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The Girl the Sea Gave Back by Adrienne Young

Young adult

The Girl the Sea Gave Back

by Adrienne Young

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Quick take

The ultimate fantasy read. Get into Swedish mythology wrapped up with mysticism, magic, and epic war-torn romances.

Good to know

  • Illustrated icon, Romance

    Romance

  • Illustrated icon, Emotional

    Emotional

  • Illustrated icon, Magical

    Magical

  • Illustrated icon, Murder

    Murder

Synopsis

For as long as she can remember, Tova has lived among the Svell, the people who found her washed ashore as a child and use her for her gift as a Truthtongue. Her own home and clan are long-faded memories, but the sacred symbols and staves inked over every inch of her skin mark her as one who can cast the rune stones and see into the future. She has found a fragile place among those who fear her, but when two clans to the east bury their age-old blood feud and join together as one, her world is dangerously close to collapse.

For the first time in generations, the leaders of the Svell are divided. Should they maintain peace or go to war with the allied clans to protect their newfound power? And when their chieftain looks to Tova to cast the stones, she sets into motion a series of events that will not only change the landscape of the mainland forever but will give her something she believed she could never have again—a home.

Free sample

Check out a preview of The Girl the Sea Gave Back.

The Girl the Sea Gave Back

13 Hours Ago

The Headlands, Kyrr Territory

“Give me the child.”

Turonn’s hands reached for the girl cradled in his wife’s arms and she looked up, her swollen eyes glistening.

“They’re waiting, Svanhild.”

She touched her daughter’s face, tracing the curve of her brow with the tip of her finger. “I will carry her,” she whispered.

Her black hair fell over her face like a veil as her bare feet hit the cold stone floor and she stood on weak legs. When Torunn stepped toward her, she moved from his reach. The comfort of her husband would only turn the river of pain in her chest into an angry ocean. So, he let her go, watching her step into the ice-blue light of dawn spilling through the open door. He took the bow from where it hung on the wall and followed, his eyes on the hem of her white linen gown.

Below, every soul in Fjarra stood at the water’s edge to witness the funeral rites. The bitterly barren headlands that had been the home of the Kyrr for generations were iced over, though winter was gone, and Svanhild couldn’t help but think her daughter would be cold, even if she was dead.

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Why I love it

My favorite moment in any book is when a character comes into her own and discovers her place in the world—something I think many of us continue to search for well past adolescence. So it’s no surprise that when I started reading The Girl the Sea Gave Back, I was drawn to Tova, the castaway seer at the heart of this book, who’s searching for a home to call her own.

The Girl the Sea Gave Back picks up ten years after the events of Sky in the Deep—Adrienne Young’s first novel—and follows two main characters: Halvard, a young man who grew up in peace and now leads his people through war, and Tova, a Truthtongue with the ability to read and interpret fates. When the Svell, Tova’s adoptive people, set their sights on war with the N?dhir, Halvard’s people, Tova must decide where her loyalties lie.

This book drew me in with its Nordic-inspired, magical setting, then kept me glued to the page with intense battle scenes and complex characters. But what I loved most was watching Tova grow from a placeless outcast into someone with a family and a home. Her story reminded me that you don’t have to be defined by where you came from or who you used to be, and I loved coming to that revelation alongside her. I recommend this novel for anyone looking for an atmospheric, action-packed read, with a touch of romance and fate-defying resilience.

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Young adult
View all
The Wild Huntress
Ruthless Vows
As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow
Dragonfruit
The Thirteenth Child
The Reappearance of Rachel Price
Gwen & Art Are Not in Love
Check & Mate
Divine Rivals
Foul Lady Fortune
Anna K Away
I Must Betray You
A Wilderness of Stars
Warrior Girl Unearthed
Bloodmarked
Instructions for Dancing
The Boy in the Red Dress
Color Me In
Not So Pure and Simple
Throw Like a Girl
Frankly in Love
Wayward Son
The Stars and the Blackness Between Them
Anna K
Patron Saints of Nothing
The Kingdom of Back
Yes No Maybe So
Permanent Record
Full Disclosure
Oasis
Where the World Ends
I Have No Secrets
Song of the Crimson Flower
When the Stars Lead to You
All the Bright Places
Saving Zoë
Symptoms of a Heartbreak
All of Us with Wings
The Boy and Girl Who Broke the World
Past Perfect Life
There's Something About Sweetie
Again, But Better
Sky Without Stars
How (Not) to Ask a Boy to Prom
Night Music
Shout
The Deceivers
Top Ten
A Million Junes
And We're Off
Salt to the Sea