This is the second book I have read by Adrienne Young, and I adored her first novel, A Sky in the Deep. This story is set 10 years after A Sky in the Deep and though it is being described as a stand alone, I felt like it truly was a sequel in the way it incorporates so many of the characters from the first novel. This is the story of Tova, a truth tongue who was found as a small child in a different part of the world. She has been raised by those who found her and she has been reading the stones for them. Her skills have been manipulated by those she lives with and she is slowly starting to have a change of heart about their agenda. This story is also about Halvard, brother to Fiske from the first book by Young. He is now ten years older and is on track to be the next ruler of his tribe. Young weaves their worlds together as war between their worlds becomes imminent.. I loved the passion and writing in this story but I felt like the romantic connection was not anywhere near the way it was handled in the first book. I appreciate the connection between Tova and Halvard but I wanted to more time spent on face to face interaction. Overall, I recommend this story to anyone who is looking for a good adventure but I do highly recommend starting with A Sky in the Deep. Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

For the most part I really enjoyed the book, the storyline was interesting, the characters were well written, and I just love anything Norse inspired. I was a little lost at the beginning because I didn't remember who everyone was from the first book and they weren't reintroduced clearly to refresh my memory. I really like Tova and I hope there is another book to answer some of my lingering questions about her clan's culture since it was left so vague.

Tova discovers there is more to her past and magic in this sequel to Sky in the Deep.

Told ten years after the events of the initial book, it follows the story of Tova, a mystic from far away lands held captive by a clan, and Halvard (yes, he’s all grown up!), an emerging leader of the combined clans of Riki and Aska. Chapters alternate between both main characters with prominent flashbacks throughout the story. Narrative focus shifts to new clans not mentioned in the previous book. Other than Halvard, not much time is given to the original cast of characters. All of those pining to see Eelyn and Fiske will most likely be disappointed.

I loved Adrienne Young’s first book, Sky in the Deep. It had it all – excellent world-building, a character-driven story, and an epic (and earned) romance. Everything I loved about the first book is missing in this lackluster sequel. This book is plot-driven instead of character-driven. The romance is rushed without enough (not nearly enough) time spent between the two characters. The culture and ancillary characters introduced in the book are poorly developed. It hurts me to say this, but the story felt half-baked and rushed. I still recommend you give this novel a try, but forgive yourself if this ends up on your DNF shelf.

tl;dr Plot-driven with a rushed romance and alternating points-of-view left me not enjoying this novel.

This book read very much like a second-in-series, despite not being a direct sequel to "Sky in the Deep" but merely takes place in the same world. I very much felt as though I was missing key elements of lore and worldbuilding. It was also a very slow start, with the two main characters not even directly interacting until nearly 3/4 of the way through the book, then almost immediately became Insta-love. I asked for this galley because of the whole Viking/Rune angle, which I really enjoy, but without the knowledge of the first story, I think I didn't like it as much as others might. Would recommend for fans of the first book, or the entire series to fans of "Sea of Trolls" by Farmer.

Another fantastic mythical adventure through history, a real page-turner even for a reader who isn't always a fan of historical fiction!

"The Girl the Sea Gave Back"
by Adrienne Young
I started to read "The Girl the Sea Gave Back" without first reading "Sky in the Deep," I was totally confused and at 15% was ready to give up when I realized I should read "Sky in the Deep" first. I absolutely loved the story Eelyn and Fiske and the introduction to the clans helped me to follow the story of Halvard and Tova. In this story, we are introduced to two new clans: the Svell and the Kyrr. As the novel, begins, a small raiding party of Svell have attacked the Nadhir (the name of the new clan that is composed of the Aska and the Riki). Halvard has been chosen to be the new chieftain and must now deal with this new threat. Tova is a Truthtongue from the Kyrr clan who was found and raised by the Svell. The Svell do not trust Tova, but have used her abilities. Tova and Halvard have a connection just as Eelyn and Fiske did, but the book ends so abruptly I was left feeling as if the story was not resolved. I would be interested to learn more about Tova's clan, the Kyrr, which may happen in a sequel?

