"The only enemy is the sea."

Except that's not quite true, as A Study in Drowning slowly reveals. To be certain, the sea broods over the setting--a crumbling mansion on a windswept cliffside, in a secondary world with more than a passing resemblance to Wales in the early twentieth century. And certainly the sea as a metaphor for the impermanence and unreliability of memory is a running theme throughout. But the true antagonistic force, as is clear from the opening pages, is the patriarchy.

A Study in Drowning follows Effy, a timid young architecture student who longs to be a writer in the vein of her favorite poet, Emrys Myrddin, the recently-deceased national poet of the nation of Llyr. Her ambition is thwarted by the literature college's refusal to allow female students, but when she wins a contest to redesign Myrddin's decaying home of Hiraeth Manor, Effy has a chance to see her dreams fulfilled.

But when she arrives at Hiraeth Manor, Effy soon begins to discover that her hero may not have been who he seems. The mansion has been left to decay, slowly crumbling into the sea, while its master Ianto--son of the late Myrddin--is possessed of a mercurial temper. Effy's discomfiture is further compounded by the presence of Preston Heloury, a literature student from her university who is intent on proving that Myrddin is *not* the poet Effy thinks he was. And most troubling of all, Effy's dreams are constantly haunted by visions of the Faerie King, who promises to claim her as his bride...

A Study in Drowning is primarily a character piece, as the reader experiences the world of Llyr through Effy's eyes. (Side note: "Llyr" is the Welsh word for "sea," and is pronounced close to "fear," both of which feature prominently in both the novel itself and in Effy's psyche.) Effy begins the story as a shy and withdrawn young woman in a world that disregards and diminishes women, to such an extreme degree that even Effy herself does not trust her own perceptions. Ava Reid uses Effy's status as an unreliable narrator to great effect, leaving it ambiguous throughout most of the book whether Effy's continued visions of the Faerie King are the hallucinations of an unstable psyche, or something much more sinister and real.

A Study in Drowning is part dark academia, part coming of age, and part Gothic literary homage, as the brooding, decaying Hiraeth Manor would not be out of place among the works of the Bronte sisters. But more than anything, it is the story of a woman finding her voice despite those who would silence it.

This one started slow for me, and I wasn't sure I was going to like it, but by the time Effy got off the train in the South, I was in and blew through the rest. I really liked the way the author addressed mental health, and I loved how respectful Preston was as a romantic lead.

A Study in Drowning was so whimsical and haunting and the perfect read for a cold spooky fall day. I loved everything about this story and the setting, and the creepy old house that was on the verge of falling into the sea was so enticing to learn more about. I loved the characters and their flaws and how they overcame them and learned not only about themselves but also about each other and the world around them. My only draw back with A Study in Drowning was the twist was quite evident to me from very early on, but it did not make the story any less enjoyable because I was curious to see how it would all play out! I definitely loved this book and even ended up buying not only a physical copy but also the audiobook so I can enjoy it again in the future!

I was really looking forward to receiving the ARC of this book, seeing all the rave reviews on Booktok, but it wasn't for me. I enjoyed the descriptive, beautiful writing, but I found myself losing interest in the story itself as well as the characters. It has a definite eerie vibe going for it, but I guess I don't vibe with the vibes these days. I feel like if you liked Divine Rivals, you will like this book. I found both boring in equal measure and DNFd both around 30% or so.

A Study in Drowning is a swirling tempest of hope, love, and finding a way forward against all odds.
I was not connecting with this. I don't think dark academia is a genre for me

“Will you sign it for me?”

Never has a line devastated me so deeply and it doesn’t appear until 95% into the book, right at the end after I’ve been devastated by the pain of girlhood and fandom and drowning. Ava Reid’s writing is so thick and syrupy, you truly feel as if you’re in the story. A story that feels like a fairytale, a true one, that hurts. I love Effy so deeply, I felt such a kinship with her. I don’t want to say more in case of spoilers but Effy did it, she survived everything that happened to her and there’s such hope in that.

The world is fascinating, there’s so many layers of strife in every area: political, academic, magical, societal. Effy’s past in particular is extremely fascinating and the vague sense of confusion built around is there actual magic in this world? It was a fantastic reading experience, I love this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins/HarperTeen for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Disgraced architecture student, Effy Sayre, needs to get away it all. Her beloved novel, Angharad, no longer provides the escape she needs—nor do her little pink pills. So when an announcement comes that an architecture student is needed to repair the home of her deceased favorite author, Effy jumps at the chance. And to her amazement, gets picked.

