This is a super fun thriller. It's a not a highbrow story or a great piece of a literary fiction, but it's so much fun.

While an entertainment company is filming a mockumentary about mermaids, something goes terribly wrong and the whole crew is lost. The footage that remains behind seems to prove that mermaids exist, but many claim it's all a hoax. Years later, the company launches a second ship to prove, once and for all, the existence of mermaids.... There's a unique cast of characters (including multiple queer characters and a neuroatypical character, none of whom are reduced to stereotypes!) and a lot of fun action. Definitely recommend if you're into sci-fi action thrillers.

Woah, I could not put this book down. It was scary, sometimes funny, and creepy at times. I literally jumped at sounds when I was reading it. I loved Mira Grant's Parisitology books, but this made me squirm, and really think about mermaids, sirens, folklore and what is lurking below....

I only realized after reading it that this had a prequel novella, but it's totally unnecessary to read that to enjoy this, and it is an enjoyable read. A little on the long side, but the cast of characters are well fleshed out and excellent to follow. The book manages suspense and horror well, feeling like many sci-fi/horror works set in space instead of at sea. It is a slow build, just full of the dread at what you know is coming, but once the pace picks up it does not stop. My biggest complaint is that the denouement is seriously lacking. The book just kind of ends without full resolution of what happens on the ship with an epilogue that quickly rushes things along. Would definitely recommend as a good, spoopy popcorn read

The Mariana Trench is one of the deepest parts of the world’s oceans holding mysteries of the deep unknown to man and sought after by scientists. Seven years prior, a film crew boarded the Atargatis to film a mockumentary about the mermaids of the Mariana Trench. The ship was found deserted, with footage of the crewmembers being eaten by mermaids, but not the fairy tale version, actual monsters of the sea. The films were said to be a hoax and family members were left with questions unanswered about what happened to the crew. Victoria “Tory” Stewart lost her sister on the Atargatis and she needs those questions answered in order to find peace. When she is offered a position on the Melusine, a voyage to find the monsters responsible, she knows this is a way to further her research and find out what happened to her sister...if she survives the trip.

All the stars...if I could give it more I would. This novel takes you on a magical journey into the world of these killer creatures of the deep. This novel was a fantastic exploration into these creatures world with so much detail and thought put into their creation you almost believe they are real...hopefully not because they are scary as hell. This is not a fairy tale this is a nightmare. I loved this so much I am recommending it to everyone and adding it to my library so I can re-read it again and again.

I received this book from Netgalley, in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Just to set expectations, I admit that I enjoy EVERYTHING by Mira Grant, and this book was no exception. I was intrigued by the previous novella, [book:Rolling in the Deep|23634011], but there just wasn't enough to make it satisfying. This follow-up, however, fixes that - we get much more depth of characters, not to mention the science behind what's going on!

I am not a science person, and I will confess to glossing over the science aspects of both the Newsflesh trilogy and the Parasitology trilogy. Same here - there was a LOT of science, and I decided that, while I was going to read it, I wasn't going to stress about fully understanding it. The great part, tho, is that this doesn't matter - the story just kept on compelling me to read, and I didn't really care about grasping the science involved. It really wasn't necessary to enjoying the book.

That brings me to the best part of the book - I just couldn't stop reading! The action kept rolling, and there were characters involved who made me care what would happen to them.

On that note, I think there were a few characters we could have done without - they didn't ring true and I don't really believe they added anything important to the story - I'm thinking here particularly of the "big game hunter" couple, who I didn't find convincing or important in the story. More of a distraction, really. That, however, is a minor criticism, and didn't derail my enjoyment of the book significantly (since we didn't have to hear too much about them).

And, there were a couple of other major characters who I think should have been more fully explored. However, since this appears to be the first in a trilogy (or at least the #1 suggests a #2 coming along), perhaps we have this to look forward to.

Overall, well worth reading - I enjoyed it!

Although I've not (yet) read anything by Seanan McGuire, I've always enjoyed the suspense and horror titles she writes under Mira Grant so I jumped at the chance to read this ARC. I have not regretted it for one instant. I purposefully took my time with this book so that I didn't miss details as that can be some of the best of her writing. I would recommend doing the same but also warn you to be patient with the first third or so of the book. While it doesn't really drag, it is slower than the rest, simply to give all of the back story that becomes relevant later on. I refuse to spoil things in my reviews but I do want to mention that there is a decent amount of gore and definitely language so steer clear if you're offended by such things. If not, add this to your "must-read" list now. If you're not afraid of the depths of the ocean, you're about to be.

Creepy, suspenseful, and awesome. Mira Grant is hit or miss for me. I liked Newsflesh, but not Parasitology. When she writes as Seanan McGuire, I LOVE every book in the Wayward Children series, I like October Daye, and I'm not a huge fan of the InCryptid series.

Into the Drowning Deep was definitely a hit. I read it every spare moment I could, and I was extremely frustrated when I didn't get as much time as I wanted.

If you like your mermaids a bit on the flesh-eating, hungry, predatory side, this book is definitely for you.

Side note: I read this without realizing there was a prequel. You do not have to read the first one to read this one and know what's going on. In fact, I am kind of glad I read this first. (I immediately purchased the prequel from Amazon, however, and I'm reading it now.)

Tory's sister disappeared years ago, in a scandalous event that people everywhere claimed was a hoax. According to everyone, Imagine leaked the strange footage to cover up the fact that their own ineptitude had resulted in a full crew and on air personality (her sister) lost at sea. Except Tory was convinced the footage was real, and her sister was eaten by the mermaids they'd set out to find and document.

Tory spent most of her fledgling career and research hours in marine biology searching for the creatures that robbed her of her sister. So when Imagine approached her to be on the next boat out to the Marianas Trench where the last crew disappeared, she was eager to go. Especially since this time, they'd be prepared.

Or so everyone thought.

A creepy marine tale with a foe among the animal world made scarier by it's brilliance and sheer numbers. Mira Grant is the sci-fi horror genre alias of Seanan McGuire, and like everything else she writes, Into the Drowning Deep is a delightful read with characters interesting enough to care about and suspense enough to make you want to keep reading well past your bedtime. I could definitely see this as a damn good horror film, as long as the effects were top-notch. Perfect fall read, make sure to add it to your list.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

Seanan McGuire, you are a MASTER storyteller. Even when you're writing under your sci-fi/horror pseudonym, I love every single thing you write. I don't know how you do it, and so prolifically. Seriously, nonstop awesome, pouring out of you.

This book reminded me of some of my favorite authors/series, particularly the Pendergast series by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. They're a mix of horror and science and mystery, and this felt like a very similar vein to those. I love techno/adventure/sci-fi/horror thrillers, even though the past few years my obsession has turned to urban fantasy more than anything, and knowing that one of the best UF authors out there has a whole extra side to her in one of my other favorite genres is so exciting to me.

This novel was terrifying. Not the whole time, but most of it. Who knows what lies in the deeps of the ocean, waiting for us? The whole thing was just plausible enough to scare the pants off of me.

Seanan/Mira, I was already wary of the ocean, and you've pushed me over the edge straight into #nope. All done with going in the ocean!

Make sure if you pick this one up to grab the prequel novella, Rolling in the Deep, as it sets some of this up and provides you a glimpse into what is coming.

Highly recommended.

