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Lost & Found
Nerissa has always been fascinated with humans, but when her seal skin goes missing, she's trapped in human form—which is way more human that she wants to be.
Desperate to find the missing trunk that holds her skin, she winds up at Lorelei's bakery and soon finds herself drawn to the other woman. Lorelei offers Nerissa a place to stay, and friendship soon turns to further possibilities—until the true whereabouts of the missing seal skin threatens to tear them apart.
Desperate to find the missing trunk that holds her skin, she winds up at Lorelei's bakery and soon finds herself drawn to the other woman. Lorelei offers Nerissa a place to stay, and friendship soon turns to further possibilities—until the true whereabouts of the missing seal skin threatens to tear them apart.
47 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 19, 2017
1 person is currently reading
192 people want to read
About the author
J. Holland
27 books1 followerJ. Holland is a wandering soul who finds inspiration wherever she goes. She loves sleeping in National Parks, 12-hour Netflix binges, and cuddling.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
December 11, 2018
This short story is unusual.
Nerissa is a selkie, a shapeshifter that splits her life between her human form and her seal form. Lorelei is a human that owns her own bakery. The tale is about how these two meet and subsequently form a f/f relationship.
The story throws in some extra diversity by having Nerissa be asexual who is attracted to women and Lorelei is a plus sized woman.
There's some decent humor and I liked the folklore spin to it. The book does have instalove and the ending went into a melodramatic territory that brought the story down for me.
Still, it's a short story that's different from the rest. An okay read.
Nerissa is a selkie, a shapeshifter that splits her life between her human form and her seal form. Lorelei is a human that owns her own bakery. The tale is about how these two meet and subsequently form a f/f relationship.
The story throws in some extra diversity by having Nerissa be asexual who is attracted to women and Lorelei is a plus sized woman.
There's some decent humor and I liked the folklore spin to it. The book does have instalove and the ending went into a melodramatic territory that brought the story down for me.
Still, it's a short story that's different from the rest. An okay read.
October 4, 2018
Lorelei has taken up running on the beach to improve her fitness but it's not going as well as she'd hoped. When she flops down onto the sand in exhaustion she finds a half buried chest. Nerissa is a selkie who enjoys being among humans some of the time.
This is a really sweet and short story about two women getting to know one another. There is a bit more to it but to say more would ruin it.
This is a really sweet and short story about two women getting to know one another. There is a bit more to it but to say more would ruin it.
July 17, 2017
*I received this book from NetGalley, and Less Than Three in return for a fair review.*
I'd probably have to check my asexual shelf to be sure, but, even without doing so, I am fairly certain that this is the best asexual fiction short story that I have read. I just loved it, I did. The characters were well constructed - mostly the two mains, though there was some meat on the bones that made up the side characters, the story was solid, the descriptions were sound. Lovely story.
An overweight woman, Lorelei, finds herself bent over gasping and seriously considering that she might be dying. She isn't overweight in a 'thin woman looking in a mirror "my ass is so large"' but overweight in a woman acknowledging that she's overweight, at least according to the BMI (Body Mass Index). She's the owner of a bakery and she's put on the pounds testing food and getting her shop up and running. Running - that's what she had been attempting to do - run.
I have, in fact, read stories that involved people dying fairly early into the story (or, it turns out, they had been in the process of dying, and the story was the rapid firing, albeit last, of neurons in the brain). But no, this is not that type of story.
She did find herself on the sand though. And as she was wiggling, her hand wacked something painfully. Driftwood. She has driftwood furniture. She likes driftwood. Eagerly she pounces on the wood and . . . wait, no, this is an actual treasure chest. Buried in the sand. She eagerly digs it up and flees with it.
Meanwhile a woman named Nerissa is rushing to her job - a job she's almost late for. She works at the library and it is a 'make work' type job. She works a few hours there - I just about said much stuff, but, I'll let others read, eh?
Nerissa, at the end of her work day, returns to her favorite beach. She's horrified to discover that her chest had been stolen. How will she return home? Her skin was in there - the one that allows her, a Selkie, to turn into a seal and swim in the ocean.
One thing leads to another and Nerissa and Lorelei encounter each other and grow close.
