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Over Her Head
A bicycling young lady scholar writing her thesis on the historical meaning of merpeople tales visits a well-known collector of literature on the subject, determined to get him to let her read his books. She comes armed with cookies, that well-known advent to a man's heart, and is surprised to discover he's not at all the old curmudgeon she had imagined him to be. In fact, he's almost dismayingly handsome, putting her far out of any running, were she so inclined, which of course she's not. She just wants his books, despite what her landlady may say. And maybe--friendship.
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First published January 1, 2009
39 people want to read
About the author
Nora Fleischer
4 books5 followersI live in Minneapolis, MN, with my lovable husband Sven and my adorable children Wolfgang and Anastasia. I enjoy running, cooking, and embroidery.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 25, 2017
Book is free on Amazon kindle today :)
25/05/2017
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00M15QUC4/...
Frances Schmidt is a young woman graduate who has decided to write her thesis on mermaids. Getting hold of source material proves to be tricky Being the only female in her class she feels the pressure to be the best she can be and at the same time keep a low-profile so when she gets a lead about a gentleman living in Maine who collects books about mermaid lore and she decides to travel to there to convince him to let her look at his library.
Being a very private man Garett has already turned away others from his library.
But Frances has a secret weapon. Her homemade cookies.
This breaks the ice and Garett gives in and invites her inside. She is amazed at the interior and finds that the rumors about his collection of books is true.But she also finds it a peculiar that someone who purchased a house right by the beach would avoid going near the ocean.
Garett is in fact a merman and if he cant swim in the ocean he will become deathly Ill. He lives in fear of anyone finding out his fishy secret and even if he starts to have feelings for Frances he could never marry her as he doesnt want to pass on his affliction as he thinks of it.
I love books featuring mermaids I really do, thats why its such a pity so many of them end up a disappointments (skeevy or just badly written) or its the same old plot -mermaid falls in love with human and gives up the ocean to be with him. Its not a bad story precisely but the thing is to borrow a quote from Ariel I want more and more in this case is more underwateriness
(
Frances is part of the breed of New woman as they were called in the Edwardian era she left her small town and big family to study at university.She has always been told she is plain so when she makes a friend in Garett she is just happy to have someone to talk to.Someone who can appreciate her finer qualities.
Garrett had two sides to him not only when it comes to his human self and his mermaid self but he wants to have companionship but at the same time he is afraid of people shunning him if they ever found out his secret.When he was just a baby was left on the doorstep of a lady who took him in and raised him,but when his "affliction" was discovered made him feel like he was some kind of monster.
Its a simple sweet story but there is most of the angst comes from Garrett as he has a hard time reconciling his human side and his merman side.
He had decided long ago that celibacy was the only honorable path for a creature like him. He could not risk his taint, his disease being transmitted to the next generation. He would not bring another monster into the world. He dove into the water. As always, with the pleasure of the change, he felt his melancholy lift. Down here he could not understand why the dry version of himself loathed his body. He wasn't repellent. He was a strong, healthy merman. His scales were a lovely blue, the color of his eyes. Frances would like him if she saw him, just as much as he liked her.
Its ingenious (be it deliberate or not)to put the setting to the Edwardian era as thats about the same mermaids were coming back in popularity in art,fashion and the new medium - film
I really loved the bit about Thoreau and the mermaid. It made me grin.
If you are the kind of person who expects to have straight answers to find out where Garett came from (and how his kiss could turn Frances into a mermaid) then youBut I didnt mind it would have been nice to learn the answers but in the end its not really important. If the author decided to write a sequel where those things are answered I for one wouldnt mind,as I would love to spend more time with Frances and Garett.
But as it is "In over her head" is a delightful little tale find of a book a bit of historical fantasy for the romance and mermaid (and merman) lovers out there.
If you enjoyed this book you might also like:
Miss Landon and Aubranael by Charlotte E. English
Swynmoor by Joelle Mellon
25/05/2017
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00M15QUC4/...
Frances Schmidt is a young woman graduate who has decided to write her thesis on mermaids. Getting hold of source material proves to be tricky Being the only female in her class she feels the pressure to be the best she can be and at the same time keep a low-profile so when she gets a lead about a gentleman living in Maine who collects books about mermaid lore and she decides to travel to there to convince him to let her look at his library.
Being a very private man Garett has already turned away others from his library.
But Frances has a secret weapon. Her homemade cookies.
This breaks the ice and Garett gives in and invites her inside. She is amazed at the interior and finds that the rumors about his collection of books is true.But she also finds it a peculiar that someone who purchased a house right by the beach would avoid going near the ocean.
