thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

Fairy tale retellings are popular for a reason, but they can be TOUGH to make unique and as captivating as Robin Alvarez’s When Oceans Rise.

The author did a wonderful job of integrating folklore and magic into the story and creates a world that pulled me in and wouldn’t let go.

This story tackles relationships, both romantic and familial, in a way that is authentic and exciting. I felt like I knew each character and was so invested in what would happen next.

I love Jennifer Aquino. I’ve listened to a few books narrated by her and she does such a good job of making each character distinct and memorable. This book is no different. She takes Robin Alvarez’s words and brings them to life and her narration had me on the edge of my seat.

If you like action-packed fairy tale retellings full of magic and folklore, When Oceans Rise is a great fit for you.

Thank you Tides Collide Publishing for providing this audiobook for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

When Oceans Rise is such a beautiful story about love, family, friendship, abuse, Filipino mythology. I was first drawn into the story because it is a Little Mermaid retelling. I liked the twist of Mal leaving her original timeline and slipping into the new timeline to escape her abusive ex boyfriend. Normally abuse would really tigger in my a book but in When Oceans Rise it was well written and not to graphic. I also liked that Mal found love in the new timeline. It showed her how she deserved to be loved.

One of my favorite parts of the story was learning about the different Filipino monsters. The story deals with many different monsters and they are all equally terrifying. Except for the Tikbalang, Felipe, who is my absolute favorite monster. He might have been a bad ass on his own before but now they are a bad ass team when it comes to getting the timeline fixed and saving the world from monsters.

Another of my favorite aspects of the story is Malaya's relationship with her mother. I feel like as the story progresses she is able to look outside of her narrow original viewpoint and understand her mother's reasoning more. Her mother just wanted what was best for her even though she wasn't always able to verbalize it in the way that Malaya need to hear.

Overall I really enjoyed When Oceans Rise. It is a great debut novel and I can't wait to read other books Robin Alvarez puts out in the future.

5 out of 5 stars
Video Review link: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTLBmrCBj/

When Oceans Rise by Robin Alvarez is a very powerful book. In the novel, Malaya is cursed to fall in love with a dangerous boy. Wanting to escape the abuse and emotional ties she has with him, she makes a time altering deal with a sea witch.


When Oceans Rise, is full of Filipino culture and mythology. It is also a retelling of the little mermaid and with a splash of science fiction particularly different timelines and alternative selves.


I love the rich cultural elements throughout the book. It definitely makes me want to dive into more Filipino media.


The little mermaid theme mixed with Filipino monsters and Gods was expertly done and captivated me. I believe the plot also aligned with the original Hans Christian Anderson’s story as Malaya struggles with a doomed love and the sacrifices she must make to protect others.


As far as the abusive relationship that the plot centers around, it is painfully realistic to how abusers can tangle you to them. Also, how family bonds can become broken because of these relationships.

However, the novel takes Malaya on a healing journey both for herself and her family. Although at the beginning, I found the book difficult to read, I eventually found my own realizations and some healing while reading about Malaya’s path to freedom.

I highly recommend this book to young and older adults. I think readers of fantasy, mythology lovers, and family drama readers will love this novel.

Thanks to NetGalley for giving me this novel in exchange for my honest review.

It's not often that I get to read about other half-Filipino/biracial characters and it was nice to find a character that embodied real life struggles like Malaya and still maintain an air of fantasy. This book is captivating in its tales of culture, bad relationships, and magic. This has by far been my favorite read of the year!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. When Oceans Rise was unique in the sense that I hadn't read anything quite like it before. It deals with a 17 year old girl from a family that has a curse that foretells every woman in the family will fall in love with a bad guy who will ultimately end in death. This book portrayed a young and toxic relationship very well. The reason she doesn't see it is supposedly because of the curse on her, but I sort of wish the book didn't add that as a reason because so many people are in toxic relationships and can't see how bad things are and only think that is what they need to endure for love. The realistic parts of this book were its strengths. I love a good thriller or paranormal story but those magical elements didn't work for me in this book. It felt very convaluted and hard to follow at times. Still the writing of this author is spot on and I would be interested in reading further books from her.

