The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, written by Axie Oh, follows the story of a young girl, Mina, who sacrifices herself to the sea god to save her village and her brother’s lover, Shim Cheong. After Mina sacrifices herself, she finds herself in the Sea God’s city, following the red string of fate that ties her to the Sea God through the deep fog. Once she reaches the Sea God’s palace, she finds him in a deep sleep. She also meets three more characters, Shin, the protector of the Sea God, Kirin, and Namgi, both of whom are mythical creatures. Anyway, she learns that the Sea God is under a curse and is determined to find the solution, restoring peace to the spirit and human world so that her self-sacrifice does not waste. The red string of fate is destroyed, and her soul gets stolen by Shin, claiming that it is necessary for the safety of the Sea God and peace within the realm. This also results in Mina losing her voice. Eventually, Mina gets her soul and voice back with the help of three spirits, Mask, Dai, and Miki, who are important reoccurring supporting characters. However, as soon as she gets her soul and voice back, another red string of fate forms with Shin, which only the two can see it. Mina goes on these dangerous adventures with Shin, Kirin, and Namgi to find hints and answers to all her questions, and every single time, it leads to even more questions. 

If you are familiar with East Asian folklore or literature, the name Shim Cheong may sound very familiar and that is because this book is based on folklore, or rather a pansori story, called The Tale of Shim Cheong. It may be because I already know about the “The Tale of Shim Cheong,” so I did not want to read a book that would be precisely like folklore. It would just be all too predictable. I loved the idea of how Axie Oh, created a whole new protagonist for this book while making Shim Cheong a side character. Creating Mina, the protagonist, gave the book a new meaning, especially since the book’s catchphrase is about “don’t chase fate, let fate chase you.” I think Mina let fate chase her throughout the book, especially when we, the readers, are often reminded that Mina was not meant to be the Sea God’s bride, nor did she ever wish to become a Sea God’s bride. 

In the book, Mina meets with the Sea God three times, and each time, he asks her to tell her a story. In which Axie Oh introduces three well-known folklores in Korean culture. There are also reasons why Axie Oh chose these three folklores. The first one is Heungbu and Nolbu, a story of two brothers, where there is a greedy and wealthy older brother and a poor and kind younger brother. The second story is The Fairy and the Woodcutter, a tragic love story. This story foreshadows Mina and Shin’s relationship once Mina restores peace to the spirit and the human world. The last story Mina tells the Sea God is the tale of Shim Cheong, the inspiration for this book. Through the story of Shim Cheong that Mina means the Sea God, the readers also get to learn of Shim Cheong’s personality and come to understand why Joon, Mina’s brother, fell in love with her and why the villagers believe that Shim Cheong’s sacrifice will bring an end to the storms. 

We also see the relationship development Mina has with each of the characters from the spirit world, particularly the development between Shin and Mina. We also get to see how well her relationship with her family was. Her relationship with her family is an important factor in why she chose to sacrifice herself that night. The only minor complaint I have is that I wanted to see more romantic development between Shin and Mina. Still, with how the story starts from the beginning to how it unfolds at the very end was spectacular. 

Art Cover: 5/5
Overall Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Would I recommend this book to others?: Yes