I am attempting to go back and read some of these older books to bring up my ratio, but unfortunately I can't find a copy of this in my library system! I will not be reviewing it apologies :(

Thank you so much for allowing me to read and review your titles. I really not the opportunity!


I do appreciate it and continue to review books that I get the chance to read.
Thanks again!

This book would work great for someone who is a history buff and wants to learn about a relatively unknown piece of Canadian history but otherwise, it's not something I'd recommend to everyone. I actually happen to be a history buff so personally it was fascinating to read about the Great Lakes but beyond that the story lacked the essentials of a narrative: characters you can relate to, a strong romance which in this case didn't do much to drive the overall plot, good pacing (everything happened too fast), and just general development. I feel like more in-depth exploration, characterization and a romance that did something for the book would've made this a much more fascinating read!

This was such a fast read but so well written it blew me away. I enjoyed the quickness and strong characters that are within these pages. We follow a young girl, Christina, who is running away with the help of her cousin and things go downhill from there. She's lost her twin brother and life just isn't the same for her without him. We soon meet Daniel and within a few pages, we learn that he's going to play a part in Christina's life. T
his book is only 148 pages and it's a whole story. It didn't feel short or rushed that pacing is perfect. I love the developing of the characters. They grow and change so much in such a short time, yet still believable. My favorite part of this book it the writing. I feel fast for Andrea Curtis writing style.
The cover is one of my all-time favorite water theme covers. I love the art and color choices and feel that it reflects the story well.
If you are looking for a quick, boat theme book with a dash of romance then Big Water is a must-read for you!

If you like historical fiction, the Titanic, with a little bit of Daughter of Deep Silence mixed in, this is one for you.

first off, let me clarify - before reading this book, i knew absolutely nothing about canadian history and geography. zilch. nada. this story is based on true events, and allowed me a tiny glimpse of this country's history, its indigenous peoples, and the great lakes.

two teenagers, shipwrecked, in a lifeboat full of corpses.

i went into this book knowing it wouldn't be an easy read. and i was completely right. the characters' lives are at risk, and there are many challenges they have to face before reaching safety. when they finally reach an island, i felt so relieved, and i thought they won't travel anymore. to my great surprise (and horror), daniel decides to row to another island in their lifeboat in hopes of getting rescued, and i crossed my fingers, hoping they won't sink and die in the middle of the lake.

i think another point worth mentioning is the indigenous people who appear in the story. they are the ones who send the teenagers to safety, but their heroic act is clearly not recognized by the general public, with a reporter asking christina whether they have demanded a gold watch in exchange for safe passage. as the author later said in the author's note, discrimination was pretty common back then. although discrimination still exists, i am glad that the situation has improved a bit, and i hope that it will disappear altogether in the near future.

although this book is gripping, and hard to put down, it also has a small amount of flaws. when daniel and christina kiss, i couldn't help thinking whether they do that because they are in love, or because of the fact that they are stranded on an island and need some comfort. i find it hard to believe that they have fallen in love in the short span of about three days. also, christina tells daniel that she's running away because she feels unloved by her family after her brother's death, which later turns out to not be true. her mother clearly loves her, taking the first boat to parry sound to see her daughter.

rating: 3.5 stars

This was a really fascinating fictionalized tale of survival on the Great Lakes: the story of the Asia. I hadn't known anything about shipwrecks on the lakes before reading this so it was nice to learn about. I liked the survival story, but I couldn't really connect with the characters and didn't think the romance added much to the story. If anyone wants to learn about a relatively unknown piece of Canadian history, this is a quick historical read to go for.

I’m not really a huge historical fiction fan unfortunately so I’m gonna have to leave this one for the time being.

Will no longer be reading or reviewing this book due to lack of interest in the title, and the fact that the title has been archived.

Musings:

Big Water is a survivalist story through and through. It’s that mixture of harsh reality mixed with emotional turmoil that keeps you holding on as desperately to each moment as the characters hold on to the small strands keeping them alive.

What I Loved:

Christina is battling her memories as much as she battles the sea. Christina came to be on the ship after loosing her twin brother who was seen in her family to be the better twin. She’s there to prove something of herself and to get over her guilt and wish that she had been the twin to die instead.

Christina’s uncle. Her uncle is with her on the boat and struggles along with her for survival. The little things she does like singing to him to keep him awake as people in the boat begin dying were lovely touches.

Daniel’s backstory. I loved reading about Daniel and his uncle. Especially when there was a lot of mystery surrounding why they had an argument the night before the ship went down. It made Daniel layered as a character in a really great way.

Based in history. I really like that this is a fictional story inspired by real events. It’s something that causes a reader to really think about what they would have done in that situation. It adds a grounded reality to the fiction.

It’s ugly. Survival is never pretty. It’s awful and ugly and sad. It’s ultimately you vs. your demons vs. nature and you have to have the mental strength and will to do what it is necessary to come out of everything alive. The rules when it comes to straight survival are totally different from any other situation. It’s gritty and I loved that this book showcases all of that.

