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A review by jmacminn
The Drowned Woods by Emily Lloyd-Jones
adventurous
challenging
medium-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
3.5
“She could have brought kingdoms to their knees. Maybe she would yet.”
Thank you to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Netgalley, and Emily Lloyd-Jones for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review
I give this book 3.5 stars which I will explain below.
Mer is the last water diviner, people blessed with the magic to sense and manipulate water. When she is discovered as a child the King of Gwaelod takes her to use her for the kingdom. She is trained by the Spymaster, who becomes a father figure to her as she grows up in the Castell. When Mer escapes the king and the spymaster shows up, offering the chance to stop running and live in safety, she joins up with him to steal a magical faerie treasure.
I was drawn to this book because I love a good heist novel and I had heard about the bi-representation that was included. The book started so impressively and I really enjoyed the twists and turns in the story in the last 15-20% of the book.
I really struggled with the characters and the romance in this book. The characters felt a bit flat, I think we got their motivations, but there wasn't really much more to them than that. Especially Ifanna and Fane, despite having both of their POVs throughout the book I never felt very connected to their characters.
The romance just wasn't there for me and definitely felt like there was not enough building to justify the ending. (view spoiler)
Overall I give this a strong 3.5 stars as I did like the beginning and the end, but the middle drag, the lack of foundation for characters, and the out of left field romance brough down my rating.
Thank you to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Netgalley, and Emily Lloyd-Jones for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review
I give this book 3.5 stars which I will explain below.
Mer is the last water diviner, people blessed with the magic to sense and manipulate water. When she is discovered as a child the King of Gwaelod takes her to use her for the kingdom. She is trained by the Spymaster, who becomes a father figure to her as she grows up in the Castell. When Mer escapes the king and the spymaster shows up, offering the chance to stop running and live in safety, she joins up with him to steal a magical faerie treasure.
I was drawn to this book because I love a good heist novel and I had heard about the bi-representation that was included. The book started so impressively and I really enjoyed the twists and turns in the story in the last 15-20% of the book.
I really struggled with the characters and the romance in this book. The characters felt a bit flat, I think we got their motivations, but there wasn't really much more to them than that. Especially Ifanna and Fane, despite having both of their POVs throughout the book I never felt very connected to their characters.
The romance just wasn't there for me and definitely felt like there was not enough building to justify the ending. (view spoiler)
Overall I give this a strong 3.5 stars as I did like the beginning and the end, but the middle drag, the lack of foundation for characters, and the out of left field romance brough down my rating.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Torture