"Yanja can’t have just wanted, because just is an empty, useless word. There’s never a just this, or an only that, when someone does something. It’s a web, all tangled together, and the person least likely to unwind it all is the one in the middle."

Rating: Not For Me (but I understand why others may like) - translating to 2.5 or 3 stars because of the potential

This was a very different read from those I usually pick up. The premise sounded fascinating, but ultimately, it isn’t one that worked for me. I definitely think there is a lot here that others may enjoy.

In this world, humans have developed gene technology to allow them to adapt to live in many different places and planets, such as underwater and in desserts. Atuale is a part of the Sea-Clan and chooses to move to live among the land-dwellers on her planet, making a life with the man she loves. However, a terrible plague is making its way through her adopted people, and as her husband lies dying, she teams up with the World Witch, Yanja, to go off-planet in search of a cure.

It’s kind of hard for me to do a list of what I liked and what I didn’t because it was all so mixed together. So I’ll just talk a bit about why it was so mixed.

I think the main reason this book didn’t really hit well for me is because of the length. I’m primarily a character reader, and this book was just too short with too much happening for me to become invested in the characters. I felt like I didn’t have a good grasp on Atuale’s motivations other than that she loved her husband, but then some of the following events made me question what we were repeatedly told, and there wasn’t enough time left to resolve that.

There were flashbacks to Atuale’s time as a member of the Sea-Clan, and I was really interested in these, but I feel like they needed to be much more fleshed out. It felt like it was just giving us a taste of a huge world and backstory that didn’t get explored to satisfaction. I would have loved to see more worldbuilding, to understand the different clans and the politics between them, and even the people themselves. I have absolutely no understanding for what these people look like. There are a lot of mentions of fur, scales, manes, and tentacle type things, but there were no cohesive descriptions, so it really took me out of the story every time something like this was mentioned as I tried to fit it into my sketchy mental picture.

The writing style was another thing I went back and forth on. At first I had a really difficult time with the style, but as I got into the story, I began to enjoy the descriptions and the wordiness to them. There were passages that caused me to pause and reread because I just really enjoyed how the author chose to word it. However, there were definitely times that it felt very purple. Sometimes descriptions got really elaborate for something that felt rather mundane, and I found myself scanning ahead and skipping sections of descriptions when this happened.

I think that this was a really fascinating concept and that was a large reason why I felt so unsatisfied; I was really interested in the flashbacks, the world, and what was going on with the characters and just wanted to understand more. I also appreciated the representation of LGBTQ+ and trans individuals. It was somewhat confusing because we didn’t really have the backstory to explain the history of what they were talking about, but I do like seeing more inclusive stories.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advance e-copy of this work. This did not influence my review.

Sun-Daughters, Sea-Daughters by Aimee Ogden is a science fiction retelling of The Little Mermaid with gender-fluid characters.

Atuale, a princess of the sea clans, sought out genetic modifications from Yanja, the World Witch, so she could live with her love on land. When a plague hits the land people, Atuale is the only one immune. She knows the only chance to help her adopted people is to seek off-world help. And the only one who could help her get off-world is Yanja.

A tricky ask since they were lovers once upon a time when Yanja was a woman.

The worldbuilding is complex even though we only get glimpses of a future where genetically modified humans travel between the stars, colonizing other worlds. The looks at Atuale's past among the sea people was intriguing - bearing litters of children for political alliances, changing gender, acceptable, maybe expected queer lovers.

The writing is descriptive, lyrical, and even lush at times - not easy to do when describing the symptoms of plague. Atuale is a complex, well-developed character, full of determination, strength of will, and the ability to be moved by starlight.

As slender as a novella is, Aimee Ogden packed a lot into it. She left me craving more. I hope she gives us more stories set in this complex future, peopled with such a diversity of beings.

