The Descent of the Drowned is a dark and enthralling story.

First, you must be aware that this book mentions (but not in too explicit scenes) rape (involving young kids and teens), self-harm, torture, murder, and physical abuse.

This book deals with a lot of topics. Some are darker and heavier than others, but everything is well developed, and it is consistent with the storyline and the world in which the two main characters live. The traumatic events are not there only to elicit the reader’s compassion, they help us understand the past and complexity of the characters as we realize how these awful events are part of their everyday life. For the lower casts of the society, and the outcast clans, the days are filled with fear and poverty, people hardly know who to trust and they can only rely on their family and friends since the authorities in place do nothing to help them.

There is a lot of information in the first chapters, and it was a little confusing at first, but it is nothing major, and it did not prevent me from understanding the story. Everything eventually makes sense as I continued reading, I got used to the titles and the different deities. The glossary at the end does help a lot to understand the titles and thus the relationships between the different characters. I admit that some parts were harder to read because they involved young kids, but these moments are part of what makes this story so poignant. It shows us a world where greed and fear rule over compassion and love, and where the ugliest parts of human nature are shown.

The pace is a little slow for the first half of the book or so, but the description of Roma’s life is interesting, so I did not mind reading about her at all. We get to know her and Leviathan better, see their thoughts, their fears, and their flaws. Roma’s chapters are full of hardships and trauma, but it is not the only thing that defines her, she is very cynical, strong-willed, and resilient. She hopes for a future where she would be free of slavery, she is a great character and she really grew on me. Even though Roma and Leviathan are two very different persons, their stories are both about fragile hope, a quest for freedom, self-discovery, guilt, and empowerment. The author has a way to get us invested in the characters' stories from the very beginning.

One thing that bothers me a little is that the magic-system is not clear. It took quite a while before it was explained, and even now I am not exactly sure how it works. I hope we will have more details in the next book (hopefully there will be a second book?), I would also like to have more backstory about the secondary characters.

The ending was unexpected, but not exactly a cliff-hanger. Overall, this is a heartbreaking story, but beautifully written and well developed. I would definitely recommend it but be aware of the trigger warnings at the beginning of the book.

I would like to start out and say this is book is quite dark and tackles a variety of horrible issues and can be quite triggering. The author has provided the trigger warnings in the beginning of the book and they are physical and emotional abuse, mention of rape and sodomisation, sexual assault, suicide, bigotry, drug abuse, and human trafficking.

This book is set in a colonised Indo-Persian world and is inspired by pre-Islamic Arabian mythology.

Now, I am from India myself and I believe though it was painful to read, the author accurately captured the horrors of sacred prostitution. It was in my opinion, well done. Dēvadasis in India still exist and is still practiced to this day. It really hit home for me, all of their struggles and pain knowing it is still prevalent here.

The story revolves around the two main characters
Roma and Leviathan.

Roma: She was such a good main character, I could feel her pain and struggles through the book deeply and wanted so badly for her to escape what she had been forced into. She is a strong willed and determined character, very protective of her brother Chirag and we can see that in the way she is ready to sacrifice herself for him. Although she is degraded, hurt, and abused, she never backs down and always fights and tries to persevere. Her story was so well written and I loved reading her arc throughout the book. She always questioned the system she was manipulated into and never believed the reasoning for her pain, she reasoned that her worth and self was much more than she was taught and she evidently was proved right of course. I loved seeing her take power for herself at the end, through all the hardship she’s been through. I CANNOT wait for what that will lead to in the next installement.

Leviathan: He is an intriguing character, a true morally grey one. At the moment he is more bad than good, with how he was brought up and raised and is trying his best to unlearn that and be better. One thing about him is he never makes excuses for himself and realises that his actions are wrong but does them any way, which is the exact problem. I can't say I love him but I did thoroughly enjoy reading about him and watching him discover and try to learn what’s right and wrong and to try and use his opportunities to help the people around him instead of being the weapon he was raised as.

