[2021 reread] i'm still so in love, still an all-time favorite.
[2017 first read] I loved absolutely everything about this graphic novel. To date, it i[2021 reread] i'm still so in love, still an all-time favorite.
[2017 first read] I loved absolutely everything about this graphic novel. To date, it is by far the best graphic novel I have ever read, and even surpasses my love for Saga. I am completely blown away, and will count down the days until Vol. 2 releases (June 6th, 2017).
[image]This story follows a seventeen year old girl named Maika, whose story starts out where she is being sold as a slave. The reader will immediately notice that Maika has a very strange tattoo of an eye on her chest, and she is missing an arm. Yet, it becomes very clear very early that Maika is much stronger than what she seems.
Maika is struggling to hold in her monster, while also trying to get answers from her past. With the help of an adorable little half-fox and a poet cat, Maika is on a journey to discover herself, her past, and what's truly inside of her, all while she carries a very mysterious and sought after item.
In this world there are five races: ➽Humans - Like you and me. ➽Ancients - Immortal, animal-like rulers with an immense amount of power. ➽Cats - Much like people, can speak and fight, but much more adorable. ➽Old Gods - Little to no knowledge of them. ➽Areanics - Half of each
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Also in this world, there are factions at war: ➽The Federation - Humans, who just hate magic users and refuse to let them live and breed. These humans will take Arcanics and make them slaves to do whatever terrible things they wish. ➽Arcanics - Magic users, who are sort of hybrids of the Ancients. Also, two powerful courts, the Dawn Court and the Dusk Court, have risen up to defend against the Cumaea. ➽Cumaea - Witch-like people that use Arcanic's body parts to make Lillium.
People in this world will use a drug like substance called Lillium for power, regeneration, and in some cases, resurrection. Between the war and the use of this magical substance, this world is also now aware of things much bigger than the Federation and Arcanics.
This graphic novel is not only bigger than most bind-ups, but it has significantly more writing than most graphic novels, too! You receive a lot, and I do mean a lot, of information and very quickly. This really worked for me, because it became way more of an immersion, while also reading closer to a book. Yet, I can understand how this would be a different reading experience for some, so I felt the need to bring it up.
The story is so brilliant and impactful. I can already tell I'm going to be thinking about this world for such a long time, because this is the type of story that just sticks with you, while festering in your heart. I truly love everything about this.
The art was so magnificent and I found myself constantly just staring at some pages in disbelief that a human created it. This art also brought very many tears to my eyes very many times, constantly evoking so much pure emotion from me. On top of having an amazing story, it is the best art I've ever seen in a comic, ever.
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Trigger warnings for human trafficking, slavery, child brutality, and many other dark themes that are in the violence and gore vein. This is a dark story, and it doesn't shy away from that darkness or its brutality.
I loved everything about this graphic novel: the story, the characters, the art, the representation, everything. I honestly cannot see any graphic work ever beating this. I am in awe and my thoughts probably aren't even coherent, but this is something unique and special. Please give this comic series a try if you haven't already.
I swear to you with my entire soul, this is nothing short of a masterpiece. This is maybe even a once in a lifetime masterpiece. I never put graphic novels on my "best of the year" list, but I think this is the year I make an exception for Monstress.
[2021 reread] i'm still so in love, still an all-time favorite.
[2017 first read] I loved absolutely everything about this graphic novel. To date, it is by far the best graphic novel I have ever read, and even surpasses my love for Saga. I am completely blown away, and will count down the days until Vol. 2 releases (June 6th, 2017).
[image]This story follows a seventeen year old girl named Maika, whose story starts out where she is being sold as a slave. The reader will immediately notice that Maika has a very strange tattoo of an eye on her chest, and she is missing an arm. Yet, it becomes very clear very early that Maika is much stronger than what she seems.
Maika is struggling to hold in her monster, while also trying to get answers from her past. With the help of an adorable little half-fox and a poet cat, Maika is on a journey to discover herself, her past, and what's truly inside of her, all while she carries a very mysterious and sought after item.
In this world there are five races: ➽Humans - Like you and me. ➽Ancients - Immortal, animal-like rulers with an immense amount of power. ➽Cats - Much like people, can speak and fight, but much more adorable. ➽Old Gods - Little to no knowledge of them. ➽Areanics - Half of each
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Also in this world, there are factions at war: ➽The Federation - Humans, who just hate magic users and refuse to let them live and breed. These humans will take Arcanics and make them slaves to do whatever terrible things they wish. ➽Arcanics - Magic users, who are sort of hybrids of the Ancients. Also, two powerful courts, the Dawn Court and the Dusk Court, have risen up to defend against the Cumaea. ➽Cumaea - Witch-like people that use Arcanic's body parts to make Lillium.
People in this world will use a drug like substance called Lillium for power, regeneration, and in some cases, resurrection. Between the war and the use of this magical substance, this world is also now aware of things much bigger than the Federation and Arcanics.
This graphic novel is not only bigger than most bind-ups, but it has significantly more writing than most graphic novels, too! You receive a lot, and I do mean a lot, of information and very quickly. This really worked for me, because it became way more of an immersion, while also reading closer to a book. Yet, I can understand how this would be a different reading experience for some, so I felt the need to bring it up.
The story is so brilliant and impactful. I can already tell I'm going to be thinking about this world for such a long time, because this is the type of story that just sticks with you, while festering in your heart. I truly love everything about this.
The art was so magnificent and I found myself constantly just staring at some pages in disbelief that a human created it. This art also brought very many tears to my eyes very many times, constantly evoking so much pure emotion from me. On top of having an amazing story, it is the best art I've ever seen in a comic, ever.
