Sea Eve

Iva Hadj Moussa: Sea Eve

It's never too late to take a breath

Forty-something Eva lives an ordinary, unassuming life. Until the moment when all her previous certainties start to crumble under her hands. A series of unexpected events culminates in the shocking realisation that where others drown, she catches her breath. Will this newfound ability turn Eva into a superhero? Or more like a woman who allows herself to be herself for the first time, even if it means being strange, elusive, or even dangerous?

Eve of the Sea is a late coming-of-age novel about a woman trying to survive the pressures of family, authorities, media and her own ideas of what she should be. The tragicomic images blend fantasy, intimacy and satire of petty bourgeois expectations. The author observes with insight and tenderness how a person can fall apart, put himself back together and find strength in something that eventually becomes his key to freedom.

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The stories of the novel's characters are far from idyllic; instead of the dark atmosphere of uncovering the causes of family disruption and anticipation of coming disasters, the author chooses the path of perspective and humour.
— Iveta Mikešová on the novel Heavy Souls, Tvar

A few years ago I was swimming in the lake in Poděbrady when I had the idea: What if I can breathe underwater and I just don't know it yet? How would that ability change my life? From this spontaneous thought came the idea for the novel. I wanted to touch on the theme of otherness - how we relate to our bodies, how we are different and how society reacts to our difference. How would people perceive such a superheroine? Would they admire her or fear her? And can the gift that sets us apart eventually become a burden?
— Iva Hadj Moussa, author