“i write what i write to heal me.”

The Mermaid’s Voice Returns in This One is the conclusion to her Women Are Some Kind of Magic trilogy.

This collection is about surviving sexual assault. Poems are center on the #MeToo movement. Some poems are not powerful enough but it was comforting.

It was a good wrap up to finish the trilogy.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Poetry isn’t something that I read an awful lot of and it’s definitely something I want to get into more. I’ve read the first two instalments in Amanda Lovelace’s Women Are Some Kind of Magic series and was incredibly excited about reading this powerful and inspiring third book.

Much like the previous books, the poems Lovelace creates are so emotional and raw. The poems are written in a very minimal way, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t pack a punch. So many of her poems have given me food for thought and I definitely felt the same with The Mermaid’s Voice Returns in This One.

While I did really enjoy this book, it did feel a little bit disconnected from the two I read previously. I didn’t connect with this one as much as I did The Witch Doesn’t Burn in This One and for me it didn’t feel as powerful. Though still a thought provoking and timely read, I definitely preferred the first two books in this trilogy.

It’s been fascinating to read Lovelace’s work as she has grown and honed her craft with each book, It was also interesting to read the guest poems from a variety of guest poets. Some of these I liked more than others and I think this might be part of the reason I didn’t love this book as much.

Overall the Women Are Some Kind of Magic series is a hauntingly beautiful and thought provoking series and The Mermaid’s Voice Returns in This One is an excellent addition. If you’re a fan of poetry or interesting in feminist writing, this is a must read. I for one am excited to see what Amanda Lovelace does next.

I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. These thoughts and feelings are my own.

This was another gelreat collection of poetry by Amanda Lovelace. I was so excited when someone told me her third book was available on Netgalley!

I love that the central theme in this book was hope and healing. Yes, terrible, horrific things happened, but there’s always a chance for healing. It’s such a great message that’s so pertinent today.

I did have a harder time connecting with this book, but I think that’s because the issues discussed have never happened to me. The poems were still beautifully written and I liked the inclusion of other poets. The subject matter did not take away from the book at all, even though it wasn’t something I had experienced.

This was another amazing book of poetry that empowers women to take back their lives after tragedies and gives them hope to be able to heal. I would definitely recommend this book, along with her others.

This collection is the third and final installment in a series of poetry collections. Each one tells a story of the strength and resilience of women in a world that does not allow them the equality they deserve. Lovelace uses her own life experience and her personal story throughout the course of the collection. She truly weaves her words and themes together into a tale that is captivating and threaded with raw emotion. Out of the three collections, this one fell in the middle for me in terms of my enjoyment of it.

I absolutely adored the first one and felt such a deep connection to it. She primarily focused on her own life journey, which I found fascinating to read. In the second one, she strayed away from this and, while she did include personal stories, is felt much more general. It was a bit more difficult to connect to on a personal level. This one is a great blend of the two, mixing poems about her experiences with poems that give a broader look at women’s rights and their strength. In all three, she does a beautiful job of demonstrating these themes in a passionate and inspiring way. I really enjoy her work and I cannot wait to read more in the future.

Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher from an honest review through NetGalley.

Trigger warnings (taken from the beginning of the book): child abuse, gun violence, intimate partner abuse, sexual assault, eating disorders, self-harm, suicide, alcohol, trauma, death, violence, fire, and possibly more.

As you can see I've rated this 3.5/5 stars. I've read all three of Amanda's poetry collections and, first off: I cannot get over how hard it had to of been to put these out, considering what they contain. I cannot say enough how much respect I have for that, and I felt weird giving this (and her others) a rating less then 5 stars for that.

However, I just didn't super connect to the text, her poetry style in general. Even the poems that I could personally relate to, I didn't feel it super hard? I'm not quite sure what didn't click with me, but all three volumes of poetry were a little just alright for me. Though, I did like the feminist undertones to everything, because we can't have enough of that.

Saying that, though, I did read all three volumes, and I requested this one on NetGalley, so there was something that was pushing me to keep reading.

I'd definitely recommend these, though if you don't think you can without triggering yourself, then please do not. If you can, though, I did enjoy this book, which also feels weird to say considering the content.

Anyway - I would definitely recommend you give them a try, I think the real reason I didn't click with this collection as much was because I enjoy my poetry to be slightly more... flowery I guess? Reviewing poetry is hard. However, 3.5 isn't a bad rating, either, I enjoyed the collection and such.

If you you've read any of Amanda Lovelace's collections, let me know, and if you end up picking up this collection, or any others.

I've read the previous installments in the Women Are Some Kind of Magic series and while I enjoyed them, they weren't favorites. Lovelace was definitely one of my favored voices in modern poetry and I was willing to give anything she put out a chance. This installment in the trilogy blew me away.

One thing I love about Lovelace's collections is that she always includes trigger warnings in the beginning. This is so appreciated and valuable when it comes to the type of content being discussed. Her language is beautiful while the emotions and subject matter are very raw and real. The way she phrases and formats her poems lend to the style and the expert use of language.

