📚 The Sirens 🎧
✍ Emilia Hart
📖 Fiction/Magical Realism
⭐4/5

🙏 Thank you to St. Martin's Press, NetGalley and the author for the advanced copy of The Sirens. All opinions are my own.
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🎯 What I loved: A story of sisterhood and the unbreakable bonds of women in the throes of abuse, The Sirens is beautifully written and haunting. Like Hart's debut Weyward, the story explored the depths of women's strength and was a thought-provoking tale of multiple sets of women who share deep connections despite the distance, time and secrets pulling them apart. Also of note, the epilogue in this book strategically ties some loose ends together in a way I wasn't expecting, so make sure you stay the course on this one!

🙅‍♀️ What I didn't: I predicted the connections in this book early so if you're someone that wants a twist that you can't predict, be weary. But to me, this book wasn't about the twists, it was about journeys of self-discovery, reflection and growth and that's what I got in spades.
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Read if you love:
*alternating timelines that include references to historical events
*sisterhood and stories of female empowerment
*women overcoming obstacles and the patriarchy
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See also: Beautiful Ugly, The Blue Hour, Weyward, Spells for Forgetting

A story of sisters separated by hundreds of years but bound together in more ways than they could ever imagine. A breathtaking tale of female resilience, The Sirens follows four women as their stories, past and present, collide. This is an extraordinary novel that captures the sheer power of sisterhood and the indefinable magic of the sea through richly woven fantasy and real life events reimagined.

With vivid character development and an intriguing plot, this made for an immersive and rewarding read, especially for fans of the author’s previous work, Weyward.

This should definitely be on your list for next year! ✨Dropping March 4, 2025✨

The Sirens is a historical fiction novel that follows two sets of sisters, spanning hundreds of years apart.

One timeline the year is 2019, which follows sisters, Lucy and Jess. They're both plagued by mysteriously vivid dreams, with a strong pull to the sea. The other timeline travels back to 1800, which follows sisters, Mary and Eliza. They're forced from their small town in Ireland onto a convict ship set to sail to Australia. As the POV alternates between time, mysteries are revealed and questions are answered.

This was every bit intruiging, eerie and atmospheric. I really loved the writing syle and how it pulled me into the story. The descriptions of the sea felt powerful and important. There was the perfect amount of suspenseful mystery surrounding Comber Bay and the secrets within. The setting and characters intertwined smoothly.

I loved the dual timelines and getting to read from each sister in the story. The familial bonds was beautifully done and really showed how deeply it runs. The layers upon layers of strength, determination, and love they had for each other was my favorite part. The female empowerment was outstanding and fierce.

Overall, I really enjoyed this story and plan on reading more from this author.

—𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘚𝘵. 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯'𝘴 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯.—

The Sirens by Emilia Hart

⭐️⭐️⭐️

This story follows the lives of four women, Lucy and Jesse in 2019 and shifts back and forth to Mary and Eliza in the 1800s. The store begins with Lucy, an 18 year old journalism student, with her hands around the throat of a guy that had caused cyber bullying against her, while she had been sleep walking.
In fear of getting in trouble for her actions, Lucy runs off to seek refuge at her sisters place, in a town where it’s rumored to be haunted and men have gone missing. When she arrives at her sisters place, she finds she is missing. Jesse’s phone is still there and the door is open, but she isn’t there. There are also signs that possibly a male visitor has been there. Lucy begins to ask around if anyone has seen Jesse, but no one seems to know anything. Lucy goes back to the house to wait for her sister, and begins to have the same recurring nightmare about 2 sisters on a ship that are fighting for their lives. The nightmares become more and more intense. Lucy finds Jess’s adolescent diary and this leads her to want to start digging deeper into the past.
In 1999, Jesse was a lonely teenager that had been diagnosed with a rare allergy to water. She always felt weird and different. Her young charming art teacher takes interest in her. After reading more about Jesse’s illness, Lucy starts to suspect her parents were keeping secrets that she must uncover.
The story shifts to 1800s and follows two other sisters Mary and Eliza, twins, who are aboard a ship going from Ireland to Australia. The sisters are convicts on a ship with criminals. They are very afraid of the ocean, because their mother drowned when they were young. While they are in the ship they experience extremely harsh conditions of hunger and thirst. They begin to notice weird transformations to their bodies, like the sea is calling to them and turning them into something not human.

