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A review by girlgetsbook
A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book is the definition of "you're good, but I'm waiting for you to be great" (but more like, you're great, but I'm waiting for you to be exceptional). I truly love the combination of themes in this book: the dark fairy tale-esque atmosphere, the imagery of thrashing seas and old creaky houses, fantasy used as an allegory for real-world issues, the representation of trauma and mental illness, the parallels between mythical creatures and human beings, and the cruel nature that often links them, the feminist themes about women's rights to knowledge, to claim authorship, to have agency, and the critic of academia and how it often creates this awful space where women and other marginalized groups are explored by men in positions of power, not only on a physical level (their bodies, their beings) but also intectually (their work). I'm sure I'm forgetting some other thing that I really enjoyed about this book, but mostly those were the things that captivated me, alongside the beautiful prose.
However, I think this book could've been an adult novel. I know this is Ava's debut in the young adult genre, and she often writes very dark and intense adult fantasies that explore similar themes to this one but in a more brutal and raw way. I think this book is actually pretty dark for a young adult. At times, it was very hard to read because of how real the things Effy was experiencing are; in fact, as a woman in the arts and in academia, I was literally living a much lighter version of what she experienced as I was reading it.
Being in her head, a girl so traumatized, anxious, and constantly doubting herself and making herself smaller because of all the lies she's been told about herself, was a very intense experience, and it truly felt like I was drowning alongside her. The prose, the themes, and the plot were all there to make this an adult novel.
If only the romance was a bit less present, because though I loved the lightness and hopefulness it brought to the book, it also was what slowed down the plot and took me out of the story sometimes, especially towards the end when I really just wanted closure and more information on the main plot, but the whole time it was focusing on the romance and not the main themes of the book.
In the end, I think it was an almost perfect book; those things I pointed out were not bad by any means. This is still better than more than 60% of the books I read since last year. I just wanted to point out some aspects that contributed to my rating not being 5 stars. One last thing I have to say is that I loved the plot twist even though I predicted it. That didn't stop me from respecting and liking it since it brings to light such an important message.
However, I think this book could've been an adult novel. I know this is Ava's debut in the young adult genre, and she often writes very dark and intense adult fantasies that explore similar themes to this one but in a more brutal and raw way. I think this book is actually pretty dark for a young adult. At times, it was very hard to read because of how real the things Effy was experiencing are; in fact, as a woman in the arts and in academia, I was literally living a much lighter version of what she experienced as I was reading it.
Being in her head, a girl so traumatized, anxious, and constantly doubting herself and making herself smaller because of all the lies she's been told about herself, was a very intense experience, and it truly felt like I was drowning alongside her. The prose, the themes, and the plot were all there to make this an adult novel.
If only the romance was a bit less present, because though I loved the lightness and hopefulness it brought to the book, it also was what slowed down the plot and took me out of the story sometimes, especially towards the end when I really just wanted closure and more information on the main plot, but the whole time it was focusing on the romance and not the main themes of the book.
In the end, I think it was an almost perfect book; those things I pointed out were not bad by any means. This is still better than more than 60% of the books I read since last year. I just wanted to point out some aspects that contributed to my rating not being 5 stars. One last thing I have to say is that I loved the plot twist even though I predicted it. That didn't stop me from respecting and liking it since it brings to light such an important message.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Sexism, Mental illness, Sexual assault, and Emotional abuse