Axie Oh is an amazing writer. Her writing is detailed, yet so easily digested that reading her work never feels like a chore. The cover is absolutely stunning and a beautiful addition to any collection.

After loving this, we immediately purchased it!

Everything about this book is absolutely art. A beautifully woven tapestry of folk lore and original story. The characters and their development were perfection. Mina was a strong rash protagonist with the purest of intentions. Everything she did was for her people and her family. The secondary cast was magical and I loved all the creatures, spirits, Gods and Goddesses, and especially the men of the Lotus house. The world building was a masterpiece up there in league with my favorite SG movies. The setting absolutely beautiful and tangible. I was so involved with everything happening I never say the little twists and reveals coming. I fell in love with every word and every page. The heartbreak and the mystery surrounding the gods was palpable, along with the hope and love.

I'm calling it right now, people. This will be my favorite YA fantasy pick of 2022.

Axie Oh's take on the Korean folk tale, "The Tale of Shim Cheong", and breathes life, romance, and mystery into the simple story. Shim Cheong waits at the prow of a boat, getting her last glimpse of earth above the sea before becoming the Sea-God's Bride, an annual sacrifice made to the Sea-God to calm the storming seas and promise rains for a good harvest. For the last 100 years, however, the Sea God has not been favorable to her people, and many believe the gods have abandoned them. As Mina waits with her brother, who loves Shim Cheong, she decides to make the sacrifice herself and takes Shim's place, leaving her fate in her own hands. What she discovers in the land beneath the sea is a Sea God enchanted and protected by noblemen Kirin, Namgi, and Shin. As she begins to investigate how to break the Sea God's enchantment, she discovers more secrets about herself, her fate, and the world of gods and goddesses and their own political machinations at play.

As I mentioned before, I adored this book. The pacing and the plot had me wanting to read this book in one sitting (which I almost nearly accomplished). The plot twists were believable, unpredictable, and heart wrenching at times. By the end I was completely immersed in this world and lightly sobbing at the ending. I'm the happier for having read it, and I will be purchasing a copy for myself post haste.

This book was such a calming and gentle read that you don't even realize you're reading a book - you feel wholly enveloped in the world Axie Oh has created. I absolutely ADORED this book and am so thankful to the author and the publisher that I was given an ARC on Netgalley! 12/10 wish I could experience reading this for the first time again!

By the gods, the vibes of this book are SUBLIME.

Before picking it up, I kept seeing this book compared to the film Spirited Away and I'm now here to report that that is 100% accurate. This book is incredibly atmospheric and packed with a dark whimsy that only occasionally drifts to the light side. It's absolutely beautiful.

I deeply respect Oh's willingness to embrace the darker side of this world. I'll keep things vague so I don't spoil anything, but as much as I was enjoying castles and ponds and a tiny town, there were certain moments that forced the reader to confront the fact that this story primarily takes place in an underworld of sorts. Death and destruction, grief and violence, all take center stage at various points and somehow Oh makes it work within this lush world she created. Even reflecting back on this read and the world it takes place in, I cannot fathom how she makes it feel as balanced and beautiful as she does, but it's perfect.

I do have to admit that I struggled a bit with the story itself. I sometimes had the feeling that I missed something. Like events were taking place and I knew they needed to take place, but couldn't quite put my finger on exactly why. I completely acknowledge that this could be on me as a reader and I missed something along the way, but I also feel like it merits mention in case I'm not alone in this. It just felt like there were some parts where the plot ran a little thin and details slipped through. But even with these missing pieces, I still found the characters and the overall story engaging enough to continue reading without getting too hung up on what I felt I was missing.

Another thing I really enjoyed was all the different types of love that Oh explores throughout the book. Whether it's Mina and her love for her family, or the discussion about marrying the Sea God, or Mina and the children she meets upon entering the sea, or Shin and all his buddies and their little pack of found family. Oh really lets these dynamics each have their time to shine and it's such a warm experience. All these little relationships really brought the serotonin and I could read fluff about any of them all day, every day.

All in all, an incredibly beautiful read about family and grief, love and destiny, and choosing your own path, no matter what obstacles stand in your way. Would absolutely recommend.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan for an ARC in exchange for honest review.

With sharp prose and intimate characterization, The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is an absolute stunner. I definitely recommend!

