A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid | Book Review

A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid is a dark academia meets gothic with mystery, psychological aspects, and all feminists rage. Imagine The Secret History had a baby, then fed it a steady diet of feminist theory. Meet Effy Sayre, the only girl in her architecture program, a chronic overthinker, and a feral defender of her problematic favorite author, Emrys Myrddin. When she scores a chance to redesign his home (a crumbling, definitely haunted mansion by the sea), she thinks it’s her big break. Spoiler: It’s not. Instead, she uncovers unsettling secrets, like how Myrddin might be a fraud, how history loves erasing women, and oh yeah, the Fairy King from his stories might be real. Teaming up with Preston (a skeptic with a PhD-level side-eye), Effy starts questioning everything, including her own sanity.

(A Study in Drowning itu kayak gabungan Dark Academia + Gothic + Feminist Rage dengan bonus misteri psikologis. Bayangin The Secret History dikasih paham feminisme terus jadi edgy. Kenalin Effy Sayre, cewek satu-satunya di jurusan arsitektur, overthinker akut, dan stan berat Emrys Myrddin (padahal author favoritnya problematic). Pas dia dapat kesempatan untuk mendesain ulang rumah Myrddin (mansion tepi pantai yang angker dan lembab, of course), dikira ini batu loncatan karier. Spoiler: Enggak. Dia malah ketemu sebuah rahasia yang bikin kepikiran: Myrddin mungkin penipu, gimana sejarah suka hapus peran perempuan, dan Fairy King di buku favoritnya mungkin beneran ada. Bareng Preston (si skeptis dengan side-eye level profesor), Effy mulai mempertanyakan semuanya, termasuk kewarasannya sendiri.)

💊 SIDE EFFECTS

🔺Sudden urge to side-eye every legends and historical events 

🔺Anxiety spikes when you hear waves crashing (thanks, Effy).

🔺Paranormal fear of your bookshelf (what secrets are YOU hiding, Wordsworth?).

🔺A new hyperfixation on Welsh folklore (blame the Fairy King).

🔺Existential crisis: "Who even am I outside of society’s narratives?"

📌 TL;DR: A dark academia x gothic horror collab where:

✔️ A girlboss with anxiety fights a gaslighting fairy king

✔️ Your favorite author is definitely cancelled.

✔️ The house is a character (and it’s toxic).

✔️ Books are weapons, history is a lie, and men? Trash.

✨ THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU IF

🔺You’ve ever side-eyed a "literary genius" and thought, "But at what cost?"

🔺Your Pinterest board is 50% dark academia, 50% "I can fix him" (spoiler: you can’t).

🔺You want gothic horror that gets anxiety (damp mansions = mental health metaphors).

🔺You love messy, stubborn heroines who weaponize their hyperfixations.

🔺You’ve ever felt personally victimized by a book (in the best way).

🚫 YOU WILL HATE IT IF

🔺You need clear-cut heroes and villains

🔺Descriptions of mold/moisture make you gag (so much dampness)

🔺You’re not here for unreliable narrators or slow-burn psychological dread

🔺You think folklore should stay fun and not politically charged (lol)

🔺You’re allergic to feminist rage in lace gloves

BOOK REVIEW 

What if your favorite author was a total fraud? A Study in Drowning dives into how myths warp reality, how it makes us believe lies just because they’ve been repeated forever. Effy stans Myrddin, convinced his books are genius, until she peels back the layers and realizes that stories aren’t always about inspiration. Sometimes, they’re about control. This book had me side-eyeing everything I’ve ever accepted as "fact." Why do we trust certain narratives without question? It’s a wake-up call to challenge the people we worship on blind faith.

Hero worship is more like hero problem here. Myrddin’s treated like some flawless literary deity, his messy humanity scrubbed clean by the people who profit from his myth. Sound familiar? This book criticizes society’s obsession with putting (usually male) icons on pedestals then gaslighting us into ignoring their wrongdoings. Effy’s journey exposes the truth that reputation isn’t about who someone was, but who the powerful ones needed them to be. And yeah, it’s uncomfortably relatable.

