Haunting and romantic, with a lot of twists and moments that had me guessing what would happen and how it would end.

*book hype incoming* FIVE STARS!!

To all my dark fantasy lovers out there, I have found your next obsession. This Raging Sea by De Elizabeth so quickly stole my heart. I don't think I've read a book this fast in a long time.

The dark, seaside ambience was everything I wanted it to be and more and the TWISTS just kept coming. The complex character dynamics explored in the novel were so captivating and pulled at all the heartstrings. 11/10 would recommend you pre-order this 2025 debut!

Goodreads synopsis:

Historic Loch Creek is a witchy New England tourist trap—but it’s just a trap for Briar, who’s convinced she’ll die there among the waves that devoured her twin brother thirteen years ago. But when her best friend who she's loved since childhood, Finn, vanishes from the seaside carnival, there’s only one person who can help Briar find him: Morgan, her biggest enemy who knows her darkest secret.

As Briar uncovers hidden truths as deep and dark as the water that haunts her, it quickly becomes clear that Finn has gone much further than anyone could have imagined. He’s lost in time, and neither of them are safe. If Briar and Finn look too hard, they might find terrifying answers—not just about what’s buried beneath the shores, but also the threads tying them to each other. As past and future collide, the seductive yet evil underwater entity that intends to claim Briar still needs its sacrifice . . .

And it’s too hungry to go unsated.

Equal parts epic bisexual romance and pulse-pounding horror, This Raging Sea is a dual POV dark fantasy as sweepingly powerful as the ocean that threatens to consume everything and everyone Briar has ever loved—prepare to be devoured.

This Raging Sea had me feeling all the emotions!!

The relationship between Briar and Finn is so special to me. It's the perfect example of a true friends-to-lovers romance, and the platonic and romantic aspects were perfectly balanced. I also loved the relationships with the other characters. Kai and Astrid really round out the group, and Morgan's character was a lovely addition. The friendships are just as important as the romantic ones.

The plot was fascinating. I was a little worried when I started reading because the book is constantly marketed as having a physics-based magic system, but it's not discussed in a lot of detail, so it was easy for a non-math person like myself to understand and enjoy.

The ending had me screaming into a pillow! I can't say much without spoiling the whole book, but WOW.

I would recommend this book for fans of Our Infinite Fates by Laura Steven and anyone looking for a book that highlights platonic love,

⭐⭐⭐⭐

THIS RAGING SEA by De Elizabeth (Sept 23)

Thank you Netgalley and Holiday House for the earc

Loch Creek is a witchy town, it's also where Blair Winters thinks she's going to die---like her brother did 13 years prior...among the waves. When her best friend, Finn Adler, disappears, Blair must seek put her enemy to help find him. Together, they unearth secrets and darkness that makes up the town.
THIS RAGING SEA is a YA sci-fi esque mystery filled with rage, heartache, a tinge of romance, and a mysterious force at hand---witches and magic. This book is the epitome of atmospheric, and it reminded me so much of something some of my favorite authors would write: nature stirring everything up, in this case with "the raging sea." It was almost lyrical as the author told the story. I loved that it was dual-pov, because Finn's pov added to the book. And I loved how everything just sort of flowed...almost like a sea.
With everything positive, there comes negative. I had to take breaks reading this book because of the length. It was long, the chapters and the book in and of itself. As I pushed through, the second half was where its at---where everything flowed nicely as I mentioned above. The pace of the book picked up, and everything began to unravel. And as revelations were made, nothing was as it seems. And then that ending---specifically those last few chapters brought tears to my eyes. Love, loss, magic, if that's what you want to read, this this is for you.

Going into this, I was expecting an upper YA/New Adult mystery fantasy. Based on the author's social media, I was really excited for a physics and math-based magic system and bisexual representation in the story. This did not deliver.

