the pacing can be weird; sometimes too slow, sometimes too rushed. otherwise a very immersive read with relatably written characters

Axie Oh has created the most beautiful Korean mythology with this novel and it made my heart so full to be able to read this. I was so excited to receive this as it is one of my most anticipated reads of the year! This cover captured me as soon as it was released and the words on the inside matched the beauty of the outside.
‘The myths of my people say only a true bride of the Sea God can bring an end to his insatiable wrath’
This follows Mina a young girl from a small village who sacrifices herself to be the next Sea God’s bride to try to save her family from the storms that have continued for generations. She is taken to the spirt world only to find the Sea God in an enchanted sleep. Mina attempts to wake the Sea God only to find there are many who would rather the Sea God did not wake.
‘Behind me, spread out like a painter’s canvas is the Sea God’s city’
The first thing that caught my attention was the irresistible imagery created by Axie Oh’s writing style. Every word on the page is so wonderfully thought out and creates a magical atmosphere that captures this world perfectly. From the market stalls to the different Houses I felt like I could picture them all through all the language used. My personal favourite part was when Mina first enters the city of souls and the markets full of celebration so the colours are so bright and vibrant.
The mythology in this book in so interesting to read about and keeps expanding the more you get into the book. I would really love to read the original story that this book was based upon in the future as I have heard that is beautiful as well.
Mina’s friendships within the Sea God’s city are so cute to see develop and expand as the novel goes on however Mina and Namgi are perfect. Their jokes and playfulness as well as their protectiveness over each other made my heart so happy. It develops so much throughout the novel that it feels like you love them more and more the further in you go.
But the thing I loved most about this book is the romance. It is such a slow burner however; it keeps you wanting more the entire time. The whole book has you wanting them to end up together yet unsure of whether they would or not.
Overall, this book has been one of my favourites of the year so far and I can not wait to see what Axie Oh comes up with next. I did end up rating this one five stars because I loved Mina, Namgi and Shin so much and the writing style reminded me why I love reading so much.
Thank you to NetGalley for this review copy!

I didn't really know what to expect of this book as I often find whimsical, fairytale-esque books a bit hit or miss for me but this was definitely a HIT!
I found the setting of this book so magical and loved the mythological storyline which was so fast-paced and captivating. I also loved all of the characters who I found so entertaining and charming and I was really rooting for Mina as well as other characters we meet along the way. I did guess some of the twists and turns but that didn't affect my enjoyment of this story at all.
Definitely recommend this to lovers of fantasy and particularly new fantasy readers as I think this would be a fantastic first fantasy read!

I was so excited to read the girl who fell beneath the sea, the title alone is lovely. There were so many lovely descriptions and mythology, such a magical experience with a quite unique plot. Mina falls beneath the sea and enters the spirit realm to try and free the sea god from a curse. There was so much to this story, magic, mythology, lots of characters. Amazing.

Unfortunately, this book did not meet my expectations.

I felt the beginning was very rushed with no real set up and that continued throughout the novel. I didn't feel that everything was set up enough for me to care. I didn't feel invested in the main character and her journey nor her romance. I wish I loved it more.

I will say the world was beautiful and I wish I could walk around this setting and explore more.

Absolutely BEAUTIFUL storytelling. The descriptive language is so engrossing, I fully engaged and fell in love with the spirit world of the Sea God.

I have no words for how stunning this book was - I first decided to request because it said it would be good for fans of Spirited Away, and boy am I glad I did.

The writing and scenery in this is beautiful, and the story line is just perfect - it made me so emotional reading this and just hoping for everything to turn out okay.

One of my favourite books from 2022 so far, and I have already bought my finished copy.

4.5*

Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for my ARC.

"Sometimes, only through a story can a truth be heard."

Korean mythology meets Spirited Away in this breathtakingly beautiful story of Mina, a girl who sacrifices herself to the Sea God for her brother's happiness.

