This whimsical retelling of The Tale of Shim Cheong first drew me in with its gorgeous cover art, and then didn't disappoint with its content.

The story follows Mina as she grapples with love and her sense of duty after sacrificing herself to become the Bride of the Sea God. On the surface The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is a romantic fairytale written in beautiful prose. But the most beautiful aspect is the many kinds of love that Mina experiences. Her love for her family, friends, and eventually the romance over the course of the book are all given time to shine.

This is definitely a book that Studio Ghibli fans will adore, in particular fans of Spirited Away. I devoured this book in one sitting, not stopping until I finished it at 2 in the morning.

Thank you so much to Netgalley, Macmillan, and Feiwel & Friends for an advanced digital copy of The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh.

This is a beautiful fairy tail of a brave girl willing to sacrifice much for the sake of her family and village.

Mina chases after her brother when he breaks the rules of the annual sending of a bride to the Sea God by accompanying his beloved who was chosen as bride. Seeing their longing for each other Mina asks the sea dragon to take her as the bride instead and jumps into the sea to the Spirit Realm.

While in the Spirit Realm she experiences an epic adventure, meeting incognito ancestors, being chased by assassins, fighting angry goddesses and trying to determine her own fate.

Along the way she falls in love and must choose between duty and what she wants most. What will she decide? Can she save the Sea God from his curse and her village from the deadly storms he sends each year?

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is both an adventure story and a love story based upon Korean folklore, and I could not put it down! The pacing of the story is engaging with just enough description. Although there is romance, it is never mired in angst or overwrought, which will even make fans out of romance-averse readers.

While it may be frequently compared to Spirited Away, I find a more apt comparisons in Skin of the Sea or Six Crimson Cranes. All use traditional stories or folklore but reimagine them in adventurous ways. Readers unfamiliar with the traditional story will enjoy Mina’s story. My only small qualm is the title: she doesn’t fall beneath the sea, which implies a bit of passivity that the character of Mina never demonstrates.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group for this ARC in exchange for my review.

Thoughts

Whoever compared this book to Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away nailed the comparison! This book captures the ethereal whimsy of that spirit world while also capturing the unsettling dark undertones to it as well. It's lyrical. It's beautiful.


Pros
Masterful Worldbuilding: This world is immediately vivid, bright and tangible. It is full of lore and lyrical touchpoints for the reader. The spirit world is evocative, darkly deadly and at the same time pristinely beautiful. I have never been so immediately wrapped up in a world. Axie Oh's worldbuilding here is masterful, perfectly balanced.

Strong-Willed Protagonist: Mina isn't bold and brash. She isn't forcefully lewd. She isn't physically strong, as strong as any man who would oppose her. She just knows what she wants, and she actively works toward her goals. In a market overrun with "strong female leads," it is a welcome relief to experience the journey of an actual strong lead--a lead who is strong in and of herself and not because she somehow exceeds expectations for female characters by being the proud owner an abundance of masculine attributes.

Korean Mythology: This story is beautifully written and beautifully expressed, weaving Korean mythology into a brand new tale. The story is bright and bold, both old and new. I am immensely glad that this mythology has been so lovingly rendered into English, so that I can appreciate it as well. We need more fantasy that conveys the imaginations and myths of cultures around the world. The drifting fog and crashing waves of Korean stories have won a place in my heart this past year, with this book being at the forefront.


Cons
Elusive Danger: This book was full of threats of danger, threats against poor Mina's life, but like many fairy tales, those dangers never quite materialize or feel truly real. There are still stakes in this book--Mina only has a month of life in the spirit world, after all, before she will actually die. But the "you can't go out unescorted; it is too dangerous for humans like you" threats never felt terribly real. Though these threats did escalate from merely verbal to more physical by the end of the book, I still found it hard to believe that Mina could, you know, actually die.

Changeable Fate: I usually have a bit of an issue with books that strongly feature some kind of prophecy or fate because that plot element feels too easy. Predestination is too simple. Here, I had a different problem. Fate might be at play, but it is ultimately so malleable and easy to bend that I didn't understand the purpose of fate being included at all at all. What's the purpose of a string of fate connecting people if they can so easily break this string and/or form it again? I just wish there had been a bit more intention behind fate, a bit more rigidity. That's what fate is, after all: set in stone.

Unclear Motives: So many people were out to get Mina, but why? What was the motive? What were they going to get from it? Though a few possible motives were tossed around, nothing concrete came together. There was such a sense of vengeance, such a feeling of vehemence that it made no sense without a clear motive. And a clear motive there was not.


Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
10/10

Those looking to experience more drifting fog and winding Korean countryside after June Hur's The Forest of Stolen Girls should check out this book. Those who loved Elizabeth Lim's fractured fairy tale Six Crimson Cranes should check out this old mythology brought to new life.

I am so thankful I got a chance to read The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea written by Axie Oh. The Girl beneath the Sea main character point of view her name is Mina and she is sixteen years old. In Korea they feel cursed by the Sea-God especially in her hometown because things are constantly getting wrecked so each year an eighteen year old maiden. Usually quite fair and beautiful is sacrificed to help become a bride to appease him. A True bride in the myths he will stop the horrible storms.

Mina is only sixteen and she isn't considered the fairest of all but she knows all the stories and legends. There are gods and goddesses to worship. She Volunteers to go instead of her brothers lover. Having no clue what will be down there. She runs into a dynamic of different court intrigues lesser spirits. Gods and Goddesses and much more complicated politics.

I was hooked from the first page of the arc on my kindle. The writing was flawless and so smooth. I couldn't stop reading it was so addicting. I felt like I was there watching it happen. The emotions it brings up the visuals and creativity are astounding. The character dynamics are so complex and the interpersonal character relationship. I love reading these kind of things because its beautiful. Words can't describe enough about what I feel. I could tell you right now this book deserves more than five stars. What a way to kick off the new year with reading ARCS!

This arc was given to me freely by netgalley in exchange for an honest review I am really excited to provide. Please go out and read this book when its available Publish date February 22 2022.

This is such a gorgeous book! I loved the characters, I so wanted Mina to find a way to save the Sea God and save her people. Oh draws on rich mythology and builds in stunning details to pull readers into the world of spirits and gods beneath the sea. She references wider myths without losing the trail of her story, and certain moments are so beautiful and sweet that I cried. While not shying away from the sadness and struggle of mortal life, Axie Oh creates a hopeful gem of a book, a tale to remind us all to keep trying, keep moving forward, and keep reaching out to one another, seeking love that carries us beyond these mortal seas.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing for an advanced copy of this to review! I saw somewhere that this had some Spirited Away vibes, and I definitely agree with that assessment. The world building and the mythology in this book are really well done. Oh brings you into this magical sea world, and continuously raises the stakes.

Not only is the world building well done in this book, but the characters are as well. Not only is Mina a strong, well developed character, but so are the friends and creatures she meets in the Spirit World. You can feel her determination on the page, and the supporting characters just help to make it a well rounded story.

While the world building and the characters were great, the main romance at the core of the book left a little to be desired. I think maybe it just needed to be a little more fleshed out than it was, and that would have made it more believable.

All in all, if you’re looking for something with anime vibes inspired by Korean mythology, this is definitely your book!

This book was such a great read! I really enjoyed it and flew through it in one afternoon. The characters were unique and relatable which is something I really enjoy in a book. The author did an amazing job and I can't wait to read more.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea blew me away. The writing was so magical and breathtaking, I want to crawl inside this story and live there. I'm a sucker for a myth, folktale, fairytale retelling so I was already predisposed to like this book, but still my expectations were exceeded. Axie Oh's writing was poetic and transportive, and I'm not 100% sure there wasn't some kind of witchcraft involved because it was truly magical.

This book had a slow start, but its mysteries became more engaging as the book went on. Its use of fantasy to describe the empowering story of a girl who both saves the world and follows her heart may be of interest to readers who enjoy Asian mythological stories with modern values.

I liked how the feminist twist on Korean mythology was handled in this story. The plot begins immediately, which I appreciated, and the studio Ghibli atmosphere added to my enjoyment. However, the events felt rushed at times, and the characters were underdeveloped; the writing could also be better. For me, the events were a letdown.

Thank you to Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this title before publishing!

Mina’s homeland has been devastated by storms and disaster for as long as she can remember. As legend has it, the sea god was angered by her people a century ago when a usurper took the throne and murdered the emperor. Ever since, the land has been cursed to sacrifice a young woman every year as the bride of the Sea God. Mina watches as her beloved bother falls deeply in love with the young woman who is being prepared as the next Sea God’s bride, and she can’t bear to do nothing as his love is sacrificed against her will to the light of the ocean and whatever lies beneath. Against all that is planned, Mina sacrifices herself to save her brother and his love, with hopes that she can be the legendary true bride of the Sea God, ending the curse forever and saving her homeland.

