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kaiyakaiyo's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This was extremely heartwarming, with a side of catharsis. The ending felt a bit rushed, but overall I loved these characters and love love love that the author didn’t shy away from making these girls feel like natural teenagers: they are allowed to be angry, a little vindictive, naive, kind, happy, all at once
I wish I’d had a book like this when I was actually a teen
I wish I’d had a book like this when I was actually a teen
Content Warnings
Graphic: Police brutality
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Xenophobia, and Racism
haylzno's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
High schoolers Effie and Tavia not only have to navigate their way through high school life as teenagers but also as mystical creatures that are often ostracized and discriminated against. The two girls use their sisterly bond to help each other through pressing times and personal changes.
I very much enjoyed the magical realism of this book. I imagine that if sirens and serpents and gargoyles were incorporated in todays social atmosphere that it would be very much like this novel. Racism and xenophobia are always hard to read about but just it's important that these issues be talked about.
I wish there was a tad more about the sirens outside of the high school POV, but overall I enjoyed this novel. The narrators were fantastic!
I very much enjoyed the magical realism of this book. I imagine that if sirens and serpents and gargoyles were incorporated in todays social atmosphere that it would be very much like this novel. Racism and xenophobia are always hard to read about but just it's important that these issues be talked about.
I wish there was a tad more about the sirens outside of the high school POV, but overall I enjoyed this novel. The narrators were fantastic!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Mental illness, Police brutality, Racism, Death of parent, Child death, Bullying, and Emotional abuse
anna_wa's review
adventurous
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Last night I couldn't put this book down. I stayed up until 3 AM going all the way from page 107 to page 288 (the final page of the book). There was twist after twist after twist and I needed to know the answers to all the questions I had. It was both satisfying and heartbreaking when I finally got those answers (heartbreaking for what the characters had to go through).
The reason I couldn't give this a full five stars in my brain is because of the beginning. The beginning was extremely confusing, and I don't mean it was confusing in a "we're leading up to something" way that all Fantasy/SciFi books are confusing. I mean that it was confusing in an "I don't know what the author is trying to get at here with this dialogue/description" way. For a while I thought about rating it 3 stars because of how confusing the beginning was.
But then I hit the second half of the book and it all clicked. Morrow was in her element there and no longer did anything feel out of place or like it needed more editing. She kept me going, on the edge of my seat, to find out what would happen to Effie and Tavia and their gargoyle, to find out if my theories were correct. (Some of them were but then some of them weren't, and in both cases I was delighted.)
I don't want to spoil too much but I will warn anyone who intends to read it that, despite this being a story of sirens and elokos and other magical creatures, it deals with a lot of very real issues from our world. From the very first chapter Murrow makes it clear that the real life police killings of Black people are gonna be a very important part of the story. But there's a lot more than that (which you can see if you choose to click on my content warnings). However, each and every one of these issues is handled with the sensitivity they deserve from the author. The seriousness of them isn't skimmed over because "it's a magical world so magic can solve everything!" No, there are some things magic can't solve (and some things magic makes worse).
But it also isn't completely a sad story either. Without revealing too much, the ending is promising, tentatively optimistic. And the love between Effie and Tavia is strong from beginning to ending no matter what. Definitely recommended for fans of magical realism and fans of found-sisters-loving-each-other-despite-all-the-obstacles.
The reason I couldn't give this a full five stars in my brain is because of the beginning. The beginning was extremely confusing, and I don't mean it was confusing in a "we're leading up to something" way that all Fantasy/SciFi books are confusing. I mean that it was confusing in an "I don't know what the author is trying to get at here with this dialogue/description" way. For a while I thought about rating it 3 stars because of how confusing the beginning was.
But then I hit the second half of the book and it all clicked. Morrow was in her element there and no longer did anything feel out of place or like it needed more editing. She kept me going, on the edge of my seat, to find out what would happen to Effie and Tavia and their gargoyle, to find out if my theories were correct. (Some of them were but then some of them weren't, and in both cases I was delighted.)
I don't want to spoil too much but I will warn anyone who intends to read it that, despite this being a story of sirens and elokos and other magical creatures, it deals with a lot of very real issues from our world. From the very first chapter Murrow makes it clear that the real life police killings of Black people are gonna be a very important part of the story. But there's a lot more than that (which you can see if you choose to click on my content warnings). However, each and every one of these issues is handled with the sensitivity they deserve from the author. The seriousness of them isn't skimmed over because "it's a magical world so magic can solve everything!" No, there are some things magic can't solve (and some things magic makes worse).
But it also isn't completely a sad story either. Without revealing too much, the ending is promising, tentatively optimistic. And the love between Effie and Tavia is strong from beginning to ending no matter what. Definitely recommended for fans of magical realism and fans of found-sisters-loving-each-other-despite-all-the-obstacles.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Misogyny
Moderate: Bullying, Hate crime, Cursing, Death of parent, Murder, and Violence
Minor: Confinement
Misogynoir, police murdering Black people without consequencesaseel_reads's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-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? Yes
5.0
2022: 5 ⭐
Not t sure why I didn't rate this higher the first time I read it, it's still absolutely brilliant and I have thought about this book all the time since reading it two years ago. It blended social critique, mythos, and family dynamics so well.
2020: 4.25 ⭐
This was everything I never knew I needed. Just the real world/fantasy/mythology intersected with racial issues was *chef's kiss*. I love the sister bond we have and the writing was excellent. Honestly, just wish this was longer
Not t sure why I didn't rate this higher the first time I read it, it's still absolutely brilliant and I have thought about this book all the time since reading it two years ago. It blended social critique, mythos, and family dynamics so well.
2020: 4.25 ⭐
This was everything I never knew I needed. Just the real world/fantasy/mythology intersected with racial issues was *chef's kiss*. I love the sister bond we have and the writing was excellent. Honestly, just wish this was longer
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Suicide attempt, Racism, Police brutality, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, and Death of parent
keenanmaree's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
fast-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? Yes
5.0
This book was so wonderful. It’s a beautiful exploration of Black female friendship, family, and intersectionality. The characters all feel so real (even the ones who are really mythical beings) and multidimensional, and the story is so gripping that I blew through it faster than I’ve read any other book in a long time, because I just HAD to know what happened next.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Child death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Kidnapping, Police brutality, Racism, Self harm, and Violence
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