I adored the side characters as well, (Ashar, Junho, Chirag and Malev etc.) they were well fleshed out and added depth and humor to the story many times.

I loved the writing and the world it was set in although, the world was a little hard to follow with. Lots of names and tales with not a lot background were dropped and it was a little confusing although this may have just been with me. It was quite a slow paced story and I feel like not much happened so much as creating a serious groundwork for the story to really pickup and start in the next book which was the only reason I lowered the rating a little bit. This was still fine as it really allowed the characters to shine through and for them to be really fleshed out, developed and understood.
This as easily a 4.5 stars read and that ending absolutely shook me and I’m eagerly anticipating the next book.

arc provided by netgalley for an honest review

first thing i want to mention is that i know that this book is categorised as ya but i would categorise it as high fantasy. there are a lot of dark topics mentioned and explored and a good chunk of the ya audience is children and this is not something i would recommend to them. this is a beautifully written book and i cannot wait for more people to read it but this is not something i would recommend without informing them about these topics because they can be very triggering.

the descent of the drowned is set in a colonised indo-persian world and inspired by pre islamic arabian mythology.

we have two main characters in this book:
— leviathan: bastard son of the immortal tyrant but also son to a mother from one of the persecuted clans. he is considered casteless but is a brutally built weapon who executes in his father’s name. he believes that his soul is a lost cause but as we read more we learn that maybe there is a way for him to get out of his father’s clutches.
— roma: a sacred slave of a goddess who wants nothing more than her freedom and safety for her brother. but as others start to learn, she draws people towards her and is slowly intertwined with levi’s storyline

ana lal din’s writing is absolutely marvellous and i kept wanting to keep on reading. the world building, the setting, and the characters all sucked me in. i normally do not like slow paced books especially if it’s a fantasy book but i loved the way this book was written. this is not a book you want to read quickly, there are a lot of characters and revelations and i would recommend going back sometimes so you can refresh your memory on who the characters are.

i loved both main characters as well as several of the side characters (chirag, junho, malev, ashar). they’re all vastly different characters and their loyalties lie in different directions and all very important. a big part of this book is mystery and learning more about all of the characters after each revelation has been a wonderful experience. i cannot wait to see them all interact with one another. several of them share scenes but i’m intrigued to see them as a group share some scenes.

while this book has dark topics, i found myself laughing several times because these characters really are hilarious. i love the bond between chirag and roma, levi and junho and malev as well as that of the white wolves. they’re all very devoted to one another and would die for each other.

one thing i particularly loved is that levi knows he is not a good guy and unlike most morally grey male characters, he doesn’t try and victimise himself because of that. he has a fucked up childhood and is constantly struggling with his inner demons and the damage that his father inflicted on him. roma to a degree does understand what it is like to live with a terrible past but they are both very different characters and have very different views and ways of thinking. levi has a very strategic mind and it every intriguing to read about but he does what he does for his end goal and unfortunately most of the time there is collateral damage, collateral damage he knows will happen but he is looking at the end goal. meanwhile roma very much thinks about the collateral damage and in her case, her brother. she’s seen countless family members brutally suffer when a relative does something and would never wish that on her brother.

i absolutely loved this book and i cannot wait to read the next one.

trigger warnings: physical and emotional abuse, mention of rape and sodomisation, sexual assault, suicide, bigotry, drug abuse, and human trafficking. (provided by the author)

5 stars. Thank you to Netgalley and White tigress press for sending me an arc in exchange of this honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The descent of the drowned is a slow paced read that deals with such heavy topics. I was very surprised to see the author include a trigger warning in the beginning of the novel and I found that these topics were very well dealt with.

I love the setting of this book, the indo-Persian world was so exciting to explore and the Arabian mythology was enticing. The characters I found were very strong and independent making them extremely likeable and seeing them overcome their challenges made them very realistic and Ana Lal Din did a wonderful job.

This book was entertaining and kept me on my toes, I fell in love with the characters and I got so attached I even cried. I would certainly recommend this book.

