A review by bookalchemist
Merrow by Ananda Braxton-Smith

4.0

I'm not entirely sure what I expected this novel to be like, but it wasn't what I read. Instead of the standard 'omg I'm magical and part fish!' kind of mermaid story, Merrow is more closely related to Hild, by Nicola Griffith. I feel like you might need an appreciation for Anglo-Saxon literature to really enjoy the spare dialogue and heavy emphasis on oral storytelling as a culture in this book. I love that we never really get an answer. Maybe there are merrows. Maybe not. What matters is what helps you sleep at night, and make friends, and move on with life. The sea is beautiful and brutal, and life is simple if you let it be.