Aaron Duran

ARC received in exchange for an honest review.

Let me start with the positives:
I really loved the art. It’s beautiful, especially the magic.
I definitely enjoyed the different cultural background from your classic fantasy stories.
There are these funny and quirky moments and a lot of warm ones too.

Now what I didn't enjoy as much was the story itself. Why? Because despite the different cultural wrapping, it didn't seem that original. The villains were kind of cliché. Same with the dialogue. Can't help but feel like it's a story I read already, just in different setting. Also, sometimes the flow of the panels made it bit hard to follow. Especially during the fights.

There was quite a bit of Spanish. Might be more friendly to lessen it a bit or add some kind of dictionary or small notes on page. It didn't really bother me as I could get the gist of it thanks to knowing Portuguese. I am all for adding another language but I don’t think it should force reader to pull out dictionary.

Now the important thing is: Did I enjoy it? Yes, I did and I would be interested to continue. It is after all just first volume and there can be lot of improvement going forward.… (more)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

The opening scene in this novel throws you right into the deep end, Althalia and her friends, and the behest of a terrified family, are trying to fix a possession. I admit I was a little confused about the dynamics between the main characters in that scene. I had wrongly assumed that Althalia and the other characters were part of some supernatural defense team or something similar. But no, they're actually paranormal museum curators! It's also revealed after the opening scene, that Althalia is a bruja in training, and one of the only brujas left. I liked how this novel's magic system is based on Mexican mythology and practices! A lot of the time, books love to use Irish or Celtic mythology and beliefs are the base for their magic system, which does get a bit boring after a while. This story doesn't shy away from the history of Mexico, and briefly acknowledges the colonization that was done by the Spaniards. Knowing at least the basic facts of Mexico's history of being colonized is important to understand why the main protagonist feels as she does in certain scenes. I loved the art style in this! Lots of rich colors, and interesting character designs. This story ended with questions left unanswered that leave me craving the answers! I look forward to reading the second novel whenever it comes out!… (more)