They Bloom at Night

Ever since the hurricane hit the small coastal town of Mercy in post-apocalyptic Louisiana, strange red algae blooms everywhere. After losing her father and brother to the storm, Noon and her mother try to survive by shrimp trawling among the mutated wildlife which now inhabit the constantly rising waters. The corrupt and predatory harbourmaster offers the pair a chance of paying off the father's debts if they can catch the sea monster deemed responsible for the drowning and mysterious disappearances of the town's residents and visiting scientists. Noon soon finds an ally in the harbourmaster's enigmatic daughter, sent to keep an eye on her, and begins to confront and conquer the monsters in her own past too.

They Bloom at Night is, on one level, a sinister eco horror, set in a drowned world teeming with monstrous mutated creatures, exploring the impact of real world climate issues and environmental disaster on a community, and packed full of creepy warnings to 'never answer the knocks at night'. It reads brilliantly as gruesome body horror too, never sparing the reader from vivid and visceral descriptions of the transformations suffered by those exposed to the effects of the toxic creeping algae. And yet, on another deeper level, the author uses horror to introduce important social issues.

The real monsters in this book are lurking in plain sight. Noon suffered a serious sexual assault before the storm hit and struggles to come to terms with her own gender and identity. The author challenges the very definition of monster and explores the dangers associated with othering; labelling people and things who are different, asking who the real monsters are in our own society.

As a coming-of-age story, too, Noon has to grapple with her Vietnamese heritage and with the complex balance of power within her family relationships so that she can bloom into 'her truest self' as a queer teen, accepting her beauty and her future even as the end of the world threatens her.

As atmospheric as it is unsettling, this is an extraordinary read. English teachers will find within it many examples for modelling descriptive writing. School libraries will find it a valuable addition to dystopian and LGBTQ+ collections, the 250 page count making it accessible to a wide range of readers. Haunting, thought-provoking and hopeful it will appeal to fans of both supernatural and psychological horror alike.

272 pages / Reviewed by Eileen Armstrong, school librarian

Suggested Reading Age 14+

Post-hurricane, the town of Mercy is beset by rising waters and a red algae bloom that suffocates and distorts wildlife. Mutant creatures lurk in the depths as a semblance of life is maintained on the partially submerged land. Noon and her mother are shrimpers, good at their work but up to their eyes in debt and at the mercy of corrupt local government operative and effective harbour master, Jimmy Boudreaux.

Concerned that local disappearances and government interference might disrupt his thriving and not entirely legal business Jimmy has a proposition for mother and daughter. Catch the monster in the depths that is causing the disappearances and he will continue to finance them. Left without a choice, Noon, her mother and Jimmy’s hard-to-predict daughter, Covey, set sail on Wild things - heading for danger, uncertainty and more than their fair share of mutants.

As ever, there is more to these characters than immediately meets the eye. Within the pages of They Bloom at Night are complex family/friendship relationships and a personal battle for Noon with her gender and identity. Covey's missing mother and domineering father overshadow her every move and Noon's mother is haunted by the loss of her husband and son.

The author's Vietnamese culture weaves a thread through the story and provides a counterpoint to the zombie/horror elements of the book. Noon's strength as a character and narrator steadily increases as the story moves along and her relationships with Covey and her mother are explored as the action unfolds.

There is a lot going on in They Bloom at Night and for some there may be too many strands / characters / relationships and some of those elements may not seem fully developed. However, there is plenty of atmosphere and the prose is stylish and suitably unnerving.

This is a book about monsters of all kinds, and will appeal to those who like a dash of emotion with their horror.

272 pages / Reviewed by Clare Wilkins, school librarian

Suggested Reading Age 14+