I love this author so much and one click anything she writes! I was so excited to be able to review this recent work and was not disappointed! Thank you netgalley for the arc!

I honesty requested this book purely bc of the cover. I knew nothing of the author (or her previous book) and didn't even read the blurb. (sorry not sorry). I later found out this book is based in the same world that the author's previous book is about..so I was worried I would be missing crucial information (but honestly I don't feel like you HAVE to read the other book, to understand this one..though maybe it would help to flesh out more of the story). Overall, I enjoyed the book. It was a little tough for me in the beginning and I thought for sure I was going to put it down and walk away but I stuck it out and wound up liking it. I would probably go back and try to read the author's other book and see if that helps me with any issues I had with this book.

I love these Viking tales that have been popping up in YA lit lately, but I really loved Sky in the Deep, so of course I absolutely adored this new book!! I love the new relationship dynamics of the tribes in these books and the culture and different rituals that go with the world building. I was hooked from the beginning with the mother having to give up her child because RITUAL. Everything about this book was a win: characters, writing, world building. I loved it and can't wait to buy a copy to go next to my Sky in the Deep!!!

ARC kindly provided by Netgalley and publisher in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed therein are purely my own.

Rating: 5/5

I'd like to say straight off the bat what a beautiful, enchanting, and emotionally charged book this is. The author toggles between the past, present, and future to weave a marvelous tapestry of her story. The book commences with a mother releasing her dead daughter into the sea on an engraved funeral boat, her husband later sending a burning arrow to consume both. This moment in and of itself is so powerful and lays a groundwork for what is to come throughout the book. Emotions are intense, simple acts are drenched in meaning, and the plot is so simple, yet so laden with uncertainty that the reader will be taken on a mental roller-coaster ride.

Tova is a daughter of the Kyrr, a headland people who are spiritual and isolationist. She was found by Jorrund, the Svell people's Tala (spiritual leader/their connection to their god), and has been made to cast runes for the Svell. She is rejected and feared, mistreated and blamed for ill omens by these Svell. Jorrund, the Tala, uses Tova to manipulate people, using her rune casting to his own advantage. When Tova forecasts Hagalaz, or the destruction of all (of the Svell) after a band of warriors goes off with the Chieftains brother to attack and burn an entire Nadhir (a neighboring people) village, the real trouble begins. Vigdis, the Chief's brother believes their people must attack the Nadir before that tribe gets any larger and stronger, but the Chief wishes for peace. The Chief reprimands his brother and calls for a meeting between both tribes to attempt to mend the damage through reparations. At this point, we follow the point of view of Halvard, the Chieftain-to-be of the Nadhir. He is a young man who has not himself engaged in the "fighting seasons" as the people call it, and has been voted by the Nadhir's leaders to become the next Chief. During the meeting, the Svell Chieftains brother Vigdis, betrays him by stabbing the Nadhir Chieftain, beginning a skirmish where almost all Nadir are killed. The Svell Chief is killed by Halvard in the skirmish, an outcome not expected by Vigdis. Thus, the plot is set. Vigdis now goes on a vendetta, blaming the death of his brother on Tova, and using his betrayal to force his people into an all-out war with the Nadhir. Tova is then given an ultimatum- find who killed Vigdis's brother, or die.


I absolutely loved this book and WILL be purchasing a hard copy for my personal library. It is a must-read, and I cannot say enough how wonderful, emotionally charged, and heart-wrenching this book is.

Book: The Girl The Sea Gave Back
Author: Adrienne Young
Rating: 3 Out of 5 Stars

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher, Wednesday Books, for sending me an ARC.

This book had all of the potential in the world, but it just fell flat. I do agree with the three star rating on Goodreads for this one. It has a beautiful concept, but it just didn’t come out on the page like it should. The prose is beautiful and I know I should had liked the characters a lot better, but I just didn’t.

The world that Adrienne has created is beautiful. I loved the Viking vibes I got from it. The magic system is very different from other young adult books and I must say that I really enjoyed it a lot. I love it whenever authors create something that is different. What I really liked was the Viking feeling. I am very interested in Viking culture and to have that in a book makes me like it even more.

