The Girl the Sea Gave Back (Sky in the Deep, #2) by Adrienne Young

Synopsis (via Goodreads): The new gut-wrenching epic from the New York Times bestselling author of Sky in the Deep.

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.

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I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

Sadly, I didn't love The Girl the Sea Gave Back. It wasn't terrible, but it didn't live up to my expectations after reading Sky in the Deep. During the first book, I felt like the characters were fighting for something, even if they didn't necessarily understand what that something was. The characters in this book chose to fight out of fear, disregarding the fact that one side wanted to avoid bloodshed, which made it unnecessarily violent. I wish the Svell had had a better reason for wanting to go to war. Any loss of life is abhorrent, but they freely sacrificed themselves for their clan even without a good reason.

Additionally, I felt like most of the book was spent walking from one place to the next. Tova traveling with the Svell, and Halvard trying to reach his people. Little skirmishes pop up along the way, but nothing like the battles we witnessed in the first book. Everything was quickly or easily resolved, and even the final battle was a disappointment. Don't even get me started on the ending (or the lack of one). 

The romance was an unnecessary aspect of the story. They feel connected from the beginning, but neither of them really understands why. Tova decisions were based on wishful thinking, and not hard facts (disregarding the times she used the stones, although those were never definitive). Tova and Halvard's relationship was poorly presented and didn't fit in with the rest of the story. He easily accepted her presence and place in his life, and he should have been more cautious and wary.

I would have enjoyed learning more about the Spinners and their role within this series. What are their motivations? Do they have any? They obviously have no qualms about involving themselves to get the results they want. Why did they lie to Tova's mother, and how did that even happen? It wasn't explained very well. 

There's very little world-building in this book, which was a bummer since I really enjoyed how developed the setting was in the first. Eelyn's time spent in battle and while in captivity... it was so detailed and descriptive. This book felt like it had very little to add to the overall story, so the details were minimal and lacking. I also thought the secondary characters in the first book were well-established and fleshed out, while the secondary characters in this book were rarely a focus.

In the end, it was a quick read, but I felt like the story progressed without really going anywhere. The Big Events felt small when compared to the first book, and even the violence and bloodshed were toned down. Sky in the Deep had clear goals and expectations, while The Girl the Sea Gave Back alternated between two perspectives that occasionally overlapped. I'm still not entirely sure what the point of the story was, unless is was simply to be entertaining. I do plan on continuing this series since I really enjoyed the first book, but this one was lacking the oomph of its predecessor.