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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
fast-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
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
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
It’s amazing, definitely a must read if you like fantasy, folklore and sapphic love stories. I’d heard it “supported colonialism” but I don’t agree with that, I think the ending is more complicated than people are giving it credit for. I would have liked a more descriptive writing when it came to certain scenes and cultural aspects though.
medium-paced
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
OKAY, lets start to get my thoughts out. Initially when I first picked this book up I was bamboozled. But that wasn’t the authors fault, that was my fault for going in completely blind. This book is a slooooooooowww burn. The start introduces a wide cast of characters, with world building and a lot of bloody politics, my goodness that caught me off guard. That takes place for about 40% of the book, as it builds up the connections between each character and the world we are in.
Fast forward to the final 60% of the book, THIS PART FUCKING WON ME OVER!! Once they got on that boat and the story really started to come alive, the characters interaction between each other, the mystery laced through everything, the sentient forest and magical creatures. I loved the academic side of things including especially the wildlife and botany aspects. I really loved the Nyxies and how they were described. The murder mystery was done so bloody well, and it had me guessing and trying to figure out who was really allied with who the whole time!
The two main characters, Lorelai and Sylvia are rivals from different backgrounds, that collide with their common interest. Now the author does not fuck around, she really drives it into your skull that Lorelai is a hating bitch, lmao literally best way to describe her. But it’s funny because her actions didn’t always line up with her inner dialogue where there was clear romantic attraction there, despite the hatred. Eventually though (again past the 40% mark) I started to really enjoy their interactions, the push and pull throughout even towards the end you can feel the walls break down with both of them. I loved that and because of that I think there was fantastic character development.
The other characters were engaging and played an integral role to the story, showcasing the different motivations of each person and how that affected their own actions and the group. The interactions between each of the characters felt authentic and true to the story and it was just really well done. The ending was really satisfying and i ended up just really loving it. WE LOVE A QUEER NORMATIVE WORLD!!
Fast forward to the final 60% of the book, THIS PART FUCKING WON ME OVER!! Once they got on that boat and the story really started to come alive, the characters interaction between each other, the mystery laced through everything, the sentient forest and magical creatures. I loved the academic side of things including especially the wildlife and botany aspects. I really loved the Nyxies and how they were described. The murder mystery was done so bloody well, and it had me guessing and trying to figure out who was really allied with who the whole time!
The two main characters, Lorelai and Sylvia are rivals from different backgrounds, that collide with their common interest. Now the author does not fuck around, she really drives it into your skull that Lorelai is a hating bitch, lmao literally best way to describe her. But it’s funny because her actions didn’t always line up with her inner dialogue where there was clear romantic attraction there, despite the hatred. Eventually though (again past the 40% mark) I started to really enjoy their interactions, the push and pull throughout even towards the end you can feel the walls break down with both of them. I loved that and because of that I think there was fantastic character development.
The other characters were engaging and played an integral role to the story, showcasing the different motivations of each person and how that affected their own actions and the group. The interactions between each of the characters felt authentic and true to the story and it was just really well done. The ending was really satisfying and i ended up just really loving it. WE LOVE A QUEER NORMATIVE WORLD!!
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-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
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Rarely do I read fantasy that keeps my attention. Not that it’s a bad genre, but I find that—in my eyes, at least—fantasy often suffers from one out of two major problems. The first one, and most common, being that there’s too much going on. That the worldbuilding and magic system is too ambitious for the plot the author wants to write. The second one is really the opposite, being that the fantasy world doesn’t feel like fantasy, or the setting isn’t necessary for the plot, and the entire story begins to fall apart as consequence. “A Dark and Drowning Tide” hits that sweet spot in the middle for me, not only delivering a world that feels both fantastic and grounded enough to not distract from the reading experience, but an intriguing plot.
I didn’t expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. I finished it in only a few hours, unable and unwilling to put it down. The writing itself was beautiful, enhancing the presentation and charm. I appreciated the pacing of the story immensely, which seemed to move both slowly and quickly when needed, never lingering too long in an explanation of some element of the magic system or an entirely unnecessary scene—an issue I find prevalent in many fantasy stories for one reason or another.
The world, mythology, and magic of the story may not work for some people—particularly hardcore fantasy fans, which I am very much not—as the author doesn’t spend more time than necessary explaining exactly what needs to be understood in order for the plot to make sense, but I found it to be more than enough. And though I will admit that the characters, most specifically our main character and her love interest, Lorelei and Sylvia, are a bit trope-y and predictable at times, the dynamic between them and the other characters more than made up for it, and the romance, which I am typically not the biggest fan of, was enjoyable. The only complaint I have about this aspect, however, would be that I feel as if it ended too abruptly, and the slow-burn of it all felt less like falling in love and more like a switch being flipped. As I approached the end of the story I found myself considering that perhaps the story have benefited from the book being longer.
