A Study in Drowning

An instant Indie and #1 New York Times bestseller!

“Achingly atmospheric and beautifully sharp, A Study in Drowning will draw you in from the first page.” —Rory Power, New York Times bestselling author of Wilder Girls

Bestselling author Ava Reid makes her YA debut in this dark academic fantasy perfect for fans of Melissa Albert and Elana K. Arnold.

Effy Sayre has always believed in fairy tales. Haunted by visions of the Fairy King since childhood, she’s had no choice. Her tattered copy of Angharad—Emrys Myrddin’s epic about a mortal girl who falls in love with the Fairy King, then destroys him—is the only thing keeping her afloat. So when Myrddin’s family announces a contest to redesign the late author’s estate, Effy feels certain it’s her destiny.

But musty, decrepit Hiraeth Manor is an impossible task, and its residents are far from welcoming. Including Preston Héloury, a stodgy young literature scholar determined to expose Myrddin as a fraud. As the two rivals piece together clues about Myrddin’s legacy, dark forces, both mortal and magical, conspire against them—and the truth may bring them both to ruin.

Part historical fantasy, part rivals-to-lovers romance, part Gothic mystery, and all haunting, dreamlike atmosphere, Ava Reid's powerful YA debut will lure in readers who loved The Atlas Six, House of Salt and Sorrows, or Girl, Serpent, Thorn.

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384 pages

Average rating: 6.5

120 RATINGS

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Pherfer

Mar 25, 2025

8/10 stars

Slow start. Kept me guessing where it was going. Ending payed off for me.

Anonymous

Jan 30, 2025

8/10 stars

I really enjoyed the dark academia vibe of this book. It was very visual - I could feel the dampness and the desperation
like it was happening in real time. Also, the vague time period was a cool element. Was this in a dystopian future or a plutonian past?

AKungle

Sep 17, 2024

10/10 stars

I've never raced to finish a book so fast. This book kept me on my toes and blurred the lines between the real and unreal. The story, the message, just everything was perfect.

sophie_young

Jun 30, 2024

The writing gives such a whimsical and magical vibe. The book touched on sexual abuse and how a healthy relationship can heal a traumatic past. I love the slow-burn romance between MMC and FMC that is filled with trust and respect.

Finch

Jun 03, 2024

7/10 stars

While this won't be my favourite book, it definitely left and impact on me and made me think. I think the suppression of women theme was a bit on the nose with the lack of any good and kind men except for the male love interest which then took away from his character. If he is the only choice for the hetero female lead craving love and safety to date then he is no choice at all. But I immensely liked the Death Of The Author theme, both literally and figuratively and I thought that was really well done. Subtlety isn't this authors strong suit but the language was so beautiful that I didn't mind. I have one specific reader in mind, who used to read stories in an almost whisper and formed the words so fully and gently that it had the same effect on me as nature sounds did. Somehow I read this story with her voice in my head. It was intriguing to read excerpt of a fictional book in a book and a rather interesting one too. I wanted to know so much more about Angharad. It's definitely a dark academia read for the soft girls, the ones who tilt more towards flight and are passive, who won't pick up a knife anytime soon, who freeze when they're unsure how to respond and yet want to feel represented, that they too are worthy of being a heroine. Because they are and Effy is proof that survival, too, is an act of strength.