Reviewed by Angie on
+Only Black women can be sirens, which makes them extra special but also extra feared and discriminated against. Which is why Tavia's family keeps her identity a secret. Particularly after a woman is murdered by her boyfriend and is suspected to be a siren. Not that it should matter, but of course, it does.
+Magical Realism tends to bore me, but this reads more like Urban Fantasy, since it's about supernatural creatures? Either way, it was super slow at first, but then the final third, where the supernatural takes over, was fantastic.
+Effie is a mermaid at a Renaissance faire! I would love a book on this! Also, her discovery story is what saved this book for me. It was so good! I did guess what she was, but that didn't take away from the big reveal.
+Do not touch a Black girl's hair. Do not ask to touch a Black girl's hair. Do not ask if a Black girl's hair is real. Just do not do it. It's rude and racist and gross. Why would we want your dirty hands on our heads?! Don't white girls have clip in extensions?
+Gargoyle.
NO!
-Long chapters.
-I feel like this was two amazing ideas that just did not come together into one cohesive story. The social aspects are definitely dominant over the magical elements, which is fine. But it also made the magic feel like it was secondary, and just slapped on to lighten the seriousness of the social issues to make the story more palatable? There's an important story here about Black girls' place in society, and it would have been the same if Tavia wasn't a siren. Similarly, Tavia's struggles with being a siren would have been interesting to explore without the BLM theme, as well. Combined, they could have been awesome, but I don't think they were merged well.
Reading updates
- Started reading
- 2 July, 2020: Finished reading
- 2 July, 2020: Reviewed