simply gorgeous fantasy world, somewhat let down by our POV characters being somewhat weak. the idea of the titans was cool, as was the merfolk, though. thanks for the arc.

The world building was done very well. However the plot was so slow and we didn’t get much time with other characters. I feel like their POVs were barely represented and didn’t have much chemistry with the mc. I wanted to love this but it fell flat for me.

The concept that the author is going for is really unique and interesting. But the execution was off for me. I couldn't connect with any of the POVs.

Thank you to author Eliza Chan, Orbit Books, and Netgalley for providing the eARC in exchange for my honest review. This title will be released on February 27, 2024.

4 STARS

After reading a slew of underwhelming, poorly executed new release fantasy books over the last six months, I didn’t have high hopes for this title. Eliza Chan came through for me!

Fathomfolk plunges you headlong into a vivid, bright sea-sunken world! We get Asian influenced fantasy, sea creature shifters, and fraught politics. The POVs change seamlessly and expose us to a cast of engaging, distinctive characters.

There’s Mira, the half-siren captain of the city guards who tries to protect all folk and effect change on behalf of the Fathomfolk by working within the system.
Serena, the uppity bureaucrat’s wife who connives to get her husband and son promoted.
Nami, the dragon princess who visits the Tiankawi city on a secret mission and whose impulsiveness leads her to making connections with Fathomfolk pursuing radical change.
Cordelia, the opportunistic seawitch who makes deals with whoever in order to benefit herself only.
Other non-POV characters like Kai, Trish, and Lynnette also add fascinating dimensions to the portrait of characters who have different moralities, alliances, values, and backgrounds.

Fathomfolk is an allegory and commentary about immigration, border control, racial and cultural identity, intersectionality, and racism. The story shows interpersonal racism and systemic racism. The story examines the different ways people resist and denounce oppression both within and without the system.

The only thing that might deter readers is that the thematic weight and focus overtake the plot. Epic fantasy readers will not find a plot that follows the typical quest plot of an epic fantasy. There’s so much focus on scene-setting and characters, so the pace may feel slow-moving. (The pace does pick up and plot explodes in the last third of the book. When this author wants to ramp up the action, she knows how to write it and increase the suspense.) Also, Fathomfolk doesn’t necessarily add anything new to those topical conversations surrounding race, oppression, socioeconomic inequality, immigration, political change, etc. It’s more about meditating on relevant issues in a consolidated, digestible story with creative redressing. So someone who’s already deeply invested and read up on those subjects may be bored at times and find Fathomfolk’s discussions on the nose.

Overall, I found Fathomfolk to be a solidly written story with a lively, robust world, a compelling cast of conflicted characters, and important universal questions/messages regarding humanity, identity, morality, governance, and society. The last leg of the book also pulled at my heartstrings and impressed me with the heightened fantasy action sequences.

DNF at 37%

Another book with such a beautiful cover and interesting premise that unfortunately left me wishing for more. I was unable to connect with or find interest in any of the main characters, and the plot was confusing to say the least. Chapters would end on a high note with one character, and then jump to another to be forgotten. Major actions and events that occurred would have little to no build up, resolution, or consequence. The actions some of the characters made seemed like they didn't have much thought behind them at all, so the characters I had little interest in. The pacing was also inconsistent, and the plot constantly jumped around from one character to the next.

I will say that the setting is lush and well written, and Chan does touch on some topics from real life that blend well in the fantasy setting she created (ex. homelessness, drug addiction, immigration). There was a lot of effort put behind the political aspect of this book, but I cannot say that it was fully executed well.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately, I decided to put this one on hold for now.

I actually really liked the premise of this and found the mythological creatures really interesting but something about this book hadn’t inclined me to pick it up for sometime. Perhaps it was the characters and lack of confusion to how the different types of characters are portrayed and what they do, which I’ll admit I was ignorant to.

That is to say, I really think this world is very interesting and maybe once it’s published I’ll try to pick it up again, but for now it’s just not something I’m hooked on.

I’m still very grateful for the arc of this.

This book was very disappointing to me. This might have been due to the cover, which is absolutely gorgeous. I know the cliche about judging books and all, but I really wanted to read the book when I saw that.

The blurb was also great, about a city where humans are the ruling class and all sorts of aquatic beings - sirens, kelpies, selkies, merfolk, water dragons, every aquatic myth you can think of really - toil in tenements and under the surface of the sea. That’s a great place to start from.

But I was disappointed in nearly every way once I actually started reading the book. There was so much potential and so much imagination here, and so little was done with it.