4.25 !
I really enjoyed this book a lot and would have read it in one sitting if not for obligations. I think this would be a 5 star YA read for me if it had taken the time to slow down to develop the worldbuilding and dynamics between the characters more instead of quickly jumping from action sequence to action sequence, But overall, a really great YA fantasy and probably my favorite February read.

What you can expect from this book:
-A Korean retelling (The tale of Shim Cheong)
-Fun cast of all Asian characters (I really liked Shin and Namgi)
-A great female lead
-Spirited Away vibes

Thank you to netgalley & Macmillan for a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

3 stars. An underwhelming and underdeveloped story, under the sea!

SUMMARY (spoiler-free): This book sets the stage for what seems like a beautifully embroidered fantasy world, primarily focused around Korean mythology and culture. We begin in the middle of a beautiful maiden (not the main character) being sacrificed to the mysterious and powerful Sea God, who will be appeased by her sacrifice. As the intended bride of the Sea God, she will join him below in the murky but beautiful depths of the ocean and mingle with the other gods and spirits whose intricate world is beyond human imagination.

But of course, every (good) story has a daring and brave heroine, which turns out to be Mina. Mina jumps in to save this maiden from her unknown fate, and instead offers herself to be sacrificed to the mighty Sea God. As such, Mina is swept below the depths and enters a world beyond her comprehension that is rife with (palatable, YA-level) tensions and power struggles.

However, something is deeply wrong with the Sea God, and Mina is quickly tossed into saving the spirit world, all while balancing her loyalties to her beloved human family up above...

MY THOUGHTS: Meh! It's a big meh from me. Which is pretty darn disappointing since, you know, readers are hyping this up to be the next Spirited Away (my favorite movie of all time).

THE GOOD:
-World-building: The intricate details and world-building really painted a picture of the colorful spirit world beneath the waves. I enjoyed the most mundane tasks that Mina went on, such as shopping in a crowded district and (my favorite) eating delicious food (unfortunately, that was probably the best part of the book...explained below). The colors were vibrant and the spirit world's cities were bustling!
-Umm...honestly that's about it. Which is...definitely not a good sign.

THE BAD:
-The plot (twist): Dude...all this hype and build-up in the actual story never actually led to anything! I'm so frustrated with the ending. It clearly was not well thought out, nor did it make any type of sense at all. It was like watching a badly developed play - the set and stage was incredible, but no matter how beautiful the background setting is (world-building), it can NEVER completely carry the actual plot of the story. The flesh and bones of the plot were lacking, which is such a shame, since we had this amazing set-up!
-Lack of foreshadowing: Following the above, again, when the big twist came, I was like "Whaaat?" but NOT in a good way. In fact, I did not see the twist coming, because it was executed poorly. We got all this hinting at a beautifully crafted myth and backstory, and yet the actual twist is so, so, SO disappointing because the author failed to properly put in foreshadowing details that made ACTUAL SENSE (see below: underdeveloped characters).
-Dry and boring love triangle (spoiler-free): This goes hand in hand with the below point, but...at this point I've lost faith in a well-developed, compelling love triangle. At no point do we actually find out why Mina likes one of the main love interests - other than just kind of being pushed toward him. As for the other main love interest....he's literally so dry and boring. I strongly believe that interactions with two different love interests should showcase two DIFFERENT sides of a heroine. Like, isn't the whole point that they're two completely different people, who bring out COMPLETELY DIFFERENT reactions, so we get to learn about the heroine as a whole? Anyways...lowkey I was rooting for Mina just to not end up with any of them.
-Underdeveloped characters: One of my pet peeves is when the author fails to flesh out characters. Yeah, yeah, I know, for a short story like this, I'm sure the author ran into pacing issues. Still, I felt that the characters (including the main character Mina herself!) SHOULD have been way more developed! The main character, the love interest, the supporting characters, and even the gods were just flat archetypes. Here we have the strong heroine, stoic love interest #1, stoic love interest #2, cold and mysterious side character #1, cheery side character #2, and so on. Bottom line is - every story NEEDS fully fleshed out, 3-dimensional characters that are compelling, human, and real. We should care about them because we feel attached to them, and because they are sympathetic. I found none of that here, which was so, so, SO disappointing.

