Floodwaters by Wren Rivers is a fantasy novella about two teenagers who hear rumors of a god walking through their town and decide to write their science paper about how people's perceptions of faith change after meeting a god. But humans are greedy and gods are quick to anger, and there is only so much two teenagers can do when they believe disaster draws near.
I received an ARC of this novella in exchange for an honest review.
This review may contain minor spoilers.
Worldbuilding: Floodwaters is set in a second world (Midir) that seems to have a similar technology level to our own but there is polytheistic pantheon consisting of gods that command specific elements. We get some hints at who the various gods of this world are, though the focus is primarily on 'The God King' Einari. I would have loved to learn more about this world, but I think Rivers does a good job at giving us just a taste of what's to come.
Emotions: I have a lot of conflicted feelings about this story. At times I was disgusted by the actions and thoughts of some of the characters, but the more I sat with it, the more I realized just how true to life their actions were. These characters are put through hell, and through that Rivers doesn't shy away from the acts of cruelty (sometimes viewed as a kindness) that humans will engage in when their world is utterly changed and they don't know if it will ever be normal again. But there are also profound moments of kindness and closeness that the characters experience. It's a delicate balance that left me feeling heartbroken at the end.
Intrigue: I'm always a fan of stories that involve a yet unseen deity/entity making themselves known and how their followers react to their presence. I think Rivers does a really wonderful job at tapping into the human psyche with this kind of situation.
Relationships: Eris is, at times, a somewhat unlikeable main character, but we have to remember that he's a teenager with all of the complicated feelings about his family and others in his life to match. Rivers shows us all sides of Eris, good and bad, but at the end of the day I still found myself rooting for him, and I think that takes a lot of skill. There is a sort of budding romance between Eris and Miri (which unfortunately gets overshadowed by other events) that I thought was cute and was very awkward in the classic teenage fashion of not really knowing how to flirt.
Descriptions: The prose is fairly simple (not at all a bad thing, I love simple prose) but Rivers does a good job at setting the stage for the story. I think they do a particularly good job at describing Eris' inner thoughts and exploring how his mental health declines throughout certain events.
Engagement: The first half of this story was a little slow for me (to be honest I'm just not that into reading stories where teenagers are the main characters) but things certainly pick up at the halfway mark and I was on the edge of my seat as the characters deal with the ensuing certain events they've been thrust into. I never quite knew what Eris or Miri were going to do next or what they were going to encounter.
Final thoughts: This is a capital T tragedy and an in depth exploration at the worst parts of people during the worst parts of their lives. I think Floodwaters is a shocking setup for River's upcoming novel Blood of the Gods, and I think it's a must read if you're interested in that story.
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