This was a beautifully written story. I felt like I was watching a C-drama. I enjoyed the overall story and the bond stressed between mother and daughter.

I waited too long to read this on Netgalley but I got from Fairyloot and finally read it. I am so mad at myself for waiting so long to read it! It was so, so good! The storytelling was beautiful, and the world was so magical. A new favorite for sure.

This book was such a fun take on mythology. I have been super into Asian myth and it was such a refreshing take.8 was drawn in and kept attentive from page one to the end. I need every version of this stunning book on my shelf.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh is a young adult fantasy novel where every year a girl is sacrificed to the sea to be the sea gods bride in order to stop the storms. Mina decides to sacrifice herself in order to save the life of the girl her older brother loves. When she arrives in the spirit realm the sea good is in an enchanted sleep. Mina with the help of Shin and several other spirits, demons, and gods has one month to save herself, the sea god, and her village. However, there are those who don't want the sea god to awaken. This story remined me of the movie Spirited Away and if you like that movie you will like this book. I did figure out the twist fairly early but I still liked the story and the characters. I received an early review copy through Netgalley.

Omg, this one has to be one of my favorite reads yet this year! I absolutely love the atmosphere and the world building. It was perfectly put together. The characters definitely won me over. I am definitely a fan of Axie Oh!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this advance reader copy.


Description from NetGalley:
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…

This book really just takes off from the first few pages and doesn’t stop. Mina’s world is turned upside down from the beginning and has to learn quickly to stay alive. I got major Spirited Away vibes, which I love. It didn’t feel like its length, and the writing was excellent. I do wish it was a bit longer because I enjoyed Mina and the rest of the cast of characters.

Overall: 4.5/5

This was an AMAZING story!!! Hands-down one of my favorites so far this year! The world building was beautiful! And the characters!!!! Shin and Mina are my favorite. The strong ties to family, and chasing your fate is a wonderful message for everyone!

Mina does not particularly want to be the Sea God's bride. But the only other option is the love of her brother's life — so she jumps into the sea and into the realm of spirits.

I loved Mina, with her stories and her determination. I loved goofy, sardonic Namgi and reserved Kirin. I loved the sad boy-god and steadfast Shin. I loved Mask and Dai and Miki.

While I have some critiques (the pacing felt off at times, I'd have loved more exploration of the Sea God, etc) the overall book was beautiful and bittersweet. I cried at the end, which is very rare for me to do.

A beautiful tale full of love and mysticism.

I truly loved all of the characters, but Mina has my whole heart. She is soft, yet her strength is endless.

The author did a stunning job with the writing style - it really felt like reading a classic folktale.

It wasn’t an overly complex fantasy story, it was heartwarming and relaxing and just fills you with joy.

4.5/5 stars, a wonderfully unique fantasy story

"Don't chase fate, Mina, let fate chase you"

This was one of my most anticipated reads of this whole year, and I have to say it did not disappoint. While this book is average length, the arc e-book copy made it extra long, and I think that's why it took me so long to read. The beginning was a bit slow, and I had to pay attention to get into the story but I still loved the feeling of the writing and the setting then. I am so happy I continued and was able to read this lovely book.

Having such a whimsical setting really helped this story reflect the original fairytale that it is trying to retell. Everything felt so magical especially as Mina was experiencing things for the first time in the Sea God's kingdom. There was also so many instances where I found myself really wanting to be apart of the story, and be able to witness events and travel places with the characters. As well, the plot wasn't extremely fast paced but in a really good way. It allowed for necessary pauses with the characters, so that the reader can view them in new ways. It was so fun in almost every way to read and definitely felt like a delightful retelling.

Mina was such an amazing main character, while she had never been outside her village really, she didn't let that stop her from showing bravery when she was in the kingdom. In the beginning she felt a bit helpless and scared, as many people would, but she grew to be such a strong woman in that time. I adored how she stood up for herself and others constantly, as well as wasn't afraid to fight for herself when she needed to. Her empathy for everyone around her really impacted the story in so many positive ways, including teaching others more about it. The one thing I wish could have been expanded on a bit more was her connection to her family. She talked constantly about how her grandmother told her things, like stories and words of wisdom, but we never saw much of it other than that. I think in the beginning it would have been beneficial for the reader to spend a bit more time with her and her family together, to really help establish that connection.

Shin was instantly an intriguing character to me, obviously as he was set up as the enemy (in this light enemies to lovers romance). He was a mysterious assassin who took Mina's soul and then was forced to work with her. It is established right away that he is hiding lots of secrets, and as the story progresses those secrets are slowly unraveled. Watching him grow as a character was such a wonderful thing, and learning about his past was so sad. In the end he was a wonderful character who ended up being integral to the story, and I just adored him.

One of my favorite parts about this wonderful book was the romance, I knew almost from the beginning it was going to happen, but it was a bit out of nowhere. However, regardless of this I really enjoyed how the romance ended up playing out. It grew softly and slowly, but it was really pure and seeing Mina and Shin grow together was really cute. Some of their conversations had me smiling so hard, I really did adore them and they deserve the world.

Overall, this was a wonderful and whimsical retelling filled to the brim with heartfelt characters, adorable romance, and fantastic world building. I loved basically every aspect, especially the main characters and their romance. I highly recommend for any fantasy fan and retelling fan.

[TW: death of a family member, violence and blood, human sacrifice, self-harm, memory wiping, manipulation]

What an interesting story! I am not familiar with the ancient story that this book is based off of, but after researching it I really enjoyed the book. There were some parts of it that could have been edited/omitted, but overall the story was interesting, enjoyable, and well done.

