(This review is based on an advanced review copy provided by NetGalley.)

I liked this, more or less — I’m intrigued by it — but I’m not sure what to make of it. I wish it were more fleshed out, and that we got more answers, or even just more information to wonder about. It felt like the plot didn’t really kick off until about 70% of the way through, like the first 70% was mostly exposition.

I would describe this book as psychological horror with a touch of body horror. It reminded me a bit of You Feel It Just Below the Ribs, the way most of it is slow and meandering, and Catherine House, with its suffocating atmosphere and how the whole thing feels like a depressive episode.

On paper this sounded exactly the kind of thing I like — quiet, character-centered, literary sci-fi — but I didn’t connect with it as much as I thought I would. It feels literary mainly in the sense of not being very commercial, because it’s slow-paced and not much happens, but the prose isn’t as lush or poetic as I was expecting. Also, parts of it kind of feel like reading Wikipedia pages on oceanography.

That said, I do love the concept/premise of this book and would totally read a sequel if it promised some answers! I also found it surprisingly funny. One of my favorite parts is when the main character finds a message board of women who like to role-play that their husbands have gone to space, and it feels exactly like an absurd subreddit, complete with discourse and mods and elaborate rules about posting.

Rep: Both POV characters are (probably white) women married to each other. No sexual orientation labels are used for either of them.

Content notes: I don’t even know how to describe all the weird stuff in this book. Brief but vivid eye trauma at 76%. Caretaking of a spouse with an unknown illness. Death of a parent. Parent with unspecified degenerative disorder (I'd guess Huntington’s), and POV character who is at risk of inheriting said disorder.

This story is about the relationship between Miri and her wife Leah. Leah has just returns from a submarine mission and is acting strange and removed. She is slowly deteriorating, and Miri is trying to cope with Leah’s curious illness as Leah gets worse and worse.

Our Wives Under the Sea is a beautifully haunting story. Throughout the book there's just a sense of creeping dread and sadness.

I was really excited for this book and was promised a queer haunted novel that was part literary fiction, part horror, part thriller. Although I found this writing style so incredibly beautiful and lyrical, I really struggled to get through this story. Frankly, the story lacked tension and plot for me, and I didn't fall for the characters enough that their presence alone was an excuse for the absence of plot. I remember getting to the halfway point in the story and besides being bored with it all, I realized then that nothing had even happened, not really. To me, this book would have been better if it was much shorter, but even as a short story I would have needed higher stakes. Something more than just pretty writing, you know?

Such a compelling and strong narrative about a woman whose wife comes back from a deep sea dive, not quite herself. The descriptions of what the wife is going through after her return is truly horrific at times and the sadness that permeates there relationship really comes through in the story, but it is also lightened by chapters and moments of their time as a couple prior to the mission and you really get to see what Leah and Miri's relationship was like prior to dive. I think this would make a great book club pick. I can't wait until it comes out to discuss it with others.

Our Wives Under the Sea is a beautifully haunting story of a woman forever changed by a mysterious experience at sea and her wife’s attempt to cope with the impossible. Thank you to @netgalley and @flatiron_books for the ARC!

Leah departs on a deep-sea mission that’s only supposed to last three weeks. When she returns six months later, she is not quite the same and her wife, Miri, is left grappling with the loss of the woman she knew. The story alternates between Leah and Miri’s perspectives as it details the beautiful simplicity of their relationship before Leah’s trip paralleled with the heaviness and horror of what happens to Leah under the sea and how she changes upon her return.

This was one of my most anticipated books of the year and it definitely did not disappoint. Julia Armfield writes with such a languid, poetic prose. The horror element lurks softly in the background like a ghost, building but never quite to a crescendo, which makes the novel all that more eerie and quietly intense.

5 stars

Eerie, haunting, and utterly gorgeous: this book is going to stay with me for quite a while.

Told in two switching perspectives – that of Leah, a marine biologist who has just returned home from a submarine trip gone awry, and her wife Miri, who is dealing with the aftermath of that trip. Miri is our "main" narrator; Leah's sections are shorter, interspersed, and deal with the events of the trip itself. The book is also, in varying degrees, about: the ocean, queerness, long-term relationships, trauma and its aftereffects.

Things I liked: beautiful writing, compelling characters (especially Miri; the book is perhaps best viewed as a character study of her, specifically), compelling plot, very well-done atmosphere of suspense, its genre-bending horror elements. (Netgalley lists the genre of this book as "Literary Fiction", which isn't wrong, but it also tends toward a kind of writing that may appeal to readers of other genres, especially horror; in some places, I was actually quite reminded of Caitlín R. Kiernan's writing.)

My major criticism was actually about the central relationship in the book, which is why I ended up knocking off a whole star on my rating. I didn't feel like we got enough of Leah's feelings about Miri (before the trip) to balance out Miri's feelings about Leah (both before and after it), and so it felt unbalanced – while, simultaneously, some of Miri's attitudes toward Leah after her return seemed to stretch credibility a little. Ultimately this didn't negate everything else I loved about the book, but I felt like there was more that could be explored there, and wanted just a little more than what we got.

