Desdemona and the Deep

Dark Breakers

by C.S.E. Cooney

In Desdemona and the Deep, the spoiled daughter of a rich mining family must retrieve the tithe of men her father promised to the world below.

On the surface, her world is rife with industrial pollution that ruins the health of poor factory workers while the idle rich indulge themselves in unheard-of luxury. Below are goblins, mysterious kingdoms, and an entirely different hierarchy.

A goblin market narrative that’s also a steep drop into an uncanny, richly painted underworld, C.S.E. Cooney combines 1920s luxury with deeply felt questions of identity and justice that strike at the heart of who we are, human or otherwise.

Genres: Fantasy, Novella, Fiction, LGBT, Queer, Adult, Audiobook

224 pages, Paperback

First published July 23, 2019

About the author

C.S.E. Cooney lives and writes in Queens, whose borders are water. She is an audiobook narrator, the singer/songwriter Brimstone Rhine, and author of World Fantasy Award-winning Bone Swans: Stories (Mythic Delirium 2015).

Her work includes the novella Desdemona and the Deep (Tor.com 2019), three albums: Alecto! Alecto!, The Headless Bride, and Corbeau Blanc, Corbeau Noir, and a poetry collection: How to Flirt in Faerieland and Other Wild Rhymes. The latter features her 2011 Rhysling Award-winning “The Sea King’s Second Bride.”

Her short fiction can be found in Ellen Datlow’s Mad Hatters and March Hares: All-New Stories from the World of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, the Sword and Sonnet anthology, edited by Aidan Doyle, Rachael K Jones, E. Catherine Tobler, Mike Allen’s Clockwork Phoenix 3 and 5, Rich Horton’s Year’s Best Science Fiction and Fantasy (2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018), Jonathan Strahan’s The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year Volume 12, Lightspeed Magazine, Fireside Magazine, Strange Horizons, Apex, Uncanny Magazine, Black Gate, Papaveria Press, GigaNotoSaurus, The Mammoth Book of Steampunk, and elsewhere.

Reviews

[Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽ · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars. Final review, first posted on Fantasy Literature (along with my co-reviewer and GR friend Kelly's enthusiastic review):

This lushly-told novella, a Locus award nominee, is set in an alternative, fantastical version of our world, with strong 1920s vibes to it. There are hidden portals to different realms below our world where magic rules, along with goblins and demons. Desdemona, the goodhearted but initially spoiled and thoughtless daughter of an immensely wealthy coal magnate, overhears her father making a bargain with a goblin or “Kobold” from one of the kingdoms below, for oil to be found on a piece of land he owns. In return, her father will pay a “tithe” of men to the Kobold king, who will be taken to the Kobold’s kingdom for the rest of their lives, to be slaves or whatever the king chooses. Worse yet, her heartless father plans a mining disaster to kill the men not taken by the Kobolds, to hide the disappearance of the others.

Jolted into action, Desdemona figures out a way to get to the kingdoms below to try to retrieve these men. She grabs her cross-dressing (and perhaps more than that … ) friend Chaz to join her on her adventure, opens a portal to the kingdoms below, and promptly gets separated from Chaz.

It’s a wild quest, dark yet hopeful, and filled with danger and mystery, shapeshifting (including gender), and fascinating beasts and creatures of every kind. The world-building is comprehensive, giving the indelible impression that there is much more in these worlds to explore, and many more tales to come. In fact, this is the third novella Cooney has written in this world; she’s currently withdrawn the first two from publication and is reworking them, with the intention of republishing them in autumn 2021. However, Desdemona and the Deep easily stands on its own … though I’m anxious to read the first two works when they become available again.

Cooney’s writing is truly lovely and engaging, with dark undertones throughout.

Objects rocketed overhead and splatted down … Mostly they were soft, rotted things like the faceted fruit of the orchard, jewels melting to slime; a spotted salmon wheezing dire prophecies as it drowned in air; wailing mandrake rootlings, bleeding from mouths and eyes; small winged bodies, limp and broken; more, so much more, all dead or dying, evidence of the Valwode failing, of the senescing dream.

Both Desdemona and Chaz find themselves profoundly changed in the course of their quest. Cooney melds modern sensibilities (gender identity and sexual orientation) with traditional folktale concepts. At one point, a goblin guide named Farklewhit comments to Desdemona: “Now, a Tattercoats is a species of the Nine-Tails genus, from the Thousandfurs family” — evoking and combining two related fairy tales in one character.

There were a few unconventional and even grotesque elements that pulled me out of the story temporarily (for example, Desdemona’s arousal by the rank smell of Farklewhit’s wooly body), but those may be a matter of taste, and I can’t say they didn’t fit with the ambiance of this tale.

