MARCH 2019 - AudioFile
In this audiobook, entertainment impresario P.T. Barnum discovers a mermaid and won’t rest until he manages to exploit her. But he meets his match in Amelia. Narrator Cassandra Campbell weaves an air of mystery and vulnerability around Amelia that is tempered by an understanding of people and how they operate. Campbell portrays Barnum as ruthless in his pursuit of attractions for his highly lucrative sideshow. When Amelia becomes part of a traveling show, Campbell makes the outrage of crusading religious zealots palpable and Amelia’s fear of them seem real. Amelia thinks she can leave whenever she wants to, but Barnum has other ideas. Listeners may come to believe there actually was a mermaid named Amelia. J.E.M. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
05/28/2018
Henry (the Chronicles of Alice duology) introduces a twist into the history of P.T. Barnum’s famous Fiji Mermaid hoax by making the mermaid real. Amelia came from the water because of love; now widowed, she wants to see the world and needs money for travel, which she can get from being an exhibition. Barnum’s friend and employee Levi Lyman wants to protect Amelia from Barnum, who will do a great deal for a buck. The shadow of Joice Heth, the old enslaved woman whom the pair exhibited and exploited until her death, lies heavily on Lyman, who is trying to make up for his previous mistakes. Unfortunately, this promising premise flails under the weight of leaden prose, little suspense in the plot, and an obviously well-researched background that nevertheless feels lifeless and flat. Readers are told, not shown, about the issues Amelia has in confronting human patriarchy and racism, so her eventual partial victory over those forces has little emotional weight. This well-meaning story sinks like a stone. Agent: Lucienne Diver, Knight Agency. (June)
From the Publisher
"Beautifully written and daringly conceived, The Mermaid is a fabulous story, in both senses of that word. It's full of magic and passion and courage, set against a convincing historical backdrop in which women, much less mermaids, have only the power they seize for themselves. Henry's spare, muscular prose is a delight. I loved this novel."—Louisa Morgan, author of The Secret History of Witches
"There is a current of longing that runs through The Mermaid: longing for the sea, for truth, for love. It is irresistible and will sweep you away."—Ellen Herrick, author of The Sparrow Sisters
"In her latest novel, The Mermaid, Christina Henry weaves a captivating tale of an intriguing young woman who finds herself in the world of the greatest showman, PT Barnum. Original and magical, this is a novel to dive into and savour."—Hazel Gaynor, New York Times bestselling author of The Cottingley Secret
“Beautifully eloquent language…the credible historical setting will draw readers into this lovely reimagined fairy tale.”—Booklist (starred review)
Praise for Lost Boy
“Christina Henry shakes the fairy dust off a legend; this Peter Pan will give you chills.”—Genevieve Valentine, author of Persona
"A riveting rewrite of Peter Pan...Never wanting to grow up, never wanting anyone else to grow up, doesn't look like such an innocent and charming ambition anymore."—The Wall Street Journal
“Multiple twists keep the reader guessing, and the fluid writing is enthralling...Henry immerses the reader in Neverland and genuinely shocks...This is a fine addition to the shelves of any fan of children’s classics and their modern subversions.”—Publishers Weekly
“This wild, unrelenting tale, full to the brim with the freedom and violence of young boys who never want to grow up, will appeal to fans of dark fantasy.”—Booklist
“Turns Neverland into a claustrophobic world where time is disturbingly nebulous and identity is chillingly manipulated...a deeply impactful, imaginative and haunting story of loyalty, disillusionment and self-discovery.”—RT Book Reviews
“Once again, Henry takes readers on an adventure of epic and horrific proportions...Her smooth prose and firm writing hooked me up instantly and held me hostage to the very end.”—Smexy Books
“We all have a soft spot for the classics that we read when we were growing up. But…this retelling will poke and jab at that soft spot until you can never look at it the same way again.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Lost Boy owes more to William Golding’s Lord of the Flies than it does Barrie, as Henry examines the darker side to leaving a bunch of boys to fend for themselves… This audacious and gripping treatment of this well-known story is expertly told by Henry’s emotive, evocative prose.”—Starburst Magazine
“Lost Boy is a fantastic adventure story with a Lord of the Flies sensibility… Henry’s writing is among the most substantive and touching in the fantasy genre.”—I Smell Sheep
