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chelseaisreading's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
mysterious
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
4.75
I had one of those moments reading this book where I thought to myself, what would I have been like if a younger me had this? Yes it can be a bit heavy-handed with the message at time, but I think it’s still beautiful. Effy learns to trust and believe herself, and finds someone who does the same. Gorgeously written and perfect for a dark academia fan.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, and Sexual assault
Minor: Racism
zoer03's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I liked the mysteriousness and the sort of fae like elements to the world that is built within this story, I just don’t like or couldn’t sympathise with the MFC, effy felt at times childish, naive, rude, horrible and a bit too dramatic almost to the point of madness I feel that with her moods she might be described as having depression. Granted her backstory is pretty harsh but she never apologises for how she treats her rival - lover Preston and I can’t accept it. I found the ending a bit flat. It’s good if you are looking for or love this wishy washy Edwardian style fantasy but I find it leaves a nasty taste in my mouth.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Colonisation
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
aleilvandrea's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Dementia, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Alcoholism, Animal death, Infidelity, Grief, Car accident, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism
wooblatoober's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
this review is littered with spoilers so do not read it if you haven’t read the book yet. i’m spoiler tagging the most major spoilers but i am leaving things unspoilered that might or might not be considered spoilers depending on the reader
i really loved some aspects of this book but was really bothered by others—i loved the imagery & the metaphors really made me feel the way i believe the author wanted me to feel. parts were very cozy in ways i haven’t felt since i was probably 14. i LOVED the love interest & i had a huge crush on him because he’s so perfect. whenever there was a scene without him, i wanted him to come back, & i believe reid did a good job of making him incredibly caring while still empowering the female lead. the book covered serious topics regarding misogyny & sexual assault very well,& the way effy was able to bond with angharad & angharad was able to get some sort of justice was really touching to me, not to mention how the symbolism of angharad (who lived much of her life under an entity that seems to represent, as a whole, misogyny, patriarchy, & predation) being able to help effy break out of that cycle for herself. i also liked that even though angharad is old, it’s not treated like she lost her entire life under the repression of a man twice her age who was also sometimes the fairy king. very empowering that it was treated like, despite what was taken from her, she still had life in front of her to live, & be strong, & be free. lastly, i could identify with effy’s sexual trauma in poignant ways. i really enjoyed reading this book for most of my time reading it & i liked it enough that i’ll likely reread it, which i don’t often do.
my complaint is this: effy’s fucking racist. & i love a problematic character who grows & learns lessons & changes, BUT SHE FUCKING DOESN’T!!! it’s just not dealt with well & leaves a bad taste in my mouth. she even calls him slurs at one point and i don’t think she ever took accountability for that at all??? like it seems like she got an argantian boyfriend so she’s absolved of all racism against argantians. it really just gives, “i can’t be racist because my boyfriend’s argantian (or insert any race/ethnicity/nationality in place of that).” book is also hypnotically caucasian, which, like, i know it’s set in a fictional place based on wales & england, but it’s a FICTIONAL PLACE so do all these characters really gotta be beans and toast ass motherfuckers?? last complaint, she throws her long blonde hair into a messy bun 👎
i really loved some aspects of this book but was really bothered by others—i loved the imagery & the metaphors really made me feel the way i believe the author wanted me to feel. parts were very cozy in ways i haven’t felt since i was probably 14. i LOVED the love interest & i had a huge crush on him because he’s so perfect. whenever there was a scene without him, i wanted him to come back, & i believe reid did a good job of making him incredibly caring while still empowering the female lead. the book covered serious topics regarding misogyny & sexual assault very well,
my complaint is this: effy’s fucking racist. & i love a problematic character who grows & learns lessons & changes, BUT SHE FUCKING DOESN’T!!! it’s just not dealt with well & leaves a bad taste in my mouth. she even calls him slurs at one point and i don’t think she ever took accountability for that at all??? like it seems like she got an argantian boyfriend so she’s absolved of all racism against argantians. it really just gives, “i can’t be racist because my boyfriend’s argantian (or insert any race/ethnicity/nationality in place of that).” book is also hypnotically caucasian, which, like, i know it’s set in a fictional place based on wales & england, but it’s a FICTIONAL PLACE so do all these characters really gotta be beans and toast ass motherfuckers?? last complaint, she throws her long blonde hair into a messy bun 👎
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, and Colonisation
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Sexual content, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Confinement, Racial slurs, Rape, Violence, Kidnapping, and War
edilyaaang's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Reading this book felt like a rollercoaster ride.
Got really confused about everything at first especially because there were lots of gaps in the beginning. There were times that that I rolled my eyes hard at some parts but in the end I felt like those things married the story together in a way that gave it more depth.
But whew, I did not expect the story to turn that way. Though I have already guessed some parts of the story, the plots twists blew my mind off.Especially how the Fairy King was real. I did not see that one coming. And that bed scene came out of nowhere LMFAO.
Got really confused about everything at first especially because there were lots of gaps in the beginning. There were times that that I rolled my eyes hard at some parts but in the end I felt like those things married the story together in a way that gave it more depth.
But whew, I did not expect the story to turn that way. Though I have already guessed some parts of the story, the plots twists blew my mind off.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, and Classism
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, and Grief
Minor: Animal death, Confinement, and Violence
ameliedj's review
This started off interesting but around the middle point it got messy and not worth my time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Rape, and Sexual violence
ceruleanheather's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
"I wish I had fought..."
"Oh no, Effy. That's not what I meant at all. You don't have to take up a sword. Survival is bravery too."