I really enjoyed the authors writing of the very vivid character development. This was honestly a beautifully written story, but it was a very slow start for me and it took me a while to actually get into it. It did pick up pace, but there were still parts throughout that had me struggling to keep wanting to read on. All in all the story was pretty good and that’s why I’m giving this book 3 stars. Let me also add that I’m not a big fantasy reader, so this may just be me. If you enjoy fantasy, you may really enjoy this one.

The Sirens is a hauntingly beautiful novel that weaves together dual timelines, exploring sisterhood, female empowerment, and mythological mystery. The Sirens showcase the author's talent for creating atmospheric, feminist narratives that blend historical fiction with supernatural elements.
The book follows two sets of sisters - one on a convict ship in 1800 and another in 2019 - with a compelling mystery that slowly unravels. The book creates an eerie, gothic atmosphere that kept me engaged, with subtle hints of something not quite human lurking beneath the surface.
While the pacing was slow and steady, it did not disappoint. The novel does tackle some heavy themes, making it a powerful and thought-provoking read. A must-read for fans of atmospheric, feminist storytelling with a touch of the supernatural!

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this book, and to Macmillon Audio and Netgalley for the ALC of the same!

I started reading a digital copy of this book, and I was pulled in after a few chapters, but I knew the right narrator could really make the accents and the snippets of songs shine. I wasn't wrong, and Barrie Kreinik did just that. I both read and listened to the novel, and the audio really added to the experience (trying to read accents in my head never works for me).

There were pieces that didn't connect for me - like (view spoiler). I know that's not huge, but it's something that pulls me out of the narrative - like comparing it to my own family life and knowing nothing like that could happen within a small family.

But, that's tiny. The overarching story was excellent. I loved the dual storyline and wanted to know more about what happened in each, and where they overlapped. I think that arc was beautifully written and so well crafted, and I loved the ending.

This is a beautifully written story! I loved this book so much. I still think about these characters. I couldn't put this down. I had to know how it ended.

The Sirens, by Emila Hart, takes place in three distinct time periods--1801, 1999, 2019. In 1801 a convict transport ship leaves Dublin for New South Wales, loaded with women convicts. The trip is horrifying, and several women die from neglect and disease. in 2019, Lucy flees to Comber Bay to find her older sister and escape from a broken heart and frightening sleepwalking episodes. In 1999, readers learn Jess' story. All three time periods are linked by tragedy. Readers who are familiar with Greek tragedy will have an advantage over readers with little or no knowledge of the Greek world, where sirens have their own story to tell.

Hart provides a more nuanced view of sirens than is sometimes found in Greek mythology. As was the case with her previous novel, Wayward, The Sirens focuses on the lives of women and their need for magical protection from destructive and dangerous men. I think it is fair to say that Hart focuses on women's lives and on making sure that women are strong enough to survive in a man's world. The Sirens is beautifully written. It is creative and imaginative and unusual, which is why this novel is such a beautiful rendering. I liked this novel, but I realize there are readers who want a more straightforward story with an easily absorbed plot. That is not the case with The Sirens, where the plot and characters are both complex and unique, but in the end, readers are rewarded with an ending worth the effort.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC. I am recommending this novel.

This was such an amazing book! After reading Weyward, I was so curious if her second story would hit just as hard and it did!

This is an amazing story of female empowerment, finding your sense of belonging, and sisterhood. The story centers on four women and the past and present are slowly and methodically woven together through the pages. Once again, I have to give huge kudos to Hart for all the research that must have went into this book. She is the queen of taking historical events/mythology and creating these unique and magical stories. I am a SUCKER for a book that celebrates female friendships and sisterhood and this brought all the emotions. There were plenty of family secrets and mystery spread throughout that kept me wondering and guessing. The plight of women throughout history was once again so sensitively and realistically written that I am just left amazed by Hart’s writing style.

PLEASE go read The Sirens when it is published on April 1, 2025! In the meantime, give Weyward a read if you haven’t already!

Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartins press for this arc. I can’t explain how much I enjoyed this book.

Being a fan of mermaids, sirens, just any water creature is why picked this up. i am happy i read this. it gave feeling to family and friends. I enjoyed that it had multiple timelines, i think it completes a story well.

Told through two perspectives over two timelines, we follow the stories of Lucy, a student in the modern day who finds her sister is missing; and sisters Mary and Eliza, destined for Australia in 1800. Hart's writing is lovely, slowly bringing the two stories together. I do wish the pacing had been more consistent, as it seems that so much is packed into the end.

