Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ARC audiobook for review. I loved Weyward so when I saw the author had a new book releasing I had to read it!! I was not disappointed. This book is also historical fiction and jumps back and forth in time between women in the past and present and shows how the storylines are connected. This story connects women across time between a shipwreck in 1800 off the coast of Australia, and the same coast in 1999, and then again in 2019 and the bonds of sisters and the power women have in their fight for their own life and to survive. I liked the mystical element interwoven into the story. This book has similar themes as her previous book, so if you enjoyed Weyward, you will definitely enjoy this book as well. This author is quickly becoming a favorite of mine and I will keep a look out for what she writes in the future!

4.5 stars! Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this advanced copy! You can pick up The Sirens on April 1, 2025.

This book was gorgeously written and came together in a stunning way. I love the moment when you see dual-timeline stories intersect, and maybe it's because I read this in almost one sitting, but I thought it happened seamlessly. The twists were shocking but believable, adding depth and nuance to the story that I really appreciated.

No matter which timeline and characters you interacted with, though, you witnessed beautiful moments of female bravery and womanhood. Were there parts that were difficult to read? Absolutely. But ultimately, the story ends on a hopeful note and pays homage to the generations of women who struggled and survived before us.

Plus, the narrator did a phenomenal job transitioning between Australian and Irish accents. This was also one of the few books where the narrator's singing enhanced the story instead of ruining it.

The Sirens is a magical realism, feminist tale, about 2 sisters in current times trying to connect and a group of women in the 1800s on a prison ship and what their fates have in common.

I have yet to read Weyward yet but It gets raving reviews so i was excited to receive a copy of this ARC by the same author. It was a good story but It wasn’t anything spectacular or blew me away. I was kept interested in the story enough to want to know what would happen but my excitement was pretty minimal. The cover is absolutely stunning and i enjoyed the audiobooks narrator.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I listened to this audiobook while also reading along with the book. I thought the audiobook enhanced the book. There were songs in the audiobook and listening to them was better than reading.


Thanks to netgalley for a copy of this audiobook.

Right from the get go, I had a difficult time with this book. I picked it up and set it down many times and it wasn't until I was granted access to the audiobook from McMillan that I was finally able to make some progress. Weyward was one of my favorite reads of the year when it came out so I was greatly anticipating The Sirens. Unfortunately, this felt too fantasy for me to personally enjoy—where Weyward was more magical realism—and there wasn't enough plot to drive this story forward. Hart has an innate talent for beautiful, luscious prose and it shines through on the page here. Unfortunately, this plot wasn't enough to keep me interested or engaged. With that said, I do think that the audio was well produced and if I had to recommend this book, it would definitely be via audiobook.

I am immensely grateful to McMillan Audio for the early copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was such an enchanting read. It was magical with historical aspects. I loved the mystery but sibling bond to it. It truly pulled me into the sisterhood aspect and the mystery surrounding the missing sister. I loved the dual timeline. It thoroughly kept me engaged, I just had to figure everything out.

I received this Audiobook ARC from St Martin's Press and NetGalley to listen/review. All of the statements above are after I fully listened to the audiobook.

This was my first read by Emilia Hart and I enjoyed it. The perfect amount of suspense and creepy factor. It was a little predictable that Lucy was Jess’s biological daughter. I will read more from Hart in the future.

I ended up DNFing this one about half way through. It felt like it was going in circles and my interest could not be kept. I didn't feel like the alternating POVs had separate voices or characters and it felt repetitive at times. I was hoping for more action and mermaids and atmosphere. The author does have some lovely prose at points but the story wasn't coming together for me. The narrator was good though.

Overall this book was highly enjoyable and kept me interested the entire way through. I did find the reveals/twists to be predictable but it wasn't in the bad way. I wish there was more mythology talked about and included in the book. I got a little confused at the end because so much was happening but overall the pace was good.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC audiobook in exchange for my honest review!
4/5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book was hauntingly beautiful and so unlike any other mythology retelling I have read so far. Normally I am not a fan of multiple point of views across timelines, but I found that I was actually looking forward to each characters perspective.

I highly recommend it!

The plot of the “The Sirens” follows different females and sisters over multiple generations with alternating POV. I enjoyed the change in timelines and seeing the different sides to the hardships and challenges that women were facing among different time periods.

I have to say that Lucy in present day (2019) was definitely the character that captivated me the most. Potentially because she was the most relatable to me being a modern day girly, but I also found her situation of waking up from sleep walking and her distant and strained relationship with her mysterious sister to interest me the most.

I received an audio version from Macmillan Audio for this book.
The narrator was so good. She made the different voices sound very realistic. She also had a pretty good singing voice.
I read and loved this author's book Weyward. I didn't know exactly what to expect from this one but I did enjoy it also. It kept me turning the pages until the very ending which I did not see coming. Not that this is a thriller but still... I did not see that part coming.

Four women from two different timelines. Two sets of sisters. Connected in a way that is almost unbelievable. Until you open your heart and "believe." Also between the chapters are some diary entries from one young woman in 1999.

In October of the year 1800 two sisters from Cove of Cork, Ireland are found guilty of a crime. While it was self-defense they were still convicted and sent to New South Wales, Australia. They were put on a boat along with many other women who were convicted and exiled to Australia. Mary and Eliza are these two young ladies. Their path already paved. Their destination mapped out for them.

