I had high hopes for The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea and I couldn’t be happier to have started 2022 so well by finishing this excellent new fantasy about love and sacrifice and the lengths we will go to in order to protect those we love.
Title: The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea
Author: Axie Oh
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Publication date: February 22nd, 2022
Format: eBook (Advanced Review Copy)
Length 336 Pages
Synopsis
Mina’s brother Joon is going to defy the Sea God by stopping his love, Shim Cheong, from jumping into the sea to become the bride of the Sea God. Cheong has been chosen as this year’s bride for the sea God.
Every year, a girl is given to the sea in the hope that it will stop the storms the sea god sends which destroy villages and towns across the country. But Mina, who cannot lose her brother, takes Cheong’s place, jumping into the sea.
When she arrives in the realm of the gods she realises all is not as she thought. The sea god sleeps, and forces work to keep it that way. If she is to return to her family she must help him, but she only has a month to do so before she is stuck as a spirit forever, and there are many people who will try and stop her.
Review
I feel so lucky to have received an ARC of this book and can’t wait until everyone else is able to enjoy it too. I thought the description sounded so interesting, and it didn’t disappoint at all.
There is so much to love about this book. The characterisation is strong, the world building is detailed without feeling out of control, and the writing is beautiful yet very accessible.
The story was whimsical and lovely, with a whole host of interesting characters. It’s hard to pick out my favourite characters as they were all filled with such life and had unique personalities, but I particularly loved the spirits, Mask, Dai and Miki, who Mina meets after arriving in the Sea God’s city. These three seem to know Mina, and go out of their way to help her, even when it means they must risk their own safety. That is a thread that runs throughout the story, people doing things not because they have to, but because they want to help someone else, whether that person is a family member or a friend.
In the realm of the gods Mina meets Shin, who may or may not be an ally. He is however undoubtedly connected with her, and they must work together if they’re to help the sea God, though they have different motivations for doing so. They have a complicated relationship which develops over the weeks Mina is in the city and ultimately forces Mina to make further difficult choices.
Mina must go on a journey. Partly because she is somewhere new and she has to discover the mysteries of this place, but also to understand why the Sea God sleeps and what she can do to help him which seems to be the only way she will be able to help all of the people she loves. Through Mina we discover a world where spirits walk and gods fight to hold power. In many ways, it’s a reflection of our own world.
I loved the blending of folklore and myth with new characters. I didn’t know the myth this book is based on, but it really doesn’t matter. Readers who are unfamiliar with it can still enjoy it very much and the original story is woven throughout, often appearing in clever ways.
I was a bit unsure if this book would involve a Mina, sea God, and Shin love triangle. But considering the Sea God spends much of the book asleep this wasn’t really possible and I’m very happy about that. Even though there was an opportunity for it to head that way, it was very clear that rather than being about love for two men or Gods or whoever, this was a choice Mina had to make about what she was willing to sacrifice for the love of her family. The way this potential plot was resolved really brought me to tears and I don’t think there was a better way the author could have handled it.
Perhaps I don’t have the words to express the beauty in this book. I hope that others will read it and love it as I have.
This is a story about love, family, sacrifice, self-discovery, and making the hard choices. I highly recommend.
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