Emily Lloyd-Jones's Reviews > The Drowned Woods

Update: I’ve launched my preorder campaign! Check it out for corgi swag, bookmarks, and a gorgeous art print.

When I was researching THE BONE HOUSES, I found a mention of Cantre'r Gwaelod - or translated into English, the Lowland Hundred. It was a sunken kingdom that supposedly once stood where Cardigan Bay now exists. I wrote a note to myself - “Welsh Atlantis,” I scribbled - before returning to work on my current deadlines.

But when I had a moment in between deadlines I found myself returning to that note I’d scribbled. And I began to do what I always do: research.

The tale of Cantre'r Gwaelod has many variations - but at the center of several was a young woman, a keeper of a magical well. It was her fault, many of the myths said, that the kingdom was sunk. And I found myself wondering about her. Who was this girl? What would the story be like if told from her perspective?

And so THE DROWNED WOODS began to take shape.

I really love this story, friends. It contains some of my favorite characters: the last living water diviner, a fae-cursed young man, the chaotic-good heir to a thieves guild, and a corgi that may or may not be a spy. It’s one part dark fairytale and one part heist.

And let’s just put it this way: if you loved THE BONE HOUSES, you’ll want this book beside it on your shelf. ;)