I love this cover, but unfortunately the book itself kind of disappointed me. I had really high hopes for this one.

I recieved this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am so sorry but I dnf this book at 20%. It´s not for me and the thing is.... i expected other kind of story.

I mean black sirens!? omg I love that because i am very boring about white and blond or red hair sirens i mean.... we have different colors and all kind of women are beautiful.

But the thing about school I didn't liked it. School girls and her problems are not my favorite theme in books. I choose the book because the cover is gorgeous <3 and i imagine a world full of fantasy and nooo, that's not happend

If you like sirens and contemporary books with a little of magic read this book!

Fantasy dances with racism, social justice, current politics: Yes this is volatile and vivid combination and The author perfectly worked with this concoction and created a fast reading, powerful, captivating, one of the most interesting stories with well-crafted and realistic characterization and thought-provoking story-telling.

Two friends: Tavia and Effie supports each other to survive at the metaphorical, wild jungle, dealing with too many things in their young age, family issues, past dramas, secrets, boiling anger against the unfairness and injustice. They two black girls lives in Portland, attends the high school at the area. It’s already challenging to survive in the territory.

And Tavia has a big secret to keep: she has powers growing inside her. She shouldn’t tell anyone but also restrain herself not to attract any attention because the woman who magical powers and let’s add to be “black” into the equation could be one of the most dangerous things at the world she’s living. (Unfortunately it could be said the same for the shameful world we’re living at, too.)

But when a famous internet fashion icon is killed, everything gets out of control like Tavia’s uncontrollable magical voice during a police stop! Yes, nothing will be same for her from now on.

This is so unique, original, dazzling, surprising, one of my fastest reading. I never say no to a well written fantasy with “The hate U give” vibes. Writing, pacing, characterization and conclusion worked so well for me. I think I have to say: we truly have a WINNER! I’m giving my five in the name of sirens and magical powers’ love stars! I really impressed Bethany C. Morrow’s writing skills and looking forward to read more of her works.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan/Tom Doherty Associates/ Tor Teen to send this fantastic ARC to me in exchange my honest review.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the chance to read and review this gem!

Tavia is a real-life siren. Her sister, Effie, is a make-believe mermaid. But is that all? Both girls' lives are changing in ways they can't explain, and to further complicate things, a broody gargoyle has taken up residence on the family's roof.

When I started reading this novel I thought "wow, what a cool, contemporary take on the siren mythos." I was right, but it is so much deeper than that, too. It's also an examination of family relationships, insecurity, racism, and redemption.

This book would be great for classroom use with mature middle schoolers and above. There's a treasure trove of cross-curricular opportunities here for a social justice unit in addition to the obvious tie-in with mythology.

This was a fascinating rewrite of some classic Greek/Roman mythology, and how it could translate into today's society, if sirens, mermaids, gargoyles, and gorgons really existed. The story is from the point of view of the two main characters, Tavia and Effie, who are sisters in all but blood. The interactions between the two girls as they slowly discover what and who they are are realistic and well-told, and are the focus of the book. I enjoyed seeing the girls' interactions as they interact and grow from girls into young women throughout the course of the novel.

Such a beatiful book with a great and fantastic storyline.
I liked this Book a great Deal and Hope of lot more to come from this author

Thanks a lot that I got to read this book

The cover of this book drew me in first. The synopsis sealed the deal. I am grateful for the opportunity to review this book, but I just could not get into it. I tried over several months and could only push myself to read a chapter or so each sitting. The story of Tavia along with her bestie Effie, seemed to drag on and on. The story did not capture my attention so I struggled to read what I read. Just when I thought the book would pick up, it wouldn't. So I, unfortunately, did not like this book at all. This doesn't mean that the next reader won't though. I recommend trying it for yourself.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I'm probably going to be in the minority of people here, but I felt like this book was trying a little to hard. I loved the premise of this story and was excited to read a book featuring sirens and sisterhood. However, this book really seemed to be focused on social justice/black lives matter with an overlay of sirens and it felt really unnatural for me. The idea that only black women were sirens with no explanation felt a little odd and I'd have loved for there to be more developed mythology in the story. Also, I realize that the narrators are teenagers, but some of the dialogue was really awkward. Having to read characters saing "noice" or "legiterally" was awkward since I've never heard teenagers talk like that. This book just felt very disconnected for me, but I recognize that it has a lot of importance in the YA book world and for representing POC.

