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thebluemuse's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I found this book because it was featured as a “staff pick” at an independent bookstore I wandered into while traveling (Raven Book Store in Lawrence, KS). Indie bookstore recs are almost always fabulous, and I was drawn in by the title, Curious Tides, which seemed perfect since I was on the hunt for a beach read for an upcoming vacation by the sea. Then I opened the book, flipped through and saw the gorgeous design of the hardcover edition, with its charming illuminated front matter and the dark interludes between sections. It was one of those moments where the universe sends you the right book at the right time.
When I tell you, I devoured this 500+ page book, I am not kidding. I love a story of a self-conscious, self doubting star, who comes into the realization of the true power of their magic and then must test its application. I mean that magic both literally and figuratively in the case of Curious Tides. The magic is real in this book, and it is so beautifully interwoven with the coming-of-age characters—their identities as humans, not just as magical beings.
And I know I’m reading in for some of this, but for this Gen X reader, I could not help but read this story as a parable of any later-in-life realization—not just coming-of-age but coming into the true knowledge of self, whether that’s accepting one’s shadow self and integrating, or understanding, unmasking, and supporting one’s neurodivergent brain and nervous system. Having been on a journey of self knowledge of my own, the story not only swept me up in the tides of this mysterious and beautiful narrative, but offered an empowering framework of metaphors: time, empowerment through authenticity, learning to integrate (rather than fear) the shadow self, trusting your body’s somatic wisdom, learning to hear your intuition, and so on. When we first learn something new about ourselves, when we come into knowledge (like a late diagnosis of adhd—both our magic and our curse), we spend a lot of the grieving process reflecting on time—reviewing key moments in our past through this new lens of knowledge, coming to understanding, learning to forgive ourselves for misreading or misunderstanding our own needs and how we interacted with others due to lack of self understanding. We wish for the ability to pull at the threads of time, to stop, reverse and revisit those “mistakes,” to revise the traumatic history our new insight would have kept us safe from. But we cannot, and must find the ways to live as our whole selves regardless.
Suffice it to say, the book was healing for me, and perhaps a bit for my inner child as well. I don’t typically read YA fiction, which this is technically classified as by the publisher. But lately I’ve found a handful of texts, like Curious Tides, that I feel could be classics and certainly have reach beyond this classification.
I haven’t focused on many details of the story here because I don’t want to spoil it, but I’ll say that this book is 100% worth the read. I have no doubt that many readers will, like me, find metaphors that connect to their own journey. This is the kind of book that will speak to you wherever you are and will possibly unveil a bit of your own magic! The story has beautiful dark academia vibes, a stunning setting, a great diversity of characters and relationships (lqbtqia+ are well-represented), and the hardcover volume is beautifully crafted and executed. I’ve just seen a sequel is forthcoming and I cannot wait to read it.
I haven’t focused on many details of the story here because I don’t want to spoil it, but I’ll say that this book is 100% worth the read. I have no doubt that many readers will, like me, find metaphors that connect to their own journey. This is the kind of book that will speak to you wherever you are and will possibly unveil a bit of your own magic! The story has beautiful dark academia vibes, a stunning setting, a great diversity of characters and relationships (lqbtqia+ are well-represented), and the hardcover volume is beautifully crafted and executed. I’ve just seen a sequel is forthcoming and I cannot wait to read it.
Content Warnings
Minor: Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Forced institutionalization
bibliomania_express's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Toxic friendship
bookcaptivated's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Body horror, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Cursing, Sexual content, Vomit, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Alcohol
deussaxmachina's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Blood
Moderate: Self harm
pynky's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm
gardens_and_dragons's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I was swept away with the magic, the mystery of Dovermere Caves and the drowned students, the secret societies and the delicious DRAMA between the main cast.
This is what a dark academia fantasy should be. Honestly, what a good set of two tats you see coming and some you don’t.
Emory is frustrating but I understand why she makes the decisions she slides in the name of a chance to save her best friend Romie. And Romeo’s brother Baz is so sweet and wholesome and I want to give him a big hug with all he goes through.
The prose is magnetic.
Lots to say here: it’s a dense fantasy, leans a little older on the YA scale (honestly I would have thought it was solidly New Adult), and had a lot if very good concepts and characters to sink into.
This is what a dark academia fantasy should be. Honestly, what a good set of two tats you see coming and some you don’t.
Emory is frustrating but I understand why she makes the decisions she slides in the name of a chance to save her best friend Romie. And Romeo’s brother Baz is so sweet and wholesome and I want to give him a big hug with all he goes through.
The prose is magnetic.
