Bethany C. Morrow’s A Song Below Water is the story for today’s readers — a captivating modern fantasy about Black sirens, friendship, and self-discovery set against the challenges of today’s racism and sexism. In a society determined to keep her under lock and key, Tavia must hide her siren powers. Meanwhile, Effie is fighting her own family struggles, pitted against literal demons from her … pitted against literal demons from her past. Together, these best friends must navigate through the perils of high school’s junior year.
But everything changes in the aftermath of a siren murder trial that rocks the nation, and Tavia accidentally lets out her magical voice at the worst possible moment.
Soon, nothing in Portland, Oregon, seems safe. To save themselves from drowning, it’s only Tavia and Effie’s unbreakable sisterhood that proves to be the strongest magic of all.
“It’s beautiful and it’s brilliant.”–Jason Reynolds, #1 New York Times bestselling author and National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature
“An enthralling tale of Black girl magic and searing social commentary ready to rattle the bones.” — Dhonielle Clayton, New York Times bestselling author of The Belles
At the Publisher’s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
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This is really the only book I feel like reading right now. It’s wonderful. Please read it.
A watery and melodic crossroads of the real and the mythic, A Song Below Water lures readers with its seductive and beautifully black siren song. An enthralling tale of black girl magic and searing social commentary ready to rattle the bones.
I love this book so, so much! Bethany C. Morrow delivers a blistering modern classic with this gorgeous tale of friendship and power. A Song Below Water somehow manages to be intensely happy and sad at the same time and all in the balance of great, riveting storytelling. The best YA novel I’ve read all year.
A SONG BELOW WATER is a gorgeous, lush and lyrical YA fantasy about sirens and mermaids, set against a backdrop of racism and sexism. Tavia and Effie’s sisterhood – their strength, their love, their self-discovery – was incredible to read.
The magic and fantasy was woven in beautifully, but the racism and sexism they experience is very, very real. This story combines civil rights history with magical folklore; protests with sirens, sprites and gargoyles. This is a coming-of-age tale that I highly recommend for all ages. It was utterly compelling and unique in every way.
A rich, intricate dive into mythology, misogynoir, and the way the world makes black girls out to be monsters. Like the siren’s song, A Song Below Water is irresistibly compelling.
Morrow masterfully blends the real lives of Black girls in contemporary Portland with a mythic world of sirens, gargoyles, and other supernatural creatures to create a compelling coming-of-age story in which two sisters, bound by love and fate, find their voices and their power.
The world is lush and intense, the voice intoxicating, and the message eternal. Morrow will have you under her spell from page one.
This book was amazing! I loved the fantasy backdrop that was used to cover some hard topics that everyone has been talking about. This book was a powerful novel about community, family, friendship and self discovery and cover the hard topics of racism and sexism in such a way that it was powerful while not being overwhelming. I’m not going to lie some parts were o powerful I cried while listening to the audiobooks because of how relatable the situations were to what we are experiencing across the country in the US. This is a very powerful YA novel and a great book that can be used to start discussions with young adults today.
Bethany C. Morrow has crafted an utterly captivating and powerful tale in A Song Below Water. In a world were supernatural creatures are known but not loved, two high-school aged sisters (by bond rather than blood) navigate their own secret supernatural identities. Rife with racial tensions that echo those of our own reality, and interwoven with creature-biases against the known supernaturals of their world, Tavia and Effie are looking behind their shoulders at every turn, carefully self-monitoring to appear normal and non-threatening, and ultimately living in a fearful and caged existence. Alongside this, they deal with teen heartbreak, family tensions, and social anxieties, and the magical sparkle of the fantasy world certainly makes this fun at points, but overall it’s a heavy, poignant read that makes your heart ache for Tavia and Effie, and the injustices borne by black women and girls in both Morrow’s world and in our own…
I really wanted to like A Song Below Water. I mean it has black sirens. But this was not for me. I gave this book two stars because I felt like I was just thrown into this world with no context, the character has some struggles with being a siren, but I couldn’t bring myself to connect with her. Even when she’s feeling certain things I didn’t feel those emotions in the pages. There isn’t one thing I can say I definitively liked about this book, hence my two star rating.
