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embereye's review against another edition
4.0
Pretty fascinating book about merpeople in sort of Medieval (I guess) England. Alternate history type story. I didn't love any of the characters, but somehow they were really true to themselves and I found their perspectives fascinating. She really thought out what it would be like for a merman to have never been on land and how he might react to the world of air. That alone makes this a really fascinating read.
tessisreading2's review
4.0
This is essentially a really good Tudor-era historical fiction novel... with scary mermaids. Philippa Gregory if people literally got their throats torn out occasionally. (Which I guess they do, but... not by mermaids.) Whitfield did a good job of keeping the narrative and characters engaging (and even somewhat sympathetic) while not overlooking the fundamental alien-ness of her not-entirely-human viewpoint characters. That said, it's a grim book in some respects - neither of her viewpoint characters is human, the mermaids are creepy, and Tudor court politics weren't pretty even in real history. Whitfield doesn't get too gory or violent, but it's definitely not a book overflowing with positive emotions. People are burned, poisoned, drowned, sacrificed to unhappy political marriages, etc. I've seen a few people cite it as a supposed romance, which... is basically the opposite of correct. This was a really compelling, fascinating read and I loved it, but a romance it is not.
kblincoln's review
4.0
Don't be fooled by the cover, this is no little mermaid story at all. Following the twin narratives of Henry (a half deepsman/half human orphan found abandoned on the beach) and Anne (a part deepsman/part human princess in England), this story is more a political history of an alternative world where because of the presence of sentient deepsman in the oceans, the kings of the European countries are all part deepsman so to ensure the ocean tribes' loyalty.
Henry is a threat to the throne of England, and this is the tale of how Anne must suffer greatly to keep England strong.
Henry and Anne both live in harsh worlds, and Henry's character, either because of the deepsman influence, or because of the writing, comes off as almost a toddler-like egocentrism, judging the rightness of things as whether they help or hinder him.
Anne is a little more complex, but the life she endures forces her to have a similiar callousness to suffering.
If you enjoyed the dry historical prose of Susannah Clarke's Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, you'll probably enjoy In Great Waters, as it has the same focus on politics.
While this wasn't quite to my taste, I do acknowledge that it is deftly written.
This Book's Food Designation: Whiskey, straight, for the complex, rich harshness of the book (and I'm more a wine than hard liquor girl).
Henry is a threat to the throne of England, and this is the tale of how Anne must suffer greatly to keep England strong.
Henry and Anne both live in harsh worlds, and Henry's character, either because of the deepsman influence, or because of the writing, comes off as almost a toddler-like egocentrism, judging the rightness of things as whether they help or hinder him.
Anne is a little more complex, but the life she endures forces her to have a similiar callousness to suffering.
If you enjoyed the dry historical prose of Susannah Clarke's Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, you'll probably enjoy In Great Waters, as it has the same focus on politics.
While this wasn't quite to my taste, I do acknowledge that it is deftly written.
This Book's Food Designation: Whiskey, straight, for the complex, rich harshness of the book (and I'm more a wine than hard liquor girl).
misssusan's review
4.0
MERMAIDS. :DDDD This book does such great mermaids, they're well thought out in their every aspect. The way they think! The fact that their bodies are not designed for land! The deconstruction of the mythic mermaid she does with the Angelica story! The way she handles the question of mermaids and Christianity!
Mermaids! 4 stars
(p.s. excellent worldbuilding, fleshed out characters, Anne is wonderful and brave and Henry's head is so alien I can't help but love him, do not feed me ridiculousness about 'likeability' unless you want to explain to me why your grounds for liking are so terribly narrow. Also one of the few book handlings of religion I actually like)
Mermaids! 4 stars
(p.s. excellent worldbuilding, fleshed out characters, Anne is wonderful and brave and Henry's head is so alien I can't help but love him, do not feed me ridiculousness about 'likeability' unless you want to explain to me why your grounds for liking are so terribly narrow. Also one of the few book handlings of religion I actually like)
snowbenton's review
3.0
Whitfield cares deeply about the plot and built a fascinating world in which real English history was been subverted by the presence of deepsmen, this story's mermaids. The beginning of the story where a young half-deepsman boy is brought on to land to be raised there is fascinating in its psychological aspect, and the genealogies were well plotted.
Unfortunately the story dragged on too long and felt more like reading a history textbook than a novel. The characters were boring and underdeveloped until the last few chapters when they all suddenly figured themselves out so there could be a satisfying conclusion.
Would recommend to history majors and seekers of adult scary mermaid books.
Unfortunately the story dragged on too long and felt more like reading a history textbook than a novel. The characters were boring and underdeveloped until the last few chapters when they all suddenly figured themselves out so there could be a satisfying conclusion.
Would recommend to history majors and seekers of adult scary mermaid books.
magdon's review
4.0
Cool alternate reality story with plenty of twists & turns and a not-cheesy ending.
mspym's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Really odd and a bit hard to get into but if you want an alt-history featuring some truly alien mer-people, this might be right up your alley. I love reading books written from a non-human perspective, especially when it's convincing and not just a thin overlay.
sims1837's review
1.0
actually i didn't finish the book. the first section about Henry was wicked funny and great. I read it so fast. but then I go to the other character (the girl, I can't remember her name) and it felt like I hit a wall. Compared to Henry it was drier than sandpaper. It was interesting I guess but not that interesting. And since I can't skip the part but I don't feel like reading it I've ended up putting the book down.
shelflife's review
1.0
I tried, I really did. Made it to about 140ish and decided to lend it to a friend.
I love mermaids/mermen and the whole idea of an alternate Europe featuring these great creatures was enticing. A couple of turn-offs for me was all the politics surrounding the royality was more highlighted than the "deepsmen" and what they were actually about. The other was that after breeding with humans (landsmen), these hybrid creatures were often deformed and needed sticks in order to walk. I found that rather sad. Lastly, I need to connect with a character, even if it's just one and I find most of these characters so souless. Perhaps because they were more "creature" than human. Not sure really. I think it's an interesting book, just not really for me. A bit too dry and without heart. I need more.
I love mermaids/mermen and the whole idea of an alternate Europe featuring these great creatures was enticing. A couple of turn-offs for me was all the politics surrounding the royality was more highlighted than the "deepsmen" and what they were actually about. The other was that after breeding with humans (landsmen), these hybrid creatures were often deformed and needed sticks in order to walk. I found that rather sad. Lastly, I need to connect with a character, even if it's just one and I find most of these characters so souless. Perhaps because they were more "creature" than human. Not sure really. I think it's an interesting book, just not really for me. A bit too dry and without heart. I need more.
readingbutterfly's review
1.0
Oh my, I wanna cry my eyes. I never thought there would be a mermaid story I did not like, boy was I wrong. This, this would be it. The writing was so dry and let me tell ya, I really tried to get into it. Mermaids and half mermaids used as political pawns. Sounds like good stuff right; well this story did not deliver. I was quite upset.
~Erika
~Erika