The way his influence is manipulated to make him seem better than he was, is exactly how this book tells us that history isn’t the truth, but it’s propaganda that won. This book’s eeriest flex? Showing how Myrddin’s legacy gets twisted to serve an agenda. Effy’s detective work proves that "official" stories are just the ones that survived usually because they benefited someone. Her refusal to swallow the lie is a rallying cry that questioning the past isn’t just edgy, it’s essential. Even when the truth hurts, it beats living in delulu land.

Effy starts out buying into Myrddin’s hype, until she uncovers the erased women in his shadow. This book lowkey drags real-life history, where male "geniuses" get worshipped while the women around them are footnotes. How many brilliant voices got buried because they didn’t fit the narrative? This book doesn’t just ask, it forces you to confront the answer as well.

On top of that, Effy’s trauma isn’t just a subplot, it’s the point. Her anxiety and self-doubt aren’t quirks, they’re scars from a world that’s gaslit her forever. But instead of letting her fear win, she weaponizes her anger. She confronts the lies she’s been fed, the stories meant to define her, and finally starts writing her own ending. It’s messy, empowering, and so real you’ll wanna scream (or text your group chat).

Effy’s self-doubt is the direct result of years of being gaslit, micromanaged, and straight-up diminished by the people who were supposed to build her up. This book nails how parental baggage affects you by rewiring your entire sense of worth. But Effy’s journey proves that even the deepest-conditioned stories (the ones whispered by family or screamed by society) can be rewritten. Healing isn’t deleting the past, but it’s hacking the system.

Now let's talk about that one book we hyperfixate on. Yes. We’ve all had that book, the one that feels like it crawled into our soul and whispered, "I get you." For Effy, it’s Myrddin’s work. But this book forces her (and us) to ask: What if your comfort read is lowkey problematic? Loving a story doesn’t mean you have to love it uncritically. This book is our mentor in holding two truths at once: This saved me and This might be flawed as hell.

Authors die, but books are immortal. Once a book hits the shelves, it’s not just the author’s anymore, it’s ours. Effy’s bond with Myrddin’s writing is visceral, almost spiritual, until she realizes his myth doesn’t match the man. But even after the pedestal shatters, the meaning she found in those words? That stays. Books are time travelers, carrying emotions across generations. And readers? We’re the alchemists, turning ink into new magic.

Something else that caught my attention is how this book shows that the Fairy King isn’t a ‘dark romance’, but he’s a red flag. Folklore loves to romanticize toxic power. But this book isn’t here for the aestheticization of abuse. The Fairy King isn’t some sexy, mysterious anti-hero, he’s a literal warning. This book drags the trope by its gothic collar and forces us to ask: Why do we stan fictional red flags? Some behaviors aren’t chilling, they’re chillingly familiar. Because they exist in real life, and shouldn’t be excused just because it’s wrapped in an intriguing or romanticized story. It made us think about how we view these kinds of characters in fiction, and what that says about the way we see similar behavior in reality.

(Gimana kalau penulis favoritmu ternyata penipu besar? A Study in Drowning menyelam ke dalam dunia mitos yang merusak realita, yang bikin kita percaya sebuah kebohongan cuma karena sudah diulang-ulang terus. Effy awalnya fans berat Myrddin, menganggap bukunya jenius banget, sampai akhirnya dia menyelidiki lebih dalam dan sadar bahwa cerita nggak selalu tentang inspirasi. Kadang, itu cuma alat untuk mengontrol. Buku ini bikin kita side-eye semua hal yang selama ini kita anggap "fakta". Kenapa sih kita gampang banget percaya sama narasi tertentu tanpa bertanya-tanya dulu? Buku ini jadi semacam alarm buat berhenti idolize seseorang begitu aja.

Pemujaan tokoh di sini lebih cocok disebut permasalahan tokoh. Myrddin diperlakukan kayak dewa sastra yang sempurna, semua sisi jeleknya dihapus sama orang-orang yang cari untung dari mitosnya. Kedengeran familiar? Buku ini mengkritisi obsesi masyarakat yang suka menaikkan satu tokoh (biasanya laki-laki) ke tingkat dewa terus memaksa kita tutup mata sama red flag-nya. Perjalanan Effy menunjukkan satu hal bahwa reputasi nggak menggambarkan siapa orangnya, tapi versi yang dibutuhkan sama orang berkuasa. Dan iya, ini ngena banget.

