“The sea gives, but it also takes” - The Sirens

Prior to reading the Sirens, I read Weyward last year, and it was one of my favorite books of the year. I was super excited to have the opportunity to read an advanced reader copy of the Sirens. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press.

The sirens alternates point of view between Lucy who is a college student in Australia in 2019 and Mary in Ireland in 1800. A third POV, Jess’ childhood diary entries are introduced 1/4 into the book. Eventually, about 80% into the story, a fourth POV is introduced - Jess in modern time. The alternating POVs and alternating timelines made it difficult to follow at times, which wasn’t a problem when reading Weyward.

After having nude photos leaked by a male student, Ben, Lucy sleepwalks and attacks Ben in the middle of the night in their college dorm. The story begins with Lucy running from the authorities, on her way to her sister’s house in Comber Bay. When Lucy arrives, she discovers her sister‘s car in the driveway, finds her keys and phone inside her house, but quickly discovers that her sister is nowhere to be found.

Lucy’s sister Jess is introduced in the first chapter of the book, and later through Jess’s diary entries that we get to read snippets of throughout the story. Lucy finds a painting in Jess house of a mermaid and ship she dreamed of. Lucy discovers several more paintings of the ship, all featuring the same two sisters. Throughout the story, Lucy slowly learns the truth of her and Jess’ history.

Lucy listens to a podcast about the unsolved disappearance of several men in Comber Bay over 30 years. Comber Bay/Devils lookout is a coastal town miles from Sydney where Jess lives. The story is of the unsolved mysterious disappearance of 8 men between 1960 and 1997. No trace of any of them ever found. Some towns people believe there is some kind of supernatural explaniation for the disapperancea and claim to hear womens voices coming from the waves.

There is also the mystery of Baby Hope found abandoned at the Devil’s Lookout in 1982. Baby Hope was adopted by a family that later underwent scrutiny and was accused of abandoning Hope and staging the rescue for their own benefit.

Mary and Eliza are imprisoned in Ireland in 1800 after the failed Irish rebellion where England maintained their power over the Irish. They are being forcibly transported by boat to New South Wales, Australia. Eliza is called “the girl who sings but does not see.” Mary and Eliza struggle with being separated from their Da, and we learn that their Mam died from drowning in the sea despite Da begging her not to go near the water.

Lucy is having dreams about being on being in the dark with women crying and praying. She can feel herself holding hands with another woman in these dreams. Lucy was diagnosed with a skin condition that makes water dangerous for her skin. Lucy finds an invitation to an art show called The Sirens for her sister, schedule to take place later in the week.


A third POV, Jess’ childhood diary entries are introduced 1/4 into the book. Jess believes that her parents aren’t really her biological parents and believes they are hiding something from her. Lucy learns that Jess shares her skin condition, aquagenic urticaria, and that their parents hid this from her. Lucy also learns that Jess sleepwalks and was having an inappropriate relationship with her art teacher. Jess believes that their parents moved them as far away from the sea to keep the truth hidden. We later learn the truth - that Lucy was actually Jess daughter, conceived in secret with her art teacher who left the school after finding out Jess was pregnant. Eventually, the story switches from old diary entries and we get Jess POV from modern time. We learn that Jess teacher is on the run from authorities for sexually assaulting a student, and shows up at Jess house in Comber Bay for help. We also learn that Jess is Baby Hope, their parents are Robert and Judith Wilson, and Lucy is actually Jess daughter. I struggled with this plot twist and with the changing dynamic of the relationship. I also struggled to like Jess as a character, knowing she had abandoned her responsibilities as a mom and hid the truth from Lucy for so long.

As the story of Mary and Eliza unfolds, we slowly see their lives intertwine with Lucy and Jess. The connection between the sirens and the missing men unfolds, and Lucy learns that the missing men all had dark pasts involving hurting women or children. Melody, Jess neighbor, assures Lucy that she doesnt need to worry about Jess because Comber Bay “keeps its women safe.” By the end of the story, the connection has come full circle and all of the uncertainty about their connection is resolved.

I appreciate the opportunity to read that book early and was so excited to have the chance to. I absolutely loved Weyward and because of that my expectations were pretty high. Unfortunately, the Sirens just did not compare to my love for Weyward and I didn’t feel a connection with the character like I wanted to. I recommend giving this book a chance, but do not make the mistake I made of expecting it to compare to Weyward because it didn’t even come close for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of The Sirens by Emilia Hart.

