Reviews and Comments

Iiiiit's cute! It's SO cute! A very soft, low-stakes manga about good doggos and the young adults who walk them. The description on the cover already tells you everything you need to know, and the content of the book fulfills the promise admirably. Short, sweet vignettes about nice people doing largely uncomplicated things. Solid, confident artwork elevates all the moments, and it's a very pleasing, if quick read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha for a review copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!

What happens when you leave Narnia? It feels strange to review a book through the lens of another series, but The Lost Story invites the comparison. In fact, it feels like this was purpose-made for those of us who've stayed up late with friends going "No, but imagine you were a literal king for most of your life, and then suddenly you're back as a teenager and you have to do homework again." The book itself is split into two parts - this world, and the other world. Things move slower in this world. The mood is melancholic, grounded, and painful. And, to be honest, that's the part that resonated with me more. It's the part where we got to know the characters and see their personal struggles. The time in the fantasy world felt surprisingly rushed, with the actual events in the magical kingdom almost a footnote in the story of our heroes getting there in the first place. I think other readers might view it as the opposite, feeling the first part dragged and the second half was where it really took off, but I would have liked the second part to run longer so we could get to know the world better and be more invested in the adventure. Altogether a reasonable exploration of the "what comes next" question, but the finale moved too quickly for me to be feel the impact.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballatine Books for a review copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!

It's a delightful premise, really. Spunky young woman and a cranky older lady team up to solve mysteries. The fact that one is a ghost adds to the quirky charm. But much like the relationship between our leads, this series is off to a somewhat unsteady start. The book takes a moment to get its bearings, and the main mystery presented doesn't feel solved so much as conveniently revealed. Ruby might have the enthusiasm for it, but her investigative skills leave a lot to be desired. I don't expect her to be Sherlock Holmes, but a bit of self-preservation would certainly help. About halfway through the book, I wondered when they'd be getting to the real mystery - Cordelia's untimely demise. And sadly, it turns out that's for another day. Because even though there are a few threads here and there, Cordelia remains a mystery, along with her many intriguing secrets. Thankfully they remembered at the end just long enough to drop a hook, but I certainly would have liked to see more. As it stands, the mystery in this book is a fine enough cozy mystery, but the power of this book leans more on how much you like the odd couple chemistry of Ruby and Cordelia and how long you're willing to wait for the much more tantalizing story happening in the background.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a review copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.

So, this one's complicated. To be entirely honest, I'm not sure I'll be able to say if this was worth the read for me until the second book drops. Which is certainly a statement.

So I'll start with the broad strokes for anyone curious: It's got the drama. Every character is complex, interesting, and a complete mess. Political machinations take a back seat to interpersonal conflict, and while some might call it found family, found dysfunctional family might be a more appropriate title. Love and hate both run hot, and if you like your characters to be messy, you'll like what you find in here. The world building is a familiar fit for anyone familiar with gritty fantasy, with a handful of interesting, but not world-bending, magical powers on display. The writing style is where I hit my biggest hurdle as a reader: third person present tense, my persistent enemy, rears its head once again. In this case, it's especially egregious because the story takes place over two timelines, and the "before" timeline is still written in present tense for some reason. There's also first person sprinkled in occasionally for one POV, which is bumpy since that character also gets third person POV chapters as well. Add to that a handful of "supplemental material" for extra world-building, and following the story is actually quite difficult as it the storyline ping-pongs back and forth between "before" and "now."

It's hard to review the plot without dropping at least some hints as to how it ends, but I will try to remain vague. The MC is exhausting to read. I aligned myself with her biggest hater within five seconds. Halfway through this thing, I almost DNFed because I didn't want to spend any time with her, her incompetence, or her ever-present horniness. But halfway through the book is also when the story shifted just enough that I had an inkling about what was really going on, and I decided to wait it out. A major lore drop later on absolutely punched me in the gut, and I raced to the end of the book, absolutely gripped by the last few chapters. I won't lie, the ending is juicy. I have no idea what's going to happen after that cliffhanger, but I am willing to see how it plays out.

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for an advance copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!

