Thank you to St Martin’s Press for providing this ARC for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Sirens is the sophomore novel from Emilia Hart, the author of Weyward. The novel follows two sets of sisters; Lucy and Jess, and Mary and Eliza. Lucy, arguably the main protagonist of the story, escapes to her sister’s seaside cottage following a sleepwalking event at college that ends in violence only to discover her sister is missing. In trying to find her sister and going through her possessions she finds starting artwork and a web of secrets. Hundreds of years earlier, Mary and Eliza are a pair of twin sisters condemned to exile via a convict ship to Australia. As the book progresses the secrets and links between the women become more evident.

The book is beautifully lyrical and the descriptions of the sea, the artwork, the stench of the ship’s hold are all gripping and vivid. The descriptions and scene settings are such a wonderful part of this book and really immerse the reader in the world of the convict ship and a modern Australian seaside town.

What I did find slightly less successful was the series of secrets and revelations. I felt like within the first few chapters I was going to be able predict the twists and the eventual ending, and in fact that ended up being the case. If having the action spoiled early on in the book is something that really impacts your opinion of a story, be aware of this reality.

Despite the somewhat predictable plot line, it does have a lot of elements that make it very enjoyable, especially for readers of magical realism. The magical elements are interwoven very deftly into the story and don’t seem to outshine the realistic setting. It involves a lot of plot points that make for a good story; revealed secrets, sleepwalking, magically meted out justice, creatures from the sea.

If you loved playing mermaids as a kid and tend to enjoy a book with a justice-oriented backstory, this would be the perfect selection. 4/5 stars!

(Trigger warnings: assault, depictions of grooming, depictions of childbirth, adoption trauma, violence against prisoners)

Emilia Hart, you wonderful, <i>wonderful</i>, woman.

First, I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Second? I'd like to thank Hart for writing this. After Weyward, I wasn't sure anything written could live up to it, but this novel really did tell the stories of these women with such love and care. Lucy, Jess, Mary, and Eliza were all wonderful characters; the connections between them were so elegantly done, I had to sit with it for a while.

It begins in 2019 with Lucy who chokes her secret boyfriend (who released an intimate picture of her on social media whilst denying it) in her sleep. Fearing she just ruined her life, she heads to where her sister (Jess) lives-- the sister she hasn't seen in over a year. Through the novel, we learn more about Jess, but we also get another story set in 1800: the story of Mary and Eliza, sisters taken from Ireland to Australia on a convict ship. On board the ship, they notice things changing about themselves.

In a beautiful manner, Hart tells a story of what it means to be a woman, a story of strength, and perseverance. They way she ties the past to the present is done fantastically yet simply. Once again, you'll find me eagerly waiting for anything more from this author.

Well i loved the concept, the execution fell a little flat for me. While there was lots of action and mystery that kept me wanting to read on, the prose was so redundant and rather repetitive i felt myself consistently losing interest. The ending was good though.

Loved this mishmash of mystery, historical fiction, and magical realism! The story follows two timelines, one of female English convicts who are deported to Australia and the other of Lucy who is struggling with her identity and estranged relationship with her sister. The past timeline drew me in since I absolutely loved Christina Baker Kline’s novel, The Exiles, which delves into this topic. I wanted more from the past timeline and how it related to Lucy’s present day story. In the present day, Lucy finds herself suspended from college surrounding a scandal with her boyfriend. She travels to Comber Bay, an infamous place where men over the decades have mysteriously disappeared to reconnect with her sister. When she discovers her sister has gone missing, she has to uncover long held secrets to find out what happened to her and how it relates to the missing men. I love how Emilia Hart effortlessly weaves in magical realism and her portrayal of strong female protagonists. My one issue (as a dermatologist) is her skin condition, which is described as aquagenic urticaria (but the descriptions of her skin are not accurate— maybe an ichthyosis would have been a better diagnosis).

Overall i recommend this for those you enjoy novels with strong female protagonists, beautiful and accessible writing, historical figures shaping the present, and who want a blend of mystery and magical realism.

This was a magical story. I loved how the characters grew and evolved and also how it addressed a very real and insane condition, a water allergy.

My only complaint was the conflict Lucy had in the very beginning wasn't addressed or resolved. It happened and then was forgotten about by the end. Regardless of whether or not she was justified, it should have been dealt with in some fashion.

I love Emilia Hart’s writing, and this story really grabbed me! If you love stories about sisters, mystery, and strange ties to the past, this could be the book for you!

