Water Moon
This was such a creative, whimsical work. It is set largely in a world not our own and follows Hana and Keishin as they search for Hana’s father, who ran a magical pawnshop in which customers from our world could exchange their regrets. On what should be Hana’s first day running the shop after her father retires, she wakes to find that the shop has been ransacked, her father and one of the pawned items is missing, and there are dangerous beings who are going to want that pawned item back.
In some ways this reminded me of one of my favorite books, The Night Circus. In that novel, it was exciting to see which new circus tent or act would be described next. In this one, it was which new marvel in this strange new world would be described next. Keishin is from our world, and everything is new for him, from jumping into puddles as a means of travel, to paying for museum admission with the memory of a mistake. However, it does border on being too much. The chapters were short, and it seemed that just about every chapter showcased that kind of whimsy. It started to get a little old and seemed like a case of the author needing to kill some of her darlings.
The writing is beautiful, and there were some charming, descriptive, and creative passages that really stood out:
- “. . . fought a losing battle to keep her mind from getting out of bed ahead of her. Some of her thoughts were already dressed, fastening the last buttons of the pawnshop’s crisp black uniform. Others were already at the office beneath her room, imagining how her father was going to spend the first day of his retirement. . .” (pg. 5 of the Owlcrate edition)
- “The most comfortable bed in the world was the one you needed to get out of before you were fully awake.” (pg. 150)
- “And you are an ocean, Hana. Gentle and quiet, yet powerful enough to sweep away any man or ship. I drowned in you a long time ago and I did not even know it.” (pg. 226)
Aside from there being borderline too much whimsy, there wasn’t much I disliked about the book. There is a significant case of insta-love, but I was forewarned about this, and it didn’t bother me as much as usual since I was prepared. I also think there were times when a Japanese word was used when an English word would have sufficed. For example, Hana names a particular museum in Japanese, which Keishin then translates into English as though he is uncertain of the interpretation (having indicated that his Japanese is “rusty”). It wasn’t clear why the author chose a Japanese word that has a clear English translation, and it sometimes interrupted the flow of the story—though I did appreciate the cultural information.
Overall this was a highly enjoyable read. I think it was the first fantasy book by Yambao, and I’m looking forward to her next one.
The Seep
This is probably not the book you think it’s going to be. Earth has been “softly” invaded by incorporeal aliens called The Seep, but this is not a hard science fiction book or a book about first contact with a new species. It’s much more narrowly focused on how it affects one character—Trina. This short novel swiftly shifts from the invasion to the emotional aftermath of the utopia that The Seep has created. But is it really a utopia?
Chana Porter doesn’t answer that question. However, she does heavily imply that the arrival of The Seep was ultimately a good thing for humanity. It fixed a lot of humanity’s problems, especially those around the environment, health, and violence, and allows people to change in almost any way they want. This becomes a problem for Trina when her wife of many years decides she wants to become a baby again to erase the trauma of her childhood. For Trina this feels like a death, and the event at which this transformation happens is actually called a funeral. The rest of the book is about Trina’s grief over the loss of her wife.
One of the central themes explored in this book is freedom and choice. Everyone has the freedom to do what they want, and because of The Seep they now also have the ability to do what they want. The Seep struggles to understand some of the choices that people make, including Trina’s choice to dwell in grief for so long when she could basically get high on The Seep and be happy. The Seep wants everyone to be happy, and this leads to some confrontations between it and Trina that start to border on horror as The Seep becomes a bit menacing.
Don’t read this book if you’re looking for extensive world-building following alien contact, but do consider reading this if you want a science fiction work that focuses on people’s existential reactions to such contact and an intimate look at one person’s grief about change on both a global and a more personal level. I really enjoyed it.
Pie Chart Challenge – Inclusion for both books (Chana Porter is Jewish, Samantha Sotto Yambao is Filipina).