By Meghan Mazzaferro
Content warning: violence, gore, racially motivated hate crimes, government propaganda
Journey to the Heart of the Abyss by London Shah is the conclusion to the Light the Abyss duology. In a world that has been completely flooded by an apocalyptic event, what remains of humanity lives beneath the water, travelling in submarines and waiting for the day it will be safe to return to the surface. Leyla McQueen, however, has far more pressing concerns.
After her father is arrested for a crime she knows he didn’t commit, she enters an underwater race in the hopes of winning his freedom, and then begins a journey out of London and across the open ocean to save him. Her only companions are her adorable dog Jojo, and Ari, a brooding boy with a secret. To save her father, Leyla will have to face her fears of the deep and the threat that lurks there—the most dangerous of all the anthropoids, humans with the ability to breathe underwater who seem hell-bent on destroying humanity. Or at least, that’s what everyone thinks.
Journey to the Heart of the Abyss begins a month after the first book in the duology (The Light at the Bottom of the World) finishes, and while I won’t spoil the first book, the stakes only get higher, the threats of the deep more dangerous, and the fight more desperate. This duology’s focus is exploring the good that people have inside them while also dismantling the risks we face—even in a contemporary world—that allow us to become complicit in cruelty. The role of government, propaganda, passivity, prejudice, and more are all examined here through Leyla’s eyes as she learns to confront not just the prejudices around her, but her own beliefs and practices that cause harm. Leyla’s journey pushes her, and by extension us as readers, to grow and become better people; these books force us to confront our own complicity when it comes to the world around us and encourage us to be brave enough to fight for change.
Light the Abyss is an exceptional young adult sci-fi duology with a vivid, immersive, and unique world, compelling characters, a fast-paced plot, and lots of twists and turns. Even without the greater social commentaries at play, this book is a fun ride about adventure through deep and dangerous waters, and for that alone I would recommend it. It feels like a series made for adaptation. The rich, diverse underwater settings are described vividly and would be stunning to see on the big screen, and it would be interesting to see the submarine and all the other technology in this series brought to life.
Something to note is that Leyla and her father are Muslim. It was really refreshing to see Leyla practicing her faith while kicking ass and fighting off sea monsters, and I think that these books are a great example of the ways that inclusivity and diversity can be found in sci-fi and fantasy series that allow a broader range of readers to see themselves in the genres.
As I’ve already discussed, this book goes beyond just storytelling; in fact, Journey to the Heart of the Abyss has a teaching guide at the back of the book with thoughtful questions allowing discussion on the role of government, prejudice, othering, and more. This book is a clear commentary on the current world, both with the threats of climate change that could lead to the types of catastrophic events that forced Leyla’s people under the water, as well as the fears, prejudices, and hate that are all too prevalent in our world. But despite that, this book is full of hope and is a powerful tool for teens to discover the right ways to fight for what they believe in.
I would definitely recommend this book for any fans of young adult sci-fi and fantasy, and especially for those teens who are perhaps fearing for the state of our world and wondering how they can make a difference. Leyla is the type of role model they need.
Please note that Meghan was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.