Breakwater (The Elemental Series) Paperback – June 30, 2015

Breakwater by Shannon Mayer (The Elemental Series Book 2)5 starsIt is no secret that I love Shannon Mayer. Her Rylie Adamson series is amazing. The first book in this series is a great start to a whole new world that Mayer has built around elementals. The part that I didn’t enjoy about the first book is that Lark gets dumped on repeatedly. This is a personal preference of mine. I have a hard time watching movies or reading books where the main character can’t seem to catch a break and is constantly beaten down. However, in reading this series it is easy to see that Lark is going to one day rock my socks off with how awesome she is and hopefully get some retribution (not necessarily vengeance) for her years being crapped on.This book takes off pretty much where the first book left us. The Big Bad (Cassava) is gone but still out there like a black cloud in the distance. An Ender from the first elementals has come to lay a claim to charge Lark with the fire elementals that she and Ash killed in Book 1. In order to get her out of the way, her father sends her to the water elementals as a bodyguard for her much hated sister, Belladonna.It doesn’t take long for both Belladonna and Larkspur to realize that they probably won’t survive their trip and they have been set up. They just don’t know by whom. Was this their fathers way of getting these two out of the way. Can Ash be trusted? The bad guy in this book is a pretty big heavy hitter as far as elementals go. There is a lot of political turmoil in the water realm (The Deep) as the half brother of the rightful heir has taken over using cruelty, starvation, murder, torture. You name this guy will do it in order to maintain control of The Deep. We soon learn that his plans don’t just involve The Deep and Belladonna and Lark are in more trouble that they thought.I loved reading about the water elementals and their home. It was amazing and deadly! I can’t wait to read about more of the other elementals. I also love how Lark is gaining some of her powers. I hated that she was helpless in many areas against the elementals and it is awesome that she is able to kick some butt. I don’t hate Belladonna quite as much and hate Lark’s father a little bit more. Can’t wait for more!For more Shannon Mayer reviews, or other book suggestions, visit my blog at: http://bibliobibulireviews.blogspot.com/

If you are a true sci-fi reader, you will enjoy the Elemental series. It gives insight and clarity into the world of the supernatural. If you have been following the exploits of Riley Adamson and friends, this series is a must. It ties so many things together and opens up whole new worlds. I am enjoying finding out more about these extraordinary individuals. It will make your heart race and your stomach jitter so I don't recommend late night reading if you must rise early the next day. You won't be able to put the book down until find out what happens next. Great read!

With defeating Cassava, Lark is finally able to break through the mental block put in place to keep her from her powers. As her powers grow, so does an unexpected bond with her nemesis Belladonna. Since trouble seems to find her pretty much anywhere, Lark also begins to suspect that they’re both being led to slaughter. But with so much deceit and secrecy around her, she must decide who she can trust while trying to save herself, her charge, and a kingdom from the delusional tyrant wannabe king.Another action packed, adrenaline fueled, edge of your seat, wild ride that I highly recommend.

Having read all of the Rylee Adamson novels and Recurve, the first in the Elemental Series, I was on pins and needles waiting for Break Water to be released. As usual, Shannon Mayer does not disappoint. I find that Ms. Mayer has this amazing ability to draw you completely into her characters' world as if you were part of the story. Her characters continue to grow and develop, show their faults and build on their strengths. The action scenes are very well written, so much so that I have no problem "seeing" and "believing" everything that is occurring to our heroine, her friends and adversaries. The relationships and plot lines between her characters are filled with love, hate, tragedy, triumph, and every emotion, conflict and resolution that can be imagined. And believe me, Ms. Mayer has one heck of an imagination. The only fault that I can find is that the books are way too short for my liking, as Ms. Mayer always leaves me wanting more! I cant wait for the next installment, which means I will probably reread all of the Rylee books in anticipation of Book 10, while waiting for Book 3 in the Elemental series. One final note: I do recommend that you read Recurve prior to Break Water to have a better understanding of the characters, their relationships and the back story.

Love it Almost as much as book one! Now let's see where we go from here! Can't wait to see what Larkspur will do next!

I loved this book with one hesitation. I didn't like the dragging on of time & all that was put into the scenes in The Deep. I know that's what the book was all about, but it just seemed to drag on for a bit. And for Lark to not make sure he was dead the first time... Not like her. But I guess it's a mistake she won't make again. Lark grew a lot in this book and I'm proud of her for that. She's feeling her powers grow but has yet to test her full potential.Bella gets to meet the mother goddess in the end, is advised by her to love her unborn child and told that the GIRL will be very powerful. It gives Bella the lift she needs to get her haughty nature back under her.But I am looking forward to the next book and will start it this afternoon.🌺 AFTER I read the alternate ending to Blood of the Lost, the finale of the Rylee Adamson series. It was just put out yesterday & I can't wait.Shannon Mayer has me trapped in her books at this time. They are a wonderful escape while recovering from multiple surgeries!HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND A FESTIVE NEW YEAR! Can't wait to see what happens in 2016.

