Scan barcode
A review by shereadstales
Walking on Knives by Maya Chhabra
3.0
Full Disclosure: I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for sharing my honest review. Said honest review is what follows.
“Walking on Knives”, a re imagining of The Little Mermaid, is a short story, clocking in at just under 12,000 words (about 30 pages). In Chhabra’s retelling, the sea witch has a sister, who is never given a name but becomes infatuated with the mermaid and intervenes in an attempt to save her from becoming sea foam when the prince decides to marry another.
I may not be totally objective here, because I absolutely love anything to do with mermaids and sea folklore. So keeping that in mind, I’d recommend this short story. I definitely enjoyed it, but I’m not going to lie, I would have enjoyed it a lot more had it been longer. I feel like thirty pages isn’t enough for rich characterization and the exposition such a dramatic story deserves. However, I think Chhabra did a good job with the characters as far as she goes, and I kind of liked that none of the characters had names, only titles, even though I might have gotten a little confused once or twice when trying to figure out the switching observational point-of-views. I found myself rooting for the sea witch’s sister and disliking the sea witch as much as I love-hate Ursula in the Disney version, and I was disappointed to come to the end so quickly.
If you’ve got a half hour to forty-five minutes, and you like re-tellings of classic folklore, give it a whirl. One sitting is more than enough, and it’s a nice break in between longer works. If, like me, you are sad to see it end, might I suggest The Mermaid’s Daughter by Ann Claycomb? It’s about the little mermaid’s family and the curse that continues down through her line. It would make a good follow up, and also has lady loves.
“Walking on Knives”, a re imagining of The Little Mermaid, is a short story, clocking in at just under 12,000 words (about 30 pages). In Chhabra’s retelling, the sea witch has a sister, who is never given a name but becomes infatuated with the mermaid and intervenes in an attempt to save her from becoming sea foam when the prince decides to marry another.
I may not be totally objective here, because I absolutely love anything to do with mermaids and sea folklore. So keeping that in mind, I’d recommend this short story. I definitely enjoyed it, but I’m not going to lie, I would have enjoyed it a lot more had it been longer. I feel like thirty pages isn’t enough for rich characterization and the exposition such a dramatic story deserves. However, I think Chhabra did a good job with the characters as far as she goes, and I kind of liked that none of the characters had names, only titles, even though I might have gotten a little confused once or twice when trying to figure out the switching observational point-of-views. I found myself rooting for the sea witch’s sister and disliking the sea witch as much as I love-hate Ursula in the Disney version, and I was disappointed to come to the end so quickly.
If you’ve got a half hour to forty-five minutes, and you like re-tellings of classic folklore, give it a whirl. One sitting is more than enough, and it’s a nice break in between longer works. If, like me, you are sad to see it end, might I suggest The Mermaid’s Daughter by Ann Claycomb? It’s about the little mermaid’s family and the curse that continues down through her line. It would make a good follow up, and also has lady loves.