The Girl Who Could Breathe Underwater

Author: Erin Bartels

Publisher: Revell

Release Date: January 4, 2022

Bartels brings difficult conversations to light coupled with raw emotion in her latest novel!

Kendra Brennan is an author whose debut novel made a huge splash on best seller lists.  She was celebrated, gave several talks and tours, and was given a contract for a second book.  Through all the fan mail, one letter caught her attention: a very disappointed reader who seems to know her personally.  With this personal disappointment weighing on her, Kendra returns to the lake that she spent summers at as a child, at her grandfather’s cabin, now her cabin after his passing.  The letter has been causing writer’s block and she can only hope that this will make the words flow again.  But returning to the lake is unearthing ghosts from her past.  The antagonist from her first book returns in the flesh and he isn’t easy to face in person.  Perhaps she can resurrect a failed friendship with his sister before it’s too late.

Erin Bartels has become one of those authors that I read every book she writes without even reading the synopsis or looking at the cover.  The stories are just that good and the tension and internal conflict her characters have intensifies with each story.  The Girl Who Can Breathe Underwater is no exception to either tension or conflict.  Told from Kendra’s point of view at current day as well as remembering her past, specifically her friendship with Cami, readers get a glimpse into what happened to make Kendra become the woman she is.  She has so much personal growth in this book as a character, that readers can’t help but connect with her and hope that she manages to sort out her life.

Fair warning, this book will be difficult for some readers.  There is a scene of non-consensual sex in a manner that unfortunately happens all too often.  Some readers may have experienced this before, and it may dredge up past memories and feelings that would rather be forgotten.  The same can be said for one of the characters using drugs and alcohol to weaken a woman’s resolve to stop things from happening.  It’s uncomfortable, but the way it is written is so realistic that as a reader I hope it will help others heal and see that it is not their fault when they read it as well! 

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher.  The views and opinions expressed within are my own.