Best series ever

This book was definitely not terrible but it was eternally disappointing. If you don't have more than the barest surface level interest in Scottish mythology and enjoy typical YA storytelling conventions then feel free to disregard this review, you will probably like this book just fine.

I picked up this book because the blurb talked about selkies - which are criminally underrepresented in fantasy - and also the main character had the same name as me which I have never encountered before so my interest was piqued. The disappointment began quickly - our main character Ailsa has a birthmark which according to this book makes her a changeling, which is not how changelings actually work. Then the selkies arrived and they were more like witches and wizards that just so happen to sometimes turn into seals (the author decided to get rid of the selkies having removable coats that allow them to shapeshift and then tied herself in knots later in the book and replaced it with a magic ring that has basically the same purpose). There is a kelpie but it was just a hot guy with really uncomfortable seduction powers? The stone of destiny that the book is named after (an actual rock that has been used in the coronation of various monarchs in the UK and has an incredibly messy history) is now a little sparkly geode with magic powers. It feels rather cheep how Scottish mythology is used to make the book stand out and yet anything actually different is carefully minimised or changed to make it more sexy.

To make matters worse I really didn’t like the characters. Most of them are a whole lot of nothing and Ailsa in particular was just not a fun character to read about. She is presented as a ‘strong independent woman’ and yet her actions are more in line with an overcooked noodle. I spent a lot of this book just wishing she'd get it together to be honest as the author was clearly aiming for 'traumatised teenager that doesn't know how to talk to others' and but instead she just comes across as needlessly nasty and uncommunicative. There is also a kind of love triangle which by the end of the book looked headed into poly territory. Usually I would be pleased with this as I am sick of love triangles but Ailsa is so unlikable I couldn't wrap my head around two whole people being attracted to her.

The plot is impressively uninteresting. The main story just kind of meanders about and then ends 50 pages before the actual end. The last fifty pages consists of the most boring kidnapping plot I've ever read. Which is saying something as I usually really enjoy kidnapping storylines. Usually I would be on the edge of my seat but this felt just so unnecessary and a cheap twist. The end of the book contained several plot twists that weren't very good. I won't detail exactly what the other ones were in case you still plan to read the book but it felt very counterproductive to what had already been established about Ailsa.