THE LOWDOWN:
Everyone in the broken-down town of Chelsea, Massachussetts, has a story too worn to repeat—from the girls who play the pass-out game just to feel like they’re somewhere else, to the packs of aimless teenage boys, to the old women from far away who left everything behind. But there’s one story they all still tell: the oldest and saddest but most hopeful story, the one about the girl who will be able to take their twisted world and straighten it out. The girl who will bring the magic.
Could Sophie Swankowski be that girl? With her tangled hair and grubby clothes, her weird habits and her visions of a filthy, swearing mermaid who comes to her when she’s unconscious, Sophie could be the one to uncover the power flowing beneath Chelsea’s potholed streets and sludge-filled rivers, and the one to fight the evil that flows there, too. Sophie might discover her destiny, and maybe even in time to save them all.
FIRST IMPRESSION:
A mermaid in the creek. Through the haze of grease that formed a scum on the water, iridescent where the sun skimmed the surface, Sophie saw its body—unreal, but unmistakable. Breasts naked under the muck, hair swirling wet and weighty around her—and, yes, a tail, scaled like a fish.
—ARC paperback edition
SNAPSHOT:
Told in unique, lyrical prose alongside shaky illustrations by Jason Polan that evoke a deeper level of personalization to Sophie’s world, this urban fantasy toes the line between fantasy and horror with deft skill.
Sophie’s genuine friendships and relationships, including the alienation and embrace she alternately receives, keep the story firmly planted in the real world, while allowing readers to jump straight into the magical underbelly of a crumbling city.
Perhaps the most amazing part of this novel is how many different female characters there are for readers to love or hate. From young to old, struggling and successful, American or immigrants, women are the core of this Massachusetts town. Sophie (and even her best friend Ella) lives in a world of matriarchs, a place where women are present and strong. She, in turn is powerful in her own right—with or without the magic in her bones.
Appropriate for ages 14+. Some strong language and intense situations. Self-harm, emotional and magical abuse.
The first in this Trilogy, Sophie’s deals with family and heritage, image, identity, loss, and non-romantic love.
GET IT ON YOUR SHELF:
If you…
– Enjoy books with a variety of strong female characters
– Like your fantasy and horror dark and grimy
– Are a sucker for a Prophecy/Chosen One plot line
– Have a place in your heart for talking pigeons, evil grandmothers, grungy foul-mouthed mermaids, and the choice between light and darkness
THE ESSENTIALS:
YA urban fantasy
Hardcover & Ebook, 331 pages
Published May 14th, 2013 by McSweeney’s McMullens (ISBN 1938073363)
https://store.mcsweeneys.net/products/mermaid-in-chelsea-creek
(Review copy provided by McSweeney’s McMullens.)