Lovely story.
One last note before I depart: Shelves: I put this on wereseal instead of Selkie for the simple reason that I like the idea of having my shifters all in one place, were this and were that. weresnake, werecoyote, werefox, etc. Even if the word I should be using is Selkie. Or, say, Skinwalker in some circumstances.
Rating: 5+
March 24 2017
Merged review:
This is the second time I've read this short story. Freed from the weight, if any, that bears upon me when required to do reviews in an ARC situation, my mind can wander free. Okay, that's stupid - I don't allow ARC's to weigh me down or keep me from rating/reading/reviewing however I want.
Right.
I love the people in this story, and the story itself. While it's a tiny little thing, a short story, and while I feel as if the story probably shouldn't be rated so highly, it's hard for me not to do so. Especially as the actions that unfold are so fun to watch unfold. Especially as some of said actions actually cause me to become teary-eyed. And so I'm left, once again, rating this five stars on Goodreads.
But what else? It's five according to the number of stars I click on here at Goodreads, but what shelf do I put this on? 4.75? That's still considered five stars (by me). 5? 5+? 6? It is a reread, and therefore the six star shelf is now available for occupancy for this specific story (and all rereads).
I'm sure I already mentioned what this story is about in my other review, but if not: a selkie/wereseal finds humans fascinating, and so finds herself spending time near them. Eventually getting an odd job at the library (she gets $20 to put books back on shelves). And then, horrors, after her work day is over she finds that her wooden chest has been removed from her hiding place on the beach. The chest containing her seal skin - that allows her to become a seal and frolic in the sea. Gone. People in the town suspect she's homeless. Well . . . she is now. All but what's on her back and in her pockets were in that chest - most importantly the seal skin, but also most of her money, and most of her clothing (plus odds and ends like seashells). That's one point of view - the selkie.
The other point of view is a chubby young woman who owns and runs a bakery. Her point of view starts with her almost dying on a beach. Or, at least, she thinks she is dying. Opening a new bakery required some testing of her food . . . hence chubby. On the other hand, she has the strength to easily lift and move 50+ pounds of . . . stuff (like sugar and the like). Well, point being that she decided to go running. And almost died. While trying to recuperate, and while flinging her arm out in a 'I'm dying' pose, her hand slams into something solid. A wooden chest. Being that she loves collecting things from beaches, and being that a treasure chest brings back fond memories from childhood, she naturally removes said treasure chest and takes it home with her.
The two women's lives and paths merge when the chubby one (the seal-woman has an athletic build) tries to go running again. And stumbles across a woman swimming naked in the ocean. Naturally . . . she flees, literally, running hard in the opposite direction.
Well, they meet again and the baker human helps the homeless woman. Gives her food and shelter. A bond forms.
Rating: 5+
July 17 2017
I'd probably have to check my asexual shelf to be sure, but, even without doing so, I am fairly certain that this is the best asexual fiction short story that I have read. I just loved it, I did. The characters were well constructed - mostly the two mains, though there was some meat on the bones that made up the side characters, the story was solid, the descriptions were sound. Lovely story.
An overweight woman, Lorelei, finds herself bent over gasping and seriously considering that she might be dying. She isn't overweight in a 'thin woman looking in a mirror "my ass is so large"' but overweight in a woman acknowledging that she's overweight, at least according to the BMI (Body Mass Index). She's the owner of a bakery and she's put on the pounds testing food and getting her shop up and running. Running - that's what she had been attempting to do - run.
I have, in fact, read stories that involved people dying fairly early into the story (or, it turns out, they had been in the process of dying, and the story was the rapid firing, albeit last, of neurons in the brain). But no, this is not that type of story.
She did find herself on the sand though. And as she was wiggling, her hand wacked something painfully. Driftwood. She has driftwood furniture. She likes driftwood. Eagerly she pounces on the wood and . . . wait, no, this is an actual treasure chest. Buried in the sand. She eagerly digs it up and flees with it.
Meanwhile a woman named Nerissa is rushing to her job - a job she's almost late for. She works at the library and it is a 'make work' type job. She works a few hours there - I just about said much stuff, but, I'll let others read, eh?