I feel a lot of things about this book. Mina stole my heart as a character, and something that moved me deeply was that she wasn’t trained to be some sort of badass heroine, she was just a girl who cared deeply for her people, her principles, and her own soul. It’s rare that a MC like this is written nowadays, and it was a nice reminder that, to really be the main character in your story, all you need to do is be yourself and work to best exemplify the values you hold close.

The story here, unfortunately, I found to be a little messy. I think it could have benefitted from another 100 or so pages throughout. It felt like a lot of things weren’t actually explained, and rather left for the reader to fill in their own blanks. Despite this, the setting and imagery was completely captivating and unique. There is constant action, and I certainly never found myself feeling bored. I actually found myself feeling confused at times about how genuine and real the characters connections to one another felt, even when I looked back and felt an overall lack of development to get there.

I overall really enjoyed this fast paced, enchanting and adventure filled read. I think it is an awesome introduction to Asian mythology inspired fantasy, while not necessarily something that I feel I will carry with me as deeply as I do with other, similar reads. Mina’s character was really the highlight here for me, as well as how cleanly and satisfyingly the story is tied up in the end. I will definitely be keeping my eyes on this author going forward!

I didn't really think this book would actually follow how everyone was describing it – Spirited Away meets Korean folklore. But it absolutely has serious Spirited Away vibes! Big shout out to Netgalley for providing this ARC.

The world building of the spirit realm, gods, creatures, etc is so well written, full of specific descriptions you feel like you're there. Mina chooses to throw herself into the ocean to be the Sea god's bride in order to save her brother's love from that fate. When she arrives in the spirit realm she meets Shin an his two friends who attempt to take her soul (which she retrieves). The Sea God is asleep plagued by nightmares and in these nightmares and her own grandmother's stories she will find the answers she seeks–how to break the curse. For while the Sea God sleeps, storms rage and people die in war, too.

She has help from (whom she figures out later) is her descendants (great great grandmother and grandfather) along with girls she knew from her village who have passed (including the last Sea God's bride). She slowly figures out that the boy sleeping in the palace is the lost emperor from 100 years ago who was saved by the Sea God. The Sea God is actually Shin (whom her ribbon of soulmate fate ends up getting tied to). The Sea God gave his soul (a dragon) to the emperor to save his life but in doing so lost his memories (and his soul, thus becoming Shin). When she returns their memories to them with the help of a Goddess, she makes a wish on a dragon pearl to restore the emperor and the Sea God to their rightful places, returning her to Earth.

In doing so both boys lose their memories until they start having dreams and the Goddess of memory returns the memories to them. The Emperor asks Mina to marry him but her heart belongs to Shin and Shin finally returns to her asking for her to return to the Spirit Realm as his bride.

Mina is brave and clever and a great storyteller (just like her grandmother). Shin and his friends have depth and it is great to see them slowly learn to trust her. The Goddesses kind of suck, not gonna lie. At least on of them redeems herself.

"Which destiny belongs to me? Which destiny will I grasp on to with both hands?”


I can count the number of times on my hands (maybe even one hand) that a book with any measure of hype has actually lived up to its ascribed popularity. The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh without a doubt does. I actually do not think this book is getting enough hype. It should be everywhere. In all the boxes. From all the edge painters. From all the sellers who offer spiffy, special editions. I know it sounds very cliché to use words such as lyrical, beautiful, heart-breaking, heart-warming, romantic, dazzling, majestic, or even sweet. I don’t care. This book is all of those and more. It was fantastic—so much so that I’ll be shouting its loveliness from the bookish rooftops (at the library) and most assuredly peddling it to my local library to make sure it gets included in the collection.

Mina is a remarkable heroine, sacrificing herself in a ritual to give a chosen maiden to the Sea God. She loves her brother so much, she would spare him the grief of living without his love, Shim Cheong, who is the chosen bride of the year at the opening of this tale. She plunges to the depths of the sea, to the Sea God’s palace, and so begins her journey to solve the problem she and her fellow humans have been plagued by for quite a long time: the storms of the Sea God. She has fantastic wit and perseverance, along with a stubborn refusal to do anything the easy way so long as it means it is done correctly.

All of this hard headedness leads her to the Lotus House, where the smoldering and highly infuriating Shin rules, and once they meet, the sparks fly and catch fire to the entire land of spirits. Shin and Mina are forced together to solve the problem that Mina desperately needs to fix in order to save her human world from the perpetual storms of the Sea God, though waking him is the last thing on the mind of any of the denizens under the sea.