The plot was poorly developed. Momentous events with huge consequences would happen with little or no buildup. Interesting minor plotlines were abandoned with no explanation. The characters were, in many ways, cliched; where they weren’t cliched, they broke the mold by making stupid decisions in new and exciting ways. The writing wasn’t anything special. It got the job done, but it also felt very blunt - one chapter ended on a threatening note by having one of the villains think to herself, quote, “no one messed with her family and got away with it.” And it felt very young adult. I quite enjoy young adult books, but there was a tonal mismatch between the YA-ish writing and the events described. In many ways, it didn’t work.

Harder to define, but I felt like the author didn’t really take advantage of having all her fathomfolk characters. The two protagonists were a dragon and a half human, half siren. They basically just felt like ordinary humans with a few extra bits added on, not these other cultures we are told they are.

It was, as I said at the beginning, a very imaginative setting. I just wish the author had done more with it.

The book was overall a good read with a good concept. The Asian setting and the character build contains many important themes while reading the book. This is multiple POV and is a world-building novel.

I found the more i read the more confused i got because you really never knew which POV you were reading. I found the pacing of the book to be slow and the characters to be not fully developed in the story. sometimes while reading i just felt like some of the aspects were not needed in the book.

I loved the cover, the potential of the book could have been a 5 star but with how confusing the book it i just cannot give above a 2 star.

Thanks NetGalley for letting me Read and review.

Thanks to the author, netgalley, and to the publisher for the early readers copy.

I’m a huge lover of Asian inspired fantasy novels and this one is a great addition to the genre.

Tiankawi is an island, an experiment really and a beacon of hope for many that the Fathomfolk and humans can coexist peacefully, that can help each of not just survive but maybe even thrive in a world where most land has been covered in water. Unfortunately for the Fathomfolk in Tiankawi the great experiment has become a pipe dream. They are treated as second class citizens at best, forced to live in slums and work long hours for the humans of Tiankawi. Mira, a half human half siren woman has spent her whole life in Tiankawi and has dedicated her very existence to that great experiment, rising quickly through the military to become the only Fathomfolk to ever hold the title of Captain. She hopes that with the help of her partner and Ambassador of Fathomfolk, Kai that they will be able to make a true difference for their people by navigating the treacherous waters that is politics in Tiankawi to pass legislation that will help bring true equality to the Folk. Unfortunately, not everyone agrees with their beliefs and as they work tirelessly against oppression and prejudice even they face in their positions there are those who are working just as hard to free the Folk, even if it means they all have to drown first.

This truly was unputtdownable, seriously I stopped reading it only to get some sleep last night that's how good it was! Chan simply does an incredible job of weaving together fantasy, real life social issues, and political intrigue while building a world that mixes magic and technology into something that looks just a little bit steampunk and feels just a tiny bit like The Little Mermaid.

The world building in this is truly well done and while this isn't a large world, (in this book there's really only two settings Tiankawi and Yonakuni and we spend very little time in the latter) but somehow it still feels enormous. And I think that's because of how much detail Chan goes into. Tiankawi itself is really central to the storyline and I believe if Chan has been just a little less detailed important portions of the book probably would have been less emotional than they were. I also really enjoyed that she skips over going into too much detail over the various Folk Creatures and their individual magics. This would have been a much different book if she'd dedicated paragraphs to explaining what a Kappa was. And I guarantee someone's gonna complain about this lack of explanation at some point, so just a heads-up keep Google handy if you aren't familiar with Eastern/South Eastern Asian mythology/folklore/fairytales.

The pacing is also really well done here. Chan sets a pretty fast pace from the beginning and while she does slow down every once in awhile the momentum never really stops. This really helps to drive home how tense the situation in Tiankawi really is. You definitely have that "waiting for the other boot to drop" feeling while reading this. Which of course makes the end that much harder to read, because you're really hoping that something good will shake out of everything. Instead you get your heart broken.

Fathomfolk is a character driven story and if any one of these characters had been just slightly off the whole thing would have fallen apart. From the main characters to the side characters each of them have a crucial roll to play in moving this story forward and in several key scenes its the decisions made by the side characters that make the largest impact.

Finally, Chan touches on some really heavy topics here: drug addiction, homelessness, oppression, prejudice that is more akin to just racism, human trafficking...I could go on. It's a lot, a lot to take in and process and a lot to make work within the story but somehow she does this effortlessly. It never becomes overwhelming and it never stops making sense. In many ways if you the take away the magic and the fairytale creatures what you've got left is a really good commentary on pretty much anywhere in the world that has a large influx of immigrants/refugees and the people who exploit that population for their own benefit.

