Friday, September 13, 2019

The Girl the Sea Gave Back (Sky in the Deep, #2)
by Adrienne Young


Synopsis (via Goodreads): The new gut-wrenching epic from the New York Times bestselling author of Sky in the Deep.

For as long as she can remember, Tova has lived among the Svell, the people who found her washed ashore as a child and use her for her gift as a Truthtongue. Her own home and clan are long-faded memories, but the sacred symbols and staves inked over every inch of her skin mark her as one who can cast the rune stones and see into the future. She has found a fragile place among those who fear her, but when two clans to the east bury their age-old blood feud and join together as one, her world is dangerously close to collapse.

For the first time in generations, the leaders of the Svell are divided. Should they maintain peace or go to war with the allied clans to protect their newfound power? And when their chieftain looks to Tova to cast the stones, she sets into motion a series of events that will not only change the landscape of the mainland forever but will give her something she believed she could never have again—a home.

๐‘‹

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

Sadly, I didn't love The Girl the Sea Gave Back. It wasn't terrible, but it didn't live up to my expectations after reading Sky in the Deep. During the first book, I felt like the characters were fighting for something, even if they didn't necessarily understand what that something was. The characters in this book chose to fight out of fear, disregarding the fact that one side wanted to avoid bloodshed, which made it unnecessarily violent. I wish the Svell had had a better reason for wanting to go to war. Any loss of life is abhorrent, but they freely sacrificed themselves for their clan even without a good reason.

Additionally, I felt like most of the book was spent walking from one place to the next. Tova traveling with the Svell, and Halvard trying to reach his people. Little skirmishes pop up along the way, but nothing like the battles we witnessed in the first book. Everything was quickly or easily resolved, and even the final battle was a disappointment. Don't even get me started on the ending (or the lack of one). 

The romance was an unnecessary aspect of the story. They feel connected from the beginning, but neither of them really understands why. Tova decisions were based on wishful thinking, and not hard facts (disregarding the times she used the stones, although those were never definitive). Tova and Halvard's relationship was poorly presented and didn't fit in with the rest of the story. He easily accepted her presence and place in his life, and he should have been more cautious and wary.

I would have enjoyed learning more about the Spinners and their role within this series. What are their motivations? Do they have any? They obviously have no qualms about involving themselves to get the results they want. Why did they lie to Tova's mother, and how did that even happen? It wasn't explained very well. 

There's very little world-building in this book, which was a bummer since I really enjoyed how developed the setting was in the first. Eelyn's time spent in battle and while in captivity... it was so detailed and descriptive. This book felt like it had very little to add to the overall story, so the details were minimal and lacking. I also thought the secondary characters in the first book were well-established and fleshed out, while the secondary characters in this book were rarely a focus.

In the end, it was a quick read, but I felt like the story progressed without really going anywhere. The Big Events felt small when compared to the first book, and even the violence and bloodshed were toned down. Sky in the Deep had clear goals and expectations, while The Girl the Sea Gave Back alternated between two perspectives that occasionally overlapped. I'm still not entirely sure what the point of the story was, unless is was simply to be entertaining. I do plan on continuing this series since I really enjoyed the first book, but this one was lacking the oomph of its predecessor. 

18 comments:

  1. I looved Sky in the Deep. I got confused a little when I first saw this book because it looks nothing alike the first book. It sucks that you didn't love it as much, though. That's disappointing. I'm also not a fan of conflict for the sake of conflict. I need to know all the whys. *shrugs*

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It takes place 10 years after the first book ends! Do you remember Halvard? Fiske's younger brother? The one he and Eelyn eventually save together? It's told from his POV and Tova's (someone entirely knew from a different clan). The Svell want to wipe out the Nadhir because they've hand border disputes in the past, but there has never been outright fighting. It just felt a little extreme to me, especially since the other side didn't want it.