This one's got me conflicted, so I'll start with the parts I liked. Setting was great. Plot twists were great. I enjoy the writing style. The world building was painted with a very broad brush in terms of the magic system, but it remained consistent with some interesting applications. I found myself delighted by the first half of this book. Saturnino's POV lets us know he's unashamedly just that much of a villain. He's manipulative. He's hot and he knows it. And he'll do whatever it takes to get Ravenna to give in. Ravenna in the meantime knows this as clear as day, and has to struggle with the fact that he is, in fact, still pretty hot. I was looking forward to some good cat and mouse displays while the defiant and rebellious Ravenna introduced in the first few chapters worked her way through Italian high society. I was excited to see the ways the two of them would manipulate each other.

Instead, she fell for him anyway? Even after he made it clear he was just using her and had no interest? She risked her life for her brother by defying the tyrant ruling over her town, then within weeks decided she's actually Team Tyrant after all. Not my favorite way for love to bloom. But it's fine because her love and general demeanor are enough to change him into a proper and loving guy. Or perhaps dig up that heart of gold that was always buried inside him. Either way, the "she can fix him" romance never hits with me, and this book was no exception. Which is a shame because it dampened an otherwise interesting fantastical take on a historical power struggle with some really compelling supporting cast members.

Thanks to NetGalley and Saturday Books for an advance copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!

I normally try to avoid comparing one book to another, but this book feels very much like it was purposefully grown in the same soil as Howl's Moving Castle, so I will say that it hits with very similar vibes in terms of the leads and how their relationship forms, along with a lot of the external conflict. You've got your practical leading lady with a fondness for checklists and order, the disaster magician with a bad reputation who may or may not be evil (of course he's not), and a cozy spark of romance between them. The magic in the world building is vague, but consistent, with a fairy tale-like quality to it. Add to that a supporting cast of immediately likable friends and family, with a dash of political maneuvering and a powerful magical antagonist, and you've got a solid standalone novel.

The main difference is, of course, the cats. If you are a cat person this will be a huge bonus. Not only are there are lot of cats in here, but they behave in all the way cats do, from the infuriating to the endearing. It's extremely charming for this reader, and I found myself enchanted with all the cats and their personalities. You could probably read it even if you don't like cats, but it might test your patience.

Thanks to NetGalley and Del Rey for an advance copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!

Oh, this one is very sexy. Ostensibly a heist story, but by the time the story's over, there's a lot more time spent on romance. Lola is a headstrong and complex heroine with an emotional wall up that makes it difficult to connect until later in the story as more of her own history unfolds. The romantic options are both competently crafted brooding boys with traumatic backstories and tender hearts (probably) with plenty of tension to go around (especially as one can literally feel her heart race every time she encounters the other). There's a very sensual dance sequence in particular that really hits all the love/hate points of the romance aspect, and I really loved it.

The world-building is complex and interesting, if not entirely fleshed out in the first book. The world outside the casino gets very little attention, although it's implied that what follows will be much bigger, probably with politics involved. There are different types of magic, and it's not always clear how each of them functions, but watching the players in the tournament have to plot how to approach their challenges was a really fun show, with plenty of promise for future interactions.

The one thing I feel I missed out on was the heist itself. With the tournament as the major setting, and a LOT of romantic drama, it became kind of easy to forget that something was getting stolen, and the plan to actually achieve the steal came fairly late in the game. Read this book for the sexy lies, romantic twists, and sensual mind games. Don't read it if you need to see the MC cleverly outmaneuver some boys and escape laughing into the night.

Thanks to NetGalley and Feiwel & Friends for a review copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.

This book was hard to read. Looking at other reviews, I see I am not alone. I initially thought it was just my usual friction with third person present tense narratives, but as the story went on, it became clear that the author was purposefully aiming for a difficult read. There's a dreamlike quality to the prose that makes scenes difficult to follow sometimes. Time passing is difficult to pin down; the speaker stops mid-story to drop in entire chapters about the world's lore, or a sliver of character history; even the scores of names, nicknames, and titles can be difficult to keep track of. It has the feel of a traveling storyteller spreading a tale via oral tradition, with various asides here and there. I do wonder if I'd have liked it better in audio book format.

That being said, I was promised court drama and plot twists, so I gamely pushed myself through the first half of the book until BAM! Everything suddenly took off at a dizzying speed. And yes, we get court drama and plot twists aplenty. At that point, I found that the initially confusing prose was also designed to punctuate the panic and uncertainty of the situation. It didn't necessarily push the story to be more immersive, but it did lend to the sense of vertigo that the reader is meant to feel as the main character attempts to navigate a situation far beyond her control.