I went into Sun-Daughters, Sea-Daughters knowing quite little about it - I knew I was excited about it but couldn't remember any details. The Little Mermaid allusions became apparent quite early on, however this is not a straightforward retelling (and I found the allusions to be subtle enough to not detract from the new work). It reimagines the fairy tale in terms of biogenetics and space-faring civilisations, and takes up long after the original tale left off.
The world building is the strongest aspect of this novella, I think, and I would like to read more tales set here. However, it did take me quite a while to get into the story itself - although I read the book through in multiple sessions on one day, at times the (admittedly beautiful and very lyrical) writing could be quite confusing and I would have to pause. You're plunged right in to this world very different from our own - and this is part of the novella's magic, but does also lead to some confusion.
I was thoroughly intrigued by Sun-Daughters, Sea-Daughters, and would read more of Aimee Ogden's work.

Curious SFF novella about a woman looking to cure a plague, inspired by The Little Mermaid.

Content warnings include: birth, miscarriage, illness and related body horror, vomiting, semi-explicit sex on-page, sex outside of established relationship (unclear if open or not), mentions of arranged relationships specifically to bear children.

Sun-Daughters, Sea-Daughters was intriguing from the very start.
The exposition of the vast world-building was sparse, but it worked for the story. The glimpses we got were enough for the plot, but I would have loved to see more! This take on gene-altering humanity that has spread to both sea and stars was fascinating and bears little resemblance to humanity as we know it today. I loved thinking about the different possibilities this concept opened up.
That said, I am someone who loves details, and while the story did work the way it was, there was just enough missing for me to not entirely fall in love with it. Especially more details about the physiology of the different human sub-species would have been appreciated, as well as day-to-day living.
What little was there was was excellent, however!

The inspiration of The Little Mermaid was clear. There were some quite overt references without them being cheesy. I liked that this wasn't exactly a retelling - it more focussed on what happens after the traditional events of the fairy tale have come to pass.
Of course there were also changes: the most intriguing change as well as one of the most interesting things about the book was the World-Witch. Yanja's character was hugely fascinating, not only in relation to the overall plot and role in it, but also in relationship to the protagonist, Atuale.

An aspect I also found myself the most curious about was that for the sea-clans it appears to be normal to change sex. Again, this wasn't exactly elaborated, like how sex and gender relates in their society, if only certain circumstances cause the change, if the change only goes one direction, or if it's irreversible. I would have loved to find out more about that.

Lastly, I want to mention the writing. It reminded me a bit of This Is How You Lose The Time War. Which is to say, it has a lyrical quality to it and feels very whimsical at times - but it also felt confusing. I had to read some paragraphs more than once to really understand what was going on, especially with the previously mentioned very dense world-building and lack of exposition.

Overall, I found this a super cool concept with a straightfoward plot. I loved the fairy tale inspiration but that it didn't let itself be restricted by it, I adored the SciFi elements that didn't shy away from the fantastical, and I especially liked the ending. It read fast, which was great because that meant I couldn't get too lost despite the occasional confusion, but I do wish it had been longer, simply to not create space for the confusion in the first place.

Sun-Daughters, Sea-Daughters is one of the first novellas I've ever read, and I was pleasantly surprised at how the author developed such an intricate world and characters in so few pages. This novella is basically part 2 of The Little Mermaid as a space opera. Atuale was part of the sea kingdom, but she came to land to be with the man she loved. Years later, her new people are dying from a mysterious illness. The only one not affected, she has to travel across worlds to find a cure, along with her old friend and first love the World-Witch. Without saying anything to spoil the story, this book is definitely weird. The relationships between the characters are weird, the physical appearances of the characters are weird, and the ending is weird. That being said, it was really good! The writing is absolutely beautiful: it reads just like a fairy tale throughout. Every sentence is lyrical and you can tell how much time the author spent on crafting each one. 3.5/5 stars

Thank you to netgalley for and ARC of this book! Rating more 4.5/5 than 4.

This short novella took me three days to read, to no fault of its own - I simply wasn't in the right space for it. Nevertheless, it's a very lovely read that I hope to read again. The writing is different from what I've read before of Ogden's work; it's poetic, in a way, and reads very beautifully. I only wish the story were longer and we could have learned more about the characters, both what came before and what comes after, and to learn more about the world(s) the live in; it's a very intriguing story.

Minor CW for: sexual content (fade-to-black) and mention/reference to a past miscarriage/stillbirth.