Mina and Shin, along with many other wonderful characters, three of whom I will not mention because they could potentially spoil a gigantic surprise at the end for readers, make the book so nearly perfect. It’s plotted so well and intricately without added confusion, and it’s amazing in scope. It would make a fantastic movie. It is really quite difficult to review this book in any detail, as the synopsis gives so little for the reader ahead of time. Everything in this book except the most basic, vague premise is left for readers to discover on their own. It’s also YA that is ACTUALLY YA!

I encourage everyone who loves reading fantasy and folklore and Miyazaki with a generous sprinkling of romance to read this book. If you can, run out immediately and pre-order (or purchase, depending on when you read this review) a copy. If you can’t purchase one, request one for purchase from your local library for you and other patrons to enjoy. It is well worth it.

My thanks to the author via NetGalley for the ARC, for which I heartily and willingly give my own, honest opinion.

4.75
A beautiful retelling of Korean folklore, The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea finds Mina making a decision that will change her destiny. The story involves a curse, a sacrifice, and a cast of characters that will make you fall in love with every word they say.

Mina finds herself in a battle all while trying to save her world, even if it means sacrificing anything she has ever wanted. With both natural family and chosen family to pull at her heart strings.

There is a lot going on but it all is fascinating. Each character and deity delivers something fresh and exciting to the tale. The descriptions of scenery and the beasts of myth make you feel as if you are there with Mina trying to wake The Sea God. This story kept me absolutely gripped from start to finish and I might have even liked it a bit longer for a bit more build up.

Thank you to Netgalley and MacMillan Children's Publishing Group for the ARC of The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea in exchange for an honest review.

What a beautiful and whimsical story, the synopsis doesn't lie when they say that have the magic vibes of Spirited Away (One of my favorite movies ever)

Every couple of years a beautiful girl is sent to the sea to marry with the Sea God, It is the only way to calm the God and end the storms, this year, the chosen one is Shim Cheong, the sweetheart of Mina's brother.

Mina is a wonderful protagonist, she is very lovable. Is loyal, strong, and smart, above all, she loves her family and town, she is a girl with a mission: Reason with the Sea God and end the storms once and for all.

Mina arrives at the Spirit Realm, an enchanted place, with gods, spirits, and creatures, a beautiful place and also dangerous place (for her) the only human in the realm. Soon she will be in danger but also makes friends, with whom she will have adventures and help her with her task.

I adored all the characters, all of them are likable and love, love the worldbuilding, beautiful and magical place,
the written style is very lyrical, feels like a fairytale, and really transports you to the story. Is a fast pacing story, always something is happening.

Summarizing: An adventure in the most magical place with a strong main protagonist who has an important mission and time runs against her. Fortunately, she will make loyal friends and she is smart and now how to solve clues.

"For the Sea God, stories are both an escape from the truths of the world and the only way to see them clearly."

Well this book was lovely. Is 2022 the year that we finally accept that there should be endless feminist folklore/mythology retellings from every culture possible because they just make me so happy.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is a reimagining of the Korean folktale, "The Tale of Shim Cheong" in which Mina, not Shim Cheong, sacrifices herself to save her people from the endless storms ravaging her homeland, and throws herself into the sea to become the bride of the Sea God.

The elephant in the room here is the comparison to Spirited Away...which I have not watched. So I cannot comment on this! However, based on how much I enjoyed this book, I do plan to watch it soon!

One thing I LOVED about this book is that it jumps straight into the action. I'm not joking. This girl is in the sea within like five pages. Instead of building her backstory at the beginning, Oh weaves it throughout the rest of the story, and I really enjoyed that way of building the narrative.

The other standout comparison here is Daughter of the Moon Goddess, which I'm aware is based on Chinese mythology. However, there is a similarity in the sweeping, romantic style of writing, and the way that it truly feels anything could happen, any creature could appear, any fate could be determined. The writing fills you with longing, and it is practically begging for some kind of visual adaptation just because it's so lovely.

I don't want to say too much about plot because the surprise of what will happen next is part of the joy of this book. I think that the story is ultimately incredibly moving and satisfying, and I deeply appreciated the details so intricately woven together.

Thank you to NetGalley and Feiwel and Friends for my copy!

3.5 stars

In this reimagining, Oh constructs a developed world, punctuated by rich descriptions and intriguing characters. Fans of YA fantasy with elements of mythology and folklore will enjoy this.