Cara pengaruh Myrddin dimanipulasi biar keliatan lebih baik adalah bukti kalai sejarah bukanlah kebenaran, tapi propaganda yang menang. Hal paling creepy dari buku ini? Cara peninggalan Myrddin dipelintir buat mendukung agenda tertentu. Penyelidikan Effy menunjukkan kalau cerita "resmi" hanyalah versi yang selamat, biasanya karena menguntungkan pihak tertentu. Keberanian Effy untuk menolak kebohongan itu kayak teriakan perang kalau mempertanyakan masa lalu bukan cuma buat gaya, tapi wajib hukumnya. Sekalipun kebenarannya sakit, tapi lebih baik daripada hidup di dunia halu.

Effy awalnya termakan hype Myrddin, sampai akhirnya dia menemukan fakta soal perempuan-perempuan yang dihapus dari ceritanya. Buku ini lowkey mengejek sejarah dunia nyata, di mana "jenius" cowok dipuja-puja sementara perempuan di sekitarnya cuma jadi catatan kaki. Berapa banyak suara brilian yang dikubur cuma karena nggak cocok sama narasi yang dijual? Buku ini nggak cuma nanya, dia memaksa kita buat menghadapi jawabannya.

Selain itu, trauma Effy bukan sekadar subplot, tapi itu point-nya. Kecemasan dan rasa insecure-nya bukan sekadar quirk, itu bekas luka dari dunia yang selama ini gaslight dia. Tapi alih-alih dikalahkan rasa takut, dia malah mengubah amarah jadi senjata. Effy berani menghadapi kebohongan yang selama ini dia percaya, cerita-cerita yang memaksa untuk menentukan hidupnya, dan akhirnya mulai menulis akhir ceritanya sendiri. Prosesnya berantakan, empowering, dan relate banget sampai kita pengen teriak (atau spam grup WA).

Rasa insecure Effy bukan cuma sekadar vibes, itu hasil bertahun-tahun di-gaslight, dikontrol sampe ke hal paling kecil, dan diremehkan sama orang-orang yang seharusnya mendukungnya. Buku ini menangkap banget gimana beban dari orang tua nggak cuma berpengaruh pada kita, tapi bisa merusak seluruh rasa harga diri kita. Tapi perjalanan Effy membuktikan bahwa bahkan cerita yang paling dalem nancep di otak (entah itu bisikan keluarga atau teriakan masyarakat) bisa ditulis ulang. Proses penyembuhan bukan tentang menghapus masa lalu, tapi tentang hack sistem yang sudah membentuk kita.

Pernah punya buku yang bikin kamu hyperfixate? Nah, ini pembahasannya. Kita semua punya buku yang rasanya menyusup ke jiwa dan berbisik, "Aku paham kamu lho." Buat Effy, itu karya Myrddin. Tapi plot twist-nya: buku ini memaksa Effy (dan kita) buat nanya, gimana kalau comfort read kita ternyata lowkey bermasalah? Mencintai sebuah cerita nggak berarti kita harus stan buta. Buku ini kayak mentor yang mengajarkan kita buat memegang dua kebenaran sekaligus: "buku ini menyelamatkanku" dan "buku ini mungkin cacat banget."

Penulis bisa mati, tapi buku itu abadi. Begitu buku udah terbit, itu bukan cuma milik penulisnya lagi, tapi milik kita semua. Ikatan Effy sama tulisan Myrddin tuh intens banget, menyentuh spiritual, sampai akhirnya dia sadar mitos tentang Myrddin nggak sesuai sama aslinya. Tapi bahkan setelah semuanya hancur, makna yang dia temukan di tulisan itu? Tetep ada. Buku itu mesin waktu yang membawa emosi melintasi generasi. Dan pembaca? Kita para alkemis yang mengubah tinta jadi keajaiban yang baru.

Satu hal yang ngena banget adalah buku ini menunjukkan kalau Fairy King itu bukan "dark romance", tapi red flag berjalan. Folklore suka banget meromantisasi kekuatan toksik. Tapi buku ini nggak mau ikut-ikutan mengestetisasi kekerasan. Fairy King bukan anti-hero seksi dan misterius, dia peringatan nyata. Buku ini menyeret trope itu dan memaksa kita bertanya: Kenapa kita stan red flag fiksi? Beberapa perilaku nggak cuma "seram", tapi seram karena terlalu familiar. Soalnya itu ada di kehidupan nyata, dan nggak boleh dibenarkan cuma karena dibungkus cerita yang menarik atau romantis. Buku ini bikin kita mikir tentang cara kita melihat karakter-karakter kayak gini di fiksi dan gimana kita memandang perilaku serupa di dunia nyata.)