Wow, this was definitely not what I expected at all!

I'm not going to lie, I wanted to read this story for the stunningly beautiful cover. It just begs to be read, can you blame me? I did not read the synopsis at all, but I figured it was about mermaids in a fantasy world and c'mon who doesn't want to read about that?

But it is so much more than that. It is a complete overhaul of modern day into one where sects of magical and mythical creatures are real and they are engrained in the culture. Gargoyles, sirens, mermaids, and eloko (that one I had to google) are all coexisting in modern day society (though not always peacefully.)

We follow two main characters in high school who are best friends and practically sisters - Effie and Tavia.

Tavia is secretly a siren, able to compel people to do her bidding with her voice. But she is desperately trying to suppress her powers because being a siren is a dangerous thing for a woman to be, especially a woman of color. Sirens are practically hunted down by police, given no protections under the law, and are discriminated openly by the public.

Effie is seemingly a normal girl who loves to perform as a mermaid in the town's annual Renaissance Fair. But this year might not go according to plan. She's dealing with major bouts of eczema, memory loss, hallucinations, you know, not so typical puberty symptoms. When she was little, she was the sole survivor of a tragic incident that left her schoolmates completely turned in stone. Now that she's grown, she's searching for answers to who she is, who her family was, and how she can live a normal life.

There were some fantastic genre bending choices made in the narrative. It delved into the ideas of race identity and discrimination through the lens of mythos and interwoven into the struggle of minorities in America. There were some powerful scenes that shone a light on casual racism in the classroom, police brutality on the streets, and the bias of the media against minority classes. The message it conveyed was powerful and depicted through the eyes of a teenager just trying to live her life in peace made it even more unsettling.

There were times when the story meandered, like a camera going in and out of focus pretty regularly it was almost jarring. And the juxtaposition of such grand mythological fantasy elements into the gritty everyday modern life was difficult to acclimate to and required a suspension of disbelief. But in the end, the story was endearing and entertaining and that's why we keep on reading, right?

A black siren! Oregon! Friendship! Murder! Magic! REPRESENTATION!

I'm so happy to see more stories about black people and magic/fantasy. My only gripe with fantasy is that there can sometimes be a few (necessary) info dumps, but other than that, I really liked this story.

I love the way this reads like a contemporary novel, just set in a believable alternate version of our own world. That combination opens such a perfect space for exploring the complexities of intersectionality without feeling didactic or preachy. Tavia and Effie's voices ring really true, and their characters felt fleshed out and relatable in a way that doesn't always happen in YA fantasy. I especially enjoyed the way their relationship is portrayed as a source of security and strength for both of them. I feel like this book will appeal to my students who love Angie Thomas and might not otherwise reach for fantasy, but that regular fantasy readers will also enjoy it. I can't wait to put this book in the hands of kids!

3.25 stars

I was dying to read this based on the description. Seriously, what is not to like about a modern-day YA fantasy filled with sirens, gargoyles, and other supernatural creatures? I also was very intrigued by the use of high fantasy as a backdrop for some incredibly powerful, relevant, and modern social issues, including but not limited to racism, profiling, and misogynoir.

For all of the reasons, themes, and genres noted, I really enjoyed this book. However, I found it to be so incredibly slow as a result of weird, in my opinion, needless interludes. As soon as I got invested in a character or story line, there was a section that felt tangential. It's like I was dancing to the beat of a different author the whole time I was reading and could never really get on track here with the too-slow pacing.

