Sea (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Sea Kate Quealy-Gainer Kling, Heidi R. Sea. Putnam, 2010. [ 336p]. ISBN 978-0-399-25163-4 $17.99 Reviewed from galleys Ad Gr. 7-10. Three years after her mother's plane disappeared over the Indian Ocean, fifteen-year-old California girl Sienna Jones remains terrified of what she once loved the most: the sea. Drowning in his own grief, her psychiatrist father decides the best cure for their broken hearts is to help those in even worse situations, and he secures a place for himself and his daughter to spend two weeks running an orphanage for victims of the recent Indonesian tsunami. Initially outraged, Sienna grudgingly consents and white-knuckles her way through the transoceanic flight, only to be confronted with some serious culture shock as she deals with foreign customs, strange food, and dirty bathrooms. She finds a friend, however, in Deni, an orphan boy who not only relates to her loss with a wisdom beyond his years but also happens to be super hot. Their relationship is perfect romance fare: he's a bit of a bad boy with a broken heart, she's the virginal good girl, and this liaison is entirely forbidden, by both his culture and her father. Their ability to find beauty and hope in each other, despite the physical and emotional damage they've both sustained, only adds to the sentimental appeal—although readers may find their instant attraction somewhat unbelievable in light of their vastly different backgrounds. The author makes a concerted effort to realistically portray Indonesian culture and the devastation of the tsunami, but unfortunately Sienna's limited perspective makes much of it seem like mere exoticism, an element that is not helped by the book's conclusion, which conveniently allows Sienna to return to her former privileged life in the guise of letting Deni get on with his own existence. Culturally sensitive it is not, but Deni and Sienna's summer fling makes a decent beach read, and romance fans may find themselves swept away by their brief but steamy affair. [End Page 488] Copyright © 2010 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois