Review: The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh!

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Goodreads Blurb

“Deadly storms have ravaged Mina’s homeland for generations. Floods sweep away entire villages, while bloody wars are waged over the few remaining resources. Her people believe the Sea God, once their protector, now curses them with death and despair. In an attempt to appease him, each year a beautiful maiden is thrown into the sea to serve as the Sea God’s bride, in the hopes that one day the “true bride” will be chosen and end the suffering.

Many believe that Shim Cheong, the most beautiful girl in the village—and the beloved of Mina’s older brother Joon—may be the legendary true bride. But on the night Cheong is to be sacrificed, Joon follows Cheong out to sea, even knowing that to interfere is a death sentence. To save her brother, Mina throws herself into the water in Cheong’s stead.

Swept away to the Spirit Realm, a magical city of lesser gods and mythical beasts, Mina seeks out the Sea God, only to find him caught in an enchanted sleep. With the help of a mysterious young man named Shin—as well as a motley crew of demons, gods and spirits—Mina sets out to wake the Sea God and bring an end to the killer storms once and for all.

But she doesn’t have much time: A human cannot live long in the land of the spirits. And there are those who would do anything to keep the Sea God from waking…”

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My Review

This is going to be one of my top books of the year, I know it. It is so far! It was just so beautifully written, and I was completely swept away. I stayed up way too late because I had to finish this book.

“Nothing extraordinary is ever done out of reason or logic, but because it’s the only way for your soul to breathe.”

Axie Oh, created such amazing characters and mythology was just so beautifully descriptive. I don’t know much about the Korean Mythology this is based on, but I want to know more. Oh, did such a fabulous job that she made me feel like I knew it and I didn’t question it.

Mina is headstrong and will do anything for her family. She sacrifices herself to save the girl her brother is in love with. She kind of throws a wrench into the plans and shows up ready to roll. She has no intention to just let things be and wants to make sure she can finally fix it for good. She is on this journey in the spiritual world that ends up becoming very dangerous and not at all what she thought.

“Don’t chase fate, Mina. Let fate chase you.”

Shin was a character that I really loved. Not knowing anything about this retelling, I kind of figured out the ending. It didn’t take away anything about the story for me. I was just aching for Shin and wanted to wrap him up in a big hug. The romance between he and Mina was lovely. As many of you know, I despise insta-love. This kind of hints at it but it feels more like it was tied to their fate and gave off different vibes. There’s a lot of angst between these two!! I was wrapped up in it and just hoping against all hope for them.

“Something crafted with so much love could never sink”

The friendships in this book are fabulous! Oh, did an amazing job creating complex side characters that really gripped you. I just adored them all! Can I please get a prequel about Namgi and Kirin?! Pleeaassee?? Their relationship was so much deeper as the book goes on. I need more! Even the trio that helps Mina out was just so well done. I kind of figured all that out but when it was finally revealed- still lots of tears!

I’m having such a hard time writing this review because I loved this book so much. This was a book about feelings and hope. I was engrossed from the very beginning and invested in all of these characters. Oh, does a fantastic job with the vivid imagery and I’m so sad this is a standalone. I felt so many emotions and by the end of the book I was in such a happy place. I’m so glad I didn’t let this amazing book sit on my shelf for years. If you have had this on your radar, I implore you to pick it up!