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A review by capesandcovers
The Vanishing Deep by Astrid Scholte
2.0
*EDIT*
I thought about this a little longer and essentially this whole book hinges on flimsy excuses in order to create the situations needed to have what little plot it does (there's no reason for most of these characters to make any of the decisions they do except to move the plot forward), which is why my rating just dropped another star lmao.
~
I finished this a while ago and just haven't known what to write about it, so bare with me if this review is a bit of a mess.
There were certain aspects of The Vanishing Deep that I really loved. The world itself if very interesting, and really made me curious about what a different story set in it would look like. The concept of a flooded world with sparse islands and people living on giant communal rafts turned villages? Sign me tf up! I really loved the concept of being able to bring people back to life for 24 hours as well as the way there were gods and goddesses that were (unfortunately) mostly glossed over. I forgot their names but even the antagonists were super interesting and made me wish that there was more background given for them.
Unfortunately this is where things started to go downhill for me. I really liked Tempest, but it never felt like she had any character growth, or true depth given to her personality. I understand that she was supposed to have lost a lot early on in life, but whenever she talked about how she missed how things were when her family was together, there was never actually anything to show how she had been at the time. Because of that, it sort of left her without any real personality besides being determined and softer than she liked to pretend to be, since she was so angry at the world. This just made her "relationship" with Lor even less believable, and there had literally been nothing between them besides Lor thinking she was beautiful to begin with.
Lor fell flat for me as well. He was mostly just throwing himself a pity party all book, and while that could have worked out, since there wasn't much else to his personality, it was like he was a cardboard prop for Tempest's story. Major spoilers are hidden ahead!
Anyway, ignoring that I really loved the tumultuous relationship between Tempest and Elysea and watching how they learned to cope with their inevitable future loss of their sisterhood. The two of them running around together were some of the best parts of the story and I wish there had been more of a focus on that instead of Lor. If you're looking for a fast paced sci-fi/adventure story (this is not set in space, don't get confused!), definitely try picking this up. I may not have enjoyed all of it, but that doesn't mean you won't, and it's worth the read for the world itself.
I thought about this a little longer and essentially this whole book hinges on flimsy excuses in order to create the situations needed to have what little plot it does (there's no reason for most of these characters to make any of the decisions they do except to move the plot forward), which is why my rating just dropped another star lmao.
~
I finished this a while ago and just haven't known what to write about it, so bare with me if this review is a bit of a mess.
There were certain aspects of The Vanishing Deep that I really loved. The world itself if very interesting, and really made me curious about what a different story set in it would look like. The concept of a flooded world with sparse islands and people living on giant communal rafts turned villages? Sign me tf up! I really loved the concept of being able to bring people back to life for 24 hours as well as the way there were gods and goddesses that were (unfortunately) mostly glossed over. I forgot their names but even the antagonists
Spoiler
the vicious scavenger peopleUnfortunately this is where things started to go downhill for me. I really liked Tempest, but it never felt like she had any character growth, or true depth given to her personality. I understand that she was supposed to have lost a lot early on in life, but whenever she talked about how she missed how things were when her family was together, there was never actually anything to show how she had been at the time. Because of that, it sort of left her without any real personality besides being determined and softer than she liked to pretend to be, since she was so angry at the world. This just made her "relationship" with Lor even less believable, and there had literally been nothing between them besides Lor thinking she was beautiful to begin with.
Lor fell flat for me as well. He was mostly just throwing himself a pity party all book, and while that could have worked out, since there wasn't much else to his personality, it was like he was a cardboard prop for Tempest's story. Major spoilers are hidden ahead!
Spoiler
Which he was. The reveal at the end was a wild plot twist but oh my god there was literally no lead up to it and then he was dead. Again. And I guess the "relationship" between Lor and Tempest was supposed to give the reader more of a connection to him, but it just annoyed me. I'm sure someone else might like it, but it just was not for me!! They didn't even get to know one another for a full 24 hours, and then Elysea was like, 'wow you two are so in love, that could never be me, i'm aro/ace?' ???? While I loved the diving/fighting bit at the end, I just didn't like the epilogue at all. Happily ever after is nice but the suspension of disbelief needed for it was too much, I was barely believing the whole parents still being alive thing to begin with (but also what shit parents just leave a note??).Anyway, ignoring that I really loved the tumultuous relationship between Tempest and Elysea and watching how they learned to cope with their inevitable future loss of their sisterhood. The two of them running around together were some of the best parts of the story and I wish there had been more of a focus on that instead of Lor. If you're looking for a fast paced sci-fi/adventure story (this is not set in space, don't get confused!), definitely try picking this up. I may not have enjoyed all of it, but that doesn't mean you won't, and it's worth the read for the world itself.