Aside from this issue - which admittedly really impacted my view of the text overall - I liked so much about this book. It feels fresh in a way I haven't experienced for a minute.

This was a really interesting take on a fantasy novel, where race issues come into apply along with the supernatural elements. I liked the two main characters, I always like elements of fantasy, and I enjoyed the issues presented. It is a book with some depth (pardon the pun) that allows for some good discussions and questions, but also has the fun of mixing magic with our real life.

A refreshing take on mermaids with real issues. The main characters are some much needed voices especially in today's world.

A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow has a refreshing magic system, exploring creatures that are usually ignored in YA fantasy. This is a book I will be recommending for a 13-15-year-old audience. The characters dealt with systematic oppression, teenage girl drama, school crushes, family drama, ex-boyfriends, and secret magical identities. More urban fantasy needs to be explored because there are opportunities to talk about social structures like this book did.

There was a lot of info dumping, which made for a clunky read. Some fantasy elements were introduced naturally, while others had paragraphs of character or magical history, which distracted from the main plot. The external conflicts were far more engaging than internal conflicts. And the character voices were not distinct enough. I was 50% of the way through when I finally learned the difference between our two protagonists.

I, a 26-year-old woman worried about getting laid off and going to graduate school before my parents' require my assistance, am in a completely different place than our two teenaged protagonists. So my inability to connect to our protagonists could come from my age. However, I think a younger audience would eat this book up.

So beautifully and effortlessly written! One thing I felt appreciated about this book that makes me excited to share it with my students is the way Morrow weaves in elements of the character’s cultural identity without it being overwrought. The book is full of relatable references to black life and struggle, of gentrification and segregated communities, while also containing a fantastical and compelling story of the sirens. Highly recommend!

This book was so interesting! I really don't think I've ever read anything like it. This story takes place in an alternate Portland, Oregon- imagine if not only did America have all the social and racial equity issues that we already do, and throw in kids as magical creatures like sirens, sprites, elokos, etc, Tavia is a siren, but goes to great lengths to hide it, and her best friend Effie is showing strange tendencies of something possibly even more rare. It's a LOT for the two of them to navigate- balancing their marginalized supernatural identities with their black teenaged girl identities, and at times, it's a lot for the book to balance as well. I have to say that some parts did not totally click for me. I loved the characters, pacing, and plot, but at times when it leaned hard into the realistic stuff, invoking state and domestic violence cases that happened in real life, it almost felt like the magic stuff didn't need to layer on top of it. And when it leaned into the magical side of things, it was never quite as playful as I hoped it would be. Because of this, the conclusion fell just a tad bit flat to me. I think this might have been an expectation management issue-I think I was expecting something just a little more light-hearted and comedic, and this book is less so. I have to say that I absolutely adored the use of gargoyles in this story, I freaking love gargoyles and they are underutilized in literature. I also loved the friendship between Tavia and Effie, it was beautiful. Despite wanting a little more cohesion in the tone, I'd describe this narrative as powerful, unique, and searing piece of speculative fiction.

This book has mythology woven within it. Which was interesting to someone that knows nothing about mythology. Also I appreciate how it was a refreshing angle of not just a fairytale retelling.

The changing of perspectives each chapter between the two main characters was done well.

A Song Below Water is the best of the YA genre right now. The story is thoughtfully political, has an interesting fantasy world that grows and evolves, and the characters are complex and realistic. There is no candy coating on this book. It tells a gritty YA story full of heart and suspense. This is my new go-to recommendation for people of all genre backgrounds, especially those who haven't clicked with YA before. A Breathtaking novel.

Review to be posted upon publication.

Reality and mythos blend together perfectly. Adopted sisters bound by water a d secrets. Both mythical creatures but only one of them knows. This story explores hate towards those that are different, love that can conquer the greatest insecurity, and growing into one's true skin. This was n awesome, read. It draws you in and does not let go. You will wonder if there will be more stories and you will want more. Moral, treat everyone how you want to be treated. You never know who can save you or awaken your true self.