As an audiobook this is nearly a zero: see last paragraph below. But I bought this book and finally, finally figured out a way to review it as the five star PRINT BOOK it is.

For the author's sake, because she deserves actual readers of the print book. I have been trying to figure out how to share my love of this novel since I read it in March 2023. It's hard to describe. First: Get the print version or read it on a device that permits you to see the illustrations in color. The illustrations are gorgeous and integral to enjoyment of this unique and fanciful story. Second: Do NOT skip reading the "Dramatic Personae" in the early pages, because Lena, our first person narrator, jumps all over creation as she tells the story of her life, her mother's life and her grandmother's life as outcasts/magical/respected people of the town. Plus, you get oriented to this wild ride if you read them, e.g., the focus of Lena's yearning, her mother: "Marietta Abernathy: my mother. She/her(s). Daughter of Ursa, the Hunter. Curator of the Paper Moon Menagerie. The One Who Drowned and Came Back." With a footnote, very common in the book but it's a good thing, promise. This one reads, "My mother had many names. For a complete list, see p. 13." The list on page 13 then includes, "The Loon Woman," "The town Hydratic; the One Who Could Not Contain her Tides: the One Whose Hair was Perpetually Tangled and Speckled with Ash" and the"One Whose Eyes Changed Color with the Seasons."

This story is Lena's investigation of what happened "20 June 1999" and all that came after. Her saga takes place at a time Marietta has disappeared in December 2016. Lena describes her sources as "found objects, excerpts of journals, letters, interviews and public records....." Each chapter starts with her latitude and longitude. She explains to us how to read her investigative journal. Read that too! It explains up front what we are about to explore. And so we open with a letter Marietta wrote on the first of December and a chapter titled "Beau Calais & the Inland Sea." This introduces us to Lena's, Marietta's and Patrick's home on an island on the Inland Sea in the North Country. To the South is Ruin Lake. Straight west is the town of Beau Caelais.

This book is about a company town and the dangers of challenging the Mesabi Mine Co. It is about the environmental damage the mine caused to the waters. It is about Marietta inviting people to send her damaged and living or dead items impacted by the destroyed waters. And her taking them beneath. It is about Ursa, who died giving birth to Marietta out in the cold, alone and how that changed everything. It is about violence against women. It is about redemption for all the women and children ever murdered in the town and forgotten. and about Marietta, living but hurt. It is about the women beneath. It is magical realism at its best, with Marietta living between two worlds, drawn more to safety beneath but also to her daughter, decidedly on land. It is a mystery. The characters are all deeply drawn and compelling, even the bad guys, even the less damaged people, and, of course, the damaged people. This book is just compelling.

I listened to the audiobook first and kept thinking, " I believe this might be a good book, BUT." Whoever decided to issue this as an audiobook, other than for people who cannot read print books showed poor judgment at best. When read aloud, with nonlinear timeline dates and constantly different voices providing information and the location of the narrator expressed by longitude and latitude, it is by far the most confusing audio book I've ever listened too. I am forever grateful that I listened to my instincts and bought a copy to read and that I read it one day on my phone and discovered the illustrations were in beautiful color. I hope, sometime, people discover this incredible book. People like me who will think and think and think about the transformative writing and the people. Also the ghostly dogs and the women beneath.e aware, this is not a book for people who cannot tolerate descriptions of violence against women, but it is well worth reading for those who can. It's not so much graphic in these scenes as painful to the imagination. Because it's so well written.

I was given a NetGalley widget for this one a year ago and I just got around to reading it and dangit it was so good. I am so thankful for the opportunity to have consumed this wildly relevant fictional tale, which felt not at all fictional, more like historical fiction, due to the times. The cover initially was what drew me in, but I'm so thankful to have stuck with it because the outcome was magical. I always love listening to audiobooks and when they sweep me off my feet, I'm just utterly captivated! I always really enjoy multi-cultural thrillers, for I embark on a journey through a land unknown to me, while still getting spooked.

**Trigger warning for sexual assault and deomestic violence**

When the body of a ruthless miner is found on the frozen shore of a northern county lake, police blame the mother of 16-year-old Lena. When Marietta, Lena’s mother, goes missing in police custody that night, Lena is left to look through her mother’s journals to find her.

This story jumps between the present and the events leading up to something big that happened in the town 16 years ago. This was an interesting story that I think would be better read on the page rather than listening to the audiobook, due to the way it is written. I enjoyed this but felt a bit removed from the story. If the blurb of this book interests you, I recommend getting yourself a physical copy of the book!

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book.

I thought the premise sounded interesting, I enjoy stories of redemption and healing with a touch of magical elements thrown in.

The format is unique, which when done well can take a book to the next level. In this case, It's the investigation of a daughter who is trying to understand the past of her missing mother to find where she is. I found it to be confusing, especially in the beginning. I did listen to this on audio, and I think that a print copy may have made a little more sense for this book.

I had a hard time connecting to the characters in this book, perhaps due to the audiobook format, or the lack of dialogue. Once I got past the extra back-and-forth of the notes, I found the story to be haunting and brutally honest, depicting how outsiders are viewed and treated.
It should be noted that there are some graphic abuse scenes which I didn't expect.

I finished this book over a week ago and still think about it, it was exceptionally well done overall and may pick up a paperback version to read again.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

Trigger Warning: Rape

Thank you so much to net galley and the publisher for sending me a copy of this audiobook book. Truly this novel was one of the most beautiful and heart wrenching story I have ever read.

Unfortunately was not able to listen to this due to it being approved one day before it was archived, but I'm giving it 4 stars for the premise.

I enjoyed the witchy thematic elements of this book, but had a hard time connecting to both the characters and the stories. I wish there had been more dialogue and character interaction emphasis versus descriptive and atmospheric emphasis.

I wasn't a huge fan of this one, but I recommend that other readers try this one out in the physical or eBook formats if they are able. I got the sense that the audiobook version wasn't the most conducive to the type of book that this was, and that took away from the overall story itself.

I enjoyed the tenacity and grit of the main character, a girl who is investigating the disappearance of her mother and the past of her small community that may have contributed to her current circumstances. I thought the writing was beautiful, bordering on poetic.

Overall, this was good story, but in the audiobook format it just was not for me.

This book was incredible! It is definitely one of my favorites this year. The writing was so beautiful and atmospheric, the characters were amazing, and the format was unique. I listened to the audiobook and I really enjoyed it, the narrator was wonderful, but I do think I may have enjoyed reading the physical copy of the book better.

Thank you NetGalley and HighBridge Audio for an advanced copy of the audiobook!

Beautifully written and emotional, Things We Found When the Water Went Down follows a young women trying to find her missing mother who was accused of murder. I really loved the way this story worked with "found" materials likes quotes and poems and interviews. It is so incredibly original, which I really loved. I listened to the audiobook, which was narrated well, but I could definitely see myself coming back to this book in its physical copy due to its regular referencing of footnotes. That being said, it's a great read, but definitely check the content warnings before diving into it.

I thoroughly enjoyed the story and the writing, however I thought it didn't lend itself well to audio. The style of writing was too hard to follow and left the reader confused in an audio version. Would love to read the physical book, though.