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ecallahan's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Ableism, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Death
saucy_bookdragon's review
adventurous
funny
informative
lighthearted
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Was this a chosen one narrative or nepobaby propaganda?
One could argue that all of Rick Riordan's protagonists are nepobabies. He mainly writes about children of literal gods after all. But these aren't real nepobabies, no one irl is actually a child of a god and have legit superpowers (I think). Ana on the other hand.
Ana is the descendant of captain Nemo and this makes her really important and special because she can access the submarine and also because she's supposed to be super smart for some reason?
Daughter of the Deep almost legitimately reads like nepobaby propaganda. WHY is Ana so important just because of her ancestry? She isn't especially smarter than any of the other students, she doesn't have literal superpowers, and yet she's treated as such.
Outside of the nepotism of it all, she's just not very interesting. The story is so focused on her, the history of the world, and plot none of the side characters shine through either. This would've benefitted from being a trilogy and stretching out the plot in order to flesh out everything or having fewer characters.
The world building is also boring. I wish that this was actually about Jules Vern, the actual technology he wrote about doesn't become relevant until the second half of the book. The academy is literally just a militant marine studies school for rich kids that blows up immediately.
I found the second half to be a little more interesting because of the sci-fi elements. Rick Riordan writes with a passion for Vern's work and he has already built a career off of making mythology accessible for children and I would love to see him move into other worlds and other topics. Just with more of the actual speculative elements and less nepotism.
One could argue that all of Rick Riordan's protagonists are nepobabies. He mainly writes about children of literal gods after all. But these aren't real nepobabies, no one irl is actually a child of a god and have legit superpowers (I think). Ana on the other hand.
Ana is the descendant of captain Nemo and this makes her really important and special because she can access the submarine and also because she's supposed to be super smart for some reason?
Daughter of the Deep almost legitimately reads like nepobaby propaganda. WHY is Ana so important just because of her ancestry? She isn't especially smarter than any of the other students, she doesn't have literal superpowers, and yet she's treated as such.
Outside of the nepotism of it all, she's just not very interesting. The story is so focused on her, the history of the world, and plot none of the side characters shine through either. This would've benefitted from being a trilogy and stretching out the plot in order to flesh out everything or having fewer characters.
The world building is also boring. I wish that this was actually about Jules Vern, the actual technology he wrote about doesn't become relevant until the second half of the book. The academy is literally just a militant marine studies school for rich kids that blows up immediately.
I found the second half to be a little more interesting because of the sci-fi elements. Rick Riordan writes with a passion for Vern's work and he has already built a career off of making mythology accessible for children and I would love to see him move into other worlds and other topics. Just with more of the actual speculative elements and less nepotism.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Grief, Gun violence, Medical content, and Murder
sirenricobooks's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Medical content
Moderate: Grief, Blood, and Cancer
val_theburrowofstories's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Gun violence, and Blood
Minor: Colonisation, Kidnapping, and Medical content
runes_reads's review
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
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
I ADORED this book! I've always been a fan of Rick Riordan, but this has to take the cake. One of the main characters (not the protagonist) is autistic. They used identity first language and said she was autistic without tip-toeing around it. Being able to see a lovable character like that, who was like me? In a great story by one of my favorite authors would've been everything to my high school self, after I was diagnosed.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Blood, and War
Minor: Torture, Racism, and Animal death
camiclarkbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
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? Yes
4.0
“Daughter of the Deep” by Rick Riordan is a clever reinterpretation of Jules Verne’s “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.”
There were several points where I wondered if Riordan had landed on this plot since he’d done so much ocean-related research for his “Percy Jackson” series, but it was still a fun book. The diversity of the characters was great and tastefully executed, which Riordan has struggled with in past books.
I’m interested to see if a sequel is announced soon because the ending definitely leaves room for a second book. “Daughter of the Deep” was a fun read and I’d love to read more books set in the Jules Verne-inspired world.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Blood
madeleine726's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Kidnapping, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail
orchidlilly's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
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
4.0
Daughter of the Deep has the same whimsy and snark that we know to expect from Riordan, and it's a delight as always. The plot draws from Jules Verne, of course, without feeling like a total rip or a poor imitation, and it's thoroughly entertaining the whole way through. Ana and her fellow classmates make for a diverse and well represented cast, who manage to act believably 15 without being insufferably out of touch. Riordan's depictions of other cultures and mental illness are respectful and clearly well researched, without feeling like a overly moral preach fest like so many other books do. I'm especially fond of how Ester is written, her character is more than just her autism, she gets to be someone other than the stereotypical autistic genius.
Definitely a good read, for the intended middle grade audience and also adults. I don;t know if this will be another one of Riordan's series as the book functions well as a single standalone, but should it become one I'll be raring to read more.
Definitely a good read, for the intended middle grade audience and also adults. I don;t know if this will be another one of Riordan's series as the book functions well as a single standalone, but should it become one I'll be raring to read more.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness and Medical content
Minor: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Child death, Death of parent, Abandonment, Blood, Colonisation, and Confinement
vegabela's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-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? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and Death of parent
Minor: Sexism and Blood
fanboyriot's review
adventurous
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
I would love to see this turned into a movie, the oceanic adventure had a setting that was really nicely detailed. The characters were great—as if I’d expect anything else from Uncle Rick—the diversity he brings to this book is represented so nicely through out it. Not to mention this was the first book by a cis man who normalized periods in fiction let alone young fiction. This book was just so good.
Good Humor
Found Family
Diverse Characters
Angst with a Happy Ending
Submarine with AI Consciousness
Good Humor
Found Family
Diverse Characters
Angst with a Happy Ending
Submarine with AI Consciousness
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, and Death
Moderate: Violence, Cancer, and Blood
Minor: Colonisation, Medical content, and Racism