The Otherworld | Abbie Emmons

Hello and welcome back!

I know... it's been a while, I will blame my incredibly busy schedule and lack of completed books. However, being my own boss at work has its perks... meaning I can listen to audiobooks while I toil. And that is exactly what I did this week.

A little context before we jump in.

100 Days of Sunlight is Abbie Emmons' debut novel— a summery, lighthearted story which I read last year and absolutely loved. Because I am familiar with Abbie's other books and her YouTube channel, I was really, really excited to read The Otherworld, Abbie's latest stand-alone novel. It has been on my to-read list for a while and one day, while I was scrolling through my audiobook list on Hoopla, I found that The Otherworld was available! Once I had it downloaded, it didn't take long for me to complete the book and now here we are!

I have a lot of thoughts, but they are all in a pitiful state of disarray. I am hopeful that typing all the disjointed fragments out will help clarify a few things.

I won't be able to share with you everything I thought, for the sake of post length and keeping it spoiler-free, but I am excited to share what I can!

Let's begin, shall we?

(This review is spoiler-free)

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Orca Monroe wants only one thing for her eighteenth birthday: to experience the Otherworld—the mysterious “mainland” across the sea that her father has forbidden her from visiting.

Growing up in a lighthouse on a remote island, Orca has lived isolated from the world… until one day when she finds a cell phone washed up on the beach. Orca has her first conversation with Jack Stevenson, a young man whose older brother, Adam, has gone missing after crashing his seaplane off the coast.

One stormy night, Orca finds Adam Stevenson collapsed on her doorstep. As she nurses him back to health, she finds herself spellbound by his inquiring mind and rugged good looks. Simultaneously, Adam is captivated by her wild beauty and pure heart. But with a ten-year age gap between them—and her father’s determination to keep Orca protected from outsiders—Adam knows they can never be together.

Resigned to give Orca up, Adam returns to the mainland—but Jack refuses to leave her trapped at the lighthouse. Jack offers to show Orca the world she’s always dreamed of. But when she leaves her island for the first time, Orca begins to realize that the mainland may hold more dark secrets than she ever imagined… and the two brothers she helped bring back together may be the very people she tears apart.

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(I very much disliked the narration of the audiobook. There were three narrators, one for Orca, one for Jack, and one for Adam. I only liked Adam's voice— Jack's was loud and monotonous, and Orca's was okay, I just didn't like the reading style of the narrator.

Just saying.)

Plot and setting:

The Otherworld has a fascinating premise. A young woman living on an island with no one but her father for eighteen years? I Love it. In fact, it feels very Rapunzel-esque. I've seen a lot of people liken The Otherworld to Tangled, a comparison that I definitely agree with. Some said they didn't like this theme— however, it didn't bother me, and I think the "modern Rapunzel" inspiration was clever and well executed. I wasn't constantly thinking of the Disney movie while reading— The Otherworld definitely has its own character.

What I did find unique about this book was the pacing and sequence of events. About halfway through I felt as though it was ending, but not in a boring, dragging way. I had just never read pacing quite like The Otherworld had in any book before.

The plot was intriguing and kept me listening, with a few twists that weren't completely shocking but added an interest to the story. There was one thing that started to annoy me, however, and that was repetition. Dialogue segments became annoyingly similar, certain phrases or "thoughts" were overused, and overall there were many scenes that left me saying, "I know!!! This has been stressed more than enough!" Perhaps the repetition was supposed to build emotion and suspense as the characters worked through their many problems and roadblocks—climbing out of a valley just to trip back in it again and have the same arguments, the same mental battles—but it left me eager to move on instead.

I thought it was interesting that the author chose to set The Otherworld in the late nineties. It hardly shone through, so there was not much change to the feel of the story, but it was another interesting tidbit that gave the novel more character.

The coastal Washington location was great! I was not expecting a summery book, but The Otherworld had a balmy, Washington Pacific coast setting—complete with sunny swim days and pop-up storms. I love the coast, and The Otherworld made me want to visit the Pacific again! (Hey, Dad, when is our next vacation?)

