Epeolatry Book Review: Tidal Creatures by Seanan McGuire

You know what the biggest problem about this book was? Not only was it the hauntingly atmospheric read I needed at the time, but also I had to return to the more prosaic dimension of “reality” once I finished. I know, I know, that’s the case with most speculative fiction; still, it was especially so with this novel. There’s so much spiritual and poetic lore about our moon already, but Seanan McGuire took said lore to a whole other dimension…literally. I’m absolutely not shameless-plugging my own work in here—my poetry is all about exploring time and space, interdimensionally speaking, so you can imagine that McGuire’s story about lunar deities who journey through “tidal” parallel dimensions while existing in a multi-dimensional state within a shared human form was absolutely my cup of fantastical tea. 

As if that wasn’t literary fulfillment enough, guess what? There’s murder mysteries to be solved! It gave Tidal Creatures an extra layer of race-against-time suspense, and made for an intriguing distraction from my own moon-gazing (there was a full moon the night I started the book). Plus, I also had the chance to explore the previously unfamiliar moon mythos (prior to this fantasy work) of the lunar deities. And, without giving away a bit of a spoiler, there’s science that’s blended with magic. These disparate elements—moons, parallel dimensions, scientific research, gods-and-humans-in-one—are all so deftly woven together that it seems as natural and seamless as the moon phases, or the tides it causes. 

Sometimes, however, the book felt too deftly woven together.  By that I mean (and this is partially because I’m an avid reader that jumps right into the pages first before reading the front matter/synopsis etc), I had no idea it was the last book in a series. At risk of being very nitpicky, it read maybe a little too much like a standalone book. Which is a good thing, but I still feel I should have caught on by way of hints throughout this third, and final, book in the Alchemical Journey series. Hints that could hook me to not only realize it was part of a series, but tempted me to read what’s gone before. And, again, I’m going to continue to split hairs a bit, but I wanted a little more “tidal” in the actual read. As in the impact of what would happen, ecologically, if this lunar system was thrown out of balance by the loss of one of the “moons”. It felt both a little unresolved in terms of both remediation (bringing the dimensions back into balance) and the impact, however small. I couldn’t help but ask myself that if these disappearances were just a tiny ripple on the interdimensional surface, then why did they (the lunar deities) need to be in place at all? It risks making this moon-phase journey more of a personal indulgence rather than something that held the fabric of space and time together in a flapping-butterfly-wings sort of way.

But there’s a risk that I’m being too literal in my post-read thinking. All in all, as we enter into the magic of autumn here in the Northern hemisphere, Tidal Creatures is a suitably mystical read as the days shorten and darkness descends upon us earlier in the evening. I’d recommend it if you like your fantasy balanced with more practical “magic” like science and earthbound human relationships. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to gaze up at the moon. See you in the next review!

/5

Available from Amazon and Bookshop.