#ava reid

[reds-poppy]

Outside the darkness settled around them, slowing like low tide.

Ava Reid, A Study in Drowning, 2023

[iambecomeafangirl]

I love me some mentally and emotionally unstable female characters who deal with anxiety and paranoia, who cannot sleep until they've taken their sleeping pills, and who can't tell reality from a hallucination.

[concretecorn97]

i read the ARC for a theory in dreaming, which is the sequel to ava reid’s A Study in Drowning. my thoughts are that a study in drowning could’ve probably been a stand alone. there was definitely beautiful writing, but the magic system got more and more confusing, and i’m not sure we needed the character arcs that we got. it’s still worth a read when it comes out later this year but for the aesthetics, not really the story :/ which is a bummer because i loved a study in drowning! and i love ava reid’s books in general. it just seemed a little disjointed :(

[fictional-horan]

Book Review: Deep End by Ali Hazelwood

Deep End by Ali Hazelwood Published by Berkley on February 4, 2025 Genres: Sports romance, contemporary Pages: 464 – hardcover & Kindle Edition, 447 – paperback Format Read: ebook Rating: 3 stars Source: Publisher Previous Books in Series: – PURCHASE LINKS Note: As a Waterstones associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases! Blurb: A competitive diver and an ace swimmer…

[theredofoctober]

Surprised people are whining about the 'insta love' in Juniper and Thorn between Marlinchen and Sevas. No offence but considering she's barely allowed to leave the house I thought the attraction built between the two and the reasons they connected made sense

I can tell a lot of book reviewers aren't really lovers because I swear falling in love that quickly isn't rare in the real world. I mean, ask anyone gay (meaning me)

Also it was a beautifully written book. So pleased I picked this one up!

[wonkyreads]

Fable for the End of the World by Ava Reid

2.5 out of 5 stars

Fable for the End of the World is a slightly more modernized version of the YA dystopias that populated my youth. I’ve always been a fan of a good dystopia, but I think they’re genuinely just very hard to pull off. I don’t think Reid hit the marks she was attempting to. The worldbuilding just felt like a mess to me; there were so many complex issues for a relatively short novel so we never really skimmed past the surface of them. There’s a global warming conversation this book is attempting to have muddied by animals that are mutated and irradiated and mentions of nuclear fallout that never really get explained. The world just doesn’t make sense and I’m not sure that I buy the political systems within it either which is critical for a dystopian.

I’m also a little disappointed that Reid uses “Wends” for her off the grid - eating irradiated meat evolved them into monsters - cannibals. It’s clearly pulling from Native American myth/lore and as far as I’m aware it’s pulling specifically from something that the Algonquin people have asked others to stay away from and not use. Looking it up, it seems to be less common knowledge than I thought, but there’s plenty of other terms she could have used or created for this story.

The book hinges on a romance that wasn’t really necessary at all. It wasn’t given enough time to truly develop and felt a little out of place. Their relationship is complex and complicated, and it needs to be given their context, but there’s not enough space on the page to really go from enemies to lovers here. The story would have been just as meaningful if they ended it bonded and perhaps on their way to a romance. There just wasn’t enough space to make it feel believable for me.

That’s not to say there aren’t enjoyable things in this book. I can tell that Ava Reid is a great writer and I’ve enjoyed other books of hers I’ve read. There are a ton of side characters that I would have loved to see looked at more deeply. There were issues that really stuck with me and felt poignant and some genuinely beautiful conversations in this book. There are individual scenes I could obsess over or write a whole essay about. I just think that overall the plot and the worldbuilding were not as thoroughly thought out as they should have been.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions here are my own.

Fable for the End of the World comes out March 4, 2025!

[stardustandrockets]

What's one of your favorite books with a romance subplot?

I am definitely here for the romance books, but sometimes I want my romance as a subplot and not the full plot. Diversity, y'know?

young adult recs:

1. A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid

2. A Fragile Enchantment by Allison Saft (falls more under romantasy, but it's not the whole plot)

3. Don't Let the Forest In by CG Drews

4. The Whispering Dark by Kelly Andrew

5. Your Blood, My Bones by Kelly Andrew

6. I Am Made of Death by Kelly Andrew

(Seriously. If Kelly Andrew writes it, I'll read it. And her couples? To. Die. For. Please read her books!)

adult recs:

1. Even Though I Knew The End by C.L. Polk

2. Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo

3. A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab (I'm definitely talking Rhy and Alucard. NOT Kel and Lila.)

4. Greta & Valdin by Rebecca K. Reilly

[twochaptersahead]

Fable for the End of the World

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. All thoughts are my own!

Fable for the End of the World is an incredibly well written YA dystopian story about love, sacrifice, survival, and hope. (Very strong Hunger Games vibes).

Ava Reid is a tremendously talented storyteller. I thought the entire book's writing was so vivid, descriptive, and really pulled the reader in. I found myself truly immersed in the story and feeling connected to the two main characters, despite the setting being something straight out of my nightmares.

Some of the story's pacing felt off, and though much of the dystopian setting is discussed, I would have loved for it to have been explored in more depth. Though I thought the ending was fitting, I was disappointed because I still wanted more and had questions left unresolved.

Overall, it's a really great book! Would love if there was a sequel.