Final thoughts:

Big Water is emotional, edge of your seat, fast paced read based in history. It’s beautifully written and will make you wonder if you would have the grit to survive.

I really enjoy Historical Fiction, so I was sure this book would capture my attention. It was pretty surprising when I ended up disliking it and skimming the last few chapters.

For me the biggest problem was the writing style. It never engaged me and it felt like it was more of a book report than fiction. When intense storms or things were happening I felt more confused than anything else, because it never felt intense. I never felt like the characters were in much danger.  Christina and Daniel also never felt like real characters because of this, and so I wasn't able to connect with them.

I apologize for this short review, but there really isn't much else to say about this book. I saw some other reviews say that this book lacked depth, and I feel that that is a very accurate summary of why I didn't enjoy it.

In the end I gave it one star on Goodreads. Thank you to NetGalley for giving me a copy of this book.

Big Water was a short yet intense read. From the very first page itself, the mood of the novel was set and reading Christina’s Point of View in a desperate struggle for survival was surreal. The novel didn’t beautify or exaggerate any relationship/romance between Christina and Daniel and that’s one of the things I loved about the book. The scene of the shipwreck was written beautifully, giving the reader the ability to understand the desperation and helplessness of the passengers of the boat without handling it insensitively. There were slight pacing issues and I found myself losing interest even though it was a pretty short book. Christina and Daniel were likeable enough but I didn’t feel any real connect to the characters which disappointed me.

I was interested in reading this as I had never heard of the sinking before. In short, it was good, but not super captivating. Very interesting though.

*I received this ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

There was nothing wrong with this book, I just wasn't hugely captivated by it. It was short and simple but I wasn't blown away or anything.

This was quite a hooking tale of survival based on real events.

Fairly quick read, Big Water managed to sink (pun, eh!) its brutal but knowledgeable storyline and taught me to be appreciative of the people and the life that I have and to make the most of it all with zeal and tenderness.

A heady novel about life lessons learned after hardships. But that is the true meaning of life. To learn in life and grow.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the Publishers for this review copy.

Although I found the writing in this book to be good, the story let me down. The characters and plot were ordinary. When I read historical fiction I expect to learn something about a time period and to feel like I actually was there. This book did not provide that for me. It is readable, and teens will enjoy the relationship between the two survivors

This story was inspired by real events, but it is a case where the idea was better than the execution. It is a story about how a young girl deals with the grief of losing her brother, but I--try as I may--I found it hard to connect to these characters.

Harrowing and well written. Did not know that it was YA but very good

From an actual historical incident, the sinking of the Asia in Georgian Bay, part of the Great Lakes, is well written in a fictional but accurate book. Christina is pulled to safety by Daniel as they watch the Asia sink. Staying alive until a possible rescue becomes the bond that may keep these two alive. An excellent read!

<b>I received an eARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Orca Book Publishers and NetGalley.</b>

To be honest, I only asked for this book for two reasons: first, I really liked the cover (especially with its pastel colors) and second, I love to read about nautical disasters. Mostly because they are heart wrenching and often tend to be forgotten by the majority. The sinking of the SS Asia was unknown to me to this point but because I am generally interested in this kind of topic, I started researching about this tragedy even before I received the eARC.

Grieving over her twin brother's death, seventeen-year-old Christina McBurney decides to run away from home and with the help of her cousin ends up on the SS Asia – a steamship that transports passengers and freight throughout the Great Lakes. The weather conditions are bad and a storm arises faster than expected, causing the heavily laden Asia to sink. Christina is lucky enough to be rescued by one of the lifeboats before drowning or freezing to death. Ultimately she ends up with Daniel – a boy her age –, the two of them being the only survivors of the shipwreck.

Overall this was a really interesting and intense story, but still I found some flaws within. I guess the story would have been better off as a short story – the book itself is only around 190 pages long but the beginning felt somehow too rushed for a book and I would have loved to see the story evolving some time before Christina boards the SS Asia. In this case <i>Big Water</i> would have been a wonderful book with no need to cropping it down to a short story. But as it is, I sometimes got the feeling of a pace that was much too slow and would have been improved with a fast pacing short story. I Hope you'll get what I mean. The story itself is interesting nonetheless.

I really enjoyed the writing and flow of the author – the description of the scenery was well-written and helped me to picture the surroundings of Christina. What distracted me were Christina's flashbacks to her twin brother and the portrayal of the characters themself. While I could retrace especially Christina's feelings and emotions, I still couldn't quote connect to her or Daniel. They seemed distant to me and I felt more like an observer instead of being part of the story. Furthermore I was somehow surprised how the teenagers reacted to each other, but I guess this came through shock and the dramatic situation. With that being said, I was actually glad how the book ended concerning their connection.

In conclusion, this was a solid read that I overall enjoyed. There are some thing I would have changed, but I definitely recommend the book if you're looking for a nice short read to wind down. Personally, I probably won't reread the book but I'd read another story written by Andrea Curtis. Worth mentioning once again is the beautiful cover – a wonderful piece of art which compliments the story it presents.