While I enjoyed reading The Sirens, I found myself wanting a stronger overall plot. Much of the book focuses on Lucy’s journey of self-discovery, which, while compelling, left little room for deeper exploration of the Siren lore. I also wished for a darker, more vengeful tone—there’s something inherently fascinating about Sirens taking down bad men, and I wanted that theme to be pushed further.

That said, the novel was still an engaging read, and I would rate it a solid 3.5 stars.

The Sirens by Emilia Hart was different than my usual reads. I’m typically a romance girlie, very rarely venturing outside of that genre. That being said, I loved The Sirens.

A fantasy novel about two sets of sisters and the sea, this book spans hundreds of years and includes aspects of fantasy, mystery, and both historical and contemporary fiction.

It is a slow paced novel, steadily unravelling the story with numerous twists and turns. If you’re looking for something quick and fluffy, this is not it. I enjoyed the somewhat dark and creepy vibe to the whole book and the dip into Irish folklore and history.

The multiple perspectives kept the story from dragging and the author’s gorgeous descriptions kept my imagination engaged.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading The Sirens. I would recommend it if you’re in the mood for something a bit slow burn and shifty— but keep in mind, there is no romance!

Thanks to Emilia Hart and NetGalley for the ARC!

As someone who loves the ocean and the mysteries it holds, The Sirens by Emilia Hart was a captivating read for me. The story feels like the sea itself—vast, unpredictable, and full of hidden depths. Hart weaves together the lives of sisters separated by centuries but bound by the sea, creating a sense of timelessness that flows through the entire narrative.

The book shifts between three timelines: Lucy in 2019, Jess in 1999, and twins Mary and Eliza in the 1800s. Each timeline unveils its own mysteries, and while I adored the atmospheric writing, the transitions between the different periods could sometimes be a little jarring. However, the way the timelines converge and interconnect kept me intrigued.

I particularly loved the themes of sisterhood, resilience, and the pull of the sea. The mysterious disappearances of men at sea and the strange events surrounding Lucy’s family were compelling, though I wanted a bit more exploration of the supernatural elements. The pacing is slow, but for those who enjoy atmospheric stories with a touch of magic, The Sirens is a rewarding read.

Overall, a beautifully written novel, but I felt it could have explored the mystery of the sea and the sisters’ connection even further. It’s a solid 4-star book, especially for fans of magical realism and ocean-bound tales.

💭 ⓂⓎ ⓉⒽⓄⓊⒼⒽⓉⓈ
I loved the overall themes of this book, especially the focus on women’s empowerment and the bond between sisters. The writing was beautifully atmospheric, and the historical elements added so much depth. The character growth was incredibly well done, and the multiple timelines blended seamlessly. While the story had a slow burn buildup, I didn’t love the magical realism aspect as much as I had hoped because it felt a bit too strange for me. I was fully invested in the mystery, but the ending fell a little flat. I was hoping for a more impactful climax to tie everything together. Despite a few aspects that didn’t fully resonate with me, The Sirens was a beautifully written and thought provoking read.

📚 𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎:
💕Sisterhood and family bonds
🪄Mystery and magical realism
🌊Gothic atmosphere
🤐Family secrets
💪🏻Feminist themes
🔁Dual timelines
🗣️Multiple POV

⚠️ 𝙏𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨: sexual assault, rape.

🌊𝕄𝕐 ℝ𝔸𝕋𝕀ℕ𝔾🌊
⭐️⭐️⭐️

💕Q U O T E: “𝒮𝒽𝑒 𝓌𝑜𝓊𝓁𝒹 𝒷𝑒 𝒶 𝓂𝑜𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇. 𝒴𝑒𝓈, 𝓉𝑜𝑔𝑒𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝓈𝒽𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝐸𝓁𝒾𝓏𝒶 𝓌𝑜𝓊𝓁𝒹 𝓂𝑜𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝑔𝒾𝓇𝓁𝓈 𝓌𝒽𝑜 𝒸𝒶𝓂𝑒 𝓉𝑜 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝓅𝓁𝒶𝒸𝑒, 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝑔𝒾𝓇𝓁𝓈 𝓌𝒽𝑜 𝓃𝑒𝑒𝒹𝑒𝒹 𝓅𝓇𝑜𝓉𝑒𝒸𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓋𝑒𝓃𝑔𝑒𝒶𝓃𝒸𝑒.”

🙏 Thank you NetGalley, St. Martins Press, and Emilia Hart for this free ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts. 💕

5.0 stars
HIGHLY recommend

This book was just freaking amazing! I loved it from beginning to end. For me, movies and books should be character-driven. This was a heavily character-driven novel and the relationships that are explored primarily are about family, sisterhood, and love.

The writing was incredible - just so beautiful. The descriptions are amazing, but not at the expense of the storyline. The characters were fascinating and multi-faceted as were the multiple storylines about sisters!!