[sv-annex]

Drawing every book I read this year so starting with the hauntingly beautiful book “A study in drowning” by Ava Reid. I kinda wanna draw more of this duo

[tarticawhat]

When the Theme is *Too* Strong

SPOILERS for Don’t Call it Mystery (Tamura Yumi) and A Study in Drowning (Ava Reid).Recently I’ve read two different works that address societal issues, one more generally and one more specifically. I liked one better than the other and it had to do, in my opinion, with how straight-forwardly and heavy-handedly the themes were presented. Comparing them is a bit difficult as they’re two different…

[iambecomeafangirl]

I'm currently reading A study in drowning by Ava Reid and while it is kinda fun and has a specific atmosphere that I enjoy, I can't stop smirking at the writing. I don't know If it's the translator's fault (I'm not reading in English) or is it this uneven originally. At some moments the writing is normal and then suddenly it sounds as if the author remembered, that it was supposed to be poetic lmao. The poetic parts sound like a wannabe Shakespeare knockoff. Maybe it's losing its literary charm in translation, but really the whole book's voice reminds me of #im14andthisisdeep ☠️

Still not the worst I've seen and the premise is interesting enough to keep me hooked 😅

[stargirlbryce]

Every book I read in 2025: Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid

"Madness, of all things, is the most unforgivable in a woman."

[hayleyreadssapphicbooks]

Fable for the End of the World by Ava Reid

Lesbian Hunger Games meets The Last of Us!!

“Fable for the End of the World” by Ava Reid is a post-apocalyptic and dystopian story in the same vein as “The Hunger Games” but with zombie-like creatures called Wends. In the place of New Amsterdam (located in current New York), a single corporation, Caerus, controls every aspect of society, including debt. Once a person goes beyond 500,000 credits of debt, they are nominated for a televised spectacle called the Gauntlet. The debtors can appoint a family member to compete in the Gauntlet instead. Caerus raises and trains “Angels,” young killers, to hunt down those nominated in the Gauntlet, called Lambs. The book is split between the POV of an Angel, Melinoë, and the Lamb, Inesa. Inesa’s mother secretly racked up debt and then gave up her daughter to the Gauntlet.

The setting and world of “Fable for the End of the World” is fascinating. A frightening outlook that feels all too real for our own world to fall into. The real-world references in lakes and places underscore how close we are to falling into the same world of despair due to selfish corporations, a growing divide between classes, and a landscape marred by climate change. Inesa and Mel are on opposite ends of the divide, but we will learn that despite having credits and recognition, Mel is just as oppressed as Inesa. Having both POVs grants the reader the ability to be with each character as they discover themselves through each other and learn to disregard the prejudice taught to them through their life circumstances. Despite the gloomy setting and plot, moments of sweetness and hope squeeze through. The longing and yearning between Inesa and Mel is lovely to read through. Ava Reid does a great job of encapsulating the thoughts and feelings of the characters as they go from enemies to lovers.

Another aspect of the book I enjoyed was how the people and place names were well thought out and often referred to Greek mythology. Of course, interspersed with enough real-world references to make it jarring and unsettling.

As I often feel with good books, I wish this one was longer. The setup was intriguing and I would love to read more about other people in the world and to dive deeper into the corporation and the world, such as more about the Wends. I hope a sequel is in the works!

Even though this book is YA, I think any adult could find value in reading this. The story is engrossing and complex. I loved the sapphic aspect as well, and I think anyone interested in sapphic novels would enjoy this.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for this ARC!

POV: 1st person, present tense, two POVs

Spice: 0/3

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

[fictional-horan]

Book Review: Fable for the End of the World by Ava Reid

Fable for the End of the World by Ava Reid Published by Cornerstone on March 4, 2025 Genres: YA, dystopian romance Pages: 384 – hardcover, 373 – Kindle Edition Format Read: ebook Rating: 4 stars Source: NetGalley Previous Books in Series: – PURCHASE LINKS Note: As a Waterstones associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases! Blurb: The Last of Us meets The Ballad of…

[pipperoni32-blog]

A Study in Drowning

by Ava Reid / 5 stars

The way this book is written… and trigger warning for gaslighting. The way it's done is so insidious and creeping, haunting. The way Effy has to change herself, her perception and in every action she takes…

We get little hints here and there at the beginning, but this does play a large part in so much of the books. Both Effy's past, how she reacts to situations, and of course her self respect.

What of all the nights she had slept with her iron, with her mountain ash, seeing the Fairy King through her slitted eyes? None of it was real. She was a mad girl, one whose mind could not be trusted, precisely the kind of girl her mother and the doctor and her professors and Master Corbenic had said she was.

This part of the book was so heartbreaking. I wanted to scream and rally for Effy, to take away the despair.

For a book that mainly focuses on two academics, and how they ally themselves to research into legendary author Emrys Myrddin, who's recently death has led scholars to want to dig into his life and home, as well as his main work, Angharad. Preston, from the literary branch of the college, is of the mind that Myrddin could not have possibly authored Angharad. It's too sophisticated for one of his background, and the writing doesn't match his other works when looked at closer. Effy, who as a girl cannot be a member of the literary branch, due to women's fragile constitutions. Instead, she's invited to Hiraeth as an architect, given the impossible task of rebuilding the crumbling, sinking manor. When she meets Preston and finds out his goal, she's determined to prove him wrong. Angharad has been a lifeline for her, a book she's read a hundred times and knows by heart. To doubt the legend of it, and the author, is more than she can take.

Things are not as they seem at Hiraeth though, and secrets lie in the moldy, drowning walls.

This book was so beautiful and hopeful. Creeping and despairing, fought for and determined. Thank you again to Shelby for a wonderful book recommendation, and we're both looking forward to the second installment, even though we thought it was a stand alone. xD

[rosegraves]

ava reid’s publisher must love me because this is the third book they i’ve been an arc reader for 😍