Deepwater King is the second book in The Monstrous Heart Trilogy. Within its pages is a story of magic, sea monsters and intrigue. Arden is a sanguis, descended from a family who can ignite flame with their blood. After the events of the first book, she embarks on a difficult quest to fulfil a promise and escape the fate that has been planned out for her.

I found the first book confused in what it wanted to be and the story it wanted to tell. Going into this book, the plot felt stronger and more focused, with a clear set of characters. Unfortunately, while Arden is a fairly strong character at the start, she kind of loses the plot about half-way through; her obsession with the love interest, Riven, taking over any personality she might have had. Luckily for the book, the secondary characters, led by the delightful Chalice, make up for it.

We get to see more of the world in this book and learn a bit more of the magic. I’m still not quite sure how the magic system works, but I do feel like the lore is starting to fall into place and fog is lifting. I really enjoy the sea setting complete with sea monsters & isolated islands blended with industrial tones. I did find the way that the author chose to present an example of Arden’s other blood-gift a bit frustrating: more awful men obsessed with and lusting after her, unnecessary sex and yet it served to only confused me more as to how the gift worked.

At about the half-way point, we get to see some other character’s perspectives and these were my favourite parts of the book. I really enjoyed these pages and when the perspectives ended, it felt too soon. I do feel like the author was missing a trick by not focusing on these characters instead and having Arden as a secondary character/sub-plot. It was great seeing more of Bellis and those around her, and the world they’d created for themselves, and how each tried to survive.

There were some good parts of this book, and it does make for entertaining reading. It has an intriguing world and some good characters, but is lacking in places. I feel like the series would probably be enjoyed more by those who like romance-focused fantasy, such as Sarah J Maas’ books rather than V.E. Schwab which is what it’s being compared to. I don’t think it was quite the series for me, but, if the first book was something you enjoyed but weren’t fully sure about, it’s worth giving Deepwater King a go. And, if you loved Monstrous Heart, you are bound to love this book too.