I highly recommend Desdemona and the Deep to readers who like evocative, queer fantasy.

[Acqua · Rating 5 out of 5]

Desdemona and the Deep is one of the most unique fae stories I've ever read. Its setting is inspired by the second industrial revolution, but I can only describe its writing style as hallucinatory rococo. It's excessive and excessively detailed, taking the concepts of "whimsical" and "descriptive" to a completely new level, and of course I loved every moment of it. It would probably be too heavy for a novel, but for a novella, it works wonderfully.

This is a story of parallel universes and the boundaries between them, and the ways they maintain balance or don't, as this book is set in three worlds - the human world, the world of the gentry, and goblin underworld. It has the kind of eldritch, morally blue-orange supernatural creatures I love to read about.

Desdemona is the rich daughter of a divorced couple - a woman who became an activist and a greedy mine owner. She is vain and loud and attention-seeking, and unafraid to become a nuisance, which I really appreciated about her. She's such a chaotic character and I loved her character development, mostly revolving around learning to care and fight for other people. Also, she's queer! There's a lot of queerness in this story, because the other most relevant human character is a trans woman and there's a plot-relevant polyamorous marriage.

A central theme here is the fight for worker's right. This book starts with a fundraising for girls affected by phossy jaw, and continues with discussions about occupational hazards; this is, in a way, a story about how rich people don't care about worker's safety, only about how much money they're going to make.
More than anything, this book reminded me of how happy endings can be revolutionary. This book, this gorgeous whimsical book, managed to give a happy ending to characters I thought couldn't fully get one, in a way I didn't expect but that didn't feel contrived either. It's a necessary reminded of the importance of spaces made for those who are not accepted by society.

Also, every portrayal of fae that adheres to heterosexual, cisgender, monogamous norms looks even more dissonant to me now. As far as I'm concerned, fae are inherently queer.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tor-Dot-Com just coming right for my soul with ALL THEIR NOVELLAS, IT'S FINE, I'M FINE.

Desdemona is an atmospheric, slightly unsettling, misty, summer afternoon, but bound in a book. It's frenetic and achy, fierce and full of heart, sharp and delicate. It's fae, but done correctly--all sharp edged smiles and sleepy questions and thorny claws. It's a slow fall from the real world into something new, dark and sepia-toned and gorgeous. It feels and it hurts and it holds you gently until you heal.

It's absolutely beautiful.

[Kathy Shin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here are five reasons why you need this treasure trove of a book in your life:

1. The Prose

The prose, guys. The prose. If you want to see blushing described as "double roses of reverence and rapacious cupidity," then you're in for a treat because that's the whole book. Rich, charismatic, whimsical, and the very definition of purple, the words melt hot in your brain and on your tongue. It's been a while since I had this much fun with language.


2. A Larger-than-Life Protagonist

Desdemona is one of my favourite characters I've encountered this year, and hands-down my favourite female protagonist of 2019.

The thing is, she starts out as a pretty shitty person--rich and spoiled, with a dismissive let-them-eat-cake attitude. My definitive "Oh, I really don't like you" moment was when she mentioned how she enjoys collecting art and artists, not because she cares for them, but because they make her feel prestigious and wanted.

But she grows over the course of the story, as did my opinion of her. Because despite being a prissy heiress, she's also fun, and stubborn as heck, and her relationship with her best friend Chaz is endearing from the start (they are a magnificent duo). And she's not some hapless heroine who inadvertently stumbles into another world. Oh no no, Desdemona will march up to the threshold of worlds and obnoxiously demand that they let her in.

There's really no box you can shove her into, and I love that so much.


3. The Worldbuilding

Three worlds exist in this story. Athe for mortals; Valwode for the gentry (a mishmash of fae-adjacent creatures); and Bana, the kingdom of goblins.

If I were to sit here and write out everything I love about the worldbuilding, I'd be siting here typing out the entire book for you. So trust me when I say that it's incredible. There are details that left me grinning and wanting to roll around in its richness. Like the notion that the fae are as affected by human art as humans are by fae magic. So things like poetry become a weapon and a shield in Valwode.

But my favourite part? How, despite all the beauty, the story doesn't let you forget that magic has fangs. That these worlds aren't just about glitter and gold, and their brutality goes hand in hand with beauty. There's an almost alien quality to it that you don't fully understand, but one you're drawn to regardless. And those are the fae stories I want.


