Review of "Water Horse" by Ashley Chapman

Score: 94/100 (9.4 out of 10)

Water Horse by Ashley Chapman is a fantasy romance novel with a touch of dark mythos and a hint of sea salt, light, and steel.

This is the sequel to Kelpie, a previous OCA-winning novel, which introduced us to the sympathetic Southern Belle, Vivienne Griffin, who is thrust into a heated conflict between mythical were-creatures called Kelpies. Kelpies are pretty much mythical water monsters in Scottish folklore who resemble horses and try to entice riders before devouring and/or drowning them. So, they kind of function like Sirens. They're powerful and even magical, similar to dragons. They can transform from their Kelpie form to their human form and vice-versa. They're really fascinating creatures who rarely get showcased in fiction to the same degree as other creatures like mermaids, dragons, and unicorns. So, it's a breath of fresh air to see them depicted.

In the previous book, Vivienne's life was crucially saved using Riley Lochin's royal Kelpie blood. This is inarguably the most important plot point in the series and pretty much drives the events of Water Horse, the second book. Due to her now carrying royal Kelpie blood and being destined to give birth to the next king, she becomes a prime target for all Kelpie and evildoers like Droch and Cro.

Now, we have to be honest: a lot of our feelings about the previous book are also felt in the second, for better or for worse. For example, we continued to be upset with how Eelus, who seemed like he would be the deuteragonist and main love interest of the series, was sidelined and played third-fiddle to Lochin. The way we feel about that is similar to how a lot of people felt that Esmeralda in Hunchback of Notre Dame should have ended up with Quasimodo and not with Captain Phoebus. In the same way, we kept wishing the narrative would honor the steady, tender bond Eelus built with Vivienne rather than defaulting to Lochin’s crown-and-conflict magnetism. It really seemed like Lochin came down from heaven like a deus ex machina to become the deuteragonist rather than earning it the way that Eelus did. It really feels like he became the second main character because he was powerful and had a royal bloodline. We get why the plot pivots to Lochin; it raises the political stakes and expands the mythos, but it leaves Eelus feeling... well... undeservingly friend-zoned.

We felt a little better after Lochin spent more time with Vivienne in this book, but that feeling never fully subsided. This is especially true since it seems like every Tom, Dick, and Harry is madly in love with Vivienne, and she doesn't do much to assuage that. In fact, it often seems like she provokes it. There's a scene in which she starts sexy stretching, then booty-bumps a male character, all while the narrative constantly tells us she's sexually inexperienced and doesn't even know how to kiss. We then get excuse after excuse to put her in sexual, sensual, and intimate situations like when she has to pretend to ferociously make out with Cro (one of the main villains) to fool other characters—keeping up a ruse—all while imagining Cro is Lochin. That had us rolling our eyes. Like, "Yeah, right, girl. Yeah, right."

She even says things like "I provoked [tempted] you on purpose." Those scenes kind of made us feel a certain way about Vivienne. It made us feel like she's the kind of girl who would flirt with a bunch of guys just to see how it drives them all crazy and against each other. And we're pretty sure that's not what the author was going for granted the pseudo-Christian message of mercy and forgiveness.

Oh, and Vivienne continues to be frustratingly bone-headed. It helps that the narrative acknowledges her decisions don't seem smart to some, but they still don't seem smart. For example, she constantly puts herself in needless peril and tries to be merciful and even friendly to characters who are pure evil (like Bleeder) or near pure evil (like Cro). She even says things like “If I hadn’t agreed to stay with him for five minutes...If I had tried to run, like I should have!” It's nice that she acknowledges her decisions are dumb, but they're still dumb.

Now, with that said, this mercy, compassion, and ability to see the brightness in even the evilest people is what makes Vivienne special. She's Christ-like in that sense, which fits the book's surprisingly Christian messaging. She is someone who will turn the other cheek, not try to take the speck out of someone else's eye, and not cast the first stone. That's what seems to make her a fitting candidate for the critical position of Kelpie queen, something the book is clearly building toward. While other characters, including good ones like Lochin, are sometimes vicious and cruel, Vivienne is almost always friendly, kind, caring, and compassionate. It's what sets her apart.

We get that.

And it's not like every single one of her decisions is dumb. Like, she does some calculus in her head (hmm... maybe I shouldn't fight a friggin' powerful dark lord being a frail human female with no formal combat training + a bum ankle and rib) but eventually decides not to fight Droch until he forces her to.

But, like, so much of this book is her reaching out to and trying to be friendly with Cro, a freakin' monster whose followers literally cannibalize one of their own. A guy who tortured Lochin. A beast who grievously injured her and Lochin. Like, there's a point of no return, girl. We kept wanting Vivienne to get her head out of her &%^ and see how dangerous and evil Cro was. It's like watching your best friend date a dude who beats her and cheats on her all the time. Girl, STOP BEING STUPID AND RUN!

We even get lines like how any woman with half a brain would hate Cro.

It's like Stockholm syndrome turned up to 11. It's like the girl who says, "But, daddy, I can fix him!"

So, Vivienne has a very interesting way of looking at the terrible people and things that she has encountered and experienced. Michael actually helps her to frame her thoughts early in the book:
“If Bleeder hadn’t come, I might never have known what a Kelpie was. I might never have had a ride on one...I might not be sitting in the time-out corner with you right now.”

Keep in mind, Bleeder was a sociopathic/psychopathic mass-murdering Kelpie whose evil seemed to know no bounds. He is the closest thing to an irredeemable character we've read about.

Vivienne also says: “There had to be more to him than chaos and seduction.”

She tells him directly, “despite the horrors you’ve shown me, there’s more to you than what frightens me.”

During the duel she pleads with Lochin, “Because he’s worth saving!” and suggests Cro's cruelty also pushed Lochin toward his power.

Later, she states, “You are good, and you are worth having your soul saved.”

This is really touching, powerful Christian messaging. It really makes you think.

But what about those who aren't as lucky as Vivienne? To have royal Kelpie blood flowing through her and every Kelpie fawning over her? To have plot devices and plot conveniences keeping her alive?

Well, you could argue the saints and martyrs all experienced trials, tribulations, suffering, and eventually death.

Jesus suffered and died being self-sacrificing, merciful, kind, caring, compassionate, and forgiving. That was kind of the point.

Being a Christ-like Christian isn't easy. If it were easy, everyone would be doing it.

This book also made us think about a very huge question: Why are we human? Why aren't we something else like elvin, Kryptonian, Saiyan, Viltrumite, or Kelpie?

Vivienne may help us answer that question. Vivienne is human. Despite Lochin's blood, she isn't superpowered or magical necessarily. But she's special because of how she is. Because of her not fearing death. Because of her love, compassion, caring, and mercy.

So, that message kind of comes across.

And at least Eelus had some time to shine in this book (albeit sparsely) and that his bond with Vivienne from the previous book was somewhat acknowledged. For example, Vivienne recalls riding him for the first time and how special that was. He's also the first one to stop her from leaving when she declares to Lochin that she's a liability and is a danger to everyone. That's special.

There's also a cute and cool new group of creatures called Pucas who hate/fear the Kelpies but hate/fear Droch more. In fact, they come together and put aside their differences in the face of the evil ones. One of the cutest is Autumn, a Pulca who is like a rabbit and even acts like it.

Check it out on Amazon!