A Dark and Drowning Tide is a beautiful and enthralling fairy tale adventure. Saft does such an incredible job building the lore of her worlds- from politics, religion, to the magical creatures. I was fascinated with the creatures and the magic the group possessed. The locked-room murder mystery at the heart of the story was extremely compelling. I love Saft’s writing style and how descriptive it is, yet every word feels like it was chosen with care. 

I really enjoyed the relationship and banter between Lorelei and Sylvia. While Lorelei initially feels like they’re closer to enemies, Sylvia is relentless in her optimism. Lorelei is not the easiest character to like, especially at first. I appreciated the reveal of how she has hidden depth and traumatic experiences that influence how she interacts with the team. One of my favorite parts was when Sylvia and Lorelei must work together and their true feelings gradually surface. 

Readers who enjoy slow-burn sapphic romance, magical creatures, and locked-room mysteries will devour A Dark and Drowning Tide. 

Thank you to Allison Saft, Del Rey, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.