We pretty much dive in headfirst into this story (no I will not apologise for this pun) and are swiftly whisked off to the Spirit Realm to meet the Sea God. If you've seen Spirited Away (and if you haven't wtf have you been doing since 2003?) then you'll feel very much at home with Oh's descriptions of the Spirit Realm. There are so many unique creatures, spirits, gods and let's not forget the delicious sounding foods.

When she arrives in the Spirit Realm, Mina is led to the Sea God by a red string of fate around her wrist, but he seems to be asleep when she arrives. However, the string is swiftly cut by Lord Shin, meaning he can capture her soul so that she, and subsequently the Sea King, can't be killed. We then follow Mina as she tries to ger her soul back; meeting lot's of interesting characters & learning all about the Spirit world and it's secrets.

Oh's descriptions of this world are just stunning. It felt so real and magical, as if I was right there with Mina.

I LOVED the romantic plot of this book. Mina and Shin are fantastic characters and I completely fell in love with them. The ending was just.. URGH. RIGHT in the feels.

I also loved the familial aspects in this book - Mina's actions are hugely influenced by her love for her family and I really appreciated how the talent for storytelling seemed to be passed down from Grandmother to Grandaughter.

Not gonna lie, the last third of the book was probably my favourite - all the reveals and heartache and angst. That's my bag.

The only reason I've knocked it down half a star was because I really would've loved to see more of Shin and Mina as their relationship developed. In the book they seem to go from friends to lovers in a very short space of time and consequently felt a bit rushed.

I would definitely recommend this book, and would read it again. I'd also love to see more of these characters and other characters in the Spirit World so if Oh is up for a sequel or spin off I'll be there!

CW: child death, death of a parent, grief, war

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐺𝑖𝑟𝑙 𝑊ℎ𝑜 𝐹𝑒𝑙𝑙 𝐵𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑎𝑡ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑆𝑒𝑎

The rules are simple:
No warriors. No women, besides the Sea God's
bride. No weapons.
Joon broke the first rule by coming tonight.
I broke the second…and the third.

Don't chase fate. Let fate chase you.

For generations, deadly storms have ravaged Mina's homeland. Her people believe the Sea God, once their protector, now curse them with death and despair. To appease him, each year a maiden is thrown into the sea, in the hopes that one day the 'true bride' will be chosen and end the suffering.

Many believe Shim Cheong - Mina's brother's beloved - to be the legendary true bride. But on the night Cheong is sacrificed, Mina's brother follows her, even knowing that to interfere is a death sentence. To save her brother, Mina throws herself into the water in Cheong's stead.

I dived (sorry not sorry for the pun!) straight into this after Axie Oh’s XOXO as I loved that so much and it didn’t disappoint either!
I loved Mina, such a strong, feisty girl and a great role model for young girls.
She meets a sleepy sea god, protective guards, helpful spirits and more quirky characters.
But time is running out for Mina as humans can’t survive long in the land of spirits.

This lovely book is a powerful, feminist retelling of Shim Cheong, Korea’s famous legend. Axie gives Mina control of her fate and she becomes the perfect girl protagonist
A must for fantasy fans and perfect for anyone who loved Six Crimson Cranes ( review for that beauty coming soon!)
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

So beautifully written. Mina throws herself into the sea to replace Shim Cheong (the chosen bride and also the girl her older brother loves) as the Sea God’s bride. She finds herself in the Spirit Realm with lesser gods and mythical beasts only to find the Sea God sleeping whilst her people suffer as he does nothing to stop the deadly storms back home. There’s magic, threads of fate and dragons! I loved Mina. I loved the spirits who helped her and the odd trio she comes up against when she arrives in the Sea God’s palace and later befriends. It’s a well-balanced narrative with wonderful characters and a dream-like quality that swept me away. The only reason it wasn’t five stars is that personally *spoilers* I didn’t love the ending in which she leaves her family, home and mortal life behind for love but maybe that was just me!