Garett is in fact a merman and if he cant swim in the ocean he will become deathly Ill. He lives in fear of anyone finding out his fishy secret and even if he starts to have feelings for Frances he could never marry her as he doesnt want to pass on his affliction as he thinks of it.
I love books featuring mermaids I really do, thats why its such a pity so many of them end up a disappointments (skeevy or just badly written) or its the same old plot -mermaid falls in love with human and gives up the ocean to be with him. Its not a bad story precisely but the thing is to borrow a quote from Ariel I want more and more in this case is more underwateriness
(Frances is part of the breed of New woman as they were called in the Edwardian era she left her small town and big family to study at university.She has always been told she is plain so when she makes a friend in Garett she is just happy to have someone to talk to.Someone who can appreciate her finer qualities.
Garrett had two sides to him not only when it comes to his human self and his mermaid self but he wants to have companionship but at the same time he is afraid of people shunning him if they ever found out his secret.When he was just a baby was left on the doorstep of a lady who took him in and raised him,but when his "affliction" was discovered made him feel like he was some kind of monster.
Its a simple sweet story but there is most of the angst comes from Garrett as he has a hard time reconciling his human side and his merman side.
He had decided long ago that celibacy was the only honorable path for a creature like him. He could not risk his taint, his disease being transmitted to the next generation. He would not bring another monster into the world. He dove into the water. As always, with the pleasure of the change, he felt his melancholy lift. Down here he could not understand why the dry version of himself loathed his body. He wasn't repellent. He was a strong, healthy merman. His scales were a lovely blue, the color of his eyes. Frances would like him if she saw him, just as much as he liked her.
Its ingenious (be it deliberate or not)to put the setting to the Edwardian era as thats about the same mermaids were coming back in popularity in art,fashion and the new medium - film
I really loved the bit about Thoreau and the mermaid. It made me grin.
If you are the kind of person who expects to have straight answers to find out where Garett came from (and how his kiss could turn Frances into a mermaid) then youBut I didnt mind it would have been nice to learn the answers but in the end its not really important. If the author decided to write a sequel where those things are answered I for one wouldnt mind,as I would love to spend more time with Frances and Garett.
But as it is "In over her head" is a delightful little tale find of a book a bit of historical fantasy for the romance and mermaid (and merman) lovers out there.
If you enjoyed this book you might also like:
Miss Landon and Aubranael by Charlotte E. English
Swynmoor by Joelle Mellon
February 20, 2023
3.5★
Cuuuuuuttteeee!!! Wish it was longer, it was only 88 pages.
The main couple were so sweet and lovey. I could’ve done without the little drama at the end, but overall it was just a sweet little story.
Cuuuuuuttteeee!!! Wish it was longer, it was only 88 pages.
The main couple were so sweet and lovey. I could’ve done without the little drama at the end, but overall it was just a sweet little story.
March 27, 2015
Set in early 1900s Maine, Frances Schmidt isn’t your average historian. Nope. She’s a woman. She has worked very hard to get her peers to ignore this fact so that she can finish her degree. She’s so close and the last big hurdle is completing her dissertation, one that she has focused on the myths and legends on merpeople. So she must travel to Maine to try to persuade Garrett Hathaway of letting her study his collection of such legends and tales. Since he is a very private person, she has quite a challenge ahead of him.
The bulk of this story is told through Frances eyes and I really enjoyed her character. She’s chosen a field that is male dominated and has a passion for it. Her peers are a mix of men; some support her efforts, some don’t mind her as long as she doesn’t act like a woman, and then there are some who actively try to block or sabotage her efforts. Also, I liked that she isn’t tall and willowy, but rather short and curvy. Some even call her stocky.
Garrett starts off as a pretty ordinary, if a little reclusive. However, he has a secret, one that has both left him lonely and hating himself but also given him such glee. I also suspect it is the reason he has such an athletic body.
The relationship between these two starts off perfectly professionally. Frances stays at a boarding house while in Maine, making sure to leave Garrett’s house each day before sunset. Propriety must be maintained. She initially bribes him with cookies she baked herself. This later turns into a mutual enjoyment of baking. It was quite sweet to watch the romance blossom between these two, and come to near disastrous ruin a few times due to misunderstandings. These two had to work for their love!
Sprinkled throughout the story are tidbits on merpeople – fanciful bits tossed in by the author but then also poems and works by other authors are cited by the main characters. These were especially nice touches.