But it’s not long after she arrives that she regrets signing up in the first place. The house is too old and rotting away. The author’s son wants to be too familiar to her. And there’s another student from her university that is trying to discredit the legacy of the author. And at the crux of it all lays Angharad—her fight against the Fairy King. Her little pink pills are supposed to tell her he isn’t real, but Effy can’t shake the feeling the Fairy King is after her as well.
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I enjoyed this, but not as much as I was hoping. besides not liking 3rd POV, I started losing interest in the story pretty fast. There were some compelling moments but I felt like the pace dragged on and the details got convoluted at times. Everything did wind up making sense at the end and most of the major plot points were nicely wrapped up, but I couldn’t get into the writing style. I don’t think it’s any fault of the author’s—just my own personal bias. I think others would really enjoy it, just sadly not my cup of tea.

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the ARC!

4.75/5 stars

Wow….just wow. This was my first Ava Reid and MAN she is an INSTABUY now! This was creative, provocative, dark, intriguing, addicting, dramatic, intelligent, atmospheric….I loved it. I couldn’t stop once I started. I had to know what was going to happen. Did I figure out the twists/reveals ahead of the end - yes. Did that hurt my experience - no. The journey was so good that didn’t matter.

Major trigger warnings, however; sexual assault and parental loss and neglect are significant plot points. They’re handled with care and respectfully executed, but they’re persistent throughout so please go in aware.

Ava Reid is a phenomenal storyteller. The romance was sweet and passionate, the plot dark and intriguing, the magical realism just *chefs kiss* - plus the female empowerment was subtle but there and important. It was just so good at every turn, I’m not sure what could have been done better!

I was so excited for A Study in Drowning, but it fell a little flat for me I found the main characters to be a bit bland, and the storyline too drawn out it.

* I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review*

Nothing but high praise for this dark academia, magical mystery novel.

I knew within the first three chapters of this book that it was going to end up being one of my favorite reads of the year.

"A study in drowning" opens with protagonist Effy as she navigates being the only female in the College of Architecture. Effy is ultimately selected to redesign a home of recently passed, nationally loved author. What happens to Effy when she arrives in the Bottom Hundred is the stuff of fairytale nightmares. With the help of a fellow student, Preston, of the College of Literature secrets of an archaic misogynistic patriarchal system are revealed.

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As a woman that works in a male dominated STEM field, this book spoke to my soul. Not only was the writing lyrical and beautiful, but it also immediately ensnared me as a reader. I devoured this book in one day. This book touches on many heavy themes in such a short time period. War, racism, sexism, the damage of a patriarchal society are themes that are touched on and it was done in a surprsingly thought out way. It seems like a lot to cram into one book but it elevated the story and helped the reader better understand all the dynamics at play.

However, I will say that the plot twist was incredibly predictable, and I called it from the very beginning. Even though I knew what was coming I still thoroughly enjoyed the book. Because of a predictable ending I give it four stars instead of five.
It feels like it was set up for a sequel and I am sincerely hoping that is the case. I would very much follow Effy and Preston on to any future adventures.

I was so excited for this book but it just fell a little flat for me, unfortunately. I found the main characters bland and the storyline around the author they were studying/investigating was just so long and drawn out it felt like it was just too much filler and it lost my interest.

I wish I liked this one more!

I am very sad to admit that I cannot bring myself to give this book more than 3 stars.... I enjoyed listening to the audio book (the narrator fit the image I had of Effy very well) more than I did the actual reading of the book or the story itself - and as a huge fan of Ava's that feels horrible to admit. I did enjoy the idea of the story but the execution was slow and a little tedious at times. This book was pitched to me as a gothic dark fantasy (which happens to be one of my favorite sub-genres of fantasy) but instead came across as a sort of political fantasy about why men aren't to be trusted and patriarchy. I do feel this book may have done better to be a duology. That being said there were elements that stood out to me, and I did enjoy. While I do feel the book could have been a little more hashed out, and the pace a little slower (and maybe a few more good men than just Preston) it hit on some hard hitting topics in ways that kept them impactful yet approachable. So props to Ava in that aspect, that is not easy to do. I did enjoy the concept behind the Fairy King and how that tied into Effy's trauma. I liked the academic rival (although that felt quickly forgotten) and I did enjoy watching Effy grow from timid girl to ferocious woman. Overall this is a good plot with difficult to swallow topics done well. It just needed some more development and better pacing in my eyes.

An eerie, atmospheric read which will make you question everything you’re told.

Firstly, I want to add a big trigger warning for sexual assault/grooming - this is towards an older teenager, for those with more specific triggers, but does come up fairly regularly in the character’s thoughts throughout the story, and some of the male characters are - clearly intentionally - very ‘ick’y, so be aware.

The setting of the story is incredibly atmospheric, and I loved the way it wound the story with the book/author the characters are studying. The way the two narrative threads came together was absolutely fantastic, and I thoroughly enjoyed it despite the uncomfortable interactions.

