Reviews tagging 'War'

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh

74 reviews

smileypers0n's review against another edition

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adventurous inspiring medium-paced

4.0


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rileydobereading's review

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adventurous hopeful lighthearted sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0


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jayisreading's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful reflective medium-paced

4.0

A feminist retelling of the Korean folktale, “The Tale of Shim Cheong,” The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea has a lot of heart, and it’s clear that Oh poured a lot of love into her characters and the worldbuilding. Being familiar with the original folktale, I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn’t about Shim Cheong specifically (though she appears as a side character), but, rather, a rather headstrong and earnest sixteen-year-old named Mina. Alongside Mina is a cast of relatively memorable characters, perhaps one of the more notable ones being Shin, who ends up being Mina’s love interest. (I should note that this is definitely a slow burn romance, which won’t be for everyone—) I did find Oh’s characters somewhat weak, especially compared to her worldbuilding, but they certainly weren’t one-dimensional either. I think it was just wanting a bit more character development and time to sit with the cast. I also found the novel’s pacing a bit uneven at the start, but it really came together as it continued.

All-in-all, I enjoyed this YA novel more than I thought I would. I think I was especially taken to the emphasis on storytelling, and I really appreciated how Oh seamlessly wove in other Korean folktales into the novel through Mina.

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e_riahh's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0


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renpuspita's review against another edition

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

4.0

 
"Aku memang marah, tapi bukan kepadamu. Aku marah pada takdir yang diberikan kepadaku. Ketika aku sadar, agar kau bisa mendapatkan apa yang kau inginkan, aku harus kehilangan satu - satunya yang pernah kuinginkan."

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea sempat bikin heboh di tahun 2022 karena selain covernya yang menarik, ceritanya dibilang mirip animasi Ghibli, yaitu Spirited Away. Gue sih belum nonton ya, jadi ga banyak ekspektasi juga pas mulai baca. Pun, ternyata terjemahannya juga memakai cover yang sama dengan versi aslinya. Apa mungkin karena itu, untuk buku tipis ga sampe 300 halaman dengan font kecil sangat membuat mata gue berteriak "alamak!!", harganya pun hampir 100k? Hehe.

Girl Who Fell (kepanjangan, gue singkat aja) adalah adaptasi bebas dari kisah rakyat Korea, The Tale of Sim Cheong. Namanya juga adaptasi bebas (banget), jadi Axie Oh bebas mengkreasikan kisah Sim Cheong versinya sendiri. Sim Cheong memang tetap dijadikan pengantin Dewa Laut, tapi tokoh utama buku ini justru Mina, adik dari Joon, dimana Joon yang tidak rela Cheong dikorbankan berusaha menyelamatkan kekasihnya tapi Mina juga ga rela Joon dihukum mati karenanya. Dari situlah cerita bergulir, membawa pembaca pada dunia Dewa Laut yang menurut gue cukup nano - nano mitologinya. Membaca kisah Mina di dunia Dewa Laut justru mengingatkan gue sama novel The Ghost Bride, karena tokoh utamanya sama - sama berkelana di dunia para arwah. Bedanya, gue masih bisa lebih menoleransi Mina ketimbang Li Lan di The Ghost Bride.

Saat gue bilang adaptasi bebas, Axie Oh emang banyak memasukkan unsur mitologi di buku ini. Istana Dewa Laut mau ga mau mengingatkan gue sama legenda Urashima Taro dari Jepang dan gue bertanya - tanya ini dunia dewa laut ternyata tetanggaan juga sama dunia arwah dan dewa - dewi lainnya? Karena selain Dewa Laut, ada juga dewa - dewi lain, seperti Dewa Kematian yang berasa terinspirasi dari Hades dan lalu ada Dewi Bulan dan Kenangan yang gue ga tahu kenapa kok saingan sama Dewa Laut. Ga dijelasin juga sih, hahaha. Staple mitologi korea seperti gumiho atau rubah berekor sembilan pun juga ada dan Axie Oh memasukkan makhluk mitologi bernama Imugi (atau Imoogi). Imugi ini seperti naga, cuma mereka perlu 1000 tahun untuk menjadi naga beneran dan dasarnya mereka jahat. Tapi Namgi, salah satu karakter di buku ini yang nantinya jadi teman Mina, adalah imugi yang baik. Selain Namgi, ada juga Kirin, yang kalau tahu makluk2 legenda Asia, pasti dah bisa nebak Kirin ini apa lah ya.

Selain makluk mitologi, Girl Who Fell sarat dengan dongeng, karena dongeng adalah senjata Mina untuk bertahan hidup di dunia bawah laut ini selain dengan pisau yang Mina warisi dari neneknya. Dongeng - dongeng memang sangat berperan penting di buku ini, karena ada beberapa aspek dalam dongeng nantinya akan membantu Mina. Salah satu dongeng yang menurut gue unik adalah dongeng tentang tukang kayu dan bidadari, karena kesamaan dongeng ini dengan beberapa dongeng di dunia lain bahkan termasuk di Indo sendiri yaitu legenda Joko Tarub. Terus terang gue suka dengan cara Axie Oh ngecampur mitologi dan juga dongeng di buku ini, walau memang ada beberapa hal yang butuh penjelasan. Aura magis dan mengagumkan dunia Dewa Laut ini ditulis dengan cukup baik. Hal lain yang gue cermati dari buku ini adalah beberapa bagian terasa sangat melankolis dan lembut. Bagian favorit gue adalah saat Dai melindungi Miki dari serangan Imugi. Membaca bagian Dai yang bener - bener menyayangi Miki itu bikin gue sangat terharu :'). Tema keluarga memang kental banget di buku ini selain juga misteri di balik kenapa Dewa Laut dikutuk.

