Flowers for the Sea (Paperback)
Staff Reviews
On a drowned world, the last refugees live on stranded ship surrounded by bloodthirsty monsters, and pregnant outsider Iraxi is their last hope at survival and repopulation. But when Iraxi gives birth to a being that isn’t exactly human, she soon realizes she might be their doom. And maybe, her anger and grief is fuel for a destiny bigger than any she could have imagined.
— Jessi
On a drowned world, the last refugees live on stranded ship surrounded by bloodthirsty monsters, and pregnant outsider Iraxi is their last hope at survival and repopulation. But when Iraxi gives birth to a being that isn’t exactly human, she soon realizes she might be their doom. And maybe, her anger and grief is fuel for a destiny bigger than any she could have imagined. This novella is razor sharp teeth and the smell of death. Rocklyn weaves a tale of loss, pain, betrayal, rebirth, and vengeance that will haunt me for a while. It is bloody and brutal and devastatingly human at its core. - Jessi
— From Art of the NovellaDescription
A Library Journal Editor's Pick!
Flowers for the Sea is a dark, dazzling debut novella that reads like Rosemary's Baby by way of Octavia E. Butler
We are a people who do not forget.
Survivors from a flooded kingdom struggle alone on an ark. Resources are scant, and ravenous beasts circle. Their fangs are sharp.
Among the refugees is Iraxi: ostracized, despised, and a commoner who refused a prince, she’s pregnant with a child that might be more than human. Her fate may be darker and more powerful than she can imagine.
Zin E. Rocklyn’s extraordinary debut is a lush, gothic fantasy about the prices we pay and the vengeance we seek.
About the Author
Zin E. Rocklyn is a contributor to Bram Stoker-nominated and This is Horror Award-winning Nox Pareidolia, Kaiju Rising II: Reign of Monsters, Brigands: A Blackguards Anthology, and Forever Vacancy anthologies and Weird Luck Tales No. 7 zine. Their story "Summer Skin" in the Bram Stoker-nominated anthology Sycorax's Daughters received an honorable mention for Ellen Datlow's Best Horror of the Year, Volume Ten. Zin contributed the nonfiction essay “My Genre Makes a Monster of Me” to Uncanny Magazine’s Hugo Award-winning Disabled People Destroy Science Fiction. Their short story "The Night Sun" and flash fiction "teatime" were published on Tor.com. Flowers for the Sea is their debut novella. Zin is a 2017 VONA and 2018 Viable Paradise graduate as well as a 2022 Clarion West candidate.
Praise For…
Praise for Flowers for the Sea
“Rocklyn is angry, lyrical, honest, and heartbreaking, riding the line between fantasy and true horror” —Catherynne M. Valente, New York Times bestselling author
“Rocklyn’s lyrical gothic fantasy debut considers how life can persist in a world of rot, death, and destruction. . . . [They] conjure Iraxi’s precarious position in fluid, lovely prose.” —Publishers Weekly
“This novella will whet the appetite of fans of classics like Ira Levin’s Rosemary’s Baby, P. D. James’ The Children of Men, and Octavia Butler’s Bloodchild.” —Booklist
“A lush, mesmerizing novella about survival and the hope of righteous anger. An auspicious debut baring beauty and razorfangs.” —Paul Tremblay
“A gorgeous, powerful debut. . . . You don't want to miss it.” —Cassandra Khaw