Occasionally you read something so good, and slightly "alotly, dear lord, alotly!" terrifying that you have to berate yourself for all those 5 star review that you've been handing out, Willy nilly. I take them all back! This was, is and will still be the one book that scared the ever lovin' shit outta me in 2017. Mira Grant can "science." She can convince me that the moon is made of bleu cheese, and I need it for my salad. Twice I started to Bing mermaids/sirens, but I managed to stop myself. Absolutely ridiculous....yet she had me questioning. I'd done this before a few years ago when a book had me asking myself..self, could Bigfoot be real? That way lies madness! Not that I believed, but there are some forums out there that are powered by some crazy mutherf....! This book had me questioning, what if? I've swam in the ocean, and it never concerned me. Now? Eh, it may take me a decade or so to "get over it!" This is the best thing Mira Grant aka Seanan McGuire has written since her Feed trilogy. Ah...good times! By the way, there's a review from Brendan Cooney that is excellent, and will tell you how good this book is. Much better than I. My thanks to Orbit books, Netgalley and the author for allowing me to read this BEST BOOK THIS YEAR, for the price of a review.

Another great Mira Grant book! She continues to be a pre-eminent author in the sci-fi space.

This is horror at its best. A fast-paced plot that has obviously been meticulously researched, well-rounded characters, great writing, and a super creepy story. And I love that there is diverse representation as well. Overall, I highly recommend this one!

4 stars--I really liked it.

This is the book equivalent of the movie Pacific Rim. It's not high cinema, but sometimes you just really want to watch giant robots kicking the snot out of interdimensional aliens. Or, in this book's case, want to read about deep-sea monsters eating a boatload of scientists. It was a lot of fun.

It's possibly a bit long, and takes a bit to get going (there's a lot of character introduction and plot setup first), but once the monsters appear, this book is a bloody good time. Recommended for people who like B-movie monsters.

I received this review copy from the publisher on NetGalley. Thanks for the opportunity to read and review; I appreciate it!

No one does mermaids like Mira Grant.

Did you really think we were the apex predators of the world?

###

“You still chasing mermaids, Vic?” he asked.
“I’ve never been chasing mermaids,” she said. “I’ve only ever been chasing Anne.”

###

I’m a huge Mira Grant/Seanan McGuire fan, and her mermaid stories are among my favorites. (Zombies are grrrrrrate, but no one does mermaids quite like Mira Grant.) When I saw the prequel to INTO THE DROWNING DEEP, a novella called ROLLING IN THE DEEP, I snatched it up…but, being a mere 123 pages long, it just left me wanting more: more science (fiction), more killer mermaids, more heart-stopping suspense, more blood and gore and viscera. Somewhere in between a short story and a full-length book, it lacked the crisp concision of the former and the delicious, drawn out horror of the latter.

Enter: INTO THE DROWNING DEEP, which is exactly what I was craving. Pro tip: read ROLLING IN THE DEEP as if it was a prologue to INTO THE DROWNING DEEP. It’ll feel so much more satisfying that way.

In 2015, the Atargatis set off on a scientific expedition to the Mariana Trench. Ostensibly, their mission was to find evidence of mermaids. Really, though, they were there to film a mockumentary on behalf of their employer, an entertainment network called Imagine (think: SyFy). The hoax quickly turned into a bloodbath when they discovered what they were/weren’t looking for.

The Atargatis was found six weeks later, floating several hundred miles off course, completely devoid of human occupants. The only clue as to what became of her two hundred crew and passengers was a smashed up control room and shaky film footage showing what looked like – but couldn’t possibly be – a mermaid attack.

Seven years have passed, and Imagine – led by its aging founder and CEO, James Golden – is determined to salvage its reputation … and maybe even make a killing (financially) in the process. In the years since the loss of the Atargatis and the ensuing court cases, Imagine has quietly been assembling a new ship and crew. With the August 24th launch date fast approaching, Imagine – represented by Golden’s right-hand man, Theodore Blackwell, estranged husband of none other than Dr. Jillian Toth, the sirenologist whose life’s work birthed the first voyage – is about to recruit the project’s star scientist.

After the loss of her older and only sister Anne at sea, Tory Stewart devoted her life – and scientific career – to hunting down the creatures who killed Anne, an up-and-coming reporter who hoped to use her time at Imagine as a springboard to better (and more SERIOUS) things. As a specialist in acoustic marine biology, Tory’s expertise could prove invaluable in locating and communicating with the mermaids – and the salaciousness of her connection to the Atargatis can only boost ratings.

