Lucky is a mermicorn—half mermaid, half unicorn—who lives in an undersea world full of magic. When his friend Echo the dolphin needs extra dolphins to enter the Perfect Pearl Path Scavenger Hunt, Lucky uses a magic shell to create them—but they soon swim out of control, causing chaos on Mermicorn Island. Can Lucky, Echo, and their friends Ruby and Flash—the Fin-tastic Four—round up the duplicates in time?
As with the other books in the series, the delightful storytelling and sea-related puns make this a fun and joyful story just perfect for readers stepping into early chapter books. In this volume, we also meet Echo’s two dads, who are introduced without fanfare (or fin-fare). Mermicorn Island seems a welcoming and inclusive place. The sparkly aesthetic also conveys a definite flamboyant queer vibe. And Lucky, who (as we learned in the first book) likes to draw and appreciates when his mane has “just the right swirl,” feels at the very least somewhat gender creative. Jason June describes himself on his website as “a genderqueer writer mermaid,” so that vibe seems deliberate. Readers LGBTQ and not will also appreciate the series’ messages of finding oneself and supporting one’s friends.