*An early copy received from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange for an honest review*

*3.5 I think the final copy of this book could be a 4-star contender in the YA category. The story was intense from the beginning - Tova, a 6 year old, is placed in a little boat and sent out to sea in an emotional, ritualistic ceremony. She is found by a completely different clan, the Svell, and is feared because she can cast stones and predict the future. The Svell keep her and use her ability to their advantage. Tova struggles with her place in the world, which is a key conflict throughout the novel. The book jumps between Tova and Halvard (a male character from a different clan), who is also struggling through coming of age conflicts. Their stories eventually intertwine.

I think I would like to learn more about this creative world and may have to check out the previously published companion novel. Had I read that novel first, I think some of the details of The Girl the Sea Gave Back would have been better understood and appreciated.

My love for Adrienne Young's books grow with each one...okay, so far only two, but that love is even bigger than the first! Her first novel took us to the Viking-ish lands of the Aska and the Riki with the warrior girl Eelyn.

This one brings us to a new land of the Svell with Tova, a girl from the sea with strange markings all over her body who can read the runes and see what the Spinners hold. And to tie in the first book, the Svell are planning to take down the Aska and Riki. Meanwhile, Tova is drawn to one of the enemies, just as he is drawn to her.

Kind of hard to explain more without giving away the ending of the first book. Yes, you can read The Girl the Sea Gave Back without reading Sky in the Deep, but I highy recommend that you read SitD first because it is an outstanding book, and you will understand a tad more of TGtSGB, but it won't hurt you if you don't. Confusing? Hopefully not.

As usual, Young delivers a "romance" story without overwhelming us with hormones or stupid triangles. In fact, the romance in her stories are so subtle that it helps bring the stories to life more.

The book starts out with grieving parents whose daughter has died. A funeral boat is sent out to sea and an arrow is shot to light it on fire. The story continues 13 years later with Tova, a girl that was rescued from the sea, who can cast runes and see into the future. Tova has never been accepted into the tribe that found her. She discovers deceptions, makes new alliances and fights her way back to a family she did not know exists.

The question of how she was thought to be dead then washes up on another shore still alive is a question that was never answered. It left me as a reader wondering how this could have happened. Some type of explanation would have helped bring the story full circle. Besides that, I enjoyed reading Tova's story and would recommend it.

The Girl the Sea Gave Back is a quick read with good use of alternating perspectives and timelines. Young once again sets the reader in the middle of a Norse fantasy filled with realistic landscapes and interesting characters. The action is engaging and detailed, interrupted with well-placed memories and flashbacks. The connection between protagonists Tova and Halvard is undeniable, though at times feels a bit rushed or forced.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

While I love the Viking world that Adrienne Young had created I found this story to be less accessible for me to connect the characters in the way the book is written. The voice of Tova and Halvard are not very distinct at times from each other and the first person and flashbacks required that the story needed to be pieced together in awkward chunks. Despite this I enjoyed the overall arc of the story and wanted to see the story to the end. I would love to see if changes are made to the story structure after the final publication.

Beautifully written struggle of one girl's heart-wrenching fight to find answers despite constant prejudice and oppression. Epic world-building. The background plot is based on an Asastro-type fantasy Norse religion, found in early in Nordic regions of the world, lends itself to a creative take on fate and whether it's in the hands of the God's or if it can be changed.
Tova's young life was taken by the sea and her fate was foretold by the God's. Her parent have her body back to the sea and the sea gave life back to her body. Now in the foreign, where she is seem as cursed, Tova must use the gift of Sight to keep herself alive.
Halvard never wanted to be a chief-in-training, let alone a chief, but the Gods have plans for him. When constant blood feuds and warring between clans come to ahead, he is forced to take up the mantle of chief.
A fateful reading of the stones brings Tova and Halvard eye-to-eye across enemy lines and their Fates are sealed. Wether to be friends or foes, they are drawn to each other. I won't ruin it by telling you more, but it is so worth the read.

This is set in the same world as Sky in the Deep, some years later. I really loved Sky in the Deep, but I could not get into this one. It's dual POV, and I got about halfway through and still hadn't connected with either POV. Fantasy isn't always my genre, so I'm sure this will appeal to some readers.

I really wish that I'd given Sky in the Deep a re-read before this so I could better remember some of the characters that are mentioned in this book. Other than that, it was a pretty good book. The beginning felt slow and when a lot of the action came it felt like it was too rushed at the end. Aside from that, the world and overall conflict of the book were interesting. I liked our main characters and their internal struggles. I think I just over-hyped this in my mind. Maybe I'll give the published copy a read and see if my thoughts have changed.