The crew is rounded out by a dizzying roster of scientists – deep-water explorers, marine biologists and botanists, sign language experts, geographers, you name it – as well as a security team recruited and trained by Imagine and led by infamous big game hunters Jacques and Michi Abney.

Though the Melusine appears more prepared than its predecessor, can one ever really be ready to take on killer mermaids on their home turf? (Especially with corporate interests at the helm?)

INTO THE DROWNING DEEP is a mermaid story with teeth. Needle-thin ones crammed into a mouth that stretches open wider than any mouth should. There are plenty of tense moments that explode into violence and carnage, interspersed with some pretty cerebral scenes. The science fiction elements are great, from the exciting – yet very modest and grounded – technological advances humans have made just five years into our future, to the specifics surrounding the mermaids’ biology, evolution, and behavior. In this way, it has a lot in common with Grant’s NEWSFLESH series; think of it as FEED, but at sea, and with mermaids.

As per usual, the cast of characters is large and compelling and fairly diverse. There’s a F/F romance; one openly bisexual character; a television host who started cosplaying at the suggestion of her therapist, to combat social anxiety; a gross, stalkery Nice Guy ™ who – spoiler alert – totally gets what’s coming to him; three sisters – all of whom are scientists; two of them deaf – who speak ASL; and a number of POC. I especially loved the Wilson sisters (though their very similar names – Holly, Heather, and Hallie – while realistic, made them a little hard to keep straight) and the relationship between Tory and Luis, and Tory and Olivia (not a love triangle, don’t worry!).

I’m a vegan, and so any stories that incorporate nonhuman animals pique my interest (and, let’s be honest, usually my ire as well). Many of the scientists aboard the Melusine are conservationists; some, like Theodore and Dr. Toth, even have a background in animal activism, e.g. thwarting whaling ships (think: the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society). Though the Melusine is home to her fair share of doubters, once the evidence of mermaids becomes impossible to deny, arguments abound as to what they should do with this information: Wipe them out? Attempt to make contact? Turn tail and leave them be? Go home with irrefutable proof, to help with conservation efforts?

Of particular interest is the mermaids’ language, of which they have three: They communicate via sign, as well as vocally, and also seem to “borrow” snippets of sound from other inhabitants of the sea. Some of the scientists, like Tory, argue that these forms of communication indicate intelligence, arguing from a pretty anthopocentric perspective.

Worse, Grant uses the terms “sentience” and “intelligence” interchangeably, though they are not the same thing: sentience simply refers to an animal’s capacity for sensation or feeling. Intelligence is a much higher – and more subjective – bar.

###
“If they have a language—not just one language, but two languages, one spoken and one not—and if the complexity of their spoken language is anything like the complexity of their signing, they must be sentient,” said Tory. She sounded reluctant, like this was the last thing she wanted to be saying. “There’s no way they’re not.”
“Cats meow and know what they’re saying,” said Olivia. “Birds sing. That doesn’t make them smart.”
###

Cats and birds are sentient; so are the mermaids, regardless of whether or not they use language.

This is a pet peeve of mine, since sentience is the foundation for my own (and many others’) argument for animal rights: “The question is not, Can they reason? nor, Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?.”

The result is a somewhat convoluted but wholly expected view of nonhuman animals; one that purports to be welfare-based, but isn’t really. This is perhaps best exemplified by the three dolphins secretly recruited by Imagine to help locate and communicate with the mermaids. Raised in captivity, Twitter, Cecil, and Kearney have been promised their freedom in exchange for their cooperation – a term that, time and again, Theodore uses to justify their exploitation (and near-certain death). Yet this assumes that the dolphins are negotiating from a position of equal footing, when they’re not. They’re slaves. Property. Captive animals making a dangerous trade to regain their own self-agency, which shouldn’t be up for dispute to begin with.

