Siren's Secret by Debbie Herbert

I thought this was a pretty good start to this series... I have never read a romance that revolves around mermaids before so I was definitely intrigued by the potential. And, I think that was my favorite part of the story... kind of "dipping" into the world of mermaids. And, I would never suspect that mermaids would reside in the Louisiana Bayou so that was an interesting twist.
Shelly is only half mermaid and she lives with her full mermaid cousins. She is caught in between two worlds not really belonging fully to either. And, romance is complicated when you have that kind of secret to hide.
The romance she develops with local cop Tillman is one that had been lurking beneath the surface for the two of them for a while. He has his suspicions about her however... by nature he is nosey and gets the feeling that there is something "different" about these ladies.
There is a bit of creepiness to this story in regards to the serial killer... some of the things he does are a bit icky. I know that we are supposed to be repulsed by the actions of a serial killer but the content was a little too icky for me. Since I was appropriately repulsed then I will mark that as a successfully written bad guy. :) He was also sexually abused by his mother as a child and I found the scenes in which he was remembering some of these moments from his past disturbing. Just FYI for anyone who might be sensitive to this type of content.
As a whole, I thought this book was well written, engaging and it definitely has room to grow. The mermaid world has so many unique elements and lots of room for creative story writing.

3.5 to 4 stars****

Shelly Connors's worlds—on land and in the sea—are turned upside down when an evening swim turns into a nightmare. On a sweltering night deep in the bayou, the mystical mermaid witnesses a horrifying act. With a monstrous killer now hot on her trail, her life and the lives of her kin are in jeopardy.

Terrified of becoming the next victim, Shelly has no choice but to turn to Sheriff Tillman Angier. Tillman has had his intense gray eyes on the sultry honey-haired beauty for a while. The feelings are mutual …and impossible to ignore. But he's determined to solve the murders, and he knows Shelly's hiding something. Can she trust him with her deepest secret?

K~