A caveat, this is not a duplicate of Weyward. If that is what you are looking for then this is not the book for you. It is very different, but IMHO even better!

Give this novel a chance - it is a phenomenal story!!

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6319810711 - posted 2/7/2025

Storygraph: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/bd6f94bb-8a2b-45eb-9581-26fa81a281d6?redirect=true - posted 2/7/2025

Books by Dorothea blog: https://booksbydorothea.blogspot.com/2025/02/review-sirens-earcebook.html - posted 2/7/2025

Okay, I REALLY like this take on the multiple POV because they are happening at different points in time.

The Sirens has such an interesting plot (there are other reviews that summarize it) but I also have to agree with another review about how certain details were never given closure and just kind of forgotten about, but also took up most of the plot.

I still enjoyed it regardless but it also could have been better in some ways. I'm looking forward to reading more by this author.

I received an ARC for my honest opinion of this book

Beautiful writing gives me a feeling of being there, smelling the ocean air and seeing the blue sparkles in the water. And, then the characters take over, changing my thought patterns.

Who were these people from the 1800s? Mary and Eliza were sisters living with their dad in a small coastal town of Ireland. He was very protective knowing that ships with captured females were headed to colonies in Australia.

Jess and Lucy were also close sisters in 2019. They were both having vivid dreams of women who seemed much like Mary and Eliza. Lucy was in college and Jess was on her own in a house near a large hidden sea cave in Australia. All was fine until Lucy found herself in a situation where she needed to find her sister for help.

It started strong with the historical note and then it felt like I was at an art show, looking at an abstract painting trying to figure out the meaning. The book was full of unexpected turns requiring a good imagination. It was strange at times, wild and out there. The book could make a good movie with the visual concepts.

My thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book with an expected release date of April 1, 2025.

This is a dual timeline story of two sets of sisters, and includes aspects of fantasy and magical realism. There is a feeling of mystery and intrigue that keeps the pace of the story moving, and also a feeling of eeriness that makes the reader feel the dark and dampness of the sea.

This is my first Emilia Hart book (though I'd heard lots about her previous book), and I was so glad to have the opportunity to read an early copy of it. This was a deliciously creepy book with a solid pace and a fabulous story. Lucy suffers trauma at her university and decides to go in search of her sister, the one person who can truly understand her. But when she arrives, her sister, Jess is nowhere to be found. She begins reading her sister's journal, which is like opening the door to an entire world--family secrets and more. This is dual timeline with flashbacks. Overall it was a wonderful feminist read.

Emilia did it again! I was capture from the prologue!

This story takes place in a dual timeline that end up converging, as family secrets unravel. I can not put into words how magical and caughtup in this book I was!

I love this author’s writing style, and this story was really interesting. There are two timelines (past and present) which end up connecting, and there’s an aspect of mystery as Lucy unravels her family history. I also appreciated learning about Australia’s history and the convict transports. Read when you want a story about sisterhood and family love.

I was so excited to dive into the latest from Emilia Hart after absolutely adoring WEYWARD. Emilia has such a beautiful writing style that makes it so quick to fall in love with this story. SIRENS was such a unique historical fiction/magical realism story and i loved the dual POV. It’s a little bit of a slow start but I loved this book - it’s very thought provoking which is something I’ve come to love about Emilia Hart’s work.

First, thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for an ARC of this book!

This was my first Emilia Hart book and it was mesmerizing. I was hooked from the prologue. This book had such an enthralling mix of historical fiction (ish), magical realism, and mystery! There was a twist in there that I had not seen coming at all! Not only was this immersive and atmospheric but it explored strong female bonds, love, loss, strength and resilience! I can’t wait to read more from this author!

This book is set across 3 different timelines, following 2 sisters (Irish) in 1800 on a convict ship headed to Australia. The sisters experience some intense memories of their mother’s death, but leads them to a discovery within themselves.

We also see Jess, a 16 year old in 1999 who has a rare water allergy that makes her constantly feel out of place and like she doesn’t belong amongst her peers. Jess begins to feel the pull of the ocean and investigates why.

Lastly, we have Lucy’s timeline, who starts the story off by waking up mid-attack on her ex boyfriend. Lucy leaves immediately and needs to find peace, she seeks out her sister on the Australian coast. Except when she gets there, she finds that her sister is missing. Can Lucy find her sister in time?

Please check trigger warnings for this. Although there is nothing too graphic it might be triggering to some and has a lot of sensitive subjects.

This is the first Emilia Hart book I’ve read! I have her other book, I just haven’t read it yet. I really liked the fantasy elements in this!

