To Drown Among The Stars

Reviews

• Cassie G.

  Started June 17, 2026 · Finished June 21, 2026

  Thank you to the author for the gifted eARC! ——— “When she emerged from the water, the sight of her made him think he'd be happy to drown." This novel promised action and yearning, and it delivered. Something I think really sets this book apart from others in its genre is the fact that we're given the story through the MMC's perspective. And he's not even insufferable either! Bastion has his flaws and his own personal challenges to overcome, and in the face of so much adversary, he remains true to his roots. For that, I respect him as a character so much more. I think I would've liked to see more worldbuilding. We are thrown into a kingdom with its own gods, trials, and different species interacting with one another. However, the politics of these interactions felt very surface-level. I would love to see this expanded upon as the series goes on, though. And again, I respect Bastion's belief in Ulla and respecting her to do what feels right for her and never treating her as damaged goods or a lesser being. (I also loved the deaf representation, especially in a main character. I haven't seen a lot of that!) I also feel like we were more told than shown Ulla and Bastion's relationship forming. I would've liked to have seen more interactions between them, both essential to the plot and not. As is, it felt like a lot of staring at one another and not much being said in the Account. What was said was very impactful though! Some very hard-hitters there! I think overall, I just wish this were longer. As there was an even greater conflict being introduced and some characters I'm curious about the intentions of, I am eager to see where the story will go from here.

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• Sarah 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿📚

  Finished May 12, 2026

  This book was a cute and enjoyable ride. However due to a lack of world building and at times, confusing predicaments, I felt the story was muddled and at times lost. There were scenes where I was confused as to what was happening and how we had got there. I also wasn't a huge fan of how quickly feelings developed but I guess that's partly down to one of the main plot points. There were some interesting characters but due to length, we didn't get much besides service level information about them. If the story had been longer, I think it would've helped to build a world that I find interesting but ultimately was lacking. I don't regret reading it and would be interested to look into the further books for this series but I wouldn't rush either. Bonus points for Epona mention!!!

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