Nightmarish Mermaid Novellas
Howdy Howdy Bookworms!
How’s about that title? Those are words I wouldn’t have expected to put together, but here we are. I spent a chunk of last week listening to some nightmarish mermaid novellas. It was wild and I’m going to tell you all about it. Prepare yourselves, Ariel stans: this is going to get ugly.
The Deep
Yetu is the historian for a community of water-dwelling descendants of the pregnant African women tossed from slave ships (yes, this is a real thing that happened because the slave trade is endlessly horrifying.) Yetu doesn’t simply keep the records, though: they’re the only one who actively remembers the group’s history. And they remember constantly. Every single painful, traumatic incident in the community’s past is stored within Yetu’s overburdened mind to be doled out annually to community. In this way, the community is not overcome with sorrow, but Yetu, as the keeper of the memories, being destroyed by the knowledge.
Daveed Diggs (of Hamilton fame- he’s Lafayette/Jefferson from the original cast and generally awesome) narrates the book because the novella was inspired by a song his rap group (why do I sound like a Grandma?) produced. His group’s song was inspired by another musical work: it’s kind of a game of extremely intelligent and artistic Telephone, which is a metaphor I’m borrowing from the end notes of the audio book. It was really amazing, but also, I feel like I’m not really smart enough to appreciate all its nuance. Rivers Solomon is a genius. Daveed Diggs was the perfect narrator. My brain is going to be digesting this one for a long time.
Since I was already on a mermaid kick, I thought, “What the heck? Let’s go listen to that Mira Grant novella about mermaids. I’ve seen it a few times, it makes me get Adele songs stuck in my head. Sounds like fun.” And with that in mind, I decided to put Rolling in the Deep
This was a straight up horror story about mermaids. A crew of scientists, TV producers, and mermaid impersonators set off on a voyage to the Mariana Trench to create a documentary about mermaids. The TV network commissioning the voyage is not above sensationalism (hence the troupe of human women who make their living as “professional mermaids” they hired in case their search came to naught.) The scientists are real, though, and have taken this rare opportunity to gather data on their varying fields of study. As you might guess, the crew finds more than they bargained for. (Dun dun dun!)
I love Mira Grant (AKA Seanan McGuire) and Rolling in the Deep
Now that I’m in a mer-mood (hi, I’m a walking Dad-Joke) do any of you bookworms have recommendations? I’m open to happier mermaid tales, too!
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I recently finished listening to the audio version of Kristin Rockaway’s How to 
. It’s hard not to compare two novels that revolve around women in tech that deal extensively with dating apps, and it’s hard not to suffer by comparison to 
this month- unfortunately I had to miss the actual Book Club meeting, but the book itself was PERFECTION. Even though I 
by Taylor Jenkins Reid and thought it was great. The premise was innovative- the protagonist is taken to one point in time but makes two different decisions. In one scenario, she decides to go home after a night out with friends. In another, she decides to stay out with her former flame to see where the night takes her. What follows are two diverging stories that hinge on that single decision. It was WONDERFUL. It’s also a testament to the power of friendship. There were plenty of romantic entanglements in this book, but none of them were as compelling as the friendship between Hannah and Gabby. They’ve earned a slot on my Top Ten List of Fictional Besties. Also, you know that thing where you read a book and they talk about a specific food and you suddenly just NEED that food? I definitely bought some cinnamon rolls after reading this.
. I hadn’t read any Courtney Milan before so when I saw a deal on 
by Taylor Jenkins Reid (yes, another Taylor Jenkins Reid. What? I’m a fan!) in a traditional format (albeit a digital one- even my eyeball reading takes place on a Kindle.) What have y’all been reading during these January doldrums?
by Todd Parr so many times that I can recite it in my sleep. Not that I’ve been getting much sleep because Sammy’s developmental milestones always seem to come with a side of “Sleep is for CHUMPS!” But. This is what he currently likes to have read to him whilst he sits on said potty.
by Talia Hibbert. I might be a little obsessed. I loved so much about it, I hardly know where to start. First, our protagonist Chloe Brown is a freaking delight, even when she’s not. She has fibromyalgia and suffers from chronic pain but loves buttons so much that she has faux buttons sewn onto her sweaters. I liked that both the main characters had a lot of emotional baggage, both romantic and otherwise. Sure, the handsome man with the tortured past is a tried and true romance trope, but Red was a one-of-a-kind dude and dealt with his trauma with a fair amount of self awareness. Chloe had her own stuff to deal with, so she wasn’t just there to magically “fix” Red. NEITHER OF THEIR ISSUES WERE SOLVED SIMPLY BECAUSE THEY FOUND “THE ONE.” I mean, yeah, they were super compatible and very well suited to handle each other’s emotional needs, but they each also did a lot of heavy lifting to sort out their own internal messes. And sometimes they even got professional help! It was just superb and I loved it. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll be scouring Talia Hibbert’s back list.
this morning, and it was charming as usual. I have several thoughts about this book- one being that I’m fairly certain its major plot point is where Diana Gabaldon is heading with Fergus’s story line in the 
(at this point it only has a couple of throwaway hints, so it’s not canon). That’s apropos of nothing, really, I just enjoy finding commonalities between books. It’s fun to see where different authors go with similar ideas. From a romance-specific perspective, I kind of love that Tessa Dare is willing to tackle topics like PTSD. I mean, the world has been at war since forever, but people act like war-related trauma is some kind of new phenomenon. If you think the dashing officers in Jane Austen’s novels didn’t come home from campaign with emotional scars, think again. Anyway, I’ve seen Tessa Dare do this twice now, and I like it.
