Sad to say, but I think this one was just too esoteric for me. Maybe audio wasn't the right way for me to read this one since I do something have more trouble focusing on audiobooks. Regardless, I had a hard time following the story. I do wonder if that could've been fixed through fleshing out the story more into a full novel rather than keeping it so short.

Just Wow. There is so much that happened in such a short novella. It highly reminded me of a mix of "The Deep" and "Binti". It clearly had deeper meaning and would be interested in taking a closer look into the story.

It was written beautifully but the main issue I had throughout was keeping up with what was going on in the story. I found myself regularly trying to back track and re-listen to portions of the book because I would get confused on what was happening. Maybe if I read it physically it would have helped by via audiobook it was easy to feel left behind in the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an advanced audiobook for review.

An interesting gothic horror novella that I had a very Lovecraftian feel to it.

This is an intense story about children and childbirth in a world that is unlike our own, and although the world does not get much development in the story, the reader very much feels a part of it.

Strange, intriguing, and it will really mess with your mind while you read it.

Flowers for the Sea is a (cosmic) horror novel seated deeply in examining social tensions while using the ocean as a backdrop, much like Rivers Solomon's The Deep. This one leans more towards the cosmic side of things.

We've got a pregnant commoner who refused a prince, who is having a baby she doesn't thinks he wants, and some of the best horror-prose I've read in a while. The story structure is non-traditional with all kinds of flashbacks and woven stories, the plot leans heavily into the cosmic/fae style, and the prose is striking. The boat is written so well it's easy to just feel how disgusting it must be. Due to the denseness of the text and the complexity of the narrative structure, it can be a tad confusing at times, but I'd recommend just taking a breath, re-centering, and continuing on. It was worth it to me.

I will admit I have absolutely no idea what I just read. There were little moments of body horror (love), a creepy baby-that's-not-a-baby, some freaky monsters (that aren't really explained).

I think I wanted a bit more about why they were on the ship and where they were going. Was this an end of the world scenario with a flood of biblical proportions? They seemed to have some technology but we didn't do enough exploring to gage just how much. And how long had they been there? I felt like I was missing all of the details that would make the situation feel real.

And the side characters made very little sense to me. A healer who's never seen a wound before? A big man who may or may not be in charge? A fallen prince? Maybe? But everyone hates the MC for no discernable reason?

This has the bones of a very good and very interesting story - though I'll admit it felt like the most interesting part was just about to begin right where the novella ended - but there wasn't enough detail to really fill it out.

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* well worth the read, would reread, good story, would buy

This was the start of something super cool and interesting but just wasn't long enough for me to enjoy it. It had the potential to be gripping but once it reached maximum interest, it ended. Very abruptly. Whaaaat? I would really love a full-length novel of this!

This book rocked me. For being a novella, it packed a punch. I was surprised that a predominate amount of time was spent on the actual birth as the horrific act of this book as opposed to the monsters elsewhere, but it truly was horrifying to read. It felt like if Alien and Rosemary's Baby took place on the Titanic. I would recommend this to a few people, but maybe not a wide audience. The details were great and the reader was amazing. Thank you.

Thanks #netgallery. This book was beautifully written but also not something where I enjoyed the story. I am conflicted on how to rate this.

This recently published novella packs a punch in just over 100 pages! If you’re looking for a dark fantasy meets cosmic horror story, this one’s for you. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator is fantastic. The publisher described this story as “Rosemary’s Baby by way of Octavia Butler” and that feels accurate.

“Razorblades above, purple tentacles below.”

Iraxi is angry. She has been trapped aboard a ship along with the survivors from her drowned kingdom. They’ve been at sea for years. The ocean they traverse is filled with eldritch monsters and the skies overhead teem with predators. Despite the loss of their old lives, the other survivors treat Iraxi like an outcast, just as they did on land. And to make matters worse, Iraxi is nine months pregnant with a child she doesn’t want. No other woman has successfully carried a baby to term on the ship, and many have died from complications. So Iraxi is both reviled by her companions and also indispensable to them. When the child comes, though, it is clear that they’re no ordinary baby.

Many thanks to Dreamscape Audio & NetGalley for the ALC of this book!

I have a really hard time with books that deal with motherhood and childbirth because I have not experienced that and do not want to, and this was traumatic. The story was well written and the audio was well performed but I was not the intended audience for it. I would rate it 3 stars.

To be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect of this novella going in - and now that I finished listening to it, I am still not exactly sure what it is that I listened to... It's a sort of post-apocalyptic, horror birth story... Iraxi narrates this - the first one on this ship to be successfully pregnant - but the relationships aboard are convoluted. What stands out is Iraxi's own love for her family and the past - along with the horrors of her uncomfortable pregnancy and even more destructive birth - not to mention the oddness of the child borne. It's a bizarre, but rather compelling listen. And I really enjoyed the accent of the performer.

But, I think a big part of my disappointment with this one is that I really don't enjoy novellas much. I almost always feel like they leave you with more questions than answers. And this one especially feels like that! But, I do think that this would make for a great discussion starter - I just wanted more details and answers about the characters. I don't like feeling confused while listening - though I don't think that reading this would have made things any more clear. I would be interested in reading or listening to a full-length novel from Rocklyn in the future, though - I really found her writing style to be vivid and maybe something longer will have more of the details that I crave!