What I liked or met expectations
- There were some beautiful sentences and parts where I thought the writing was well done/quotable
- There was a 1 page moment where the bi representation felt authentic (this is also a con - I felt like the bi rep was mostly performative and to check a box, but this one page captured my experience as a bi person well).
- The writing had the YA audience in mind, mostly. More of a upper-YA as there are a few scenes where sex is heavily implied and some on-page making out. Which is fine, just something to be aware of. This would be in the more 16/17+ YA side of things in my opinion.
- About 1/3 of the way in I started to get "Stranger Things" vibes

What I disliked:
- TIME TRAVEL/TIMLINE HOPPING - this was not mentioned anywhere in the blurb or marketing. I really dislike time-bending/non-linear timelines so I really forced myself through this one. This would have been great to know about in advance.
- Overuse of the phrase/variations of "she bit/chewed her cheek". It could be a drinking game for the first half of the book
- The magic system was a HUGE let down. The author marketed it as a math-based and physics-based system. Saying this magic system is based in these things is like saying The Amityville Horror was based on a true story. It should be inspired by at best. Using ideas like equal and opposite reaction, using the term chaos theory, googling a formula, doesn't make something based in it. I might be a little overly harsh here, but as someone with an extensive background in math and physics, I had really high hopes for a magic system that was based in math and science and it just wasn't.
- (Warning, this point has a spoiler) The relationship between Blair and Morgan. It was every cliche wrapped into a few run-ins. The relationship (and Blair being bi) felt like it was forced and was there specifically to make their eventual partnership happen. Their partial chapter of a romance was everything I don't like about romance books wrapped into one - fated enemies to lovers, social enemies to lovers, one bed, grumpy sunshine. I was literally rolling my eyes.
- The bi representation was tokenized and felt really inauthentic. It's hard to do bi characters' experiences justice because there is so much nuance and undertones to the lived experience of it. Given the upper-YA nature of this book, I expected more of the nuance to come through vs it being there strictly as a vehicle to get Morgan to help.

Overall, this is a book I will not be recommending. It just missed the mark on key elements for me.

It's clear that De is an excellent writer, she knows the craft & understands the audience. This book will be loved be a lot of people, I'm sure of it! But unfortunately I am not one of those people, because it's also clear that this was written with tropes in mind, which in itself is not bad, but it feels like that leads to some boredom & disengagement here. It feels like the characters (especially Finn, to me) lacked depth, and certain audiences are being pandered to.

Physics-based time travel and witchy small town lore meets a soulmate romance that defies time in this haunting YA fantasy debut.

I loved everything about this — from the found family, to the seaside setting, bisexual rep, phone calls from the in-between place, and the ultimate sacrifice of love that knows no bounds.

I can’t wait to see what De Elizabeth writes next after such a stellar first impression.

4.5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC for an honest review.

This raging sea is an utterly unique urban fantasy and a stunning debut novel from De Elizabeth. It is a beautiful romance of lovers lost in time, steeped in eldritch horror and mystery, and laced with lovely prose.

Fans of “The Haunting of Bly Manor,” A Study in Drowning, This is How You Lose the Time War, and “Life is Strange” will enjoy this hauntingly heartbreaking story of love and found family transcending the boundaries of time.

I first heard about this book on TikTok and was pulled in by the concept of a math and physics based magic system. Do I know anything about physics? No. Am I able to understand complex mathematical equations? Also no. But that didn't hinder my enjoyment in the slightest. In fact, stories that explore and play with the physics of time are always my favorite, and they're so hard to find! Throw in the fact that the characters are all bi/queer and I'm sold!

Thank you to NetGalley and Holiday House for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I thought this book would be like a Nancy Drew (the tv show) story with a Scooby-gang of characters and I was very excited for that.

While the Nancy Drew tv show vibes were very strong with the supernatural mysteries and small, creepy town, the found family and characters fell flat for me.

First of all, the found family has 4 (possibly 5?) members and we get almost zero information about 2 of them. I still have no idea who Kai or Astrid are as individual people OR why they’re friends with Briar and Finn. We’re TOLD that they’re as close as family, but we don’t get to see that in any meaningful way. Briar is actively lying and misleading them during the entire book.

As for Briar and Finn, they sure do have a funny way of showing that they’re in true love, going around and being with other people in the 3-ish days it takes for them to reunite? Neither of them really sold the whole true love thing to me.

Lastly, this book ended on a sort of open-ended, interpret-it-how-you-will, kind of ending, which was not satisfying in my opinion. With how much a mess was made by these characters during the story, I feel like a resolute ending would’ve been like a reward. Instead, I’m just as confused as I was at the start.

Overall, the vibes and the world were really cool, and I thought the writing flowed smoothly. But the characters will make or break a book for me, and this book just wasn’t it for me.

One of my most anticipated reads, This Raging Sea lived up to everything I expected! I could not put it down— I was so captivated I read it all in one sitting. The physics based magic system, found family, and supernatural elements were all amazing. The lush, lyrical prose was enchanting, establishing an eerie atmosphere I was immediately pulled into. There are so many quotable lines! There were so many twists that I didn’t see coming, and I completely adore the bittersweet ending.