Overall, this was an excellent to a new fantasy series and I highly recommend it to those who read fantasy and those who don't. I found it to be that perfect mixture of real life and fantasy that I think it's the perfect happy medium for both types of readers!

And as always thanks to Orbit Books and Netgalley for the eArc!

This story follows three distinct POVs including Mira a half-siren and captain of the border guard, Nami a fiery water dragon and Cordelia a cunning sea-witch. I really enjoyed the world building in this story and how the three storylines slowly converged. It takes a bit of time to get used to the change in POVs but overall makes for a more immersive reading experience. This story brings to light the challenges of overcoming a system rooted in prejudice and distrust of outsiders. Mira has more authority now as captain but struggles in this new role to make a significant difference for her people. Nami is stubborn and often makes rash decisions. She becomes embroiled in a plot that exposes some major injustices but also poses a threat to her loved ones. Cordelia is a pivotal character that strikes up clever bargains that are later revealed. This story is rich with political intrigue and unexpected betrayal. Throughout the story you learn of the sacrifices that were made to save the ones they love and whether they were worth the risk. I enjoyed the explosive ending and can’t wait to see what happens in the sequel.

Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit for the arc.

For the most part, I think this was a pretty decent debut. The real strength of it lies in the world-building. It's very evident from the onset that the author had a lot of fun with creating the world. The towering, flooded city is vividly described and pulls the reader in to discover more about what the world holds. My biggest issue, though, lies with the characters. There are three main POVs: Cordelia (a sea-witch), Mira (a half-siren and captain of a Fathomfolk-centered guard), and Nami (a water dragon and younger sibling to Mira's partner, Kai). I don't have so much of a problem with the three main characters as I do with their interactions with other characters, especially the plot-relevant ones. I felt a bit removed from them. For example, Mira and Kai are an established couple, but there wasn't a lot there that made me invested in their relationship. Kai seemed more like an outline of a character than someone with thoughts and feelings outside of the plot. Nami, too, has relationships with a few characters and, again, it felt like I was looking at them from a distance. It didn't feel like they mattered.

That being said, I do think there's definite promise here. I think a lot of the issues I have here can be solved with more experience writing and possibly more time spent in this world. I don't think it's a bad debut by any means. Although I wanted a bit more, I think the author has a lot to offer and I'm interested to see where she goes from here.

I want to stop requesting Asian fantasies, because they keep disappointing me left and right. But I can't, because I must support all AAPI authors. Therein lies my conundrum.

Two stars for effort, but I don't have a lot of nice things to say. Of the three POVs, I hated Mira's the least, because at least she was trying with her career. Cordelia is a fucking snob. Nami is useless, stupid, and prejudiced.

While Zana wasn't bothered by the melding of East and Southeast Asian cultures, I was. It's the same problem I had with Raya and the Last Dragon. Focus on one mythology. I recognized Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese names before I stopped counting. While there is some overlap, especially if China ever ruled your country, we aren't all the same. That perpetuates the stereotype that we all look the same, which is dangerous.

Oh boy… where to start? So Fathomfolk is a novel I almost loved, and I’m remarkably sad I didn’t. My family are all obsessively in love with the ocean (ie they sail and they try to make me learn to sail) and Asian, so Fathomfolk felt like it was going to be a fantastic novel to see the lesser talked about parts of Asian culture. And while it was, it also had deep and abiding messaging that I honestly felt so over as soon as I realised it was happening. Just ask my friends, they’ve had to hear about it all day.

So, what was good about Fathomfolk? For one, the cultural mishmashing. So often when books say they’re going to mix n’ match Asian cultures what they mean is that they’re mixing China, Japan, and Korea in what’s often more offensive than not (warning for the wise, us Koreans hate being mistaken for Japanese). Fathomfolk had the wise audacity however to not do that, but instead stare the reader directly in the eye and drag Southeast Asians, South Asians, and even some West Asians into this conversation. It’s a blessing to read about a character Mikayil in the Sampangan district discussing the Onseon with Kai‘a ahma over a plate of paratha. I refuse all other Asian cultural fusions unless we’re making this all, or almost all, of Asia’s problem. We’re either here together or not at all, cowards.

