A review by annotatewithsara
Meet Us by the Roaring Sea by Akil Kumarasamy

challenging emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

“If there is any substitute for love, it is memory — Joseph Brodsky”

Like Yaadra’s voice at the 9th second, it’s almost too hard to hear the love story under the roar of other waves in this novel. But, I stand firmly in my conviction that Meet Us By the Roaring Sea, is at its heart, a queer love story — the love the nearly unnamed main character Aya feels for her childhood friend Sal. Their love began in girlhood and had a chance to rekindle in adulthood when they reconnected because of parental loss and to make art together. I still ache after reading the book wondering if Aya’s desire for intimacy was satisfied by memory or love. 

I love this book so much and its hypnotic fragmented narrative, so peppered with clues and beautiful quotes. Reading felt like floating on gorgeous mysterious waves. 

I had lots of questions when I finished the book, most of which I’ve answered with careful close rereading, but my favorite question to ask still is, What was on Ricky’s hard drive? It’s rewarding to go back through the text, reading Ricky’s scenes and hypothesizing what he offered up to Bogey. 

At the time of writing this, there is not a lot of information on the internet parsing out the secrets of this book, but there is a February 2023 interview in The Brooklyn Rail that Akil Kumarasamy does with her colleague John Greene. In it, she is so generous in sharing insights. I highly recommend reading it. 

https://brooklynrail.org/2023/02/books/John-Keene-in-conversation-with-Akil-Kumarasamy