To add insult to injury, there’s this passage, written from the dolphin’s perspective:

“Dolphins were good. Humans had the potential for good, although they did not always make the effort. But the creatures born from blending the two, the claw-and-tooth children of the deepest depths…they were not good. They had never been good, would not know how to be if the opportunity was offered to them. They existed only to catch and snatch and devour. They sang no songs of their own, only songs stolen from the victims of their hunger. They were voiceless and cruel and terrible, and if not for them, the dolphins would never have needed to seek the shallows, or put themselves into the path of men, or choose the safety of cages over the freedom of the sea. Mankind could go hunting for mermaids as much as they liked. The dolphins had known where to find them all along. […] and when the human ship had come to catch and keep them, their response had been gratitude. Humans meant safety. Confinement, but safety.”

Self-awareness and reason? Good. Happiness in slavery? Not so much.

Honestly, it just makes me feel yucky inside.

In summary, the many discussions about nonhuman animals are kind of a mixed bag. Some will have you pumping your fist while others might cause you to throw your Kindle across the room in disgust. Unless you’re like 96% of Americans, in which case you won’t see anything amiss here.

Also, what’s up with the date in the epilogue? Either my ARC has a pretty major typo, or there’s some wacky time travel stuff to be explored in the sequel!

** Full disclosure: I received a free electronic ARC for review through NetGalley. **

A few years back, Animal Planet caused quite a stir by announcing they were creating a documentary on real mermaids. It took a scientific bent, purporting to show 'real evidence' that mermaids had or currently existed. It was, of course, fake, mockumentary schlock that assumed the viewer was stupid enough to buy into every outrageous concept. Yet people did.

Queen of the monsters Mira Grant (pen name of author Seanan McGuire) takes the concept rooted in that long ago Animal Planet 'documentary' and turns it up to eleven. What if it wasn't bullshit? What if everything was honest to god real, but the mermaids weren't soft and real and inclined to burst out into song? What if they were predators, capable of destroying the occupants of a vessel with ease?

Imagine Entertainment prides itself on making 'documentaries' about all the cryptids of the world. It should be easy work- their research vessel, the Atargatis, will sail into subtropical waters, get some footage, and then come back home. Unless, of course, the ship is attacked and everyone dies in a mysterious accident in which only bits of film are left, showing something that very much looks like mermaids.

Proving that human curiosity will always persevere, Imagine charters a second journey years later. On board are the bitter sister of someone who died on the first trip, the researcher whose papers and theories helped launch the first expedition, the face of Imagine network, and a whole host of other characters, each as colorful and as fleshed out as the next. Together, their stories weave together- each has a reason for being on the ship, whether it be vengeance, glory, or something else entirely, and each seems to not quite believe they'll find what they're so desperately seeking.

Riddled with a watery, horror-laden atmosphere, Grant effortlessly propels the story forward; it takes place over the course of only a few days, but the tension is real. You feel the hours descending as surely as the characters must, counting them down anxiously, waiting to see who will survive, if indeed anyone will.

Backed by enough pseudo-science to keep my inner zoologist at least moderately happy, the mermaids are anything but little, armed with sharp teeth and a host of other biological quirks that make them uniquely deadly in every fashion. They're the true stars of the tale, though it must be said that Grant's whole host of characters mostly stand on their own two legs quite admirably. She manages to fit in character archetypes and representation that isn't seen often enough in modern science fiction and horror, and indeed not enough in literature at all, including several disabled characters, much to my delight. Viewpoints shift, focusing on the various crew members, and though I liked the shift, it made the weaker characters all that much more in comparison. It could get downright painful to read about the hunter couple; they were almost cartoonishly villainous, an unnecessary addition in a book already riddled with plenty of figures to hate.

The ending sneaks up on you with a bang- will they be saved? Will things go wrong? It was, perhaps, a bit predictable, the big reveal easily guessed at least a hundred pages before, but still enjoyable.

This is a great read for a few cold nights, snuggled beneath a blanket and grateful you're nowhere near the ocean.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for a review.

KILLER. MERMAIDS. Look, if that doesn’t interest you, I’m not sure what will.