TLDR; Wow, I was way more disappointed than I thought. If you like BADLY PLANNED PLOT (TWISTS) + BORING LOVE INTERESTS + STALE CHARACTERS but with INTRICATE, BEAUTIFUL FANTASY DETAILS + THE OCEAN, I GUESS?, this is the book for you. Otherwise, it's a PASS from me!

A great fantasy read with a beautiful cover, which always helps to draw me in. The Spirited Away comparison is perfect, and fans of that movie will absolutely love the mix of magic and mythology in this book. Mina was a compelling main character and the romance was a great slow burn. Can't wait to read more fantasy from this author.

In a land where gods are real, demons and spirits walk in the land of the undead, and the fate of her homeland hangs in the balance, Mina fights to save her family and village from a God's curse. For 100 years, deadly storms have plagued Mina's homeland. It is accepted that this started when the only person the Sea God ever loved--a kind and righteous emperor--was murdered by a warring kingdom. Believing that they have been cursed as a result, the people sacrifice a girl each year to serve as the Sea God's bride. When he is appeased, the vicious storms will end and the people will know peace.

Shim Cheong is this year's Sea God's bride. She is widely accepted as the most beautiful maiden in all of the land and she has been awaiting this day since she was chosen as a young teenager. But things are not that simple. She is the caretaker of her blind father and she loves and is loved by a sweet young man named Joon. Mina defies cultural rules and joins her brother, Joon, on the boat taking Shim Cheong to her death. There, Shim Cheong shows a moment of fear and Mina jumps from the boat herself, declaring that she is this year’s Sea God’s bride.

By doing this, Mina is sent to the Spirit Realm. She finds the Sea God but he is stuck in an enchanted sleep. Over the next thirty days (the period of time that someone from the Land of the Living can stay in the Spirit Realm), Mina has to try and figure out how to wake the Sea God to save her people; maneuver the world she has fallen into; and navigate the relationships she is developing as she joins a motley crew of gods, beasts, demons, and spirits.


I am still blown away by this book. From the very first page, Axie Oh thrusts the reader into a fantastical world full of imagery, magic, and power. Even though I am not familiar with the original Korean folktale this work is derived from, I was still able to be transported into the world that was created.

Full disclosure, I originally requested this book because it was compared to one of my favorite films of all time—Spirited Away. I was doubtful that something could live up to that comparison but I was proven wrong. The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea embodied the feeling and imagery that I associate with Spirited Away while still maintaining its entirely original story. I truly felt transported into another world while I was reading this and it was a joy to experience.

The only reason I am rating this 4 stars instead of 5 is because—for me personally—the pacing was a little off. There were sections I had to turn around and read again because I did not recognize that a time jump had happened and I found it a little confusing. That genuinely could have just been my reading comprehension though.

**Big BIG thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC copy in exchange for an honest review!

A really delightful fantasy based on the Korean folktale of Shim Cheong. I was unfamiliar with the folktale prior to reading this book, but it did not hinder my love of it in any way. Mina as a main character is completely delightful. From the moment she sacrifices herself to become the bride of the Sea God in order to save her brother's love, I was rooting for her. The slow burn romance that develops with Shin is exciting, and the sweetness in discovering the true nature of Mask and Dai was a total surprise. I am thrilled to see more BIPOC representation in YA fantasy and I will definitely be adding this book to my shelves.

A fascinating tale infused with mythology and magic! I thoroughly enjoyed this tale. The pacing was solid and the writing was immaculate!

Rating: 4/5
I was given this eARC by NetGalley for my honest review

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.
Mina 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 had amazing world building, the attention to details really helped bring the book together. The author did an amazing job with this fantasy, I loved reading and learning about their folklore, the connections they had with humans and the gods. You get a wonderful mix of romance, action, devotion, and loyalty. The character development in this book really helped make them relatable and lovable. I really enjoyed seeing the growth of Mina and the Sea God, as well as all the other characters. Mina has to be one of my favorite characters, She is a strong, independent, determined , and kindhearted teenager. Her love of her country and family is one that I can really understand and that made this book so much better for me. I loved watching the new ideas and decisions that all the characters made, from the spirits in the realm to the Gods/Goddess that Mina met. I loved that this book did not just have the typical romance like all the books I have read recently. I love seeing the love between family members, love between friends and of course love that is a slow-burn. I learned a lot about the folklore/mythology with the way this author writes, she really brings this realm to life with her vivid and whimsical writing. This book is one that is unique and anyone who picks it up to read will not be disappointed with it.
I only rated this book a 4/5 because I found it to be a little slow paced at the beginning but then it really picked up. If you’re a lover of YA, fantasy, action, romance, family and honor then you must pick up this book.

