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whataqt's review against another edition
dark
inspiring
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
What I find unfortunate about A Study In Drowning is how the first half of the book is compelling, atmospheric, and eerie. The set up of the central mystery and the first couple of plot beats had me engrossed. After the halfway point, however, the romance becomes more of the central focus. This is acceptable, given the dedication boldly marks the novel as a love story, but what I didn't enjoy was the choice Reid made regarding the other males characters. Any man who isn't named Preston is a total piece of shit inside this world, which felt to me like a choice meant to aid in the romantic development, but ultimately undercuts the themes of the novel. Patriarchy is a system of oppression, and men uphold it in many ways, both obvious and subtle. I wanted my view of these men to be complicated the deeper into the story I went, and that did not happen. Another choice I couldn't get past was the choice to not have Effy spend a substantial amount of time around any female characters. Those interactions are pushed into the front and back of the book, and in a story about women reclaiming their stories, it felt like an oversight to not have another female character Effy could interact with. As the mystery was revealed and the book drew to a close, I found myself losing interest. Ultimately, though, I enjoyed the overarching metaphor of the sea, the dense atmosphere, and the epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter (which were better than a lot of the prose). I just was left wanting more from the back half of this book, but with my time with it, I can never say I wasn't intrigued and immersed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Sexual harassment
kghunter's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
“[…]the truth was very costly at times. How terrible, to navigate the world without a story to comfort you.”
If you were to remove all of the sentences in this book that described one of the characters blushing, it would probably be about half its current length. I don’t know if this is just a more common experience of fair skinned people or what but I think a group-read of this in which everyone took a shot every time someone blushes would be a pretty fun way to get absolutely shittered with your friends if they also happen to be into horny fantasy mystery novels that involve a lot of quivering and clenched fists.
Blushing and quivering aside this was a truly enjoyable read. Reid is brilliant at capturing the “dark academia” imagery and I loved how she used such a beautifully painted, fantastical storyline to examine themes of misogyny, victim-shaming, childhood trauma, and isolation, as well as gender-based violence, bigotry, and oppression. As a reader who originally chose to read this book to scratch my annually occurring wintertime dark academia itch, its depth and sincerity came as a pleasant surprise.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Colonisation
savanah's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Chronic illness, Confinement, Emotional abuse, and Mental illness
Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis
kaky0523's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Sexism
Moderate: Mental illness, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Emotional abuse
chi__'s review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Death of parent
blackcat_mala's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I instantly fell in love with this book, and it reached in and touched something within me I did expect. Much of the story is found in the emotion hidden between the lines and between the words, which only adds to effect of the emotions and themes.
It made me cry. Like ugly cry at the end, mostly as a release of emotions.
I especially lovedthe ambiguity of whether or not the not the magic is real and the metaphor it poses as, with clear commentary on the experience of, sadly, many, women especially.
I will highly recommend this book both for the immersive writing, exciting story and the wonderful characters.
It made me cry. Like ugly cry at the end, mostly as a release of emotions.
I especially loved
I will highly recommend this book both for the immersive writing, exciting story and the wonderful characters.
Content Warnings
Minor: Emotional abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment
emmmysue's review
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
bibliomania_express's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid intertwines magic and folklore with a quest to discover the true identity of an author. This is a book with an interesting premise that tackles hard topics like sexual assault, misogyny, and the erasure of women, but suffers from awkward worldbuilding, a bit too much on-page sexual harrassment, and a lacklustre romance.
I've been avoiding reviews of this book and the little I haven't been able to avoid has been vehemently negative. I'm more on the ambivalent side. I think the book is doing some interesting things with its drowning motif and exploring mental health and the repression of women. It's depicting the casual sexual harrassment women are faced with that society expects them not to react to.
But. The literal only good male character is the main love interest. Who, while a fine character, seems to be the love interest only because he's the only person not sexually harrassing Effy and because this is a "romantasy" when it didn't need to be. The sexism is so pervasive that the triumphant ending seems a bit too good to be true.
My real gripe beyond the ever-present misogyny that made this hard to read is that the magic system and worldbuilding is all over the place. I had a hard time understanding what was accepted existing magic and what was just "local supersition", especially when the supersitions were maybe (?) having an effect on a literal real war. But also there was nothing about the book that felt like it was taking place in a country currently at war, even when the main setting was a university town on the border with the enemy country.
I think I've ended with a 2.5 stars mainly because it was fast-paced and interesting enough to keep me engaging and blasting through it, but the list of gripes is too long to warrant a 3.
I've been avoiding reviews of this book and the little I haven't been able to avoid has been vehemently negative. I'm more on the ambivalent side. I think the book is doing some interesting things with its drowning motif and exploring mental health and the repression of women. It's depicting the casual sexual harrassment women are faced with that society expects them not to react to.
But. The literal only good male character is the main love interest. Who, while a fine character, seems to be the love interest only because he's the only person not sexually harrassing Effy and because this is a "romantasy" when it didn't need to be. The sexism is so pervasive that the triumphant ending seems a bit too good to be true.
My real gripe beyond the ever-present misogyny that made this hard to read is that the magic system and worldbuilding is all over the place. I had a hard time understanding what was accepted existing magic and what was just "local supersition", especially when the supersitions were maybe (?) having an effect on a literal real war. But also there was nothing about the book that felt like it was taking place in a country currently at war, even when the main setting was a university town on the border with the enemy country.
I think I've ended with a 2.5 stars mainly because it was fast-paced and interesting enough to keep me engaging and blasting through it, but the list of gripes is too long to warrant a 3.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Child abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, and War
Minor: Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
esthergreenwd's review against another edition
dark
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Abandonment
bookfilledcottage's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
inspiring
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This was a beautifully, gothic fantasy about fairies and women, objective truth and myths, and a seemingly haunted manor with a deep, dark secret.
The perfect book to pick up during a stormy fall weekend with a gripping storyline, sprinkled with academic mystery and a touch of romance.
I loved how well-constructed the characters were and how vivid the ambience was. This story and its characters were almost palpable.
Really enjoyed this book and its ambience, and fell in love with the author’s gorgeous style of writing. It was both addictive, detailed and poetic! Will keep reading her past and future works.
The perfect book to pick up during a stormy fall weekend with a gripping storyline, sprinkled with academic mystery and a touch of romance.
I loved how well-constructed the characters were and how vivid the ambience was. This story and its characters were almost palpable.
Really enjoyed this book and its ambience, and fell in love with the author’s gorgeous style of writing. It was both addictive, detailed and poetic! Will keep reading her past and future works.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Physical abuse