a very difficult situation, but tries to work as fairly as she can to save her people while constantly dealing with betrayal. I particularly loved the scene where Ink transforms from a mermaid to a "dry walker". The authors description of what Ink went through was as believable as anyone could imagine. Very creative.
The story is told from Ink's point of view, and we feel all of her strength, angst, and heart as she maneuvers through the treacherous world she's been thrust into. Vivid characters, engaging story, and wonderfully realistic world. Readers in this genre should totally enjoy this story, as well as those who don't normally read this genre.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A self-contained novella that hints at much more

Any additional comments?

I didn't know anything about the novella or the author going into this audiobook. Just now, in preparing to write this review, I looked up the author's information and discovered that this book (Ink: A Mermaid Romance) is part of the Falling in Deep Collection, which is apparently a collection of 15 mermaid tales by different authors, with one tale releasing each week from June 1. I'm not a huge mermaid fan so I probably won't go through the other stories, but if you are, this definitely looks like something you should check out.

As for this particular story, I really liked it. I found it a quick listen not just because it was short--I got through it quickly because I wanted to keep listening to the story to find out what happens next. Basically, Ink is a mermaid who is facing her year-long exile onto land (where she has to have a human body for a year), but before that can happen, she finds herself enmeshed in a political move by her uncle, who is the ruler of this part of the sea (the Atlantic). She is to marry the ruler of the Gulf mermaids. No love is lost between Ink and her uncle, and there's definitely a lot of history behind their stories. (That's something the author has done a really good job with--making the history seem rich and existent without being overly complicated. Great job with the back story.)

Eventually, Ink discovers this arranged marriage is all part of a larger plot by her uncle, but I don't want to give away too much about it. However, before she finds out she is to be married, she meets Hal, who is an alligator shifter imprisoned by her uncle. Ink sets Hal free and there seems to be a connection between them. Hal comes back into play later in the story and although his character is interesting, he and Ink immediately feel a connection and fall in love (although they don't completely realize that until a little later). This is the one part of the story that felt a little forced. Although I could see these two characters together, I'd prefer a slower build up of their relationship rather than the immediate connection angle.

But altogether, there's a lot that happens in this novella and although it's a self-contained story in itself, it's obviously setting the stage for a much larger story. I really hope the author is planning to write more.

I will warn you about the narrator. I found her male voices to be on the annoying side. Hal was slightly annoying, but the voice the narrator used for Manx was just painful.

Note: This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

very good

"I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com".

I absolutely loved the book it was wonderful.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Romance with determined mermaid princess

Would you consider the audio edition of Ink: A Mermaid Romance to be better than the print version?

I have not picked up the print version yet, but I enjoy hearing the many voices of the characters with their strong personalities that Kristin James brings to live.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Ink: A Mermaid Romance?

One of the most memorable is when Ink defies what her King has ordered and does what she knows is right. She goes to help Hal, and learns that a new war is coming the way of her kind, along with how she feels about Hal.

Have you listened to any of Kristin James’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Kristin has become one of my favorite voices. She, once again, is an outstanding voice actress. The determined personality of Ink is solid in her voice. She does many male voice tones along with females in this vast world, again making it easy for us to listen and differentiate the characters. And I really like when Ink thinks something, Kristin makes it sound as though it's vibrating in her head, this way we know she's thinking it and not actually saying the words. Though the reaction would be strong if others heard what she thinks from time to time.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes. Melanie once again hits the ground running in the first chapter. It's packed full with feelings of Ink on humans, her ruling Uncle, father and mother, and implying her thoughts on her dry walking starting tonight. However, I think it might have been a bit to fast.

This is a short story and a tremendous amount of story and world packed into it. Melanie has done an amazing job of bringing a whole world to us. But at times I felt like the story was to short for the size of the world and characters created. I would have loved a few more moments with them in some parts of the story. And other moments there was so much happening at the same time, all the connections in one spot firing away. It might have been only a few words that connected outside things to this one event, but they were there.

Any additional comments?

Aaah, the characters... Ink is a strong woman. She does what she must for her people to survive. The waters of the world are poisoned by pollution and the mer-folk are affected by it. The mer-people are also at odds with others of their kind. To try and help her people and live in peace, she's agreed to marry a man she would rather hate. But! Before she is betrothed she meets a stunning man that she feels drawn to from the first moment their eyes meet. He's a Nagaul. Nagauls are other shifters that live on land. Hal's animal form is an alligator. Dangerous! Just the type of animal he is sends the shivers down my spine.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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the siren queen

amazing mix of mermaid and shifter romance. thought there was not going to be a happy ending but man glad I held out hope

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Good idea. Poorly written.

1st. The acting is horrible.

The story was mediocre with very little antagonism. Good start and then I'm just sinks.

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