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hom's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The beginning chapters need some of the details and character moments from the later chapters. Like, would have made the book significantly more engaging.
madisonmila's review against another edition
slow-paced
1.5
All of this felt like too many ideas forced into one book. It jumped around from the toxic relationship to Filipino mythology and I couldn’t get a sense of what the genre was. The book felt very rushed and I’m still not certain of the major themes or what the book was supposed to be about. Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced audiobook.
r_j_setser's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-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
4.0
A unique twist on The Little Mermaid!
When Oceans Rise has a strong message to readers regarding toxic and abusive relationships and powerfully depicts what it's like to "lose your voice" in that relationship while trying to get out of it.
I won't lie, this story isn't the one I expected going in. It's a heavy story all around and if you've ever been gaslighted in any way (be it a romantic partner or someone else), it can be triggering with how much Malaya goes through. There were many instances where I had to set the book aside because it was just too close to home and I couldn't read it for a while. So I would definitely categorize it as a "heavy" read. Good, but heavy.
Outside of the toxic relationship, Malaya also deals with familial tensions. I thought the way the story approaches this was beautifully done in illustrating how our choices impact the trajectory of our lives; and furthermore, how minor choices could change minor things that we often don't think about. I also loved that the book was set in Corpus Christi (my home away from home, so that was fun), and I was deeply intrigued by all of the Filipino culture references.
Overall, I have mixed emotions about When Oceans Rise because it is such a necessary message and Malaya learns many valuable lessons; but it's so heavily laden with the goal of getting these points across that it was often difficult to get through. I enjoyed the storyline but many of the decisions Malaya made and the situations she found herself in just made it hard to read more than one chapter at a time. So I'm rating it 4 out of 5 stars and recommending it with caution.
Content warnings: Cursing is high (multiple uses of strong cursing). Sexual content is implied and there are a few steamy kissing scenes, but nothing more is shown on page. Action/gore is moderately present, but not too detailed.
When Oceans Rise has a strong message to readers regarding toxic and abusive relationships and powerfully depicts what it's like to "lose your voice" in that relationship while trying to get out of it.
I won't lie, this story isn't the one I expected going in. It's a heavy story all around and if you've ever been gaslighted in any way (be it a romantic partner or someone else), it can be triggering with how much Malaya goes through. There were many instances where I had to set the book aside because it was just too close to home and I couldn't read it for a while. So I would definitely categorize it as a "heavy" read. Good, but heavy.
Outside of the toxic relationship, Malaya also deals with familial tensions. I thought the way the story approaches this was beautifully done in illustrating how our choices impact the trajectory of our lives; and furthermore, how minor choices could change minor things that we often don't think about. I also loved that the book was set in Corpus Christi (my home away from home, so that was fun), and I was deeply intrigued by all of the Filipino culture references.
Overall, I have mixed emotions about When Oceans Rise because it is such a necessary message and Malaya learns many valuable lessons; but it's so heavily laden with the goal of getting these points across that it was often difficult to get through. I enjoyed the storyline but many of the decisions Malaya made and the situations she found herself in just made it hard to read more than one chapter at a time. So I'm rating it 4 out of 5 stars and recommending it with caution.
Content warnings: Cursing is high (multiple uses of strong cursing). Sexual content is implied and there are a few steamy kissing scenes, but nothing more is shown on page. Action/gore is moderately present, but not too detailed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship and Gaslighting
Moderate: Cursing, Drug use, Rape, and Emotional abuse
canderson's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
sad
medium-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
5.0
melziethegreat's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
When Oceans Rise is such a beautiful story about love, family, friendship, abuse, Filipino mythology. I was first drawn into the story because it is a Little Mermaid retelling. I liked the twist of Mal leaving her original timeline and slipping into the new timeline to escape her abusive ex boyfriend. Normally abuse would really tigger in my a book but in When Oceans Rise it was well written and not to graphic. I also liked that Mal found love in the new timeline. It showed her how she deserved to be loved.
