The Drowned Heir is an intriguing maritime fantasy, filled with lyrical, evocative prose and set in a community where horrific traditions are paramount and magical charms hold sway. When her sea captain uncle dies at sea, the main character is drowned by her mother in a ritual that allows her uncle’s spirit to take over her young body since she is the closest thing to an heir the childless captain left behind. This young woman then has to share her body with her uncle’s indomitable spirit. What a horrific idea, and yet it is told in a matter-of-fact way since this community is well used to this sort of thing happening and since the main character is a third child, she has no other purpose for the family and has been expecting this.
The first-person narrative of this novella helps the reader to understand the battle the young woman is having within herself as the spirit of her dead uncle tries to take control. She is unsure whether her own spirit should be as present within her body as it still is or if it should have been completely suppressed. She is unwilling to let go completely and clings to a chance that there may be an heir after all, who not even her uncle had been aware of.
“When poured together, oil and water do not mingle, and that is myself and my uncle’s spirit. In the same vessel, each still separate.”
An unexpected lover shows up, who is clearly not human, and needs the help of the captain. The main character, dominated by her uncle’s spirit, is determined to set sail once more to face the terrible sea monster that caused his death. Her body is now “The Captain”, wearing his clothes and in charge of the boat, despite her never having been to sea before.
This short novella is filled with dark atmospheric details which drew me in immediately and kept me reading right up until the end. I found the struggle between two family members who loved one another in life compelling, their acceptance of their inevitable situation and their determination not to let go of their control was fantastically brought to life by Donohue’s fabulous writing.