Wow. I LOVED this.

After enjoying Weyward, I was very much looking forward to Hart's next novel, but I was even more impressed with it than I thought I would be. The voices of the different women's POV's were distinct enough to keep the stories separate, but flowed perfectly together. The atmosphere was spooky in the best way.

The ending was fantastic, particularly the Epilogue. This book should be on readers' radars for the Spring for sure.

I immediately jumped at the chance to read The Sirens. I loved Weyward last year. The Sirens did not disappoint!
With lots of family drama told in two timelines and atmospheric, it's perfect for a gloomy winter read. Lucy, suspended from school, drives herself to her sister's cottage by the sea for refuge, only to find her sister missing once she arrives. Lucy looks for clues in the town, around the cottage, and her own history to find her sister. Full of mystery and love passed through generations, The Sirens was unputdownable.
As with Weyward, there are themes of men's violence and the consequences of that violence. And how powerful woman can be when they are allowed to be themselves.
Such a fast-paced read, I was totally absorbed. The book flew by for me and not to mention how beautiful the cover is!

I really loved Emilia Hart’s previous book, Weyward, and looked forward to this upcoming novel. In similar fashion, I enjoyed the alternating points of view of the past and present characters. I felt the author did a great job setting the scene in for both the location and time periods. I was, however, disappointed with the lack of action in the plot. I hoped for more mermaid and underwater events, but instead got chapter after chapter of diary entries and main character ruminations. I do envision this novel lends itself to be as atmospheric an audiobook as Weyward was which will be quite delightful for any listener.

"The sea gives, but it also takes."

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC!

This was such a wonderfully surprising 5 star read for me. Going in I knew it was up my alley with the mystery, folklore, and feminist vibes, and it certainly delivered on all fronts.

This is a story of female resilience, sisterhood, and connections made through blood and hardships across generations. The novel follows two major timelines that connect throughout the story and lead to a very satisfying end. The mystery was paced in a way that I was honestly excited to dive back in every time I picked up the book again. And when Part 2 started, I was devouring every chapter, trying to find out what came next. I'm talking staying up until 2am on my phone saying "one more chapter" until I could barely keep my eyes open. I did hit a bit of a block in the second half of Part 1 but it quickly built up to an exciting last two parts.

This story reminded me so much of the themes of the writing of C.J. Cooke (especially A Haunting in the Arctic), less so the gothic horror and more the history and folklore, with female stories at the forefront. I would say The Sirens has an eerie undertone that may spook some non-horror readers but I personally felt like it was just enough.

The main characters are four women on unique journeys of survival, self-discovery, and defining themselves in a world that sees them as different. Even though the two main storylines happen centuries apart, they echo each other in their themes of love, loss, family, and the bonds we forge through trauma, hardships, and precious moments of hope and joy.

I'll definitely be thinking of these characters and this story for some time and I can't wait to pick up a physical copy to revisit it when it comes out March 4, 2025. In the meantime, I'm going to take Weyward off my shelf and dive in!

I was jumping for joy when I got approved for the earc. I sure was not disappointed; I am glad I stopped everything to read this book. I loved her first book Weyward and this did live up to my expectations. I love the dual timelines, which weave together. I am equally excited to read from each perspective. I love the magical realism portion, and Hart incorporates this so well in her books. Thank you to. Thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin's Press for an ARC.
4.5 stars

For her sophomore novel, Emilia Hart sticks to the themes she explored first in Weyward:; female empowerment with a strong dose of magic. Sirens according to a myth that most likely originated in Greece, are sea-nymphs whose song lures men to their death. As Ms. Hart in Weyward took liberties with the traditional witch mythology, she also incorporates elements of various myths as well as her own creativity spin in this book. The Sirens are portrayed here as women who have an ancient tie to the sea which many do not understand in themselves. The lead characters, Jess and Lucy, grew up believing they had a rare allergy to water, because when exposed to water their skin turns scaly and shimmery. They also are known to have dreams in which they encounter others of their kind and feel a strong pull to the sea.

We follow Jess and Lucy as Lucy flees her college dorm because of a nightmare from which she awakes in the middle of attempting to strangle her ex-lover. Jess is mysteriously missing when Lucy arrives at her home, but speaks to us through her journal entries. At the same time we are following the story of Mary and Eliza, who are sailing on a convict ship to Australia in the 19th century. We know there is a link between these two pairs, but we don't find out until almost the 90% mark in the book. By that point, we have many questions, and the ending did not fully resolve them.

