Shelf Awareness--Somewhere in the Deep

YA Review: Somewhere in the Deep

Somewhere in the Deep by Tanvi Berwah (Sourcebooks Fire, 384p., ages 13-up, 9781728247656)

In the gripping YA fantasy Somewhere in the Deep, impressive monster-fighter Krescent Dune agrees to guard an underground expedition from myriad "creatures of the dark" in exchange for having her debts cleared. Once the disaster-prone mission is complete, Kress will be free to leave the miserable "island of blood and storm" that passes for home.

Now that the Landers rule over Kar Atish and own the valuable zargunine mines, lower caste Renters are forced to toil below ground "for food, water, and clothes. Or die." But Kress's parents are Kinkillers, "miners who killed other miners," which makes her an outcast. Her only option for survival has been battling monsters in Badger's "playground of death" for the entertainment of a bloodthirsty audience. When she's offered a dangerous protection job deep within the mines, the pay is too good to refuse. But mission leader Beyorn is keeping secrets, and the appearance of a group of cave-dwelling Shadefolk challenges the group's understanding of their world. Amid spiraling tensions, injuries, and death, Kress must bring the company--and herself--to safety.

Tanvi Berwah (Monsters Born and Made) ratchets up the tension with every step the outmatched expedition takes underground. Kress battles "monsters and madness," childhood enemies, and her own complicated origins while striving to do her job. Though action-based, the dramatic novel also touches on oppression and colonization, along with matters of the heart, to produce a wonderfully readable, well-rounded survival novel that's a clash of misers, mining, gods, and apocalypse. --Lynn Becker, reviewer, blogger, and children's book author.