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vikaoverdrive's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
hauntedmoon's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
4.5
this book makes me go FERAL
I’ve read it like thrice and the prose HITS every time what abbanger
I’ve read it like thrice and the prose HITS every time what abbanger
miraeli's review
3.0
Far: I probably would have liked this better if it wasn’t really, really similar to Twixt. As it is, it just felt like a repeat of that book, except without the good world-building or clarity of ideas. Not bad, but not a great opener either. 2 stars.
The Witch Sea: I really enjoyed the world-building, mythological aspect to this story. Especially Meriel and Nor’s relationship, and the deconstruction of a curse being held in place by one line of women. The writing was especially lovely at times. 3 stars.
Seek: This was a wonderfully creepy fairytale. It was especially interesting that the narrator ended up where she did. One of the stronger stories in the collection. 4 stars
Our Lady of Wolves: One of the better stories, but I’m not entirely sure how well the ending sits with me. It fits in with the story, but something about it rubs me the wrong way. 3 stars.
We Grow Accustomed to the Dark: The best story in the collection. It was horrifyingly visceral, to the point where even when I wanted to put it down and take a step back, I kept reading because it was mesmerizing. I almost hope there’s a sequel to see what happens next, though the open ending does fit in with the theme of the story. 4.5 stars.
The Forever Star: A sweet closing to the collection. I like how Diemer can take a genre like science fiction and still infuse fairytales and mythology into it and make it seamless. I wouldn’t mind seeing more of that in the future. 4 stars.
Overall I enjoyed this collection, even the weaker stories in it. It’s definitely worth a look.
See more of my reviews at On The Nightstand.
The Witch Sea: I really enjoyed the world-building, mythological aspect to this story. Especially Meriel and Nor’s relationship, and the deconstruction of a curse being held in place by one line of women. The writing was especially lovely at times. 3 stars.
Seek: This was a wonderfully creepy fairytale. It was especially interesting that the narrator ended up where she did. One of the stronger stories in the collection. 4 stars
Our Lady of Wolves: One of the better stories, but I’m not entirely sure how well the ending sits with me. It fits in with the story, but something about it rubs me the wrong way. 3 stars.
We Grow Accustomed to the Dark: The best story in the collection. It was horrifyingly visceral, to the point where even when I wanted to put it down and take a step back, I kept reading because it was mesmerizing. I almost hope there’s a sequel to see what happens next, though the open ending does fit in with the theme of the story. 4.5 stars.
The Forever Star: A sweet closing to the collection. I like how Diemer can take a genre like science fiction and still infuse fairytales and mythology into it and make it seamless. I wouldn’t mind seeing more of that in the future. 4 stars.
Overall I enjoyed this collection, even the weaker stories in it. It’s definitely worth a look.
caspertheghost's review
3.0
half of the stories i really liked, the other half were quite cliche and a little derivative. that being said, i really like how diemer portrays queer women and various different relationships between queer women, because you don't see that very much in literature.
littlemonster's review
4.0
I’m going to review this collection of six stories individually, just because each of them are extremely different and my enjoyment of each varied.
Far -- This is the starting story, and probably one of the weakest. It’s about a girl called Mana and her unending love for Far. I don’t want to spoil any of it, so I’ll move on from the summary. The only real problem I had with this story is that neither of the leads are relatable at all. Characters don’t necessarily have to be likable – they can certainly be interesting without being likable – but you have to be able to relate, sympathize or empathize with the characters in some ways. You don’t have to understand their situation, but there has to be that reader-story-character connect, and there really wasn’t one here. It isn’t a bad story, it’s just not a great one. I feel like it’s a disappointment simply because Sarah Diemer is a fantastic writer, and the concept is interesting, so the fact that it didn’t click is somewhat sad.
The Witch Sea -- I think this one is beautiful. It’s one of my favorites in the collection. It concerns a witch, cursed by a family burden, who meets a seal-girl and finds herself suddenly wanting to break free. There’s something in it, something haunting, and Diemer really excels in the writing of this one. She’s such a great writer, and this one shows off her extraordinary talent. I loved reading her descriptions of the ocean, of all the little oceanic things, and my heart just swells with affection for this one. I adore witches and the ocean, so this one is a real winner for me. Also, the incorporation of a selkie is really lovely. I love selkies and it’s so nice to see a story of it that isn’t straight. I’ve been dying for a lesbian/queer selkie story.
Seek -- I liked this one a lot, but I didn’t love it. A vapid young woman seeks (see what I did?) out a muse, and finds herself a little too deep in. There’s nothing wrong with the story itself – in fact it’s very interesting – but I just…I wasn’t overwhelmed by love. I feel like the odd one out because of this! But it definitely hit the nail on the head with “monstrous,” and that’s one of my favorite aspects of the story. A lot of the others, I felt, didn’t really fit into the “monstrous” tales, but this one fit the bill perfectly. So why didn’t I absolutely love it? I’m not sure. There are no faults I can really point out. I think it’s just me.
