Reviews

The Drowning Summer by C.L. Herman

punkgremlin's review

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dark fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • 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

optimisticbooknerd's review against another edition

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3.0

3 ⭐

The synopsis and cover had me so invested and intrigued to pick it up but maybe I'm falling out of the range for YA. I'm always down for gay/sapphic stories especially if they're horrorish sounding but this was just meh to me?

I tried the devouring grey a long time ago and it was a DNF so idk.

cherrymunson's review against another edition

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mysterious
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

puttybutter's review against another edition

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4.0

A cute summery tale of ocean and ghosties.

ella_011's review

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adventurous challenging mysterious tense 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? No

4.5

oliviamaree's review

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dark lighthearted mysterious 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? No

3.0

emuhly's review

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3.0

i really really wanted to love this. it has a sexy premise, i loved the “all of us villains” duology, and it’s sapphic! what more could a girl want! and yet i was still left wanting

bookeateryum's review against another edition

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3.0

this book is about queer teenagers falling in love by the ocean and solving a murder and i felt NOTHING. NADA. ZILCH. the girls were childhood friends to enemies (?) and they had no CONNECTION. HOW!!!!!!!!!

norassick's review against another edition

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4.0

This? is? So? Good? I LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF THIS. this is a great book? It has romance (wlw for the win), supernatural themes, italians? I don't know it felt so grand. This is a book i would definitely recommend to friends <3
Also the cover? Gorgeous.

harrowhcrk's review against another edition

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3.0

Thank you to Netgalley and Little, Brown Books for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

Six years after three murders rocked their sleepy town, former friends Mina and Evelyn find themselves brought back together when the literal ghosts of their past come back to haunt them.

There are some strong bones to this story, and there were some bits that I really loved. I particularly appreciated how, despite having all these paranormal and haunting themes, the story wasn't particularly dark, and that character growth featured just as heavily as the mystery itself. Plus, it's just such an interesting take on ghosts--I think it was so cool how the author tied in global warming and pollution so effectively into the lore. It's such a unique take and I think it was carried out very well. And, of course, it's always so nice to see that bi rep. :)

While I actually really enjoyed the middle of this book, the first and last 25% definitely missed the mark for me. For the first 25%, the writing itself felt a lot sloppier, and the pacing of the intro was pretty all over the place. The last 25%, on the other hand, had a convoluted and underwhelming climax and ending that left me disappointed. Beyond this, throughout the book the author really falls into the hole of telling instead of showing--with pretty much everything. While some of this telling was beautifully written, it doesn't negate the fact that I would've much rather seen the characters change instead of merely being told they had. Overall, too, a lot of the descriptions were worded kind of weird to me--I don't know how else to say it, but there were plenty of little bits scattered throughout that just felt off to me. And, plotwise, having the primary event happen when the girls were 10 years old didn't quite work either.