Audio: A study in drowning by Ava Reid

By: Ava Reid

Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld

Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins

Release date: 09-19-23

Publisher: HarperAudio

Fantasy /From bookbeat.fi

There are 3 big audiobook sites here and one sent me an offer trying to get me back, I took it to listen to this book ;)

I have no idea what to call this. It is fantasy, but at the same time it feels like an alternative Wales a 100 years back. A country that is at war and not at war with some other country.  They are protected by Sleepers, and they have magic or not. And 200 years back there was a big Drowning. All very mysterious and Gothic.

Effy studies architecture, but she wants to study literature, but is not allowed as a woman. There was something with a professor that still haunts her. She finds her solace in the book Angarad, and she might be crazy, or not. There were many ? in this book. Was she crazy? Her doctors and family thought so. She saw the Fairy King and she was scared through out the whole book. And it came to this point where I really really wanted to know if The Fairy King was real or not. There is this current of danger and despair through out the whole book. It truly gives the book its dark atmosphere. 

The story brings Effy to design a house at a place where her favorite author lived. A dark melancholic place. She meets a fellow student that is trying to prove that her favorite author did not in fact author Angharad. And she helps him, because she tries to prove him wrong. 

And the darkness gets darker, the weather more brutal. The house is crumbling, and she has nightmares. She is nearing her breaking point.

Saskia Maarleveld is narrating and I always like her narrations. She has a great voice, does great distinct characters and has the perfect feel for this book. She does fantasy well and really gets into the book.

Effy Sayre has always believed in fairy tales. She’s had no choice. Since childhood, she’s been haunted by visions of the Fairy King. She’s found solace only in the pages of Angharad - author Emrys Myrddin’s beloved epic about a mortal girl who falls in love with the Fairy King, and then destroys him.

Effy’s tattered, dog-eared copy is all that’s keeping her afloat through her stifling first term at Llyr’s prestigious architecture college. So when Myrddin’s family announces a contest to design the late author’s house, Effy feels certain this is her destiny.

But Hiraeth Manor is an impossible task: a musty, decrepit estate on the brink of crumbling into a hungry sea. And when Effy arrives, she finds she isn’t the only one who’s made a temporary home there. Preston Héloury, a stodgy young literature scholar, is studying Myrddin’s papers and is determined to prove her favorite author is a fraud.

As the two rival students investigate the reclusive author’s legacy, piecing together clues through his letters, books, and diaries, they discover that the house’s foundation isn’t the only thing that can’t be trusted. There are dark forces, both mortal and magical, conspiring against them - and the truth may bring them both to ruin.

TMST

 

 

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post where bloggers discuss a wide range of topics from books and blogging to life in general. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog. Feel free to leave your links in the comments if you are participating.

12/5/2023 If you were stranded on a desert island which book would you want with you? 

Omg, do you have to think about it? A HEARTSTRIKERS book!!!!! Can I like take an omnibus of all 5? If not I will just go with book 1

12/12/2023 What were your favourite games/toys when you were a kid?

12/19/2023 Which phone apps can't you live without?

12/26/2023 What are your favorite books/audiobooks that you read in 2023? 

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post where bloggers discuss a wide range of topics from books and blogging to life in general. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog. Feel free to leave your links in the comments if you are participating.

If you are interested in participating in TMST or receiving periodic emails that list the upcoming TMST topics and questions,  please fill out this GOOGLE FORM.  Participation is optional and never required.

Carole´s Monday. The Indian Lawyer

 

Author: James Welch

Title: The Indian Lawyer

Genre: Historical Fiction, Westerns, Mystery

Format: paperback

Pages: 350

Published: October 1, 1990

Where I Got It: My shelf (Amazon)

Summary: 

Sylvester Yellow Calf is a former reservation basketball star, a promising young lawyer, and a possible congressional candidate. But when a parolee ensnares him in a blackmail scheme, he'll have to decide just who he is, and what he wants.

Review:

I've enjoyed others by this author and I have a goal to eventually read all his books. He is good. After buying this a while back...it just sat on my shelf for like 5 years. Whoops. Thank goodness for the TBR challenge ;)

Here we have Sylvester Yellow Calf. He was a former reservation basketball star who became a promising young lawyer and a possible congressional candidate. He really has made his way in the world. However, when a parolee ensnares him in a blackmail scheme, he'll have a challenge in front of him. He'll have to decide who he is and what he wants in life. 

I'll admit....I struggled a hair. It took longer than I thought it would to finish. This was a pretty slow narrative. Things are happening, don't get me wrong so it's not boring, but just slow. Some politics so that didn't help. And then we get to see a lot of flashbacks from a lot of characters. Lots going on but slow in building. 

Even though I struggled with the pace, I did enjoy the actual story. I liked Sylvester and I even ended up liking Patti Ann. Not sure where or when that happened, but yes, I liked her. This author really does have a way of showing the complexities of humans. It's never black and white. You get to understand our hero, of course, but our "baddies". You begin to understand all of them and feel for them all. Of course, you are rooting for the hero, but you get why our baddies are "bad". 

Soooo. The ending? I def had some questions. I had to look it up and I guess I'm not alone. It was for sure an ambiguous ending which is fine, but man.....I do love a good epilogue and finality ;) Kuddos to Sly for the decisions he made. He was a good egg. 

Overall, I did like this one. Not my favorite of this author's, but it was good. It really made me want to continue my journey into all of his works. Someday! But yes, this had excellent characters and an interesting story. Some slowness and the ending could be seen as vague but it did make me think and have questions. I'll give this 3 stars.  

Challenge(s):

- #9 TBR Pile Reading

Best of November

 

Here are our bests of November! 

Best Movie of the Month:

Blodeuedd - Nada this month. 

"Movie? Nah, nothing stood out."

Carole - Napoleon (2023)

"This was captivating and has me itching to re-watch."

Best Book of the Month:

Carole - Third Son's a Charm by Shana Galen

"This was simply delightful."

Blodeuedd - Some Kind of Happiness by Claire Legrand

"Best book because it had meaning."

Best TV show of the Month:

Blodeuedd - Solar Opposites 

"New season on Disney. I had to watch it."

Carole - Bob's Burger (S14)

"This show never gets old. Loving the new season!"

Best Cover of the Month:

Carole's pick - "Tough choice this month. But this one resonates with me."

Blodeuedd's pick - "This can have best cover too. You can see more in the print cover."

Honorable Mention:

Carole wanted to give a special nod to this book....You Can Thank Me Later by Kelly Harms

"This is my 4th time listening to this little novella. It is the perfect Turkey Day book. I love it so much but I felt bad giving it best of the month...again...since it is a re-read and I had some other great books in November."