A review by ashley_mrose530
A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid

dark emotional 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

4.5

Okay I loved this book and it's main characters! They were so good together and I loved that Preston held space for Effy and he was aware of how she had been treated in the past and he kept that in mind when he was around her so she never felt pressured or triggered. He also gave her time to tell him what she went through without demanding she trust him right away. Ugh they were just two amazing main characters and I loved watching them fall in love. 
The magic system was so interesting in this story too. You couldn't tell if Effy was an unreliable main character or not. I liked not knowing for sure whether or not the fairy king was real and I questioned that the whole time. And then
Spoilerwhen it turned out she was right I celebrated for her. She wasn't crazy and seeing things!

Really the only reason I couldn't give this book five stars is because it was too predictable. It didn't hinder my enjoyment of the book, but the mystery was made out to be this huge thing and I could tell that the reader was supposed Robbie guessing along with the characters, but I knew immediately. The main mystery and premise of this book is who actually wrote Angharad - was it the attributed author Emrys Myrddin or someone else - and I'm sorry to say that I knew immediately that the answer was
Spoiler going to be his widow and I even guessed that she might be Angharad herself, if Effy was correct about the fairy king being real.
It was only slightly disappointing to find out that it was that predictable. I think the author made it a little too obvious when she made it clear, multiple times, that
Spoiler women could not be in the literature college and were not considered to have a good enough temperament for creating stories.
There were just too many references to it that the mystery then became obvious, at least to me. Everything else about this book was amazing though and I would definitely recommend it!
Expand filter menu Content Warnings