Lots to say here: it’s a dense fantasy, leans a little older on the YA scale (honestly I would have thought it was solidly New Adult), and had a lot if very good concepts and characters to sink into.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm
Moderate: Death and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Gaslighting
Self harm was the applicable tag, but with a caveat: magic in this world works by bloodletting when once’s lunar alignment is not in the sky. It’s not done with self-hatred in mind, but it is prevalent in the storybatmayne_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I loved this book so much! It took awhile to get through but has an amazing storyline and magic system. Its a dual pov everyother chapter changing between Emory and Baz. I feel inlove with alot of side characters, Kai and Jae were in my top 5. After 8 students die, 4 washing up on shores, 4 missing, Emory is the only survivor that night. After a summer away, emory returns to college to try and find the mystery of the Dovermere Caves and ends up unlocking secrets and mysterys beyond what she expected. The magic system revolve around the Tides and Sun and Moon and Darkness(the Gods and Godesses) perfect story for the moon, space and water witches!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Self harm, Violence, Blood, and Alcohol
queer_bookwyrm's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
4 ⭐ CW: violence, self-harm, murder, death
Curious Tides by Pascale Lacelle is book one in the Drowned Gods duology. This is a YA dark academia with a magic school! I really liked the magic system in this book surrounding the moon and the tides. Neither of the MCs seem to be queer (yet), but we do get a few sapphic and achillean side characters.
We follow Emory, a New Moon student with mediocre healing abilities, who is returning to Aldryn College after a tragedy the semester before killed several of her classmates. We also follow Baz, an Eclipse student with the ability to control time, whose sister was part of the tragedy. When one of students who had been presumably swept out to Sea, is returned to shore, only to die a horrible death, Emory discovers she has powers no healer should have. Baz is the only one who knows, and was able to keep Emory's powers from going out of control.
Not only do we have a magic school, we get a secret society, a magical prison with a jailbreak, scholarly obsession, and a portal to another world. I do wish we had gotten more world-building. We get a bit about the discrimination that Eclipse-born endure as well as the exploitation at the hands of the Institute Regulators.
I pretty much guessed all the twists not far into the book, but it was still enjoyable. I did find Emory to be a bit annoying, and she treated Baz like crap, when he deserves better. I completely ship Baz and Kai, so I really hope that happens in the next book instead of him ending up with Emory. I wanted to love this book, although I enjoyed it, it still fell a little flat in a way I can't really articulate. It could just be because it's a debut book. Looking forward to book 2!
Curious Tides by Pascale Lacelle is book one in the Drowned Gods duology. This is a YA dark academia with a magic school! I really liked the magic system in this book surrounding the moon and the tides. Neither of the MCs seem to be queer (yet), but we do get a few sapphic and achillean side characters.
We follow Emory, a New Moon student with mediocre healing abilities, who is returning to Aldryn College after a tragedy the semester before killed several of her classmates. We also follow Baz, an Eclipse student with the ability to control time, whose sister was part of the tragedy. When one of students who had been presumably swept out to Sea, is returned to shore, only to die a horrible death, Emory discovers she has powers no healer should have. Baz is the only one who knows, and was able to keep Emory's powers from going out of control.
Not only do we have a magic school, we get a secret society, a magical prison with a jailbreak, scholarly obsession, and a portal to another world. I do wish we had gotten more world-building. We get a bit about the discrimination that Eclipse-born endure as well as the exploitation at the hands of the Institute Regulators.
I pretty much guessed all the twists not far into the book, but it was still enjoyable. I did find Emory to be a bit annoying, and she treated Baz like crap, when he deserves better. I completely ship Baz and Kai, so I really hope that happens in the next book instead of him ending up with Emory. I wanted to love this book, although I enjoyed it, it still fell a little flat in a way I can't really articulate. It could just be because it's a debut book. Looking forward to book 2!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Self harm
Minor: Sexual content
bibliofrog's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Thank you so much to Simon and Schuster for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Curious Tides has everything I love in a book-- a magical school setting, exploration of female friendships, a diverse cast of characters, a textured and interesting romance, and heaps and heaps of whimsy. Pascale Lacelle managed to include well-loved tropes while writing a book that feels fresh and unpredictable.
To start, the magic system in Curious Tides is so well thought out and compelling. The moon and the tides hold power over the character's magic. This system works for me in two big ways. First, intangible magic being tied to something tangible in the book's universe rather than just being an inexplicable ability makes the whole magic system and world at large feel more real and plausible. Second, the limits to the magic characters are able to wield at any given moment keep the plot and characters grounded and the stakes of the book believable. Too often in fantasy, characters (especially protagonists) are able to access limitless stores of power, giving them the upper hand in every battle and making every obstacle they face obsolete. This was not a problem in Curious Tides, as even after Emory uncovers her greater tidecaller powers and Baz discovers the truth about Eclipse-Born, there are still limitations to how much power they can wield.