I really enjoyed this book! This is my first novel from Axie Oh, and I'm excited to read her backlist. The atmosphere in this was impecible, and the way the character saw the word was always accurately shown through the writing. I couldn't get enough of this story and it's beautiful writing.

This book was not my favorite, but I did like it. I just wish it was a bit longer, and the pacing felt a little off to me. If it was a bit longer, I think it would've been possible for the story to be fleshed out a bit more and have a bigger impact on the reader's emotions.

Ethereal and magical, The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is a beautiful, beautiful YA Fantasy. Reading this book was a breeze because Axie Oh managed to weave words that so effortlessly moved the plot and the characters along. I wish it was longer, I would have loved to read more about Mina and this fairytale-like, Studio Ghibli-esque world.

5/5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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Thank you to the publishers and Net Galley for giving me a copy of this book! This is my honest review, all views are my own.
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An alluring world of mystery and fate, The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is a stunning retelling of the Korean story The Tale of Shim Cheong. The storms of the Sea God have raged for generations, and the only hope to appease them is to sacrifice a young woman to be the bride of the Sea God and hope she is the one to calm him. This time, the village has chosen Shim Cheong, who has already captured the heart of Joon. Mina, sister of Joon, sacrifices herself in Cheong's place. Mina is taken to the Spirit Realm, where she discovers the Sea God is in an enchanted sleep. With the help of some spirits and a young man named Shin, Mina is in a race against the clock to figure out how to wake the Sea God. After all, a human can only live in the Spirit Realm for so long...
This story perfectly captures the whimsical essence of a fairytale. The writing was pretty yet simple, perfect for younger YA readers. I thought the book had a good, fast pace, and while there were many significant scenes and plot twists, it wasn't so fast that my head spun. This definitely didn't feel like 336 pages! I really enjoyed the story itself, and I was visibly reacting to a few very exciting scenes. While surely there are some technical flaws (as no story or plot is truly without flaw), I was blind to them because I was so hooked. There were many characters I was invested in, which is really good considering the large supporting cast. I really enjoyed Mina's passion and strength, which was awesome for when she was being stubborn about solving the mystery of the Sea God's sleep. I thought Shin was great, as his unwavering loyalty and his seriousness definitely made him one of the best characters of the novel. He clearly cares about his duties and is dedicated to the Sea God, which obviously helps Mina in her quest. Adding to the mix are the friends of Shin and the various spirits that aid Mina. I thought the entire cast was pretty well balanced, although I would have loved for Shin to be a bit more present instead of brooding away somewhere. In general, I really have no gripes about the book: I was thoroughly entertained, and it was a delightful journey.
The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is as stunning on the inside as it is on the outside. With a fascinating realm to see and a curious mystery to solve, this book will surely sweep you off your feet. 5 stars.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea immediately became one of my favorite books of all time. It is one of the most atmospheric gorgeous books ever written!

I've read Axie Oh before and she is a fantastic author but the way she wrote this book exceeded everything I had imagined, it was so breathtaking that I had to stop several times to just sit there with the words and take it all in.

The way each character was written too and the way they felt emotions, you could just tell that the author wrote this from the heart and I loved it so much, It made me quite emotional.

One of the best books of the year, probably will be my favorite book of the year because it is that good!

Enchanting and wholesome, "The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea" brought me back to my most comforting childhood days. This captivating tale was the perfect balance of family devotion, heartwarming friendships, and an endearing romance.
The backdrop also reminded me of "Spirited Away", and I definitely mean that in a good way. Although there were similarities, there were enough enough differences that made the setting distinctly Korean. This novel had many fascinating elements like the Spirit Realm, red string of fate, gods and goddesses, and Imugi that I already encountered in my favorite Korean fantasy dramas. I was impressed by the way Axie Oh put them all together because nothing seemed out of place!
"The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea" is one of the few books that I would happily recommend to all my booklover friends. Even if fairy tale retellings aren't your cup of tea, this standalone has the timeless quality of classic fairy tales.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is a wild ride of a story which is great for fans of Ghibli or K-dramas.

Beautifully written and masterfully told. Novels that intertwine family, love, loyalties and enchanting lore seem to always capture my heart. This was no different.

The characters mold the plot into the deeper depths that it is. Mina is a strong and easily relatable character. Her drive to protect those she loves, her people and release the Sea God propelled the narrative onto a path I did not expect. I don't want to mention the other characters however. Each one seems to tie something truly special to the story. Revealing them feels like revealing secrets.

I have not seen Spirited Away and I'm kinda glad I haven't yet. For me, this was refreshingly new, stunning in its world building and magic and wholly captivating. The tone of the novel does change as Mina grows, but not in a bad way.

The audiobook from Dreamscape Media is read by Rosa Escoda. I absolutely love when narrators have the ability to change voice influxes to keep characters separate and Escoda did not hold back. When I say this novel touches your heart, I'm not kidding. Escoda brings a wonderful level of emotion and feeling into her words that equally fits the scenes.

I did find myself a few times needing to rewind or reread. There is a mixture of slowly paced and a feeling of rushed depending on where you are in the plot. The slower paced spots I was rereading due to zoning out no matter the format. I don't want that to hold anyone back though. This is such an exquisite novel. I cannot thank Feiwel & Friends and Dreamscape Media for the opportunity to fall in love with a new author and novel. All thoughts are my own. True ratimg 4.5/5

Lovely, just lovely. The mythology and descriptions in this book are sumptuous. You really feel completely immersed in the story. Mina is strong and heroic protagonist and her somewhat motley crew of guides and helpers in the Spirit Realm are just as wonderful. The narration is spot on and if that is your preferred medium you will not be disappointed. I almost immediately wanted to start the book over when I finished. I highly recommend.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.