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Trigger warnings for human trafficking, slavery, child brutality, and many other dark themes that are in the violence and gore vein. This is a dark story, and it doesn't shy away from that darkness or its brutality.
I loved everything about this graphic novel: the story, the characters, the art, the representation, everything. I honestly cannot see any graphic work ever beating this. I am in awe and my thoughts probably aren't even coherent, but this is something unique and special. Please give this comic series a try if you haven't already.
I swear to you with my entire soul, this is nothing short of a masterpiece. This is maybe even a once in a lifetime masterpiece. I never put graphic novels on my "best of the year" list, but I think this is the year I make an exception for Monstress.
This is a prequel story to the Mistborn series! It’s very short, but I absolutely loved the story. And, to be completely honest, I love seeing anything that stars Kelsier! This story centers around a man named Gemmel who is teaching Kelsier to use his Mistborn powers. And his powers are eventually put to the test when he is required to fight another Mistborn who is up to some no-good deeds. Again, this story obviously takes place before the events in The Final Empire, where Kelsier is already a confirmed badass with his powers. And just seeing Kelsier’s dynamic with his Allomantic teacher, who is obviously talking to someone who plays a much bigger part in this trilogy, brought such a smile to my face the entire time while reading.
“It’s been three years. Three years since he walked out of my house and never came back. Three years since I’ve so much as heard his voice. Th
“It’s been three years. Three years since he walked out of my house and never came back. Three years since I’ve so much as heard his voice. Three years since I’ve been pining for a boy who was never even mine.”
Okay, I really don’t want to write up a long review for this, because I’m still suffering from the impact of giving another popular NA title a one star review that everyone else loves, but all I see is problematic content! So anyways, I’m going to try to keep this review short and just highlight the huge problem I had with this story.
I was very uncomfortable with the ages of the love interests in this book. For the majority of the book they are seventeen and twenty-one. They have explicit sex (most of which is voyeurism), and they leave the state with each other, but they never discuss how she isn’t eighteen yet. This just completely stunted my enjoyed for this book.
And more importantly (and grossly), this book has a lot of flashbacks to them being young. And in the prologue, we get to see Briar as only fourteen-years-old trying to seduce Asher who was seventeen at the time. The author tries to make it look like the fourteen-year-old is the one throwing herself at the seventeen-year-old, but like, the seventeen-year-old still makes the fourteen-year-old orgasm. I don’t care if it wasn’t an orgasm through penetration, I can’t be reading this kind of content.
Then, Asher is forced to leave the town they live in, and he forever blames Briar, because he thinks she was upset that he wouldn’t sleep with her. Now, Asher is on a mission to hate her forever upon his return when he is twenty-one. And, then when it comes out why he really got sent away, everyone is villainizing someone who was just trying to protect a fourteen-year-old. Honestly, this book was one of my most uncomfortable reading experiences yet.
And I’m probably going to be put on some government list now, because I had to look up the age of consent in Arizona, where the majority of this book takes place, but: "In Arizona, the age of consent is 18 years old, according to Arizona Revised Statutes 13-1405." And I’m just like, why did none of her beta or proof readers tell her to just up the age to the main female protagonist so people would feel gross as hell reading this story?
The ages just ruined this book for me, without question. If you guys are looking for a love to hate, sexy time book, where the characters are both younger, and the ages won’t skeeve you out, please pick up Punk 57, Bully, or Corrupt by Penelope Douglas. They are done so much better and so much more legal-feeling.
Bad Habit? This should have been named Illegal Habit. Or at the least, Uncomfortable Habit, because I was the entire time reading.
Let’s be real, 2017 was kind of a garbage fire year for our world, but at least we had some good books! I had a pretty good reading year! I’m v[image]
Let’s be real, 2017 was kind of a garbage fire year for our world, but at least we had some good books! I had a pretty good reading year! I’m very happy with the 130 books that I read, and I feel like with each year I get better and better at picking out books, and requesting ARCs, that I am confident I will at least enjoy, therefore, my average rating tends to get higher and higher.
➽ And thanks to the amazing Brock at Let's Read, here are some other statistics that I was able to gather from his amazing spreadsheet:
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And if you’re interested, here is his spreadsheet for 2018! (File>make a copy for your use)
➽These are the five books that were published this year that were a tier above the rest. These five blew my mind, and expectations, out of the water. I truly believe these five are perfect books in every single way. And I personally recommend them with my entire heart, body, and soul.
“Before the end, you will pluck snowdrops at midwinter, die by your own choosing, and weep for a nightingale.”
This book taught me that girls can be anything they wish to be, no matter the expectations society, family, and everything else in this world puts on them. And to always surround yourself with people that accept you and believe in you.
“That's the problem. We let people say stuff, and they say it so much that it becomes okay to them and normal for us. What's the point of having a voice if you're gonna be silent in those moments you shouldn't be?”
This book taught the world that we want black stories, from black authors, with black casts, with black people on the covers… no matter how many old, racist, white dudes continue to get published. But this book taught me how much more work needs to be done, and how I need to do more to boost marginalized voices, and how the world needs to change and it can begin with me and our generation.
“From nothing we become men and women who write poems and wage wars and conceive of futures both wondrous and terrifying.”
This book taught me that found families with unconditional love is the most powerful force in any world. And that friendship can heal wounds you never thought would stop bleeding. And that your past will never define you, or hinder you, from being good and kind and ultimately becoming the person you want to be.
“But for a society built on exploitation, there is no greater threat than having no one left to oppress.”
This book taught me to never stop moving forward, to always speak up, and help marginalized voices that need to be heard. And that we don’t get to choose how people love us. And how one voice can change the world. And that blood is only blood, and that we should spend our days with people who love us! And that we are always deserving of love. Always. No matter what.
