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A review by looseleafellie
Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfield
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
5.0
When marine biologist Leah comes home after being lost on a submarine research mission for six months, her wife Miri wonders what happened to her. But as Leah starts acting stranger and stranger, Miri wonders whether Leah is really back to stay at all.
This was a pretty short book with super lyrical prose that meant I could savor every word without it taking me forever to get through. I’m learning that I love short books with beautiful writing! I also love science, so the scientific facts about the ocean sprinkled through were super fun to read.
The mystery of what’s going to happen to Leah kept me waiting for answers, but it was never fully explained by the end — and surprisingly, I didn’t really mind. The point wasn’t why or how; the point was the what. I’m still mulling over the themes of love, loss, and the untameable power of nature, and I think I’ll be mulling for a long time.
Overall, if you’re looking for something creepy, speculative, romantic, and bittersweet — especially as a short book you can read in a day or a weekend — I highly recommend this one!
Spice level: Non-graphic.
CWs: Grief, body horror, death of a parent, dementia, suicide, mentions of homophobia.
This was a pretty short book with super lyrical prose that meant I could savor every word without it taking me forever to get through. I’m learning that I love short books with beautiful writing! I also love science, so the scientific facts about the ocean sprinkled through were super fun to read.
The mystery of what’s going to happen to Leah kept me waiting for answers, but it was never fully explained by the end — and surprisingly, I didn’t really mind. The point wasn’t why or how; the point was the what. I’m still mulling over the themes of love, loss, and the untameable power of nature, and I think I’ll be mulling for a long time.
Overall, if you’re looking for something creepy, speculative, romantic, and bittersweet — especially as a short book you can read in a day or a weekend — I highly recommend this one!
Spice level: Non-graphic.
CWs: Grief, body horror, death of a parent, dementia, suicide, mentions of homophobia.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Body horror
Moderate: Dementia, Suicide, and Death of parent
Minor: Homophobia