I've read two other works by Ava Reid, which I consider to be some of my favourite books of all time. I couldn't wait to read 'A Study in Drowning' and found myself being spellbound by the concepts and different aspects within this book. However, the writing style was significantly contrasting to me compared to previous works. And although I loved the narrative, I found myself not particularly liking this book overall. I enjoyed the descriptions and story surrounding the Faerie King, the bottom hundred, the question of "what if your favourite author was a fraud?" and the story's magical elements, relationships and underlying themes. But I did find it hard to follow at times and often reread pages to re-grasp the visuals/atmosphere of the story. Effy's character is different from Evike (from 'The Wolf and the Woodsman') and Marlinchen (from 'Juniper and Thorn'), which was refreshing, but I did find the character to be slightly irritating and lacking what those protagonists had. This work was still very entertaining, and I'm excited to read the second instalment and upcoming novels by Ava.