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crispinophurs 's review for:
A Study in Drowning
by Ava Reid
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
As usual, a book by Ava Reid is phenomenal. But I think it’s the weakest of her current books, for one reason only: I think the demographic rating actually held her back a bit. If she’d been allowed to delve into it the way she went into Juniper & Thorn, this book would have been a masterpiece.
And that isn’t to say that the contents of this book were too “adult” for the YA genre or some other nonsense— as a mentally ill, Jewish SA survivor myself, Ava’s writing and handling of such topics means the world to me— but I know that she could’ve pulled out all the stops for such a story with no limitations placed upon her.
I also guessed the puzzle pieces of the mystery early on, but this was written like a good mystery: it allows the reader to figure things out for themself and the conclusion makes them feel like an intellectual instead of annoyed by a sudden rug-pull.
And that isn’t to say that the contents of this book were too “adult” for the YA genre or some other nonsense— as a mentally ill, Jewish SA survivor myself, Ava’s writing and handling of such topics means the world to me— but I know that she could’ve pulled out all the stops for such a story with no limitations placed upon her.
I also guessed the puzzle pieces of the mystery early on, but this was written like a good mystery: it allows the reader to figure things out for themself and the conclusion makes them feel like an intellectual instead of annoyed by a sudden rug-pull.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Classism