I have a lot of thoughts about this book, but I don’t know if I can explain them well. On the one hand, I loved the concept, the underlying meanings, the discussions of racism, misogynoir, and social justice and how the author used Black women as sirens to explore those ideas. However, on the other hand...wth did I read??? The mystery of what was happening in town mixed with the story of the sirens seemed like a lot...sort of like two different stories clashed into one. I enjoyed both, but I think combining them just caused me to be a bit more confused and unfocused that I wanted to be. It also felt like some things were unfinished/rushed in favor of closing out other plot lines. Either way, this was definitely a one of a kind read.

Only a very slightly alternate universe, the power of this book is it’s connection to our current reality.

Sisters, Effie and Tavia, are everything to each other. They are each other’s best friends and secret keepers, and they both have some pretty big secrets. Effie doesn’t know her magical familial background, and her grandmother who may be the only one who knows is keeping it from her, but not knowing is dangerous. Tavia hides that she is a siren because of the societal stigma against sirens.. When the news is full of coverage of the murder of a siren, the safety that the girls’ and their families have worked so hard for becomes even more difficult to keep.

Ultimately a story about the power of sisterhood and friendship, A Song Below Water is also a thoughtful look into the prejudices and bigotry that we see every day. Much of the language around sirens will be recognizable from conversations around the Black Lives Matter movement and women’s rights. A beautiful and heartfelt story.

An interesting and extremely timely book. Reading how the two main characters relate to their world and the challenges they face - both realistic and fantastic - was refreshing and new.

POC Mermaid? YASSSS!!!!!
PNW references? More than you can count!!!!
A well written fantasy story about two close high school friends? Definitely!!!
This will be one of those books that you'll want to read quick, but at the same time you'll want the story to continue.

A Song Below Water
By Bethany C. Morrow

Effie and Tavia are in the throes of discovering exactly who and how are they are to approach the world that looms up in their futures – just like all teens. . . but luckily, they have each other. These are not your normal run-of-the-mill teenage girls. In these pages there be mermaids, sirens, gargoyles, elokos, sprites, humans turned to stone, families that have mixed marriages of magical species, skin shedding, and renaissance fairs.

I was excited to read this book, a fantasy/magical realism tale set in my home region, the Pacific Northwest! It was very satisfying to see the author’s generous inclusion of so many home places, cultural commonalities, even TV stations, Fred Meyer stores, and current local issues. Very cool. Keep Portland Weird, our mantra. The story weaves back and forth between these two girls, and the story is told campfire style, as if it is being unfolded to listeners sitting close by, with even sly asides to assist when jokes are dropped (didja geddit?).

There are many characters who carry key elements and knowledge that created some difficulties for me to follow – and the magical/fantasy behind who and what everyone is was weak enough to slow down my eagerness to engage in puzzling out confusions. Some kind of description of the internal structure of this “magical/alternate” Portland, and even a definition of some of these magical creations would have helped me immensely. That lack diluted my final gratification at the tale’s end. (get it??)

A good start for this author, and I look forward to her next offerings.

A Sincere Thanks to Bethany C. Morrow, Macmillan-Tom Doherty Associates/Tor Teen and NetGalley for providing an ARC to read and review.

Mermaids that are women of color...YESSS PLEASE! This was definitely an epic YA fantasy for me. I was excited to get a black girl mermaid read so I went in with high expectations and it delivered to the fullest. I couldn't give it a full five star rating because I needed a bit more from it plot wise, but I loved the diversity of this book and what it captured and talked about. From racism to social injustice it is the perfect fantasy read for this troubling times we are in.

The characters were all well-written enough to make me feel every single emotion they felt. I loved them all equally even though some needed to be slapped every now and then. I loved the water and how atmospheric it felt as I was reading. The friendships and bonds in this story are so real that you feel apart of the story.

This is an immersive story that will give you an escape from the real-world while helping you understand the world at the same time. This was an epic read and I highly recommend it to the fullest!

Sirens are mythical creatures who according to myth sung men to their deaths when their ships sailed into the rocks. But in this retelling Sirens are black women whose voices are being silenced both literally and figuratively but Tavia is going to bring a change to the world as they know it. While Tavia is finding her voice Effie is trying to find who she really is, all while trying to go to prom! I loved this book, it was mythical and beautiful and such a timely retelling of mythology!

A Song Below Water goes a great job of talking about misogynoir through the silencing of sirens. Questions of who cares about siren lives other than sirens, easily echoes the continuous question of who cares about black women other than black women? Tavia is a teenage siren and her father's worst fear is her getting found out as siren's are universally mistrusted and hated. When a murder trial occurs where the victim is a suspected siren it becomes harder for her to silence her voice as her fury starts to outweigh her fear, but unluckily for her, the only way for a siren to gain respect and be listened to is to be silenced. Coupled with her sister Effie's book long transformation into something"monstrous" neither girl is someone the populous would be a fan of if they're found out, but hiding is starting to make everything hurt.

