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rachjellie's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, and Murder
Moderate: Confinement and Classism
zmeiat's review against another edition
- 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? No
2.75
Not to mention that there were many cool concepts in the story that were not explored enough. The mermaids daughters, for example - with their sinister presence only appear at the start of the book and peace out for the rest of it. We should also have gotten much more backstory of the protagonists and the world itself needed more context and structure.
Point is, and terribly sorry to say, this was to short of a book. Honestly still good, but the issues were to glaring.
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Miscarriage, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Pregnancy
Minor: Confinement
allyareads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Please I implore you, take your time when reading this. The atmosphere, characters and actually all of the writing is handled with so much deliberate care. Even the most violent or gory scenes (i.e. most of the book) are written so beautifully and delicately. No doubt heavy on the purple prose, but I found once I was in I was in (I also read an Ebook version and we love a quick hold-down thesaurus check).
I’ve always hated the story of the Little Mermaid and this does a fantastic job of exploring the dark suspicions, the various myths and the cyclical nature of storytelling. Getting to hear the story from the monster/victim in their own truth was perfect.
I’m livid it was so short, even with the original short story attached. It may be controversial but I think I might have enjoyed reading the short story before.
But as someone who works as a bookseller, I know it will be divisive. I can tell some people will love this wholeheartedly and others are going to fucking hate it. So I can't recommend this to everyone.
If you don’t like books heavy on vibes, body horror and with big pretentious words, this ain’t your book.
Recommend to fans of tv series Hannibal, the dark elves from the Magicians, dark fairy tale retellings and the people who cheer on the monsters.
If anyone has any simliar books,
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Pregnancy
Minor: Rape
ceruleanseas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Confinement, Miscarriage, Rape, and Pregnancy
wardenred's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Myths are full of lies.
This is not one of them.
A short, quick, and lyrical read that felt to me less like a story and more like a mood. There’s a lot of body horror here, and on one hand, the way it’s all wrapped in long poetic sentences and clever similes makes it more bearable. On the other hand, the prose contains some evocative imagery that got stuck to my mind and will probably keep disturbing me for days on end.
Speaking of prose, while there are a lot of beautiful, vivid sentences here, on the whole I feel like the author overdid it a little. All those lacy figures of speech convey a mood perfectly, but sometimes obfuscate meaning and substance. And there is definitely a lot of substance here, too! I liked the horror rendition of the mermaid myth, the scary cult in taiga, the nods at numerous fairy tales, the Plague Doctor’s wry wit, and that underlying thread of how when monsters and humans co-exist, the lines blur between them and it’s no longer clear who’s the bigger monster. But I do feel that some parts of the story would have more impact if they were delivered a bit more clearly and concisely.
Still, as far as moods go, this was a beautiful one. Also, terrible and disturbing (very good for horror).
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Gore, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cannibalism
willow1113's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Gore, Violence, Blood, and Cannibalism
fox_at_the_circus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
And I really like the two main characters and their relationship with each other, too. This is a story about two people dealing with their trauma together, healing together in a way, and supporting each other throughout it. They are not perfect or try to be, but they feel realistic and are loyal to each other. I especially loved the line, where the plague doctor calls out the "your trauma makes you stronger" bullshit.
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Cannibalism, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Kidnapping, Grief, and Pregnancy
valodniece's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Domestic abuse, and Kidnapping
slytherinlyss's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Blood, and Cannibalism
cwerber's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This novelette is something else and I mean that in the best way possible. It will turn your notion of the little mermaid story upside down.
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Blood, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Rape
Seriously, look at my warnings. This isn't for the faint of heart.