Effy is a smart, pretty architectural student who is probably Emrys Myrddin's biggest fan. So when she gets the chance to redesign Myrddin's home it seems like a dream come true. However Effy has to share this dream with a smug literature student named Preston, who is bent on proving that Effy's idol is not deserving of the praise he receives.
This sounds like a rom com at first glance, but there are sinister secrets everywhere. Old magic, curses and sacrifices, and a journey of healing and self discovery. It is tough to get through at times, just like any real grief and healing journey.
In the end I absolutely adored this book, but it took me time to get there. I really struggled to sit down and read it. At first I thought it was because I couldn't connect to the characters and the story. However as the story continued, I realized that I in fact connected too much with Effy. And that is the beauty of this book. Just like Angharad was a lighthouse for Effy, A Study in Drowning is a lighthouse for any girl or woman (or any person for that matter) who has been through something and had no one believe them. Yet the story is told in such a way that you don't realize it is helping you heal until you battle through it.
Effy's journey from a lost, self-doubting, girl who thinks she isn't capable of being loved to the girl who survives and uses the strength she found along the way to make a stand is just beautiful.
Also a side note: I picked this book as the last one in my Taylor Swift Eras reading challenge, to go with the Tortured Poets Department. It ended up fitting pretty well. Who's Afraid of Little Old Me? You should be.
*************
Some of my favorite lines/parts:
"Love is a fire that cannot burn alone."
"My apologies if it wasn't clear to you, Mr. Marlowe." (It makes sense in context!)
"Miserably, and against her will, Effy realized that she was in a Romance after all."
"Are you scared?"
"Of drowning? Of the dark? Yes. Those are very reasonable things to be scared of."
"And everyone thinks that I started it but I didn't. I never got anything from him..."
"...I believe you." ❤️❤️❤️
"One must know before loving."
"The only reason anything matters is because it ends."
"The Fairy King was all of them...every wanting man..."
"I wanted just one girl, only one, to read my book and feel that she was understood, and I would be understood in return." ❤️❤️❤️
"If you can learn to love that which despises you, that which terrifies you, you can dance on the shore and play in the waves again like you did when you were young. Before the ocean is friend or foe, it simply is. And so are you."
"Survival is bravery too."
"Oh no, Effy. That's not what I meant at all. You don't have to take up a sword. Survival is bravery too."
Effy is a smart, pretty architectural student who is probably Emrys Myrddin's biggest fan. So when she gets the chance to redesign Myrddin's home it seems like a dream come true. However Effy has to share this dream with a smug literature student named Preston, who is bent on proving that Effy's idol is not deserving of the praise he receives.
This sounds like a rom com at first glance, but there are sinister secrets everywhere. Old magic, curses and sacrifices, and a journey of healing and self discovery. It is tough to get through at times, just like any real grief and healing journey.
In the end I absolutely adored this book, but it took me time to get there. I really struggled to sit down and read it. At first I thought it was because I couldn't connect to the characters and the story. However as the story continued, I realized that I in fact connected too much with Effy. And that is the beauty of this book. Just like Angharad was a lighthouse for Effy, A Study in Drowning is a lighthouse for any girl or woman (or any person for that matter) who has been through something and had no one believe them. Yet the story is told in such a way that you don't realize it is helping you heal until you battle through it.
Effy's journey from a lost, self-doubting, girl who thinks she isn't capable of being loved to the girl who survives and uses the strength she found along the way to make a stand is just beautiful.
Also a side note: I picked this book as the last one in my Taylor Swift Eras reading challenge, to go with the Tortured Poets Department. It ended up fitting pretty well. Who's Afraid of Little Old Me? You should be.
*************
Some of my favorite lines/parts:
"Love is a fire that cannot burn alone."
"My apologies if it wasn't clear to you, Mr. Marlowe." (It makes sense in context!)
"Miserably, and against her will, Effy realized that she was in a Romance after all."
"Are you scared?"
"Of drowning? Of the dark? Yes. Those are very reasonable things to be scared of."
"And everyone thinks that I started it but I didn't. I never got anything from him..."
"...I believe you." ❤️❤️❤️
"One must know before loving."
"The only reason anything matters is because it ends."
"The Fairy King was all of them...every wanting man..."
"I wanted just one girl, only one, to read my book and feel that she was understood, and I would be understood in return." ❤️❤️❤️
"If you can learn to love that which despises you, that which terrifies you, you can dance on the shore and play in the waves again like you did when you were young. Before the ocean is friend or foe, it simply is. And so are you."
"Survival is bravery too."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, and Abandonment
Moderate: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual content and Blood
Thee protagonist is taken advantage of by a superior. This causes many issues for the protagonist, howeverescapethewonderland's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
4- stars ✨
Female rage unraveled in an intense storytelling about injustices, women's voices brutally silenced, distorted, taken advantage of and greedy men abusing their power.
Rich atmospheres and a wild nature that reminded me of that in Wuthering Heights, beautiful prose, a story of overcoming hurt, trauma, grief, the impossible, the disbelief of people.
A story of resilience that feels like the first sun beam after a brutal storm.
Thank you Angharad and Effy.
Female rage unraveled in an intense storytelling about injustices, women's voices brutally silenced, distorted, taken advantage of and greedy men abusing their power.
Rich atmospheres and a wild nature that reminded me of that in Wuthering Heights, beautiful prose, a story of overcoming hurt, trauma, grief, the impossible, the disbelief of people.
A story of resilience that feels like the first sun beam after a brutal storm.
Thank you Angharad and Effy.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, and Classism
haley_mil_reads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Grief, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Xenophobia
valkyrie_12's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, and Gaslighting