In Korean American writer Gina Chung's charmingly offbeat debut, Sea Change, a young woman who works at an aquarium realizes she needs a life bigger than her usual self-sabotage and wallowing in loss.
In this near-future novel, environmental degradation is even more advanced and there are plans afoot to colonize Mars. Aurora--her Korean name is Bae Arim, but she goes by Ro--has followed in her father's footsteps by working at the aquarium in Fountain Plaza, a New Jersey mall. Fifteen years ago, Ro's father, Apa, set off on a research expedition to the polluted Bering Vortex--where he'd previously discovered Dolores, the aquarium's prized giant Pacific octopus. His craft disappeared and Apa is presumed dead, though Ro holds out hope that he'll return. Her ex-boyfriend, Tae, is nearly as inaccessible, having volunteered for the Arc 4 mission to Mars. At age 30, Ro is isolated--partially by chance, but also by choice. Her belief that everyone she loves leaves her has driven her to withdraw from those still in her life.
It's clear something's got to give here. When she learns Dolores is to be sold to a private collector, Ro must rethink everything. Dolores--an intelligent and playful creature who changes color to reflect her mood, and appears to recognize individual humans--is a constant source of amusement and wonder. The self-hating young woman is a familiar figure in recent fiction, but the specifics of Ro's situation and her friendship with Dolores, along with the speculative elements, make Sea Change stand out. --Rebecca Foster, freelance reviewer, proofreader and blogger at Bookish Beck