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book is just pure beauty! I don't know how else to describe it! My heart was filled with so much emotion. Axie Oh has worked her magic and given me a book that i did not know I needed in my life!

I fell in love with Mina, she sacrificed herself to the sea god so that her brother could be happy, I mean what else do you need to know about her she is the perfect role model!

This book is totally amazing. It will be an all time favorite of mine. It was great from the first page to the last.

was so thrilled to not only receive The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea as an eARC from NetGalley but I also received the special edition FairyLoot. I will say I was suckered in by the cover and had no idea what this story was about in the slightest which did feel a little jarring when I started to read. It took me a little while to get my thoughts in order about what worked and what unfortunately didn’t.


CHARACTERS IN THE GIRL WHO FELL BENEATH THE SEA
Mina is the main character in The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea and we follow her through her journey into the Spirit World and how that impacts the people she left behind. I think Mina as a character could have been one of my all-time favourites but I actually found some of her emotional responses to be jarring and stereotypical. The overbearing thought I have about The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is that everything feels overly predictable and trope like. I am not a massive fan of the ordinary girl who becomes magical and I don’t think it’s a spoiler to say this is but that is the main premise of Mina’s character. I was so disappointed by Mina as a whole, I thought there was a lot of potential that just wasn’t explored and a lot of the things that happen to her are just mundane which was a shame.

There are two love interests in The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, the Sea God and Shin, and I would have loved more character development so that when the relationships started to form I cared a little more. I think a lot was taken for granted in terms of knowing what the other person was thinking. I loved Shin as a character especially with the dynamic with his sidekicks, I think the way his story was told was actually better than Mina’s. Just bear that in mind if you’re in this one for the romance.


THE GOOD AND THE BAD!
I’m going to start with the good, this book is extremely atmospheric. I adored the setting and how everything meshed together, when people say it’s like Spirited Away they aren’t far off. It was impressive how much detail Axie Oh managed to fit into such a short book. The mythology for me was definitely my favourite part of the book, I think the different Houses were brilliantly written about, but I would have loved for there to have been more time spent on each of them. To be honest I could have done with this book being like 1000 words long to expand on all the things I wanted expanding.

The things I struggled with was the lack of development, there was definitely moments where the story jumped all over the place and things seemed to happen out of nowhere. Especially when it came to the relationships all the way through the book. I wish there had been more focus on how everything came together and how it all worked out. It ended to quickly and was resolved too quickly for me. It was a little bittersweet when it ended and the issues I had were easily rectified if the book had just been a longer.

RECOMMENDATION
I would recommend The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, although it didn’t work for me I can appreciate there is an audience who would love it! It has a really strong base in the mythology and there is some brilliant moments all the way through. If you are a big fan of Spirited Away you should definitely check this one out!

3.5 stars rounded up.

This story is another retelling or reimagining of an older story- they're very popular lately.this particular one is a reworking of the Korean take of Shim Cheong.

As such, there are strong fairytale vibes and the world feels very dreamy. The writing washes over you and there is little world building in a traditional sense or explanations of how things work that make sense. We are told how things are and that's just how it is. It all felt very floaty and non-concrete.

Once I got used to this I didn't mind it so much, however where this falls down a little is the characters and the romance.. They are both quite thin. Mina is a 'strong female character' but mainly because we're told she is - apart from her initial sacrifice she just sort of stumbles around the world she's in for quite a few pages. She spends hardly any time alone with the love interest and while they do have some sweet interactions it's all quite surface level.

I wasn't familiar with the original story but I did enjoy learning about the Gods and Goddesses that are worshipped by the humans and what their spirit world might be like. Ultimately, this was an enjoyable story but perhaps one that won't stay with me for a long time.

My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Amazing book, really beautiful cover art, which I'm not ashamed to say is what drew me to the book!

