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A review by tifftastic87
Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book. This book! I was hooked from the beginning and didnt want to put it down. I've been describing it as cozy horror.
I have concluded that this is as much a vibe as it is story.
It is an organ playing in a museum when you're the only one there. A coyote in the woods. The silence that comes with morning fog. The pop of a fire long after its gone dead. Cozy and spooky.
It is grief embodied by the anxiety of a sinking ship that you cant stop. Sinking. That is all I could think about while reading it, the sinking of a pit of anxiety in my stomach. The veil of never really knowing what happened or what was happening. It was a feeling of Eldritch horror wrapped in the pace of a Victorian gothic set in modern UK. It felt familiar and wholy unknown at the same time.
I genuinely cannot get over how it made me feel to read it. I knew nothing of the format going in and I feel like that is the best way to approach it. So, I'm not going to give any details. No details, just vibes.
I have concluded that this is as much a vibe as it is story.
It is an organ playing in a museum when you're the only one there. A coyote in the woods. The silence that comes with morning fog. The pop of a fire long after its gone dead. Cozy and spooky.
It is grief embodied by the anxiety of a sinking ship that you cant stop. Sinking. That is all I could think about while reading it, the sinking of a pit of anxiety in my stomach. The veil of never really knowing what happened or what was happening. It was a feeling of Eldritch horror wrapped in the pace of a Victorian gothic set in modern UK. It felt familiar and wholy unknown at the same time.
I genuinely cannot get over how it made me feel to read it. I knew nothing of the format going in and I feel like that is the best way to approach it. So, I'm not going to give any details. No details, just vibes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, and Grief
Moderate: Death, Sexual content, Blood, and Death of parent
Minor: Violence