Now, about the setting. It's clear that Pascale Lacelle set out to write a dark academia book that would scratch that itch for those of us who simply cannot get enough of that genre, and she executed it wonderfully. The descriptions of the commons and libraries made me feel so warm and at home, which balanced perfectly with the sense of foreboding coming from the nearby caves and rising tides. The result is a beautifully atmospheric campus that I can so vividly picture myself walking through at this very moment.
Each character in Curious Tides was given the grace and time to become rounded individuals. This is rare, especially with side characters. Of course some characters are more explored than others, but I really felt a sense of understanding of each side character. Kai, Virgil, and Jae are some of my favourite side characters that I've read in a long time. Even Romie, who for the majority of the book is revealed to us through flashbacks and memories, feels like a friend I've known my whole life. The exploration of Emory and Romie's friendship especially felt very personal and real to me. I think the complications of female friendship-- oscillating between fierce love and shameful jealousy-- is a very common experience for women and Lacelle hit that bittersweet feeling right on the nose. The love triangle is the only thing that I had reservations about, since that's a trope I don't usually love (despite my formative Hunger Games obsession), but I actually ended up quite enjoying it here. I think it illustrated really well how power-hungry men often take advantage of women's love in order to get what they want, and the shame and regret that comes with realizing you've been taken advantage of by someone you trusted. I slightly suspect Kieran's betrayal but found myself questioning my judgement often while in Emory's POV chapters as he continuously lied to her to get his way. And Baz-- I'm not sure if I can put into words how much I love his character. He is so sweet and curious and good. I cannot wait to read more of these characters in the next book (please, please, let there be a next book!!!)
Finally, the plot. I was kept on my toes the whole time and by the end of the book there were enough questions answered to satisfy me, but enough left up in the air that I am itching to get my hands on a sequel to find out. As soon as I see any announcement of a sequel ARC I will surely be first in line to request it.
I will absolutely be hand-selling this book to every customer I see lingering in the YA section, every person picking up other dark academia and romantasy reads (The Atlas Six, Fourth Wing, etc), and babbling on about it to my co workers until they have no choice but to read it too. This has been one of my favourite reads of the year and I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to read the ARC before release.
Curious Tides has everything I love in a book-- a magical school setting, exploration of female friendships, a diverse cast of characters, a textured and interesting romance, and heaps and heaps of whimsy. Pascale Lacelle managed to include well-loved tropes while writing a book that feels fresh and unpredictable.
Now, about the setting. It's clear that Pascale Lacelle set out to write a dark academia book that would scratch that itch for those of us who simply cannot get enough of that genre, and she executed it wonderfully. The descriptions of the commons and libraries made me feel so warm and at home, which balanced perfectly with the sense of foreboding coming from the nearby caves and rising tides. The result is a beautifully atmospheric campus that I can so vividly picture myself walking through at this very moment.
Each character in Curious Tides was given the grace and time to become rounded individuals. This is rare, especially with side characters. Of course some characters are more explored than others, but I really felt a sense of understanding of each side character. Kai, Virgil, and Jae are some of my favourite side characters that I've read in a long time. Even Romie, who for the majority of the book is revealed to us through flashbacks and memories, feels like a friend I've known my whole life. The exploration of Emory and Romie's friendship especially felt very personal and real to me. I think the complications of female friendship-- oscillating between fierce love and shameful jealousy-- is a very common experience for women and Lacelle hit that bittersweet feeling right on the nose. The love triangle is the only thing that I had reservations about, since that's a trope I don't usually love (despite my formative Hunger Games obsession), but I actually ended up quite enjoying it here. I think it illustrated really well how power-hungry men often take advantage of women's love in order to get what they want, and the shame and regret that comes with realizing you've been taken advantage of by someone you trusted. I slightly suspect Kieran's betrayal but found myself questioning my judgement often while in Emory's POV chapters as he continuously lied to her to get his way. And Baz-- I'm not sure if I can put into words how much I love his character. He is so sweet and curious and good. I cannot wait to read more of these characters in the next book (please, please, let there be a next book!!!)
Finally, the plot. I was kept on my toes the whole time and by the end of the book there were enough questions answered to satisfy me, but enough left up in the air that I am itching to get my hands on a sequel to find out. As soon as I see any announcement of a sequel ARC I will surely be first in line to request it.
I will absolutely be hand-selling this book to every customer I see lingering in the YA section, every person picking up other dark academia and romantasy reads (The Atlas Six, Fourth Wing, etc), and babbling on about it to my co workers until they have no choice but to read it too. This has been one of my favourite reads of the year and I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to read the ARC before release.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Self harm, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting
theespressoedition's review against another edition
slow-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Grief, and Classism
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Self harm, Toxic relationship, and Murder
Minor: Drug use, Sexual content, Torture, Vomit, and Alcohol
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