Reviews

Dark academia book that doesn’t take place in a school, rivals to lovers who aren’t actually competing for anything.....

Fantasy with a world I needed to know more about.

Not as creepy as I’d hoped. Beautiful writing. Not a fan of the romance (I never am with Reid’s books). I think it’s time I stopped expecting to be wowed by Reid’s books.

I had an ok/good time reading this. Loved the themes and how Effy had to navigate a world where she wasn’t always welcome. We get elusions to Effy’s abuse from a teacher but didn’t go into details which I appreciated. Even changelings were handled with care in this one.

But nothing really stood out for me. Dark academia doesn’t feel right for this. Effy starts her journey at the school but soon goes off to the sinking house. Yes Preston and Effy are solving a mystery about a book but does it count as academia? And rivals to lovers.... they aren’t competing at school (they’re not even in the same field) and they’re not competing for anything in the house. They very quickly decide to work together with some mild bickering along the way.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion

midnightsbooks's review against another edition

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I was a little disappointed by the book. I'm very confused and honestly don't really know what's going on... because basically nothing has happened. I don't understand the world's history and the stories within the book that are being told by Effy.

maisonmarcela's review against another edition

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4.75

I knew that I couldn’t put this book down and was reading in every single quiet moment I had, but it wasn’t until I finished that I realized it had everything I loved: it was a dark academia gothic story with fairy folklore. Needless to say, I LOVED THIS.

A Study in Drowning deals with so much all at once: institutionalized sexism in academia, men controlling women and taking advantage of them, taking away their voice and diminishing you until you forget you have one… and the journey to regaining your strength.

The story follows along Effy Sayre in her first year at architecture college. The thing is, she really wishes she could be studying Literature… but women aren’t allowed in that college. Regardless, she spends all her free time reading the words of Myrddin, in particular Angharad, his most decorated works.

So imagine Effy’s surprise when she wins an architecture contest to redesign the late author’s manor, complete with a two-month long trip to the property. The thing is, she’s not the only student there, she has to put up with her academic rival Preston all while something about the land makes it difficult to tell what’s real, what’s magic, and what’s all in her head.

———

A Study in Drowning is a dark academia gothic novel with fairy folklore. Read this if you like Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, and were extra curious about Lottie in Yellowjackets.

katieeprime's review against another edition

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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

3.5

mrskngentry's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

4.5

This is a YA Fantasy that reads like a classic. The female main character is disregarred whenever she tells anyone about the mysterious entity that has visited her since childhood. As a teenager, she reads a book that finally makes her full seen and same. When the authorship of the book is called into question, Effy begins a journey where the lines between reality & fair tale become blurred. This book gives off the vibes of the Spiderwick Chronicles, Wuthering Heights, and The Picture of Dorian Gray. It's deep, mysterious, and entertaining! The perfect book to get ready for spooky season!

inkanddynamite's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

enidsera's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺? 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘥𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴: 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵, 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘦—𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘶𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘶𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘢𝘭𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘢𝘮. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘢, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘢, 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘦𝘯𝘥.

If you loved Emily Wilde, you'll love this standalone academia-based fantasy. Set in a world not unlike our own, Effy is a modern girl trying to fit into an archaic magic-based world where women have no voice. In her quest to find her purpose and meaning, we slowly learn the many stories of her past that make up who she is now.

Effy is an architecture student who sets out to restore a crumbling house of her beloved favourite author, along with Preston, another student from her college who has a secret of his own. It turns out they're not the only ones with secrets to keep as they discover the thin veil between their world and the world of the Fae holds more secrets than they were expecting to find.

This book was perfectly paced with little hints and reveals throughout the book. At some point I had figured out the plot, maybe it was because Effy and Preston kept trying to see things from their singular perspective that made everything more obvious for what it was. Or maybe it is something for the reader to figure out.

Angharad, the book within this book, adds another beautiful layer to the mythology and world building of Llyr and Argant. And while I'm sad that Effy's story has come to an end, I hope that we get to see and hear more stories of Llyr and Argant in future because there is so much more to uncover there.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Harper Collins in exchange for an honest review.

teachinatardis's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Effy Sayre has earned her place as the only female in the architecture college, but that's not even where she wants to be. The place she belongs is the literature college, but there's no chance of them ever allowing a woman in. But when she learns about an architecture competition to design a home for the family of her favorite author who has recently died, she jumps at the chance...and WINS! But as she delves deeper into the truth behind the life of her favorite author, his crumbling home, and his anxious son she finds that sometimes the reality and imagination are sometimes the same thing.

This book was an odd one for me, because at times I thought it was moving slowly, but it would pick up quickly until the next time I thought it slowed down. The first few chapters were frustrating because I thought I had missed some important information, but that information was just withheld until a later time in the story. I inferred the meaning correctly, but it wasn't actually confirmed until late in the game. Effy also suffers from seeing things that aren't there, and the unfolding of that plot point also gave me some confusion as it was another slow burn that made me feel as if I were missing something. Overall, a story that addresses some serious things, like sexual assault and grooming, and does it well, while managing to create a solid fantasy that was fun and engaging.

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