Overall, though: highly recommended, and I will be on the lookout for future work from Julia Armfield.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I wasn't familiar with Julia Armfield's work prior to reading "Our Wives Under the Sea" and came into the novel with no expectations. Based on the synopsis, I was expecting it to lean more heavily into the sci-fi side of the story, but really enjoyed that it was more focused on the relationship between Leah and Miri, albeit with an undercurrent of horror. I think Armfield has created some really compelling characters here, and despite the focus (especially in Miri's chapters) being heavy on the minutiae of their relationship and day to day, I was very compelled to keep reading. My only issue really comes with the ending -- I felt like there was too much left unsaid, and I walked away from the story feeling like I had more questions than answers, which perhaps was Armfield's intention.

Overall a great read, and I will definitely be watching for Armfield's next work!

Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield can be explained in three words: lesbian, submarine, heartbreaking.

When Miri’s wife Leah goes on an underwater expedition that lasts longer than planned, she returns strange and removed. Armfield’s novel explores grief, loss, and the helplessness of not knowing how to help the person you love.

This book completely blew me out of the water (pun intended) with its complexity, weirdness, body horror, and just stunning writing. While the metaphors at times got a little heavy handed, it didn’t pull me away from this incredible story. I was wrecked. I fell in love with it and am so excited to see what Armfield writes next.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Also - this stunning cover is the original UK edition. Flatiron really did this book dirty with the American cover.

Our Wives Under the Sea is out now in the UK and comes out in the US in July 2022. Thank you to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Where do I even start? This book is hauntingly beautiful. Our Wives Under the Sea is perfect for any reader aiming to switch up their reading game. It is so eloquently written and just perfect!

This story is about the relationship between Miri and Leah who has just come back from a submarine mission gone wrong, and starts to go through changes, that are physical and emotional.

Julia Armfield truly knows how to tell a story. I found myself reading some pages and lines twice to absorb the wording and imagery. The tones of the story is very well written—those nostalgic feelings, the way she writes horror—and the way she expresses grief should all be complimented. You'll find yourself wanting to get through this story in one sitting but I employ to you do it and two and try to savor every part of this story. It is an amazing queer love story.

Thank you to Netgalley and Flatiron Books, for this e-arc in exchange for my review (honestly, of course.)

No review I write could justify how eloquent, haunting, and masterful Our Wives Under the Sea is.

This story follows the relationship between Miri and Leah, after Leah has returned from a submarine mission gone wrong, and begins to undergo frightening and unusual changes, both physically and emotionally.

Armfield is a master of imagery, and I hung on every single line, attempting to absorb as much of her writing as I could. The tones of nostalgia, grief, transformation, and horror envelop her words, causing you to sink deeper and deeper into the story, until everything else around you fades to black and all you have is Our Wives Under the Sea.

Longer review to come once I’ve processed this deep sea gothic queer love story.

Thank you to Netgalley as well as Flatiron Books, for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

I had high hopes for this book because of the sapphic main characters! Sadly I was extremely disappointed by this book. It was not interesting, the characters were not developed well, and the plot was bad!

This is about a married lesbian couple in which one of them, Leah, comes back from a deep sea mission as a completely changed person. Miri has no idea what happened when Leah was down in the depths of the ocean and is seeking to find out what happened.

I have so many issues with this book. Let's start off with what bothered me most, the short chapters and POV changes. I like short chapters but it didn't work with this story. I often found myself getting interested in one character's POV and then all of a sudden the narrative changes, as well as the time and location. My brain broke while trying to read this book because it would be 2 pages of Miri's POV from the past, then 2 pages of Leah's POV in the past, then 2 pages of Miri's POV in the present. How am I supposed to get invested in these characters if the narrative is constantly flip flopping!

My second gripe is the pacing of this book. I understand trying to make the reader hooked to keep reading but you have to put some bait on the hook first. I desperately wanted more of Leah's POV throughout this story, but her chapters were SO short and never elaborated on anything important to the plot. One of her chapters was 2 ebook pages and 1 page she spends just talking about her crew mate. Like, I don't care about him!!! I want to know what happened to you down there!!

My last gripe, the ending of this book. What?????? The ending literally didn't explain ANYTHING about what happened to Lead on her deep dive mission. It was so vague and uninteresting.

I really wanted to like this book because I am CRAVING for some good sapphic rep, but this wasn't it. Miri and Leah each had their toxic moments and it was extremely unpleasant to read about.

I am inconsolable, and Our Wives Under the Sea is a new all-time favorite book. This story is haunting from the very first page, wrapped up in quiet moments of discontent and uneasiness, expansive dreams of grief and loss. It’s packed with fear and that numb feeling you get when the emotion is too much to bear. The last two chapters brought tears to my eyes as I read the whole thing on the beach with waves crashing in the background. I already want to go back to the beginning of Miri and Leah’s story and find the pieces I could have missed along the way. This is one that I’ll be sitting with for some time, holding it close to me and adoring.

“Our Wives Under the Sea” is such a profoundly beautiful story. I loved every second of it, every page, every line and detail and sentiment. It cut me open but in such a profoundly human, achingly honest way. It was beautiful, and strange, and painful from start to finish.