I want to thank NetGalley & Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group for allowing me the chance to read this book and Axie Oh for writing this beautiful book.

Welcome to my stop for #TheGirlWhoFellBeneaththeSeaTour.
So grateful and big thanks to @axieoh, @fiercereads, @coloredpagesblogtours for this wonderful eARC

Review: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Quote: My fate is not yours to decide, my fate belongs to me

Wow, this book is everything. Trust Axie Oh’s books to always get me out of a reading funk.

I always love a good mythology re-telling and this book pays such a wonderful tribute to the Korean mythology, The Tale of Shim Cheong.

The story begins with Mina sacrificing herself to take the place of Shim Cheong, whom her brother is in love with when she is tasked with the sacrifice to marry the Sea Emperor as an appeasement for all the deadly storms ravaging the village.

I love the world building. It is so vivid and enchanting that I could imagine it as our ML, Mina takes us into through her journey in the Spirit Realm.

I adore Mina, her fierce independence, her strong will, her love for her family and friends makes her such a lovable and relatable character. I also adore Shin, her love interest and their slow building romance is ❤️. All the other characters that I am introduced to along the way, I love as they all play a role in helping Mina through her journey.

I. Could. Not. Put. The. Book. Down. The story is very relatable that some scenes would bring tears to my eyes as I smile, laugh, cried and love as I read the book. The story has a lyrical feel to it and the plot and all the scenes make sense and is very well written. There were some Gibli-related scenes to Howl’s Moving Castle and Spirited Away and Dragons!!

I also love how Axie was able to incorporate the red string of fate to this novel. Overall, I highly, highly recommend this book. It’s an enjoyable read for sure!

The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea was a highly anticipated book for me and it did not disappoint. The cover is simply breathtaking and the story is filled with stunning imagery and sensory details. Axie Oh’s writing is lyrical and poetic. Readers will find themselves rooting for Mina against insurmountable odds as she attempts to save her family and village from the whims of capricious gods. The characters are mysterious and carefully unveil what is truly happening in the strange new spirit world that Mina has found herself in.

Mina’s journey is an atmospheric and captivating story. I loved the twists and reveals that were thoughtfully built into the story. I can’t wait to reread and look for all the clues that I may have missed on my initial reading. The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea is a romantic, moving, and dreamy tale. I hope we see more from this world one day! Maybe a novella to follow up on these characters? I’m looking forward to reading more from Axie Oh. I would recommend this for fans of Spirited Away, Daughter of the Moon Goddess, and Roshani Chokshi. Thank you so much to Axie Oh, Feiwel & Friends, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for this opportunity!

I had anl wonderful time reading this book. I say it is very whimsical and quick to go through. A lot of people say it gives 'Spirited Way', I can see the vibes.

I did get Shin Namgi and Shim Cheong confused sometimes with their interactions with Mina, but overall I enioyed the relationship and how things unfolded.

I do plan to reread with a physical copy, as I believe having the book in my hands and mayhaps an audiobook will do me better.

I am glad I have Axie Oh another chance, as I would like to continue reading from them.

Thank you again to NetGalley and MacMillan Children's for the ARC of The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea!

I'm a tad late to pub date in finishing and reviewing this book but so glad to have had the ARC because I don't think I would have been patient enough to get my hands on a physical copy of my own before reading it.

This was a quick-paced and immersive read. Axie Oh creates a Spirit Realm that all at once evokes Spirited Away vibes (as promised) and myth in a way that feels familiar yet very much her own. The characters were unique and I easily fell for each one in turn and the twists in this book were fun and kept the pacing interesting.

