‘Fathomfolk’: A Mini Review
“We are but tiny sardines in a behemoth shoal.”
In her debut novel, Chan transports us to Tiankawi, where humans and fathomfolk—mythical creatures of the sea—seek to co-exist. However, like any civilization, this co-existence is not without its issues.
Told in multiple POVs, the story follows Mira - the half-siren, half-human captain of the border guard; Nami - a young, headstrong water dragon & fathomfolk princess; and Cordelia - a cunning sea witch masquerading as the human wife of one of Tiankawi's wealthiest, most influential figures.
The exposition felt slow and drawn out with a lot of detail that could leave some readers (including myself) a bit overwhelmed and confused. The book is a lot more political, less action with less dialogue than I had anticipated. I start getting lost whenever books focus on politics, so maybe that's why I was struggling to truly resonate with FATHOMFOLK on the uptake. It took me quite some time to get through those initial chapters before I started feeling more invested in both the story and the characters. It isn't really until the 40% mark where the action and crux of the story begins and when it really starts to get interesting.
All that aside, the world-building is absolutely gorgeous! Chan's descriptions are so rich that I really felt as if I were in Tiankawi as I was reading. The social and ecological commentary is quite evident as well, which I can appreciate. Definitely worth a read for this alone!
P.S. I recommend keeping a dictionary handy, as there were a lot of terms and words that I did not know!