Seven years ago, a mockumentary crew from Imagine Entertainment disappeared at sea. Recovered footage showed the crew being attacked and eaten by the very mermaids they were trying to film. Now, a new expedition is going out to investigate what happened.

What can I compare this to? For people of a certain age, remember that first time you watched Jurassic Park? That feeling of awe and wonder when you first saw the dinosaurs that slowly descends into terror as the characters realize they’re in way over their heads? This book has the same feel. And like that classic, the mermaids are out to eat a well-developed cast of diverse characters. There’s the main character, Tory, whose sister was lost on the first ship, and her research partner, Luis. They’re almost immediately at odds with Olivia, the TV personality, who is the counterpart to Tory’s sister on this mission. Dr. Jillian Toth, whose research into mermaids spurred the first expedition, and Theo, her estranged husband who now works for Imagine, are the older counterpoints to the young scientists, and are obviously hiding secrets. Oh, there’s also Deaf twin scientists and their translator older sister, Tory’s ex-boyfriend, a pair of big game hunters, and a security crew hired more for looks than skill.

The action builds slowly until about three-quarters of the way through the book, when all hell broke loose and the pace stayed frenetic through the end. I stayed up way, way past my bedtime to finish this (and then had terrifying dreams, but hey, that’s to be expected with a good horror book!). Ms. Grant is a brilliant writer, and there’s plenty of plot twists and “NO, DON’T DO THAT!” moments. Though, to be clear, those moments aren’t of the “hey, let’s split up and explore this creepy haunted house!” idiocy but more “OK, we’re probably going to get our faces chewed off but this is the best choice among a bunch of bad choices.” There’s enough threads left hanging at the end that I’m hoping desperately for a sequel.

Overall, this book is a brilliant and scary voyage to the unexplored depths of the ocean.

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher in return for an honest review.

This book was so AWESOME! I read Grant's "Parasitology" series and had nightmares for weeks. I highly suspect this book will keep my subconscious just as involved.
This book takes horror to a whole nother level. My fingers are so cramped from holding on so tight to my Kindle that I can barely type this review. Take Jurassic Park and Jaws and mix them together and you've got maybe a tenth of the horror, nonstop action in this book. While it did drag a bit in the beginning, you've got to spend some pages getting the background and getting familiar with the characters, I swear the last 300 flew by in a blast. Everytime my husband has tried to talk to me today, or the phone would ring, I'd let out a stream of cuss words that had the air turning blue for being interrupted and forced to take time away from this book.
I gotta tell you, this ain't your momma's mermaid story. These suckers were vicious, teeth gnashing, bone crunching, creatures of nightmares. Grant again has you so caught up in this horror that you will think twice, no three times before strolling that deck at night on a cruise in the future. Nope, not me. I'm staying on dry land and in lots of light where the only thing I have to worry about taking bites out me are pesky mosquitoes. It was amazing how realistic Grant can make a story like this seem. I was often stopping and Googling sea creatures mentioned in the story and being flat out amazed at the amount of science here. It was just horrifying how real it read.
This book is definitely my read of the year. Jeez, everything else I read for awhile is just going to be so bland. I can't even work up the enthusiasm to get excited about the new season of The Walking Dead starting this Sunday after this. It has spoiled my entertainment for the rest of the year.

Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Seven years after the fateful voyage of a doomed mockumentary hunting for signs of life in the deep, the fateful Mermaids, a truly scientific voyage is finally put together. The quest? To put the horrible rumors and/or the innuendo to rest. Or, as a few would prefer, to come back with proof positive that:

Mermaids are REAL.

Mira Grant, aka Seanan McGuire, has done it again. She's got this great talent at weaving horror into science fiction and bringing it right back into the horror foreground, and what's more, she's made it into an epic Mermurder tale.