4. Themes of Justice and Art Prevailing in Darkness

This is a story about a mortal who ventures into another realm for a rescue mission. And usually, with those types of stories, the object of said rescue is a loved one--a spouse, a sibling, a child. Here, it's not a rescue mission for the heart, but a mission to right a wrong. Because Desdemona was party to an injustice she initially ignored, and she wants to fix that. That to me is incredibly refreshing.

And from there we see the class struggles of the mortal realm (a kind of an alternate early 19th century Europe) being echoed in the magical realms, the idea that compromises exist, and Desdemona giving life back to the women who had it taken from them.


5. Just the Utter Joy of It All

Everything about this story, from the language to the characters to the worldbuilding is gaudy in the best way. It's ostentatious, it's heartfelt, it's beautiful, and most importantly, it's entertaining. You turn your head and you find something new and even more wondrous and strange than the last.

This book made me incredibly happy during a time when I desperately needed to feel happy, and for that I'm eternally grateful.

So, please, PLEASE. Give your brain a treat it sorely deserves. Go pick this up.

[LordTBR]

DNF

Not really feeling it.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review originally published at Fantasy Literature.

Desdemona and the Deep (2019) is C.S.E. Cooney’s third novella in the DARK BREAKERS series, but is a self-contained story that can stand alone. A finalist for the Locus Award for Best Novella, Desdemona and the Deep is a dreamy, sensual trip through the otherworlds. I’ll let Cooney set the scene:

Four stories above the Grand Foyer of the Seafall City Opera House, each painted panel in the barrel-vaulted ceiling depicted a scene from one of the three worlds. Which world it happened to be depended on the tint and tone of the panel: daylight was for Athe, the world of mortals; twilight represented the Valwode, where the gentry dwelled; and midnight belonged to Bana the Bone Kingdom, home to all the koboldkin. Through these wheeling coffers of world-skies — day dancing into dusk, dusk swirling into night, night into day again — cavorted the bright-winged, the beautiful, the bizarre. In that ceiling, at least, human and gentry and goblin all intermingled together, like they had in olden days before the doors between worlds were barred and the boundaries set.

The world is not quite our world, the time period something like the early twentieth century. There are cars and electric lights, radium girls and girls with phossy jaw. Women can vote, but it’s a recent development. Desdemona Mannering is the daughter of an estranged couple: her father a robber baron, her mother a do-gooder who campaigns for women’s rights and workplace safety. Desdemona herself is kind of spoiled and shallow, at least at the beginning. She’s never really thought too hard about where her family’s wealth comes from, and she’s oblivious to something important about her best friend, Chaz.

Coming home drunk after one of her mother’s benefits, Desdemona eavesdrops on her father and witnesses something shocking: her father, conversing with a mysterious figure in the fireplace, bargaining away the lives of his workers as a tithe. In exchange, he wants an oil deposit to be found on his land. The next morning the papers proclaim a horrific disaster at H.H. Mannering’s coal mine.

Seized by guilt, Desdemona decides to travel to the Bone Kingdom to save the men. Her ancestral home, the Breakers, is an ancient portal between the worlds, so she won’t have to go far, at least on the surface. But the Valwode and the Bone Kingdom have plenty of dangers in store for her and for Chaz.

The story is a feast for the senses. It’s told in elegant, frothy prose with a vein of dry wit. Desdemona’s character development is really well done; she is changed in important ways by her journey, while still remaining recognizably herself. I also liked, for lack of a better term, the faerie logic. There were several times I learned something about how the realms worked and thought, “Oh, yeah, that makes total sense!” Not human-sense, but sense nonetheless.

Cooney wraps up Desdemona and the Deep with a satisfying resolution to a subplot I hadn’t even realized she was going to revisit. This was beautifully done, and the perfect way to end it.

Let’s be honest, you probably already know if you like this kind of story (I do)! And if you do, what are you waiting for?

[Maëlys · Rating 3 out of 5]

☆ 3 / 5 ☆

“In the Valwode art is the only thing that can teach an immortal how to die, as a human dies.”

Desdemona is a rich girl with divorced parents, an army of artists to fund, and one best friend in the whole world, Chaz. Her world gets turned upside down when one night she overhears her father make a deal with a spirit in the fireplace: he will pay a tithe with the lives of his mine workers in exchange for the ore and wealth of his mines. She decides to rescue the miners left behind and uncovers the links between the world of humans and the world below.

The atmosphere of both worlds is enthralling and supported by a writing style that could almost be overbearing but just fits so well with all of the extremes of this book.

Throughout this novella art and beauty intermingle seamlessly with rotten and dark things.The charade of charity in the beginning can’t hide the poor condition of phossy girls but only accentuates the disparity between a rich elite who can bid extravagant sums of art, dresses and alcohol, and the exploited workers having to sacrifice their health, sometimes with outwardly glaring consequences.

