Winter Tide

Lovecraft but from the monsters perspective? This is fascinating stuff, diving into the minds of the Deep Ones from Lovecraftian myth, completely flipping a lot of the perspective on the mythos. Here humans are very much one of the monsters to be feared, with their own bias and bigotry impacting heavily on our MC (Aphra). Ultimately the themes here are on alienation and otherness, but also found family and community. Such a rich mythos as this deserved such a story. The pathos and the sympathy generated is brilliant, and a lot of what is in here could be used as a parable towards many modern views on migrants and racial segregation. Linking it to the Japanese incarceration in the Second World War was also a master stroke giving it a good grounding in reality.

Essentially this is a character study, the interactions of the characters being the main bulk of the book. All the world building is leaning pretty much into the preexisting mythos around Miskatonic and Innsmouth. The characters that Aphra surrounds herself with are engaging and sympathetic, to counter the prejudice and alienation that exists outside of the group. The characters are all distinctive, with their own voices and feel and the group as a whole very much works.

An intriguing take on one of the most evocative mythos' out there!