Reviews with content warning for Death - A Letter to the Luminous Deep

A delightful story of discovery and romance set in 1002 and told through the correspondence of each character, most notably E. Sidnosen to Henerey Clel. The prose is beautiful and works well with the writing format, which is part Magical Academia, part Deep-Sea Fantasy with a sprinkling of period drama elements in the letter writing.

The story begins when E.'s sister Sophy Sidnorjay and Henerey's brother, Captain Vyerin Clel correspond about their respective siblings' disappearance and the destruction of E’s family home, The Deephouse.

This is a very slow-paced, surreal and wandering tale which takes a while to come together, I did at times find it hard to follow with the number of characters but the cast of narrators did an excellent job and helped with that. I personally feel it could have been a little shorter. Overall a nice relaxing read.

Content Warnings

devynreadsnovels's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Content Warnings

folkofthebook's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

My dear E., I have thought of nothing else but you and your letter over the past day or so, and I do not intend to start thinking of anything else anytime soon.

rating: 4.25

this was a beautifully written story about discovery, family, and the unknown.

agoraphobic (and i believe has ocd?) and brilliantly curious "e." has suddenly vanished along w her penpal, scholar henerey clel. their siblings begin corresponding first in condolence and mourning, then in earnest exploration as they start to uncover the mysterious disappearance (and what may have preluded it...).

To think that a person’s entire life could be summed up in the jumbled, incomplete assortment of ephemera they leave behind.

personally, while it took a moment for me to adjust to the epistolary style that is first primarily following siblings sophy and vyerin, the more i got to know e and henery the more i became invested - especially as the mystery of the "luminous circumference" developed. sylvia cathrall has created a fantastical world where many of the inhabitants live under or on water. there is lots of creatively playful reimagining of marine life that is reminiscent of the life aquatic with steve zissou.

mental health was a strong theme, with e being agoraphobic and having anxiety & (i think from author's note?) ocd. various characters including henery and his brother vyerin both discuss depression as well as other characters. almost all of the characters are also queer, with much bi/pan representation. science, academia, and exploration are a central theme as well (chancellor rawsel, it's on sight).

if you have thalassophobia or fear of the deep ocean, this might make you feel claustrophobic haha. i think some things to be aware of is that this is only the first book in a series (so sorry, a bit of a cliffhanger!) and the slower-paced writing & challenge for the reader to slowly "uncover" and piece together info along w our new penpals may put some off, but if you have the patience for it you'll be rewarded with many heartfelt moments, charming humor, fun uncoverings, and even romance.

i'm very excited for this to release and even more excited for its follow-up!

If we happen to make a slight detour into that luminescent world – well, then, I will consider myself lucky to do so in your company.

Content Warnings

luverbyrd's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

Content Warnings

More...