However, once stepping into Valwode all pretenses vanish when the only witnesses are unnerving creatures and goblins. This world becomes a sanctuary for those who feel they belong there, those who find a new home better than the world of humans.

This is the case for Desdemona’s best friend Chaz, a trans woman who can finally appear as she is in this world. Although Desdemona’s acceptance is immediate, prior to the characters’ plunge into Valwode, Chaz isn’t out and is thus misgendered by the main character for a good part of the story.

While I thought the plot and ideas behind that story were well executed, I didn’t really end up caring for the characters. Desdemona was still a character you can root for, after all she is on a quest to rescue innocent mine workers and she is driven and determined.

I thought this was absolutely fascinating, it was all very contained in this one story (you don’t need to read the two previous novellas in this series to understand this work), and I really loved the ending.

Youtube ☆ Twitter

[laurel [the suspected bibliophile] · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love CSE Cooney's writing. Her imagination is glorious.

Basically: Desdemona is the spoiled daughter of a mining baron who journeys to the fae kingdoms to rescue miners her father bargained for in search of profit.

A little more in depth: A spoiled socialite realizes the depth of her own complicity in her family's business, and sets off on a journey to make it right that has her reevaluating her place and purpose in the world and the entire concept of justice and reparations. This journey takes her and her best friend into the worlds of the fae and the goblins. Both are transformed by the experience.

Critiques on late 19th and early 20th century coal mining practices, capitalism and upper class philanthropy abound.

Also, it's queer as fuck.

[Lata · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the flamboyance and extravagance of C.S.E. Cooney’s text and of Desdemona herself in this story of an over-privileged young woman who wakes up to the ugliness of what sustains her life.
Desdemona lives a fabulous life, until she discovers that immense suffering and deaths of factory and mining workers is necessary to create and sustain her lifestyle, thanks to an agreement her family made many years ago with the ruler of a magical realm called the Deep. Deeply disgusted, Desdemona decides to change things and retrieve the latest batch of sacrificed humans back to their lives on earth.

This is a story of travel to parallel, different, magical world, and of personal and physical transformation. The imagery was beautiful and vivid, and there was such a sense of energy and fun to the text, making this a pleasure to read.

[Hélène Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very personal and rather original, but I didn't like it much.
A point particularly disturbed me: the relation of the heroine with her best friend, whom she's supposed to love and care for, but in fact use and even abuse regularly. The narrative choice to name her "he", even though she clearly identifies as a woman, pressed on the impression. It's very probably involuntary (reading on the story one understand this choice), but I still found their relation unbalanced, unhealthy and disturbing. The fact that the writer was head over heels in love with their heroine didn't help either.

[Bart · Rating 2 out of 5]

(...)

Sadly, Cooney doesn’t really explore these issues – they are important for the general set up of the storyline, but it’s all a black and white affair, no grey at all. Who doesn’t oppose a rich mine boss sacrificing hundreds of lives to find a new oil field? Who doesn’t oppose working conditions leaving people severely maimed? Similarly, the transgender character’s feelings are hardly portrayed – on the contrary, it’s a shallow, flat character that behaves as no real people do: she falls in love instantly, rescinding a regular life for something completely unknown, all because of a character she just met for a couple of hours.

But of course, these are not real people – these are characters in a 2019 fairy tale. One could argue to cut the fairy tale – as a genre – some slack: it’s supposed to be black and white. It’s supposed to be that way because – from Grimm onward – published fairy tales were meant for children, and children need their moral lessons spelled out to them loud and clear. Pondering upon the difficult childhood of the witch or the carnivorous nature of the wolf would only confuse our toddlers. Yet while Desdemona And The Deep has a YA feel at times, its audience is not children – the language is to difficult for that.

(...)

Please read the full review on Weighing A Pig Doesn't Fatten It

[Francesca Forrest · Rating 5 out of 5]

Desdemona, the impetuous, tempestuous, sometimes petulant heroine of this breathtaking story, is out to undo a wicked bargain her grasping father has struck with the Kobold King. She’s used to getting her way, but this quest will demand much of her, will change her—and that’s a central theme of the story. What makes us what we are, and when and how and why can/do/should we change?

“I am my mother’s daughter,” [Desdemona] said softly, and wished—how she wished!—it was really true.

Fear not, Desdemona. For no one in this story is birth destiny. Everyone undergoes a change (into something rich and strange).

Desdemona and the Deep shows that the pursuit of justice takes not only determination and sacrifice, it also takes imagination. “Dream wild. Dream dangerous. Dream true” commands Kalos Kantzaros, the Kobold King. In all the layered realms of mortals, gentry, and koboldkin, never was a better command uttered. Hear and obey! (… And while you’re at it, enjoy this soaring, swooping story.)

