Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by citrus_seasalt
Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfield
5.0
Just finished this book, and all I can say is that it was such a journey to go on. The suspense in the slowly revealed mystery described in Leah’s chapters of flashbacks, the themes of grief and realizing when you’re starting to truly loose a person, the tenseness I felt as I read and the unsettling nature of (most of) the words I saw unfold on the pages. What’s more, Armfield doesn’t use the horror genre as a way to demonize her lesbian relationship: not only is it a central part of the plot itself, but it brings a kind of heart and tenderness to this story that made it emotional.
I also forgot this was a debut novel several times as I was reading!! Beautifully written, and I loved the way marine biology contributed to the story and Leah’s thoughts/flashbacks. Having two editors worked in the favor of this book, it made it feel polished. It wasn’t just poetic or lyrically written, but felt meaningful and weighed on my heart when I reached the end and closed it to store it on my shelves until it’s returned to the library. I don’t think I could’ve picked a better book to be my first true blue horror read!!
This is definitely something I’ll reread years after this review is published, looking for ways to analyze the text whether that be mystery-related or just about the characters themselves. (Probably mostly about the mystery though, we got few answers in true horror fashion.)
I also forgot this was a debut novel several times as I was reading!! Beautifully written, and I loved the way marine biology contributed to the story and Leah’s thoughts/flashbacks. Having two editors worked in the favor of this book, it made it feel polished. It wasn’t just poetic or lyrically written, but felt meaningful and weighed on my heart when I reached the end and closed it to store it on my shelves until it’s returned to the library. I don’t think I could’ve picked a better book to be my first true blue horror read!!
This is definitely something I’ll reread years after this review is published, looking for ways to analyze the text whether that be mystery-related or just about the characters themselves. (Probably mostly about the mystery though, we got few answers in true horror fashion.)