Review: Girl at Sea

Girl at Sea
Maureen Johnson
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: May 27, 2007

Sometimes you have to get lost . . .The Girl: Clio Ford, seventeen, wants to spend the summer smooching her art-store crush, not stuck on a boat in the Mediterranean. At least she'll get a killer tan.
The Mission: Survive her father's crazy antics. Oh, and also find some missing underwater treasure that could unlock the secrets of civilization.
The Crew: Dad's wacky best friend Martin, his bizarre research partner Julia, her voluptuous daughter Elsa . . . and then there's Aidan, Julia's incredibly attractive, incredibly arrogant assistant.
What's going on behind Aidan's intellectual, intensely green eyes, anyway?
As Clio sails into uncharted territory she unveils secrets that have the power to change history. But her most surprising discovery is that there's something deeper and more cryptic than the sea—her own heart.
. . . to find what you're looking for

I'm not going to lie, I wasn't expecting a lot from this book. I wasn't a huge fan of Suite Scarlet, which is the only other Maureen Johnson book I've read. But I was blown away by Girl at Sea. It was not what I was expecting at all, and I loved it. 

Although Clio whined a lot for the first half of the book, I still grew to like her a lot. I thought she was a really unique character. She did grow a lot over the book, which I was happy about. I also liked a lot of the other characters, such as Elsa, Martin, and even Clio's father. And Aidan. All I have to say that if I was stuck in a small boat for weeks, I would want to be stuck with Aidan. I found his and Clio's bickering hilarious. Aidan himself was just a funny character.

The only reason this book isn't one of my favorite books is that, as stated before, Clio's whining did get annoying. The first half of the book, while I was still intrigued and really liked it, wasn't anything compared to the second half of the novel.

Which brings me to that point. I can't say much about the second half without giving away any spoilers, but wow. It was so intense and amazing. I loved the adventure and the mystery in it.

Girl at Sea is one of the best books I've read in a while. I don't know why I waited so long to pick it up. I won't make the same mistake with other Maureen Johnson books.

Filled with mystery, adventure, romance, and intrigue, Girl at Sea is such a fun read.