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Title: Tedious, Melodramatic Romance
Review: Although "Sirena" by Donna Jo Napoli is classified as a fantasy, I feel it is much better suited to the romantic genre. There are quite a few problems in this book. For one, Sirena isn't very likeable as a heroine. She spends most of the book dwelling on the fact that her true love is going to die and she's not. Considering how romantic the book is, Sirena doesn't really seem to be trusting or tolerant with Philoctetes. She often complains how he lives on land, wants to return to his home, and collects things.Another major issue is that, considering Napoli's other works, one would expect this to be a retelling of a fairy tale. Not so. "Sirena" is no fairy tale; it is a romance that happens to involve mythology. Overall, I would reccomend "Sirena" to fans of Lurlene McDaniel, and for fans of retold fairy tales, the works of Robin McKinley, Cameron Dokey and Tracy Lynn.
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