Filipino mythology with elements of the Little Mermaid!?!? Please count me in! I enjoyed this magical realism twist on the little mermaid story that features a alternative universe, as well as a second chance at life. Malaya is in a toxic relationship with her boyfriend and has distanced her self from her friends and even her family. She slowly starts to realize that her boyfriend is gas lighting her and she starts doubting herself. When too much is enough fate plays another joke on her and tosses her into the ocean where she meets a sea witch who agrees to give her a chance to forget all her pain, but for a price. Malaya pays the price and slips into a world where she has everything she wants. But is that enough for her to stay put or will the yearning for her love pull her back to her original universe. Only time will tell in this adventure filled, emotional novel about family, love and relationships.

Maybe my expectations got too much into way here because I was expecting a stronger focus on the abusive relationship and the fallout of that and less of an urban fantasy where she has to defeat various Filipino creatures to get back to her own timeline.

I personally needed more time with Malaya and her boyfriend early on - that time passes so quickly and while I understand the author's wish to not go into detail of his abuse, I it also meant I was surprised by how quickly this all wrapped up. I barely saw her fall in love, let alone out of it. (It's not like she has forgotten his actions and there are occasional references to it but it was not the main theme of the book). The handling of the loss of her voice by friends and family was also a mixed bag - I was more annoyed by Malaya's attitude towards it than the thoughtless comments from others.
As for the fantasy aspect, I thought it was okay if a little gimmicky at how the monsters and the sea witch are handled in the end.

When Oceans Rise is a beautiful and unique retelling of The Little Mermaid with elements of Filipino Mythology.

We follow Malaya, the main character, who is submerged in a toxic relationship with no way out. Her family has been cursed for generations. A prophecy that predicts every girl’s first love ends in death after falling for someone evil. Except Malaya doesn’t believe she is also cursed, and her dream guy isn’t monstrous. But the curse is very much real and she can’t see how much he has gaslit and isolated her until she can’t be saved. Her only hope is to go to the sea witch for help. But making deals with a witch isn’t free and it cost her a lot.

I liked the characters a lot, Malaya as a main character had an amazing character arc. I also liked how supportive the side characters were and how her relationship with her friends and family was very realistic.

Overall, I loved the way the story was told, and I absolutely loved the Filipino elements in it. It was great to learn about the mythical creatures.

Trigger/Content Warning: The story depicts a mentally, emotionally and physically abusive relationship. Malaya is gaslit by her boyfriend.

I listened to the audiobook which was provided to me by @netgalley and I liked the narration, I was very invested in the story from the beginning.

I’ll preface this with: at first, I couldn’t see the forest for the trees. When Oceans Rise was one I didn’t think I’d enjoy as much as I did. It was a bit of a slow start, but once it hit stride, it was absolutely beautiful.

My biggest struggle was probably getting used to the narrator. I didn’t hate her, but I also just didn’t vibe with her. The buildup was a little on the slower side—though, later you find this is necessary for the development of all characters. A development Alvarez writes gorgeously because her take is realistic and doesn’t pull any punches. Her writing style is so readable while all of her effort to create a relationship that begins to take more than it gives plays so well into the action and development of everything in the end.

This wasn’t quite what I expected, but it was a great listen, I learned so much about supernatural creatures and gods from the Philippines, and gave readers the most satisfying ending. The characters were so likable and funny. We want those who deserve it to achieve their happily ever after.

Getting into it and, when we get to where they figure out what to do about everything, I was hooked. Even the supernatural felt like it could really be happening because relationships and reactions weren’t overdone or overacted. The buildup definitely made me appreciate all of it more.

Absolutely read this! It was honestly so good; like, I don’t know any other words to describe it. Definitely recommend it to everyone.

I loved reading this book! I loved watching Malaya deal with her abusive relationship by making a deal with a sea witch, only to discover that instead of her own life and reality, she's switched places with a version of her who made different decisions, and that Malaya is living in her life, dealing with her problems. So of course she can't leave things like that!

Honestly I felt so sorry for Malaya. She's in an abusive, gaslighting relationship, and she can't find a way out. Part of it was because their family is cursed with their first loves, but even in real life, he took away her support system, so that she would stay with him. It was such a horrible situation to be in, and she recognized that she wanted to get out, but she wasn't able to.