In February of 2019 Lucy wakes to a scream. She has no idea how she is there doing what she is doing. She has a young man by the throat. She's strangling him. She has no memory of how she got there or how it happened. She runs. She leaves and goes to her sister Jess. Jess is not home and has no idea that Lucy is on the way. Jess is on a mission of her own. What lies ahead for these two young women is life altering.

What happens in these two sets of sister's lives is a story that you will not believe. It's a tragedy and an awakening. Lives changed forever. I knew that convicts were sent to Australia many years ago. I did not know that boats filled with women were sent and the men there allowed to take them and claim them. To do horrible things. In this story there is a little bit of justice. Just a bit though and not graphic.

This book was a fun read yet also intense in places. A story that made me believe in Mermaids again. While losing a tiny bit of faith in humans who destroyed the Aborigines like the white man did the Indians in the US to make a country a place for convicted criminals that society no longer wanted to deal with. At least in Australia that was the case back then. While this book touches on sexual abuse from a teacher it's not graphic and did not cause any problems while reading.

Thank you #NetGalley, #StMartinsPress, and #Macmillanaudio for this ARC. This is my own true thoughts about this book.

Five stars

A magical , beautiful book full of wonder..and a bit of family mystery. There were some predictable parts but for the most part it was unique.
Thankful to have read this and also to have had the audio version. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

4.5 rounded up.

This was an engaging story with some historical fiction, some mystery, some fantasy. This is my first read by this author and I'll definitely read more from her. A quick read overall. I loved the dark moody tone of the story.

The duel timelines and multiple POVs confused me at first. This is of course is something that would be easier to follow with a physical copy of the book. The narrator has a lovely voice, but for me there wasn't enough variety in her voice to distinguish the different characters. I did listen at 2x speed (like I always do) so that may have exacerbated the issue.

I will say that the skin condition thing was super obvious and I think kind of overdone. It was mentioned A LOT. We get it.

I received the audio arc for this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Of course, this is just my opinion and you are welcome to your own.

I am such a big fan of Emilia's writing. Her way of bringing history and weave it with generations is wonderful. I loved Weyward so when I seen The Sirens I knew I had to get my hands on it! Again we are set in three different time periods with three different POVs. I was gripped from the very first chapter. The little twist had me gasping in the end. A beautiful story of sisterhood and love. I was also fortunate to get an audio arc for this too and the narration was done beautifully.

Thank you to Macmillan audio for the gifted audio arc and St. Martin for the ebook arc.

Hart did a great job of dual timelines — one historical, one more modern — in Weyward, and I felt it was really well executed here as well. It was interesting to get a glimpse into a fascinating and dark bit of history, in Australia being used as a place of exile for criminals, despite the land already being occupied. Hart once again does a great job integrating patriarchy and empowerment in her narratives. The audiobook narrator was great, and definitely elevated the book, especially the podcast segments in the modern timeline.

I loved this book deeply and I loved it in audio as well, the voices really bring it to life and gives another depth to it.

4 stars

This book is a dash of historical fiction, a dash of fantasy, a solid dose of feminism, and overall a fun read (or listen - audiobook recommended when and where accessible).

Because the narrative happens over the course of three distinct timelines, readers need to pay attention to make sure they're keeping up with the events of each moment and the connections between them. While this structure could become overly complicated quickly, it doesn't. I'll admit that I found myself least interested in the earliest timeline (which is the opposite of how these things tend to fall out for me), but even that dip in interest was slight and periodic.

The main activity of the novel begins in 2019 with Lucy, who is attempting to process a horrible event she has experienced (and readers in any kind of know about how these situations CAN be handled on university campuses will want to run right over and punch an admin or two of Lucy's. Yuck). Lucy scoots away from these troubles to go visit her sister, who is suspiciously and inexplicably absent. From here, readers jump between timelines, learn about a peculiar skin condition, and ultimately discover how all of these characters and events connect.

My vagueness is intentional. This is not a thriller, and the connections are not particularly surprising, but part of the joy of this particular narrative is in watching those ties come to light.

This is my second book by this author, and so far, it's my favorite. I recommend this to folks looking for an intriguing approach to an unfortunately age-old situation.

The Sirens by Emilia Hart is though provoking historical fiction and fantasy mashup that will grab your attention from page one and refuse to let go. I loved Weyward so I was thinking incredibly excited for this one. And it did not disappoint. From the beginning the story is full of eerie and dark undertones that left me feeling unnerved. That atmospheric vibe continued throughout the story. I really loved the use of multiple povs and timelines to tell the stories. The folklore and history that surrounded the mermaids made them feel so realistic. This was a truly wonderful work of fiction that makes you think and feel so much. I highly recommend if you're looking for an eerie story full of magical realism and secrets.

The audiobook was excellent. The narrator did a wonderful job at being expressive while still keeping the atmosphere dark and eerie.

Thank you to the publishers and netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Sirens intertwines POVs of two sets of sisters in present day, 20 years prior, and 1800. I was entranced from the beginning and cared about all POVs equally. This novel is the perfect blend of magical realism, mystery, and historical fiction. I deeply hated part of the epilogue, but that is my personal opinion.

Narration performed by Barrie Kreinik was outstanding as always.

I received an ARC and ALC from St. Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.