Arc provided by White Tigress Press via Netgalley in exchange of an honest review .

Thank you to Netgalley, Ana Lal Din, and White Tigress Press for a free ebook copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I first want to say this book covers a lot of very deep and dark subjects. Here are some trigger warnings: this book does discuss assault(a lot), human and child trafficking, drug abuse, and violence.

Now I’m normally one for dark books and dark stories, but even for me, this book was a bit difficult to handle and get through. I though eventually something good would happen, but it never become truly lighthearted, everything wrong just seemed to happen, which is unique for me to read in a book.

This story follows Roma and Leviathan who live very separate lives. Roma is basically a glorified prostitute who is supposed to be descended from the goddesses, and Levi is basically the bastard son of the king, or lord of the land. They both have dark pasts, or dark events that have occurred to them.

I really admired Roma for being so strong throughout the book despite what had happened to her in the past, and doing her best to protect her brother, her sisters, and other female friends. It is just awful, so awful what happened to her. There were many times when she wanted to give up. And she had said one time that she maybe she didn’t have the courage to end her life. Well, I think it takes courage to keep going, to fight and keep living, not give up. I’m glad she kept going, especially when nothing ever went well for her, ever.

Now Leviathan, or Levi, I love him. I love to read about a dark morally grey character that is trying to figure out who he is, who he should be, what he should be, what he should do. Should he be like his cruel and terrible father, or his lovely and kind mother? This boy is fighting some dark events that happened from his past, and he knows he’s responsible and it’s created this monster out of him, and yet, he wants to fight his violent tendencies. He wants to do what is right. I loved his growth through the book from being violent and pretty much uncaring, to someone actually trying to take control of his life and actions and be a better person. He was my favorite character and had the most growth in my opinion.

Now the story was different and much darker than what I am used to. What I do wish is that there was more world building. I was unsure where anyone was located, or how far the different places people went were. I also was confused by the timeline. I thought it was a fantasy world set more in the past, and yet there were some random modernness to it, such as the guns, the cigarettes, and some of the dialogue.

That is really my only qualm about the book. Otherwise, it is a unique world, with unique characters, and seriously a unique story. And the way it ended, I’m just left wondering what????? Like what just happened? It took an even darker turn and I didn’t even know that could happen at this point! I’m unsure whether I will read the next book only because this story was so dark, and it was difficult to get through. Maybe after a year or and a lot of lighthearted reads, I will be able to read the sequel 😊

The biggest thing I think worth mentioning is content. This book is marketed for Young Adult readers. The "honor rape" and other topics seemed a bit heavy for Young Adult readers. But...perhaps many parents and younger readers will not mind this content. I personally loved A Handmaid's Tale and felt many of the same vibes from this book. For my own personal enjoyment, I liked the book. It may not be suitable for all readers, though.

I think the writing of this book is lovely! The story was engaging. The cover is stunning. It's a pretty heavy story, but I tend to enjoy that kind of thing. I appreciate the opportunity to review this book!

I want to thank Netgalley, Ana Lal Din, and White Tigress Press for giving me a chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Before reading this book, I want to give trigger and content warnings for rape, suicide, self harm, other forms of gaslighting and violence towards women.

Okay, for the characters first; I love the personality of Roma, I love how she questioned almost everything in this world. Like she is stubborn but in a good way and despite feeling trapped she still cares for others. She doesn't just settle for what the system says and she really stands up for what she believed and love. The portrayal of trauma she's experiencing are so raw and honest, and I think she is a good example of a damaged character but still standing strong. As for Leviathan, he also has issues and battles in his own head but what makes him a good character is because even though he has those issues and burden, he still really cares not just for other people but also to animals. I love that trait of him. He clearly have flaws and the way the author writes this flaws of him is kinda realistic. And the bonus thing for his personality is he has the best responses to other characters, like a straight-up savage I must say.