The characters were just okay for me. Like with Wicked Saints, I would had liked to see them a bit more developed. They were really kind of flat and I have a really hard time with remembering who was who and what their role was. The beautiful writing and magic system just isn’t enough to make up for the flat characters. The relationship between Tova and Halvard felt forced. These were clearly two characters who didn’t have any chemistry with each other and the author was trying to make it seem like it was there when it wasn’t. Halvard also just didn’t seem to have the drive that we expect from young adult characters.

The plot was a little shaky as well. I really had no idea sometimes what the characters were trying to do. I know there is a war between clans, but other than that, it’s not at all clear. I honestly couldn’t figure out what the end goal was going to be. You have to make that very clear from the start of the book. Now, it can change, but there needs to an end goal. Now, I don’t know if this book is going to have a second book or not, but still…

There is a lot of time jumping, which I normally like in books. However, I found it to be very difficult to keep track of what was a time jump and what wasn’t. I do think the time jumps added to the overall story and gave us a really good understanding of the characters-even if they were a bit flat.

The Girl the Sea Gave Back comes out on September 3, 2019.

<b>“There will always be war, Halvard. War is easy. It comes again and again, like waves to a shore.”</b>
I was super excited to read this book. I have never read anything based on Scandinavian culture. I haven’t read the first book that this takes place after, but I will definitely pick it up after reading this one.

The book follows a Truthtongue named Tova. When she was a young child, she was found by the Svell clan. All her live she has been feared and hated by the Svell people, being kept at a distance solely for the reason she can cast the rune stones and see into the future. One night she casts the stones and she ends up starting a series of events that could spell the end of the Svell.

The other character we follow is Halvard, he is a member of the newly formed Nadhir clan. The Nadhir is made up of the Riki and Aska after their blood feud ended ten years earlier.

The book started out slow, I didn’t get grabbed until about chapter five, but once the story grabbed me I was hooked till the end. I wanted more at the end, the ending was lacking but was left open for a sequel which I would love.

It was very nice to find a book with very little romance. There was some in the book but it was very minimal and it focused more on the character development and the struggles they were going through.

I would love another book in this series.

<b>Sometimes fate was a tangled knot. Sometimes it was a noose. Or a net.
But sometimes it was the rope that pulled you from the sinking deep. </b>

This book is a companion novel of the “Sky In The Deep” and I do recommend picking up that novel before this one to avoid spoilers, but it can be read as a standalone. The Girl The Sea Gave Back happens to take place 10 years later featuring a minor character from Sky In The Deep and Tova a brand new female POV.

I was so excited for this book, but I have to be honest in saying it fell really flat for me. Tova who should of been this really interesting character hardly did anything the whole entire novel. She was very lack luster and I had a hard time connecting to her storyline. Halvard happens to be the second character POV and he was my favorite, but still nothing hardly happened.

It was almost a repeat of book one, but with no excitment and a pointless plot that the end had little to no consequences. I really enjoyed Sky in the Deep, but I struggled hard with this and I think it really needed to be more of it’s own story.

I will say though it has a gorgeous cover, possibly my favorite of the year. I do recommend fans of the first book to still pick this one up and give it a try as we all have different opinions. It wasn’t a terrible book, but it definitely has second book syndrome to me.

This book is a companion novel of the “Sky In The Deep” and I do recommend picking up that novel before this one to avoid spoilers, but it can be read as a standalone. The Girl The Sea Gave Back happens to take place 10 years later featuring a minor character from Sky In The Deep and Tova a brand new female POV.

I was so excited for this book, but I have to be honest in saying it fell really flat for me. Tova who should of been this really interesting character hardly did anything the whole entire novel. She was very lack luster and I had a hard time connecting to her storyline. Halvard happens to be the second character POV and he was my favorite, but still nothing hardly happened.

It was almost a repeat of book one, but with no excitment and a pointless plot that the end had little to no consequences. I really enjoyed Sky in the Deep, but I struggled hard with this and I think it really needed to be more of it’s own story.