Although this one was a little hard to follow, I love the narrator's accent and I feel it helped a lot with submersion while listening. This was a strange listen, but I did like the style a lot and I was very interested. I would love to read or listen to something longer by this author.

Do you ever finish a book and then think to yourself, "I wanted more of that story"? Because that's exactly how I felt after finishing this one.

In FLOWERS FOR THE SEA, we follow our narrator, Iraxi, a woman stuck on a ship at sea who is about to give birth. This alone sounds like a nightmare, but it gets worse, because Iraxi is being forced to have this baby against her will. Oh, and there's monsters flying above the ship, and swimming below it.

Mysterious, unknown horrors are everywhere in this story, and as readers we don't truly understand why. Instead, we're given a snapshot of Iraxi's life: it's brutal, lonely, and violent.

The writing in this story was lush and vibrant, yet painted a dark, gritty setting. I listened to it on audio, and the narrator perfectly captured the dread, panic, and anger in the story. If you're able to listen to the audio, I highly recommend it.

While I finished this book a little confused and wanting more context and background, I still enjoyed it. I think the limited information is intentional, and adds to the depth of the story.

This was an incredible debut that filled me with terror and hope. Thank you to Dreamscape Media for providing me with a copy of the audiobook via NetGalley. FLOWERS FOR THE SEA is also published by Tor Dot Com Publishing.

I'm not really sure how to feel about this. I didn't care too much for child birth to start with and it being described just made me cringe along with the description of her ripe lady bits smell. 😅 The story wasn't bad it was just..... different. And it'll definitely stick with me

I am suuuuure glad I can’t give birth. That’s truly about all I can say after finishing this book.

Make sure you read the synopsis before going into this one or you will have absolutely no idea what is going on… My main complaint is just that this story is difficult to follow. I usually like bizarre fiction and narratives that give you little to go on. This one, on the other hand, just had me scratching my head in a bad way.

It is basically birth as body horror. A sea of nipples and anger, wombs and bodily fluids, rank stench and confusion. I can’t really find a reason to recommend this, but if it sounds like it’s up your alley or you already read it and loved it- you do you, b4b3.

*Speaking on the narrator for the audiobook edition- I thought she did a great job. No complaints there, but her narration wasn’t enough to foster enjoyment in my little ear-holes while I listened.

Flowers for the Sea was a completely unexpected story that took a direction I did not expect, but that I found incredibly intriguing.

This is an odd book in the sense that you won't immediately be reminded of any other books, which is always a plus. We follow Iraxi, a pregnant woman aboard a ship in a post apocalyptic world. I found this story very atmospheric and intriguing, but I did struggle to connect with the character a bit, largely due to the writing style that sort of kept me at arm's length. There is a lot of tragedy in this story, which I think was handled beautifully, and I could still understand Iraxi's struggles and found it captivating to see how she navigated everything occurring around her.

Since I read this book as an audiobook, I'd like to mention that aspect of it as well. I found the narrator, Amina Koroma, to be a perfect fit for this story. Her delivery was perfect and so well done, it really felt like I was being told this story directly from Iraxi.

Overall, this was a compelling and well-written novella that I would absolutely recommend! Content warnings should be noted for traumatic pregnancy and birth, as well as trauma in general, and I was pleased to see that the author included some warnings at the start of the book.

Flowers for the Sea, the debut novella by Zin. E Rocklyn is one of my most anticipated releases of this year. Our heroine, Iraxi, is aboard a ship, fleeing her sinking homeland. As if this situation was not fraught enough, Iraxi is also ready to give birth, and the labor is not an easy one. Iraxi’s mental state quickly deteriorates, as she sees strange monsters amidst the waves. And when Iraxi’s child emerges, it is not the quivering youngling she expected.

I see in the press for this book, Flowers for the Sea is described as “Rosemary's Baby by way of Octavia E. Butler”. And while I can see aspects of both these in Flowers for the Sea, this novella is entirely original. Iraxi is a wonderful character. The fact that we follow her labor in real-time gives a real immediacy to the work, and the reader is compelled to stick by our heroine, as she essentially endures a living nightmare.

Flowers for the Sea is a perfect book to be consumed in one sitting. Amina Koroma’s expert narration brings the story to life. I suggest saving it for a dark, rainy night, and letting yourself be pulled in by Rocklyn’s wonderful and terrifying story.

I received an eARC copy of this audiobook through Net Galley. Flowers for the Sea is a harrowing depiction of a woman giving birth to another being. It honestly made me nauseous more than once. But I do have to give props to the author for being able to write this book in such disturbing detail that I had a physical reaction to hearing it. I think it's a good example of sci-fi meets horror/gore.

3.5 stars

This novella is a mixture of many genres. There's Gothic, horror, post-apocalyptic.
Iraxi is pregnant and on an ark of survivors fleeing their flooded kingdom.
Her child could be the end of them all or it could be what saves them. Either way, Iraxi doesn't want this child. She has a feeling it isn't entirely human.

I enjoyed this. The ending made me want the next one right away. I loved the narrator. She is fantastic. I also found this creepy. I'm intrigued to see where this is going to go.