Miren O’Malley is a young girl living in an isolated, mysterious town of Breakwater. Once her family passes away, she travels to find answers about her parents who abandoned her as a child. However, the whole story has gothic fiction & supernatural creations so normalised. It makes things only better cuz it’s based jn Ireland.

I love the badass MC who’s aware of how messed up she is but doesn’t deter her from doing what needs to be done. She faces monsters and men akin to monsters – and deals with them the way any feminist, strong headed character would.

Atmosphere is brilliant, so is the writing – it’s like reading a Grimm fairy tale with more horror elements to it.

The Editing of the book seemed a little clumsy cuz some parts seemed stretched out a little but that’s ok cuz the end, especially the LAST twist about how Miren’s mother managed to do things the way she did, how she is built in her grandmother’s image even if she denies it & most of all the creatures and how she deals wjth them – makes it worth a read!

Dark family secrets that need to be uncovered. The Writing is gorgeous and has beasts and creatures from popular folklores – Welsh, Irish and some others. What might come next and shock or surprise you – this is what kept me going throughout. My own thirst for sea creatures and folklores is what drew me to this book, but the world building! *chef’s kiss*

The world in the book is foreboding as I was waiting for something to pop out of nowhere – ghosts, mer, vampires, werevolves, kelpies, perhaps even leprechauns but those were missing from here.

Each character is well constructed- especially Miren and her grandmother Aiofe. Even her caretaker Maura for that matter. These women know how to sort out, manipulate, decieve or simply manoeuvre around any situation that could potentially threaten them. Even for someone like Aiofe who was portrayed as cruel, I admire her audacity and risk-taking. Miren and Maura on the other hand, were the courageous ones.

The men here, as mentioned, most were more monsters than the supernatural said-monsters were. I think this book made such a beautiful, strong statement by deciding the fate of each male character in it. No spoilers here! Just gonna urge you to read it. It’s a wonderful, beguiling mystery riddled with ghosts of the past and present – literally and figuratively.

There’s so many quotes in the book that sear their way into your heart. One of them has to be – Just hang on to whatever’s solid, Óisín would say, but it took me a long time to realise he meant I had to rely on myself: I was the only solid thing in that angry sea.

I mean I’m ok with the fact that I didn’t order a physical copy, this is and will remain a one-time read for me, but a rather memorable one that will remain with me forever.

It’s a solid 4/5