The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea by Axie Oh Review

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Title: The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea

Author: Axie Oh

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton (UK), Feiwel & Friends

Pages: 336

Release Date: 22 February 2022

Hello fellow book lovers,

today I’m sharing my review of Axie Oh‘s The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea—the feminist and utterly breathtaking reimagining of Korean folktale, Shim Cheong. I absolutely fell in love with Oh’s lush prose and immersive style of storytelling.

I’ve not managed to read her other book, XOXO yet, but given just how how much I loved this—I definitely need to read it soon.

Summary

For generations, deadly storms have ravaged Mina’s homeland. Her people believe the Sea God, once their protector, now curse them with death and despair. To appease him, each year a maiden is thrown into the sea, in the hopes that one day the ‘true bride’ will be chosen and end the suffering. Many believe Shim Cheong – Mina’s brother’s beloved – to be the legendary true bride. But on the night Cheong is sacrificed, Mina’s brother follows her, even knowing that to interfere is a death sentence. To save her brother, Mina throws herself into the water in Cheong’s stead. Swept away to the Spirit Realm, a magical city of lesser gods and mythical beasts, Mina finds the Sea God, trapped in an enchanted sleep. With the help of a mysterious young man and a motley crew of demons, gods and spirits, Mina sets out to wake him and bring an end to the 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…

Review

The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea is a captivatingly lush and utterly compelling, feminist retelling of Korean legend Shim Cheong. YA fantasy fans are going to love this, it’s absolutely stunning!

This was absolutely amazing! Axie Oh’s writing is exquisite and the world building was utterly breathtaking, I loved how vividly detailed and otherworldly it felt—not to mention the slowburn (and emotionally intense) romance which was utterly divine!

Mina was a remarkable protagonist: strong, compassionate, willing to sacrifice herself to save the one’s she loves—and it’s that selfless and empathetic nature that made her one of my fave characters (alongside Shin, Mask,Dai, baby Miki, Kirin and Namgi-trust me your gonna love them all.)

I did figure out the identities of a few characters about halfway through the book but, the reveal was so well crafted (I literally cried happy tears) that working it out beforehand didn’t lessen my enjoyment at all.

I’m also impressed with just how effortlessly Axie Oh has reimagined a story that heavily involves sacrifice into an empowering and heartwarming tale love and family that just I didn’t want to end.

Overall, this masterfully written retelling is full of love,perseverance, friendship and above all, hope. If you loved Studio Ghibli’s Spirited away then you’re gonna absolutely love this—it’s soo good!

Also thanks to Hodder&Stoughton and Netgalley for the e-arc.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/ 5

About The Author

Axie Oh is a first-generation Korean American, born in New York City and raised in New Jersey. She studied Korean history and creative writing as an undergrad at the University of California San Diego and holds an MFA in Writing for Young People from Lesley University.Her passions include K-Pop, anime, stationery supplies, and milk tea. She currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada with her puppy, Toro.

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