And as for the main character, she's also difficult to pin down. She's a prodigy. She's very morally gray. She's also very sexual. But her own personality feels about as undefined and shapeless as the rest of the prose. One character refers to her as a "little arguer," an apt nickname. She is happy to point out flaws in the system (and rightfully so), but so far has not dedicated much time to considering solutions or even working towards them. It's something she knows about herself, but it does mean most of her momentum comes from outside forces and the urgency of immediacy. With a cliffhanger ending like that, though, I can only hope we'll see more from her.

Also, there are a LOT of sexual encounters in this book, all described in thorough and intimate detail. You already know if that's a plus or a minus for you. I'm just letting you know.

Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit Books for a review copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!

Andy has enough troubles in his life already. He definitely doesn't need to add a decades-old murder mystery to his to-do list. And yet as he finds himself stuck in a small sleepy town for the summer, he finds himself drawn to the old case and the secrets that it might unlock. The story plays in two threads, intertwined with each other. The first thread, the mystery itself is very well plotted. Red herrings, twists, and reveals are paced out neatly, with a satisfying conclusion to a well-thought out mystery. The second thread doesn't get as much attention, probably by design, leaving a lot of Andy's personal life open-ended. This works for the most part, although there were several scenes in the end that I wish got a little more time just for the weight of their emotional impact.

Andy is very well-written. Likable, relatable, snappy, and easy to cheer for. The other characters are all layered and complex with troubles of their own, and I found myself connecting to many of their stories. The Red Nave's in particular definitely caught me by surprise. He could be an entire separate book on his own. Overall a great middle grade read for anyone looking for a good mystery and a relatable lead.

Thanks to NetGalley and ABRAMS Kids for a review copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!

It's one of the most enduring stories of all time: A young woman of impassable beauty and impeccable morals is abused by her family for years until a prince appears to take her from her broken life into one that treats her like the princess she is. At last she is rewarded for her years of selfless kindness and excellent housekeeping when someone in a place of power sees the true value of her and her heart. There's definitely a supernatural element. There might even be a splash of revenge on the side. This iteration also includes a very tender look at the trauma of growing up with abuse, and how much the victim learns to internalize their own blame. Quite frankly, the first bit where she was stuck with her family was hard to get through - by design, of course, but WOW. Her family is terrible. Her new life is great, with a cast of fun characters to support her as she slowly learns to accept that she deserves to be treated like an actual person.

And that's kind of all we get for the first volume. The ayakashi world-building is interesting, but not in-depth (yet), with a few details that make it stand out from other stories. Her magical power manifests in making the world's most awesome breakfasts, which literally imbue the person eating it with magic. There is some sexy blood-licking as well. But for the most part, the story is just setting up all the characters for whatever conflict is to come. There are very few surprises, but the familiarity is comforting, and very competently written. If this is the kind of story you enjoy, The Ayakashi Hunter should be a very satisfying read. The art is delicate and confident, with some really great expressions from the story's villain, and there are plenty of sexy (but low spice!) moments to be had. The translation is very easy to read, and flows naturally. There are a lot of places this could go from here to distinguish itself from similar stories, but so far, it's a great start.

Thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics from an advance copy! All thoughts in this review are my own.

I'm going to have to split this into two parts, because the plot and the romance both did entirely different things for me.

We'll start with the main plot, which feels a bit like a magical potpourri of ideas. There's fae court intrigue and all sorts of political machinations. There might be a war on the horizon! There's a missing parent with a dark past. And also, there's a magical school that Bristol only sometimes attends. It's a lot to fit together, but it does seem to work for the most part. The school section gets the short end of this, with Bristol's fellow classmates painted as interesting, but largely non-present in the rest of the threads. The separate threads weave together by the end of the book into a fairly focused storyline. There are enough original takes in here that the story feels fresh, without straying too far from what makes faerie court intrigue as popular as it is. Some of the reveals in the second half especially look like they'll be setting up some cool things in the next book.

The romance is where I find myself struggling. I like a good enemies-to-lovers, and the story certainly opens up as if we're going to get there with some nice slow burn. But they say time passes differently in the faerie world, and time must also pass differently in this book, because these characters fell in love WAY faster than I expected. There was some bickering, and then suddenly there wasn't, like a switch had been flipped. It's not quite instalove, but it certainly comes close. If you enjoy sudden and searing passion in your romances, this will probably land well with you. But for fellow fans of a relationship that has to marinate a little longer, you may feel a bit of whiplash at how quickly the first declaration of love appears.