My one little quibble occurs near the end of the story, and as such, deals with a spoiler. SPOILER ALERT It wasn’t clear to me how or why Frances became a mermaid when she takes a swim with Garrett. He thinks he transmitted a disease to her, but surely he (or other merpeople) have swum with other people and they didn’t run into merpeople. I could have used a few lines stolen from mythology to make this more plausible. Or perhaps some mystical/magical reason for the transformation. END SPOILER
Other than that one minor criticism, I really enjoyed this novella. The mix of merpeople myths, historical fiction, and romance kept me listening and not wanting to set the book down.
The Narration: Anna Starr was a good pick for Frances. She had a solid, no nonsense voice for her that could also be a bit vulnerable when it came to matters of the heart. Starr had a range of voices that allowed both male and female characters to come through distinctly.
The bulk of this story is told through Frances eyes and I really enjoyed her character. She’s chosen a field that is male dominated and has a passion for it. Her peers are a mix of men; some support her efforts, some don’t mind her as long as she doesn’t act like a woman, and then there are some who actively try to block or sabotage her efforts. Also, I liked that she isn’t tall and willowy, but rather short and curvy. Some even call her stocky.
Garrett starts off as a pretty ordinary, if a little reclusive. However, he has a secret, one that has both left him lonely and hating himself but also given him such glee. I also suspect it is the reason he has such an athletic body.
The relationship between these two starts off perfectly professionally. Frances stays at a boarding house while in Maine, making sure to leave Garrett’s house each day before sunset. Propriety must be maintained. She initially bribes him with cookies she baked herself. This later turns into a mutual enjoyment of baking. It was quite sweet to watch the romance blossom between these two, and come to near disastrous ruin a few times due to misunderstandings. These two had to work for their love!
Sprinkled throughout the story are tidbits on merpeople – fanciful bits tossed in by the author but then also poems and works by other authors are cited by the main characters. These were especially nice touches.
My one little quibble occurs near the end of the story, and as such, deals with a spoiler. SPOILER ALERT It wasn’t clear to me how or why Frances became a mermaid when she takes a swim with Garrett. He thinks he transmitted a disease to her, but surely he (or other merpeople) have swum with other people and they didn’t run into merpeople. I could have used a few lines stolen from mythology to make this more plausible. Or perhaps some mystical/magical reason for the transformation. END SPOILER
Other than that one minor criticism, I really enjoyed this novella. The mix of merpeople myths, historical fiction, and romance kept me listening and not wanting to set the book down.
The Narration: Anna Starr was a good pick for Frances. She had a solid, no nonsense voice for her that could also be a bit vulnerable when it came to matters of the heart. Starr had a range of voices that allowed both male and female characters to come through distinctly.
January 3, 2010
If you're on the hunt for a super-quick read, you can't go too wrong with my fellow Drollerie author Nora Fleischer's Over Her Head. I'm a sucker for stories involving intellectual women, and so this little tale of a young woman in the early 1900's striving to pull off doing a dissertation on mermaids was quite a bit of fun.
Frances Schmidt has discovered that Garrett Hathaway has the most definitive collection of works on mermaid myths she's ever seen, and so she'll stop at nothing to get his permission to study his library--even if it means showing up at his front door on a bicycle, armed with tasty cookies. That she and Garrett eventually fall in love is not at all a surprise, nor is the fact that Frances discovers that he has an Astonishing Secret or that Frances gets a lot of flak for pursuing "unseemly" intellectual pursuits.
What makes this read fun and unusual is a nice little take on mermaid myths as well as a cast of vividly portrayed characters which benefit from the short length of the story; there are no extra words here, and extra words aren't really needed. Four stars.
Frances Schmidt has discovered that Garrett Hathaway has the most definitive collection of works on mermaid myths she's ever seen, and so she'll stop at nothing to get his permission to study his library--even if it means showing up at his front door on a bicycle, armed with tasty cookies. That she and Garrett eventually fall in love is not at all a surprise, nor is the fact that Frances discovers that he has an Astonishing Secret or that Frances gets a lot of flak for pursuing "unseemly" intellectual pursuits.
What makes this read fun and unusual is a nice little take on mermaid myths as well as a cast of vividly portrayed characters which benefit from the short length of the story; there are no extra words here, and extra words aren't really needed. Four stars.
July 6, 2015
Audiobook
Narration - Anna Starr - OK. This is weird, because she has a lovely voice, but at times, it seemed a little monotone, but then, it also seemed perfect for the character of Francis since she was an average looking scholar-woman from the early 1900's. The narration seemed to fit the time period to me.
