The Seafarer’s Kiss (The Seafarer’s Kiss #1) by Julia Ember
214 pages
4/5 stars
The Little Mermaid and Ursula meets vikings and Norse Gods with a tiny dash of the Pirates of the Caribbean compass is how I would quickly describe this book.
Ersel (nicknamed Erie) is a young mermaid who just wants nothing to do with the rules and expectations of her kingdom. Instead, she dreams of escaping with her best friend, Havamal, and living a life free to explore the ocean. They used to enjoy discovering lost human artifacts from sunken ships until Havamal broke his promise of running away together by joining the King’s Guard. Ersel slips further from the merfolk society the closer The Grading comes–a time when the fertility of young females is determined and the number of viable eggs they have inside of them are examined. Goaded on by Vigdis, a vicious social upholder, Ersel takes the test and is found to be the most fertile mermaid in decades. Blindsided by the unexpected results and the assumptions that she will breed for the sake of the ever dwindling colony, Ersel flees to be by herself. While heading towards friendly group of beluga whales, Ersel discovers a human that has survived the shipwreck she witnessed. Curious, Ersel ignores the laws demanding no human contact (and that all humans must be drowned to save the secrecy of the colony) and befriends the young shield-maiden Ragna. Their lives take a tumultuous ride full of Gods, revenge, loss, and learning.
The Seafarer’s Kiss is chilling and sweet, sorrowful and courageous, honest and brutal. Tyrants, Loki, and magical tattoos cast a swirl of dark-yet-beautiful fantasy into such a short but deep story. There is an undercurrent of social criticism on how females are valued by their fertility and desires to reproduce. We see a dichotomy of Ersel, who does not want to mate, to be tied down, or to have anything to do with the rigidity that her society has placed on females. This is contrasted by Vigdis, who holds her womb to be more important than her own voice.
The Seafarer’s Kiss takes on several twists that kept me surprised and turning the pages, but didn’t feel out of place. There is exploration of emotions, love, and how they can change and mature as people do. I really liked that this was a short but deep book (I feel like YA doesn’t do that enough). It could have used a little more fleshing out at the end because it seemed a tad too fast there.
Pick this up if you like mermaid stories, YA, vikings, or short novels. I’m also excited that there will be a second book that focuses on Ragna called The Navigator’s Touch!