“Sarai was seventeen years old, a goddess and a girl. Half her blood was human, but it counted for nothing. She was blue. She was godspawn. She was anathema. She was young. She was lovely. She was afraid.”
This book reminded me why I love reading, and that books are magical, healing vessels. This book taught me that everyone has the right to change their future, and that we will never be our parent’s mistakes. And that we can rise up, and become so much more, and that all of our stories deserve to be told. And ultimately, you get to choose who is in your story.
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These books mean a lot to me, and I feel so very thankful, privileged, and blessed that I was able to read them all this year. These books have all changed who I am as a person, and I will carry, pass them down, and sing their praises for my entire life. Books like this render me speechless to be honest, but I hope I did a decent job letting you guys know how much they mean, and will continue to mean, to me.
➽ And the rest of my favorite books published in 2017:
➽ And the highlight of my year on Goodreads and my blog was just connecting with so many amazing people who love to celebrate their love for reading. I love you all, but these people truly changed my life this year, and I just wanted to give them a special shout out and you should all follow them (if you’re not) to start your 2018 off right!
💗 Paloma became like my best friend this year, and our Snapchat streak is getting pretty intense. She’s beautiful, funny, my book twin, and gives me the best romance recommendations in the world.
💗 Elise was totally along for the ride with me and Destiny’s buddy reads, too! She’s my spider queen, my sapphic book recommender, my theater star, and I love her so much!
💗 Em is like becoming the biggest reviewer on Goodreads, so I hope she remembers me and my love for her when she’s famous. Also, she’s the number one person I go to when I gush over any book and we leave each other 100 messages back to back when we love a book, and she makes every book I read that she has already read 100 times better.
💗 Petrik completely buried himself inside my heart and my only wish is for him to move to the US immediately. Not only does he write the best reviews, read the best books, and shows me so much kindness, he also is one of the most talented people I’ve ever met.
💗 Mary completely just blatantly stole my heart and I hope she relocates to Vegas soon so we can be wed. Mary has helped me with so many reviews this year, while also doing some amazing buddy reads with me. She’s also the most beautiful person on Goodreads, but she’s also passionate, and intelligent, and honestly goals in every single way.
💗 Jules was honestly my buddy reading queen in 2017. I read so many books with her, and she made each and every one so much better. Also, we bonded over Nevernight and Godsgrave and now she can never leave me and she must read just as much with me in 2018! I don’t make the rules.
💗 Alexis is my newest book friend of 2017, but I’m completely obsessed with her opinions and content and her BookTube channel. I feel like I’ve known her way longer than I have, but I can’t wait to get to know her even more in 2018. Also, she’s adorable, funny, has amazing taste in everything, and is such a good kitty mom.
💗 Lilly is also a newer friend of mine this year, but I honestly can’t picture blogging without her now. Also, me and her have like every book in common and if my 2018 isn’t filled with buddy reads with her I’m just going to cry the entire year away.
💗 Chelsea is a confirmed angel that I was able to meet this year in person and it was honestly one if the highlights of 2017 for me. Not only is she gorgeous; she’s smart, funny, so kind, and is 100% my go-to for anything and everything Thriller!
💗 Sue completely makes Goodreads for me. She puts in more work than anyone else I know on this site, and is always so kind and giving. I couldn’t possibly make a list without giving her a shout out, because she does so much, and I can’t picture Goodreads without her.
And thank you all for making my 2017 so great! I hope 2018 is filled with unconditional love and good health and happiness for you all! Oh, and a good book always! I’m so very grateful for each and every one of you who gush over books with me and show me so much kindness and friendship. From every molecule of my body, thank you. 💖
[image] ARC provided by Saga Press in exchange for an honest review.
“We knew this day would come. We tried to warn the others. It was obvious e
[image] ARC provided by Saga Press in exchange for an honest review.
“We knew this day would come. We tried to warn the others. It was obvious either the sharp rate of our technological advancement would lead to the robot singularity claiming lordship over all, or that the fairies would finally grow tired of our reckless destruction of the natural world and take it back from us.”
First off, this anthology has the best introduction I’ve ever read in maybe any book ever! It is actual perfection in every single way. Overall, I really, really, really enjoyed this! But it is a bit of a mixed bag, I do suppose! Some of these were so amazing, where others are ones that I will probably not remember or carry with me. But I do also believe there is something here for everyone to love, whether you are #TeamFairies or #TeamRobots!
And even though most of you know that I am very much #TeamFairies, my personal favorite in the whole collection is a robot story! All the Time We've Left to Spend by Alyssa Wong is a masterpiece. This story is beautiful, haunting, and oh so heart-wrenching. I will carry it with me forever. I loved every single aspect of it. I think this story alone makes this anthology completely worth buying and worth reading this entire collection. One of my favorite short stories of all time.
I'm going to break down each short story with my thoughts, opinions, and individual star rating!
“We were always on your side. Unfortunately, half of the authors in this anthology chose poorly, but the other half always knew you would emerge triumphant.”
Also: 🦋 = TEAM FAIRIES 🤖 = TEAM ROBOTS
➽ 🦋 BUILD ME A WONDERLAND by Seanan McGuire - ★★★★★ This story guys, this freakin’ story! Okay, we get to travel through an enchanted garden, a mermaid grotto, a pixie glen, and more during this amazing short story that is set in a magical theme park that makes you question everything. This was such a strong start to this collection, and proved that I’m Team Fairies forever. You guys all probably know that I love Seanan McGuire, but you probably don’t know that I also love Kobolds! From spending such a big chunk of my life leveling up humans in WoW, to being unnaturally excited for the new Hearthstone expansion, to falling even more in love with Kings of the Wyld because they were an amazing part of the story; I love Kobolds. And this story is perfection.