This book is tackling serious and heavy topics, but the good thing is the author writes it in a balanced way, like you were not be overwhelmed with heavy topics but also she writes it in a way that is realistic and do not invalidate the topics. In the first 10% of the book, I can already see the unfortunate situations of the lower born people in this book, it doesn't just "tell" us that the situation of this people are bad but instead it actually "show" us. The way the author narrates how messed up the situation of every low-born people in this world is so good. I honestly feel more bad for the situation of EVERY women in this book--- high born or low born--- the men just treated them like a pawn and they're always the one who should adjust for the men. Like they are some objects that can be tossed aside like a trash.

The situation of some characters in this book are so horrible and really sad. There are so much trauma and suffering in this book to the point that I want to scream at the author to give them a fucking break just for once. Lol. But the good thing is, it's not THAT heavy to read. My problem with reading fantasy books are i'm easily too overwhelmed with emotions while reading, and I really hate that. But this book? It's not the case. I mean it's so dramatic and dark but not too over-whelming. Even though there are so much tragedy in this book, there's still that thing that it stops you from being so overwhelmed, and I can't explain what is it. But you'll know it you read it!

As for the world-building of the book, it is well-written. Like the cultures and religions, the beliefs of the people and the political system. It was all in-sync. I also love it that the author also pay more details of like clothing of the characters and their accessories to the places of each scene itself. This was such a fascinating read.

Although i'm assuming that this is a slow-burn fantasy, I still really enjoy the thrill of reading it. I keep saying to myself "just one more chapter" because the thrill in this book are so good that it becomes so addicting and keeps giving me the need to know what happens next. A plus point also for thought-provoking statements about beliefs and power.

My only problem with this book is that it's a little hard to get into it. Like I need more explanation to some parts of detail of this world, for example the terms they used or the names the character calls each other. It just makes me a little bit confused at the start.

But overall, I rated this book 4.5 out of 5 stars! This was such an enjoying read. And i'm really hoping that this is a series or has a sequel. Because I need more from this world!

Thank you to NetGalley and White Tigress Press for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Hooo boy, where do I even start? First of all, I absolutely LOVED this book! It's incredibly raw, brutal, yet honest in the way it looks at people's will to survive and the lengths they'll go to to either protect or hide their humanity (and their reasons for either as well). The imagery from the very first page is stunning, pulling from South Asian and Middle Eastern cultures to paint a vivid landscape that masks horror with its beauty. Although I'm not South Asian myself, I was able to catch certain words and gestures that I've seen in Bollywood movies that if I'd not watched so many of them I would have missed (ex. pinching one's throat to swear an oath or convey honesty). I loved catching those little touches that made the story that much more real (at least for me). On top of that, the last few chapters that really started to tap into the mythological aspects of the overall story were just *chef's kiss*.

As much as I greatly enjoyed the story and the characters (I want to wrap Roma in the fuzziest blanket possible and protect her), it's very much not an easy read for sensitive readers. There is quite a lot of mental, emotional, and physical abuse, mentions of rape and sexual abuse (especially of children), self-hatred, unhealthy coping mechanisms, PTSD, trauma, human trafficking, genocide, mentions of self-mutilation, genital mutilation, drug abuse, murder, animal death, suicidal ideation, etc. Sensitive readers should definitely heed the content warnings.

I know this isn't officially out until March, but omg I can't wait until the next book is released, too! I'm so looking forward to seeing how far Roma (and Leviathan, but mostly Roma) goes to be free.

Ahh. I loved the title, i loved the cover and the synopsis interested me. However the first few chapters was such an information dump mixed with pretty writing that i couldn't take anything in and by the end of the second chapter id forgotten everything from the first chapter along with the meanings of the words and the gods i'd just been told about. I just couldnt make end or tail of it. So to save myself some frustration and forced reading under confusion i gave up.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this arc

The Descent of the Drowned is an odd name for this, and it started pretty difficult to follow. I was stumbling over words and descriptions within the world building that left blanks which then left blanks within the world.

Aside from that, the world building was well done. It's not too heavy where you need constant refreshers, but you know where you are.