The Sirens is my first read by Emilia Hart. Although Weyward is on my tbr (and on my physical bookshelf). It was a very written, intriguing dual timeline story. I listened via audio and the narrator was perfect. This was not a suspense story but yet the author and narrator found ways to keep you in suspense!

This is a story about two sets of sisters in dual timelines whose stories eventually collide. In the 1800’s, Mary and Eliza are young women taken from their home and put on a convict ship traveling the high seas. The conditions on the ship are harsh and they have several weird experiences. In 2019, Lucy and Jess are somewhat estranged sisters. Lucy ends up in a compromising position and runs to Jess for help. Only Jess is missing. As Lucy tries to find her sister, she goes down a rabbit hole of missing men and a baby found in a cave.

I really enjoyed this story. The four women were all likable characters with depth. They are strong and resilient in their own ways. This story focuses on women empowerment, the strength of sisterhood and family with bits of historical fiction and a little fantasy! I loved imaging the sirens singing their siren.

Listen, I love the ocean and I love mermaids and folklore about merpeople so this was totally up my alley. I also completely devoured Weyward so I was beyond excited to review this ARC!

In this beautiful and atmospheric story, things started at a runners pace but were a bit slow in the middle. I enjoyed the journey and I thought it had a great ending. Really, there were several endings. Jess and Lucy’s ending, Mary and Eliza’s ending, and the epilogue ending.

I found several of the twists to be predictable, which in this case didn’t detract from the experience. The epilogue ending was the biggest twist, which is fun when done well.

That being said, I can’t help but compare it to Weyward. I was not as captivated as I was reading Hart’s previous work. I still thoroughly enjoyed the story, it was just a bit long winded on Lucy’s part.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this ARC!

A fantastic read! Ms. Hart's previous novel Weyward was a top read for me so I was excited to read another novel. Her characters are strong and span multiple times and generations. The bonds of sisterhood and female resiliency were on full display throughout the novel. The magic mystery mystic of the sea!

First, I would like to extend a big thank you to St. Martins Press, NetGalley and Author, Emilia Hart for the complimentary digital copy of this book.

With a stunning cover and intriguing plot I was very eager to get my hands on this book- I can’t say that I’ve read many mermaid tales, so this was something I was excited to jump into.

The writing style itself was clear and easy to follow. The author does a great job at painting the picture and placing you right there in the story. Between the characters and the backdrop, I had no trouble with visualization. However, this was a book that I could not fully click with. It was a very slow burn and I never felt a real connection with any of the characters on either timeline- their stories felt drawn out and somewhat lacking. There were also a few loose ends that were never tied up. The story did pick up around the 75% mark and had a few interesting twists but it was definitely a slow go to get there.

Overall, I can appreciate the message- the beauty of women overcoming hardships, internal struggles and embracing who they are, coming out the other side with strength and resiliency. It’s clear that between Weyward and The Sirens the author writes this with great passion.

Relationships between sisters, mothers and daughters hold an enduring place in historical novels, and whilst examining similar themes to its predecessor, Weyward, Emilia Hart’s The Sirens expands on the triple-timeframe style to explore female solidarity, legacy, and rage, offset by male dominance and abuse. That said, the novel doesn’t have a strong feminist bent, or if it does, it is gently handled. Finding the beauty within others, and welcoming it in ourselves, is what really spoke to me and made this novel soar.

In 1800, Irish twins Mary and Eliza are transported, with 80+ other women, to the penal colony of New South Wales, on the convict ship Naiad. The months-long voyage is laden with heart-rending detail, pulling the reader deep into the horrendous conditions endured by the convicts on board. In 2019, Lucy leaves university under a cloud of shame, and heads to her estranged sister, Jess’s, clifftop house in Comber Bay. Lucy’s arrival is unexpected, and Jess, a surrealist artist, is missing, although her paintings stand expectantly waiting, along with her car and cell phone. After fruitless efforts to contact her sister, Lucy finds Jess’s diary which holds shocking revelations Lucy knew nothing about. Hart examines Comber Bay’s tragic history through stories of the unexplained disappearances of eight men in the 1960s, ´70s and ´80s and the connections to present and past.

The author’s alluring title, The Sirens, entices us with the combination of mesmerising beauty mixed with mortal danger. Hart skillfully entwines mystical aspects into what could be construed as part-fairytale, but for me, its multiple timeframes and historical settings are firmly grounded. The author admits this was difficult to write, and having spent time within its pages, I can see why. But the outcome of all those discarded drafts is entrancing, and the author should be extremely proud.