THINGS I LOVE 

■ Gothic vibes so thick you can taste the salt in the air. Ava Reid doesn’t just describe a setting, she haunts you with it. That rotting seaside mansion? The relentless storms? The suffocating dread that clings like wet silk? Chef’s kiss. This book isn’t just gothic, it’s gothic™, dripping with atmosphere so visceral you’ll swear your socks are damp from imaginary seawater. Perfect for readers who want to feel the creak of floorboards and the weight of unresolved trauma.

■ Effy: The unhinged girlfailure protagonist we stan. Anxious. Stubborn. Traumatized. Relatable. Effy isn’t your cookie-cutter strong female lead, because she’s messy, defensive, and lowkey delulu about her favorite author (mood). But that’s why her growth hits harder. Watching her claw her way out of denial and self-doubt isn’t just satisfying, it’s cathartic. Like, "Who gave you permission to call me out like this?" cathartic.

■ Male authors get statues. Women get erased. The way this book drags literary sexism? Art. Myrddin’s worshipped like a god while women’s voices are literally buried. Sound familiar? This book forces us to ask: Why do we let dead men dictate the narrative? It’s not just Effy’s story, it’s a side-eye to every "genius" whose legacy was built on silencing others.

■ Anxiety rep that doesn’t feel like a PSA. Effy’s trauma isn’t a quirk, it’s woven into her bones. This book doesn’t glamorize her struggles or magically cure them. Instead, it shows the raw, ugly reality of anxiety: the spirals, the self-sabotage, the "Why am I like this?" moments. For anyone who’s ever felt like their brain is a haunted house, Effy’s your girl.

■ Myth + Power = A literal culture hack. This book could’ve been a dusty lecture on society, but nah it’s a sneaky critique. It dissects how myths control us, why we stan problematic icons, and who benefits when stories get twisted. No spoilers, but by the end, you’ll be questioning every "legend" you’ve ever believed. (cough even your said legendary president cough) (RIP to your trust in historical fanfics.)

■ A mystery that plays mind games with you. Myrddin’s secrets? The mansion’s cursed past? The "Wait, is this gaslighting or ghosts?" vibe? Obsessed. The twists don’t just shock, they unravel you, brick by brick. And that climax? Pure cinematic chaos. Perfect for readers who love books that grip them by the throat and whisper, "Bet you didn’t see that coming."

(■ Gothic vibes-nya ngena banget sampai kita bisa merasakan asinnya udara. Ava Reid nggak cuma mendeskripsikan setting, dia bikin kita nginep di situ. Mansion tepi pantai yang lembab dan lapuk? Badai yang nggak berhenti? Perasaan cemas yang nempel kayak kain basah? Chef's kiss. Buku ini nggak cuma gothic, tapi Gothic™, atmosfirnya begitu nyata sampai kita bakal merasa pakai kaos kaki basah gara-gara air laut imajiner. Cocok banget buat kamu yang pengen mendengarkan bunyi lantai kayu yang berderit dan beban trauma yang belum kelar. 

■ Effy: The unhinged girlfailure protagonist we stan. Cemas. Keras kepala. Trauma. Relate banget. Effy bukan tokoh perempuan kuat yang sempurna, dia berantakan, defensif, dan agak delulu soal penulis favoritnya (mood banget kan). Tapi justru itu yang bikin perkembangannya terasa lebih mantap. Nonton dia berjuang keluar dari denial dan rasa insecure nggak cuma memuaskan, tapi katarsis banget. Kayak, "Siapa yang ngasih izin buku ini buat nyindir aku se-personal ini?"