Mina, the m.c., reflects her incoming bravery and devotion to her family right at the start when she attempts to take the place of her brother's beloved as the Sea God's bride. It's impossible not to root for her with a start like this! As she sinks beneath the sea and into an alternate realm, she encounters a number of interesting side characters and spends a lot of time finding trouble (that they often help her escape). I did find some of this plotting repetitive, but it's still aesthetically impressive and - I expect - will keep most readers engaged.

Oh creates an appealing mix of narrative elements here, but for me, the standout feature is the descriptive technique. I'm looking forward to reading more work from this author and recommending this one to my students, especially those who tend more toward fantasy/mythology/folklore compilations and retellings.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is an adaptation of the Korean mythological tale of Shim Cheong, about a girl who sacrificed herself to save her father. In this story, Shim Cheong's sister-in-law, Mina, sacrifices herself to the sea-god to save Shim Cheong, who is her sister-in-law. The book follows Mina after she tumbles into the world of the Sea God, rival/warring houses attached to gods,

Y'all, I am really loving this mythological adaptation trend of adapting not just white people myths & fairytales (for example, I'm going to read Lore: Olympus, but I am NOT excited about another Hades/Persephone retelling lol). A lot of this book is about understanding cultures through stories, and that is one of my favorites about mythology - mostly because there are always parallels (I mean, the hero's journey was discovered for a reason) that I think can bring us all together. Stories are powerful indeed, and that's a major theme running through this book. Our characters and side-characters are well developed with recognizable voices and motivations that made sense. There were a few twists that I didn't see coming and the plot moves quite quickly. And the romance is enemies-to-lovers which is one of my favorite tropes, so even though it develops rather quickly, I enjoyed most elements of the romance.

My one qualm with this book is the ending, which is VERY Disney. I didn't love it for spoilery reasons. That said, I think Mina would be an EXCELLENT Disney princess, who do I need to talk about making that happen lol?

TLDR: Aside from slightly biffing the ending, The Girl Who Feel Beneath the Sea is a pitch-perfect YA fantasy/mythological retelling. I'd recommend it widely to fantasy readers or lovers of mythology. 4 stars - I really liked it.

Thanks to Netgalley and Feiwel & Friends for the eARC which I received in exchange for an unbiased review. The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea will be available on 22 Feb, but you can put your copy on hold now!

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have had Axie Oh's "XOXO" sitting on my Kindle for a while now and haven't opened it up. You can bet your ass I'm going to do so now though because it is my new goal to read everything she's ever written. That's how much I adored this freaking book.

Before we get into it, can we all just take a moment to appreciate how totally stunning this cover is?!?!

"After all, not all storytellers are grandmothers, but all grandmothers are storytellers."

Our MC, Mina, lives in a world where the Sea God is punishing makind for the not-entirely-understood events of a prior century. The people, wanting to minimize their divine punishment, throw a girl into the sea every year to appease the God. The year her older brother's girlfriend is chosen, Mina gets pissed off and jumps in instead. She finds a fascinating world of enchantment, mystery, and a lot of very human non-humans.

Things I liked =

- The writing was absolutely beautiful. Descriptive, poetic, and sometimes vague but not in an annoying way. Overall it read very "fairy tale," which makes sense given the content.
- The family dynamic, including the trauma. Mina's family, like most families in the text and in real life, has gone through some shit. The fact that they've gone through said shit makes their love and devotion for each other that much more moving. This book really focuses on how family can be a gift, which is a theme that isn't super popular these days and I dug it.
- Dai. He has my whole ass heart forever.
- The friendship dynamic between Kirin, Namgi, and Shin felt super real. The way Shin ignores the bickering between Kirin and Namgi because he's so used to it never failed to make me laugh.
- The romance, while a bit quick, was well done. It's pretty obvious from early on who the romantic interest is going to be, but it was definitely not insta-love.
- The worldbuilding was just phenomenal. Oh gave us enough info for the world to feel deeply developed, but not so much that the text suffered from info-dumps.
- Mina was just super likable. She felt like a real person and I understood all the decisions she made, even if I would not have made the same ones. I genuinely enjoyed her character and think she'll stick with me for a while.

Things I didn't like =

- There are two "big reveal" moments in this book and I was able to predict both of them from pretty early on. This in no way affected my enjoyment of the story, but is something to consider if you need to be surprised by your plotlines.
- This is mostly a pet peeve of mine, but did they have to refer to the "Red Strong of Fate" by its proper name every time? Like, they couldn't have referred to it as "the string" or something even once? It just made for an unnecessarily repetitive reading experience.

Also, can Oh please write a novella of Shiki and Hyeri's story?? Because I'd very much like to read that.