By Zen Cho
Jessamyn Teoh has a secret, well she really has two secrets. The first secret is probably the most scandolous, she is a lesbian. The second is rather mundane, she may or may not be hearing the voice of her dead grandmother. Set in Malaysia, Jessamyn grew up in the United States after her parents emigrated there to give her a better life. That all changed when her father was diagnosed with cancer and the family was forced into medical debt. They have now fled to Malaysia to avoid that crippling debt and Jessamyn, a Harvard graduate, has come with them.
Winner of the 2022 World Fantasy Awards, and the reason I picked up this particular novel, I didn’t know if I would like Black Water Sister at first. Books dealing with paranormal hauntings in a modern setting aren’t really my forte, but despite that prejudice, I did enjoy the book. I didn’t feel like the author was trying to assert that this was a novel that could occur in our world, as a lot of paranormal media does, i.e. Ghost Hunters, so it was easy to get into reading this book as a fantasy book and not an occult possibility.
It was very telling that possibly being possessed by her grandmother’s ghost was easier to tell her parents than her sexuality, this book really highlighted that although LGBTQ acceptance has risen in some societies, in others it is still considered taboo. Jess must hide her long-distance relationship with her girlfriend and has gone to great lengths to hide any and all photographs that show the two of them in any situation where it might be construed as an inappropriate relationship.
However, as much as I like the book, I don’t know if I would recommend it over The House on Needless Street. While LGBTQ issues were front and center in Black Water Sister, they were also present under the surface in The House on Needless Street. I thought the former’s story was much more captivating and more of a roller coaster. When the eventual double-crosses are revealed in Black Water Sister I didn’t feel like they were all that surprising. I didn’t feel like I was on the edge of my seat while reading Black Water Sister and felt like I could put the book down at any time to do some task and pick it up later. However, if you are looking for a story about a closeted lesbian having to navigate the culture that her parents left and she never embraced, this is an award-winning and rewarding read.