Title: Soul of the Deep (sequel to Skin of the Sea)
Author: Natasha Bowen
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Publication Year: 2022
Tropes: good vs evil, reluctant hero, fantastical creatures, antagonist turned ally
CW: depictions of violence, enslavement and death
thestorygraph.com description
One life. One choice. One sacrifice.
To save those closest to her, Simi traded away everything: her freedom, her family, and the boy she loves. Now she is sworn to serve a new god, watching over the Land of the Dead at the bottom of the ocean.
But when signs of demons begin to appear, it’s clear there are deeper consequences of Simi’s trade. These demons spell the world’s ruin . . . and because of Simi, they now have a way into the human realm.
With the fate of the world at stake, Simi must break her promise and team up with a scheming trickster of a god. And if they succeed, perhaps Simi can also unbreak her heart along the way, and find herself again.
What I Rated:
Cover: 3.5/5
Title: 4/5
Story: 3.5/5
Pacing: 4/5
So Good I Forgot The Outside World Existed: 3.5/5
Gave Me All The Feels: 3.5/5
What I Think:
Would I choose this over binge watching Living Single or The Great British Bake Off for the 12th time? Why or Why not?
Sorry Natasha, but I’m choosing to laugh at the shenanigans in a brownstone in Brooklyn over this story. I was not pulled into the continuation of Simidele’s story like I thought I would be. I had one eye on my libby app and one out the car window admiring the landscape and the city passing by. I wasn’t surprised by the plot twists, and the interactions between characters felt stilted. I went through the motions with this one.
Did the writing move me? Did the author make sentences that I would frame and hang on my walls?
Yes. I’ve enjoyed Natasha’s descriptive writing since the first book. There’s something so delicious about raking my eyes over a well constructed sentence that plays with the senses. There’s nothing like it. Here are two examples:
“Fear is sown in the tense quick glances she takes, in the hunched set of her shoulders and the small groove between her eyebrows.”
“a tiny cloud of black curls that I know would smell of coconut oil and sunlight”
Was the writing clear and concise? Could I read and keep up with the story after a ten hour work day, through depression brain fog, or in a crowded cafe with noise canceling headphones on?
Yes and no. The plot of the story was pretty easy to follow. I knew who the main characters were, what they wanted, what the obstacles were, and could mostly keep up with all the moving parts. What was a little confusing for me to keep up with was the names and abilities of all the fantastical creatures throughout the story.
What was the world building like? Did I immediately want off this plane of existence so I could inhabit that one? Did I feel transported to the characters’ world?
As noted above Natasha shines when it comes to descriptive writing. I wanted to spend the rest of my life in that ocean off the coast of the Oyo Kingdom, or sprawled on the sand under the hot sun on one of the close by islands. Natasha spared no expense building a world that a reader like myself can immerse themselves in. She avoids info dumping. The information she gives about the world is meaningful to the story. She incorporates many elements of West African mythology and culture, and does a beautiful job weaving them into the adventure.
The story? The meat and potatoes of it all? If a Tik Tok content creator shoved one of those tiny microphones in my face on the street, and asked me what to read, would I recommend this story?
I would have to say yes. I think that both this book and the first are worth picking up. It’s a hero’s journey centering a feisty young Black mermaid in a world that carries both the heavy weight of the transatlantic slave trade and the whimsy and mysticism of a magical realm. There are twists and turns, and lovable characters and a splash of romance.