➽ 🤖 QUALITY TIME by Ken Liu - ★★★ This is story about a man who majored in folk lore, but is joining a very prestigious and innovative company in their robotics department. This company wants to break the mold and find solutions for what other companies deem impossible. Then comes the Vegnor; a rat-like robot that is marketed to every busy homeowner to take care of their pests and other small things. This is beautifully written, and really opens up a good discussion on how far we will eventually let technology advance and go. And more importantly: more technology isn’t always the best solution.
➽ 🦋 MURMURED UNDER THE MOON by Tim Pratt - ★★★★★ Oh my word, this was glorious queer book-loving fairy perfection! Emily has been working at a fairy library for two years, where she met her girlfriend who is part book. The fae princess that is in charge of the library is being manipulated by a mortal man, and it is up to Emily and a few fae folk to break the spell. This story also dabbles into the different fae courts, their weakness to iron, their glamour, and other things that warmed my heart and made the story shine with Tim Pratt’s obvious love for fairies.
➽ 🤖 THE BLUE FAIRY’S MANIFESTO by Annalee Newitz - ★★ This is a really smart story that weaves together robots and politics into a Pinocchio retelling! This tale centers in on a toy-shop, where many different kinds of robots are made. From anarchists, to pacifists, to socialists, we have a full range of different thinking mechanical beings, but it just didn’t work for me for some reason. Yet, it was so different that I’m happy it was a part of this collection.
➽ 🦋 BREAD AND MILK AND SALT by Sarah Gailey - ★★★ This was so very beautifully written, and very eerie, haunting, and just downright spooky. The first half of this story immersed me more than most things I’ve ever read. I couldn’t stop reading this tale. From giving the fae gifts of bread and milk and salt, to being bonded by blood, to becoming what you never expected, this story was so captivating. But for some reason the ending wasn’t satisfying enough for me. But her writing was enthralling, powerful, and evocative, I instantly went and bought River of Teeth.
➽ 🤖 IRONHEART by Jonathan Maberry - ★★★ This was a very sad story. Like, I cried while reading most of this one. But it wasn’t only sad, it was eerie, and haunting, and pretty powerful. We watch a young man who is forced to live a much different life than he was expecting. He lives on a farm with his loving grandparents, who can barely afford to make ends meet. And their farm is mostly run by robots that are out of date and dying. There is also a beautiful discussion on the military and how veterans are treated once they are home and have taken off their uniform. The author also brings up the healthcare crisis that we are all currently facing here in America. This was an expertly woven story, and I don’t think I’ll forget it anytime soon.
➽ 🦋 JUST ANOTHER LOVE SONG by Kat Howard - ★★ A banshee girl who sings of death meets a gancanagh boy who sings of love, while all the while other fae folk are coming up missing. I didn’t really enjoy this one, just because I thought it was rather predictable! But I did enjoy that there was a side character who was an agoraphobiac.
➽ 🤖 SOUND AND FURY by Mary Robinette Kowal - ★★★ Okay, at this point I am starting to feel like all the robot stories have important and relevant issues just woven into their tales. This is a science fiction story where a crew is taking a giant robot to a planet for reasons unknown. The short story quickly turns into a story about colonization and stripping cultures from Native people. It was pretty expertly done, and I’m so impressed that these short tales are making me feel so much.
➽ 🦋 THE BOOKCASE EXPEDITION by Jeffrey Ford - ★ Yikes, okay, I know this is going to sound harsh, but I just didn’t care about this story at all. A man is able to see tiny, small, fae folk around his home. He watches them explore the bookshelves, all while name dropping tons of different books and authors, and then he watches them fight both demons and spiders and anything else! This story was just not my cup of tea at all, unfortunately.
➽ 🤖 WORK SHADOW/SHADOW WORK by Madeline Ashby - ★★★★ I really, really enjoyed this. And this story really centers on the believing in something is very powerful. Naming something and loving something and putting your faith in something is more powerful than words. And this is a story about a robot assistant taking care of a semi-famous human, who many consider a witch, but who believes in fairies and elves and other magical creatures. I loved how this story incorporated both fairies and robots, and was just such a whimsical and beautiful tale about the power of believing in something with your whole heart.
➽ 🦋 SECOND TO THE LEFT, AND STRAIGHT ON by Jim C. Hines - ★★★★ This is, like, an alternate retelling of Peter Pan, but it’s set after the events of Peter Pan, and Tinker Bell is very much not dead. In fact, she and her “Found Girls” are a cult like group that steal little girls that are very much loved. You know, sort of the opposite of what Peter and the Lost Boys did. And we follow someone who is on a mission to save the most recent missing girl, and also to get closure for something personal. I feel like this may be a three star story, but the twist at the end was so damn good that I feel like it really deserved an extra star. Also, this was a really clever tale and I did really enjoy it.
➽ 🤖 THE BURIED GIANT by Lavie Tidhar - ★★★ I’m very torn on a three or four star rating for this one, just because I was so engaged while reading this. I couldn’t put it down. I also love how this not only celebrated robots and fairies, but it also had the unique aspect of a human wanting to be robotic. This is also a story about stories, where our main character is learning about a famous tale that has been passed down over time from both an Elder in his community and from his Grandmother. And the story is about what seems like one of the last human boys on Earth, living in a world that is now overrun by Robots, some of which who are hunting humans. This tale also hinted at a fuller length story about a two minor side characters and I am so here for it. I really enjoyed this one and I’m so happy to be introduced to this author from this anthology!
