Reviews

A Dark and Drowning Tide by Allison Saft

literarycreature's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

2.0

bigred1909's review against another edition

3.0

When I first picked this book to read it was because the cover looked interesting and the summary caught my attention. However as I start to read the book it was not able to keep my attention for more than a few minutes. I had to struggle to even get half way through the book. I think part of this is that there was a lot of character introduce very quickly for me to keep track of and the transition from chapter to chapter was not the best for me. At the end of the day the book ended up not being for me, however I do think there are people who will enjoy the book.

headcanonheadcase's review against another edition

5.0

An academics rivals to lovers tale, with both a murder mystery to solve and a magical quest to complete, and it has a historical Victorian-era feel (but make it German rather than English). Oh, and did I mention that it's a sapphic gothic romance? Seriously, A Dark and Drowning Tide has EVERYTHING. And it. Pull. It. Off. This book could have very easily felt like too much, but all the elements slotted together perfectly. I really can't recommend it enough.

My favorite part (and it was hard to pick because there were so many things to love) was who Allison Saft wove folklore effortlessly into the plot. Each story began: "Back in the days when wishes still held power" and whenever I came across that line, I could feel my excitement begin to grow. They were the perfect blend of magic with something familiar to create something new.

As a bit of a history nerd, I really liked how it felt like I was reading about pre-WWI Germany, particularly how Lorelei read as Jewish. And setting all the other characters as childhood friends added an almost 'Murder on the Orient Express' element to the murder mystery that I loved.

Really, I could go on and on about this book. But I think the best thing you could do is read it for yourself. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

kindra_demi's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

4.0

I absolutely adored this book! I knew immediately that I would read this book when I saw sapphic academic rivals to lovers, but I was obsessed when I got into the story more seeing the folklore, murder mystery, and political intrigue come to life (if you know me or can judge by my Goodreads, I’m a sucker for political intrigue). That being said, be warned about the world building, it will throw you right into the world and politics so if you want more explanations/to not feel like you aren’t already in the middle of the world, be cautious with this book.

Also side note, can we talk about this cover???

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. 

tvolkert's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

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

3.75

This is a really unique book in the adult romantasy genre. Saft's writing style is able to transport you into this dark, bleak world. The world feels reminiscent of that of Grimm's fairy tales. With fables being central to both the plot and the characterization of our MC, Lorelei.  The world feels inspired by 1800s Germany, with germanic names, stories, and themes of war, unification and nationalism. I liked this and found it unique in a genre where most European stories are based on the UK. 

The plot is interesting. It follows a group of 7 adventurers who are seeking the source of magic for their king. Their leader is murdered and our main character is the second in command who must try to solve the murder and find the source of magic. While I usually appreciate a standalone book, I actually think this would have worked better as a duology. That would have better allowed Saft to explore all of the elements that she has thrown in here. I'd have liked to see the main character explore her ability to see the dead (this could have been a great opportunity for some character development for her). And politics play a big role in the story but I struggle with stories like this where the author seems to have bitten off more than they can chew and the political issues are too big to be solved in this book. 

A lot of enjoyable tropes can be found here like rivals to lovers, grumpy x sunshine, found family. I've seen others say that this is dark academia but I would not classify it as such. The academia portion is all in the past.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Del Rey for providing an eARC of this book.

slaapkameractivist's review against another edition

4.0

I got this as an arc on Netgalley and it will come out in September. This was a dark but intriguing sapphic story. It took me a while to get into it but once I was, I did get hooked. Do not go in thinking you like the characters because it's not that kind of story.

ninamoskowitz's review against another edition

mysterious slow-paced

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

2.0

merxcutio's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

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

3.0

booksta_adventure's review against another edition

4.0

“𝘽𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙬𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙨 𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙙 𝙥𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧…”

Sapphic, academic rivals, on an adventure, solving a murder mystery, and there’s MAGIC!

Lorelei has been put in charge of an expedition for the King. She is an outsider among a group of longtime friends, among them the bane of her existence over the past five years, Sylvia. When there’s a murder on board their ship, the culprit must be found, but the goal of their expedition cannot wait.

This one definitely had whimsey from the very start. And the animosity and rivalry between the two romantic leads was very strong. The romance was a VERY slow burn, but when truths came out, the passion and longing finally broke through, leading to an emotional ending.

Lorelei’s experience as a Javenish women (this fantasy world’s equivalent of Jewish) is also a large part of this story. Feelings of outsiderhood, past feelings of guilt, and a protectiveness over her people shape much of her actions throughout.

The group of characters in this book reminded me a bit of the characters from 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘵𝘭𝘢𝘴 𝘚𝘪𝘹; you get to know them, and you’re not sure you really like and/or trust them, but deal with them you must. 😂 

The atmosphere and the world were definitely my favorite part of the book. From the wildeleute, to the rivers, to the mountains and springs, the magic was definitely felt throughout this book. 

This was a beautifully written, magical book with a sapphic romance at its center for when you’re looking for a whimsical story to take you on an adventure.

Thank you to the publisher and @netgalley for providing me an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

 

What this book is giving:

✅ Fantasy Romance

✅ Sapphic

✅ Murder Mystery

✅ A Quest/Adventure

✅ Mythical Creatures

✅ German Folklore

✅ Fantasy-Jewish Protagonist

Rating: 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5

🌶️ / 5

calimero747's review

adventurous dark 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? Yes

4.5