“We don’t just read to imagine better lives. We read to be introduced to all kinds of lives. Any kind. Not just for ourselves, but for everyone around us. To understand others better. It’s escape, and it’s also a way to become more connected to everyone around you. There’s power in that, you know. In understanding. It’s like magic.” [p. 56]
Lady Evelyn Hasegawa, the daughter of noble parents, is contracted to marry a man twice her age on the other side of the world. Her possessions are packed in her coffin, and she embarks on the Dove for the long voyage. Little does she realise that (a) the Dove is a pirate ship (b) the pirates are also slavers. Befriending young Florian, who is assigned as her guard, she begins to teach him to read.
Flora and her brother Alfie were street urchins before they became part of the Dove's crew. Flora redefines herself as Florian, while Alfie bears the brunt of the crew's vicious and abusive 'hazing'. The siblings (the only Black crew members on board) become inured to violence and cruelty, but Flora -- despite her loathing for the privileged Imperials -- is drawn to Evelyn's soft beauty and kindness. Then the crew captures a mermaid -- an act prohibited by the Pirate Supreme: mermaid blood is a powerful and addictive hallucinogen -- and Flora and Evelyn mount an audacious rescue / escape attempt.
Flora/Florian's dual nature was thoughtfully and evocatively portrayed, though I am not sure why they almost always used female pronouns even when performing the masculine Florian identity. I also liked the non-binary Pirate Supreme, and the witch Xenobia: the novel's emphasis on non-heterosexual relationships was refreshing. While Evelyn and Flora carry most of the story, there are also scenes from other viewpoints: first mate Rake (an intriguing character in his own right, who I'd have liked to hear more of), and the Sea herself. The Mermaid, the Witch and the Sea has a strong theme of the importance of story: of shaping and reshaping one's own story, of magic being a way of looking at the world and changing the course of the story so far.
On the other hand, there is a lot of violence and abuse, mostly but not wholly off-page, which felt weightier than the rather shallow romance between Flora and Evelyn. The worldbuilding also felt somewhat two-dimensional: the Nipranese Empire encompasses most of the Known World [sic]; the Floating Islands have witches, savagery and magic; the Red Shore is where the slavers hang out. The novel's pacing was uneven, with the last chapters feeling rushed and inconclusive.
Some really intriguing ideas and characters here, but they didn't engage me: this may be a function of having read the novel whilst unwell.
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