I also loved the relationship that developed between the two main characters. I did feel this happened very quickly - but it is YA, and I find that’s common in the genre - but I enjoyed the way they were together and felt that their later interactions were very wholesome and supportive of one another.

Overall, I really enjoyed A Study in Drowning and would read more by this author in the future!

Thank you so much, HarperCollins Children's Books, HarperTeen and NetGalley, for the chance to read this amzing book in exchange of an honest review.

TW: sexual abuse (hinted), PTSD, violence

Effy Sayre has always believed in fairy tales, always lost herself in books and her copy of Angharad, Emrys Myrddin's epic about a mortal girl who falls in love with the Fairy King and then she's able to destroy him.
Haunted by visions of him, struggling to keep them at bay with pills, Effy fights to have a normal life in her college. When Myrddin's family announces a contest to redesign the late author's estate and she's chosen, Effy is certain she can change things. But the manor is an impossible task, falling apart thanks to the closer sea and the inhabitants are weird and unwelcoming, including literature student Preston Héloury, who is certain Emyrs Myrddin is a fraud. As the two rivals try to piece together clues about the author's legacy, strange things start to happen and Effy is left struggling between reality and fantasy and what it means for herself.

A study in drowning is a perfect YA dark novel, part historical, part Gothis, part rivals to lovers fantasy, set in a creepy manor, filled with secrets and lies, threatens by weather and more evil forces. This book is one of the most haunting, beautiful and intense book I've ever read. A story about stories and their power, to protect, to be a safe haven from reality and so on, a story about truth and lies, abuse and power, survival and danger, poetry and courage and love. Preston and Effy are amazingly complex characters, from their families histories, to their college choices and their beliefs, from their costant battle between reality and fantasy. I loved witnessing their banter and how slowly they start to trust and rely on one other. Ava Reid's writing style is one of my favourite, so poetic and intense and this book is powerful, set in a world at war, a misogynist one, bent in hurting, stealing from and belittling women. And the women's strenght in surviving, fighting back and being brave and more brilliant than their abusers.
I loved how the author talked about survival, how that's a form of bravery too, how wonderfully complex is the line between real and unreal, madness and reality and how the world can mold you and make you think one thing instead of another and the incredible strength in being yourself.

Effy's growth is absolutely a marvel to witness and I felt so lucky to have this book in my life. I loved everything.

This is my third book by Ava Reid and certainly not my last. Her story telling is just magical and the wave they weave folklore into each story is beautiful.

This is a great dark academia story that seems to straddle the line between YA and New adult. It very atmospheric and the characters are all complex and intriguing to read about. I can't recommend this book enough for anyone who wants a dark academia story with a complex world and fleshed out characters.

Yes and yes and more yes!!!

This was an absolutely enchanting read that caught my attention from the first page! I couldn’t put it down and it was a perfect cozy read!

This fascinating gothic mansion/haunted house theme has a twisty mystery and powerful feminist vibes! The horror, mystery, enemies-to-lovers romance, paranormal, and psychological thriller genres are perfectly blended at the same portal.

I feel bamboozled. I’m not sure what everyone else was reading, but my book must have been different. This was pitched as a gothic, dark academia, romantic, mysterious, young adult story, and maybe there were too many elements that the story did not feel well executed.

Our female MMC is Effy. She’s a first year architecture student because she’s not allowed to study literature. Apparently, it’s dangerous for women to tell stories in this world, but not too dangerous for them to build you a house.

Anyways, this story starts with her failing most of her classes, even though she placed higher on the entrance exam compared to her male counterparts. She sees a sign about entering a contest to build a house for her favorite deceased author (while also being insulted, and then hit on, by creeper number one), and she decides to enter despite the fact that she’s terrible at architecture. Nevertheless, she still wins. Nothing suspicious about that…

Realistically, Effy constantly goes between being on the verge of tears, to having her stomach frequently react. (Don’t believe me? Do a quick search for how often tears, crying, stomach, and belly shows up in this story.) She’s also really angry and judgmental with Preston for the first 30% of this book for absolutely no reason, and she does a terrible job at showing any critical thinking abilities.

It’s obvious Effy experienced some severe trauma because she constantly references her sleeping and pink pills (she really needs Tums to her routine). And throughout the book, Effy alludes to her trauma, but the pacing and details provided felt randomly choppy.

Additionally, all the men in this world, with the exception of Preston, should be driving white vans with blackout windows because they’re all creepers and infatuated with her.

Every. Single. One.**

(**To be fair, having so many creepers around isn’t unrealistic, but it would have been nice to have at least one other man in this story be normal and not a love interest.)

It’s also interesting that the overwhelming majority of this story takes place in the span of a few days, but Effy is convinced that she KNOWS Preston, which felt weird and rushed. Preston is “always” a certain way, or she’s “never” seen him blah, blah, blah…

And to add to this charming character, there were so many quotes from this book where you pause and think “WTF?”