Gue baca beberapa review yang bilang kalau romansa antara Mina dan Shin itu agak hambar. Menurut gue, sebenarnya ga juga ya hahaha. Ini masih mendingan dan gue juga ngerasain kok perasaan Shin yang mendamba ke Mina. Mungkin karena romansanya bukan tipe slow burn ya, kan waktu Mina juga sangat terbatas di dunia Arwah jadinya kayak berasa cepet aja ini jatuh cintanya. Tapi gue tetap ngerasain kok dan romansanya pun bukan tipe yang cukup lebay. Karena buku ini pakai PoV pertama Mina seperti laiknya buku2 YA fantasy, jadi pembaca ga tahu apa yang sebenarnya Shin pikirkan tentang Mina dan kapan tepatnya pemuda ini mulai jatuh hati ke Mina karena kita hanya tahu semuanya dari sudut pandang Mina. Pun, menurut gue, kisah (hampir) cinta segitiga antara Mina, Shin dan Dewa Laut itu agak maksa dan konklusinya pun termasuk yang terburu - buru. Tanpa kisah cinta segitiga sebenarnya bisa lebih bagus sih, cuma mungkin buat bumbu - bumbu biar bikin gregetan kali ya.

Untuk stand alone YA fantasy romance, menurut gue The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea sudah cukup bagus. Ada bagian yang kurang, seperti romansa antara Mina dan Shin yang lebih bisa digali lagi dan kisah cinta segitiga yang menurut gue ga perlu - perlu banget. Banyak juga bagian yang bagus seperti penggambaran dunia Arwah, sentimen terkait dewa - dewi, tema kekeluargaan yang kental, hubungan pertemanan antara Mina dengan Namgi, maupun Mina dengan Kedok, Dai serta Miki; dan penggunaan dongeng yang membuat cerita jadi kaya. Mina sendiri emang beberapa kali bertindak gegabah tapi gue cukup suka sama gadis ini karena dia berani menentukan takdirnya sendiri. Untuk terjemahannya sendiri cukup rapi dan enak dibaca serta minim typo. Cuma ya, CUMA, fontnya sangat diirit - irit, bikin versi terjemahan ini bahkan lebih tipis dari versi aslinya yang 300 halaman lebih! 

Recommended untuk yang cari YA fantasy romance yang diadaptasi dari kisah rakyat dan juga stand alone. 

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cami_chai's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful mysterious sad 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

4.5


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staceyinthesticks's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional relaxing 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


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clariu25's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

The beginning of the book was too slow for me, and parts of the plot were a bit too predictable. Nevertheles , I found it intriguing enough to continue reading.
I'm glad I did.
The story follows Mina, a girl who sacrifices herself to help her village. Then she founds that the Spirit Realm and the Sea God are quite different from what the legends say.
I found the story very cute. Mina is a bit stubborn but she learns quickly that people are there to help her, not control her. She is of course going through the grieve of loosing her family while adapting to a new and completely unknown place and trying to fulfill her mission. I liked her character a lot, brave but kind, not a superhero but not a damsel in distress. Her relationships with each of the characters are lovely, each one of them is different. 
The book touches themes of faith, family, friendship, love, death... It's a cozy read that warms your heart.

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indigo_fox's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious fast-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

5.0

This book is always hard for me to put down! This story follows Mina on her journey into the spirit realm as she tries to unravel the mysteries surrounding the sea god. Each new discovery leads to another adventure and it feels like the events pile on quickly. The fast pace makes sense though since Mina is on a bit of a time crunch. 

It is so easy to fall in love with these characters, even the one who is supposed to be the villain. The side characters don't get fleshed out much but you still get enough about them to get a solid understanding of their personality. Although, I wish I had more time to learn about these characters. 

The story itself was fun. This is my second time reading the story but I remember being surprised at various points in the story, even when I had my suspicions about what was going on. It was just as fun to watch the mystery unravel on my reread. Things weren't any less suspenseful as I was anxious to get to the reveals I knew were just around the corner.

Overall the story was great! I always enjoy a good folklore retelling!

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bree_h_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional slow-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? No

2.25

I was really looking forward to this book and what story it could tell. And it had a pretty strong start to backup this hope. Unfortunately it fell a bit short by the halfway point.

As mentioned the start was pretty strong. I felt like it established action and motivation really well. Not to mention a strong setting of scene and tone. I thought Mina losing her voice was really interesting and I liked how it changed her communication and how others understood her. I also thought the introduction to the main cast was interesting and got me interested in them.

But once Mina got her voice back I just felt like the book took a dip in quality. The feeling of inconsistency in Mina’s character seemed highlighted and relationships with other characters felt rushed. It felt like it was trying to mimic ACOTAR, but wasn’t executed very well. Not to mention the grossness around a romance between a 16-year-old minor and an ancient immortal. It’s not realistic, but it still leaves a bad taste in my mouth in regards to the love interest. By the end it really just felt like the book was a checklist of tropes.

Overall it wasn’t super great, but I think people that like ACOTAR might enjoy it more than me.

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