This is a retelling of The Little Mermaid, but with Philippine mythology, which added such a fantastic element to the story! I know next to nothing about the Philippine mythos, so watching her deal with gods and monsters was so fantastic!

I loved watching her go on this quest to reverse her wish, and really, she needed that time, to live a life similar to hers, but different, and realize that it wasn't perfect, either. As well as meeting the guy who was predicted for her to meet. I just had to read more, and I loved how it ended!

Loved reading this book and I can't wait to read more by Robin Alvarez!

This is exactly the type of book that I try locally enjoy but I could not connect with the characters or the monotonous narration. Admittedly I could not convince myself to complete this book.

Omg, this book was really emotional, I really liked it.
At the end i was so sad for her but im so happy now with the ending..
I loved it a lot, and i recommend it to everyone to give a chance to this book and enjoy it.
I love the sound of the voice actor as well, really amazing.
Thanks to netgally.

I loved learning about Filipino culture and mythology. It's always great when I can walk away from a book with my horizons broadened and a desire to do some research. This was a very heartwarming story, and many important topics were discussed throughout the novel.

The narrator, Jennifer Aquino, did a great job narrating this book, and she was probably one of the main contributing factors that I pushed through.

The pacing of the book did not work for me. I felt that there was not a lot of depth to various aspects, which made it feel disjointed. It did pick up slightly at around the halfway mark. Overall, it had a very unique premise, but it was not for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tides Collide Publishing for the ALC. My opinions and thoughts are my own.

I was never bored listening to this book. The characters around Malaya (beautiful name) made everything so much more interesting. Just wish we could have learnt more about the other Malaya. Hope she was happy in the end too.

This narrator was on point! Seriously perfection!

I couldn’t wait to pop this in my ear and keep going! It’s full of folktales and scary stories nani tells you to keep you inside and safe. The only issue is they are real! Someone made a deal and someone has to pay the price.

This book was more than a YA Thriller and fantasy read. It was about strength and being able overcome the power someone can have on us in a very toxic way. I related with it and felt it. Also I don’t think I’ll be swimming in golf coast off Corpus Christi anymore ha ha. All jokes aside this was a great book with many different levels to it. I was eager to continue it because honestly the author did a great job grabbing hold of my attention making me invested! I craved it.

Looking for a Little Mermaid retelling with a bit of family history and tales. This is also a great book for a YA reader that needs something a little spooky respectfully without keeping you up at night.

This was a wonderful and at times heartbreaking story. I thought it was a great retelling and I would recommend it to anyone who likes a story about a woman who goes through some hard struggles to find her voice, literally and figuratively.

This book was AMAZING. I listened to it on audiobook, and was entranced. The narrator was incredibly engaging and the story had me on the edge of my seat. I loved the culture that Robin Alvarez shared with us—the legends, the food, the family dynamics—all of it. I was deeply invested in the characters and their lives, aching for for them in a plethora of ways. This story was beautiful, heart-breaking, fantastical, and so full of family that it made me miss my own family even when I was just a few hours away from them.

It is so hard to gush about this book without giving too much away, so I'll keep it short. GET THIS BOOK. READ IT IMMEDIATELY. This is not a book you should keep on your TBR pile for long, but read, devour, bask in its realness even while submerged in fantasy, and then proudly display this beaut on your most viewable shelf.

That is all.

I was immediately swept away into this story! I had been seeing it around on social media and following Robin Alvarez but nothing prepared me for this! I couldn't stop listening to the audio version and when I did take a moment I couldn't stop thinking about it. This book had curses, characters I wished all the best for and family culture/mythology. If you choose to listen to this story, the narrator was perfect! Thank you to NetGalley and Tides Collide Publishing for an advanced copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own!

I just loved this book. It definitely had a little mermaid story spin to it. I loved learning about the Philippino myths. I feel this book was a breath of fresh air for me. I haven't read anything like this and I was sad for it to end. Beautifully written.
The narrator was perfect for this story. She kept me engaged and was able to convey the different tones really well.
I received a copy of this book and all opinions are my own.