This characterization makes the reveal of just what is happening on the ship more incredible. Her isolation, suicidal idealization, trauma, and hopelessness are incredibly relatable and harrowing. And of course, being a marginalized woman on a ship insures that nobody will ever believe her concerns regarding the safety of the ship.
Of course she feels a deep suspicion that her child is supernatural. After everything she’s been through, of course Iraxi would want nothing more or less than death. This is a fantasy that is impossible to separate from contemporary reality, and it’s the more powerful for it.Īdditionally, Iraxi herself is a great character with deep realism. Iraxi’s memories of xenophobia, the apathy of state power, and the eventual lynching of her family parallel very well with the Black experience. In my head, I kept thinking, “Climate change, climate change, climate change.” The refugees on the ship remind me of nothing less than climate refugees. A fantastical kingdom plagued by flooding and rocked by xenophobia against an ethnic group reads as scarily prescient. I can smell the human stink of those cabins, the rot of a failing greenhouse, and the sickening crackle of wood and human flesh in a blazing fire.įurthermore, much of Rocklyn’s themes are incredibly relevant. Even as I type this, images of razorfangs, deep and dark ocean water, and the claustrophobic cabins of a wooden ship litter my brain. With every word, every sentence, I can clearly picture in my head the world Rocklyn paints for their reader. However, their heroine, Iraxi, and her plight on the ship, with her own memories, and with her pregnancy remain as compelling as ever.įirst of all, Rocklyn’s prose is beautiful. If the book has some flaws, it’s in the underdevelopment of side characters that aren’t very important to the plot. Sure enough, Flowers for the Sea presents a dark world with a haunted protagonist and striking parallels to our contemporary world. I knew it was going to be great with gorgeous prose and fantastic ideas. Upon hearing Rocklyn was publishing a novella last year, I knew I had to get it. Rocklyn’s writing at Tor, specifically their werewolf short story “ The Night Sun.” It’s a gorgeous take on the werewolf genre, dealing with domestic abuse and self-acceptance.
Rocklyn’s extraordinary debut is a lush, gothic fantasy about the prices we pay and the vengeance we seek.Ĭontent Warnings: Infanticidal Emotions, Suicidal Idealization, Body Horror, Racism, Misogyny, Implied Child Death Her fate may be darker and more powerful than she can imagine. Their fangs are sharp.Īmong the refugees is Iraxi: ostracized, despised, and a commoner who refused a prince, she’s pregnant with a child that might be more than human. Resources are scant, and ravenous beasts circle. Summary: Survivors from a flooded kingdom struggle alone on an ark.
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