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Our Wives Under the Sea

By Julia Armfield
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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Our Wives Under the Sea tells the haunting story of Leah, a marine biologist who returns from a submerged expedition deeply changed. After her submarine sinks and she resurfaces months later, Leah's wife Miri struggles to understand the changes in her, as Leah drifts into silence and leaves a mysterious presence from the deep ocean lingering in their home. The novel explores the emotional depths of love, loss, and the unknowable spaces between people.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$5000

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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This novel will resonate with readers drawn to poignant, atmospheric tales that blend emotional depth with elements of psychological suspense. It is especially suited to those who appreciate literary fiction with themes of relationship complexity and the unfathomable human psyche.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR (NPR, The Washington Post, Lit Hub, The Telegraph, Goodreads, Tor.com, them, and more)

A FINALIST for the LAMBDA LITERARY AWARD and GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD

"A deeply strange and haunting novel in the best possible way... An impressive and exciting debut novel that may leave you thinking about your own relationships in a new light." --NPR

"Shocking... Achingly poetic... Sharp and beautiful as coral polyps... Armfield exercises an exquisite--even sadistic--sense of suspense." --Ron Charles, The Washington Post

Leah is changed. A marine biologist, she left for a routine expedition months earlier, only this time her submarine sank to the sea floor. When she finally surfaces and returns home, her wife Miri knows that something is wrong. Barely eating and lost in her thoughts, Leah rotates between rooms in their apartment, running the taps morning and night. Whatever happened in that vessel, whatever it was they were supposed to be studying before they were stranded, Leah has carried part of it with her, onto dry land and into their home. As Miri searches for answers, desperate to understand what happened below the water, she must face the possibility that the woman she loves is slipping from her grasp.

By turns elegiac and furious, wry and heartbreaking, Our Wives Under the Sea is an exploration of the unknowable depths within each of us, and the love that compels us nevertheless toward one another.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781250229908

Publisher: St Martin's Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 27 June 2023

Country: United States

Imprint: St Martin's Press

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Weight: 0g

Pages: 240

Collections

Fiction General Fiction Julia Armfield Literary Fiction Sci-Fi & Fantasy Science Fiction

About the Author

Julia Armfield is the author of the story collection salt slow and the novel Our Wives Under the Sea. Her work has been published in Granta, Lighthouse, Analog Magazine, Neon Magazine, and Best British Short Stories. She is the winner of the White Review Short Story Prize and a Pushcart Prize, and she was shortlisted for the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award in 2019. She lives and works in London.

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