Completely different from Sky in the Deep, and unfortunately for me this story just didn't work. I just found myself bored throughout and couldn't connect to any of the characters.

After how much I loved Adrienne Young's debut, I was certainly disappointed by THE GIRL THE SEA GAVE BACK. It was fairly uneventful and moved so slowly that it was easy to put it down and not feel compelled to come back to it.

I wanted to like this book. The premise, the cover, I thought it was going to be amazing. Sadly, it didn't exceed or even meet my expectations. I love fantasy books, they are my thing...but dark fantasy books? Nah, I'll pass. This gave me Kiera Cass, The Siren vibes, and I wasn't a fan of that one either.
The writing was very lyrical, I like that vibe of writing but even so, in this particular book it became a little dragging and confusing at parts.
Maybe it's the fact that I'm not used to reading these heavy fantasy books? I don't know...
Was it clean? Yeah..? If you are asking if there were explicit sex scenes, nor there weren't any that I recall... but would I call it clean? Not really. There were some gory and bloody scenes...add dark magic and you get an idea of what I'm talking about.
I DNF the book so maybe I'm not the best one to be writing a review right now. I wanted to finish it but I just couldn't. Too dark for me.
The whole book idea was very intriguing, to say the least, and the characters were very original and had a very good character arc.

Adrienne Young is one of my favorite authors. I adored her first book, Sky in the Deep and was so excited when I read about this book, The Girl The Sea Gave Back. Young has such a talent with world building and I love the world that she creates with both of these books. The characters and storylines are vivid and compelling. I look forward to reading more from the author in the future. Thank you to the publisher, St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for sending me an ARC of this book.

I thought this book was okay. Sadly, it didn’t give me all the feels the way that Sky in the Deep did. I will still read other books she releases in the future nonetheless.

This followed Hallvard and Tova, again two different sides of a war.  Hallvard was a child during the Sky in the Deep and we don't get to spend a lot of time with any of the previous characters other than him.  Tova, is a Truthtongue, or an oracle, that doesn't remember her childhood but was raised by the Svell.  It alternatives between these two so we get to see both sides.  However, I never felt connected to the story or the stacks unless the characters were in the same place.  When they were separated I felt separated from them and the story.  I could not tell you why.

If you asked me to describe the personalities of Hallvard and Tova - they would come up pretty basic.  Hallvard is being trained as the leader and always wanted to be a part of the war.  Tova is trusting but caution of people in her found tribe.  I never felt like we truly had an depth or growth in these characters.

I don't know, I left this for a few days after reading it because I didn't have any strong feelings towards it after reading it - and honestly I still don't feel any strong feelings.  I read it, that's one less book on my TBR, but I had really hoped for more.  The more I think about it the more I wish it had remained a stand alone.  That being said, I will continue to read Adrienne Young's work.

Full Review available June 7, 2020 at https://youngatheartreader.blog/2020/06/04/review-the-girl-the-sea-gave-back-by-adrienne-young/(opens in a new tab)

I just wasn’t interested in this book and decided to DNF. There wasn’t anything I can pinpoint that was bad and I’m sure others will enjoy. It just wasn’t for me.

An interesting world that captivated the imagination amongst all the different peoples and mysteries entailed.

This was an incredible disappointment for me. There were major issues with the eARC that made it nearly impossible to read for large stretches of time. I don't tend to review eARCs with formatting issues, because the effort it takes to read them often colors my opinion of the story.

Thankfully, I had a friend with a physical ARC, and she let me borrow it. Yay! Except, not. This book was so slow, and the characters were pelted at you in such a way that it was impossible to keep everything straight. I put so much effort into being able to get a copy. And then into trying to read it. And then into trying to understand it. AND THEN IT WAS TERRIBLE. A Sky in the Deep was one of my favorite books of 2018, and I was positive this would be the same way. Unfortunately, I DNF'd the eARC at 22% and the physical at around 40%.

Because of the nature of my review, I elected not to review or rate on Goodreads or my blog.

Synopsis
When she was just a child, Tova was found washed ashore by the Svell. She was the child of an enemy clan, but she bore the marks of a Truthtongue–born with the unique ability to cast runes and see the future. Despite their fear and hatred of her kind, the Svell have used her power for their own gain, and now they plan to use it to inform their future conquests. All Tova wants is to find a place where she belongs, and she wants nothing to do with the Svell and their insatiable thirst for power.

Halvard was just a boy in Sky in the Deep, but now he is a man, being groomed to lead his clan into peace. But fate is far more complicated than he ever could have imagined, and he must do whatever it takes to save the clan he’s sworn to protect.

Language and Setting
It’s rare that I talk about language or setting first for a book that is plot-driven, but Adrienne Young’s writing style is so phenomenal, that I fully believe that it is the reason why her novels are so popular.

The world Young has created is so rich in detail, with elements of magic and myth blended into every aspect of her storytelling. Each word she selects paints a finely-detailed landscape of this fantastical Viking-era world. Everything is so beautiful, reading like poetry on the page, from her description of myths or visions to the bloody fight scenes on the battlefield. This is a must-read for anyone interested in the craft of writing, as I’m sure Young has something to each every one of us about metaphor and poetry in fiction.