3.5 stars rounded.

Loved it! It has a similar feel to Weyward, but it has a different storyline, obviously. I appreciate how the imagery of the authors words invokes a clear picture in your mind. You feel like you're in the cave or in the ship. You can see the scales and smell the ocean. Beautiful book

Firstly, thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me an ARC! This is a 4.75 leaning HEAVILY toward 5, so I’m rounding it up

This book has so many wonderful components added to it. From female friendship through hardship, to atmospheric depictions that take you to the time and place of the story. I truly felt like I was in a small seaside town experiencing a thunderstorm for this entire book. Honestly I highly recommend reading it on a thunderstormy summer day. Emilia has a way of writing for women scorned. If you want to feel female rage, look no further. There are some heavy themes in this so look up the TW! Like in Weyward, this book focuses on women and their struggles in relationships and society while embracing their strength and resilience. The way these things are captured is gorgeous and I can now confirm Emilia is an auto buy author for me.

I will say I am not a huge fan of the epilogue. It kind of ruined that character for me entirely. Especially since (I’m assuming) it involved someone else and it just felt very out of character for both of them. It’s honestly what made me take away that .25 from the rating.

Lucy is a college student who wakes up one night sleepwalking. Not just sleepwalking, but sleepwalking into her ex flings room and trying to choke the life from him. Trying to run away from this situation, she goes to the only person she remembers ever having dealt with sleepwalking. Her older sister Jessica. Lucy drives over a day to her sisters new home, to find her missing. While she waits for Jess to come back, she finds herself unraveling mysteries she never thought possible.

Jessica just moved to a small seaside town called Combers Bay. Combers bay is the home of a mysterious string of disappearances, all of which are men. She is an artist and has an exhibit coming up for her newest paintings, but she’s no where to be found.

Mary and Eliza are twins born by the sea in Ireland. In 1801 after getting convicted of a crime, they are forced onto a female convict boat to go to New South Wales. On the boat they meet other women that were accused of being criminals, and begin bonding from the awful conditions. Eliza is blind and Mary is her eyes. They are told that they will be put in “female factories” when they reach NSW. On this boat they experience real atrocities and are facing imminent danger, on land and sea.

This solidified Emilia Hart as an auto-read author for me. I just love how she takes a topic and makes it her own, while also staying true to some of the lore surrounding what she is choosing to write about. I don't read many stories about sirens, but I was engrossed from beginning to end. I liked how this book was dual timeline and how the present and past intertwined. She created such an atmosphere of suspense with the women being sent as prisoners to Australia in 1800, how Jess's journal filled in more of the story, and the most present timeline from Lily's POV - and what mysteries they all were hiding.

I was so excited when I got approved for this because I have been waiting for this book for a while! It was such a delight and I’m so happy I got the chance to experience this story! I can’t wait for it to get into other’s hands!

I hate to say that if it wasn't for the epilogue, this book would have been better.
The way the stories wove together and the overall mystery was very interesting.
I really just feel like a different epilogue or no epilogue would have been better overall.
Also, there is a random head injury in this that felt a little pointless.

very intriguing fiction, not sure it was to my taste, but not a bad read! good book about family and friends

Thank you to Emilia Hart, Net Galley and St. Martins Press!

The Sirens is a great mix of historical fiction and magical realism that follows three women in different time periods, all connected by a mysterious and dangerous force: the sirens. The book looks at themes of female empowerment, societal expectations, and fate, using the sirens as both literal and symbolic representations of temptation and inner conflict. With three sisters of my own, it really hits different 😭

Hart’s writing brings the coastal setting to life, creating a strong sense of atmosphere with very detailed descriptions. The story moves between multiple decades, and while the timelines are complex, they offer an interesting puzzle that is rewarding.

The pacing is slow, and the structure might be tricky for some readers, as it was a bit for me, but The Sirens is a thoughtful and emotional exploration of memory, legacy, and the forces shaping women’s lives.
If you enjoy books with a lot of atmosphere and deep themes, you’ll probably like this one

The Sirens will be published on April 1, 2025!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5)

While I loved Emilia Hart's Weyward, I did not connect with this book in the same way. I struggled to follow the plot and connect with the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and St.Martin's Press for giving me the opportunity to read this book. I have always been drawn to books that travel across multiple timelines and people and this definitely did not disappoint. This book was beautifully written and I will definitely be reading books from this author in the future.