Nerissa, at the end of her work day, returns to her favorite beach. She's horrified to discover that her chest had been stolen. How will she return home? Her skin was in there - the one that allows her, a Selkie, to turn into a seal and swim in the ocean.
One thing leads to another and Nerissa and Lorelei encounter each other and grow close.
Lovely story.
One last note before I depart: Shelves: I put this on wereseal instead of Selkie for the simple reason that I like the idea of having my shifters all in one place, were this and were that. weresnake, werecoyote, werefox, etc. Even if the word I should be using is Selkie. Or, say, Skinwalker in some circumstances.
Rating: 5+
March 24 2017
Merged review:
This is the second time I've read this short story. Freed from the weight, if any, that bears upon me when required to do reviews in an ARC situation, my mind can wander free. Okay, that's stupid - I don't allow ARC's to weigh me down or keep me from rating/reading/reviewing however I want.
Right.
I love the people in this story, and the story itself. While it's a tiny little thing, a short story, and while I feel as if the story probably shouldn't be rated so highly, it's hard for me not to do so. Especially as the actions that unfold are so fun to watch unfold. Especially as some of said actions actually cause me to become teary-eyed. And so I'm left, once again, rating this five stars on Goodreads.
But what else? It's five according to the number of stars I click on here at Goodreads, but what shelf do I put this on? 4.75? That's still considered five stars (by me). 5? 5+? 6? It is a reread, and therefore the six star shelf is now available for occupancy for this specific story (and all rereads).
I'm sure I already mentioned what this story is about in my other review, but if not: a selkie/wereseal finds humans fascinating, and so finds herself spending time near them. Eventually getting an odd job at the library (she gets $20 to put books back on shelves). And then, horrors, after her work day is over she finds that her wooden chest has been removed from her hiding place on the beach. The chest containing her seal skin - that allows her to become a seal and frolic in the sea. Gone. People in the town suspect she's homeless. Well . . . she is now. All but what's on her back and in her pockets were in that chest - most importantly the seal skin, but also most of her money, and most of her clothing (plus odds and ends like seashells). That's one point of view - the selkie.
The other point of view is a chubby young woman who owns and runs a bakery. Her point of view starts with her almost dying on a beach. Or, at least, she thinks she is dying. Opening a new bakery required some testing of her food . . . hence chubby. On the other hand, she has the strength to easily lift and move 50+ pounds of . . . stuff (like sugar and the like). Well, point being that she decided to go running. And almost died. While trying to recuperate, and while flinging her arm out in a 'I'm dying' pose, her hand slams into something solid. A wooden chest. Being that she loves collecting things from beaches, and being that a treasure chest brings back fond memories from childhood, she naturally removes said treasure chest and takes it home with her.
The two women's lives and paths merge when the chubby one (the seal-woman has an athletic build) tries to go running again. And stumbles across a woman swimming naked in the ocean. Naturally . . . she flees, literally, running hard in the opposite direction.
Well, they meet again and the baker human helps the homeless woman. Gives her food and shelter. A bond forms.
Rating: 5+
July 17 2017
July 19, 2017
Very entertaining novelette. A perfect evening read about the sea, baked goods and a mysterious lost woman showing up on your doorstep. Fun!
April 25, 2017
Lost and Found by J. Holland was a wonderful little story, a sweetly romantic fairy tale that really opened my eyes to the beauty of being asexual, and yet wonderfully romantic.
Nerissa is a selkie who, having grown up on her grandmother's stories, is fascinated with humans. So much so, in fact, that she has taken a part-time job at the library in order to earn enough money to buy herself sweets, clothes, and other human conveniences. Lorelei is a human whose fascination is with the sweets of her bakery, leaving her with a few extra pounds and some sadly all-too-familiar body image issues.
The relationship between these two women is delightful, a true case of love-at-first-sight. Despite her initial attraction, Lorelei only invites Nerissa into her home as an act of well-meaning charity, never knowing that her beach discover is the reason the young woman cannot go home. The two form an almost immediate bond, even as Nerissa's innocent desire for a warm embrace tests Lorelei's restraint.