Characters
I fell in love with sweet little Halvard in Sky in the Deep, and I was absolutely thrilled to see that he would be featured more prominently in this book. His character remains true to the essence of the little boy we met in the first instalment in this series, but now he is a man, and he must lead his people during a time where the peace they’ve fought so hard to protect is at risk.

Tova is a fascinating character, and I was consumed by her backstory. Hated by the people who took her in, her parts of this story can be hard to read, and I genuinely felt for her every time she was forced to cast the runes and read the future of the people who despised her and what she represented.

The Girl the Sea Gave Back has lower ratings on Goodreads than its predecessor, Sky in the Deep. I think I know the reason. The plot of this book is similar to the previous, in that it’s about two Viking clans clashing and the boy and girl in the middle of it. The only problem with this book is that Tova and Halvard barely interact, and they don’t meet until far into the story. I would have liked for them to have scenes together, where they get to know each other and fall in love in a more traditional way. That said, their love is quite fascinating to read, and for once I was okay with destined love/love at first sight in a young adult book, and didn’t feel like it was a cop-out in any way whatsoever.

Plot
As mentioned in the Characters section, I would have liked for the two protagonists to have had more time together in this book. Or maybe, what I really want, is for the book to have been a hell of a lot longer. It was over too quickly, and I wanted to immerse myself even deeper into this world.

There are multiple flashbacks throughout the story, but Young expertly wove these scenes in with the rest, and I was never confused nor felt jarred when slipping from one scene to the next. This is another reason why I think the book could have been longer, because while I loved the flashbacks, I often kept checking how many more pages were left in the book, being like “I NEED MORE PRESENT DAY STUFF”. Just to reiterate–I loved the flashbacks, I just had an intense need to find out what would happen in the present-day plotline.

I recommend this book to those who want to immerse themselves in a lyrical, captivating story about Vikings, magic, and destiny.

Loved this book, I was so happy to go back to the world of sky in the deep. I have to say it was really interesting to see how much had changed and what was happening in the world. Love Adrianas work!

I LOVED Sky In The Deep, truly. This book just did not connect as much. I felt like I wasn't fully immersed and was sort of reading about reading, if that makes any sense. I'll continue to read anything Adrienne Young puts out, but this definitely did not have the same oomph that her debut did. That being said - the story was very intriguing. I don't often veer towards the Viking-esque type novels, but as with Sky in the Deep, I very much enjoyed the atmosphere. I think if I hadn't fallen in love with Sky in the Deep, I probably would have loved this more. It's hard not to compare the two.

I loved this book. It was a fantastic second book for the series and continues the world building beautifully. The characters, especially Havlard, are so well written and I loved seeing both points of view.

Would definitely reccomend!

The Girl the Sea Gave Back - oh how I wanted to love this book!

Unfortunately, the shifting perspectives weren't my cup of tea. Perhaps if they'd been written more cohesively I could have gotten more into the story - that was not the case though. Everything was all over the place and hard to keep track of.

The characters were meh, the plot decent but lacking world building.

This novel is one of the best I’ve read this year! The characters are so dynamic yet relatable. I loved the flow of the story. It held my attention the whole time.

I received an advanced digital copy of this book from the author, St. Martin's Press and Netgalley.com. Thanks to all for the opportunity to read and review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Ms. Young's new book is the second of the series but it is strong enough to stand on it's own. Having read it without prior knowledge of the series, I was surprised to find that was a sequel.

Beautifully written with well developed characters that are flawed and very real. You are immersed immediately into the tale. A gorgeous read that is sure to be a hit amongst YA fantasy enthusiasts.

5 out of 5 stars. Good reading for a rainy day.

This is one of the best fantasy books I have read with an intriguing plot, amazing characters, beautiful character dynamics and such exquisite writing! This book deserves to be recognized because it brings a sharp uniqueness to the ya genre. The plot twists were fantastic! The cover design draws you in and sets the atmosphere. It is within the same universe as the first novel. I personally love when we see books continuing within the same universe/world.

Thank you to Netgallery and the publisher for providing me for a digital arc for my honest review.

"The Girl the Sea Gave Back" has a beautifully designed cover. I need to be honest here, I didn't realize this was a part two in a series, what I gathered from researching the series. It is in the same universe but it is not about the same characters as the first novel. Definitely believe it held it's own as a stand alone novel. But maybe I would've been more invested in the characters if I would've read part one. I enjoyed reading "The Girl the Sea Gave Back”, but I wasn't in love with it. There are two center characters, Tova and Halvard who are from two different communities that have been at war for centuries. Personally, I loved Halvard he is a very strong character who goes through quite a bit of character development. I also cherished the view we get of Halvard's relationship with his family. Tova on the other hand is very hard to like, she is closed off for good reason but I felt closed off from her as well. Would still recommend giving it a read.

Jess

I loved the sky in the deep so I had high expectations for this book and it delivered! I loved the world, the writing, the characters. This author has definitely become one of my auto buys! I love everything she writes!

I ended up getting a physical copy from the author, so I didn't read this one. I like this book. Though I didn't love it as much as her first book I did enjoy the characters. I can't wait to read her next book.