I really enjoyed submerging myself in this wonderful fall read, and though I can't promise this review will be free of corny drowning-related puns, I can promise that if you're looking for an atmospheric read in an unsettling, seaswept manor with an academic rivalry that threatens the crumbling foundations of the perceived truth, look no further. A Study in Drowning follows Effy Sayre, an unwilling student of the architecture college in a university that bans women from enrolling to study literature, the most prized subject of her home country of Llyr.

So prized is literature that famous authors are interred in a museum as "Sleepers" that protect the land from the threat of Argant, their enemy country, and Emrys Myrddin, the author of her most beloved book, Angharad, has recently joined their number. What's more, a competition has opened to redesign the late author's manor in Southern Llyr, one she wins— but the task is even more daunting than expected, and between the dissolving cliffs, Emrys's overbearing and mysterious son Ianto, and the surprise addition of a stuffy student from the literature college there to prove Emrys Myrddin is a fraud, it's everything Effy can do to stay afloat.

This novel's strengths lie in its prose and atmosphere by far. I had a few things holding me back from a full 5-star, which I'll get to, but the magic of the Bottom Hundred seemed ingrained into the writing in a palpable shift from the university town of Caer-Isel to the sprawling, waterlogged Hiraeth manor. Even when I felt let down by some aspects, or was annoyed by certain characters, I still could not put the book down— and I think that's a bewitching in and of itself. I loved Angharad just as much as Effy at the end, and I find myself wondering if we'll ever be graced with the full story. The writing weaves into the atmosphere perfectly, and there is nothing quite as unsettling to me as water damage, a living rot that served the themes of the novel with regard to assault, power, and control well. In lighter aspects, I adored Preston and I thought his bond with Effy was very cute in a platonic sense. I sometimes felt Effy's affection for him was very "tell not show" and his own attraction seemed strangely progressive (more on that later), but overall, several scenes got me and I was not disappointed to see them together. Preston was also just my type, so he's got that going for him.

As for my disappointments with the book, I felt the worldbuilding was stretched thin insofar as the arbitrary relevance of certain details, namely the Llyrian-Argantian conflict that fuels much of Effy's initial animosity toward Preston. Listen, I also would hold a senseless animosity toward someone who checked out every single library book I wanted at once, but I felt her hating him for having a spot in the college she coveted would have been more believable than her xenophobia toward Argantians since it dropped so suddenly. I didn't feel a proper conclusion or acknowledgment of it, and on the whole, it seemed unnecessary. I also had an incredibly hard time placing the intended time period with the details & technology and ended up having to hear from other readers that it was meant to take place in the 1950s. That might be a purely me pet peeve, but it kept me from fully dipping into the beginning and I was only truly pulled under when Effy left for Hiraeth, since the countryside felt much more familiar to me.

I can see other aspects that might hold back others from loving this book, and while there are some others I agree with, overall I did enjoy this read and I'm looking forward to tackling Ava Reid's backlog as well as seeing what else she has in store for us as her talent grows. My final remark is that if like me, you're a fan of the overall vibe of A House of Salt and Sorrows, I would definitely recommend this.