For the many people who loved Weyward, this book may or may not be fulfilling. It has a great deal less violence, which was, for me, a good thing. In some ways, though, the missing violence ends up leaving some of the reader's knowledge out of the picture. We know early on, for example, that there have been several mysterious deaths in the community but other than the one that is the most contemporary, we don't hear much about them. We assume there are links to the overarching premise, but this is never fully explored. There are many more inconsistencies and plot holes which I won't explain here to avoid spoilers (what I've revealed already comes very early on in the book), but suffice it to say that after the build up to the big reveal, there was plenty that wasn't explained at all.

I read this book quickly, and I have to say that I liked better than Weyward because of the reduced violence. My main complaint is that there were important details that were never answered, at least to this reader's satisfaction. Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely loved Weyward so was so excited to get this through NetGalley and while this was a good story, it just wasn’t a great one. It took me almost a month to finish, while I devoured Weyward in days. This kind of felt like a copy and paste of Weyward just with a different mythology. I was hoping for more and feel like this fell a little flat. Keeping my fingers crossed for future works by Emilia Hart!

2.5

After reading Weyward, I was really looking forward to this book. Unfortunately, I thought The Sirens was messy and disappointing. My main complaint is how drawn out each reveal was. I guessed the main twist pretty early on and spent the rest of the book anticipating a reveal that was too little too late.

The premise was interesting and I enjoyed the multi-generation POVs but every character was weighed down by the same "what's wrong with me??" storyline. I can tell you what's wrong with you!!! I figured it out 100 pages ago and I'm starting to think the author thinks I'm a) dumb or b) oblivious.

There was another late-stage twist that was absolutely bonkers. It made me feel really weird and I don't think any of the characters reacted normally. Also, this reveal was so out of left field (I was too busy focusing on the OTHER obvious twist) that I had to set the book down for a sec. Personally, I did not like how this was handled. It felt VERY anti-adoption which made me uncomfortable.

I am giving this book three/2.5 stars because it was ok and two stars feels harsh (also the cover art is beautiful). Emilia Hart clearly loves telling stories about women but I would love if they leaned more into the magical aspects that are always present. COMMIT TO IT. I spent nearly 300 pages waiting for mermaids and barely got anything.

Disappointing but I'd recommend if you're bored and looking for something new.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to preview The Sirens by Emilia Hart in return for an honest review. I requested this book because I absolutely adored Hart's previous book, Weyward. I was not disappointed!

Hart has managed to tell a deeply weird, heartwarming, devastating, feminist fantasy story about sisterhood, motherhood, and female friendship that left me wanting more. The cast of characters in The Sirens are nearly all women struggling to find their way or cast out from their homes. We find out they are all connected in a very strange way.

I highly recommend this to anyone who likes stories about women's experiences and doesn't mind some fantastical elements. I can't wait to read whatever Hart writes next.

After really enjoying Weyward, I was excited to pick up The Sirens—maybe a little biased going in! Emilia Hart is a talented writer, with beautifully set scenes, immersive, and a strong focus on setting and mood. The atmosphere was darker, which I really liked, and it gave the book a haunting vibe. Much like Hart's previous work, though, the plot felt a bit rushed at the end. The build-up was great, slow, and steady throughout 95% of the book, but the conclusion seemed to wrap up too quickly. As with Weyward, I found myself more invested in the story from the past, the sisters Mary and Eliza. But Hart has a talent for weaving past and present narratives together, highlighting the experiences of all the women across time. Overall, an enjoyable read.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

A beautiful, eerie, poignant traipse through time and psyche and the female experience. Incredible writing and an enthralling, mysterious story of the connection between sisters. I love Emilia’s writing in Weyward, and I loved it even more in the Sirens. The feminist tones in the book woven into the folklore of sirens is stunningly written.

Thank you for the Arc! This was a DNF for me. I really found the intro wild, but also repetitive, and not enough to engage me to want to continue reading.

I really enjoyed Weyward by this author, and this did, to be honest, have the same themes and structure! I liked the characters, but some of the starting setup felt ridiculous, and the magical realism kind of failed for me a little bit.

It wasn't bad, just not a new favourite.

I love this book! It is so beautifully written and I was hooked from the first page to the last. I hope she keeps publishing books! There's just something about her writing style that I can't get enough of!