Reviews tagging 'Blood'

A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid

64 reviews

hal00alex's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Fantasy take on a very interesting time period with dark academia vibes. The characters did very well with the enemies to lovers as it didn’t seem rushed and the dialogue was actually funny. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Vomit, Dementia, Death of parent, and Murder

Minor: Drug use

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.

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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."

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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, however

she does stand up to him and the system in the end. And she wins. It is quite satisfying.

av0universe's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Me ha encantado si soy completamente honesta. Es el primer libro que leo de la autora y creo que empezar por el juvenil que tiene ha sido una idea acertada.

Lo que me encanta de este libro es el desarrollo de personaje de la protagonista, Effy. Pasa de ser una "niña llorona y asustada" a una mujer empoderada con sus miedos y angustias (no me gusta ponerlo de esta manera, pero creo que se entiende la idea). Ese viaje que sigue Effy para encontrarse a sí misma y sobre todo aceptarse tal como y finalmente verse como Preston la ve, fuerte, inteligente y valiente. También adoro el mundo en el que se desarrolla la trama, me parece muy rico y creo que la autora lo conoce perfectamente (aspiro a lo mismo como future autore).

La única razón por la que no es 5 estrellas es precisamente porque a veces, especialmente al inicio del libro que no entendía ni mierdas, Effy me parecía demasiado redundante en sus miedos, que aunque reales y bienfundados, me desconcertaba bastante. Ahora, creo que es extremadamente realista, todo el mundo tiene miedos y me parece maravilloso que la autora haya elegido una persona así como protagonista, no lo cambiaría por nada.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Blood, and Death of parent

Minor: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, and War

theresamothinmyroom's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring mysterious medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Deadnaming, Death, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Sexism, Blood, Car accident, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Classism

Moderate: Medical content and Alcohol

drhoneybee's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Misogyny, and Panic attacks/disorders

Moderate: Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Grief, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Blood, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

zoe_larrimer's review

challenging 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

This book is really stunning. It deals with the themes of

trauma and sexual assault

in a very realistic and empowering way. The fmc is someone I deeply rooted for
throughout the story and the mythology elements were such an interesting twist. I feel like the fairy king in the story is a unique portrayal

of the potential for evil that hides itself within many people.

I really love this book and would highly recommend it, it may be my very own Angharad.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness and Sexism

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, and Violence

Minor: Death, Xenophobia, Blood, Death of parent, War, and Classism

tuhkasirius's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, and Classism

Minor: Bullying, Confinement, Gun violence, and Forced institutionalization

zimmerlemon's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional reflective fast-paced

3.5

Very academia vibes, more magical realism than fantasy imo. Definitely a recurring SA & anxiety theme so be ready for that but it was handled well and fits with how everything unfolds. MCs are precious. Something about it just didn’t grip me/make me as invested as other books though

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Sexual assault, Violence, and Abandonment

Minor: Blood and Injury/Injury detail

probablytoolate's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

mcrespo's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

while i really enjoyed Reid's ability to world build with a passage or quote at the beginning of each chapter, i found that overall this novel lacked something remarkable to set it apart from any standard fantasy (with a dash of romance) novel. it felt truly that this novel relied on some of the most predictable tropes from both fantasy novels and romance novels (enemies to lovers .... yawn). early on in the novel, the sea and water metaphors seemed overstated and repetitive. in addition to this, all of the points that Reid was making regarding sexism and misogyny in academia were stated forthright rather than implied. it seems that this is a novel that lays out very plainly the plot and main themes, and because of this, it became predictable. i also think that Effy, as a "strong female lead," really does center her male counterpart and love interest far too much. at some points, it seems that Effy only makes it through to be with Preston, and at some points, Effy does seemingly have a lot of grace and empathy for men like Ianto who was violently misogynistic. considering this is a YA novel, it does make sense why the messages and themes of this novel are so blatantly obvious, and at the end of the day, this is such an easy read for anyone just needing a quick fantasy fix. unfortunately, i'm not the target audience for this one (´• ᴗ •̥`✿)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny and Sexism

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Blood