What makes this story work is Lorelei's acceptance of her lover's asexual nature. Never once does she try to pressure her or make her feel guilty for how she demonstrates her affections. Should Nerissa ever feel ready, she would be eager to take their love to a different place, but she is very much okay with that never happening. Instead, they sleep in each other's arms, watch TV in each other's arms, and share loving embraces wherever and whenever they can. At the same time, while she may be asexual, Nerissa does a wonderful job of helping Lorelei with her body image, making her understand just how beautiful she is, and allowing her to see the strength and the power beneath those extra pounds.
Like any fairy tale, Lost and Found does have a happy ending, but only after their love is tested. For such a short tale, I was surprised at how emotionally invested I became. These are wonderful characters in a unique story that never bows to convention, and never betrays their identities. I loved it.
As reviewed by Sally at Bending the Bookshelf
Nerissa is a selkie who, having grown up on her grandmother's stories, is fascinated with humans. So much so, in fact, that she has taken a part-time job at the library in order to earn enough money to buy herself sweets, clothes, and other human conveniences. Lorelei is a human whose fascination is with the sweets of her bakery, leaving her with a few extra pounds and some sadly all-too-familiar body image issues.
The relationship between these two women is delightful, a true case of love-at-first-sight. Despite her initial attraction, Lorelei only invites Nerissa into her home as an act of well-meaning charity, never knowing that her beach discover is the reason the young woman cannot go home. The two form an almost immediate bond, even as Nerissa's innocent desire for a warm embrace tests Lorelei's restraint.
What makes this story work is Lorelei's acceptance of her lover's asexual nature. Never once does she try to pressure her or make her feel guilty for how she demonstrates her affections. Should Nerissa ever feel ready, she would be eager to take their love to a different place, but she is very much okay with that never happening. Instead, they sleep in each other's arms, watch TV in each other's arms, and share loving embraces wherever and whenever they can. At the same time, while she may be asexual, Nerissa does a wonderful job of helping Lorelei with her body image, making her understand just how beautiful she is, and allowing her to see the strength and the power beneath those extra pounds.
Like any fairy tale, Lost and Found does have a happy ending, but only after their love is tested. For such a short tale, I was surprised at how emotionally invested I became. These are wonderful characters in a unique story that never bows to convention, and never betrays their identities. I loved it.
As reviewed by Sally at Bending the Bookshelf
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October 20, 2018Short and sweet. I liked that Nerissa was so clear about being asexual and panromantic, and I appreciated Lorelei's reaction to their conflict. I would have happily read more of their story. My only complaint was the narrative around Lorelei's weight - the author's intentions seemed good, but it still made me pretty uncomfortable with its focus on validation through a romantic relationship.
April 2, 2017
This book is a beautiful short story. Lorelei, is an overweight baker with a kind heart and has a lot of compassion. Nerissa is an asexaul Selkie. She returns to the sea and she has a chest with her skin in it.
A misunderstanding occurs between the two women leaving Nerissa stranded on land. The two women meet and develop a relationship.
The two form a relationship and have a challenging situation as a secret is revealed.
The story is beautifully written.
ARC copy provided in exchange for an honest review.
A misunderstanding occurs between the two women leaving Nerissa stranded on land. The two women meet and develop a relationship.
The two form a relationship and have a challenging situation as a secret is revealed.
The story is beautifully written.
ARC copy provided in exchange for an honest review.
September 5, 2017
Since I can't resist some fantasy, I had to read this book. I didn't know it was this short, and because of that I was left wanting more.
The relationship between the main characters was my favorite thing. It was so genuine and adorable. One thing that I didn't like, though, was
However, I still liked it. It was really well written and interesting and fun!
The relationship between the main characters was my favorite thing. It was so genuine and adorable. One thing that I didn't like, though, was
However, I still liked it. It was really well written and interesting and fun!
June 5, 2020
This was a cute story; I thought Holland built up the dynamic well. The ending was a bit too rushed and easy, but otherwise I liked it. Also yay, ace rep!
October 26, 2024
3 stars. Cute but ultimately forgettable.