Though I'm still a bit confused about Effie's own transformation and the exact allegory there, I still found myself thoroughly entranced by Effie and Tavia's stories. These two girls' sisterly relationship helped to hold the book together even when they're both terrified of what's happening each to them directly and in the world around them. Tavia gains her voice, Effie gains her full self, and throughout it all you have the two of them helping to hold each other up when they need it and supporting exactly who they're becoming.

Mega apologies for the delay. This year has been a lot mentally, physically, emotionally..

This was actually a book I was in the middle of before the pandemic slammed into our lives and I’m happy that I picked it up once more. It reignited something in me that made me want to kickstart reading once more. The characters are delightful and as a black woman with a. young black daughter this is the representation I long to see. It’s wonderful.
The prize is gorgeous and invites you in so although the begging faltered a bit and was hard to get into at first once it gets going I didn’t want to put it down.

I’m really looking forward to reading more from this author.

Thanks very much for this ARC. Stay safe.

*Disclaimer: I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Sirens aren’t something I’ve ever read about before so being introduced to them in a contemporary magical realism novel was refreshing. I was confused for most of this book, as the characters themselves are, but I think that the author did an amazing job maintaining intrigue rather than the confusion keeping me at a distance.

Bethany C. Morrow used the magical elements of the story to talk about racial injustice, police brutality, racial profiling and the power of protest which felt grounded in the world we live in. The magical elements didn’t overpower the messages of the story but they added an extra layer of mystery.

This book would be a great introduction to those new to fantasy and if you love well-developed characters, this is the book for you. Tavia and Effie have distinct voices (this is true for both the writing and the audiobook) and their development as characters is well paced throughout the novel. I’m interested to see where the sequel goes as this isn’t the usual type of book that becomes a series but I’m excited for that release.

Overall I would definitely recommend this book and it’s something that has opened up a whole new world of creature fantasy to me.

4 out of 5 stars!

A Song Below Water tells the story of Tavia and her best friend Effie. Tavia is a siren and they both live in Portland, Oregon, where siren's voices are feared and kept under control. Effie is definitely the quiet one and is searching for her true identity. The story is filled with magic, Black girl empowerment, sisterhood and for some moments, it was impossible to guess what would happen next, which was amazing.

Although there is fiction in the book, it talks about real issues that Black people face everyday, like racism, police brutality and more.

Trigger Warning: What seems like a suicide attempt at first.

A Song Below Water is also a beautiful book in which there is humour, hurt and characters fighting for justice. I definitely recommend it!

We all need this book. Tavia is tired and terrified: in modern day Portland, Oregon, the voices of sirens are skewed as dangerous. As a Black teen in a very white city, she already has enough to worry about without anyone discovering she has the magic and power of a siren. Her best friend Effie, on the other hand, has no idea what she is: Effie’s skin itches, she is continually blacking out, and she hopes answers will be found when she returns to role-playing as a mermaid in the fantastic annual fair. The two navigate an America that praises gargoyles, elekos, and sprites, but seeks to silence and threaten Black voices. Bethany C. Morrow crafts a vivid story about sisterhood, strength, and standing against racism. A Song Below Water enchanted and challenged me. Immerse yourself, open your ears, open your eyes, and prepare to be swept away.

A novel that blends #BlackGirlMagic with teen self-consciousness and the stakes of real world issues related to the oppression of Black people and their voices through fantasy stereotypes. Intense and captivating stakes with some confusing plotting.

Disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book speaks of magic, representation and adventure. The magical realism in this book is good and it gives a captivating ring to the plot. I loved how it made me want more of the story and how it gives us magic in the simplest kind of way. I definitely recommend this book to everyone who wants to see representation in mythology and other magical aspects!

This book is enteraining and fun to read! The representation was flawless! I felt so happy and seen as I read it. I will definetly be sharing with teens and adults!

This was an absolutely stunning novel. A Song Below Water read more of a contemporary novel than a fantasy novel. It’s a fantasy novel but contained a lot of relevant topics from racism, social justice and current politics. This was a quick read for me; I was instantly drawn into the world Morrow created with sirens, mermaids, gargoyles and more fantastical creatures. It was a packed book that was fast-paced. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and wanted more. The magical realism element was strong in this novel; I fell in love with the world Morrow created, it felt real to me.

I really enjoyed reading a novel featuring strong Black female characters. I believe there is a huge gap in literature, especially YA literature that doesn’t feature these characters. That needs to change, and this book is the step in the right direction. There’s a huge gap in my reading where I don’t read nearly enough books by Black authors, or authors of any minority. I have them on my shelves, and in my NetGalley lists, but it’s only until recently that I started to be more conscious of my gap in my bookshelf.