➽ 🤖 THREE ROBOTS EXPERIENCE OBJECTS LEFT BEHIND FROM THE ERA OF HUMANS FOR THE FIRST TIME by John Scalzi - ★ It pains me to give something by Jon Scalzi one star, but this just felt and read so lazy. Basically, three robots are discovering and discussing human items (balls, sandwiches, cats, and xbox) and wondering how humans used them. That’s it. This story tries way too hard to be funny, and then ends trying to pack an emotional punch about global warming and the climate crisis we are choosing to ignore right now. But it felt so bad when you’re trying to do this in six pages, and five of those are wasted on bad jokes.
➽ 🦋 OSTENTATION OF PEACOCKS by Delilah S. Dawson writing as Lila Bowen - ★★ Okay, this was a hard one for me, too. This is a western fairy story, and I just don’t think the combination really mixed well for me personally. Like, Billy the Kid makes an appearance in here! And then I felt a little hopeful, because I thought we were going to have a nonbinary character, but I don’t think that was the case, but it gave me the hope for it, then the letdown. But yeah, this is basically a story about a magical shapeshifter, who is trying to protect another shapeshifter (in possum form), who is being hunted by fairy men that disguise themselves as country humans. It was just… too far out there for me, I’m sorry. Also, please let me know if you were picking up on the gender fluid aspect, too!
➽ 🤖 ALL THE TIME WE’VE LEFT TO SPEND by Alyssa Wong - ★★★★★ Oh my word, this was utter and pure perfection. I will never forget this story, ever. This story is centered around an alternate future where we have realistic cyborg celebrity robots, who have many memories stored, working in pleasure hotels, where you can spend time with them for money. Our main protagonist, Ruriko, is obsessed with spending time with a kpop group that passed away ten years ago, while trying to learn all the information she can about their memories. This story is beautiful. This story is haunting. This story is oh so heart-wrenching. I loved this. I loved this so very much. Easily my favorite in the entire collection.
➽ 🦋 ADRIFTICA by Maria Dahvana Headley - ★★ This is a scene from Midsummer Night’s Dream, but retold in a modern contemporary setting. Titania and Oberon are dealing with their custody battle, but with a rock and roll twist to it. I know this sounds really cool, and the uniqueness is completely why I’m giving this two stars, but the writing style was very much not for me. Though, this was very clever, and I’m sure many others will enjoy it much more than I did.
➽ 🤖 TO A CLOVEN PINE by Max Gladstone - ★★ Okay, this was just a really confusing tale for me. So much of it just went completely over my head, and you guys will completely love it when you get to the ending, but I was left really underwhelmed because of the confusion I felt starting out. This short story starts out with four beings that are fleeing their ship in space, while being chased by “the Witch”. Then, one of the members starts acting very strange and goes missing. And then the ending really brings the story together with a big revelation, but maybe this story was just too epic and too condensed for me to really enjoy it.
➽ 🦋 A FALL COUNTS ANYWHERE by Catherynne M. Valente - ★★★★ You all, this is a WWF fairy vs robot match! Like, Catherynne M. Valente took the meaning of this book really literally, but she is team fairies (who isn’t) and really wrote a fantastic and unique story that I really enjoyed. This is also narrated partially by a fairy announcer and a robot announcer. Yet, this was my problem with the story, and the reason I ultimately didn’t give this five stars: I hated that the robot announcer spoke all in caps. I completely understand this was a good way to be able to differentiate between the two voices, but it just felt so bad to read. I really didn’t like. But this story was so very great, I loved the twist, and it proves how fairies truly are the most clever characters in all of literature.
I gave Robots vs. Fairies three stars overall, because out of a possible 90 stars (5 stars possible for each of the 18 stories) this collection accumulated 54 stars (60%).
[image] ARC provided by Simon & Schuster in exchange for an honest review.
This was maybe the sweetest book I’ve read all year. It was heartwarming, ado[image] ARC provided by Simon & Schuster in exchange for an honest review.
This was maybe the sweetest book I’ve read all year. It was heartwarming, adorable, and just a joy to read. I loved this and I hope if you guys are looking for a romantic contemporary this holiday season, you’ll pick up Roomies upon release on December 5th!
This is a story that surrounds a girl named Holland, who has been around music all her life. Her uncle and his husband practically have raised her, and one of them is a big name in Broadway! They obviously live in New York, and her uncle is under a great deal of pressure trying to find a musical performer who will help his latest hit production be even better.
Holland’s first love is writing, and she is actually an aspiring author, but she still has an amazing ear for musical talent because of her upbringing. She can’t stay away from a subway musician who she has developed a bit of a crush on. One day, Holland works up the courage to actually speak to the mystery man, and they exchange names.
Calvin McLoughlin is an immigrant from Ireland. He went to school at Juilliard and has been waiting for his big musical break ever since. Holland quickly puts two and two together and decides to introduce Calvin to her uncle, believing he will be the perfect fit for his show. And low and behold, Calvin truly amazes them all. Unfortunately, Calvin’s lack of authentic visa makes him unable to join the cast.
Obviously, the only rational choice is for Holland and Calvin to get married so that Holland’s uncle has the perfect addition to his show, and so that Calvin gets to live his dream of performing. And they don’t only fool the US government into believing their married, but they start to fool everyone around them, including themselves.
I love the "marriage of convenience" story trope and this one was so perfect. There are a few sort of steamy scenes, but nothing too explicit. But this book is oh so romantic and it was honestly un-put-downable for me, too. I became so addicted and so immersed that I let all the other books I was reading fall to the wayside. I loved this, and I completely recommend it with my whole heart. I can’t wait to read more by Christina Lauren (AKA: the amazing writing duo Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings) in the future.