June 5, 2025
wanted to read smth different for a change
September 25, 2024
rep; nerissa is panromantic asexual. lorelei is a lesbian.
this was.......interesting. i think i would have liked it better had the romance been a little slower or drawn out. i mean, they say “i love you” after their first kiss, after knowing each other for a week. i don’t care for insta love. and i felt like the pov switched randomly sometimes and i wasn’t expecting it to, so that was a little off putting. but other than that, it was alright. the story itself, the characters, the queer rep. aside from nerissa and lorelei, there’s marie, lorelei’s employee who see like two times, is polyamorous and dating will, who is asexual, and todd, who is bisexual. i’m not asexual, so i can’t say whether the way asexuality was represented is good or not, but i was glad there wasn’t the usual “i’m asexual, i don’t like sex” explanation. nerissa says, “i am not exactly attracted to girls. or to boys. i’m asexual.” as for her panromanticism, she simply says, “actually, i identify as panromantic.” and that’s it, so there isn’t really anything to critique there.
this was.......interesting. i think i would have liked it better had the romance been a little slower or drawn out. i mean, they say “i love you” after their first kiss, after knowing each other for a week. i don’t care for insta love. and i felt like the pov switched randomly sometimes and i wasn’t expecting it to, so that was a little off putting. but other than that, it was alright. the story itself, the characters, the queer rep. aside from nerissa and lorelei, there’s marie, lorelei’s employee who see like two times, is polyamorous and dating will, who is asexual, and todd, who is bisexual. i’m not asexual, so i can’t say whether the way asexuality was represented is good or not, but i was glad there wasn’t the usual “i’m asexual, i don’t like sex” explanation. nerissa says, “i am not exactly attracted to girls. or to boys. i’m asexual.” as for her panromanticism, she simply says, “actually, i identify as panromantic.” and that’s it, so there isn’t really anything to critique there.
April 19, 2017
I probably would have enjoyed this more if I hadn’t been so annoyed by Lorelei’s blatant theft at the beginning. Yes, the chest is old, but she notes that the lock isn’t nearly as ancient and takes it home anyway.
Aside from that, I’ve always loved selkies, so it was lovely to have a selkie tale with a F/F romance. To have Nerissa be ace on top of that just added a nice hint of originality to the old tale of a stolen skin.
There is a definite air of innocence and wonder about Nerissa, making it hard to tell how old she is (not helped by the author’s use of ‘girl’ and ‘girls’ throughout) and there were times I worried that her asexuality would prove transitory after getting to know Lorelei better. Thankfully this doesn’t happen, although conversely there were times when I felt like she was taking complete advantage of Lorelei’s loneliness.
Lorelei herself is nice and, acts of theft aside, likeable. She is obviously lonely and has self-esteem issues, but is also kind and generous. I really liked how she never presses Nerissa for more, admits that she doesn’t understand about being ace and is willing to follow Nerissa’s lead when it comes to affection, love and anything more. They’re very cute together.
Overall an original take on a more familiar tale. Theft aside, this was an enjoyable F/F novella with an ace character. True, I would have loved it if normal human Lorelei had been ace rather than the magical selkie girl, but you can’t have everything.
(ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley.)
Aside from that, I’ve always loved selkies, so it was lovely to have a selkie tale with a F/F romance. To have Nerissa be ace on top of that just added a nice hint of originality to the old tale of a stolen skin.
There is a definite air of innocence and wonder about Nerissa, making it hard to tell how old she is (not helped by the author’s use of ‘girl’ and ‘girls’ throughout) and there were times I worried that her asexuality would prove transitory after getting to know Lorelei better. Thankfully this doesn’t happen, although conversely there were times when I felt like she was taking complete advantage of Lorelei’s loneliness.
Lorelei herself is nice and, acts of theft aside, likeable. She is obviously lonely and has self-esteem issues, but is also kind and generous. I really liked how she never presses Nerissa for more, admits that she doesn’t understand about being ace and is willing to follow Nerissa’s lead when it comes to affection, love and anything more. They’re very cute together.
Overall an original take on a more familiar tale. Theft aside, this was an enjoyable F/F novella with an ace character. True, I would have loved it if normal human Lorelei had been ace rather than the magical selkie girl, but you can’t have everything.
(ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley.)
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