I'm not sure if it used the inspiration from familiar favourites such as the Little Mermaid or if it went on it's own myths surrounding river and sea spirits but I felt connected to it in that way. The key references in this book are family and relationships bonds, which goes without saying for a lot of books but also relates to mythologies and the spiritual realm, which I really love. It also had a good amount of feels towards Spirited Away.

The relationships and character development in this book are very good, well thought out and for even a picky person like me there wasn't one character that I genuinely didn't like or got the iff about.

This is something that is so magical in terms of the book content that it's actually refreshing to read and I cannot wait to get myself a copy to put on my bookshelf!

Enchanting read!

Thanks to netgalley for this FREE ARC in return for my review.

A luscious Chinese mythological fantasy brimming with magic, soul(s) and found family, The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is just as enchanting as the Sea God's underwater world.

I love Uprooted and recently discovered the wonder that is Spirited Away, so when I first saw this book it felt as though it had basically been written for me! And I am really glad my NetGalley request for this was approved because The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea was exactly the kind of book I needed, with a story that is just as great as its breathtaking cover.

I absolutely loved being immersed in the world of this book and following Mina in the Spirit Realm. Some of the initial descriptions of the Realm definitely reminded me of Spirited Away, so much so that I could almost picture it in exactly the same way. The story soon continued on its own independent path, and it was so engaging and fast-paced that I may possibly have forsaken other duties just to continue reading as I was so engrossed in the action.

The characters were delightful, and I was especially taken with the protagonist, Mina. She is everything I want in a main character: smart, generous, kind and brave. Plus, she is an excellent storyteller, and that never hurts! The rest of the cast was varied and just as compelling, even though there were a few characters I would have liked to see developed a little further. I wasn't wholly sold on the romance at the beginning, but it completely won me over in the second half of the book! And I absolutely adored the focus on family relationships and friendship: they were so wholesome and heartwarming and gave me all the feels. There may have also been some tears... mostly happy tears, though!

I loved the setting and I found the descriptions to be beautifully delivered, lush and very evocative, but at the same time the worldbuilding is the aspect I had the most issues with. In a sense, it felt as though the book's fast pace worked against it in this respect, as it often seemed rushed and I couldn't help feeling as though large parts of context were missing. I won't go into any more detail to avoid potential spoilers, but I'll just say that I'm still wondering about the motives behind certain characters' actions and decisions.

Still, I had a great time with this book and I loved getting lost in it. Magic, action, love, grief, honour, family, gods and goddesses and even a dragon: this book has it all! Plus, I loved discovering more about the original Korean legend that inspired this retelling. Definitely recommended to anyone looking for a magical easy read.

RATING: 4.5

Thank you so much Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the opportunity to read this magical book.
I don't even know how to describe how much I loved reading this book. I loved the characters so much, I think Axie Oh has such an amazing way to describe her characters' feelings that always made my heart break for them.
I really loved the storytelling in this book, it was probably one of my favourite aspects.
Maybe it's just me but sometimes the plot felt a little bit flat but I think it's probably because I'm starting to not like YA as much as I used to. Otherwise this book would be a full 5 star read for me.

A tale brimming with love. The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea will whisk you away on an entrancing journey through the most magical realm. Axie Oh’s characters own my whole heart.

‘The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea’ is a mesmerising book, I loved it.

Mina, the girl who in order to save her brother and his brother’s love, sacrifices herself to the Sea God, is such a strong and compelling character. She takes a charge of her destiny since the very beginning, and does everything she can to protect those she loves and cares about.

‘The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea’ has been an absolute joy to read, and I have finished it in one seating. It has such a lyrical and mystical atmosphere, and I enjoyed it so much.

I love retellings, and though very often I read the retellings of stories, legends and myths that are more well-known by me, the ones I’ve been raised with, it’s always great to discover more from different cultures. When I started reading ‘The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea’ in fact, I didn’t know it was a feministic retelling of a classic Korean legend, but it made look into the origin of this book, and learn more, which was a great experience.