Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - The Surface Breaks

Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

The Surface Breaks by Louise O'Neill

29 reviews

goldenslug's review against another edition

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challenging medium-paced

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

4.25

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annniiieee_333's review

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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

4.0

i really hated gaia at the beginning, when she would do whatever she was asked and gave in to every man. i then also thought she was really stupid for believing she was in love with a man she 'met' once. then i thought she was even more stupid for giving up her voice and putting her life on the line for this man she doesnt actually know. but the towards the end when she found eleanor in the room of paintings and eleanor spoke of just how badly oliver behaves, causing gaia to pay more attention, i started to love gaia so much. she became strong very quickly and i loved the way she

scared and killed her father

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owls_rainbow's review

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dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

2.0

Reread 2024: Hated the instalove. Thought there was very little character development, very little world-building.

The men were all awful and on this reading I didn't enjoy the human world. I still want a full book on Ceto and more explanation on the Rusalka.

Again the whole book felt quite rushed but there wasn't really enough plot as is to fill the book more.

Original review: This advertises itself as a feminist retelling of The Little Mermaid and to that I would say yes but at the same time no. The first half was less clear cut. We had few characters, less information about the mer-world than I’d have liked and overall, seemingly vapid thoughts about their appearance and men. Things did not seem happy per say but there was nothing that was a major red flag initially. While I loathe the concept of instalove the story took on a much more interesting turn in the second half once Gaia took on her human guise. It didn’t make a lot of sense, but Gaia only seemed to reveal her full life and understand how bad it was once she was among the humans. The second half of the book definitely took a U-turn with its criticisms of the expectation of women and the trouble with many men. I feel that the ending was a little rushed, despite my small criticism of the pacing I wanted more! Also, my copy had a bonus “chapter” on the Sea Witch and oh goodness I want a whole book on her!

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lais's review against another edition

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emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Faltou um epílogo resumindo como as coisas ficaram

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words_and_dreams's review

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adventurous dark emotional sad medium-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

🧜‍♀️Feminist retelling of 'The Little Mermaid'

Gaia, the youngest daughter of the Sea King is unhappy with her life. The underwater kingdom has a dystopian feel, women have no say and those that are deemed 'unattractive' are sent to live in the outlands, outcasts. She is betrothed to an older man who is a sexual predator. All of the women have repressed lives, controlled by the men.
On her 15th birthday Gaia visits the surface as her right of passage. She there sees and rescues Oliver, a human boy and falls in love. The insta love didn't bother me as that tracks with teens. She makes a bargain with the Sea Witch to get human legs at a price.

Although it was set in modern day, it still had that fairytale feel to it. I liked the portryal of Ceto the sea witch, a being of neither good nor evil and felt more authentic to the original tale. Gaia's journey is an interesting one as she comes of age, and her realisation that the surface world is not much better than the sea world. Men are weak and evil everywhere.

It was a little on the nose at times but it is aimed at a younger audience. I loved the ending but wish it had been drawn out a little longer.

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