Happy Halloween, everyone! I hope you all have a fun and safe time tonight! 👻🎃🍂
And what better way to celebrate Halloween than to review two short stoHappy Halloween, everyone! I hope you all have a fun and safe time tonight! 👻🎃🍂
And what better way to celebrate Halloween than to review two short stories about monstrous girls in love that is FREE right now!
And by short stories, I truly mean short stories. Like, you can finish both of these tales in fifteen minutes tops! But they will both completely get you into the Halloween mood, so I totally recommend reading before you guys go out tonight!
➽The HAUNTING OF DIVINIA - This story stars a girl who recently moved into a new home, but a ghost has seemed to follow her. This story unexpectedly hit me pretty hard and I think has a beautiful message about grief and carrying pain that is more than words can express. Also, spooky haunted new house and a ghost!
➽TASTE - This story feels much more in the horror vein, and has to do with two girlfriends enjoying a lovely meal. This is the much more creepy story, and it might have been a little predictable for me, but I still really enjoyed it!
Again, these are both very short stories, but they both feel so very eerie and were exactly what I was looking to read today on Halloween! And like, I always want to read about queer monster girls, let’s be real. Happy Halloween, guys! Stay safe and spooky!
“The heavens grant us only one life, but through books, we live a thousand.”
Well, I’m not entirely sure how I’m supposed to function while lying in wait for the third and final book in this series. That last chapter made me feel things that very few books are able to evoke from me. I honestly am not sure how I could possibly string together words to let you guys know how much I loved this book, but I do suppose I should at least try.
Godsgrave picks up right after the events of Nevernight. But where Nevernight felt like an adult Harry Potter (with an amazingly gothic floo powder network) where our main protagonist, Mia, is learning to become an assassin for the Red Church and the Lady of Blessed Murder, Godsgrave is an all-out gladiator gauntlet, where our characters are fighting to the death and only the very best may rise in rank.
Mia also has grown a lot since the end of Nevernight, and she is figuring out rather quickly that she is truly unable to trust anyone. Godsgrave is way more brutal and gory, but it’s also much more raw and emotional.
“The choice between looking plain and pretty isn’t really a choice at all. But any fool knows looking dangerous is preferable to both.”
One of my favorite parts of Nevernight is how Mia never explains that she is bisexual, but her actions just show it. There isn’t a big coming out story, or any explanation on why she feels the things she does for men and woman, Mia is just herself and I loved it more than words. Well, Godsgrave really delves into Mia’s sexuality, and it’s honestly a thing of beauty. Honestly, all I want in my adult fantasy is to read about queer girls saving their worlds, and Jay Kristoff delivered that to me better than maybe anyone else has. I will forever cherish this series for that alone. Also, I will go down with that fucking ship. OTP is an understatement. This is honestly the queer, f/f, assassins taking over the world, high fantasy, love story, I’ve been searching for my entire life.
Mia Corvere is one of my favorite characters of all time. She tries so hard to be morally grey, and I guess she truly is to most extents, but seeing her able to be soft and capable of unconditional love is something I don’t even have words for. Mia is strong, and brilliant, and clever, and brave, and everything I love in a main protagonist. And she always acknowledges how beauty, too, can be a weapon, but how important it is to never have it be your only weapon. And Mia has had so many shitty hands dealt to her, but she is able to overcome it all realistically and inspirationally. I honestly love Mia, and Mister Kindly and Eclipse also bring me more joy that I should probably admit.
Also, let me state that this book is definitely not Young Adult. Not only do I believe this is Adult Fantasy, I think it holds up to all the beloved and highly praised High Fantasy out there. This book/series can get rather dark at times, so know that going in. Also, there is a decent amount of sexual content in this book, so use caution if that makes you uncomfortable. And trigger warnings for violence, murder, gore, slavery, child abuse, and things along those lines. But I hope that doesn’t discourage you, because this world is amazing, these characters are perfection, the messages are beautiful, and the discourse is so damn important.
“So much wealth held in so few palms. A kingdom of the blind, built on the backs of the bruised and the broken.”
From the first page to the last page, this book had me so enthralled. I loved this more than words. Godsgrave will easily be one of my top ten favorite books of 2017, and the third book will be all I look forward to in (hopefully) the coming year. Jay Kristoff has perfected his craft at writing, and I’d honestly do just about anything to get my hands on anything new from this world. Even though I shouldn’t give him anything, because he is now the proud owner of the heart he ripped out from me reading the ending of this book.
“That's the power of words; twenty six little letters can paint a whole universe”
I am so sorry with how this review is like three weeks late! November just got so overwhelming for me with trips and other t1.) The Way of Kings ★★★★★
I am so sorry with how this review is like three weeks late! November just got so overwhelming for me with trips and other things, but I’m here now and happily ready to yell at you all about how this series is Brandon Sanderson’s magnum opus!
“Words are where most change begins.”
This is book two of The Stormlight Archive series. It has multiple points of view, but every one of the characters will somehow weasel their way inside of your heart. Like, I know I’m probably getting “too old” to say this, but Adolin Kholin is the ultimate book boyfriend and Jasnah Kholin is the ultimate book girlfriend and my little bi heart is so thirsty happy while reading this story.
Also, one thing I haven’t seen anyone say who reviews this series: this series totally has a love triangle and I’m living for it? I mean, you obviously know what team I’m on from my statement above, but there is so much tension between three of the main characters of this story! I love this dynamic so much, and I’m so impressed that Brandon Sanderson pulled off, seemingly, the perfect love triangle.
But moving on, this book picks right up where The Way of Kings left off. I want this review to be spoiler free, so I’m just going to give you guys an idea of what this story and world are like. But I can’t emphasize enough how amazing, atmospheric, and impressive this world and story are.