The two MC's storylines burned a little too slow for me in terms of their crossing, but as the story developed it was understandable.

The only main issue I had - and to note this isn't an actually issue - was the character names and titles are simply hard for me to pronounce which pulls me out of the story. Again, this is no fault of the story or writer, but simply my own capabilities as a reader, as I felt I needed to do a lot of research to understand *what* I was reading.

With that being said, I felt there were a few plot holes that could have been filled earlier to make the entrance of the world and story a little smoother, but overall I was intrigued and would love to see where this world and story take us.

I’ve had my eye on this book for months, ever since I found the author’s character art on Instagram. I KNEW I needed to read it when it was available. So I want to thank NetGalley and the author for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

WOW!

This book completely and utterly blew my mind. I fell in love with Roma and Levi right off the bat. Without a doubt, they will be the slow burn of the century and I’m totally 100% here for the angst and (hopefully) healing that’s to come in future books in this series.

Now for the story. The first several chapters were a struggle for me as I had a hard time keeping character names and nicknames straight. But that grew easier along the way as I got a better understanding of the characters and the world that the author has weaved for us here. There are some very heavy topics covered in this book: rape being the one worth mentioning in case anyone is triggered by it. It is also worth noting depictions of human trafficking, prostitution, drug use, and graphic depictions of violence.

This book took me by surprise in every way. There are revelations that’ll blow your mind and an ending that’ll leave you crawling and begging for more. I absolutely loved this story and I can’t wait for book 2!

The Descent Of The Drowned will definitely make you love it. Such an enthralling, magical world with utterly flawed characters and an unflinching plotline.
It throws you right into a new universe that the author has created. It has this almost melodic quality to it that it hypnotises you that instant. Roma’s story is heart-wrenching. She is a strong willed creature and she promises herself never to accept the fate that is supposed to be hers.
While Leviathan grows up casteless, torn between two cultures: his tyrant father’s and his tribal mother. The choice is his and he is raging between being a human or becoming his father’s pawn. And their fate alters the world’s.
I honestly loved it but it ended with a bloody cliff-hanger and I hate that. Also, the issue most people might have is that the pacing of this book is neither fast nor slow. The fist part goes gradually but I got to know the characters more. While the second part picks up and it passed in a blur.

The Descent of the Drowned was one of my most anticipated books of 2021. I was lucky enough to get an ARC from NetGalley, and this book did not disappoint! I absolutely loved it.

First of all, this book deals with a lot of heavy topics, and there is a trigger warning at the beginning of the book. (a thing every book should have) The trigger warning is for physical and emotional abuse, mention of rape and sodomization, sexual assault, suicide, bigotry, drug abuse, and human trafficking. None of it is really graphic, and, in my opinion, these topics are dealt with very well, but it can still be triggering and hard to read.

The Descent of the Drowned is set in a colonized Indo-Persian world, and it is inspired by Pre-Islamic Arabian mythology. It follows the two main characters, Roma and Leviathan. Roma and Leviathan are very different people, but both of their stories are about power, self-discovery, freedom, and redemption.
"They were both survivors. They never quit. No matter how badly they were beaten, or how much they bled."


Characters:
"She wouldn’t sob. She wouldn’t shatter. Never again."
Roma… Roma is everything to me. She is so strong, and she has been through so much throughout her whole life. Her relationship with Chirag is probably my favorite relationship in this book. He is Roma’s brother, but she raised him as her own son, and their relationship is such a big part of her character. She has been taught to be silent and to serve men, and I just loved seeing her find her voice. Roma also broke me. Like, she absolutely broke me. Her story is so heart wrenching and she made me cry multiple times. She just has my heart, and she’s definitely one of my new favorite characters of all time.