Great series. A must read. I love it so much

Nicely done SM, loved this book that Requiem what a dick marrying his own sister and raping Bella. It grosses me out how some men feel the need to throw around their power!!! Thank you for this absolutely fantastic story looking forward to the next one!

Après le tome 1 Recurve, on retrouve Lark dans une périlleuse mission d'ender responsable de la protection de sa soeur ambassadrice en territoire aquatique.Des intrigues, des tentatives d'assassinat, des trahisons, des peines de coeur... Un cocktail très bien équilibré.Vite la suite (automne 2015 devrait arrivé)

Unbelievable but Shannon Mayer gets better with every book of hers I read. I picked up Priceless just after it was released and I feel honoured and privileged to have been on the ride with Rylee and now Lark, as it went along. Breakwater was a truly stunning feat of action, character, plot and world building. I can honestly say that I think the elemental world must be one of my absolute favourites in urban fantasy.In Breakwater Lark journeys to The Deep, home to the water elementals. On the journey with her is Belladonna, her half sister. Now in Recurve Belladonna was not a nice person to put it mildly! It is not often that an author can convince me that i character who I previously did not like is now someone to believe in and root for but Shannon has done it. Through Lark and Bella's journey in the travelling room with the armbands Lark see's into Bella's memory and it allows us all an insight into why she is as she is and gives us hope for her future. I loved Belladonna's part in this story and thought she was a fantastic character. And from one brilliant character to another, I come to Requiem, the villain of the piece. It's not often I read about a fictional character that makes my flesh crawl and disgusts me quite so much as he did. Without giving spoilers I loved how it all panned out for him, although the twists and turns kept my heart pounding!There was so much to like about this book, I could go on, the side characters as always stand out, especially Finley and Olive (love the name, wait till you meet her :-)), the visuals I got of The Deep were tremendous, I really really want this place to be real! The world building is second to none and I loved it. Lark is on her very own journey and the scenes with the Earth Mother were fantastic and I can't wait to read more about her. Lark's powers are also beginning to manifest and I am curious, knowing what we do from reading the Rylee series, how this will develop. Lark is also beginning to learn about people, those around her, good and bad, and despite what we know about her father, the scenes with him were particularly poignant.All in all I adored this book and I highly recommend this book to anyone. You don't have to have read Rylee but you do need to read Recurve first. Shannon Mayer goes from strength to strength and makes me hugely excited to think about what is coming next.

Note: maybe this book could be read as a standalone, but I really don't recommend it. Not only is “Breakwater” a second in Lark's UF/fantasy series, but it also has ties to the “Rylee Adamson” series. In other words: I'd read the books of the “Elemental” series in the right order and would add reading “Rylee Adamson” for good measure. Makes the most of the books.ReviewOne would have thought that Lark, having saved not only her father, the Earth Elemental's king, but also their whole people from her very evil stepmother, she'd finally get the “princess”-treatment she deserves. But: not happening. Her father allegedly treats her indifferently to save her from envy, but at the end of this installment, you really don't know, what is real and what is show. Or coercion.But firstly, there are repercussions from Lark's adventure in the Fire Elemental's Pit to fear: the Fire's queen demands Lark be tried before her for the killing of three of Fire's Enders. And just as Lark comes out of her tests to be finally admitted as an Ender at all. So her father sends her away on a bodyguard's job to accompany her royal sister Belladonna to the Deep, the realm of the Undines, the Water Elementals.And this is where an intense and colorful adventure starts, full of machinations, danger and battles. The two are thrown into a veritable snake pit, since the realm is in uproar after the late king's demise and being “Terraling” royalty isn't as safe a shield as they hoped. From their first meeting with the Undine it's obvious that it would be close to a miracle if both of them made it out alive and unscathed. And let me tell you: the unscathed thing isn't going to happen. I won't spoil anything, but you'll feel pity you probably didn't expect to.Lark is wary, because she is sure that Belladonna is her evil mother's daughter in more than blood and surprisingly, the relationship between Lark and her half-sister is one of the most interesting things in this story – and not because the book weren't offering a great lot of interesting aspects, but because it's so well written.But yes, character development and Lark's getting better at tapping into her power aside, the plot with its action and investigation, is pure entertainment, I read this awesomely written book in just a few hours and couldn't lay it down. And as a side note, I was thrilled to read about Lark's first meeting with Peta, whom you know if you've read the “Rylee Adamson” novels. I had no idea how funny Peta could be!So, if there is anything I did not like about the book, it's that I finished it already and now have to wait for the next chapter of Lark's quest – and let me warn you: the end is in the cliffhangerish category... I kind of knew it would happen eventually, but yes, the end indicates that there won't be any rest for Lark any time soon.