Perhaps it is my own experiences, but this collection just spoke to me. The progression of the story felt like a real progression of healing and learning. The guest poems from other poets perfectly melded into the collection. While they were different voices being added in, they fit in and belonged there. It was wonderful and heartbreaking at the same time.

I definitely recommend this collection for anyone who enjoys her writing or anyone looking for modern poetry that touches hard hitting and difficult subjects.

So sad.. I have tried many a hundred different ways but I just couldn't open the file that I received. I was so looking forward to reading this story.

In this third volume in her "Women Are Some Kind of Magic" poetry series, Amanda Lovelace revisits popular childhood tales with an adult's critical eye. She re-examines how these stories vilified or victimized the women in them, simultaneously telling the story of her own abuse. The poems are harrowing, and especially in the early parts, sometimes hard to read as the abuse takes its toll on the narrator's self-worth. But as the title of the collection proclaims, the mermaid's voice returns in this one, as the poems reconstruct those fairy tales to give their heroines the happily forever afters they deserve. Guest poets fill out the collection, and the voices gives the book a welcome solidarity and hopefulness.

There is a certain feeling of closure in this one after I liked the first one, hated the second, I'm okay with the third one! Not a perfect experience but as a whole series works perfectly.

Poetry works in a different way to each person, this is the type of book, that can have two different meaning for the same one person, all depends on the time of life you be in touch with the poems.

Mostly, this collection is about surviving sexual assault, it seems to me a beautiful ode to the movement #Metoo, of course, there are good ones and totally forgettable others. Otherwise, there are some happy pages to give you that soft, soothing hug after the painful bits, and overall, it feels like a very natural and well-done ending to the series.

"she didn't kiss frogs.
she kissed great white sharks."

the mermaid’s voice returns in this one,

undulating with uncertainty,

the high tides of hope receding with the thoughts

that this has happened.

it can happen again.

the waves of righteous anger

a siren song

to other survivors

we can hear you

and we are singing too

I’ve read all of this author’s books and have never been disappointed. They always bring tears to my eyes, even sometime sobs. This one was no exception, it was extremely beautiful and moving. I looked forward to this installment for what seemed like forever and was beyond excited to get approved to read it early.

This book was so empowering and really made me want to take back my voice. I’m usually the type of person who hates conflict and kind of goes in a hole instead. After reading this one I really want to change that, I wasn’t to take my voice and actually use it.

If you love poetry or are just getting into it I highly suggest this set of books. It is very easy to follow and makes a huge impact. Another thing I love is the covers, they are perfectly simple and outstanding at the same time.

Amanda Lovelace always delivers! Again, she tells her story with grace, but this time she's added something new! She's collaborated with some of her talented contemporaries, including poetry by them in this book as well. Honestly, if you want or need more poetry about being a survivor, or are just a fan of Amanda, definitely read this. She is one of the loveliest voices in poetry out there. I'm excited to see what she does next and now I've learned about new voices in poetry to research as well!

Another beautiful collection of poetry by Amanda Lovelace in her Women Are Some Kind of Magic series. She puts her heart and soul into her words and you can feel her emotions on every page. I also really loved the guest poems that were featured in this book.

I received an ARC e-book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

*trigger warnings are given at the beginning of the collection, sexual abuse/harassment being the biggest theme throughout the works.

I love poetry, especially on topics that I can connect to, and these poems are amazing, full of thoughtful and inspiring pieces it is definitely heavily inspired by the "Me Too" movement, and have a few other authors works that add a nice addition to the collection.

I've read the other two in the trilogy by Lovelace and loved them just as much as this one. The poems made me think of my own life, as a woman I felt I was able to connect to what the author is saying, as I have experienced some of the things she is talking about. This collection of poetry made me feel many different emotions, while simultaneously making me feel like I could take on whatever the world throws at me. I would highly recommend.

Amanda Lovelace's *Women Are Some Kind of Magic* series include some of my all-time favourite collections of poetry. *The Princess Saves Herself In This One* and especially *The Witch Doesn't Burn in This One* are two of my all-time favourite poetry collections. Lovelace is somehow able to grasp the reader's heart in one hand with her extremely raw and emotional poetry, and on the other hand, fill us with so much power that I just want to roar to the heavens. Her poetry *gets* me.

Although I typically describe Lovelace's works as a firestorm celebrating womanhood and healing, *The Mermaid's Voice Returns in This One* lacked that power which has previously defined Lovelace's works as so powerful and unique. There seemed to be a disconnect when I read the poetry, as though there was a haze that made my ability to fully embrace the words so wholeheartedly as I have previously in her works. I don't mean at all to detract Lovelace's healing process and the way in which she expresses herself, but it felt repetitive. Repetitive in the sense that I felt as though I have read these poems before - it was the same theme, similar poems that lacked the rawness of her previous two collections. I feel as though this collection was not needed, in the sense that this series could have been left as a duology and thus, it would have maintained its incredible panache.

In terms of structure, it maintains the thematic division of poetry from the first two collections of this series. It is divided into four sections: (i) the sky; (ii) the shipwreck; (iii) the song; and, (iv) the surviving. These 'chapters' connect with the overarching 'theme' which was the fairytale of *A Little Mermaid* and the concept of demonising women throughout history. The one addition that was not found within the other previous two collections, was that *The Mermaid's Voice Returns in This One* included poetry from other poets.