I will say though it has a gorgeous cover, possibly my favorite of the year. I do recommend fans of the first book to still pick this one up and give it a try as we all have different opinions. It wasn’t a terrible book, but it definitely has second book syndrome to me.

Firstly, I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this book to review.

Secondly, this book is supposedly a companion novel to Adrienne Young's previous novel Sky in the Deep. I don't particularly feel that it is adequately promoted as such. I personally didn't realise until I was halfway through the novel and reached out to a fellow bookstagrammer who informed me that it revolves around characters and ideas that were set up in Sky in the Deep.

This answered a lot of my initial issues with the story. It felt mildly underdeveloped at the start and there was little exposition to the characters or descriptions of the world. Now, as a companion novel that makes sense. Everything has already been developed in the previous novel.

However, as I continued to read, determined to preserve through - I was actually able to piece together a lot of the missing parts of the story. You begin to understand what exactly has previously happened to these characters and how they reached where they are.

As the novel continued and the actual story of The Girl the Sea Gave Back began to build, I actually began to really enjoy the novel as a whole. The characters grew on and me and while I didn't completely understand the story behind Halvard and his clan, the story of Tova would have been brand new to any reader - and the mystery of her as a character became enthralling.

By the end of the novel, I was actually a little disappointed it wasn't a fully developed, full-length novel. I wanted to know more about these characters and their lives. I wanted to be more engrossed in the romantic development of their relationship and the tension between their clans. Because the novel was so short, we missed out on a lot that I think would contribute to a very well received standalone story set within the universe of Sky in the Deep.

Overall, I rated the book 3/5 stars - simply because without the content of the first novel, there were certain elements I missed out on. As well as the fact that these characters would have benefitted from a full length novel that was able to go into much more detail and development.

The Girl the Sea Gave Back is a novel beautifully written by Adrienne Young. This epic young adult fantasy novel, published by Wednesday Books, is set to be released on September 3, 2019.

Sky in the Deep, the author’s first book, took me by surprise in the best way imaginable. This book offers so much: adventure, romance, battle, mystical belief, and a great storyline. Putting down this book was impossible, so when I found out about The Girl the Sea Gave Back, I simply had to read it.

This story is set in the same world as Sky in the Deep and takes place a decade later. I love how this book even offers glimpses into the lives of my favorite characters from Sky in the Deep.

Now about the book:

The Girl the Sea Gave Back is the story of Tova, a Truthtongue. Tova is blessed at birth by the Kyrrs’ god to foresee the future using runes. She is found at age six by a rival tribe and raised among them. Unfortunately, Truthtongues are perceived as a bad omen, so she is tolerated as long as she keeps her distance.

A little more than a decade later, some of the tribe members become thirsty for power and use her abilities to decide on the path to take. When reading the runes, Tova accidentally sets in motion a series of events that will lead to bloodshed. Torn between guilt and loneliness, she is forced to take part in a blood feud with another tribe. As the story goes, she will find herself by believing and embracing her fate.

This book has a dual point of view (POV) with another character who is in Sky in the Deep. And I loved this character! I was so happy (and also very surprised, as it’s not mentioned in the synopsis) when I realized who this second POV was from. I found this POV at times even more interesting to read than Tova’s simply because I was already familiar with this character and could relate a little more.

Tova has an interesting story, and her journey was fascinating to me, but at times, it was hard for me to understand her choices. It made more sense at the end though. Overall, the character’s arc is well thought out. The storyline takes an unexpected turn at the beginning. Some may argue that the romance is lacking in this book, and they might be right. Though, I might add that this did not bother me. I enjoyed reading every single page, and the ending truly left me wanting more.

This book is a fast read. The pacing kept me going, and the world created amazed me. If you enjoyed reading Sky in the Deep, this book won’t disappoint. I would say to just keep in mind that the romance is not as prominent as it was in the first book.

I highly recommend this book.

