Reviews with content warning for Miscarriage - The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea

I love Uprooted and recently discovered the wonder that is Spirited Away, so when I first saw this book it felt as though it had basically been written for me! And I am really glad my NetGalley request for this was approved because The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea was exactly the kind of book I needed, with a story that is just as great as its breathtaking cover.

I absolutely loved being immersed in the world of this book and following Mina in the Spirit Realm. Some of the initial descriptions of the Realm definitely reminded me of Spirited Away, so much so that I could almost picture it in exactly the same way. The story soon continued on its own independent path, and it was so engaging and fast-paced that I may possibly have forsaken other duties just to continue reading as I was so engrossed in the action.

The characters were delightful, and I was especially taken with the protagonist, Mina. She is everything I want in a main character: smart, generous, kind and brave. Plus, she is an excellent storyteller, and that never hurts! The rest of the cast was varied and just as compelling, even though there were a few characters I would have liked to see developed a little further. I wasn't wholly sold on the romance at the beginning, but it completely won me over in the second half of the book! And I absolutely adored the focus on family relationships and friendship: they were so wholesome and heartwarming and gave me all the feels. There may have also been some tears... mostly happy tears, though!

I loved the setting and I found the descriptions to be beautifully delivered, lush and very evocative, but at the same time the worldbuilding is the aspect I had the most issues with. In a sense, it felt as though the book's fast pace worked against it in this respect, as it often seemed rushed and I couldn't help feeling as though large parts of context were missing. I won't go into any more detail to avoid potential spoilers, but I'll just say that I'm still wondering about the motives behind certain characters' actions and decisions.

Still, I had a great time with this book and I loved getting lost in it. Magic, action, love, grief, honour, family, gods and goddesses and even a dragon: this book has it all! Plus, I loved discovering more about the original Korean legend that inspired this retelling. Definitely recommended to anyone looking for a magical easy read.

Content Warnings

bookishflower's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional 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? No

5.0

“Nothing extraordinary is ever done out of reason or logic, but because it’s the only way for your soul to breathe”.

I didn’t intend to read this all in one sitting, but it’s 4am now and future me will have to deal with it.

I’ve come to the conclusion that all my favourite books feel like fairytales and this book just confirms it!

Axie Oh’s writing is beautiful, accessible and full of heart that captures you from the first few chapters and won’t let go.

The romance was swoony- soul mates, reluctant allies to lovers, fake marriages, hello?!- and the rich fantasy world was perfect. This got me out of a reading slump, THANK YOU!

Although I guessed the plot twist, I didn’t mind because the characters were so soulful and human (yes, even the sea gods, spirits and dragons too). I loved the strength of Mina throughout the book too. This truly felt like a love letter to one’s family, healing and culture.

Go read this book!

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kindredbooks's review

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adventurous 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

5.0

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh caught my attention when it was described as the feminist retelling of the Korean folktale "The Tale of Shim Cheong" with Spirited Away vibes. I was definitely intrigued as I am a huge fan of Miyazaki (I mean, who isn't?) and while I was quite familiar with the name Shim Cheong from my education of watching Korean dramas and having lived in Korea for two years in my 20s, I realized that I actually didn't know the story of Shim Cheong in its entirety. That did not keep my from preordering the book of course, especially once that cover was revealed. And it truly is such a lovely cover. But on to the book itself.

For those of you who, like me, are not too familiar with "The Tale of Shim Cheong", I would suggest that you don't look into it until you read The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea. I think it will help with diving into the story and just getting lost in Axie Oh's storytelling. I Googled Shim Cheong's story when I was almost finished reading and I think the timing was perfect because I was able to really appreciate the aspects of the original folktale that Axie Oh used while also seeing the creative changes she made. Personally I think that if I knew the original folktale beforehand, it may have spoiled parts of the story for me - but maybe that's not the case as I'm sure many better-informed and Korean folktale-educated readers still enjoyed the story.

I really enjoyed reading Mina, our main character who starts off in the story already strong-willed and determined in the way she loves her family. I found that to be so refreshing as opposed to having to always look for "strong character development" in a story. Why can't our female heroines start off strong and continue to rock the world and solve problems throughout the stories? Mina certainly can and does in this story as she seeks a way to break the curse on the Sea God that is creating so many problems for the humans who live in the world. Her love for her family and people continue to drive her in this story - as does her affection for her new friends that she makes in the Spirit Realm.