Characters:

Orca Monroe is sweet, charming, feminine, strong but gentle, everything I love in a female lead. She had her hurdles to jump over and challenges to face, and watching her character grow and change was wonderful. What did annoy me was her pushiness, which she never quite got over. She is definitely a stubborn character, but I wish she had been able to lay more of that aside by the end of the novel.

Adam Stevenson is the philosophical, idolized, "perfect" brother, son, and love interest, who handles delicate situations with interesting methods. I liked Adam; he is hardworking, manly, and generous, but I have a few criticisms. Why does he still live with his parents?? The man is pushing thirty; I understand he's helping them pay the bills, assisting around the house, and is yet unmarried, but... why? Secondly, his ill decision- making was a firm driver in the story's plot, but I would have expected some of that from his brother, Jack, not him. He seems like too much of a smart, honorable man to have handled things the way he did. Some of this he repented of, but he has a bit of growing to do, despite his age.

Jack Stevenson is fun, but also incredibly annoying. In the first half of the book, I felt I was going to like his character and that he was going to have a great arc, but honestly, I began to dislike him more and more after that. It wouldn't have been so bad if he had gotten a solid resolution. Jack is immature, restless, straining at the leash, while also feeling overshadowed by his older brother. He's a classic rebellious teen, an impulsive, partying, live-while-we're-young type of guy with anger issues and a childish mentality.

Sure, after blow-ups he apologizes to people and gets over some stuff, but there is a big difference between "getting over" something and repenting of it. I hope that he continued maturing even when the story ended.

Orca's dad

I still don't know what to think of this guy! Giving a more in-depth analysis might give too much away, so I will only say he is definitely a complex character who still has me on the fence between like and dislike. This is not a criticism, I thought he was a very unique character.

Romance

This is where the book started to go downhill for me. I can't divulge who Orca ends up with; however, I will say that I was not impressed with the romance plot. Yes, it was sweet, yes, I was swooning at parts, yes, I was hoping they would end up together, but if this book was realistic and things weren't guaranteed to work out like they often do in lighthearted fiction, I would be waving a red flag in both Orca and his faces.

The romance was insta-love— so underdeveloped. Within a couple of days, Orca and he were head-over-heels in love. They haven't even started to get to know each other before they are confessing their undying love. No! This is infatuation, fascination, and lust. For both of them but Orca especially. The first guy she lands on is apparently "her other half", her "soulmate", the only one she will ever love. I expected better of him too. He knew it was too fast and intense but still gave in, trusting wholeheartedly in his feelings.

He was attracted to Orca because (mainly) "she's not like other girls" (I guess her having never eaten pizza or played a video game before is the only thing that matters). And Orca is in "love" with him because... well, he was the first guy she ever had a crush on, I guess.

Content

I was disappointed by the amount of sexual content and cussing in this book. I don't understand why Abbie felt that any of it was necessary. The swearing was almost constant with Jack, and the sexual content, though safely staying PG-13, was a constant undertone throughout the novel that ruined almost any sweetness the insta-love didn't destroy. Why?? I should have expected the language, as there was enough in 100 Days of Sunlight for me to know Abbie has no qualms about adding it to her work, but with how wonderfully clean the romance was in her debut novel, I thought she would avoid that type of content in her other books. Again, nothing major ever happens, but the sprinkling of borderline content was very disappointing. Honestly, in my opinion, the book could have been redeemable if it weren't for this final straw. :(

Themes

~Father-daughter relationships (Sweet, Reminded me A LOT of the Biblical story of the prodigal son!)

~Loss/ grief

~Brothers (Touching, brutal, interesting dynamic in general)

~Hope

~Follow your heart/dreams (Not a fan of this either, especially as a Christian. [Jeremiah 17:9, Proverbs 3:5-7])

~True love/finding your "soulmate" (I didn't love this theme, see Romance, and the soulmate part felt weird and subtly spiritual)

~Philosophy (Secular-based. The musings of the characters as they considered a few philosophical topics were interesting, but without factoring in God, the world seems chaotic and pointless. The characters talk more about the universe than an active, personal Creator and Sustainer.)

