When survivors of an underwater expedition resurface, they are never the same
Our Wives Under the Sea — Julia Armfield
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Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield
Content warnings included in the footnote of this newsletter.1
What It’s About
Leah is a scientist who was on a deep-sea mission that was catastrophic. They lost crew members, and Leah is not the same. Miri, her wife, is just so happy that Leah is home safe, that she doesn’t notice at first. It’s grief, shock, she thinks. But as time passes and Leah’s condition gets worse, Miri knows something happened to her underwater that changed her forever.
She’s lashing out, staying in the bathroom, hiding secrets and not talking to Miri at all — things she never did before she went under. And what’s stranger, she won’t talk about what they were studying, or what they found, miles below the surface of the water.
Why You Should Read It
This week’s description is shorter than usual for a few reasons. 1.) I don’t want to spoil the book, and 2.) I wanted to talk here about how it’s seen by readers.
The book was initially pitched and marketed as a horror novel, which I can see reasoning for. But I think that steers readers in the wrong direction, and many non-horror readers likely steered clear of this incredible novel because they didn’t know what it was.
It’s a remarkable story about love, loss, grief, and holding on to who we want our loved ones to be rather than who they are now, especially if they have changed over time. I would call this a contemporary novel with a splash of sci-fi horror, but it is largely the former. If you’ve been on the fence about this one, I urge you to give it a chance. Armfield’s beautiful prose made me purchase her other book, salt slow, which I can’t wait to read.
I have to admit, I love the UK cover of this book and have thought about ordering a copy specifically so I can get this cover. Which do you prefer? It’s rare that I prefer books with images of people on the front, but this one is stunning.
Can’t get enough, or looking for a different recommendation? Browse the archives, or check out some popular past recommendations:
A woman turns a passion project into a book and knits the ugliest sweater ever
Read a 1970s historical fiction about a logging town and mothers fighting for their children
Read about a foul-mouthed, chain-smoking, mystery-solving nun
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Content warnings include depression, suicide, near-death scenes, gaslighting.
We've been talking a lot about speculative fiction lately, and it's so interesting to see books that experiment with that form, especially ones that only hover slightly at the line of horror/supernatural - which, it sounds like this one does! Your thoughts on this book sound intriguing, it's inspiring us to pick it up!
I LOVE THIS BOOK. But I had to step outside my horror expectations to get there. It is quietly horrifying in its own way, but I think it’s more just a love story. Reframing it changed my perspective entirely!
Also I actually did spend extra to purchase the UK cover when it first came out and I do not regret it — I feel like the US cover looks like the book takes place on mars 😂