I was looking forward to reading the romance aspect of the story. And I did see certain parallels between The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea and Spirited Away. No spoilers here though ... I'll just say that I did like Shin's character but I did want more out of the romantic development of our characters. It was there, there was a love triangle of sorts, there was just so much potential and while I still did like it - there was still just something missing. I'll have to get back to you once I figure out what that is.

I really enjoyed The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea - it is a magical tale of family, love, duty, obligation and sacrifice. It had all the makings of a Korean historical drama with the magical elements that I love from Spirited Away.

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risten's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful 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? Yes

4.5

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bookwormbullet's review

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

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

4.5

Content Warnings

katiemcgregor's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious fast-paced

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

2.5

The idea behind The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is great, but I think a lot of it's potential is missed in the execution. I definitely see why so many people say that this has a similar feel to Spirited Away; it has some similar aspects. But what could have been an extremely intricate and mystical world was barely even explored.

I think my main issue with this book is that it's has this amazing mystical world, and lore-inspired characters, but it doesn't do anything with any of them. Even after finishing the book I couldn't tell you much about the spirit world. Things are mentioned in passing, but we never get any explanation for how this world works or what the overall structure is. The world building is severely lacking. At this point, I feel like Axie Oh's writing style and tendency to focus on the characters more than world better lends itself to the contemporary genre rather than fantasy.

The characters fare slightly better; at least they have some stand out traits. But even still, their backgrounds are alluded to, but we never get to see them fleshed out. I couldn't bring myself to especially care about any of them. Just so much missed potential.

This could have been a longer book or even a duology, just to fully elaborate on the world and characters. The rushed nature of it makes it feel like nothing much happened and the things that did happen were fairly predictable. But the main issue is that everything was brushed over so quickly.

Lastly, I noticed that the sentence structures are odd. This didn't bother me so much when I listened to some of the audiobook, but as soon as I can see the words in front of me, it's super noticeable; confusing punctuation, odd word choice, etc.. This is something I noticed with XOXO as well. But, honestly, I think this comes down to the editors more than the author.

I don't know, this book isn't especially bad, but I'm ultimately left with no strong feelings. Like I said, I really wanted to love it because the concept is so fantastic, but it desperately needs some good world building to do it justice. If the concept of this book wasn't so good I don't think I would be so disappointed with the execution.

On a more positive note, can we just admire the cover art for a minute?! Both the US and UK editions are GORGEOUS!!!

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azrah786's review against another edition

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4.25

**I was provided with an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

CW: violence, injury, death, child death, grief, suicide/suicide ideation, discussion of miscarriage, child death
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A fairytale-esque reimagining of the Korean classic - The Tale of Shim Cheong, that is just as magical as the books cover.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea tells the story of Mina, who out of love for her brother throws herself into the sea in place of his beloved, Shim Cheong – the girl chosen to be the next sacrificed bride to the Sea God as a means to stop the storms that lay waste to their homeland.

Mina awakens in the Spirit World to find that the Sea God, whom she is now soul-bound to through the Red String of Fate, is actually trapped in an enchanted sleep.
Determined to get to bottom of the curse on her people and to free them from it, Mina with the help of some ancestral spirits, demons and lesser gods sets out to awaken him. However, human souls can only survive in the Spirit World for a limited period so she has time running against her, as well as those who do not want the Sea God to awaken.

Axie Oh's atmospheric writing sinks you straight in to this beautiful story about fate, love and sacrifice.
The fast pacing did make some parts of the story feel a little rushed and I did catch on to some of the twists however, none of that tampered my enjoyment. I was more bothered by the fact that the book wasn’t longer because it’s the type of story that you don’t want to end.

The worldbuilding is an absolute dream - the underwater Spirit World has major Studio Ghibli vibes but the addition of the pantheon of Korean deities and mythology – which is all beautifully woven in to the overarching storyline - makes it all its own!

Mina's selflessness and determination make her an inspiring protagonist that you can’t help but root for and I really loved her compassion for her family and those close to her.

There are great moments of action and adventure, a wonderful group of supporting characters that you won't want to say goodbye to by the end and the central romance is the perfect balance of sweet and angst-ridden it'll have you tied up in its strings too!
Final Rating – 4.25/5 Stars

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