Tessa Yang intricately explores human and aquatic relationships in her first novel, The Jellyfish Problem. For marine biologist Dr. Josephine Ness, "jellyfish were [her] first thought on waking and [her] last thought before falling asleep." For three years, she's been writing The Modern Medusa: A Jellyfish Primer with best (and only) friend Aldo. Unfortunately, Aldo's been dead for seven months, after a scuba accident that Jo insists was her fault. She has since been living "a stalled and hollow life."
Then Jo gets a call from Nadia, whom she hasn't spoken to since their college graduation. Jo doesn't want to be "that most tragic of gay stereotypes: the pitiful lesbian pining after her straight best friend," but Nadia needs help only Jo can provide, because the tiny Maine island Nadia calls home is "having a really big jellyfish problem." The video footage may look fake, but this mysterious medusa is possibly the biggest in the world. When Jo arrives, however, Nadia's gone missing, and her husband's nonchalance over her not coming home the previous night is unnerving. Jo needs to meet the jellyfish--improbably named Clementine by a local child--and figure out who and what she is, and then somehow free the island from her luminous thrall.
Yang is a casual, intimate writer, drawing in audiences with dropped hints and slow reveals. She seamlessly blends detailed marine science and magical realism--all with welcome doses of well-timed humor--interweaving relationship drama, love (and hate) story, mother/daughter confrontations, corporate labyrinths, and a few pokes at the publishing industry. Glowing at the novel's core is the universal need for finding community. --Terry Hong