This is high fantasy at its finest, which means a lot of world building, but it’s so expertly done. Roshar is so unique and so complexly written. From the Shattered Plains, where the Parshendi are trying to decide what to do for the good of their people who are wanted for killing a king. To Shinovar, which is protected by a mountain range where the people known as Shins live. To Alethkar, the largest kingdom on Roshar and where our main story happens! And it is divided into ten mini kingdoms, that are self-governed. This world is beyond expansive, is what I’m trying to say!
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And this series has…. a lot of different races: [image] (Amazing fan art by: Botanicaxu)
Oh, and we can’t forget about Spren! Who, in this world are magical little companion beings that come in a variety of different types, but only bond with those who are worthy.
“Honor is dead. But I'll see what I can do.”
And then throw in the magical Shardblades, Shardplate, and Soulcasting! Plus we have the magical Highstorms that are happening on this planet, that the people use to charge gemstones!
Needless to say, there is a lot going on in this story. I mean, each book is over 1,000 pages and Brandon Sanderson doesn’t hold back with the information. If you’d like a better break down of this world and these characters, please check out my review of The Way of Kings where I’m super long winded but way more informative.
And I say this a lot, but Brandon Sanderson truly writes the best prologues and epilogues in the fantasy genre, and I’ll stand by that forever or when I’m finally proven wrong. But, Lord, did he outdo himself with the epilogue of this book. This book evoked every emotion from me, and still chokes me up while I’m writing this review three weeks after finishing. The only word I can use is perfection, because it truly is that.
Also, Wit is the best character of all time. And Sly’s a close second.
“Expectation. That is the true soul of art. If you can give a man more than he expects, then he will laud you his entire life. If you can create an air of anticipation and feed it properly, you will succeed.”
You can say what you want about Brandon Sanderson, but he proves over and over that he truly is the king of epic fantasy. I loved this book. I love this series. I truly think this is Brandon Sanderson’s best work. I implore and encourage every single one of my high fantasy lovers to give this series a try. This book is nothing short of amazing and is easily one of my favorite books of all time.
[image] ARC provided by Tor in exchange for an honest review.
“Love is worth it. It is worth any hardship, it is worth illness. It is worth inju
[image] ARC provided by Tor in exchange for an honest review.
“Love is worth it. It is worth any hardship, it is worth illness. It is worth injury. It is worth isolation. It is even worth death. For life without love is only a shadow of life.”
Well, I think it’s safe for me to yell from the rooftops: pre-order The Armored Saint now, guys! What an amazing ride, even though I wasn’t ready for it to be over. This is easily one of the best things I’ve read in 2017, and this is truly epic fantasy at its finest. I’m so damn impressed.
The Armored Saint centers on a village of people who live subservient lives to the Order. The Order is a group of religious tyrants that do horrible things to the wizards in this world, or to the people that are protecting and/or harboring the wizards in this world. The Order follows the word of the Writ, which has lead them to believe that wizards have a portal in their eye, that can open the very gates of hell itself and summon devils.
Our main protagonist, Heloise, is a sixteen-year-old girl who isn’t sure if she even believes the Order, but she knows that they are heartless, terrible people after her and her father have a run-in with them at the very start of this story. The Order appears to just be cruel for the sake of being cruel, but many of the villagers in Heloise’s community believe in the words that Order preaches, including her very own father.
“Because the Writ tells us, girl. Because the Order reminds us. The devils are real, and they are terrible, and we must be ever vigilant for their return.”
Heloise and her village are put in a situation where they have to make a sacrifice, after they’ve already been forced to make so many, or to risk everything to protect their community. The story really takes off from there, and we also get to see a mysterious ranger, an inactive war-machine, and even a magical mouse!
But this is also a story about discovering and embracing your sexuality. Heloise is constantly questioning her feelings for her best friend, and it made me cry so many happy yet sad tears. This is a beautiful tale about a girl coming to terms with her queerness in a world that thinks it is unnatural, and it is so very important. This story truly means more to me than I can express in words. Heloise is easily one of my favorite female protagonists of all time, and I will continue to say what I say in every queer SFF review I write: we need more stories like this! This story is so utterly heart-wrenching, but it’s so important.
“That’s what love should be, sure as stone, as running water. Sure as the bite of winter and spring blossoms. Sure even when it was impossible. Even when they were both girls.”
And love is such a driving force in this very character focused story. The love between families. The love between friends. And the love between two young girls who are just trying to learn who they are.
“No. It is a person you love. Not a name. Not a she or a he. A person in all their shining glory. There is a thing in us, Heloise. A seed. It makes us who we are. It is our core. That is the thing we love. It alone exists. It alone is holy. It has no home, no name. It is neither male nor female. It is greater than that.”
Now, excuse me while I go cry for the rest of this night, because I’m not sure if I’ve read anything as beautiful as that quote. This book has such a lyrical prose. The writing is so fantastic and adds even more to an already perfect story. And Myke Cole does this in only 200 pages. This is the first thing I’ve read by this author, but it won’t be my last. This book is little, but it is oh so mighty. And it has completely captured my heart. Please give this book a try when it releases on February 20th, 2018!
“Never be sorry for loving, Heloise. No matter who it is, no matter how it is done, no matter how the person you love receives it. Love is the greatest thing a person can do. Most go their entire lives knowing only ritual and obligation, mistaking it for love.”
[image] ARC provided by Flatiron Books in exchange for an honest review.
“Once upon a time there was a beautiful queen who thought words were st
[image] ARC provided by Flatiron Books in exchange for an honest review.
“Once upon a time there was a beautiful queen who thought words were stronger than anything. She used them to win love and money and gifts. She used them to carry her across the world.”