I loved the complexity of Briar’s relationships with Finn and Morgan; and the villain's relationships with both Finn and Briar.

I highly recommend readers preorder This Raging Sea, and pick it up when it releases September 23, 2025.

Thank you to De Elizabeth, Holiday House, and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Current rating: 4.25 stars

I have quite a few thoughts on this! This Raging Sea was one of my most anticipated reads this year and it mostly lived up to my expectations. At the moment, I feel like giving this 4-4.25 stars, but this had a lot of specific elements that I love; intriguing magic system (that uses physics?!), platonic love/found family, and a supernatural aspect w/ eldritch horrors. It's a little hard to properly explain, so I'll just say I'm giving it 4.25 stars for appealing to a very specific part of my reading preference.

Firstly, I did enjoy the lush writing style, though it might not be for everyone, as even I found it bloated at times. However, I thought the atmosphere and setting were well created, and I liked the melancholic + tragic feeling threaded throughout. I especially enjoyed how the creepier events were described; odd sightings, distorting faces, flooding rooms, etc.

I enjoyed the dual POVs of both Briar and Finn, which was great. Surprisingly, I didn't really prefer one over the other, but that's also a positive. I loved seeing how everything connected and came together! Some aspects were quite obvious, but I did learn some interesting facts and had fun trying to figure everything out along with the MCs. I ended up feeling relatively satisfied by the ending, albeit a bit sad in some ways.

With the characters themselves, I liked how layered they were and also how down bad Finn was!! (There is one significant gripe I had with the romance, though, which I'll get into soon.) The found family was also one of my favourite parts of the book, but I wanted more!! Despite that, I still loved how platonic love was highlighted in the book.

Now, onto the romance... minor spoilers ahead!
I was peacefully anticipating the all consuming romance between Briar and Finn, but was faced by multiple unnecessary romantic scenes between the MCs and other characters. Despite liking both these characters, I felt that the Briar and Morgan plotline wasn't needed, especially since it felt like it came out of nowhere and didn't end up amounting to anything. What's more was the sexual tension between the villain and both MCs, especially since their justifications were more along the lines of them actually wanting his touches. I wouldn't have minded some comments about the otherworldly beauty of the villain but what actually occurred just felt, again, unnecessary. I feel like I (probably?) wouldn't have minded as much had the main romance w/ Briar + Finn not been such a significant part of the plot, but alas, it was.

Overall, I still enjoyed reading this and found it to be a solid debut! I'm looking forward to reading De Elizabeth's future releases!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the eARc in exchange for an honest review.

I have been waiting on this standalone YA dark fantasy/romantasy for over a year, and it was everything it promised to be. I think the last time I read this much angst/yearning in a YA book, it must have been in Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell. (Yes, I cried. I cried buckets.)

This is a highly twisty, mind-bendy thriller of a fantasy book as the main character races to find her childhood best friend who has literally disappeared from time. Oh, and she never got to tell him she loves him (or that she has this super dark secret she’s convinced will ruin her one day).

There’s no other way to describe De Elizabeth’s style other than enchanting. I’ve been sucked in, and I can’t wait to read her future work. She has so many killer lines that are equally beautiful and heartbreaking. I also really loved the found family aspect of this book, which was something I didn’t go in expecting, but then it snuck up on me, and it was one of the best parts. The book releases on September 23, 2025.

I was fortunate to receive an ARC of this book on NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The complexity of the teenage experience is beautifully woven into a story with much grander, larger-than-life themes of hope, betrayal, despair, and the melancholy of realities unforeseen. Finn and Briar are all of the things that make your heart ache, and while their love story is a masterpiece on its own, the true beauty of this story is that platonic love holds an equally important value. Elizabeth's expert portrayal of found family reminds the reader that "loving you in every universe" applies to so much more than just a romantic partner - it applies to friends and hopes and dreams too. There is such bravery in the ending of this story. It will leave you feeling empty and whole all at once.

3.5-4 stars! The writing was absolutely delicious and I loved the atmosphere. There was so much life in this piece and it was a joy to read, overall! I loved the horror vibes and I thought that De's descriptions of some of the spooky, creepy stuff were so well done.

