Drown the Sea: Dying Gods Book One Author Elisha Kemp
Audiobook Review
Narrated by Macie Miller and Marcus Rayne
5 out of 5 stars!
"Everyone knows men can't own women. . .since women are the makers of men."
Adrienne was on her path to nationals with her dance team, getting into college, and becoming an adult when things went very wrong in a short amount of time. After a series of events that lead to Adrienne having to jump into the sea, she doesn't think anything else could possibly get worse. Only it does when she surfaces and finds herself no longer in the modern age.
Somehow Adrienne has been thrown back in time into the Minoan Bronze Age! 1600 BCE with no antibiotics, caffeine or processed foods! To top everything off the people seem to believe she is the child of one of their goddesses. Adrienne has to quickly learn and navigate through her new time period so she can possibly get help to return to her own time. Is there even a way for her to time travel forward? How did she accomplish this jump in the first place?!
"I am going to die. Because this isn't some Disney movie, and I sure as shit am not some warrior princess." - Adrienne
I was able to ARC read this book before it was released and fell in love with this series. The writing style, the authenticity of it all, the ability to fully submerge into the story, and so much more! Elisha Kemp really put in a lot of time and effort into this book to help keep you fully immersed in the time period. Historical accuracies but with artistic flares and creative licenses. The author even includes a little note about history at the beginning of the book!
When I got the audiobook, I was so excited to hear the characters I fell in love with brought to life! Macie Miller really caught on to the personality of Adrienne and helped to bring her voice to life. Adrienne's a bit spoiled and a little snobby not fully understanding things or life in general. I mean she just turned eighteen and hasn't been out on her own yet!
Getting thrown into the Bronze Age, surrounded by people and things she doesn't know helps to start her coming of age arc. What really solidified my love for this book was the fact that Adrienne didn't just instantly know everything or was suddenly perfect with weapons. She had to LEARN how to do it all, right down to learning the language. Macie really helped to capture Adrienne's hesitancy and stubbornness.
I forgot about Kitanetos (Kit) and his very inflated ego until I heard Marcus Rayne bring the deep voice to life. Because of course Kit would have the deep, masculine voice! I laughed out loud when I heard Kit's first chapter being read because he truly believes he's the gifted one. . . Kit believes Adrienne is a gift from the goddess and she's meant for him.
I loved the dynamics amongst the cast and just how Adrienne's assumed to be the spawn of a goddess. And within this time no one wished to anger the gods or goddesses. Adrienne's trying to not get too attached to things because she knows she will be going home soon, hopefully. But it's hard not to be drawn to the man who rescued her and another mysterious man that's so kind and sweet to her. Is she allowed to like more than one man?
My favorite character is Jadikira (Jadi), he's so sweet and sees something in Adrienne. Wanting nothing more than to comfort her and protect her. I'm so happy that Marcus saw the playfulness with Jadi's character and helped bring the voice to life with the humor. Jadi helps to keep things light and balances out some of the other MCs, even the voice of reason when the situation calls for it.
Just both narrators did a fantastic job switching from the multiple POVs and capturing the essence of the cast! I am very much looking forward to the next audiobook installment because I need more! This book does end on a cliffhanger that will have you wanting to jump into the next book. "Burn the Stars" is out already so you don't have to wait, but like this one it does end on a cliffhanger and the third book is set to release in April of this year! (2023)
Language is present in the book, there is some violence and bloodshed, anxiety and feelings of grief and homesickness. There are frustrations on both sides of the language barrier and humor that goes along with it as well. We do have a brief scene of attempted SA because of a man not taking no for an answer, but it's stopped! I really loved the contrast of the modern mentality and the Bronze Age mentality when it came to women.
This read is a slow burn! You will get frustrated by the teases and hints to things. I really enjoy why choose books, like this one, that the men or women (depending on the book) have different burn rates. Adrienne's still trying to figure out this life and what is acceptable in this society. We do get MM action between two of the other MCs in the read, and it was very good!
I could go ON about this book and series in general, but I don't want to give too much away! Do enjoy this time travel why choose romance set in the Minoan Bronze Age! Don't forget to give the author some stars!
Maybe if I fill a bath with some sea salt I could time travel back. . ?
Drown the Sea: Dying Gods Book One by Elisha Kemp, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)
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