I absolutely loved this book. I was initially drawn in by the absolutely stunning cover, but from the moment I started reading I was hooked! I honestly took a month to read this, as I wanted to savor every moment and sit with it for a while. Though I couldn’t wait to find out what would happen next, I was so reluctant to finish the book and leave the world and characters. There was an incredible mix of mythology and a version of our world that gripped me and left me wanting more.

‘A Song Below Water’ is an incredible book that covers so many important topics such as racism, microagressions and police brutality, seamlessly blending them into an urban fantasy setting that both highlights and contrasts these issues. It’s an important book in so many ways – the themes in the book are similar to recent awareness of events (Black Lives Matter, Breonna Taylor’s murder, protests and the highlighting of systemic racism and police violence,) that are finally being discussed and at the forefront of peoples minds right now, but this is a problem that has been going on for such a long time but has largely been ignored by not just the media but the general public. Not only does this book highlight problems in society for Black people, but it also discussed Black hair care, and has two incredible and strong Black female leads, who have the most beautiful friendship. Representation is so important, and we need to be reading about Black characters experiencing love and joy, not just reading about their pain and suffering.

In terms of characters, we have Tavia, a Siren hiding her powers from the world. Tavia is (rightfully) terrified of the persecution that comes with being a Siren. She has spent her whole life hiding who she is, with a father who wishes she was ‘normal’, despite the Siren lineage coming from him. Only Black women are sirens, and so they are treated like criminals, unlike the other magical beings who can be any gender or colour, and so are safe and revered. This book highlights the struggle of the Black community (but particularly Black women) and their treatment from the police, media and the racism they suffer in all aspects of their lives. Tavia is Black and a Siren, and we see her fear of being discovered, but also the realities of her life as a Black woman. Her fear when she’s stopped by police, or her discomfort around the other people in her class, who can’t possibly understand her because they’re white and therefore privileged. Tavia is isolated in every aspect of her life, but she’s such an incredibly complex, brave and strong character. We see her grow throughout the book, into someone who realizes that she’s powerful in more ways than just her siren call, and her story arc was incredible and brought me to tears at times. I loved reading about her learning more about her power, and discovering who she really was meant to be.

Effie is yet another amazing and complex character. She has her alternate Ren-faire life as Euphemia the Mer, which she wishes was real, and she lives for her time there. She’s an incredible swimmer, and spends most of her time at a local swimming pool honing her craft to perfect her character. She’s incredibly dedicated, even learning sign language to be able to communicate when she’s underwater in her tank. This also comes in useful due to Tavia’s use of sign language when she can feel her Siren call coming out, which is something that bonds them together. The Ren-faire was something Effie did with her mother, and after losing her, she hopes that she can connect to her more through making her way up the faire ranks to get to the Hidden Scales, a mysterious tent that writes all the stories that she feels may hold the answers to her and her mother’s life. Effie has gone through so much, and yet she finds such joy in being Euphemia that it was beautiful to read. I absolutely adored her story, and watching her progress and find out more about herself.

The friendship and sisterhood between Effie and Tavia is such an integral part of ‘A Song Below Water’, and though they may not be related by blood, they really are sisters. They share such love for each other, and it’s honestly such a beautiful relationship. It was really refreshing to see that kind of friendship between adopted family. They help each other to grow and accept themselves through their love for each other. There are a lot of complex family relationships between many of the characters here, but Effie and Tavia always have each other no matter what, and that was so important to see.

Overall I absolutely adored this book. The plot was gripping, I couldn’t wait to see what would happen next, and I loved the setting switching between the mesmerizing Ren Faire and the girls ‘real’ life. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy, urban or otherwise! I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since I finished it. I have so many questions, and so much love for this book – the only downside it is I wish there was more!

This is a siren story set in an alternative Portland. It also deals with social injustices with a “Hate You Give” vibe. I enjoyed it. I loved the gargoyle ! I recommend it.
Thank you Net Galley for the ARC.

While the first third of this moved slower than I liked, I'm glad I persisted through because the last third is pretty great. The novel is carried on the strength of who Effie and Tavia are as characters, the mythology of this world - sirens and elokos and gargoyles and sprites - secondary to how the girls interact with it. I also loved how the mythology was interwoven with real world social justice issues. It adds an immediacy and relevance to the mythology and also adds a level of understanding of these issues for readers who don't experience them themselves. (White people, predominantly, though I imagine that there are layers here that will read differently to different groups.)

Overall, definitely a recommended read.

The cover is what initially drew me to this book and I'm so glad it did. It tackles many current social justice issues, but does it beautifully. I highly recommend.