That being said, the politics of this book, and it’s understanding on revolution is ass. This book falls into a false dichotomy of ‘the pacifist oppressor vs the violent extremist rebels’ choosing to paint the “good guys” as those who work in the system. All the while those who work in the system are cops, oh I’m sorry, <i>captain of the border guard</i>, and royals, which is to say, the most privileged of the oppressed. Heck! In the case of the border that’s just enforcing systemic oppression by refusing entrance to refugees! (That’s not even a joke, the fathomfolk in this book are often called refugees). Furthermore, Fathomfolk volleys back and forth between actual meaningful critique of oppressive systems and states and going ‘oh no, but violence is bad! Owo.’ All the while the oppressive state in question, Tiankawi, is actively murdering people. Which is, you know, violent. But instead this book acts as if those slow murders aren’t themselves violent, and that punching a cop whose accusing you of terrorism because you saved people from drowning is wrong. All that to say, the politics of this book are ass. It’s understanding of violence and stakes and the horrors of this world are ass. And frankly the comparison to books like Jade City and Bone Shard Daughter — books that understand that when discussing liberation punching a cop isn’t really that violent — is a poor one at best, and a deeply offensive one to the books in question at worst.

TLDR; Despite genuinely some of the best pan-Asian worldbuilding I’ve ever seen, the politics of this book, and it’s stance on revolution is a boba liberals philosophy of liberation. A weak, inherently flawed, and ahistorical POV which fails to understand that being slowly and systemically killed by an oppressive force is violent.

*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

This was just amazing. I loved this so much! loved the writing,the characters and the storytelling.Mira was a great FMC and she was everything I like to see in my MCs. Can't wait to read more work by this author. I also enjoyed different POVs and would love to see more of certain side characters.The only thing that I had problem with (again,it's a matter of preference) is that I wish there was a glossary with some names/terms I am not familiar with as it takes away from reading having to go back and forth looking for descriptions and meanings. All in all great read and I definitely recommend. Can't wait to see my special edition of this one.

First of all, can we just swoon over that GORGEOUS cover?

Enjoyed the many themes present in this book: racism, classicism, with immigration and oppression are so wonderful relatable and relevant. And while I feel there are areas in the story that still have to be developed, it does make me excited for the sequel. All in all a solid read and will definitely be adding this to our collection.

Overall, I liked this book. It has a neat concept, unique world-building, East Asian-inspired setting, and contains many important and relevant themes (racism, immigration issues, subjugated race, radicalization, climate change, strained familial relationships, the struggle with identity in mixed-race folk, etc.). FATHOMFOLK follows multiple POVs and has rich world-building.

Despite this, it had some issues. The chapters were often a bit confusing, as all the POVs had similar voices. Occasionally, the chapters would head-hop in the middle if the main characters were interacting with each other (ex. In one of Nami’s chapters, we get Mira’s POV). There was some inconsistency in character names (ex. Calling the character Trish “Trishanjali” randomly with no explanation and then never using that name again).
The pacing is overall fairly slow but many of the themes weren’t fully developed. So much was going on but no one thing felt important as I was reading. Many of the revelations either came out of nowhere or were painfully obvious. Some of the characters’ reactions weren’t in line with their personalities and quirks. Solutions were “Deus Ex”- style solutions with little to no foreshadowing.

All in all, I wanted to LOVE this book. I wanted it to be a 4-5 star read. Maybe that’s why I’m a bit critical. It has tons of potential to be an excellent read. Instead, it’s a solid 3-star: I liked it, but probably won’t reread it. I will keep an eye on Eliza Chan’s future work, though! Her style and ideas have potential!

Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit US for the ARC!

I loved this book! The intricate lore surrounding each sea being, the complexities of a society forced to mesh together, misguided revolutionaries… I thoroughly enjoyed every second of this book and will be excitedly waiting for the sequel!

First I want to say- I'm obsessed with the cover! It's beautiful! The content of the book I'm a little less obsessed with but over all enjoyed. I saw a review that compared it to Zootopia and that's a great way of pitching this story. It very much centers on taking real world issues (racism and immigration issues) and placing them against the backdrop of this aquatic setting. We follow three different narratives that all weave together and I definitely enjoyed some POVs more than others because they weren't as equally developed but I did enjoy the archetypes placed and those dynamics worked. I'd definitely say it's worth a read if you're interested.

Fathomfolk is an South Asian-inspired fantasy in which fathomfolk--those of the sea and water--and humans--who desperately cling to land, hoping to outbuild the rising waters--are on a path for complex and multistoried violence over equal rights, self-rule, immigration, and more. Amid this are a number of protagonists all trying to figure out how to do what they think is best for their city, their families, and themselves--a cop who realizes that she's being used as a token, her privileged politician partner, his sister, drawn to activism but unsure of what she really wants--and wants to be--and a sea-witch who thrives on chaos and discord. The world-building starts out a little rough, but Chan gradually slows the pace and allows readers to learn the world through the characters' eyes and experiences, and the storylines are tight and strong throughout. I'm looking forward to the sequels.