I still can’t believe I got an e-arc for The Girl the Sea Gave Back. One of my most anticipated releases of 2019! Sky in the Deep was one of the few 5 star reads of 2018 so I was really excited to dive into this one! And oh boy did I dive... I dove so deep I kinda didn’t want to do anything but read. I might have ordered a pizza because I can’t cook and read at one time. Ok I totally did.

Adrienne Young dives back into this wonderful Viking resembling world and it is glorious. The writing is so addictive and the world is described very vividly with flowing sentences.

We follow Halvard, who was an adorable little boy in Sky in the Deep, but it’s ten years later and he’s grown up into this awesome man. A man who is determined to let peace and love win and not to repeat the mistakes of his ancestors, who is very self concious and constantly wondering if he is good enough and makes the right choices. A man who truly is kind.

Then there’s this girl, Tova, on the other side, who was washed ashore and is only alive because of her ability to tell the future with rune stones. Her life is a struggle for freedom to make her own choices (and basically: not dying), yet she’s stuck with her fate. But that might just change...

The plot is gripping, there are a lot of action scenes but also a lot of feels. So many feels... The characters are very real and fleshed out and both have their own internal struggle. There were many plot twists and I love how it all came together.

If you loved Sky in the Deep, you’ll love this book! There is more magic and the world has grown a bit, but the story has the same feeling. We also meet the characters from Sky in the Deep 10 years later and I fangirled HARD. But don’t be afraid if you haven’t read it: this is a standalone and can very well be read without any knowledge of Sky in the Deep!

All in all, The Girl The Sea Gave Back is another book by Adrienne Young that easily deserves five stars.

I’ve got a free ebook in exchange for my honest review!

The Girl the Sea Gave Back picks up about 10 years after the events of Sky In The Deep. Halvard has grown up in a time of peace in his new combined clan, the Nadhir. Meanwhile, a girl named Tova has grown up an outsider among the Svell after being discovered by their holy man in a funeral boat washed up on the shore as a young child. The tattoos covering her body mark her as coming from a mysterious northern clan and as being a Truthtongue, someone who can see the future by casting rune stones. The Svell fear her, and when one day the stones bear an ominous message, a cascade of violence begins and Tova begins to question her powers and her past.

I did not enjoy this book nearly as much as Sky In the Deep. It was a bit confusing and choppy due to alternating perspectives and timelines, and the characters were not as well developed. I didn't feel as drawn into the story and I did not get invested in Tova, the new character. The connection between Halvard and Tova felt somewhat arbitrary and forced as well. I did enjoy getting a glimpse of how the characters from the first book were doing 10 years later!

I cannot express how excited I was to pick up this book. Last year I read Adrienne Young’s debut Sky in The Deep and fell absolutely in love with her writing and her way to tell a story, so I went into this one with very high expectations. Though I didn’t love The Girl the Sea Gave Back as much as her previous novel, I still had such a great time and found some elements of this particular story so unique and beautiful.

I had a feeling that The Girl The Sea Gave Back was going to be a slow paced type of book, and boy, I wasn’t wrong. My main issue with the story was that it took me a few chapters to understand who the different tribes were and what was the connection between them, so when I started I was a bit confused with all the information thrown at us. After that, I didn’t mind that it was such a slow and completely character driven story, but I have to say that there were certain times where hardly anything was happening, so I was expecting to see a bit more action sometimes.

However, I absolutely adored the concept of the story, and once we passed the half mark a lot of things started happening and I really enjoyed the path the story was taking. Though I was expecting a much more shocking ending, there were some revelations I didn’t see coming and I enjoyed the few last scenes the most.
When it comes to the characters, I had no complains. Since this book was mostly focused on the characters, I must say they were the strongest part of the book. I loved both Tova and Halvard as main characters, and how their stories interconnect and how throughout the story. I feel their evolutions were so well done and in a very realistic way, and not only that but also their dynamics and interactions were quite interesting and different.