■ Penulis cowok dikultuskan, penulis cewek dihapus. Cara buku ini menunjukkan seksisme di dunia sastra? Art banget. Myrddin dipuja kayak dewa sementara suara perempuan dikubur hidup-hidup. Kedengeran familiar? Buku ini memaksa kita untuk nanya: Kenapa sih kita biarin orang mati yang nentuin narasi? Ini bukan cuma cerita Effy, tapi juga side-eye buat semua "jenius" yang reputasinya dibangun di atas pembungkaman suara orang lain.

■Representasi anxiety yang nggak kaku. Trauma Effy bukan sekadar quirk, tapi udah menancap sampai ke tulang. Buku ini nggak meromantisasi perjuangannya atau tiba-tiba bikin dia sembuh. Malah, ini nunjukin realitas anxiety yang raw and ugly: overthinking, self-sabotage, momen "aku ini kenapa sih?". Buat kamu yang pernah merasa otakmu kayak rumah hantu, Effy adalah spirit animal-mu.  

■ Mitologi + kekuasaan = senjata budaya. Buku ini bisa aja jadi ceramah garing soal masyarakat, tapi enggak, kritiknya halus tapi tajam. Buku ini membongkar gimana mitos bisa mengontrol kita, kenapa kita stan idola bermasalah, dan siapa yang diuntungkan ketika sebuah cerita dipelintir. Tanpa spoiler, di akhir buku kita bakal mempertanyakan semua "legenda" yang pernah kita percaya. (uhuk termasuk presiden legendaris itu uhuk) (RIP kepercayaan kita pada fanfiksi sejarah).

■ Misteri yang play mind games dengan kita. Rahasia Myrddin? Masa lalu mansion yang angker? Vibes "Ini gaslighting atau hantu beneran?" Obsessed. Plot twist-nya nggak cuma bikin kaget, tapi bongkar perlahan-lahan semua udah yang kita percaya. Dan klimaksnya? Kekacauan yang cinematic banget. Cocok banget buat kamu yang suka buku yang tiba-tiba mencekik leher sambil berbisik, "Nggak expect bakal kejadian kayak gini kan?"

RATING

🔺Gothic Atmosphere: 9.5/10 (Damp, haunted, and smells like secrets)

🔺Feminist Rage: 10/10 (Sharp enough to stab the patriarchy)

🔺Psychological Horror: 8.5/10 (Is the house gaslighting me, or is it my trauma?)

🔺Plot Twists: 9/10 (My jaw is on the floor. Someone pick it up.)

🔺Character Angst: 9.5/10 (Effy is all of us after one minor inconvenience)

WHAT THEY SAID ABOUT A STUDY IN DROWNING

🔺Edmond Dantès (The Count of Monte Cristo): "Ah, a tale of revenge and buried truths? Admirable. But Effy, ma chérie, you must become the Fairy King to destroy him."

🔺Robin Swift (Babel): "The way language and myth are weaponized here? Chef’s kiss. But where’s the footnotes?!"

🔺Selma Karamy (Broken Wings): "Finally, a book that understands! Men write history, women drown in it. Effy, habibti, burn the mansion down."

🔺Elizabeth Zott (Lessons in Chemistry): "Effy, stop apologizing. Channel your rage into science!"

CONCLUSION 

A Study in Drowning isn’t here to coddle you, it’s here to haunt you (in a good way). It’s about the lies we call "history" (spoiler: men wrote it), why we stan flawed celebrities (even when they’re trash), how stories save us and how they’re weaponized. With its eerie setting, twists that will end you, and Effy’s raw, real journey (anxiety rep that doesn’t sugarcoat), this book is that girl. If you love (might be) unreliable narrators, academia’s dirty secrets, and folklore with teeth, then RUN! GRAB THIS BOOK!

(A Study in Drowning adalah buku yang nggak mau bikin kita nyaman, buku ini cuma mau menghantui kita. Ini cerita tentang "sejarah" yang ternyata cuma kebohongan (spoiler: penulisnya cowok), alasan kita stan selebritas bermasalah (padahal sampah), dan kekuatan kisah yang bisa menyelamatkan sekaligus jadi senjata. Dengan setting yang seram, plot twist bikin jantung copot, dan perjalanan Effy yang relate banget (anxiety-nya nggak diromantisasi), buku ini emang that girl. Kalau kamu suka narator yang mungkin unreliable, drama kotor dunia akademis, dan cerita rakyat yang menggigit, BURUAN LARI! BELI BUKU INI!)