6/19/2023 0 Comments The Seafarer's Kiss by Julia Ember![]() ![]() This is, at its heart, a really strong character study. I’m trying not to reveal the actual story here, the discovery of which is part of the fun of reading, so forgive the verbal gymnastics. The only thing I will say, based on admittedly brief internet-based research into the other versions, is that this one seems more feminist, featuring female characters prominently as more than victim or villain (those roles get really complex here), constructing a kind of Handmaid’s Tale empathy for the conditions under which the female mermaids must function, and coloring every character’s actions with real motivations that extend further than simply stating that someone is an Evil Witch. I’m living proof that you don’t need to have any connection to the Disney or Andersen stories to understand and like this book. I won’t waste your time with comparisons, since I’m not very familiar with any of the other versions of this story this novel stands on its own, anyway. As with all good retellings, this is a new story, not simply a recast rehashing of something already said. Now, I don’t know any of the versions of the story known to most Americans as “The Little Mermaid” (neither Hans Christian Andersen nor Disney nor subsequent K-Mart bedspread mythos), but I believe The Seafarer’s Kiss is a retelling of the tale, but à la Wicked, retold empathetically from a different point of view (than, at least, the Disney version). The Seafarer’s Kiss by Julia Ember (May 4, 2017) 224 pages. ![]()
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