Reviews with content warning for Panic attacks/disorders - A Study in Drowning

I loved this book. Ava Reid is so masterful at creating strong themes that are embedded in every piece of the story. Everything fits so well. I don't feel like I have the right words to describe this book and how beautiful it was.

I love Ava's style of worldbuilding, with this world being a new one for her and fascinatingly crafted. The intense connection Effy feels to Angharad is so relatable, being so in love with a book because it is both beautiful and makes you feel seen in a way nothing else has that you revere the author just a bit beyond reasoning.

I loved the symbolism throughout the story, the themes of drowning, water, and women are all woven together masterfully. I really enjoyed how everything unraveled. Effy and Preston have a tender romance that is so fun to watch slowly develop, a well-done rivals-to-lovers romance. This book is about wronged women, the men who have wronged them, and getting what they deserve.

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milenanoelm's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective 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? No

4.0

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amandaaahyde's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

Another book devoured in a day. I couldn't put it down and it has lingered in my dreams.

"I was a woman when it was convenient to blame me, and a girl when they wanted to use me."

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jocogr's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

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stina_gates's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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xvicesx's review against another edition

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I didn't enjoy a single minute of going through this. There's no obvious plot, the characters are either unlikable or bland as cardboard.

Ultimately, there is nothing in here to actually care about. Effy Is not a driven woman with goals and strong will, okay, she's traumatised, but there are plenty of people who are traumatized and still set a role model example. Also, her consistently weird xenophobia joint with the obsessive jealousy over Preston got tiring real quick.

I have no clue what other people are praising about this book, because I can't possibly be reading the same thing. Mercies.

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chelbawamba's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-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

2.75

This is my second attempt with this author and sadly I don’t think I can be convinced to try again. Ava Reid relies heavily on simile and metaphor, to a point of excessiveness, does a lot of telling instead of showing, and everything happens to this main character “suddenly” or “for some reason.” Even when the reason was obvious to me as a reader, it happened “for some reason.”

Overall, the concept of the story was interesting, but the way it was executed was extremely predictable. I knew early on what most of the reveals at the end were going to be. In my opinion, there is a fine line between good foreshadowing and offering too much too early on.

A personal pet peeve of mine is when characters speak about each other as if they’ve known each other for a long time when it’s only been a few days, for example: saying things like “he’s always been kind to me,” or “I had never seen him this flustered” when the character only knew the other person for maybe a collective three hours. This happened frequently in the first half of the book.

I didn’t not enjoy it, but I also didn’t enjoy it. Would not necessarily recommend it, but it had its moments and kept me engaged through the end.

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