Something that I would have loved seeing a bit more in The Girl the Sea Gave Back was the romance element. From what I could understand (or what the author implied) there was going to be a romantic relationship between our two main characters, and they had such a great chemistry, but they hardly interacted throughout the novel, and it was mostly towards the end where we saw more conversations between them, and I just wish they’d had more scenes together, but that was such a personal thing.

I found the mythology aspect so interesting. That was one of the things that I absolutely adored of her debut, and though in this particular one it wasn’t as present as in Sky in The Deep, I liked what I learnt in this book. An element I really enjoyed seeing was rune casting, which was so cool and fresh, so there were things that definitely made the story to me.

Overall, I think The Girl The Sea Gave Back was such a solid story to me. I fell in love with these characters as well, and though the plot and the pacing were pretty slow, I think the characters and their evolution totally redeemed the story and made it flow more easily.

Rating: 3.75

**REVIEW**
Disclaimer: First and foremost I would like to thank Adrienne Young, Wednesday Books/St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for providing me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. This in no way sways my opinions, all thoughts expressed are my own.


Regardless of my review, I believe that we should give books that interest us a chance! Reviews are important but not every book is for every person and we need to keep that in mind when we decide what books we want to read!


I went into this book with the understanding that this book is not Sky in the Deep, however because it is in the same world, I had a hard time separating that expectation from my thoughts. I cannot fault this book for not being Sky. To me, this book has way less Viking action and hardly any romance but that’s okay because it is a story of its own!


There were many parts of this YA fantasy that I enjoyed. I really loved the idea of how relying on fate can rule the way a group of people live. I love the expansion of the different clans, their ways of life, and how they view the world. I liked the idea of multiple points of view to get the story from a different angle. The fighting scenes were intense, had me on the edge of my seat, reading as fast as I could!


With that being said, I had a hard time connecting to the characters and the story, I would have an even harder time connecting if I hadn't read Sky. Adrienne Young sets up a very unique world in the first but I felt like it wasn't expanded much in this novel. The voices felt flat, even the POVs read the same in tone and structure. I felt lost, not knowing where I was in the story/world, and kept having to reread passages to figure out who was talking and where I was. Sometimes I would be reading a chapter and forget who's point of view it was.
I felt that there wasn’t much of a buildup to the climax.

There was a lot of telling and not showing, which packed less of an emotional punch. I felt somewhat lost on the characters motivates, and confused as to why they were doing what they were doing. I didn’t understand why they were at war, which is actually part of the issue I had with Sky. The plots seemed similar and had the same issues with pacing.


Overall, I feel like this book is very bingeable; while it had it’s issues, I still get myself compelled to keep reading it and to find out the fate of the people in this story. I think that there’s a lot that can be expanded on and more to explore! I would recommend this book to anyone who loves Viking lore, action, and for people who read and enjoyed Sky in the Deep but keep in mind that they are different stories!


You can pre-order this book at Amazon, or search any retailer online or book store closest to you! Available September 3, 2019!

I received a copy though NetGalley for review.


I was hoping for good things as people have generally liked her other novel A Sky in the Deep. Which I haven’t yet read, it’s been on my tbr list.

But I have to say this was pretty disappointing a read.
I found that this really dragged on, and the switch off on the POV between the two characters I was hoping there would be more to the back and forth and sudden flashbacks. At some point but it never really got there. Which has me wondering is this a prequel to their story? For another upcoming book?

Girl dies, is sent off by funeral into the ocean- washes up on shore, (survives somehow and is revived) of other clan who hates her, but loosely tolerates her presence. She’s used by them. Her personal character development wasn’t all that deep. She has the power to read he truth of fate in runes. She sees a boy from the enemy of the clan that raises her and feels “connection”.

The entire thing felt so contrived. So fearing her death by the new clans leader who despises her. And she’s now trapped in the middle of the war between these two people. She runs out and switches sides at the last minute. Hoping to redeem herself and the guilt she has believing she caused this war.

I just couldn’t buy the story. The battle scenes are graphic and brutal. But once it feels like it’s reached a real point it abruptly ends.
I wish I had better things to report on this but it’s a real dud.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Wednesday Books for providing me this amazing novel and ARC through Netgalley to read early!

