Reviews with content warning for Abandonment - A Study in Drowning

Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid

167 reviews

literarymary95's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.0

I really wanted to enjoy this book and it had a lot of potential, but for me it just fell flat. I tried really hard to get into it but I just really couldn't.

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amber_rose_reads's review against another edition

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challenging dark inspiring mysterious reflective 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? Yes

4.0

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jessbarton's review against another edition

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dark hopeful mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

An absolutely gorgeous read. A love letter to story telling in the form of a haunting fairytale fantasy.

I'm always a fan of a headstrong protagonist that loves stories as much as we (the readers) do, and Effy doesn't disappoint as a complex and curious young woman who has spent her entire life being made to believe she doesn't belong. "You don't have to take up a sword. Survival is bravery too."

Ava Reid's use of language is always compelling, but there is something particularly beautiful about her references to water and the sea in this book - capturing both its evasive fluidity and sheer seismic power with a delicate tone, respectful of its horrifying capabilities. It makes me desperately want to run away to the ocean and stare into the horizon for a while.

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leafilys's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious 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? Yes

4.5

I loved the world-building in this book, the lore is quite unique and left me thinking about it even after I finished the book. It earned the book an extra .5 stars for me.

Effy and Preston are interesting and developed characters, and the romance was well paced with lots of chemistry. This book has lots of detailed descriptions and prose, which can be hit or miss with a lot of people, but I loved it. It was so atmospheric and immersive.

Unfortunately the last quarter of the book let me down a bit. The pacing felt too fast then too slow, and the mysteries were wrapped up a bit clumsily in my opinion.

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puali's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious slow-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

4.5

This is a story overflowing with waves upon waves of lush descriptions and prose. Backed by an MC that’s really gone through it, “A Study in Downing” doesn’t shy away from the harsh realities of being a woman in a world dominated by men, all while giving this narrative a fantastical twist.

I really enjoyed reading and rereading passages from this novel, just because I liked the way they resonated in my brain. The blend of between fantasy and reality was also executed really well.

I think that what really stuck with me though, was the setting: a manor on top a cliff, with the sea roaring at it’s base of and a drowned city at the bottom. The house at times felt like a character of it’s own, with it’s blurred mirrors and paintings that seemed to come to life at times.

While the plot was a bit predictable at times, I appreciated the way Reid set the stage and revealed key information as the story progressed. It really felt like the reader was there, uncovering secrets along with the characters.

All in all, great read. Can’t wait for the sequel.

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torrentsofhayl's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious reflective 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? It's complicated

4.0

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meagwhalen's review against another edition

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dark relaxing fast-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? No

3.0

The story or premise was maybe less engaging than the Wolf and the Woodsman, but I thought the discussion of women was interesting—particularly for a fantasy book.

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wardenred's review

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dark hopeful mysterious reflective 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

Writing that book was like shining a beacon from a lighthouse, I suppose. Are there any ships on the horizon? Will they signal back to me?

If you like dark academia and gothic, explorations of misogyny, themes like the impact of stories, and romance subplots focus on healing, definitely pick this one up. Especially if you also value vibes over plot and get that special longing, anxious feeling in your chest whenever you so much as think about the sea.

This was a slow read for me, and I changed my opinion about it a bunch of times, but ultimately, I liked far more about it than I didn’t. The prose, in particular, is such a strong part of the book, doing so much to create a heavy, uncertain, gothic atmosphere and to support the themes of the book. This is indeed a study in drowning: because of the Drowning as an event important to the setting, because the sea creates a threat, because Effy spends almost the entirety of the story metaphorically drowning. And so the prose is pretty much full of water. There are water-themed metaphors and similes everywhere, water-related colors and qualities to the various scene settings, and every time there is a word choice that can be even remotely associated with water, you bet the author takes it. The watery themes just never let go, and it creates a beautiful effect.

The worldbuilding was occasionally confusing. The bigger concepts, like the politics, the folklore, the academic and literature culture, were really well-realized. On the smaller scale, though, while the vibes were impeccable, I struggled to actually feel grounded. It was kind of like listening to a “decrepit gothic mansion by the sea” soundtrack without getting a visual. The setting is a secondary world that has phones, cars, indoors plumbing, ceiling fans, etc—but for the love of the sea, I can’t tell you what era or mix of eras one should be envisioning with them all. 1920s? 1950s? 1980s? Might be a “me” problem, but I legit don’t know. Guess this isn’t particularly important; but it kept making me feeling shaky and uncertain. If the setting was farther divorced from the real world, I would be completely fine with the existing level of descriptions, I think. But here, it was like… hmmm… like when you’re learning a language that has a lot of common with your native one. You really need to explicitly understand the differences and the similarities.