[Olivia · Rating 2 out of 5]

There are some really good ideas here, and some wonderful descriptive passages, but overall the book needed at least two more rounds of revisions- everything happens far too fast and easily, and Desdemona herself doesn't really seem to be a whole character. Is she a spoiled, if cunning, socialite who only cares about fashion and parties? Or is she deeply affected by the guilt of knowing that her family's fortune is built on the deaths of innocent people? I know that it's possible she's both, but the journey to reconcile those two aspects isn't made thoroughly enough. It's frustrating, because there's real and honest talent on show, here, but it just isn't developed and focused enough.

[Sunny Lu · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5! Queer and magical af, wish themes were explored a bit more throughly, the writing was very quirky and sweet

[Ciara · Rating 3 out of 5]

*REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS*

I picked up Desdemona and the Deep on a whim at a con, and the blurb made it sound very promising. I'd give this book 2.75 stars if I could, because I found it a bit of a let-down. The promises of a rich and imaginative fantasy adventure in the world of the fae are somewhat fulfilled. C.S.E. Cooney paints a beautiful and fascinating picture of every level of the three worlds in which the story takes place, and I would happily read books worth of her worldbuilding. I was intrigued by the Athe (the story's version of our own world) which drew heavily on the early 20th century. The Athe Cooney describes is rich, and though it is hard to unpick how the gender, class and sexual politics fit into this version of history*, it really mostly made me want to read more about it. The writing style of this book was gorgeous, and the imagery was so immersive that at several points I almost got out my tablet to start sketching them, as they inspired me so greatly. I love faerie stories where bargains, cleverness, and blue-orange morality come into play, so the Valwode and Bone Kingdom were exciting places to read about too.

Now I've talked about what I liked, onto what I didn't.

The characterisation is bizarrely poor. It feels like Cooney had multiple different Desdemonas in her mind when she penned the story, and couldn't commit to any of them. Is she a spoiled and self centred, yet clever young woman, or a compassionate activist concerned with the welfare of those below her in the social pecking order? The book's narrator tells us repeatedly she is the former, and the beginning makes some moves to that effect. Desdemona's introduction shows her petulantly assisting with her mother's social justice fundraiser for Factory Girls with Phossy Jaw with "an expression borrowed from her father's face - boredom, a hint of disdain, poorly disguised exasperation", and refers to her mother's campaign as "Phossy Girl Follies". However, when she gets home and overhears her father making a deal to sacrifice his workers' lives for new oil, she is devastated, and sets off on a dangerous rescue mission to retrieve them. This scene was clearly meant to read as Desdemona's worldview shattering - revealing her opulent lifestyle as one built on exploitation and cruelty. But this is hard to buy from a twenty seven year old woman who was hours before attending a fundraiser for abused and exploited workers to fund a hospital wing for them to die in. Desdemona rolls her eyes at the Phossy Girls plight, and a chapter later despairs at the ‘revelation’ that her money comes from worker exploitation. Furthermore, several characters talk about how Desdemona is clever and devious, but this is never actually shown in the text. Nyx claims she has “many teeth and claws”, and Farklewhit calls her “duplicitous and far from innocent”, but these traits never help her advance, or undermine her quest. Though we are told these traits make Desdemona the right candidate to free Susurra, the key she holds comes not from her sharp wits, or underhanded methods, but from just knowing where her mom installed a secret room in her house.

I understand that good characters contain flaws and contradictions, but this characterisation is bizarre, and doesn’t make Desdemona feel human and complicated. Rather, it does the opposite, and makes her feel like a few cardboard cutouts that the author switches out whenever it is plot convenient.

This book’s characterisation issues continue with the background characters. Chaz is probably the second most important character in the story, but everything to do with her feels rushed, confusing, and disjointed. Chaz is introduced as a true lover of art, which supposedly allows someone to move within the Valwode. However, Chaz has almost no bearing on the plot except to be shoved in as a love interest at the last minute. She seems to transform from the only person who can put up with Desdemona and match her wit, to a passive love interest for Susurra, and even more confusingly, Alban Idris. There is no relationship development for this at all, the characters pretty much just meet and then declare themselves deeply in love and then all get married. It unfortunately felt like Cooney was trying to tick ‘trans’, ‘bisexual’ and ‘polyamorous’ diversity boxes. I hate saying forced diversity because the term is usually used to deride any representation of marginalised characters, but this storyline felt completely out of the left field and incredibly under-developed, which does a real disservice to the minority characters, who deserve stories with depth, nuance, and agency.

