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A review by screamdogreads
A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid
4.0
Maybe the idea of constancy is what's actually terrifying. Fear of the sea is fear of the eternal - because how can you win against something so enduring. So vast and so deep.
Steeped in a heavy amount of whimsical folkloric wonder, and plenty of magical mysticism, A Study in Drowning is a dark academia novel with a twist. At its heart, it has all the makings of a dark academia story, power and control stemming from corruption in academia, a highlight on the sexist attitudes of the elite, and a focus around the studious life of the main characters. However, one is free to consider this novel dark academia-lite, it acts as a wonderful introduction into what the genre has to offer.
This novel is made up of so many elements, all of which fight to be at the forefront of the tale. The crumbling cliffside manor with its haunted halls, the luscious but unforgiving landscape, the wealthy and the powerful who lay claim to all they can. There's a beautiful gothic charm to this story, while it isn't particularly intense when it comes to the academia side, it still acts as a powerful blend of a gothic horror and fairy tale fantasy.
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Steeped in a heavy amount of whimsical folkloric wonder, and plenty of magical mysticism, A Study in Drowning is a dark academia novel with a twist. At its heart, it has all the makings of a dark academia story, power and control stemming from corruption in academia, a highlight on the sexist attitudes of the elite, and a focus around the studious life of the main characters. However, one is free to consider this novel dark academia-lite, it acts as a wonderful introduction into what the genre has to offer.
This novel is made up of so many elements, all of which fight to be at the forefront of the tale. The crumbling cliffside manor with its haunted halls, the luscious but unforgiving landscape, the wealthy and the powerful who lay claim to all they can. There's a beautiful gothic charm to this story, while it isn't particularly intense when it comes to the academia side, it still acts as a powerful blend of a gothic horror and fairy tale fantasy.
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"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."Â
Really, this is a story about stories. It's about the importance of believing in magic, it's about every way in which your voice can be stripped of you. It's both an eerie and oddly comforting sort of book. There's a special kind of attention paid to nature within this novel, and it's nothing short of gorgeous. When authors can craft the natural surroundings into its own character, letting it influence and alter the story, I find these to be the most immersive of tales. Consider this then, a formidable introduction into the world of dark academia, consider this, a stark lesson into the true power of magic.
Everything ancient must decay, a wise man once said thus to me. But a sailor was I - and on my head no fleck of gray - so with all the boldness of my youth I said: the only enemy is the sea.