The plotting was probably the weakest part of the story. The central mystery about the real authorship of the novel Angharad was rather predictable and kind of… oddly executed? The specific actions Effy and Preston took and their mindsets throughout the investigation felt less like “we’re solving a mystery” and more like “we’ve got this conspiracy theory we want to spread.” Also, the reveal is pretty much based on one glaring plot hole that I won’t comment on in detail to avoid spoilers, and I also kind of understand how you can squint and ignore the hole-ness of it in favor of focusing on the themes, but still, it felt pretty meh to me. In general, there were times when that central plot felt like it was just interfering with the vibes and the characters’ inner journeys rather than helping both.

Speaking of characters, I really loved Effy throughout the book, and I felt for her a lot: the pain she was in, the survival mechanisms she’s developed, her quiet strength mixed with anxiety, the way she gave herself the chance to heal. She’s really been dealt a shitty lot in life, but I feel like she’s going to be fine eventually. Preston was a cinnamon roll, and I appreciated how supportive he was of Effie and how focused on lifting her up. It’s worth noting that the book promises enemies to lovers and doesn’t deliver—they’re barely rivals, tbh, and even though there’s some light animosity at the start, it gives way quickly enough to seeking understanding. Which, I feel, really suits these characters and the story. They just aren’t the kind to get locked in a more typical enemies-to-lovers type of dynamic—good for them! Though i do feel there were some missed opportunities here, in particular with the impact the politics of the world might have on their relationship given that, even though his mother is Llyrian, Preston has Argantian origins and the tensions between the countries are considerable, to say the least. It felt like the book did try to explore that at first, with Effy’s preconceived notions about Preston, but that line of thinking was quickly dropped in favor of other themes.

Overall, I’m a big fan of the work the author does with the prose and the vibes, and when the next book comes out, I’m quite likely to pick it up. It will be interesting to see further character development from both leads, and I’m looking forward to once again feeling like my ereader now smells of the sea. 🌊

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rubydeano_25's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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? Yes

4.5

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ali_k0's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

3.25

First book of the year and I have a lot of mixed feelings. It was a good story, but I think it drowned (pardon the pin) in its own atmosphere. There were scenes I felt were missing from the book - ones meant to develop the characters and the romance at the center. Effy is a intriguing head to be in, but I think her arc suffered by the authors over commitment to the environment and under commitment to the characters development. I think the book she really wanted to write was Angharad, in which the excerpts we get are where the authors talent shines through.

There was so much in this book I wanted more of: the Drowning, The Sleepers and their museum, the war between the nations. I know a second book is coming and I hope she tells us more, but I feel she missed a lot of foundations here. To pull from the book, I think we'll find it filled with water come morning.

Effy's trauma define her as a character, and how she responds to this trauma, not by taking up a sword but simply surviving, I think is very relatable to a lot of people. Although my version of survival and hers are very different, I still saw myself in her, and I think many others will too. I just wish she had been given more time to grow. Past her trauma, but also her prejudices.

The mystery itself was timeless in its own way. Anyone who knows literary history can guess the true author of Angharad from the moment the question is posed, but I don't think the obviousness is what the mystery suffers from. The book is sold as "part historical fantasy part rival to lovers romance and part Gothic mystery" and although it was all of those things, I think breaking it into so many parts made all of them suffer. None really has the time to shine, as the authors commitments to written aesthetic seemed to be the most important thing here.

Lastly, although the tale of stolen works is one that needs to be told, the starting evidence for the case Myrddin wasn't the author is, "a southerner is not smart enough to write this, so it must be a northerner" which then turns out to be true. Myrddin did write works, but they were bad middling poetry and one unsuccessful romance. In the end, it was the ingenious Northerner who wrote Angharad, only she was a women, which was the twist. I really think this book could have been better if the author went the route of, "it was a Southern girl, which everyone thought would be to much to believe, so it was given to a southern man." That the male lead Preston is so against how his people, the Argantians, are stereotyped, but is fine with the ones around southerners, leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

In the end I still liked it. It's dark and dreary but also enchanting, a perfect book for cold nights by warm fires. I don't know if I'll pick up the second book, but I don't regret that I picked this one up.

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