Books › The Tail of Emily Windsnap (Emily Windsnap #1)
The Tail of Emily Windsnap (Emily Windsnap #1)
208 pages
A buoyant, shimmering plunge into a hidden underwater world where family secrets and magical identities float to the surface.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like holding your breath underwater and opening your eyes to find a glittering, secret world just beneath the surface of everyday life. It moves at a brisk, buoyant pace, pulling the reader along on a current of wondrous discovery and gentle suspense. The atmosphere is distinctly aquatic and shimmering, balancing the cozy, sunlit reality of houseboat living with the thrilling, shadowy depths of a hidden mermaid society. The prose is earnest and accessible, perfectly capturing the wide-eyed awe of a young girl uncovering her true identity and piecing together her fractured family history. It is a deeply comforting yet adventurous read that will delight anyone who has ever stared at the ocean and wished for a little bit of magic.
- Mood
- aquatic
- whimsical
- shimmering
- adventurous
- Tone
- earnest
- wondrous
- accessible
- lighthearted
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- self-discovery · hidden identities · family secrets · power of friendship · longing for belonging
- The writing
- The prose is clear, buoyant, and highly accessible, splashing the pages with vivid, sensory descriptions of underwater magic.
- The arc
- The journey flows from a quiet sense of isolation into a thrilling, wide-eyed exploration of a hidden world, culminating in a heartwarming sense of belonging.
- Who it's for
- Perfect for middle-grade readers who gaze at the ocean and dream of discovering they secretly belong to a magical, hidden world.
Content notes
- parental separation
- mild peril
- imprisonment
About the book
For as long as she can remember, twelve-year-old Emily Windsnap has lived on a boat. And, oddly enough, for just as long, her mother has seemed anxious to keep her away from the water. But when Mom finally agrees to let her take swimming lessons, Emily makes a startling discovery - about her own identity, the mysterious father she's never met, and the thrilling possibilities and perils shimmering deep below the water's surface. With a sure sense of suspense and richly imaginative details, first-time author Liz Kessler lures us into a glorious undersea world where mermaids study shipwrecks at school and Neptune rules with an iron trident - an enchanting fantasy about family secrets, loyal friendship, and the convention-defying power of love.
Description from Open Library.
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