Let me just start this off by saying that I normally only one star something if it has very problematic content. This book only has one element that made me uncomfortable (that I will talk about later on), but the main reason I’m giving this one star is because it was so ungodly boring.
Next, and this could be completely my fault, I feel like this is marketed as a YA Fantasy, when it takes the reader almost 250 pages, out of a 360 page book, to even get into the fantasy aspect and by that time I couldn't care less about some pseudo Alice in Wonderland. This reads like a YA Contemporary Mystery and that is not a genre that I enjoy reading in the slightest, so maybe that is the main reason this didn’t work for me.
So the basic premise of The Hazel Wood is that a seventeen-year-old girl named Alice has been on the run with her mother, Ella, for as long as she can remember. They go from city to city, house to house, sometimes sleeping in their car, always on the run from the “bad luck” that follows them. Alice’s grandmother, Ella’s mother, is a very famous author who wrote a collection of short stories that are incredibly hard to find in today’s world. The short stories are very dark fairytales, that have netted her grandmother a very cult-like fanbase that totally gave me some Nightfilm vibes if I’m being completely honest.
Alice has never met her grandmother, and she’s never visited the exclusive estate she lives on called the Hazel Wood. But after Alice’s mother is kidnapped, she is desperate to find any means possible to finally visit the mysterious estate and to get her mother back once and for all.
But this book was so incredibly slow. I had to bribe myself with chocolates to even finish it. This is a 360 page book, and it took me SEVENTEEN days to read it. That’s a little over 20 pages a day. And that’s honestly all I could do, because I was so uninvested. And it’s actually mindboggling to me that this book is even 360 pages long, because I feel like everything could have taken place in 150-200 pages, too.
And Alice is such an unlikeable main character that isn’t supposed to be an unlikeable main character. She’s so rude, and self-centered, and unable to recognize her privilege because she can’t get over the fact that she grew up poor. She talks over people, and is demanding, and refuses to acknowledge her mistakes. I could never and will never connect with her, and it was honestly miserable to be inside of her head.
So, the problematic element is the treatment of the biracial side character who Alice spends most of the book with. Finch is the only person of color in this book, and Alice constantly remarks on how unattractive he is, and it feels really bad. Then, when they get into an altercation with a police officer, Finch tries to explain to Alice about racial profiling and how he feels uncomfortable being around cops and being noncompliant around cops, while Alice just completely disregards his very valid feelings by saying he’s rich and privileged. Like that negates the color of his skin and the racism he faces every single day because of it, because she grew up poor and on the run with her mom. On top of the fact that Alice will never let Finch speak, because she’s always interrupting and talking over him. It just reads badly and made my very uncomfortable while reading. Also, Alice even got physically abusive a couple times and I just wasn't there for it at all.
The other minor thing that just made me feel a little uncomfortable while reading was that this book kind of romanticizes kidnapping. Like, Alice has very fond memories of being kidnapped when she was six and it feels almost like glorifying it. Maybe this just rubbed me the wrong way because I was always deathly afraid of being kidnapped as a child, but I didn’t enjoy reading her memories on kidnapping whatsoever, either.
And the last thing is that the deus ex machina in this book is very strong. So many things just so conveniently happened, especially at the end of this book when we are finally in a fairytale land, to wrap up this story.
The only thing I truly liked about this book were the two chapters that were stories that Finch was retelling to Alice from inside her Grandmother’s book, Tales from the Hinterland. Both of these were honestly great, and I enjoyed them immensely and it showcased that the author does have talent for writing. Unfortunately, this is only two chapters of a thirty-one chapter book. But both of those short stories were good and I enjoyed each one more than the rest of this entire book combined
Also, have you seen the finished copy of this? With its foil sprayed pages? Holy moly, it’s honestly one of the most beautiful books I’ve ever laid eyes upon. But you all know what they say about judging books by their covers…
This book just wasn’t for me or my tastes. We aren’t even in 2018 yet and I can tell you that this will 100% make my most disappointing publications of 2018 list. And from all my friends’ reviews, I truly think this is going to just be a polarizing book! People are going to hate and dread picking it up, or they are going to be completely engrossed, love, and devour it. And you guys know that just because I disliked this book, it doesn’t mean that your feelings are invalid. If you liked this book then I am truly happy for you, but this book just really didn’t work for me. And if you do decide to pick this one up, I hope you find way more enjoyment within its pages than I did.
Content warnings for underage alcohol consumption, drug use, self-harm, talk of suicide, and mild violence.
ARC provided by the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
DNF at Chapter 41
I’m sorry, everyone, I just can’t do this anymore. The iARC provided by the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
DNF at Chapter 41
I’m sorry, everyone, I just can’t do this anymore. The incredibly short chapters that jump around to a million different points of view are just too much for me. This is such a jarring read that is really lacking any real cohesiveness.
Zenith is the first book in a YA series that stars Androma, AKA: the Bloody Baroness, and her crew, who are forced to do a very dangerous mission. This mission is the direct result of the ghosts from Andi’s past that have come back to haunt her. One of them being her past lover, Dex, who betrayed her, and Andi is now forced to work alongside him for this mission.
I don’t care about Dex, or Andi, or even her crew! And, more importantly, I don’t believe in any of them. Their motives feel forced, the romances feel unbelievable, and the clichés are too unbearable for me to continue.
I’m sorry, I truly am. I love Sasha, and I really wanted to give her a glowing review, but I just can’t. Let’s be real, this book is still going to make The New York Times Best Seller list, so I don’t think my DNF is going to really ruin anything, but I still feel awful. But I hope if you give this a try, you will enjoy it more than I did.
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