A review by onemorepagecrew
At Sea by Emma Fedor

3.0

At Sea by Emma Fedor is an interesting premise that fell a little a little flat for me.  In it we meet Cara and Brendan, who experience an instant connection and build a family together with their son, Micah.  The timelines split and the story unfolds during their relationship and five years later, when Cara is married to another man after Brendan kidnapped her son and disappeared. 
 
This plotline alone is enough for an engaging thriller as Cara searches for her son. The author layered in added complexity with Brendan’s ability to breathe underwater, attributed to being part of an experimental unit in the US Special Forces.  For me, there were just a few too many elements at once to really sink into any of them. 
 
I didn’t have enough to connect with the toll that military service and mental illness took on Brendan. I didn’t know if breathing underwater was a delusion and instead of it building tension, it mostly led to confusion.  I didn’t have enough time to feel the grief of losing her son.  The most emotion I felt was for the people around Cara in the present timeline, as they seemed to want her to move on and forget her partner and son existed. 
 
I essentially spent the book feeling confused and frustrated and even though the pages turned easily, I was feeling very underwhelmed.  There were perhaps too many heavy topics with the surface just scratched. 
 
Thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley for the gifted and advanced copy – I am always grateful to be given the opportunity to read a book and share my thoughts.  
Content warnings: Kidnapping, Mental illness, Grief 
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