Mermurder. Mermaider. Mermurder. I love the sound of it. Mermaider

To be fair, though, this is more of a science fiction tale than anything else. Grant goes through all the great stuff associated with marine biology, specialty forensic science, and all the red-tape that might be associated with such a venture into the dark deeps over the main Trench. She even gets into sign language in a big way and it was delightful because of another great story that she had written, unrelated to Mermaider. :)

Eventually, it becomes survival horror, but all the way through, it's fun as hell. Great science, great character development, and then... bloodshed. More bloodshed. Even more bloodshed.


I'm so happy I got this from Netgalley in October. It's so perfect. *evil laugh* *more evil laugh* *even more evil laugh*

disclaimer – i received a copy of this book via hachette book group – orbit in exchange for an honest review.

it’s been seven years since the atargatis set sail to the mariana trench in order to film a “mockumentary” about mermaids. seven years since it was found, battered and empty, miles from where it was supposed to be. seven years since the video showing what happened was found, the video that everyone believes is a hoax. it’s been seven years…and now it’s time for a new ship to sail. time for a new group of scientists to investigate. time to find out once and for all what happened to the atargatis. time to find out if mermaids are real.

i hate calling something a sequel. somehow, it makes it seem like the original was less than whole, less than perfect, in and of itself. rolling in the deep, the novella that opened up this boat of mermaid horrors, was amazing. and it left so many questions, so many unresolved fears. now – in a full-length novel no less!!! – author mira grant gives us all the answers we were looking for and so very many that we didn’t want.

into the drowning deep is a well researched, incredibly taut, amazingly frightening story that follows a new group gathered together to investigate what really happened to the atargatis seven years ago. hundreds of people, crew and scientists, are going back to where it all started; they have the best equipment, the best security, the best defenses and they’re ready. if you’re a mira grant fan you know that THAT is the point when you should be dropping all your toys and running away screaming. if you’re new to mira grant’s world…well, we’ll try not to point and laugh when you stop to ask a question and get your face eaten off.

grant’s writing is always captivating and never more than in this book. she weaves just enough of the details from rolling in the deep into the story that if you haven’t read it you can still keep up and if you have read it you’re getting a different view of what happened. there are plenty of detailed scientific discussions for the science people, and they’re explained just enough for those of us who don’t have a scientific mind. there is blood and gore and death and destruction enough for any horror fan to love. there are teeth, you cannot believe how many ripping tearing chewing teeth there are. but there is also heart, and friendship, and the sadness at the loss of each. there is humor, and annoyance, and the unwillingness to live without answers. you look at a book that says mira grant and you automatically think horror and science; you should also automatically think of all these other things, though. she writes them as naturally as she does the horror and without them, the horror wouldn’t be nearly as terrifying. without the people, the loss of the atargatis wouldn’t have mattered. without the mystery, the journey wouldn’t mean nearly as much. without the heart, the price for the answers wouldn’t be so very steep.

five out of five stars.

Mira Grant/Seanan McGuire is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. I read the Rolling in the Deep novella and my main complaint was that there was not enough of it. So imagine how happy I was when I came across this beauty. Not only is this one much longer than the novella, this one is long even for a novel. However, I still got through most of it in a weekend because, hello, KILLER "MERMAIDS." Aside from the horror/fantasy premise of KILLER MERMAIDS (I mean, what more do you need to capture your interest?), the author also did an incredible job of character development. I didn't even feel like there was one main protagonist because the entire cast was so lively and nuanced. Jillian, Tory, Olivia, the Wilson sisters, etc etc - I enjoyed all the portraiture and aspects of each character. The author also incorporates themes of inclusion and diversity into her works. I appreciated that there was different sexual orientations, deaf characters, and an autistic character that were all portrayed with respect.
It's not often that you get both a great plot and great characters. The only reason this isn't 5 stars is that I do think the length could have been reduced a bit and the scientific descriptions were sometimes a bit dry for me. But I did enjoy that the author was able to make KILLER MERMAIDS (haha) seem actually almost scientifically feasible.

I'll read the next in the series and keep my eye out for more from this author. Sincere thank you to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for an ARC!