You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
adventurous
dark
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
I am so glad I picked this book up when I did because Saft's poetic prose, gripping story, and slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers romance got me through one of the toughest events of my entire life this past December. I don't know what I would have done without this magical world to anchor me.
A Dark and Drowning Tide is a commentary on anti-Semitism mixed with magic, romance, and political intrigue. Saft is not subtle about what she based her story on in the least. She mixes elements from both World Wars into one fantastical tale while simultaneously including real religious practices from Catholicism and Judaism. Sometimes Saft uses the correct terms to describe the practices while other times she uses descriptions. For example, Lorelei, who is Jewish, talks about how they would normally mourn the dead by bathing, praying, and watching over the body for several nights before burial. Not once does Saft mention this is called "sitting shiva" but that is exactly what she was describing. While I am not Jewish, I am familiar enough through friends, coworkers, and previous work experience to know exactly what she was talking about, and was thankful she didn't bastardize very sacred practices in the process of telling her tale. I felt her descriptions, uses, and inclusion were done so respectfully, but as someone outside both faiths, I cannot speak with authority on this issue.
I did not mind that Saft wasn't subtle in her presentation but did sometimes find it lazy that she was unable to come up with systems and practices of her own. Others have mentioned this in their reviews as well, and I am inclined to agree. However, this wasn't enough for me to rate the book poorly. With a severe lack of media literacy, I can see why Saft would want to be as blunt as possible. I am sure we all remember just a month ago that "Books shouldn't be political." Yes...yes they should and sometimes the political aspects need to be better spelled out for people to understand. Because this book isn't spicy, I am sure the people who really need to hear this message aren't picking it up to begin with, which is an utter shame.
Despite lifting practices and history straight from reality, the magical system, world-building, and story were rather unique. The entire magic system focuses on the use of water, as water holds the magic from the original source, the Ursprung (which means 'origin' in German by the way). I absolutely adored this system as water has a tendency to hold onto things much longer than other sources. For example, spent radioactive cores are stored in pools of water because water retains radiation. I viewed the magic in A Dark and Drowning Tide as radiation being held exclusively by water. Water closer to the source contained more magic and therefore was easier to wield, while water further away was less so. I honestly wish Saft had spent more time delving into this magical system than she did and why water was the magical source and not others.
On top of an interesting magic system, the world-building was beautifully constructed, full of interesting and unique creatures. Many of these creatures were pulled directly from folklore but with a twist. I am a sucker for folk and the fact that our main character, Lorelei, is a folklorist herself sucked in me. From Saft's description of the landscape to the creatures to the plant life, I was hooked. I could fully immerse myself into this story, the images blooming across my inner eye as I read. It's not often a book sucks me in so completely, and this one certainly did.
Finally, I adored the story. I am not super into romance, let alone such tropes as enemies-to-lovers, but I felt Saft did a good job making the romance secondary to the main plot. It's a slow burn as Lorelei grapples with her feelings and the little bit of spice was tastefully done.
My only complaint is there is no real resolution at the end of the book. Everything Lorelei does is to save her people, rescue them from the ghettos, and allow them to exist free of discrimination, but there is no resolution. They are never freed, there is no talk of what is to happen to them in the future, nor are they granted full citizenship. Yes, Lorelei is free, but that's it. I was disappointed that anti-Semitism took center stage, but there was no real addressing it. We were fed crumbs when we should have been given cake. This was the biggest disappointment.
With everything that is going on in the world, A Dark and Drowning Tide is definitely a book I would recommend others pick up, especially older teens studying more recent history. Reading teaches empathy and we could all use a little more of that right now.
niet uitgelezen, na ongeveer 1/3 was ik gestopt
ik besloot dit boek te lezen toen ik het op goodreads op een lijst van ‘top zoveel fantasy boeken om met halloween te lezen’ maar eerlijk gezegd voel ik niet veel voor het verhaal. alsin de hele queeste en de opdracht die de hoofdpersoon moet voltooien doen me helemaal niks, dus ik ga liever iets anders lezen nu :)
ik besloot dit boek te lezen toen ik het op goodreads op een lijst van ‘top zoveel fantasy boeken om met halloween te lezen’ maar eerlijk gezegd voel ik niet veel voor het verhaal. alsin de hele queeste en de opdracht die de hoofdpersoon moet voltooien doen me helemaal niks, dus ik ga liever iets anders lezen nu :)
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
the ending made me very happy and i love lorelei and sylvia so much
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really did enjoy this book. The storyline, though slower, was exciting to read, but there are a couple reasons why I only gave this book 4 stars:
1. There were some really confusing parts in this book. I would have to re-read some sections to realize who was talking or what folktale they were referring to.
2. Some of the folktales kept changing meaning throughout the book and were not consistent to what I had read about them earlier in the book.
3. Some parts of the book seemed to just drone on. The book was rather slow-paced, and I felt like some parts could have been shortened.
I really loved the representation of Jewish culture during this timeframe. As l’m also Jewish and not straight, I could very much relate to Lorelei. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a descriptive book with some action and adventure with a little twist of mystery.
1. There were some really confusing parts in this book. I would have to re-read some sections to realize who was talking or what folktale they were referring to.
2. Some of the folktales kept changing meaning throughout the book and were not consistent to what I had read about them earlier in the book.
3. Some parts of the book seemed to just drone on. The book was rather slow-paced, and I felt like some parts could have been shortened.
I really loved the representation of Jewish culture during this timeframe. As l’m also Jewish and not straight, I could very much relate to Lorelei. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a descriptive book with some action and adventure with a little twist of mystery.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I did enjoy reading this and it's not my first Alisson Safts book, so I'm used to her structure by now.
For me these types of fantasy books are mostly just entertainment. They are enjoyable and I read this during a day long train journey. Nonetheless, I have to agree with a lot of reviews about the ending.
It felt strangely lackluster. Kind of like a fanfiction ending the author hastily slaps on because they never imagined their story coming to an end. The political implications of it all are quite messed up and while I enjoy the flaws of the characters and them making strange decisions, it ultimately fell flat for me.
Once again, it was an enjoyable read for me. All of the authors books have been so far and I will continue reading them. The author stated in the afterword herself how much of a struggle writing this was, so I will give her some grace there, but it makes me uncomfortable how politically lackluster the last pages ended up being.
For me these types of fantasy books are mostly just entertainment. They are enjoyable and I read this during a day long train journey. Nonetheless, I have to agree with a lot of reviews about the ending.
It felt strangely lackluster. Kind of like a fanfiction ending the author hastily slaps on because they never imagined their story coming to an end. The political implications of it all are quite messed up and while I enjoy the flaws of the characters and them making strange decisions, it ultimately fell flat for me.
Once again, it was an enjoyable read for me. All of the authors books have been so far and I will continue reading them. The author stated in the afterword herself how much of a struggle writing this was, so I will give her some grace there, but it makes me uncomfortable how politically lackluster the last pages ended up being.
sad
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
This was well written and overall a decent book. I wasn't invested in the characters and it could have been a bit longer at the end to flesh out their relationships. My inability to connect with the characters (and the choices they made) is one of the reasons it took me a WHILE to get through it. Maybe I'm not in the headspace to read a book like this while in a reading slump but I can still appreciate how well-written it was. I liked Loralie despite how pessimistic she is (a consequence of being systematically oppressed) and especially how we get to know Sylvia through her. However, the ending was not what I expected and I was disappointed (honestly I would have sided with the "villains"). While I'm not sure if I will reach for this book again anytime soon I do know it was a well-written book that I might have read at the wrong time.