Unfortunately, the last third of this book prevents it from being any more than 3.5 stars. Again, the story largely would have benefited from the book being longer, as the ending felt rushed, unsatisfying, and a bit counterproductive.
From the beginning, we are introduced to the idea that Lorelei and those who share her ethnicity, the Yevani, are treated as second-class citizens. As you read on it’s clear that this is a not so subtle parallel to Judaism, from the tales Lorelei sprinkles into the story, the discrimination she and the Yeva face, and the laws of the kingdom. This, alongside the initial setup of an anti-colonisation narrative, makes the ending where Lorelei and the remaining crew know of and ignore the king’s questionable at best and harmful at worst politics in order to continue working beside him baffling. Not to mention the chapter where Sylvia speaks at a festival in her hometown of Able and pledges her allegiance to King Wilhelm right after someone yells “Free Able”—as King Wilhelm has “unified” Brunnestaad, once again setting up an anti-colonialism narrative, as many individuals are described as ‘struggling’ with this new change, and many times throughout this story we see people try to take a stand against their colonization only to be shot down and told that their worries are baseless. In the end, all of our characters seem to forget that they were once against this colonization, and once Lorelei is granted a special title that allows her to seemingly bypass all the laws put in place against her people, the idea that all she wanted was for them to live freely is suddenly abandoned, and all that matters is the fact that she gets to be somewhat free and live happily ever after with Sylvia, who, by the way, has actively put in effort to keep the Yeva oppressed, which is something she never admits to with any guilt or apologizes for. I’m sorry?
It seems to me as if the author wanted to set up and comment on these issues and ideas, but the only commentary to be drawn from this story is that these issues do in fact exist. That’s it. The ending also seems to forgive these crimes as if they could be that easily ignored, conveying—whether intentionally or unintentionally—that colonization and discrimination is fine if the people in charge give you the illusion of power. I truly cannot tell if this was the author’s intention, as the story seems to sway in the opposite direction during the first 2/3rds, save for that one chapter, which is never really addressed in any meaningful way. I feel like I have a lot more to say about this book and the author but it is 3am, and I am very tired.
As far as I’ve researched about Saft, this doesn’t seem like her usual politics, which makes me think that the ending was just rushed and not all that well thought out, which is extremely disappointing, as this book excels in every other conceivable way for me. It’s unfortunate that I can’t rate this more than 3 stars.
I didn’t expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. I finished it in only a few hours, unable and unwilling to put it down. The writing itself was beautiful, enhancing the presentation and charm. I appreciated the pacing of the story immensely, which seemed to move both slowly and quickly when needed, never lingering too long in an explanation of some element of the magic system or an entirely unnecessary scene—an issue I find prevalent in many fantasy stories for one reason or another.
The world, mythology, and magic of the story may not work for some people—particularly hardcore fantasy fans, which I am very much not—as the author doesn’t spend more time than necessary explaining exactly what needs to be understood in order for the plot to make sense, but I found it to be more than enough. And though I will admit that the characters, most specifically our main character and her love interest, Lorelei and Sylvia, are a bit trope-y and predictable at times, the dynamic between them and the other characters more than made up for it, and the romance, which I am typically not the biggest fan of, was enjoyable. The only complaint I have about this aspect, however, would be that I feel as if it ended too abruptly, and the slow-burn of it all felt less like falling in love and more like a switch being flipped. As I approached the end of the story I found myself considering that perhaps the story have benefited from the book being longer.
Unfortunately, the last third of this book prevents it from being any more than 3.5 stars. Again, the story largely would have benefited from the book being longer, as the ending felt rushed, unsatisfying, and a bit counterproductive.
It seems to me as if the author wanted to set up and comment on these issues and ideas, but the only commentary to be drawn from this story is that these issues do in fact exist. That’s it. The ending also seems to forgive these crimes as if they could be that easily ignored, conveying—whether intentionally or unintentionally—that colonization and discrimination is fine if the people in charge give you the illusion of power. I truly cannot tell if this was the author’s intention, as the story seems to sway in the opposite direction during the first 2/3rds, save for that one chapter, which is never really addressed in any meaningful way. I feel like I have a lot more to say about this book and the author but it is 3am, and I am very tired.
As far as I’ve researched about Saft, this doesn’t seem like her usual politics, which makes me think that the ending was just rushed and not all that well thought out, which is extremely disappointing, as this book excels in every other conceivable way for me. It’s unfortunate that I can’t rate this more than 3 stars.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore
Minor: Hate crime, Xenophobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, War