~Family/found family (This was meant to be a sweet theme, but I wasn't a fan of the family dynamic and the way the members of the Stevenson family interacted with each other. It was the classic stern dad, annoying and over-sensitive mother, rebellious son, you know the gist. Sadly, "normal" for this family is how normal is for many families (not all by any means), particularly those without Christ as their solid foundation. They think the way they operate is normal and expected, especially with teens, but I speak from experience that a household (even with teens) can be a very relaxing, beautiful, and loving space. The Stevenson family is constantly teetering between steady and exploding. Like many other secular dynamics, this is normalized, and an almost-happy household is considered the best it gets. I understand a family having struggles and obstacles to overcome, and the Stevenson family in The Otherworld have their fair share. However, it is hard for me to feel as though the family will be much better coming out of these without the tether of Christ holding them together. Anyway, sorry, that was a rant!)

Other notes

(Minor/guessable spoilers!!!)

What I really really loved was Orca's dream for the future. She wants to get married, have babies, and spend the rest of her life raising them and building a beautiful, loving home with the people she loves most. I admire this from her, and loved to see it in a secular book. What made it better was there was a character who actually forsook family for the sake of their career. This person felt they wanted to chase their own life of independence and climbing the corporate ladder, they left many people hurt in their wake as they chased this idea of success. This character's decision was portrayed negatively, as they chose career over the family they had established. Again, I loved to see this in a secular novel, and think the dream of building a family should always be esteemed over that of chasing promotional success.

(End spoilers!)

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Well, I believe that is a good place to leave off! Again, I don't want to spoil anything, even though there are a few things I wish I could say. I will keep them to myself, and you can message me after you read the book and we can dig in!

So how do my thoughts stack? Is The Otherworld going into my excellent library?

I must say it is not. The Otherworld was an engaging novel but my criticisms too far outweigh what I enjoyed.

My personal rating is three stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️

I wish I could have rated this anticipated read higher, and I still look forward to Abbie's other books, but The Otherworld did not work for me.

So, let me know! What have you been reading lately? Have you read The Otherworld or any other Abbie Emmons novels? If so what did you think?

Thank you for reading and see you next time!

Content Warnings:

Drinking/drugs/smoking: 

~A character takes painkiller for an injury

~A teenage character gets drunk with his friends (off-page.)

Romance/sex: 

(Technically nothing happens other then kissing, and everything stays pg-13)

~The story includes an age-gap romance (she is 18, he is 28.)

~Quite a bit of kissing (intensity varies). One instance which takes place on a bed (though the couple is fully clothed.) I worried I was going to have to skip this scene— it got right to the very edge then backed down.

~When Adam is injured and unconscious, Orca has to strip him out of his wet clothes — having never seen a naked man before, she finds his body fascinating but doesn’t describe anything sensitive. Ewwwww, no please!

~Sexual undertones and tension. Some innuendo

~A character wants babies in the future and tells her partner he "will have to make a lot of love" to her. (Again, why is this necessary??)

~A character is pressured into wearing a tiny bikini. The boys around her definitely notice.

~A character asks another if he has "made love" to a girl before. The character doesn't know this is not something you just ask someone, but it was, again, completely unnecessary. He evades the question.

Violence/intense scenes: 

~Jack has a nightmare about finding his brother dead in a crashed plane with bloody wounds. Adam is presumed dead after crashing his seaplane in the ocean — he is later found unconscious and injured; broken ribs, sprained ankle, some description of bloody wounds.

~Two men get into a fistfight which leads to bruised faces, split lips, etc.

~A character suffers a heart attack.

Language: 

~ Multiple uses of s**t, a**hole, b*st*rd, d**k, b**ch, and hell

~ SO many misuses of God's name. It was awful.

Other

~Topics of divorce and remarriage.

~Disrespect to elders