The pacing of the book was another issue I had. The plot seems to move around the characters like soup. It felt like a lot more time was spent in the first half, and then the second part was written in a hurry and if not for the craft of the prose I could have mistaken it for an early draft. Once Desdemona enters the Valwode, only three events really happen: she is taken to Mirradarra Doorway so she doesn't pass out, she finds Susurra’s prison without much difficulty, and Chaz gets married. The plot doesn’t really challenge any of the characters and force them to grow. This plays into the weak characterisation. The characters and plot feel disconnected. Sure, the plot technically couldn't happen without the characters’ actions, but it's hard to see how things would have turned out any differently if some other background character who knew about the secret room at Breakers had gone instead. The plot resolves far too easily and demands too little from its characters to make it feel interesting. I think the novella format would be a good choice for a story like this, but it needs to be much more tightly written, and this book really should have gone through several more rounds of review and revision.

These issues in the book mean that any themes introduced fail to properly be resolved. Desdemona and the Deep introduces a lot of interesting ideas that I think could work really well in this world. A lot was introduced regarding nature vs nurture, and whether children are doomed to follow in their parents footsteps. Desdemona’s introduction, where she is immediately compared to both her father and mother, sets this up, and is soon asked by the Kobold King whether “she is her father’s daughter, or her mother’s,” setting this up as a central conflict in the book. I think if it had been written more intentionally, Desdemona choosing to forsake the Athe, and by extension, both of her parents’ roles, could have been a very satisfying take on the theme, but it seemed to be dropped halfway through in favour of an uncomplicated ending. This also ties into the novella’s focus on class inequality, and how power granted by wealth corrupts. I think this theme falls short because of the author’s unwillingness to truly challenge the novella’s characters. Desdemona and Chaz both come from extreme wealth, but besides Desdemona’s brief musing on how her perfume was paid for in blood money, there is little examination of or reflection on their role in this system. Desdemona seems to have some unresolved feelings about her role due to her nightmares, where she sees her reflection as a Phossy Girl with a mouth full of burning matches, but this is not further explored.

It is also unclear what Desdemona and the Deep is trying to achieve with its feminist themes. Desdemona is stated to be a clever woman with questionable morals, but she never solves any problems with her wits, and her morality is pretty much in line with what the plot requires to resolve quickly. The situation of women in the Athe is a bit confusing, as it is unclear to what degree it fictionalises history.* That said, the line “the world is a war zone and beauty can be weaponized, so treat all makeup like war paint” was so shallow and out of place that it actually made me cringe. Inserting a line pulled straight from 2015 era Tumblr choice feminism into a historical fantasy book was jarring enough, without even going into how complacent and materially useless this brand of feminism is (I know this is comparatively small compared to my broader structural critiques of the book but it really bugged me. DM me for my feminist essay about late capitalist beauty culture.). I feel that some really interesting themes were introduced into this world, but the book’s other issues like characterisation and plot pacing meant they failed to resolve in a satisfying way, which made the whole book feel rushed and undercooked.

Have you ever seen a beautifully rendered picture drawn by an artist who has no idea how anatomy or perspective works? The contrast of Cooney’s beautiful stylistic prose and gift for vivid imagery and the weak characters and storyline in Desdemona and the Deep gives a similar feeling. Overall, this novella just leaves me frustrated, because there is so much potential here that just doesn’t go where it needs to.

* How is it that women have supposedly only just gained the right to vote, and are implied to not be able to inherit property, but Ranli is the breadwinner to two house husbands? How is Salissay a successful journalist if women have little social power? Is this normal? Are they exceptions? Were Desdemona's affairs with women conducted in secret? How does the relationship between women’s and LGBT rights work in this universe? I would love to have a long chat with the author about all this, as my feminist history knowledge is mostly 1970s onward, so I’m interested to know how Cooney’s world all fits together.

[USOM · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)

Desdemona and the Deep is an eerie story about family, sacrifice, and the faerie. Haunting and lyrical, this novella features our heroine Desdemona as she is tested beyond what she could even imagine. In a world of dreams and bargains, will Desdemona emerge the same? Desdemona and the Deep is a story about righting our family's wrongs. It's a story featuring a cast of queer characters mixing goblin market vibes and a 1920s setting. You will feel the darkness of the shadows, the luxurious feel of silk, and the eeriness from each page. Living a life of privilege, one day Desdemona uncovers the skeletons in her house. The costs of her glittering dresses and lacquered houses. It's about a moment where we realize our complicity. The blood that drips from our jewels and necklaces, running into our crystal goblets.

full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/revi...

[Vanessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A jewel box of delights, of decadent beauty, industrial horror, and magic. There's darkness here, especially in its allusions to real-world horror ("Phossy Jaw" was actually a real condition once suffered by workers in the matchstick industry). But there is also hope and triumph in a most satisfying ending. This journey to fairyland (two fairylands, actually) reminds me a bit of Catherynne Valente's Fairyland series with its lavish details of fairy-wonder. . . but starring decidedly adult characters in adult situations. And Cooney's voice is always her own.

[Marit Rae · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastical and magical story that was told in a way that I have never seen before. Beautiful imagery, wholly original storytelling, and a tale that will stick with this fantasy-hesitant reader for the days to come.

[Dustin]

From Tor.com:

https://www.tor.com/2019/01/28/cover-...

[Anna-Lisa · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think I am the unpopular opinion here but I disliked the writing style and couldn‘t get into the story or the world. I really wanted to like this.

[büşra · Rating 1 out of 5]

FINALLY FREE!!!!! WORST EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE im not even gonna explain why don't want to think about this book ever again

[La Lettrice Raffinata · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Crowning its sculpted white curls was a towering tangle of antler horns. Tier upon tier burst from its skull like the chandelier in H.H.'s hunting lodge, a great circle of elk, whitetail, and mule deer antlers that dominated the ceiling. It was the Antler Crown"


PIÙ FIABA CHE FANTASY

Ho deciso scientemente di iniziare un'altra storia sulle fatine appena terminata la lettura de "Il principe crudele"? assolutamente no. Eppure eccomi approdata a "Desdemona and the Deep", un romanzo breve dai toni fortemente fiabeschi ispirato al folklore britannico in generale ed al poema "Goblin Market" di Rossetti in particolare. E forse il suo più grosso limite è proprio la brevità del testo: so per certo che l'autrice ha imbastito in seguito una serie di racconti e novelle attorno al mondo fantasy in cui è ambientata questa narrazione, ma avrei preferito di gran lunga una storia corposa e solida seppure singola.

L'universo narrativo immaginato da Cooney si compone di tre realtà poste idealmente l'una sopra l'altra: nel livello più alto troviamo il mondo degli esseri umani detto Athe, quello centrale è occupato dal Valwode delle creature gentili (molto simili ai membri del Piccolo Popolo), mentre l'ultimo livello è abitato dai goblin del regno delle ossa Bana. Questi ultimi sono governati da Erl-Lord Kalos Kantzaros, che tempo addietro ha stretto un patto con Harlan Hunt "H.H." Mannering; secondo questo accordo l'uomo può chiedere qualunque prodigio al re dei Kobolds, fintantoché compensa con una congrua offerta. Quando la figlia Desdemona "Desi" scopre che il padre si è arricchito immolando le vite dei suoi stessi minatori, decide di scendere nel mondi sottostanti per annullare il sacrificio.

Parte così un'avventura fantasy che in realtà a ben poco di avventuroso; la maggior parte del testo è dedicata alle descrizioni dettagliate e fantasiose del world building, che si pone in questo modo come principale pregio del titolo, nella sua compente fantastica ma anche in quella mortale. A differenza del solito ho infatti apprezzato la scelta di creare una realtà alternativa anche per le scene più quotidiane, perché in un testo tanto stringato sarebbe stato impossibile esplorare al meglio le conseguenze della magia nel nostro mondo. Al fianco dell'ambientazione troviamo ovviamente l'estetica, che è molto particolare e ricercata: principalmente gotica, con qualche tocco di grottesco che ben si accosta ad una fiaba oscura.

Così come ho apprezzato un livello mortale più contenuto, mi ha convinto l'utilizzo limitato ma puntuale della magia. Di mio ho già un debole per i patti di stampo faustiano, ma qui troviamo addirittura una versione rovesciata, dove è il diavolo tentatore di turno a volersi svincolare. Anche gli altri elementi fantastici sono interessanti e per nulla scontati: metamorfosi complete, abiti dalle capacità paranormali e rituali onirici rendono il testo -già graziato dai dialoghi estremamente brillanti- intrigante ed immersivo. Con qualche piccola riserva, potremmo includere anche le tematiche tra i punti di favore del volume; non posso dirmi convinta al cento per cento del modo in cui vengono sviluppate (specialmente pensando all'epilogo), ma ho senza dubbio apprezzato la scelta dell'autrice di contestualizzare ed attualizzare temi come l'emancipazione femminile ed i diritti individuali.

La rappresentazione LGBT+ risulta essere un altro elemento in forse, infatti mi è piaciuto vederla presente e soprattutto presente in modo naturale, ma reputo che la cara Claire abbia puntato parecchio sulla quantità e ben poco sull'effettivo approfondimento: non è necessario intavolare un saggio sociologico ogni volta che si mette in scena un personaggio queer, ma neppure far spuntare relazioni poliamorose a casaccio mi sembra una buona idea, soprattutto se l'obiettivo è dimostrare che sono valide e stabili tanto quanto quelle monogame.

Come accennato, la brevità del libro limita molto lo sviluppo dell'intreccio, e la decisione di dare spazio a descrizioni assortire peggiora ancor di più la situazione. La trama risulta così estremamente scarna e semplicistica: tutto ciò che la protagonista riesce a fare è di una facilità imbarazzante, e non dà di certo l'idea di un'avventura vera, quanto piuttosto di un percorso preimpostato sul quale lei si trova catapultata volente o nolente. Il ritmo inoltre è parecchio rapido, e per questo il lettore non ha modo di affezionarsi ai personaggi o di preoccuparsi per le loro problematiche. A farne maggiormente le spese è Desdemona stessa, le cui azioni (quando volontarie) sembrano casuali e sciocche; nel finale l'autrice prova a darle una motivazione più profonda, ma non è sufficiente per cancellare le sue uscite retoriche e la frivolezza generale.

[jovena s · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nonsensical plot with odd pacing, but v beautiful, poetic writing.

Desdemona, aged 27, is a spoilt rich daughter who finds out her father became rich through a contract with the Goblin Lord, but sacrificed A LOT of people in doing so. Determined to rescue some, she and her friend Chaz go on an adventure.

I think this could’ve been so much better if it were expanded into a longer novel because the plot was v jumpy, moving so quickly and skimming past three whole worlds.

Although it was fascinating, I never understood Desi’s motivations and her sudden morality. Yes, we’re told she’s cunning and smart, but she doesn’t actually do anything cunning or smart. The story moves along around her, like she’s just in it for a ride, even though she’s supposed to be the protagonist, and the ending was soooo easy.

However, the world of Athe (humans) is really interesting, as it’s a mix of real world historical? problems and people separated by castes.

The best part of the novel was definitely the prose, especially the moments when Cooney describes artworks. You can also really see the characters and the world in your mind. I’ll definitely be trying out her short stories!

[jay! · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is a whimsical, fun little novella and i had such a good time with these characters. seeing desdemona go from a spoiled, affluent heiress without a care in the world to someone willing to give up opulence and inheritance to help others and stay with the people she loves most was so gratifying. she’s truly a character you grow to love along the way even if she’s slightly obnoxious at the beginning. i thought the way queerness was approached in this book was awesome too! i would have liked to see more of the valwode and bana the bone kingdom, and imo this would have worked better as a full length novel, but it’s so worth a read!

[Jadey (the Bookish) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

Very alice-in-wonderland-esque, and positively dripping in dream-like prose.

The story is inherently queer in a very normalised fashion, which is my favourite way for these themes to be presented.

I felt that how the themes of the industrial revolution and worker's rights intertwined with the fantasy elements was incredibly unique, and I enjoyed these aspects.

I did however find some the prose hard to get into at first and found it hard to set the scenes in my head. But, as the book isn't that long I was able to stick with it, and I'm glad I did!

[Maddy Wells · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not enjoy this book and found myself rushing through the last half just to get to the end so I could be done with it. The world was interesting but lacked the background info needed to really get lost in it, I just felt lost in general. There was also not a single character in this that I actually liked (especially Desdemona).

[Rossbook · Rating 2 out of 5]

To start with a positive - I absolutely loved the queer and trans representation in this; there was never a coming out story or big shock - it was simply there as part of the characters narrative.
I also enjoyed the descriptions of the environment at times - it conjured images of dark Crystal/labyrinth type worlds.
Overall however I found the book hard to follow and to understand. The story appeared rushed at times. It appeared incomplete at times. Things were left unanswered and unfinished.

[Evgenia · Rating 1 out of 5]

how did this book ever get published???? did no editor even glance at it once??????? there were some (VERY few) good bits (like the writing suddenly improving dramatically at the very end – i was so surprised), some fun ideas, but the bad, bad, horrible, terrible execution just cannot be ignored. it was bad from the very beginning, idk where i got enough spite to get to the end

[Hazel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This started off so well, but the more it went on, the more whimsical it got and that just isn't my thing. Every problem was solved so easily that I felt like I was being cheated. I did love the two main characters though, so I added an extra star on for them. Their friendship was wonderful and the best part of the book

[Chabs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple yet lovely. A quick easy read, interesting take on the Fae/ Goblin world.
Likeable characters, not complicated.