Our Lady of Wolves -- This one I really loved. I’m not sure how to summarize it so I’ll just talk about it. A super, super interesting concept and one that really stuck out in my mind. The ending, for me, really made this story pop, and I found it beautiful, despite the tragedy of it. I just adore the concept. I can understand why some people might not like it – I found the romance to be a little too fast-paced for my tastes – but regardless, it’s another favorite.
We Grow Accustomed to the Dark -- Love! It’s another one that fits the “monstrous” bill pretty well, and I liked the combined ideas of the rapture, of not knowing what these things are, and fear and loneliness but also the comfort of being with someone you love. The relationship between our two main girls is really lovely, perhaps one of the strongest, because they’ve been together for a while and you can really sense not only the love and sweetness between them, but also that they’re companions, friends and lovers. I found myself surprised by the abruptness of the ending, though, and I really wish there had been more elaboration, although in a writing mindset I can understand why the openness of the ending is important.
The Forever Star -- I almost cried reading this one, to be perfectly honest. It’s beautiful and searing. I think the love “grows” a little too quickly, but that’s a big problem with short stories – there’s only a certain amount of time to build relationships, but I think Diemer generally does well. This one was crafted gorgeously. It was mythological but scientific, and it’s amazing just how well the two aspects (usually at odds) are mixed in this one. Beautiful!
Far -- This is the starting story, and probably one of the weakest. It’s about a girl called Mana and her unending love for Far. I don’t want to spoil any of it, so I’ll move on from the summary. The only real problem I had with this story is that neither of the leads are relatable at all. Characters don’t necessarily have to be likable – they can certainly be interesting without being likable – but you have to be able to relate, sympathize or empathize with the characters in some ways. You don’t have to understand their situation, but there has to be that reader-story-character connect, and there really wasn’t one here. It isn’t a bad story, it’s just not a great one. I feel like it’s a disappointment simply because Sarah Diemer is a fantastic writer, and the concept is interesting, so the fact that it didn’t click is somewhat sad.
The Witch Sea -- I think this one is beautiful. It’s one of my favorites in the collection. It concerns a witch, cursed by a family burden, who meets a seal-girl and finds herself suddenly wanting to break free. There’s something in it, something haunting, and Diemer really excels in the writing of this one. She’s such a great writer, and this one shows off her extraordinary talent. I loved reading her descriptions of the ocean, of all the little oceanic things, and my heart just swells with affection for this one. I adore witches and the ocean, so this one is a real winner for me. Also, the incorporation of a selkie is really lovely. I love selkies and it’s so nice to see a story of it that isn’t straight. I’ve been dying for a lesbian/queer selkie story.
Seek -- I liked this one a lot, but I didn’t love it. A vapid young woman seeks (see what I did?) out a muse, and finds herself a little too deep in. There’s nothing wrong with the story itself – in fact it’s very interesting – but I just…I wasn’t overwhelmed by love. I feel like the odd one out because of this! But it definitely hit the nail on the head with “monstrous,” and that’s one of my favorite aspects of the story. A lot of the others, I felt, didn’t really fit into the “monstrous” tales, but this one fit the bill perfectly. So why didn’t I absolutely love it? I’m not sure. There are no faults I can really point out. I think it’s just me.
Our Lady of Wolves -- This one I really loved. I’m not sure how to summarize it so I’ll just talk about it. A super, super interesting concept and one that really stuck out in my mind. The ending, for me, really made this story pop, and I found it beautiful, despite the tragedy of it. I just adore the concept. I can understand why some people might not like it – I found the romance to be a little too fast-paced for my tastes – but regardless, it’s another favorite.
We Grow Accustomed to the Dark -- Love! It’s another one that fits the “monstrous” bill pretty well, and I liked the combined ideas of the rapture, of not knowing what these things are, and fear and loneliness but also the comfort of being with someone you love. The relationship between our two main girls is really lovely, perhaps one of the strongest, because they’ve been together for a while and you can really sense not only the love and sweetness between them, but also that they’re companions, friends and lovers. I found myself surprised by the abruptness of the ending, though, and I really wish there had been more elaboration, although in a writing mindset I can understand why the openness of the ending is important.
The Forever Star -- I almost cried reading this one, to be perfectly honest. It’s beautiful and searing. I think the love “grows” a little too quickly, but that’s a big problem with short stories – there’s only a certain amount of time to build relationships, but I think Diemer generally does well. This one was crafted gorgeously. It was mythological but scientific, and it’s amazing just how well the two aspects (usually at odds) are mixed in this one. Beautiful!
zuly's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
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