“Rhapsodic” is the written story of Callypso, a mysterious siren with a dark past and the bad boy of the criminal world The Bargainer. The book is a captivating fantasy that combines romance with a good dose of magic.
Book Review: Rhapsodic
- Author: Laura Thalassa
- Series: The Bargainer #1
- 423 pages, Kindle Edition
- First published November 15, 2016
I feel like everyone has already read this story. So I was really surprised that the Instagram poll sparked interest in this review.
Plot of “Rhapsodic”
Meet Callypso, a siren who works as a private investigator and chooses her clients very carefully. She is a beautiful sea creature who is known for her magical powers and can bend non-magical beings to her will. Callypso has dedicated herself to her profession in order to atone for an old debt. The heroine follows her own code of honor and only the truly guilty criminals come into her sights. She bears the scars of a past that haunts her like shadows in the depths of the ocean.
The Bargainer is the cleaner of the criminal world. He is cruel, mysterious and has a special place in his plans for Callypso. If you want something or someone to disappear, you call him. So begins the story between Callypso and Desmond when she makes a deal with him. A deal that is not the last the siren will ask for, and an acquaintance that develops into something more.
After 7 years, the Bargainer finds her to demand payment of her debts. Callypso wants closure on this side of her past, and Desmond needs her magical powers to uncover the evil terrorizing his world.
Worldbuilding
The story has plenty of magic, but lacks comprehensive world-building. The action takes place in a modern, urban world where witches, sirens, fairies, werewolves and humans live side by side. The idea of coexistence is fascinating, but remains half-baked. We have a parallel world where humans are slaves and magical creatures rule over several divided courts. And that’s it… The idea of humans being slaves isn’t new, but it’s interesting, but remains only a suggestion. The lack of detail and depth prevents the reader from fully immersing themselves in the story and believing in the magic of this world. It all has potential, but we only get sparse information, which for me isn’t enough to create a solid foundation for the story.
Characters
The protagonist is a totally familiar kind of heroine. She’s a tough girl who’s used to dealing with the “bad guys” and putting the alpha males in their place. Aside from being torn between her past, her broken heart and the growing attraction she feels for Desmond, her character doesn’t undergo any development until the end.
I’m even more disappointed with Desmond’s portrayal. As much as I like this dark, mysterious character, I somehow failed to fall in love with The Bargainer.
Writing style
Lots of repetition, which annoyed me a little. Aside from the stylistics, I didn’t feel like the transition between the reveal and the end of the book was smooth. We switch from the present to the past all the time, and as helpful as that was for the revelation of some events, it kept getting convoluted. It felt to me like Laura Thalassa had decided on a beginning and an end, but only decided at the last minute how she was going to tie them together. That’s why I really rolled my eyes when I learned the reason for the Bargainer’s 7-year absence from Callypso’s life… And the ending itself was rushed and underdeveloped.
But let’s not forget that this is the first book in a series and it could be better.
My opinion and rating for “Rhapsodic”
Lest there be any misunderstandings or the impression that I didn’t enjoy the story. The book has its own charm, even if it doesn’t shine amongst other romantic fantasies. In fact, it was the romantic touch that saved Rhapsodic and earned it 3 stars from me. We girls need a little sweetness. The tension between Callypso and Desmond and the anticipation of them revealing themselves to each other, of them being together, and the hint of a secret from their past kept me hooked until the end.
3 stars, but the book is very beautiful (mine is tight and I don’t have any blemishes on the cover).
Callypso Lillis is a siren with a very big problem, one that stretches up her arm and far into her past.
For the last seven years Callie has been wearing a bracelet of black beads up her wrist, magical IOUs for favors she once received. Only death or repayment will fulfill her obligations.
Everyone knows that if you need a favor, you go to the Bargainer to make it happen. He’s a man who can get you anything you want … at a price. And everyone knows that sooner or later he always collects. But for Callie, he’s never asked for repayment. Not until now.
When Callie finds the Bargainer in her room, a grin on his lips and a twinkle in his eye, she knows things are about to change. At first it’s admitting a truth—a single bead’s worth—acknowledging the attraction between them. But the Bargainer is after more than just rekindling their connection. Something is happening in the Otherworld. Fae warriors are going missing one by one, and only the women are returned, each in a glass casket, a child clutched to her breast.
For the Bargainer to save his people, he’ll need the help of the siren he spurned long ago. If she can forgive him.