Personally, I loved the sort-of enemies to lovers/ill-fated lovers vibe that was woven for our main character, Mina, though I do think it could have done with more fleshing out in order to garner more investment in it. Overall, the character relationships were interesting though.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea has a story as gorgeous as the cover and is one I would highly recommend to many I know. Thank you once more to NetGalley and MacMillan Children's for the ARC!

for the past century, storms have devastated mina’s homeland. her people believe the sea god has cursed them, and each year they attempt to appease him by sacrificing a girl to be his bride. this year’s bride is shim cheong of the old korean folktale; in this retelling she is also the beloved of mina’s brother, joon.

when mina sacrifices herself in cheong’s stead, she is transported to the spirit realm, where she finds herself in a race against time to save not only her people, but the sea god himself.

the writing in the girl who fell beneath the sea was just beautiful. i was captivated by the lush, magical world of the spirit realm, the beings mina met there, and the exploration of love, loyalty, and destiny. while the story meandered at times and i would have liked to see more of the romance, the ending was so damn good and i hope this won’t be axie oh’s only fantasy novel.

What a great Korean fantasy. I loved Mina from the first chapter. Some parts of the book were a little predictable but it didn't bother me at all.
The writing is beautifully done. There are lots of wonderful descriptions but it did not feel sloggy or to slow down the story. The book is full of character driven story telling, but there were also parts where the plot drove the story forward.

Following the releases of the Rebel Seoul series (2017, 2019) and XOXO (2021), Axie Oh is back with The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea. In this novel the author invites readers to immerse themselves in the fairytale retelling of the classic Korean folktale “The Tale of Shim Cheong”.

Deadly storms have destroyed Mina’s hometown for generations. Believing the Sea God has cursed them, the villagers sacrifice a young girl every year, throwing her into the sea to become the Sea God’s bride hoping that one day one will be his true bride and put an end to the curse. Mina, did not plan on becoming the Sea God’s latest bride. But, motivated by her love for her brother, she throws herself into the sea to save her brother’s beloved, the beautiful Shim Cheong, from being sacrificed. And so, Mina is whisked away to the Spirit Realm, where she discovers the Red String of Fate that ties her to the Sea God. But he is not the all-powerful being she expected to see. In the split of a second, her fate is altered once again and she loses her soul and so she finds herself joining a group of different characters that will help her on her journey to retake her soul before she is bound to the Spirit Realm forever as well as to find a way to bring calm to the sea and peace to her community whilst also uncovering some truths about the magical world.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is a mesmerising action packed fantasy that perfectly blends folklore creatures into a story that deeply focuses on people’s connection with each other and the relationship between humans and gods. It’s got action and adventure set on a magical realm and it mixes it well with themes of love (both romantic and platonic), found family, and loyalty. A story that will captivate any reader from the very first page.

The characters are lovable and their journey is enjoyable. The main character, Mina, is a great heroine; she’s an independent, determined, and selfless teenager who’s main focus is to protect her loved ones. She really has incredible determination, she never gives up and is always trying to come up with new ideas and making decisions. Her loyalty to her family and her bravery definitely shine through the pages. The secondary characters are just as lovable and charming as Mina and compliment her perfectly as her companions in her journey. However, it’s harder to connect with some of them due to the pacing of the story. The romance between the characters is soft, and cute, and definitely a slow-burn, a trope so very loved by many.

The author throws us into the middle of the action right from the very first page and it keeps it up right up until the end. There’s a lot of these action sequences that keep up the tension throughout but there are also some slower, more soft moments that make the storytelling perfectly balanced. The progression of the plot feels logical and the plot twists are also very well executed. The author also makes a wonderful use of flashbacks and stories within stories making this the perfect blend of world building and information. This way, the main character discovering things as the story progresses is mixed well with conversations she had with her grandmother and with the stories she told her.

It’s easy to see why the book has been compared to the acclaimed and beloved Ghibli film, Spirited Away. The author has captured perfectly the folkloric and mythological inspirations of folklore in her writing, making the story and the world feel very vivid and whimsical. This vivid mythology, the entrancing spirit world, the heartfelt romance, and the themes of loyalty and bravery certainly parallel the animated film. However, The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea is its own very unique tale and one shouldn’t read it with the animated film in mind.

All in all, The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea is a beautiful, poetic, heartfelt, and mesmerising retelling that will captivate the readers from the very first page. A tale brimming with love, heart, and spirit that will take you away on an enchanting journey through a very magical realm. Perfect for those who love found family tropes, East-Asian folklore stories, and slow-burn romances.