I think if I had one thing that kept this from being a solid 4 star or even a 5 star, it's that I honestly couldn't get into the romance, which DID matter considering there was such a heavy theme of soul mates. Morgan was probably one of my favorite characters to read, so I honestly really loved her and Briar having a romantic spin. However, it sits funny with me that Finn and Briar are "in every universe", soul mate loves - and having Briar and Morgan's romance in there as well just ... took away from that a fair bit. It made it fall flat for me, and I honestly had trouble buying into the romance. Obviously, platonic soul mates are ABSOLUTELY a thing - but they weren't that, and certainly Finn loved her so hard for all 350~ pages of this book.

➸ 4.45 ⭐️

"Because math isn't just math. Math is also faith. It's knowing the numbers, knowing the odds, knowing the conclusion—and doing it anyway. Choosing imperfect, fierce, always-too-short love. Knowing how it ends and choosing it anyway."

that third act really hurt 😭😭😭

This was a fantastic debut and there were so many things I loved about it.
Beautifully written with messy, complicated and compelling characters, This Raging Sea was dark and enthralling. The atmosphere and setting were haunting, the magic system was so well thought-out and an absolute mind-fuck, the mystery and plot twists left me gasping for air.

The first 50-60 pages had me so confused but once you pass Finn's chapter everything starts to make sense.
Speaking of Finn—I absolutely loved him and his chapters were my fav 🖤
Both him and Briar felt so painfully real, their love achingly tragic and breathlessly hopeful. I still have so many questions, especially after where the book ends 😭

The found family was one of the absolute best parts—the way it was complicated and layered and the love between the characters... 🥺🥺🥺 everything they had gone through and went through...

The only reason why this isn't rounded up is because I wasn't a fan of how the MCs had so many sexually charged scenes with their enemies. The whole plotline with Briar and Morgan didn't need to be as romantic as it was at all imo and considering how many pages it took to end I feel like it shifted the focus too much to the point where it made me question half way through whether or not this story was about Briar and Finn and if Briar's feelings were real at all and I didn't like that. To a point I understand what De tried to do here and Morgan had an important role to play but I don't think that anything needed to happen between them just to end a second later like it had never existed at all. Considering that they spent most of their lives hating each other and they were never friends, this whole thing just came out of nowhere the moment they agreed to work together. They could've went from enemies-to-we are more alike than we thought and leave it at that instead of going as far as it did.
And then there was also the whole thing with the villain. Any sexual tension between him and Briar I could understand since he's been with her for so long but Finn and him... it was super short but again I don't think it was necessary at all to show the complex threads connecting them.
My main problem was Morgan though, that whole plotline just makes you doubt Briar and cheapens what's between her and Finn so I really didn't like those chapters at all.

All this aside, the last few chapters broke my heart in more ways than one 🥺🥺 I needed more 😭

"She feels, he thinks, like home."


If you want something with the vibes of The Wicked Deep , Our Infinite Fates and Your Blood, My Bones you should check This Raging Sea out.

eternal gratitude to De Elizabeth for the physical arc and netgalley and the publisher for the earc
all quotes are from an advance copy and may differ in the final publication

This was a DNF at 20% for me. Beautifully written, and I think I would finish at another time. Just wrong timing for me.

The writing is propulsive and the premise is intriguing. However, I struggle with the fact there is no kindle option which is very hard on my eyes. It makes it really difficult to get through without it and therefore, I grew frustrated and will not be completing the book.

Tender, raw, and beautifully written—This Raging Sea broke my heart open and somehow managed to stitch it back together by the end. It’s emotional without being heavy, romantic without being cliché, and full of the kind of vulnerability that feels. I loved it deeply.

I thought the book was beautifully written. I haven't read a book with good writing like that in awhile so it was so refreshing. The thematic elements of the book were so well done, I loved the push and pull of the book with the overwhelming callbacks to the ocean and the sea.

It was a dark and beautiful and and a little sad.

I will say that when it came to the elements of the story where the characters were feeling attraction, I do feel that the use of "warmth spreading" I couldn't find the exact wording cause it was hard to search for was overused way too much.

Also, I do get messy relationships and sometimes it can be intriguing and fun to read but when the main character gets down with a new love interest in the middle of finding her missing best friend who she loves is a little too messy, it almost put me off to be honest. I felt like it took away from how much she really cared about him and respected him knowing he sacrificed himself and then she's just like out here making moves.

To be honest it did take away from the love story for me, it made it feel entirely one sided.

Thank you netgalley and De Elizabeth for an e-arc of this book. This book is perfect for fans of dark fantasy, witches, magic and true love. I had a great time with this story and I highly recommend it.