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Title: When Oceans Rise | Author: Robin Alvarez | Publisher: Creative James Media (2023)</p

When Oceans Rise | Book Spotlight

Title: When Oceans RiseAuthor: Robin AlvarezGenre: Young Adult | Fantasy Trigger Warnings: Gaslighting | Physical abuse Release Date: May 23rd, 2023 Submerged in a toxic relationship and disconnected from everyone, she turns to the sea to decide her fate. Its decision? Toss her to the sea witch.Seventeen-year-old Malaya is cursed. In her family, every girl’s first love ends in death after…

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#Book Spotlight #Robin Alvarez #When Oceans Rise

Where Oceans Rise book Review!!

According to the stories told by Malaya’s family, the girls are cursed to fall in love with someone evil, which leads to their eventual downfall. Malaya is unbelieving until she finds herself in a regrettable and dangerous position with a toxic boyfriend. Malaya’s boyfriend is gaslighting her and she is clueless as to how to fix it. One day when she’s surfing, she gets caught in a riptide, forcing her to trade her voice for a new start with a guy who seems way better than her ex. Little does she know though that the sea witch had stuck her into an alternate timeline, and that the sea witch is using Malaya’s voice to release monsters into both universes. To get back to her original timeline, Malaya must fight the monsters, but if she returns she may never see her new guy again. What would you do if you were so tremendously unhappy and still making all the wrong decisions? What would you do for another chance?

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This debut is an exciting story with a lot of fluctuating emotions, each portrayed beautifully. It was interesting to see and learn about Filipino culture. The story is well thought out, engaging, and unique, and the characters were beautifully created and represented. The action kept me on the edge of my seat on more than one occasion, and the ending left me sitting in all the feelings and with even more questions. The journey that Malaya goes through feels like one of those roller coasters that causes your stomach to be in your throat when you’re suspended in midair and you can’t think of anything but needing to breathe while also not being able to gasp in a single breath. Alvarez elegantly captures the struggles of real life within this novel, and it is easy to find relatable moments that bring you closer to Malaya. When Oceans Rise is a practical and authentic look into heartbreak, family life, and sacrifice. The book covers themes such as toxic relationships, friendships, how one decision could have led to a completely different life, and varying family dynamics.

I heavily recommend checking the trigger warnings on Robin's website for a more detailed outline because this book deals with themes of gaslighting, and physical, mental, and emotionally abusive relationships, so proceed with caution.

✯✯✯✯✯ 5/5 Would reccomend to anyone, so long as they read the trigger warnings first!