The poetry from other poets actually emphasised how much I was not connecting with Lovelace's words, in that, the featured poets provided more power and rawness in their little additions than the entire collection. Even though I did enjoy the poetry from other poets, such as Nikita Gill (who is literally my favourite of all time), Clementine Von Radics, Sophia Elaine Hanson, Yena Sharma Purmasir and nine others, they were placed within the overall narrative in a way that was supposed to flow from Lovelace's perspective to theirs, and it did not work to its fullest potential. It became quite fragmented and thus, exasperating to jump from Lovelace's perspective to another poet's personal experiences. I feel as though Lovelace may have also done this in terms of trying to incorporate more diverse voices and a more intersectional understanding of feminism, than just the white feminism that her other two previous collections could be claimed to perpetuate.

In this instance, these featured poets just emphasised the lacklustre poetry of Lovelace herself within this collection and it worked against her.

Overall, I do feel as though I need to reread this collection when it releases so I can try and fully immerse myself within her experience and see if that makes a difference. I do think that reading it as an E-Book diminishes the magic of it, so to speak. I do still adore Lovelace's poetry collections and I rate *The Mermaid's Voice Returns in This One* 3 out of 5 stars.

I’ve never been a huge fan of poetry despite my best efforts. In the past few years this trauma porn/recovery genre makes me feel... something. In Lovelace’s three volume collection, vague allusions to fairy tales and their dismantling frame her narrative. I’m on board.

My complaint with the final installment is “the surviving” – the final section with a chorus of voices, but no conclusions. I’m all about giving talented up-and-comers a foot in the door but I didn’t want or need this to be a compilation. The author I wanted to read has very sparse, waterfalling prose and some of the extras are literal walls of text. The subject matter may fit but the interjecting styles are jarring and unnecessary. I rate this 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.

Having read the past two books in the Women are Some Kind of Magic series by Amanda Lovelace this book ranked very highly on my to-be-read list! And it did not disappoint! I read the whole of this book within two sittings, it would have been one but I had to go to work!
I really enjoyed these poems and I believe it created a nice conclusion to this trilogy. I also thought it was cool how she tied in other authors this time that wrote about similar experiences. As well there seemed to be more nods to literary works and I really like those, especially since the author is an avid reader she is going to be inspired by other works.

One of my favourite poems is "I believe in endless worlds" and man does it ever hit home. I'm excited to continue reading her work in the future!

I received book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first book by Amanda Lovelace. I'd skimmed through some of her books before while browsing through bookstores but never fully committed because of how bad I've been burned by poetry books lately. I've always loved her titles though so I was excited to read this.

It held up ! I love the fairy tale vibes she emits in her work, having grown up a Disney kid and obsessed with the brothers grimm and other tales. There wasn't a lot of things relating back to mermaids surprisingly but that was completely fine. Very feminine based, very big in the metoo movement, and very relatable.

If you're familiar with her work you'll like this.

I'm a neophyte to Amanda Lovelace's poetry collections, though I'm familiar with some of her individual poems from Booklr (book Tumblr). Based on what I'd seen in the past, I got the impression that the poems were similar to Rupi Kaur or Nayyirah Waheed--fairly simple, sparse, and heavy on the lowercase letters. That impression is correct, based on <i>the mermaid's voice returns in this one.</i> The collection is apparently inspired from the Andersen and Disney versions of <i>The Little Mermaid</i>, and it's organized into four parts: the sky, the shipwreck, the song, and the surviving.

In general, these poems deal with personal stories of sexual assault, survivor's guilt, and recovery. In that regard, this collection has some powerful moments; it's important to amplify as many survivors' stories and voices as possible. For instance, when Lovelace writes about a past abusive relationship, she writes,
"if only
they had
taught
me

how to
recognize
the warning
flares

instead
of
wasting
their time

teaching
me
how
to

mistake
them
for
flattery."

But as a 25-year-old woman, I found some of the poems to be simplistic:
"I. when they can say 'no.'
II. when they can't say 'no.'
--they're both assault"

Because of that, I suspect the target audience could be younger teenagers, maybe who have not thought deeply about issues of consent and sexual assault. It doesn't personally appeal to me not only because of the fairly surface-level discussions of bodily autonomy, but also because of the poetry style and figurative language used. Although there are some allusions to mermaids--"i needed to swim away from you"--I felt like there could have been much richer and more explicit connections to mermaid mythology of the Andersen and Disney variety and beyond. I just needed more challenging material, more unexpected images and turns of phrase, and fewer filler poems from a collection like this.

The Mermaid's Voice Returns in This One is a beautiful conclusion to this Trilogy of poetry collections. It is filled with emotional poems, but also has enough positive, strong and hopeful ones sprinkled in there to not make the whole book too depressing.

I really enjoyed most of these poems and bookmarked quite a few, but overall I didn't feel a strong enough connection to give it the full 5 stars. I would still recommend anyone to check these poetry collections out. There are some very special gems in this one and I was definitely touched.