One of my favorite parts of the story was learning about the different Filipino monsters. The story deals with many different monsters and they are all equally terrifying. Except for the Tikbalang, Felipe, who is my absolute favorite monster. He might have been a bad ass on his own before but now they are a bad ass team when it comes to getting the timeline fixed and saving the world from monsters.
Another of my favorite aspects of the story is Malaya's relationship with her mother. I feel like as the story progresses she is able to look outside of her narrow original viewpoint and understand her mother's reasoning more. Her mother just wanted what was best for her even though she wasn't always able to verbalize it in the way that Malaya need to hear.
Overall I really enjoyed When Oceans Rise. It is a great debut novel and I can't wait to read other books Robin Alvarez puts out in the future.
One of my favorite parts of the story was learning about the different Filipino monsters. The story deals with many different monsters and they are all equally terrifying. Except for the Tikbalang, Felipe, who is my absolute favorite monster. He might have been a bad ass on his own before but now they are a bad ass team when it comes to getting the timeline fixed and saving the world from monsters.
Another of my favorite aspects of the story is Malaya's relationship with her mother. I feel like as the story progresses she is able to look outside of her narrow original viewpoint and understand her mother's reasoning more. Her mother just wanted what was best for her even though she wasn't always able to verbalize it in the way that Malaya need to hear.
Overall I really enjoyed When Oceans Rise. It is a great debut novel and I can't wait to read other books Robin Alvarez puts out in the future.
beautyandthebookcase's review against another edition
5.0
It's not often that I get to read about other half-Filipino/biracial characters and it was nice to find a character that embodied real life struggles like Malaya and still maintain an air of fantasy. This book is captivating in its tales of culture, bad relationships, and magic. This has by far been my favorite read of the year
laurenontheweb's review against another edition
3.0
This book was such a beautiful showcase of filipino culture and mythology. The plot was creative and had me racing to find out what would happen next, and the audiobook narrator did a wonderful job adding to my reading experience. The characters were unique and well written. I appreciated that the depictions of abuse were described in minimalistic terms while maintaining believability. The only negative of this book for me was that I didn't feel like enough time was spent building the characters emotions; Because I wasn't pulled into celebrating or grieving alongside the characters, I didn't feel the strong emotional connection to the story that would have me picking it up for a reread down the line. The redeeming moment for emotional connection came to me during the epilogue.
Overall, this was a good YA book. I would recommend it for teens, tweens, and adults who enjoy YA.
Thank you Tides Collide Publishing for providing this audiobook for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Overall, this was a good YA book. I would recommend it for teens, tweens, and adults who enjoy YA.
Thank you Tides Collide Publishing for providing this audiobook for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
cassidyk17's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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
littlebookterror's review against another edition
fast-paced
3.0
Maybe my expectations got too much into way here because I was expecting a stronger focus on the abusive relationship and the fallout of that and less of an urban fantasy where she has to defeat various Filipino creatures to get back to her own timeline.
I personally needed more time with Malaya and her boyfriend early on - that time passes so quickly and while I understand the author's wish to not go into detail of his abuse, I it also meant I was surprised by how quickly this all wrapped up. I barely saw her fall in love, let alone out of it. (It's not like she has forgotten his actions and there are occasional references to it but it was not the main theme of the book). The handling of the loss of her voice by friends and family was also a mixed bag - I was more annoyed by Malaya's attitude towards it than the thoughtless comments from others.
As for the fantasy aspect, I thought it was okay if a little gimmicky at how the monsters and the sea witch are handled in the end.
<i>I received an advanced reading copy from Tides Collide Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>
I personally needed more time with Malaya and her boyfriend early on - that time passes so quickly and while I understand the author's wish to not go into detail of his abuse, I it also meant I was surprised by how quickly this all wrapped up. I barely saw her fall in love, let alone out of it. (It's not like she has forgotten his actions and there are occasional references to it but it was not the main theme of the book). The handling of the loss of her voice by friends and family was also a mixed bag - I was more annoyed by Malaya's attitude towards it than the thoughtless comments from others.
As for the fantasy aspect, I thought it was okay if a little gimmicky at how the monsters and the sea witch are handled in the end.
<i>I received an advanced reading copy from Tides Collide Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>
fanoora's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.0