"He felt it now. The self-disgust. Things were easier for him when he didn’t have to control his demons, so he let them run savage, and as a consequence people around him got hurt."
Normally when I read about anti-heroes it’s a good person with a bad side, but Leviathan is kind of the opposite. He has done a lot of bad things, and his morals are pretty messed up after all of the things he has been through and all of the things people have made him do. He still does a lot of terrible things, but I still love him. He’s so well written, and his story breaks my heart. In this book, he struggles a lot with redemption because he doesn’t think that he deserves it after everything he has done.

Also – the side characters. The side characters are amazing. I loved so many of them. I love Chirag, Junho, Kanoni, Malev… There were so many good characters.

The story is kind of slow-paced, which I’m usually not the biggest fan of in fantasy books, but I really loved it in this book. I think it was mostly because I got so invested in Roma and Leviathan so early on. In my opinion, the slow pacing makes this book better. It really gives you time to get to know the characters, and it’s just so amazingly written. I do really love the plot and how different parts of it really challenged the main characters and forced them to make quick decisions.
For me, it was a page-turner from the beginning, but it wasn’t because a lot was happening with the plot, it was just because I was so invested in the characters that I needed to know what was happening to them. The second half of the book really picked up on the plot, though, and there were so many reveals that I hadn’t seen coming.

This book really put me through it. I got so invested in the characters so fast, and the more I learned about them, the more I loved them. They also made me cry. Multiple times.

The only complaint I can think about right now is that it took a little too long for the magic system to really be explained, and I’m still not sure if I completely understand it, but it’s definitely interesting and really intriguing. I would also have loved to see a bit more backstory from side characters like Yoshi and Malev. There were hints to their stories, but I would love to see more of them.

The ending?? The ending!! It destroyed me. I need more.

In conclusion, this book is both heartbreaking and beautiful, and I am in love with it. If it sounds interesting to you, I will definitely recommend it, but remember to check the trigger warnings first! There are a lot, and even though it’s not graphic or in deep detail, it’s still present throughout most of the book because some of the topics are a big part of the main characters’ stories.

I want to start with that this book does cover some heavy topics, not out right in deep detail its mostly just mentioned but just a slight warning for anyone who would love to read this book, that being said the book itself is completely amazing and the way it handles such topics is just heart wrenchingly beautiful.

The world Ana Lal Din has created is beautiful as it is devastating, the characters really try to overcome the circumstances they are given, its all just so beautifully written. The reveals in this book were amazing, I am completely obsessed with it and cannot wait to see where the story takes me next.

Roma is such a strong MC despite everything she has been through and is put through, she somehow manages to get above it. My heart breaks for her, she is brought up into this world of lives and even when she pushes for rightness and answers people still turn their back on her but she doesnt let that stop her. She is such a well written character and i love her to pieces, i cant wait to see where her character goes from here. and that reveal at the end?!?!?! OMG my girl is gonna push and survive I know it.

Levi (Leviathon) he is just so amazing, his story is well established and very driven. His story starts with him losing his mother and just wanting answers just wanting to protect and have justice for his people, he really doesnt take anything from nobody and his character is one of my favorites i have come across in a long while. The way he can tell Roma has been through everything and just respects her space and really just wants to earn her trust and hopefully and HEA is in their future because boy do they deserve it.

in conclusion,
I absolutely am amazed by this book and once I saw it I knew I wanted to read and I'm so lucky I received this ARC because I am completely in love with it and cant wait to see where they go from where they are. the ending really left me hanging and i need answers , I just need more. This book was written so beautifully and magically. This author deserves all the hype in the world.

*ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I dived into this book ecstatically because it sounded so good and intriguing and honestly I thought that I would love this book after reading it. well, the book was indeed good but I have to admit that I didn't love it. I wanted to love the book but I couldn't.
The writing style in this book was pretty and the plot of the book was slow-paced but it did not drag on or boring. I think this is the kind of slow pacing that does not make you feel bored because in that moment you also get to know the characters and all the things that happen are also interesting to know.
In conclusion, I found this book to be alright but still a bit dull. Don't let my review put you off because I know that lots of other people loved it.

I loved the characters. I loved the dialogue and descriptions. I ?I've the events and pacing. Great read . Quick