Reviews with content warning for Death - The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea

Reviews tagging 'Death'

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh

138 reviews

rileydobereading's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful lighthearted sad fast-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

5.0

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jayisreading's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful reflective medium-paced

4.0

A feminist retelling of the Korean folktale, “The Tale of Shim Cheong,” The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea has a lot of heart, and it’s clear that Oh poured a lot of love into her characters and the worldbuilding. Being familiar with the original folktale, I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn’t about Shim Cheong specifically (though she appears as a side character), but, rather, a rather headstrong and earnest sixteen-year-old named Mina. Alongside Mina is a cast of relatively memorable characters, perhaps one of the more notable ones being Shin, who ends up being Mina’s love interest. (I should note that this is definitely a slow burn romance, which won’t be for everyone—) I did find Oh’s characters somewhat weak, especially compared to her worldbuilding, but they certainly weren’t one-dimensional either. I think it was just wanting a bit more character development and time to sit with the cast. I also found the novel’s pacing a bit uneven at the start, but it really came together as it continued.

All-in-all, I enjoyed this YA novel more than I thought I would. I think I was especially taken to the emphasis on storytelling, and I really appreciated how Oh seamlessly wove in other Korean folktales into the novel through Mina.

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e_riahh's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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lawbooks600's review against another edition

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adventurous 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

4.0

Representation: Asian characters
Score: Seven points out of ten.

I wanted to read this one for a while but never got around till now. I glanced the blurb, which made The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea look intriguing and enjoyable. I headed in with high expectations considering the equally high ratings. When I closed the final page of The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, it was a delightful reading experience.

It starts with the first character I see, Mina, living her life when someone had to sacrifice themselves for the Sea God. According to the myth, the Sea God has cursed the land with storms and floods--a human sacrifice to become the Sea God's bride is the only solution. This time it's Mina's brother who had to sacrifice himself but Mina joins and intervenes, risking her life. I thought Mina would not survive the opening pages, but surprisingly, she enters a realm previously unknown to her, a world filled with spirits, and most prominently, the Sea God. He's younger than Mina thought, since he's only a teenager. The former half of The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is tedious to read, but the pace quickly picks up during the latter half. There was more action there, but the conclusion is only okay. At least there's a high note in the end.

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