The ageless water witch Arahab has been scheming for eons, gathering the means to awaken the great Leviathan. She aims to bring him and the old gods back to their former glory, caring little that their ascendance will also mean an end to the human race. However, awakening the Leviathan is no small feat. In fact, Arahab canβt complete the ritual without human aid.
Bernice is sophisticated, torn from New York and forced to spend a miserable summer on Anna Maria Island, a tiny rock off the coast of Florida. Sheβs also been saddled with the companionship of her farm-raised cousin Nia. Eventually, Berniceβs disenchantment gives way to rage, which in turn leads her to commit a deadly crime. When Nia wonβt cover for Berniceβs actions, she turns on Nia, chasing her into the deadly coastal waves.
But the timing is right and the elementals have better ideas: the moment the girls go under, Bernice is commandeered for Arahabβs task force, and Nia is turned into a strange and powerful new creature by a servant of the earth who doesnβt want to surrender his green fields and muddy plainsβnot yet, at least. Add in a hapless fire inspector whoβs just trying to get his paperwork in order, a fire god whose neutrality has been called into question, and a bizarre religious cult, and rural Florida doesnβt seem quite so sleepy anymore.
Cherie Priest, who stormed onto the scene with the stunning Southern Gothic trio that began with Four and Twenty Blackbirds, now brings the same masterful writing and unforgettable characterization to the realm of near- contemporary rural fantasy. The result, Fathom, is fast- paced, stunning, and quite unlike anything youβve ever read.
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