The story is a sweet romance. Francis goes (on her own - which is pretty scandalous for this time period) to the coast to attempt to gain entry to Garrett's extensive library of books on Merpeople (which she has chosen for her thesis) He's turned all other's before her away, but after she shares some conversation and a plate of her fabulous cookies with Garrett, he succumbs and allows her into his collection. They strike up an unusual friendship during her research, which they both secretly hope becomes more.
Garrett has his secrets though and he's terrified Francis, or anyone else for that matter will find out. (of course she does) but you have to read/listen on your own to find out exactly what those secrets are!
Cute story, I enjoyed it!
I was given a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an unbiased review
Narration - Anna Starr - OK. This is weird, because she has a lovely voice, but at times, it seemed a little monotone, but then, it also seemed perfect for the character of Francis since she was an average looking scholar-woman from the early 1900's. The narration seemed to fit the time period to me.
The story is a sweet romance. Francis goes (on her own - which is pretty scandalous for this time period) to the coast to attempt to gain entry to Garrett's extensive library of books on Merpeople (which she has chosen for her thesis) He's turned all other's before her away, but after she shares some conversation and a plate of her fabulous cookies with Garrett, he succumbs and allows her into his collection. They strike up an unusual friendship during her research, which they both secretly hope becomes more.
Garrett has his secrets though and he's terrified Francis, or anyone else for that matter will find out. (of course she does) but you have to read/listen on your own to find out exactly what those secrets are!
Cute story, I enjoyed it!
I was given a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an unbiased review
December 14, 2016
Super sweet little short story that brings a lot to the merpeeps table.
June 14, 2015
*I received this book in exchange for an honest review*
I love mermaid books so I was very excited to get the opportunity to review this book. Over Her Head is situation in the year 1905. It is a story about a young woman who was the only woman at Winthrop University studying history. She was completing her dissertation on merfolk but was having difficulties finding sources. Upon learning of a man in Maine that had an extensive library on merfolk, she takes off from Boston and shows up on his doorstep. I’m not going to go into anymore details because I hate spoilers. But I will say that Francis and Garrett have an interesting set of interactions. There is also the “lovely” woman, Mrs. Cooper, that Francis boards at her home…that woman is definitely a piece of work!! In the end, things work out pretty much as I figured they would; but at least it’s a happy ending.
Overall, the story is decent but the narration on the audio version is not the best. I understand that it takes a lot to edit out background noises, but there were some places when the sound of the pages being turned was a bit annoying. The narrator also did not have much voice variation, and that did not help give voice to the story. But she spoke clear and concise. One thing that was very well done, was the descriptions of Garrett’s home. I could definitely picture it, and would love to see it! I give this book a rating of 3.5 STARS.
I love mermaid books so I was very excited to get the opportunity to review this book. Over Her Head is situation in the year 1905. It is a story about a young woman who was the only woman at Winthrop University studying history. She was completing her dissertation on merfolk but was having difficulties finding sources. Upon learning of a man in Maine that had an extensive library on merfolk, she takes off from Boston and shows up on his doorstep. I’m not going to go into anymore details because I hate spoilers. But I will say that Francis and Garrett have an interesting set of interactions. There is also the “lovely” woman, Mrs. Cooper, that Francis boards at her home…that woman is definitely a piece of work!! In the end, things work out pretty much as I figured they would; but at least it’s a happy ending.
Overall, the story is decent but the narration on the audio version is not the best. I understand that it takes a lot to edit out background noises, but there were some places when the sound of the pages being turned was a bit annoying. The narrator also did not have much voice variation, and that did not help give voice to the story. But she spoke clear and concise. One thing that was very well done, was the descriptions of Garrett’s home. I could definitely picture it, and would love to see it! I give this book a rating of 3.5 STARS.
June 23, 2015
"Over Her Head Short Story Review"
I thought this was a neat little original short story. It's something I've never heard before with Garrett being a merman. I liked Francis a lot. She stood up for herself to ol' Mrs. Cooper which was great. I didn't want to over think it because it was folklore mixed with fiction and it made sense to me. It was a good listen by Nora Fleischer and I'll be looking to see what she does in the future.
Anna Starr's a good narrator although I did notice some audio issues but nothing major. In fact, I like her voice a lot. There weren't many voice inflections but she added them in at good places in the story. Otherwise much of the story was monotone. That said, she has a good voice for this and I look forward to hearing more from her.
Audiobook received from Audioblast Newsletter in exchange for an unbiased review.
July 15, 2015
Review posted on Audible
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