Mermaids on the Moon

When thirty-five-year-old France's father calls to say that her mother, Grendy, has run off, France suspects foul play and heads south to investigate. Recently reunited with fellow former "mermaids" from Mermaid Springs, FLone of the Sunshine State's premier, pre-Disney attractionsGrendy had successfully revived her career in kitschy underwater pageants. But if she doesn't find herself or let herself be found soon, she'll miss the big Labor Day show. While the other fin-toting "merhags" regale France with stories of oldparticularly the night Elvis came to townthey're suspiciously tight-lipped about Grendy's disappearance. Increasingly convinced that Grendy is in troubleand that a psychic cat might hold the clueshe makes a series of unexpected, extraordinary discoveries about Mermaid Springs, her mother, and, in turn, herself.

Elizabeth Stuckey-French is the author of the short story collection The First Paper Girl in Red Oak, Iowa. Her stories have appeared in The Atlantic Monthly, Gettysburg Review, Southern Review, Five Points, and other literary journals. She lives in Tallahassee, Florida, where she teaches fiction writing at Florida State University.