Unfortunately, only Marie-Josèphe can understand the sea woman (now called Sherzad) and her musical way of talking. Thus, Marie-Josèphe tries to convince the others at court, including her brother, that the sea woman is intelligent and hopefully free her. Father Yves brings back two specimens: one, a dead male sea monster covered in sawdust and ice the other, a live female sea monster placed in the Apollo fountain in the Palace of Versailles.Īcting as her brother's assistant, sketching the dead sea monster's dissection, and caring for the live specimen, Marie-Josèphe soon realizes the creature is not a sea monster, but a sea woman. Her brother, Father Yves de la Croix (a natural philosopher and explorer), has recently returned from a mission commissioned by the king: to bring back the endangered sea monster whose flesh is rumoured to give the consumer immortality. Set in 17th-century France at the court of the Sun King, King Louis XIV, the young, colony-raised, naïve Mademoiselle Marie-Josèphe de la Croix is the lady-in-waiting to King Louis XIV's niece. The novel was re-released as The King’s Daughter in 2021 as a tie-in with the film of that name based on the book. The novel was inspired by the short story (written in the form of a faux- encyclopedia article) 'The Natural History and Extinction of the People of the Sea', also by McIntyre, which was illustrated by fellow author Ursula K. It won the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1997, beating out A Game of Thrones by George R. The book combines two major genres: science fiction (specifically the alternate history subgenre) and historical romance.

The Moon and the Sun is a novel by American writer Vonda N.

The Exile Waiting by Vonda N. McIntyre