This book is such a toughie for me and honestly, I plan on re-reading it when it comes out in print, which means that my rating MAY change. At this point, however, I feel that while the plot, characters, and relationships presented in this book should have been on par with the first book, it felt a little flat and Tova never really came alive for me.

So, here's the story. Her mother gave her to the sea as demanded by the spinners, but it gave her back to a foreign village that sees her as cursed. Tova is a truthtongue. This means she can foretell the future by throwing a set of stone runes. Her adopted clan, the Svell, use this skill to their advantage and determine their next moves and decision based on what the stones reveal. When the clan leaders become divided on whether they should go to war or keep the peace, Tova casts the stones and inadvertently causes a clan war. The Svell meet with the neighboring clan, the Nādhir, and the brother, Vigdis, of the Svell chieftain, decides to take matters into his own hands and assassinates the Nādir leader, Espen. At this point, Halvard, who was the annoying but lovable younger brother in Young's previous novel, and Tova see each other for the first time. He also kills the Svell leader, Bekan.

This as I said causes a clan war between the Svell and Nādir, which drags Tova and Halvard along into the chaotic mess. Since Halvard killed Vigdis' brother, he decides to take revenge and forces Tova to find out, where Halvard is located by using the dice. On the other hand, Halvard wounded needs to make it home so he can become the next chieftain, something that weighs heavy on him, as he struggles to find his way home and warn his people. This is complicated by Tova's reoccurring feeling that is somehow bound to Halvard and must find a way to help him. Tova's life is even more complicated by the fact that she was raised by the Tala, Jorround, who continuously reminds her that her family sacrificed her to the gods, and he was the one, who took her in and raised her.

The ending was a bit ambiguous but I have no problem with that. However, I felt like the entire plot and characters seemed very contrived and forced. I wanted to love Tova but I felt like I never really had the chance to know her and this was mostly impeded by including Halvard's perspective and the need to get the events rolling in the book. However, the biggest issue with this book is it's just one book. The plot, foreshadowing, conflicts, characters, and relationships felt substantial enough for an entire series but it was delivered in a perfunctory manner. All of the conflicts, Tova's dilemma about her identity, Halvard's crisis about being a leader and their own flashbacks were neatly compiled into one book that also dealt with a clan war. Everything happened immediately and resolved too quickly without allowing us to really dive into the story and characters.

While I really enjoyed Adrienne Young's first book, Sky in the Deep, I can't say that about The Girl the Sea Gave Back. I found the the characters were hard to care about because you really dont get to know them very well. I also didn't like the alternating POV of Halvard and Tova. The story didn't hold my attention very well. I found myself more skimming the pages than reading then, All in all, I was quite disappointed. I expected better.

DNF @ 54%

I truly hate to do this for an arc, but I don't think I can finish this one. I remembered that the first book in this world took me a few chapters to get acclimated, but after reading over half of this one, I don't think it's going to happen. I even set it down for a few days and tried to get back into it later, still with no luck. I had a difficult time grasping where the plot was going and the flashbacks are formatted in a way that confused me. I couldn't explain any of the relationship dynamics if someone asked me. I just could not get invested in a way that made me pay full attention, and as a result I had a hard time figuring out what was going on. It's truly a bummer because I loved the title, it has a gorgeous cover, and I am so down for a juicy viking premise. I thought that the summary sounded incredible, but when I actually dug into it, it felt like just another forgettable war story that just couldn't hook me or establish any stakes. I hope that fans that love Sky in the Deep are not deterred by my review, another round in this world is going to be really fun for them. But for a lukewarm fan, you are probably better off skipping this one for another title.

Thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books for the e-ARC!

The Girl the Sea Gave Back is an epic tale woven with intricate detail by Adrienne Young. I'm not much into fantasy and odd names usually end up turning me away but Young's writing is vivid and fresh. The characters come alive as you read and there are no unwarranted details. Tova is a strong female lead. Fans of Sky in the Deep will devour this one! Great job on the cover!

I have come to realize in the past little bit that fantasy novels have to have a very specific thing to them for me to enjoy them and unfortunately I think this series just doesn't have it for me.

I have recently discovered this author and i was blown away by her first book so i was so excited for this one. It did not disappoint and was full of twists! I really loved this book!