Till Human Voices Wake Us by C.S. Johnson - Review

Welcome to the blog tour for Till Human Voices Wake us by C.S. Johnson!

Till Human Voices Wake Us (Till Human Voices Wake Us #1)

Publication Date: July 31, 2019

Genre: Science Fantasy/ Mermaids

Sometimes the difference between reality and insanity is only a matter of absurdity.

There is nothing Milo Bishop fears more than the thought that he is going insane.

Having grown up hearing his Uncle Jay’s stories about the strange mermaids Milo never had a reason to believe they were actually true. But when a near-death experience gives Milo a vision of a mermaid calling to him for help, Milo is forced to test his uncle’s claims. And when he winds up in Rasulka, the mermaid community tucked away, deep under the southern California seas, the question of his uncle’s sanity is the least of his concerns.

For in the heart of Rasulka, a growing whirlpool in the ocean-sky and the terrarium’s changing climate — along with a discarded prophecy that says their end will come when humans appear — all suggest that the end is near. Along with his uncle and best friend, Moss, and Eluia, a young mermaid who grew up hearing myths about humans, Milo has only hours to sort through his doubts and insecurities and face down unimaginable terrors if he is going to find his way home — before Rasulka, and everyone in it, is lost forever.

Add to Goodreads

Excerpt

“Are you awake?”

Much like the time I’d woken up in the hospital, I was beckoned back to reality by a familiar voice—but instead of my mother, this time it was her voice.

Am I dreaming? Am I dead?

I could hardly believe it. My eyes were covered with sand and dirt, and I squirmed as something nudged my foot, and hard.

“What is it?”

A new voice spoke from the other side of me. This one was a male voice, one that sounded older and much more disgruntled.

“I … can’t say.” She was the one who answered, and I knew from the gentle innocence of her voice, she hadn’t been the one who’d been prodding me.

“Well, is it alive, Eluia?”

Eluia.

Her name was Eluia, and before I could open my eyes to see her, I already knew she was the one I’d seen before. She was the one I’d spoken to while I was saving Moss from the whale.

“Yes, it seems so,” Eluia said. A soft whisper of a touch grazed my forehead. A shiver went through me at its chilling warmth.

“Let me see.”

“Don’t poke it with that stick!”

Right on cue, something stabbed my cheek, right underneath my goggles.

“Ouch,” I grumbled, tasting the salty thickness of air and musk through the mask of my wetsuit. “Watch it.”

“It’s making noises.” Eluia’s voice rang with excitement. “See, it is alive.”

“Hey!” I yelped, as another jolt of pain hit me, as I was prodded in the ribs.

“Ceros!” Eluia’s rebuke came quick. “Stop. You’re hurting it.”

“Just because it’s alive doesn’t mean it has value,” Ceros scoffed.

I didn’t have to see Ceros to know I didn’t think I was going to like him.

Ceros.

He was in one of Uncle Jay’s stories.

That moment was too surreal; I found myself debating with myself, torn between whether or not I was going to open my eyes and find out what destiny had in store for me.

Uncle Jay had told me before that some people don’t want to heal. But as I lay there, with my back to the ground and my limbs all sprawled out in different directions, I realized that it wasn’t just healing that people didn’t want. I didn’t want to be stripped of my ideas about life—and I didn’t want to take a leap of faith into a new world where things could be different or frightening.

“Just because that’s your opinion, doesn’t mean I value it,” Eluia murmured under her breath. From the sound of it, Ceros was already walking away, so I doubted he heard her.

Hearing her voice again—and the spirited defiance behind it—I decided I wanted to know the truth about her, if nothing else.

Review

C.S. Johnson brings us another intriguing tale in Till Human Voices Wake Us. Johnson’s imagination knows no bounds, and this novel proves that.

I will say that throughout the whole book, I had a hard time liking Milo, the main character. He was whiny and selfish. He treated those around him like dung. Thankfully, he gets himself together at the end, and for that, I am grateful.

Johnson’s description of the mermaids was brilliant. To give them legs was an exciting turn of events. I loved the visit to the mermaid city, though it was a bit sinister and unnerving at times. Sira and Ceros are seriously twisted and made me feel like vomiting.

The setting was interesting. The atmosphere of the underground cave that the mermaids called home was described spectacularly. I loved the volcano and the mountain home of Paga. The destruction that came later was sad, but it made for some fantastic excitement.

I was incredibly sad when Eluia came to the surface, but the whales made it okay for me to accept. The first part of the novel was a bit slow, but as it went on, the excitement overtook me, and I couldn’t put it down.

Thus, I award Till Human Voices Wake Us 4 out of 5 stars because when the action wasn’t happening, the rest dragged on, but otherwise, this is a great, solid novel that I would read again. I recommend it to fantasy lovers and those who can’t get enough mermaids in their life.

Available on Amazon

Giveaway: For your chance to win a digital copy of this book and the prequel novella, Across the Floors of Silent Seas, click the link below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the Author

C. S. Johnson is the award-winning, genre-hopping author of several novels, including young adult sci-fi and fantasy adventures such as the Starlight Chronicles, the Once Upon a Princess saga, and the Divine Space Pirates trilogy. With a gift for sarcasm and an apologetic heart, she currently lives in Atlanta with her family. Find out more at http://www.csjohnson.me

CS Johnson | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest