I need to familiarize myself with more sea creature lore because why is my only experience with selkies that one episode of Sofia the First...

Scorpion Deep was one of my most anticipated reads of 2026 because I've fallen in love with C.G. Drews' books over the past few years, and Hazelthorn was one of my few 5-star reads last year. For some background, I've now read all of Drews' trad-pubbed books, and as far as this one goes, I don't think it was my favorite. That being said, I still loved the atmosphere and the complexity of the characters' relationships. Botanical horror may be my preferred aesthetic, but I also love a good oceanic horror (like Ryan La Sala's The Dead of Summer). So while I did enjoy this book, I've been trying to pinpoint what didn't hit for me in this book compared to Drews' other books, and I'm still not sure I can completely put it into words, but I'll do my best.

As summer comes to a close on the moody island of Kelcarrow, Jonathan Covey knows he will be left behind when his friends depart for college. Desperate to avoid abandonment, Jonathan seeks escape in the form of a ritual that binds him to an ancient ocean god, Scorpion Deep. Soon, Jonathan learns that attachment and obsession are not interchangeable, and if he wants to protect himself, he may have to destroy the one thing that promises not to leave him. I really enjoyed how the plot continuously cycles through questions of what's real and what isn't. It's a bit of a slowburn (it took me a while to truly be invested), while the ending third is much faster. The stakes are raised throughout the story, though I think the ambiguity of "realness" does work against the stakes in some ways. I think one of my struggle points with this story, as opposed to other books by Drews, was that I didn't have a solid idea of where the plot was going. Don't Let the Forest In and Hazelthorn both have a mystery plot that provides a sense of direction; Scorpion Deep is, fittingly, a go-with-the-flow kind of plot where you can't necessarily predict where it will go next. Some readers may like simply following the story as it progresses, but for some reason, I prefer to have a bit of direction to ground me. In true Drews fashion, the story is incredibly twisty, though again, I think this twist was the least predictable of their YA horrors so far. I like being surprised by twists (and I liked the reveals for this one), but I also enjoy seeing the foreshadowing stack up, and I didn't get as much of that in this book. The ending is a bit ambiguous, so some readers may take issue with that as well. Overall, I did enjoy the atmosphere established by the setting and body horror elements, as well as the consistent tension; I just wanted a bit more direction.

The characters had me incredibly conflicted, but in a good way. Jonathan is like the other Drews' protagonists; he's a soft, empathetic boy with plenty of issues he's buried deep and some not-so-mild social anxiety. I don't know how many times I left an annotation that just said "help, I'm in this picture, and I don't like it" over the course of the book. I found his asexuality to be written well; his struggles with accepting his own "normal" were very relatable. For some reason, I didn't click with him as much as I did with Andrew and Evander, but I still found him realistic and intriguing to follow. Scorpion Deep is one of those characters I didn't like because I don't think I was supposed to. He's incredibly complex, as his motivations are both noble and selfish. His character design was super cool, though. Rae and Ellis, Jonathan's "friends", had me similarly conflicted. They're not good people, but they're also not monsters, and I saw myself in both of them at various points, so I couldn't hate them entirely. This book is filled with people who make questionable choices, and the complexity of their dynamics drew me in when I felt lost in the plot.

Scorpion Deep is a YA gothic horror standalone with a gloomy seaside setting for fans of Ryan La Sala's The Dead of Summer and Trang Tranh Tran's They Bloom At Night. Thanks to Netgalley for the e-ARC!

4.25/5

sighs and adds book to the "too cozy for my taste" list

I've read a few of Rebecca Ross's books in the past, but didn't feel called to read A River Enchanted until it was announced for the Pagebound 2026 Summer Readalong. I was intrigued by the premise (I always love a good fantasy with a mystery plot), and despite my typical aversion to heavier romance in fantasy, I did enjoy the Divine Rivals duology and figured I might enjoy the romance here as well. While this wasn't my favorite of Ross's books, I think it's one of those matters of taste: this is for the readers who want a cozy fantasy setting with a hint of mystery and a strong romantic presence. Unfortunately, that reader isn't me.

Jack Tamerlaine has been away from his home island, Cadence, for ten years when he receives a letter calling for his return. The sender? The heiress of the east, Adaira, Jack's childhood rival. Girls on Cadence are disappearing, and a bard who can communicate with the island's magical spirits may be the only way to find them. The plot mostly follows a mystery structure: Jack and Adaira are trying to uncover the whereabouts of the missing girls by communicating with the various kinds of spirits. However, there are some political and romantic subplots also woven throughout the story. I think the simplicity of the plot was where the book lost me. The "investigations" were spaced out, and in those in-between moments, I didn't feel like much was happening, hence the cozy vibes. Some readers will like this slower pacing and lower-stakes vibes (though the stakes are technically fairly high), but I just wasn't one of them. I liked the ending twists, even if they were somewhat predictable. That being said, I don't know that I'm invested enough in the story to continue to the next book.

Despite my struggles with the plot, I did like the characters and their dynamics. The MMC, Jack, is a soft music boy who probably listens to Hozier. I tend to prefer softer MMCs/love interests, so I really liked his character, and I enjoyed how his passion for music came across on the page. The FMC, Adaira, is a bit fiercer than Jack, which made their dynamics more appealing for me. Her role as an heiress gave her the authority she needed to make an impact on the page, but her kindness and love for her community made her easy to like. Their romance did feel a bit rushed for me, and I don't think it's anywhere close to the "rivals to lovers" arc that the blurb suggested, but I didn't mind it too much. As many other readers have noted, there is a second romantic pairing that felt more developed. Torin is the head of the guard in the east, and Sidra is a healer. They're already married, so their romance is established from the beginning, so the care they demonstrated for each other was much more appealing to me than Jack and Adaira's budding romance.

A River Enchanted is the first book in an NA fantasy duology featuring a rich Scottish setting, fairytale whimsy, and a cozy cast of characters who love their community.

3.5/5

This is the second book I've read this month with mushroom-based body horror, and I'm thinking a rewatch of The Last of Us might be needed.

A Trade of Blood is the third book in Robert Jackson Bennett's fantasy mystery series that I hope will continue on for many books to come. While the mysteries of the first two books lean more into politics, this book took feuding families (full-on Romeo and Juliet vibes) and turned it into a body horror mystery. Because I'm enjoying what I've deemed my Mushroom Era May, I think this book has probably been my favorite in the series so far, and I also just think the mystery felt much more personal to Din and Ana, so the tension was higher, and I was thoroughly engrossed in the story.

Ana and Din's newest mystery seems incredibly simple at first glance: the daughter of one feuding family has been killed by the son of the other, who has now fled the scene. The feuding families are at each other's throats, and if Ana and Din want to prevent the entire canton from going to war, they need to confirm the murderer...except this may not be the first unnatural death in the canton, and it certainly won't be the last. The web of secrets goes deeper than anyone could have anticipated, and with Din's new personal stakes in the mystery, he and Ana must solve the murder(s) soon. Like the previous books, the mystery is quite complex, and even though I guessed some of the twists, I missed a handful of others. I really love how intricate the pieces of the puzzles are in these books, because every reveal leads to a dozen new theories and mysteries. The ending had me thoroughly stressed, though the whole book built the suspense well, and Din's personal stakes kept me even more invested than I have been in past books. The twists were satisfying to me; I think the foreshadowing is getting better throughout the series, though this remains one of the few mystery series that I don't easily call from the first few chapters (which is great because it keeps me on my toes!)

I don't think this series would be as successful as it is without the dynamics of Ana and Din. Their banter remains a highlight for me, though I also think their connection is growing deeper, and I'm here for it. I love Din as a protagonist because he's the perfect balance to Ana's chaos, but he also has his own streak of stubbornness. I always find him easy to root for, and I'm glad he gets a little happiness in this book. Similarly, Ana always brings an entertaining, chaotic element to the story, and I'm really excited by the few glimpses of her backstory that we get in this book. As for the new characters specific to this mystery, I've learned to treat everyone with suspicion, which unfortunately means that characters I'm supposed to like are given a side-eye during every interaction. I won't discuss them too much to avoid spoilers, but I'll mention a few. Fotia, a young woman with ties to Din, was probably the only new character I didn't completely distrust (there was some initial suspicion), and I really enjoyed her cooperation with Din and Ana throughout the book. The other character that stood out to me was Tauri, who I beefed with the entire time. He's similar to Din in terms of backstory, but I nicknamed him the dirt-eating elf and continued to hate on him for no good reason. For the Strovi fans: no, he does not make a return, but Din does find a few more personal connections that hopefully will suffice for now.

A Drop of Corruption is the third book in the Shadows of the Leviathan series, which I would recommend to fans of Erin M. Evan's Empire of Exiles series.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the free e-ARC! 4.5/5