The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh | Review

"Stories are both an escape from the truths of the world and the only way to see them clearly."

    The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is a YA fantasy novel inspired by Korean mythology. It was released in 2022 and received an incredible amount of praise, from the amazing cover to the romance to the Studio Ghibli vibes of the story. We follow Mina, a sixteen-year-old girl living in a coastal village that is ravaged by severe storms and floods. The village believes that if they sacrifice a maiden to the Sea God once a year, it will appease his wrath and the storms will no longer torment them. However, this year the village elders chose Cheong, the girl that Mina's older brother is in love with. Driven by her love for her family, she sacrifices herself Cheong's stead, and discovers a horrible secret once she's at the bottom of the ocean. The Sea God is asleep. And he is in trouble. With the help of gods, spirits, and creatures of old, Mina takes it upon herself to wake the Sea God up, and find an end to the storms in the human world. 

    I bought this book at the end of last year during my huge Christmas book haul, and I knew that if I didn't read it soon, it was going to sit on my shelves for an uncomfortably long time. See, I have been drifting away from young-adult stories for a while now. They just haven't been holding my interest, and I find myself getting annoyed with the characters for making rash decisions, or refusing to speak their concerns, or jumping to conclusions about another character instead of just talking to them. That's when you know you're truly an adult, right? Now, I'm not saying that adults can't read YA, because they absolutely can, people can read whatever they want! If you're a 50-year-old who enjoys reading picture books because you like how short they are, go for it! No one is stopping you! I'm just saying for me personally, that all of my inner critiques are starting to take over my love for the story I'm reading, and that's just not something I enjoy. 

    Anyway, I knew I was on a bit of a mental deadline with this book. And true, when I first picked it up, I was a little skeptical. Mina felt very similar to a lot of other protagonists in YA, the selfless teenager who bravely sacrifices herself in the place of a loved one. The Hunger Games did it, The Dark Tide did it, and now this. But I kept reading, and I am so glad I did. 

    I ended up really enjoying this story! By the end of it, I was completely invested in Mina and I wanted her to get everything she desired. I was rooting for her happy ending above everything else. She turned out to be far more nuanced and complicated than I thought she would, based on the first few chapters. 

    Even though there is a strong romantic subplot (something I also felt myself enjoying, which really goes to show how well written it was, because y'all know I critique romance above all other elements in a story) the main focus of this book was family and the love that stems from that connection. Mina was constantly thinking about her grandmother, and her brothers. She wanted nothing more than to see them again, and hold them, and tell them how much they meant to her. And she also thought about her loved ones that weren't waiting for her: her great-great-grandmother, and her grandfather, and even her little niece that her sister-in-law lost in the womb. Family was her primary focus, above all other things in her heart. 

"Do you know how much I love you?...My love for you is endless. Deep and endless, like the sea." 

    I also want to talk about the setting and imagery real quick. I wholeheartedly agree with everyone saying that this book gave off major Studio Ghibli vibes, because it absolutely did. In fact, now that it's confirmed that Miyazaki is coming back and creating more movies, I wouldn't be at all surprised if one day The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea became a Ghibli film. (And yes, I know that Ghibli is Japanese and this novel is Korean inspired, but Studio Ghibli doesn't just make films from Japanese stories - I'm looking at you, Howl's Moving Castle.) I could easily picture the Sea God's city in the art style of Ghibli: the bright colors, the spirits in masks walking around eating incredible food, it all lent itself perfectly to my imagination. 

    I won't be talking about the romance, not only because the details are veering into spoiler territory, but also because I feel like I'm not "qualified" to discuss this element since I've made it very clear in the past that romance in books isn't something I enjoy. So I think it's sufficient enough to say that I actually really liked the romance in this story, and leave it at that. 

    Overall, I thought this book was incredible. I recommend The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea to daydreamers, people craving that familial bond (or maybe just want to bask in it), and lovers of Studio Ghibli. 

    I gave this book a CAWPILE score of 8.00, which comes out to 4.5 out of 5 stars. 

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Hello, friends! I want to apologize that this post is a couple of days late. Normally I like to write the review of a book either the day I finish it, or the day after if I need time to marinate in my feelings. But I was out of town when I read this book, and therefore had to wait until I was back home with my computer to type up this review. 

Tell me, have you read The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh? What did you think of it? This has been the highest rated book of the year for me, so far. And I do have to selfishly admit that I'm really happy I ended up liking it this much, because I really didn't want to let go of this gorgeous cover. 

Let me know your thoughts - whether on the book, this review, or just anything that pops into your head - in the comments down below, or DM me on my Instagram (link in the sidebar)!

Until next time!