I’m including some of my “favorite” below, but there were too many to actually list on here. Obviously the quotes below are spoilers. Proceed with caution.

“She wasn’t a Southerner, but she knew what it was like to drown.”….(one page later)…“Rhia was a Southerner—but she didn’t know what it was like to drown.”

-- Okay…

“She hesitated before dialing. One part of her wanted to slam the phone down; the other was desperate just to hear a familiar voice. So she dialed the only number that she knew by heart.”

-- This is the only WOMAN (because she’s not a child) to get into the SECOND hardest college in her university, and she only remembers ONE phone number? Just one? She doesn’t remember her friend’s number? The number to her dorm? Really? Does this world not have a 911-alternative number? I mean, they have cars, schools, trains, pubs, and telephone booths; surely, they have some sort of emergency number and you NEVER learned it?

“How far to Hiraeth?”…“Half an hour, maybe more. Depends on the state of the road.” Effy’s stomach churned. And then the car began to slant sharply upward…The road narrowed, fog closing in on all sides. Effy’s throat tightened. “How much further?” she asked. “Not very far now.”

-- By this point, Effy just completed a six hour train ride, but now is panicked about the thirty minute drive to the estate… and still needs to ask “How much further?” You’re officially the worst backseat driver.

"Standing there in the cold, damp cottage, Effy considered her options. There were very few, and none of them good. She could try to stumble her way through the dark back to Saltney, but she would be at the mercy of the cliffs and the sea and whatever waited out there in the mist.”

--Beyond being at the mercy of the cliffs, the sea, and whatever else is in the woods, let’s also think about it taking you 30 minutes to get to this estate by car… Assuming it’s a minute per mile, that’s THIRTY miles**. Depending on how fast you can walk (which doesn’t seem very fast since we’re already talking about you stumbling), that’s AT LEAST 10 hours WALKING back to town. And she still does attempt to “STUMBLE” back to town a few pages later.

**For the record, even if we half the mileage, that’s still, AT LEAST, 5 hours.

There were two red marks where his glasses had dug in, tiny nicks that winged the bridge of his nose. She wondered if they hurt.

-- Do people not usually wear glasses in this world?

“I wanted to ask if you had blueprints for the house. That would really help me out a lot.” This, at last, unlatched his gaze from hers. Surprise flittered briefly across his face and then vanished, like a bird hitting a window and then fluttering crookedly off again. Unexpectedly, Ianto reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded sheaf of paper. “There you are,” he said.

-- Beyond the weird imagery of the bird, who juuuust carries blueprints in their pocket? And have we seen blueprints before? They do not just fold up into your pocket.

A dripping gothic fairytale where the main character questions the reliability of her mind as much as the reader does!

I loved A Study in Drowning so much! It was the first book I've read in a while that wasn't boring in the first half, so the pacing was on point for me.

ASID follows Effy and Preston as they work to discover the mystery's of Hiraeth, home of Llyr's recently deceased national author, but all is not as it seems. Her whole life, Effy Sayre, an architecture student who dreams of studying literature, has been told that she cannot trust her eyes or her mind, and in the Bottom Hundred, her usual coping mechanisms are failing her. Preston Heloury has been outsider in Llyr his whole life; he is from Argant, a nation at perpetual war with its southern neighbor, and he is determined to disprove the legacy of the sainted author. Rivals in literary theories and mostly in Effy's head, the two get off to a rocky start but ultimately turn to relying on each other in this strange new setting.

However, the house and it's owner Ianto have other plans for these two young people.

There have been many eloquent and thoughtful reviews of this book, and this probably won't be one of them, but I love how Ava Reid handled the duality of being a young woman. Seen as either a child or a seductress as befits the situation by the men around her, Effy is blamed for the men's lust while being told she is too frivolous because of her sex to do scholarly work.

And she believes this about herself, which is the saddest but most true thing I personally have witnessed in academia. Seeing Effy come into herself and learn what she is capable of and how to use her voice was a beautiful thing. Preston's support through it-- not speaking over her but speaking with her-- was a wonderful addition.

Effy is proof that a soft girl can still be strong, no swords needed. Ava Reid's YA debut is a stunning, creeping work that will stick with me for a long time to come.

CW: sexual assault, sexism, forced confinement, child neglect, child abandonment, parent death

This was my first Ava Reid book, and I enjoyed it immensely and am excited to dig into her other works. The writing in this book was astoundingly beautiful and atmospheric. I felt myself drawn into the setting - the horror of the dilapidated house as it slowly fell into the sea, the horror of the Fairy King's obsession with Effie. Not much scares me but there were scenes in this book that had my heart pounding. All in all, this was such a wonderful fall read!