I absolutely adore Adrienne Young's writing style. She is able to capture me with her storytelling even with screaming children in the background. I am wrapped up in this world and with these characters. Young is able to capture such complex emotions so easily.

Halvard isn't the young and carefree boy he was in Sky in the Deep. I thought they mentioned in Sky in the Deep that he didn't remember his father, but in this one it says he does which is one inconsistency I found. I still loved it though. I loved being able to revisit these characters I've grown to love. I hope we get to see more of Tova and all of the others. I'd like to learn more of the Kyrr and their religion. Overall it was as amazing as I thought it would be and I can't wait to purchase it in September. The cover alone is gorgeous.

I went into this book without having read Sky in the Deep. So I went to try it and it just didn't grab me.

The Girl the Sea Gave Back struggled to get my attention for a little more than half the book but kept me entertained afterwards. I would love to read more about Tova and Halvard. Their interactions and connection is what made his book interesting.

Thank you Netgalley and Wednesday Books for an e-arc of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the publisher for an early copy via netgalley!
4/5 stars

For those of you who loved Sky in the Deep, this book is quite a bit different but still has great writing. It follows Tova and Halvard but our beloved characters from Sky in the Deep make an appearance.

The story is definitely pretty intense at times and unapologetic about it like Sky in the Deep. There is another war between different people that starts in this book, but for completely different reasons and of course needs to be resolved in a different way.

I loved seeing the characters from her first book and I loved the overall story. Definitely recommend with the reminder that it is a lot different than Sky in the Deep. Less Viking battles, less romantic love story.

I really enjoyed Sky in the Deep, so I had high hopes for this. Overall I enjoyed this book. I found it to be a little slow in the beginning and had to push through. It was about a quarter through that I thought it really picked up. The writing is very good, she does an excellent job at details. I would definitely recommend this.

I received this ARC from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

Hollis’ 4 star review

I feel like everything that kept me from loving SKY IN THE DEEP, was missing in THE GIRL THE SEA GAVE BACK. This makes me very very happy.

I was sure this was going to be an easy three star read; lots to like but not quite getting me all the way there which, I mean, would’ve been a better result than book one. So colour me surprised by this rating.

This story takes place ten years after the events of SKY IN THE DEEP and, once again, we have warring clans. The characters we knew from book one have known peace and a time of rebuilding, rebirth, as a united people but now another group, the Svell, are stirring up trouble. Made worse by the fact that the Svell people are, themselves, divided. Additionally, they feel they are cursed by the existence of an outsider who lives among them, who washed up on their shores, and yet they also rely on her for her gifts at reading the runes, and predicting the future, as she is a Truthtongue.

It’s Tova’s prediction that sparks tragedy for Halvard’s people and we watch as they are on opposites sides of a war neither of them want. Halvard loses people he loves and Tova is blamed for things beyond her control as the fragile trust she has with the man who has raised her.. frays. Betrayal abounds with the Svell people and she’s tossed amongst them, lost, confused, and resigned.

Tova doesn’t know who she is, Halvard is bound so strongly with his family, both blood and found, and I actually really enjoyed bouncing back between their perspectives and the glimpses we got from their past. Their connection isn’t much, either, but yet feels.. present. There’s almost no romance here and yet we see possibility, potential, and that’s honestly where this book became more than I thought it would be.

I found the pacing to be pretty much perfect and I loved where the book, and our characters, ended up. This is a stronger book and the events, the loss and brutality, felt more real. The stakes somehow higher. The surprises (of which maybe there was only one but it was a good one) more surprising. I definitely have a question or two about how some things played out but those niggles are buried pretty far underneath my general contentment over the story.

If SKY IN THE DEEP wasn’t a book you were able to get on with, I would definitely recommend you pick up this sophomore offering. And if you loved SKY IN THE DEEP, I think you’ll be just as satisfied, if not more, by this follow-up in the author’s viking world.

** I received an ARC from the publisher (thank you!) in exchange for an honest review. **