The Tail of Emily Windsnap

Emily is forced to carry on alone in Chapter 13, illustrating how the journey to find her dad and her place is hers only—no one can do it for her. This also illustrates how comfortable Emily has become with the merfolk world and her mermaid nature in a short time. The prison is frightening, but this doesn’t stop her from using her smarts and mermaid skills to get inside, avoid the guards, and find her dad. Up until this point, she knew intellectually that she was half-mermaid, and she heard her mom talk about how much she loved Emily’s dad, but seeing her merfolk father in person is different. The poems and bracelet Jake gives Emily to bring to her mom are symbols of how he has always loved Emily’s mom, even though merfolk law tried to tell him it was wrong. This foreshadows the argument Emily uses against Neptune in Chapter 15, as well as Neptune’s ultimate decision to let the family go free. By convincing Neptune there is nothing wrong with her or her family, Emily starts to undo generations of harmful merfolk assumptions.

The shell Mr. Beeston uses in Chapter 13 is actually a communication device that allows him to call for Neptune’s guards. The arrival of the guards begins the climax of the story and reveals more about merfolk culture and their expectations of humans. Rather than letting Emily’s mother drown, the merfolk give her an oxygen mask to breathe while within the bounds of their kingdom. Emily’s mom is given a fair trial just like Emily, again showing that Neptune and the merfolk are not unreasonable or evil. Emily is allowed to plead her case and not simply sentenced, meaning she is viewed as having at least basic rights. Shona’s uncertain fate also shows that full merfolk are not given special treatment. After everything she’s learned about Emily and part-merfolk, Shona faces either exile from her community or having her memory wiped. The book ends without making it clear which punishment she chooses, but her friendship with Emily and her dedication to helping Emily’s family reunite suggest Shona will choose exile to the island with Emily’s family.

The book’s final chapter speaks to The Resilient Nature of Love and Identity. Earlier in the book, Shona proposed Neptune hated humans and forbade merfolk-human relationships because a human lover spurned him years ago, and he has never forgiven humans for his heartbreak. Neptune’s refusal to punish Emily and her family for love, coupled with his admission he knows how they feel, suggests there is truth to Shona’s theory and offers insight into Neptune as a ruler. Hearing Emily passionately defending her right to know her dad and her parents’ right to be in love forces Neptune to acknowledge the slightness of the infraction the family has committed in contrast with the harshness of his sentence. Freeing and reuniting Emily’s family doesn’t make up for what Neptune’s actions, but it shows that he is just, fair, and not beyond empathy. It also suggests more changes will come to the merfolk world in future installments of the series, likely with Emily, her family, and Shona spearheading the efforts.