by Carol Rifka Brunt and I’m enjoying it every bit as much as I did the first time. Although, several years have given me even more rage regarding the way Finn had to compartmentalize his life because people were jerks. Ugh. As far as my ears go, I just started 
was one of my absolute favorite reads last year (get thee to the full cast audio recording, stat!) so I wanted to dive into some of her other work. I’ve literally barely started it, though, so it’s too early even for preliminary opinions. I will say, however, that having listened to The Offspring’s 
album on repeat throughout most of 1997, I cannot read the title of this book without hearing Dexter Holland angstily belting out the first line of “Gone Away.” Teenage Katie was something else.
by Tessa Dare. Romance novels guarantee a “Happily Ever After” but they come in all different flavors. Heck, even Regency romances (which are all set in the same time, place, and with the same strictures, etc) are available in endless variety. Tessa Dare’s books hit just the right note for me- there’s always a scene or some dialogue that results in me cackling. Embarrassing situations abound. And yes, there are plenty of swoony bits. They’re DELIGHTFUL. A great way to kick things off.
by Samantha Shannon around Christmas. It’s a phenomenal work of fantasy and I’m very invested, but it’s also a little more work to read than a Regency romance novel where I’m already familiar with the setting and customs and social mores. 
by Oyinkan Braithwaite was a departure for me. I don’t read much in the way of crime novels, but this was less a crime novel than a twisty-complex-familial-relationship novel. I mean, there was crime. Hooo buddy was there crime! It just wasn’t a procedural style crime novel is what I’m at getting here. Distinct lack of Law & Order vibe. IT WAS VERY GOOD. Also disturbing, but when you decide to read a book called 
by Talia Hibbert. I’m loving it so far, but I’ll reserve any shouty capitalization or effusive punctuation for after I finish it. Let’s chat next week, intrepid Bookworms!
by Salina Yoon: I love this book. Truly, I love all Salina Yoon’s books, but the Penguin series has a special place in my heart. This book has adorable illustrations and a very sweet message. It encourages imagination and overcoming adversity, as well as the importance of spending time with the people you love. I’d recommend getting 
to go along with this book, in case you’re wondering why a penguin and a pine tree are long lost buddies. I’d recommend the entire Penguin series, actually, and the Bear series too. They’re all wonderful stories with heartfelt sentiments.
by Janet Schulman, Illustrated by Linda Davick: I made a 
by Caralyn Buehner, Illustrated by Mark Buehner: I’m a sucker for good rhyming book, but I think what takes this one over the top for me is the illustrations. I love the misty quality of the snowmen celebrating Christmas. It hits that perfectly magical Christmas note for me, and Sammy seems to dig it too. 
by Naomi Kleinberg, Illustrated by Tom Brannon: I cannot express just how thrilled I am that Sam took an interest in Sesame Street early on. Reliving something from your own childhood with your kid is such a great feeling. In this book, Elmo is desperate to build a giant snowman, but there isn’t enough snow on the ground, so he recruits his pals to help. Elmo, dude, I’ve never felt so seen. I remember rolling larger and larger snowballs for a snowman as a kid only to decide that it wasn’t big enough and that the enormous roll I’d made simply had to be the head. I rarely finished constructing a snowman, so I feel an intense kinship with this story. Sam is more of a Cookie Monster guy these days than an Elmo guy, but he still enjoys this book. 
by Adam Wallace, Illustrated by Andy Elkerton: I’m not going to lie, I’ve got mixed feelings about this book. The rhymes are clever and the illustrations are funny, but I think it’s kind of creepy that these kids are setting elaborate traps to catch an elf. Creepiness doesn’t seem to translate when you’re 2, though, and Sam thinks this book is the bee’s knees. He laughs and laughs and demands that I read it multiple times in rapid succession. It’s hard to argue with that kind of adoration. Sam hasn’t yet shown any interest in setting traps, so I think it’ll all be okay.
, just like last year. It’s not even meant to be one of those smooshy parent feelings books, but it always gets to me. I think it’s because it speaks to the way I express love. It’s silly and sweet and full of quirky metaphors. I will ALWAYS love you bluer than Cookie Monster’s toes.
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book we read), but I thought we could all use something bright to welcome summer. I went ahead and re visited the audio book to refresh my memory which was perfect timing because 
released just as I finished my re-read so I got to dive in with my brain already firmly set in their fictional world. 
, you’ve been bumped. Tough competition in the dad category, I’m afraid. No worries, bro, you’re still Top 5.)
(he absolutely GUFFAWS at this one, it’s magic), 
(he found a “hidden Mickey” in one of the illustrations which was astounding, accurate, and I’m fairly certain it was unintentional on the part of the illustrator), and 
(he asks for this one over and over in rapid succession.) And before you ask, yes, I obviously make realistic hiccuping noises and provide other voices as appropriate. READING IS FUN!
. So far so good, though it’s going to be really tough to top 
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by Meg Elison. The whole Road to Nowhere series has been outstanding (
and 
precede Flora). I’m hoping to pull together some coherent thoughts once I finish this book and write a post on the series in its entirety, but in case that doesn’t happen, it’s some seriously good stuff. In a violent, traumatic, post-apocalyptic, trigger-warnings-for-basically-everything sort of way. Be gentle with your bruised psyches, y’all, it’s a lot to take. Worth it, but a lot to take.
from the publisher for review consideration. I usually preface my reviews of books I receive for free with an assurance that I will provide a fair and honest review and have not been corrupted, but it seems a bit silly in this case. It was practically a foregone conclusion that I was going to LOVE this book. I wouldn’t have requested it otherwise.
