Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant5 stars
“There was no such thing as silence in the sea.”
Seven years ago, the Atargatis set sail with the hopes of encountering mermaids. Imagine Network was well-known for their foray into mockumentary style searches for cryptozoological breeds. It should’ve been an easy expedition, but something went terribly wrong the mermaids are very, very real and they have a hunger for humans. The crew was lost and all that remained was the floating vessel. Now another voyage, the Melusine, is embarking in hopes of repairing Imagine’s damaged reputation. Many with connections to the ship have arrived with the intention of revenge against the naysayers or against the mermaids themselves. Grant is a fantastic horror writer. I was on the edge of my seat and shocked by all the gory bits. I love horror. I love the feeling of being unsettled and feeling a little queasy if the gore is too much because I love people and even the worse of the characters in this book don’t deserve what they got. Mira Grant is not afraid to go there with the scary bits and it is a bit unnerving. I was incredibly impressed by the first encounter on the Atargatis where we see the mermaids for the first time. As the novel progresses, the science and biology behind these creatures lends for a fascinating and fear-inducing discovery. These “mermaids” who are actually sirens are horrifying and unsettling. They make your skin crawl and are not pretty to look at. The very genetic makeup of them is created to paralyze you, poison you, and allow them to chomp on you. You can’t escape what lurks in the Challenger Deep and if you come face to face with something in its own habitat, does it have the right to kill you or do you have the right to imprison it, dissect it, and discover it? These are some questions Grant subtly addresses. The question that is tackled the most: are humans still the natural born killers they once were and when faced with a predator of higher rank than they, will they kill mindlessly in turn?
Whimsical Writing Scale: 5
“The seas of the world were a vast and interconnected graveyard, every inch riddled with bones and haunted by the ghosts of the lost.”
This novel will try to say that Tory is the main character, but I disagree. We follow so many POVs that this novel has no central character besides the mermaids. Tory is the main focus for the majority of the story because of her connection to the Atargatis and the loss of her sister. Dr. Toth steals the show with her no-nonsense brilliance and her desire to prove that the mermaids she has been giving lectures on and studying are not myths and are not friendly. They are dangerous and her presence throughout this story kept me on the edge of my seat because there is nothing this woman can’t do. Without her half the ship would’ve been rendered even more incapable after the major attacks. There’s Olivia who is the face of this ship and is well-known by the Imagine fanbase. She offers a desire to prove herself as more than a pretty face and overcome her anxiety of social situations. She’s pretty ballsy and has some of the better ideas when it comes to surviving this attack. Theodore Blackwell, who is Dr. Toth’s ex (but not really because they never signed the papers)-husband and the right hand to Imagine’s CEO. I love Theo because of his level-headedness, but also his quiet vibe of being a villain when he’s definitely not. He’s a driven man who will do anything to make sure Imagine doesn’t fail and I also was living for the quiet tension between him and Dr. Toth. My favorite character was Ray, Olivia’s camera man. He was short-lived, but he had great lines. Luis is Tory’s partner (not romantically, think biological team of misfits) and I loved him. He was great comic relief and a definite underdog of not only the biological world but also in this novel. Another great group we follow is three sisters—two deaf twins—and their sister who is well-versed in sign language and hoping to communicate with the mermaids. As well as two very controversial animal hunters named Mishi and Jacques who would be serial killers if they weren’t game hunters (although if I’m not mistaken it was mentioned that they are not opposed to taking out a human who stands in the way of their game). We even follow three dolphins sent in to see the mermaids and I absolutely loved that chapter. More sentient dolphin fiction please. This cast is huge and cinematic. I loved following all of them and I was constantly wondering what was going to happen next to them. Would they survive or would they succumb to the quiet slithering around the ship? I think this quote sums up this story best,
“Every person on this vessel was a story in the process of telling itself, and all of them were fascinating, and all of them deserved to be heard.”
I should probably also mention that besides the deaf-representation, there is also representation of a mobile impaired individual, a bisexual female, and an individual with autism who is also a lesbian. There is also a large variety of characters from around the world, so this book tackles a large scope of humanity. Which is great because humanity is the focus of this novel as it is pitted up against its greatest predatory foe.
Character Scale: 5
“They evolved on their own. They stayed in their own environment until we started sending ships into their living room. To them, we’re the myths. We’re the monsters.”
I will say though that the mermaids don’t show up until Chapter 12. That’s when we have our first encounter and boy is it scary. Absolutely horrifying to follow someone with ambition and hopes of taking their submarine vessel into the Challenger Deep only to realize that they’ve intruded on a fabled creatures’ habitat. So, the pacing up to the showdown is slow, but once we hit the first kill and encounter the pacing speeds up because these creatures are not happy with the intrusion and they are hunting not only for sport but to feed themselves and something much, much scarier than them. (I mean did you really think that the mermaids were the biggest predator of the Challenge Deep? Think again.)
The Villain- These mermaids are horrifying. They have three languages- signing, singing, and one that they steal. Meaning that they can mimic your distressed syllables which makes for a great hunting technique to lure prey. I mean, there’s not a whole lot I want to say besides that because learning and uncovering what makes these creatures horrifying is what makes Into the Drowning Deep so much fun.
Villain Scale: 5
“The Atargatis had found the mermaids because the people on the ship were made of meat, and the mermaids had empty stomachs that they wanted to fill. That was how you found things, in the sea. Be delicious. That was all you ever had to do.”
I only have very small complaints, but they are minor. The romance between Olivia and Tory reminded me of the romance from Jurassic World. Look, I get that you may die so you want to hook up and fall in love, but it just doesn’t make any sense to me as a human being. If I’m being chased by monsters, the least of my worries is my sex drive. (I also just have a problem with this trope in general, so this is a personal preference.) It wasn’t done badly and so it didn’t ruin the novel for me, so props to Grant for not making the sole focus and motivation of these characters for survival it was just an added bonus for them. Finally, the ending seemed to be wrapped up way too easily. I was also unsatisfied. What happens when those who survive get to land and most of all what about that mermaid in the tank? I need a sequel to follow Hallie and her adventures with this creature. I can overlook how easily everything came together because it was still a lot of fun for me. If you are a fan of horror, sirens, mermaids, or the SYFY channels old TV shows like Fact or Faked then this novel is your jam. Seriously, I can’t recommend this enough and I’m so glad it was first official finished novel of 2019 because what a way to start the year. This novel had me at the edge of my seat and I can’t believe it took me so long to read it because this is exactly the type of creepy stuff I love. I will definitely be checking out more Mira Grant (aka Seanon McGuire) in the future because her writing is not only stunning, but I was invested in this epic cast of characters and horrified by the “lovely ladies of the sea”.
“They existed only to catch and snatch and devour. They sang no songs of their own, only songs stolen from the victims of their hunger.”
Plotastic Scale: 4.5
Cover Thoughts: I love this cover. It’s dark and creepy. More creepy siren covers, please.
Thank you, Netgalley and Orbit, for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
Have you read Into the Drowning Deep? Are you a fan of horror novels or siren/mermaid stories? Let me know down below in the comments!
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