      Delete
  2. Ugh, sorry to hear this one was such a disappointment. It seems like there was too much that didn’t make sense or was happening for no real reason. Like the fighting... why, when one side didn’t want it? Seems unnecessary - just like the romance. Too bad this one wasn’t as strong and purposeful as the first book.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There was a lot that happened for seemingly no reason. The Nadhir wanted to live peacefully, but the Svell thought they were preemptively protecting themselves... it just didn't make sense. Why didn't they try to speak with the Nadhir and voice their concerns that way? Slaughtering innocent people -- children and babies -- in the middle of the night is abhorrent.

      Delete
  3. I was keen to see what you thought of this one and I agree with all your points. Unfortunately I never really loved loved Sky in the Deep so even being centred on Halvard wasn't enough for me. ๐Ÿ™ˆ It was terrible, but it took me a long time to read it as nothing compelled me to open it when I got a chance to read and as a person who reads multiple books at once I just kept going for something else. After seeing so much promise in Sky in the Deep I thought this would be an improvement. ๐Ÿ˜ข

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I never felt compelled to read this one either, but it did feel like a relatively quick read. I wasn't reading anything else at the time (which is unusual for me), so I was able to give it my full attention. I was really looking forward to more world-building, and maybe more information about the gods, but it failed to deliver on both of those points.

      Delete
  4. Yikes this sounds disappointing. Come to think of it I thought the ending of Sky in the deep was just a tad...lackluster, for want of a better word? Although I liked it. That whole final battle thing, while cool, where they all went off a... well, crap that's a spoiler lol. But you probably know what I mean. :)

    Anyway, as for this one haha- I feel like the first one set up a lot of possibilities world building wise, and if this one is lacking in world building then that sounds kinda disappointing too. Bummer. I'll probably still read it but good to know to keep my expectations reasonable. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think lackluster is a wonderful word to describe the ending of Sky in the Deep! I felt like we were building towards something monumental and then it just fizzled out. Unfortunately, The Girl the Sea Gave Back never felt like it was building towards anything. It just jumps from one thing to the next until the end. There's very little character development, very little world-building, and then it ends. Additionally, the relationships weren't elaborated on, and the secondary characters were barely explained. It left a lot to be desired.

      Delete
  5. Aw NO, this is super sad! I really liked Sky in the Deep and was so excited for this one. I will definitely be lowering my expectations. Great review, and thanks for the heads-up on this! Sorry it didn't live up to what you'd hoped though.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I really wanted to like this one more than I did! It just felt very... basic and like the bones of the overall story. I wish there had been more details about the characters and the setting. Unfortunately, I never felt connected to these characters, and I didn't think anything truly happened throughout the story. I hope you have better luck with it!

      Delete
  6. Sorry you weren't a fan of this book. It does look fantastic, so it's sad when you go in with high expectations and end up disappointed.

    Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I really enjoyed the first book and thought the author had a unique concept to work with (we don't see too many YA books about Vikings), yet this book felt like filler. We see familiar faces and places, but nothing is really expanded on. I just wanted more after the first book, but I'll likely still read the next one.

      Delete
  7. Although this isn't a genre I read, I really love the cover of this one and the blurb sounds full of gripping tension. I'm sorry that this book fell foul of the "Curse of the 2nd". There is a lot of pressure and expectations for a second book to live up to a first in series; albums feel the same pressures in the music world; as do film sequels. I hope book 3 will be better and live up to your expectations.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The cover is stunning! It's shimmery and lovely! However, despite the awesome blub, the story itself didn't deliver. I felt like the author skimmed on the details and descriptions, which the first book had an abundance of. I also felt like more happened in Sky in the Deep compared to The Girl the Sea Gave Back. Hopefully the third book is better! :)

      Delete
  8. Well, that's a bummer. I was curious about this one because I mostly liked her other book.

    Karen @ For What It's Worth

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I just really don't like reading a book and then feeling like nothing happened. :(

      Delete
  9. I love this cover SO much, but bummer that it was a little lacking.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I was really bummed when the inside wasn't as wonderful as the outside! The cover is lovely!

      Delete

Click the "Notify me" box if you want to be notified when someone responds!

“Stuff and nonsense. Nonsense and stuff and much of a muchness and nonsense all over again. We are all mad here, don't you know?”
― Marissa Meyer, Heartless