gonewithflynn 's review for:

The Sunken City by Emma V.R. Noyes

3.0

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Admittedly, I got sucked into the bookstagram hype with this one. Unfortunately, for me, it fell a little flat. The concept of this book is great and I loved the Pirate ship/Atlantis-esque settings. I did however find myself wishing the world building for the underwater city was more fleshed out to truly make this immersive. I do have to say the writing is good overall and the author actually writes some very beautiful descriptions. I also found it fun that the world above water was more old fashioned, while the underwater city was more technologically advanced. Amare, our FMC, is 17 and quite sarcastic - at first this was fun but I eventually found myself wishing she wasn't so defensive all the time, not that she didn't have reason to be but I would've liked to see a little more growth with her character throughout this first instalment. I also felt confused as to what Amare really wanted in the end, so here too there was reflection and potential growth that didn't happen - maybe all of this comes in book 2? Though, my biggest gripe with this book falls down to how predictable the story became, especially with that love triangle.

All in all, this wasn't my favourite but it definitely has potential and is a quick and easy read. I would definitely recommend to those of you who love YA fantasy romance, enjoy love triangles and like underwater settings.

Content warnings: violence, death of a parent, confinement.

Thank you to Book Sirens for the copy for review. All opinions are my own.