The author captured so many moments of life and love and loss and grief and hope and fear and uncertainty. I’ve never read anything like it. What an absolutely phenomenal feat of writing. I underlined sentences on every page. Whole paragraphs were bracketed and starred because the writing is so exquisitely beautiful. This is the type of book that will stay with you long after you’ve finished reading it.

*4 stars*

In this “horror” novella, we are following dual perspectives from Miri and Leah. Leah works for the Centre, and goes down in a submarine for a routine research mission, but weeks turn into months, and she comes home…different. Miri is her wife, and she is still reeling from the death of her mother, and now she is dealing with Leah and her new strange way of life.

Leah spends hours soaking in the tub, suffering from bleeding gums, refusing to eat pretty much anything. She is slowly deteriorating, and Miri is trying to cope with Leah’s curious illness as Leah gets worse and worse.

Miri’s perspective focuses on watching Leah’s condition worsen, as well as flashbacks from their earlier days in their relationship. We also see Miri come to grips with her mother’s illness and then her impending death. Leah’s perspective takes us back to what transpired on the research mission gone wrong.

This makes you feel as suffocated as the characters, whether it’s from the pressure of the ocean or the marital pressures within their relationship. This whole thing feels…claustrophobic. There is just an ever-present feeling of alienation and hopelessness throughout.

If you don’t like ambiguous endings or novels, I wouldn’t recommend this. Nothing is really ironed out/explained. I didn’t mind since this book is all about the VIBEZ. If you can connect with the characters, it can also be a bit of a character study.

This book is more atmospheric than character-based or plot-based - if you’re looking for something melancholic, hopeless, and suffocating with lots of ocean/sea metaphors, look no further!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Genre: Literary Fiction + LGBTQ + Horror

This is the story of a lesbian couple, Leah and Miri. Leah’s expedition faces a disastrous fate. Her submarine sinks deep in the sea. She survives this catastrophe but there is a price. Miri thinks her wife has changed and not her true self. All Leah wants now is to be soaked in water, in seawater. Miri wants to know the truth of what happened to her wife under the sea when she returned months later. She searches for answers but at the same time, she will have to think of a way to save the wife she had and knew.

Literary fiction mixed with horror, beautifully written, and metaphoric. This is a weird story, nothing like what I have read before. It is scary because it is subtle enough to make it feel like a real story. The author’s way of transforming Leah was fantastic. The tale is narrated from the two main protagonists’ perspectives with Miri taking the larger part to keep the mystery and scare factor intact. It does not have a linear timeframe but you won’t find a problem in grasping the events as there are not many characters and the events are all about before and after the accident.

I personally think that the whole story can be interpreted metaphorically. To me, Leah represented a fading relationship. When a relationship fades, when you are not sure anymore about a partner, a friend, or a relative that he is the same person he used to be. When you know that he is distanced and changed. That is when you know that this relationship is disappearing from your life, that it is sinking in the sea and is beyond any kind of revival. The ending of this beautiful story depicted exactly this kind of feeling inside me. The feeling of loss but at the same time accepting the fate. Our Wives Under the Sea is extremely atmospheric and melancholic. I know it will stay with me for a long time.

Many thanks to the publisher Flatiron Books and NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader copy of this book.

Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield was a beautiful story about love and grief. The characters and story line was well developed. Would recommend this book to readers and can easily find myself coming back to this book to read.

This book is full of beautiful imagery. I kept picking up my phone to look up each sea creature as it was described to more fully connect with the story. There are poignant ruminations about loss and grief, and how time distorts our memories.

A beautiful piece of prose. It took me some time to get through it and it was very slow-paced, but beautiful nonetheless.

5/5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield follows two wives, Miri and Leah. After Leah returns from a research project under the sea, something has changed about her. Leah tells the before and Miri tells the after.

I loved everything about this book. The two qualities that stood out the most were the characters and the atmosphere. Our Wives Under the Sea is very narrowly focused on Miri and Leah. As someone who loves character-driven stories, I really enjoyed this, but it may not be for everyone. The writing was so interesting that it never felt like the focus on the two characters got tiring, and as the story progressed, we learned more and more about their lives, filling in the intentional gaps Armfield left for us. In some ways, this book is a mystery—but one that will leave you with more questions than answers.

The atmosphere was incredible. Part of the book is literally set under the sea and was written in a perfectly suffocating way. Despite most of the story being the characters' internal thoughts, I felt like I was right there with them. I really enjoyed the creepy mystic vibe. I couldn't always tell what was real and what wasn't, and that added to my enjoyment. Reading this book felt like an experience.

I loved both Miri and Leah and I loved seeing the flaws within them and their relationship. Miri's perspective contrasting with Leah's was heartbreaking. We got to see them before, when they were happy and at peace together, which made Miri's struggle to reconnect with Leah after the fact so much more impactful. Overall, this book is a really impressive discussion of trauma and how deeply it can change your life.

One of the most original novels I have read this year! For fans of Carmen Maria Machado, Julia Armfield is a name to watch in contemporary literature. Two beautifully compelling stories- peppered with brilliant and surprising historical facts, you don't want to miss this ocean gem of a book.