⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2
Contemporary Fiction / Mystery / Magical Realism
🏷️ literary, grief, family trauma, marine life, human-animal relationships, small town, anthropomorphic characters, lineage tracing
A tender story of grief, hope, lineage, and unlikely relationships – all with the help of an octopus.
🏆 Awards: Audie Award Nominee for Audiobook of the Year (2023), Lincoln Award Nominee (2026), Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Fiction and for Debut Novel (2022), She Reads Best of Award Nominee for Book of the Year and Audiobook (2022), McLaughlin-Esstman-Stearns First Novel Prize (2023)
Summary
Tova is a native of Sowell Bay. Her grandfather built the house she lived in with her husband and son. But at 18 years old, her son, Erick, tragically dies. The death was ruled a suicide, but Tova doesn’t believe it for a minute. After her husband dies, she begins working the night shift at the local aquarium as a custodian. It’s there that she grows a friendship with Marcellus, the 60-pound Pacific octopus. Marcellus is an exceptional octopus. And in Remarkably Bright Creatures, we hear his perspective on life in captivity and what he knows about Erik’s death. Throughout the story, Tova and Marcellus build a relationship and trust.
Down in California, Cameron is struggling with, well, everything! He was fired… again. And his girlfriend kicked him out of their apartment. His two best friends are about to have a baby, and he can’t stay on their couch forever. Cameron never knew his father. His mother abandoned him for a life of addiction when he was 9 years old, and his Aunt Jeanne raised him. Cameron was left with only a high school photograph and a class ring to remember his mother by. But in those trinkets holds a clue about his past, and he sets off to Sowell Bay to find answers about his parents.
Tova and Cameron both have unanswered questions about their past. Marcellus helps them uncover the truth and opens up a hopeful future for them both.
My Review
Remarkably Bright Creatures is literary fiction at its core. But about halfway through it becomes a mystery that keeps the pages turning! I struggled with the bouncing perspectives of Tova and Cameron at first because I wasn’t sure where it was going. But once their relationship got underway, I was hooked! Cameron is abrasive, and he took a while to warm up to. Tova has some rough edges herself, much like Sybill in The Correspondent, but she is much easier to embrace as we understand where these sharp edges come from. She holds so much grief, and the unknowns surrounding her son’s death give her so much unrest.
Being able to hear Marcellus’ perspective was a treat! So many of us have deep relationships with animals – usually our pets. But to see this unlikely relationship blossom is a gift. Marcellus is kind and wise. He cares about Tova and can give her information about her son that no human could ever have.
It was a delightful story! The book itself is beautiful, with its bright-colored cover illustrations. It’s a fantastical story of grief, friendship, lineage, and hope.
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