I was so excited to read a sci-fi retelling of The Little Mermaid. Unfortunately, this one just wasn't for me. Despite being a short read, the story was sometimes hard to follow and the plot felt like it was all over the place at times. The prose didn't really work for me either. I do think the world building was really interesting and I enjoyed that aspect of the novella the most. I also loved that it was so casually queer. Even though I didn't enjoy this one as much as I was hoping, I would still encourage you to pick it up if it sounds interesting to you.

**A digital ARC was provided by Netgalley and Tor/Forge in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

"Atuale left the sea to kiss the mountains and the sky. Of course she wants to embrace the stars as well."

A queer sci-fi retelling of the The Little Mermaid? Sign me up!

Atuale is the daughter of a Sea-Clan lord who left her home and her family to be with her land-dwelling lover. She has left her past behind for years, until one day her husband and his clan are dying of a plague. To save them all, Atuale must enlist the help of the World Witch, her former lover.

The premise of Sun-Daughters, Sea-Daughters intrigued me, and I'm glad the book didn't disappoint me. In fact, it was so well-written and it was even better than what I thought it would be.

First of all, I really adore the writing style. While I understand that it might not work for everyone, I truly love how poetic it was and it didn't hinder my reading experience at all. I also love the worldbuilding and the glimpses that we got of this book's entire universe and its different cultures. My only complaint is the fact that it isn't elaborated later on. I really wish we got more details, but to be fair this is a novella and I understand the author's decision not to explore it further.

The plot itself is pretty simple and you can clearly identify the influence of the original fairytale, but at the same time this book feels very refreshing. It's definitely one of the best fairytale retellings I've read so far. I think the pacing is great and last but not least, I love the representation and how everything blends so well.

To sum it up, Sun-Daughters, Sea-Daughters is a fascinating debut novella that spins an age-old fairytale into something unique. I definitely recommend it to those who love sci-fi or anyone who's looking for a short read. I finished this book in just a little over two hours and I desperately didn't want it to end. I'm looking forward to Aimee Ogden's next works and I hope we could see more of this world in the future.

This is an intriguing debut sci-fi novella, following Atuale as she sets out desperately on a perilous journey to save her people. Well-paced, well-written, and imaginative. I enjoyed this.

It’s a bit tricky to review this in any particular detail without spoiling the story. It’s a briskly-paced, slim novella, but one that manages to do quite a lot. Ogden introduces plenty of interesting and imaginative twists on some popular space opera — gene-editing, for example, but also interstellar travel and alien races.

Atuale, the daughter of one of her planet’s faction leaders, left the seas for a life on land. She’s made a life for herself, found love, and not looked back. Now, however, her people are being ravaged by a plague, and she must head back into the water to get help. Teaming up with the “World-Witch”, someone Atuale was very close to before she left her original life, she ventures out into space to find someone with the ability to manufacture a cure. On the journey, she reconnects with Yanja, and is forced to examine her choices. As their quest unfolds, she is also forced to examine what she wants — now and in the future. Can you go home? the novella asks, in a way. And how much are you willing to sacrifice for love, and your people?

While briskly-paced, the novella is not especially action-packed. Not surprising, given the plot, nor is this a problem. The author gives us glimpses of the worlds, people, and places in this universe, as well as the “structure” of the civilizations and how they interact. We’re introduced to different cultures, a future where humanity has ventured out into the stars and employed gene-editing to adapt to new climes and planets. It would be interesting to read more in this setting, to explore a bit more the various people and factions with whom we come into brief contact.

I liked that Ogden doesn’t delve too much into the “science” side of the sci-fi. We’re not given long explanations of this or that technology, which means we can just get on with the story. (Something I always appreciate in sci-fi novels/novellas.) We’re dropped into this universe, and the story pulls us through. What details we need are either given briefly, or we can fill out the details how we want. Despite the spare descriptions, there’s nevertheless quite a rich world, and the societies are well-realized on the page.

If you’re looking for a good, short read, then I would certainly recommend you pop this on your TBR pile. I’m also really looking forward to what Ogden writes next. I hope there will be another book or two in this setting in the future. Recommended.

After receiving a copy of this book, and being assigned by my editor, I reviewed this book on behalf of Booklist.