I very much loved the idea of this book, but the magic didn’t quite make it across the page. I felt like I was thrown into a world where I needed a primer class beforehand (for example: I had no idea what an ekolo was). Because of that, I had a hard time focusing on the wonderful things. The ending also fell a bit flat for me, I didn’t love it. However, I 100% suggest this book if you want to read a book you can’t put down because the emotions come screaming at you. I finished this book thinking “a book like this should never have had to be written,” as all of the microaggressions the two sisters dealt with were heartbreaking. But the thing is, this book had to be written. We have to have more books that shove the inequality and danger of living while black into everyone’s faces. So. No matter what happened with the ending and the magic storyline, you need to read this.
It had a good message but the author tried to fit too much into the story.
Admittedly I only read this book as I received an ARC of its sequel which was hard to get into as a stand alone. That being said though, I really enjoyed it although Fantasy is not my go-to genre. I’m really looking forward to starting A Chorus Rises now.
3.75/5
I received this book as part of my June 2020 YA Unplugged Book Box.
What I liked:
I love the sisterhood and how it develops throughout the story with the two leads. While I enjoy a little romance in all my books, having the story center around their friendship while still highlighting the normalcies of being a teenager (puberty, crushes, finding yourself) was awesome. I enjoyed the variety of magical beings introduced throughout the story and how descriptive the writing was in scenes that I felt like I was picturing the movie happening in my head. I love the way the author intertwines racial and social justice issues, in both direct and indirect ways, and that this fantasy novel centers around two black leads. This book is so relevant to current societal issues that it felt like our present reality with an added layer of magic and its implications (if these special beings were present, how would they be treated, especially in minority populations). I loved the candid narration/storytelling.
What I didn’t like:
This book is definitely not what I would call a quick read. I often felt confused or like I had missed something, until I realized it was just the writing style. While I enjoy having to piece things together versus being told things directly (which I find boring), at times this made my head spin. Having too much unanswered from the beginning left me lost until about half way in. Thinking more answers would come later, by the end of the book I found there were still many aspects, especially with the characterization of the magical beings, that were left undefined. What is an eloko? So overall, I felt like there could have been better world-building. I also had trouble with the pacing, and didn’t feel like the “action” really happened until very late (maybe too late). Literally I didn’t feel like it started to pick up for me until around page 216/286 and even then it wasn’t a page turner. I’m still deciding how I feel about the end, but I think that it feels rushed maybe? Or unrealistic? Incomplete?
Overall, I did enjoy the story that was told, the representation, and the reflection on current societal issues. I just felt a bit unsatisfied at the end, coupled with a lot of confusion throughout.
This book got top marks from me because of the beautiful relationship between found-family sisters Tavia and Effie. The two female protagonists are so well portrayed they could walk (swim? Couldn’t resist) off the page, and the themes of A Song Below Water made my heart ache. The mystery surrounding Effie’s identity kept me turning pages, too. I don’t usually read fantasy in a contemporary setting, and this book changed my mind.
A Song Below Water is a captivating tale about the magic of sisterhood and the importance of being seen for who you truly are.
Empowering and full of surprises, A Song Below Water reminds us how important it is to use our voices, even when we’re afraid. Morrow has created a world that’s both familiar and brimming with fantastical creatures, and the result is timely, necessary, and utterly captivating.
A compelling tale packed with endlessly inventive magical concepts, blazingly current social commentary, and heroines you’ll fall hopelessly in love with. I’m obsessed.
A Song Below Water is a lush, colorful, and deeply moving masterpiece about mythology, the sometimes masked evils of racism, and all the ways the world hurts black girls. An irresistible and perfectly bewitching read that I couldn’t put down!