The Vencello

4.7 star review by INDIE READER

THE VENCELLO by S. Amaranthine is a marvelous book, evocative in style and subject matter of sci-fi greats like Margaret Atwood or Octavia Butler…

Using omniscient narration, author S. Amaranthine is able to take us–not just inside the heads of her human characters, but the heads of the whale characters as well. Her well-researched insight into what the world of whales looks like—or, more importantly, sounds like—helps seemingly abstract scenes make sense of how the story unfolds. It’s the whale characters readers can turn to in order to find definitive answers about the larger story, because they perceive things so differently than the human characters…


At its core, this story is a lyrical exploration of love and loss, hope and despair, and the ultimate connection we share to our universe. The messages present in Amaranthine’s story are not preachy, but carefully ingrained into the arc of the characters’ stories, so that readers are able to draw their own conclusions about what those messages might be. While this is the first book of a trilogy, it’s excellent as a stand-alone story that will send readers back to the front page for another read-through.


IR VERDICT: A surreal-but-linear story that blends science-fiction, fantasy, and myth in a lyrical, literary style, THE VENCELLO both rewards readers with a great story and challenges their preconceived notions about life.