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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
Graphic: Death, Violence
Moderate: Blood, War
Minor: Slavery
I think of all my own memories, reclaimed and mine. To know where you came from holds so much power over how you feel about yourself.
Content warnings:
Spoiler
blood, injury, death; loss of a loved one; reference to enslavement and the slave trade; violence'Soul of the Deep' was a great sequel building on 'Skin of the Sea' and I enjoyed it even more!
The pacing felt more consistent than in Book 1, and I always felt pulled to turn pages and read 'just another chapter' (in which I shamelessly lie to myself and end up reading well past my bedtime...). There's plenty of tense action scenes above and underwater, and I also found the more character-driven scenes very compelling to read too.
Simi's central dilemma is engaging because it is so relatable - I'm sure we've all had moments where our attempts to help seem to ruin everything instead. (Though I'd wager that our attempts usually don't have apocalypse-scale ramifications.) I also became unexpectedly attached to the supporting character Folasade, another of the Mami Wata. I wasn't anticipating this as the returning characters were easier to connect to compared to 'Skin of the Sea', because I already knew them. Folasade's story and personality really stuck with me somehow!
Gif by bluearrow126 showing a mermaid swimming through dark blue-green water
Another characterisation thing I appreciated about 'Soul of the Deep' was the humanisation of opposing warriors, and the acknowledgement of leaders manipulating everyday people and sending them to die in wars waged between elites and their interests. The plot was also made more exciting as some enemy/ally roles from Book 1 were flipped. Olokun was an intriguing character, and I wish his storyline had a little more resolution!
There were plenty of plot twists; while I guessed one big one, I wasn't completely correct, and I hadn't considered the twist that sparked the main plot of 'Soul of the Deep' - though this could also be down to me not being very familiar with this belief system. It was fascinating to learn more about this mythology, e.g. the ajogun and the Mokele-mbembe. 'Soul of the Deep' is atmospheric right from the beginning, and I liked that, similarly to Book 1, that we got to travel to different locations (and revisit some too!).
Gif of a Black mermaid, Halle Bailey's Ariel, in an underwater cavern swimming up to some flashing coloured lights at the surface
The only aspect that felt repetitive was the constant rehashing of how Simi and Kola couldn't be together, especially because I felt like the reasoning had already been established in Book 1. I did like how it resolved, though! Very fitting for Simi and I'm excited for her. (Kind of hoping for a Book 3...)
I also loved the Acknowledgements! They were surprisingly comforting to read in my current state of intense job-seeking. It was a lovely note on which to end this book, and I'm definitely interested in reading more from Bowen.
I am Simidele and I choose to follow no one. I choose to be me. I choose to go home.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House UK who provided a copy for my honest review.
General Thoughts: This is the sequel and conclusion to Skin of the Sea. You should definitely read these in order. I dove into this one the second I finished the first one. I was very curious to see where the author would take this one.
Simi captured my heart in the first book. She kept it in the second. Kola captured it in this sequel. I am a fan of her writing style. I liked this one a lot. Because of one thing, I didn't like this as much as the first, but I'm so glad the author wrote this duology, and I'm glad to have read them.
This isn't much of a spoiler, but just to be safe.
Spice Meter: 💞 YA, so no spice here.
Tropes/Themes
-young adult fantasy
-African fantasy/Black fantasy
-Little Mermaid retelling
-forbidden romance
You can also find me on Insta @mylastromancenovel.
The story was more confusing than the previous one, but I liked the ending.
Graphic: Violence, War
Moderate: Slavery, Blood, Trafficking, Murder