Thanks to Flatiron Books and NetGalley for a review copy! All thoughts in this review are my own.

"Little Thieves" is one of my favorite books of all time. Its sequel "Painted Devils" is... not. So how does the third and final book in this trilogy stack up? I'm happy to say we're closer to first book energy, and it's excellent.

Buckle in folks, this is a long one! Yes, longer than the first two. Vanja's back, and she's doing her best to put good into the world the only way she knows how - by thieving and tricking her way through society, this time in service of the poor and needy instead of herself. Does it work? Mostly! Up until someone starts killing royalty, and leaving her calling card behind. To no one's surprise, a certain Prefect Conrad is on the case, and they're going to have to work together to find the real culprit before the entire kingdom falls apart (perhaps literally).

The stakes and the magic are significantly higher this time around, with magical items, spell-slinging, and multiple gods involved in a very twisty plot that connects all the loose threads from the previous two books. And when I call it a twisty plot, I mean it. This thing has got LAYERS, packed with red herrings, alternate pathways, and so many surprises. The scale of it as also much bigger. The first book felt like the fairy tale retelling that it is. A dash of magic, but a compact world with a single advancing plot. This book feels like we hit the gas HARD. In order, the books are basically Iron Man, Iron Man II, Avengers Endgame. It's big. It's epic. It doesn't hit the same vibes as before, but it does feel like the natural conclusion of the arc that the first two books set up. It's a satisfying end to the story, but the overall feel is definitely bigger.

And like Endgame, we have a huge cast of fan favorites! Ragne, Gisele, and Joniza are all very welcome returns, and several new characters are an absolute delight. The return of some less scrupulous characters is also at hand, all with machinations of their own.

And that just leaves our lovelorn heroes. Do they make up? Will they finally be honest with each other? Will they finally be honest with themselves? Will it be anything like all the frustrations of book 2 that made me so upset? Yes and no! The romantic drama continues to unfold, but unlike teen awkwardness of Book 2, we fall more into second chance romance patterns. Sniping, bickering, and all sorts of ~feelings~ are the order of the day, but unlike the previous volume, Vanja and Emeric remain focused on solving the mystery as well. The dreaded miscommunication rears its head more than I'd like, but they're at least smart enough to listen to other people this time around. They've both got a lot to unpack, and the unpacking begins with the help of friends and some frank self-reflection. Also a bit of familiar-sounding poetry. (Which makes me realize that... is Margaret Owen sneaking pop culture lyrics into all her books and I only just now noticed? Oops.) But yes, it turns out the kids are alright, and fans of this pairing should be pleased with the outcome.

ALSO. The illustrations in this one are my favorite so far. Beautiful work.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for an advance copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!

The first volume of Clock Striker wound up being my favorite manga of 2023, and I'm so glad I finally managed to get a copy of volume 2, because it might be another favorite. Clock Striker hits a very particular balance between homage to classic shonen manga, and original story ideas and beats. In my last review, I fretted that the fast pace meant world building was sparse, but there's plenty of world building in here to feed my need to know, and I love the how the sci-fi/steampunk aspects click into the story. Cast remains strongly the heart of the story with an infectious energy and love of science and justice that makes her an extremely likable hero. We also get to learn a lot more about Klaus, with some fun plot twists that I did not see coming. The art is consistently strong, with expressive character work, and some expansive scenery. The more I see of this world, the more I want. I am very much looking forward to volume 3!

Thanks to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group for a review copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!

Have you ever read a book and thought "This should have been a video game?" Because that thought sat in the back of my head the whole way through. The plot is fast-paced with a structure of narration (cutscenes), hunting for ingredients (map exploration), and then the culinary battle (boss fight). There're also dating sim elements, and plenty of one-on-one campfire chats with supporting cast that slowly reveal everyone's personal motives. Heck, there are even tidbits of world lore on the "loading screens" between chapters. And speaking of world lore, there's a lot of fun stuff to mine in here. The author's bio talks about growing up in a diverse Asian neighborhood, and that's evident in the variety of food and names presented here (shout out to the calamansi mention). The competition is as brutal as promised, with Squid Game-esque levels of punishment for losers, and there are plenty of layers of backstory for all of the characters with a much larger world just beyond the doors of the competition. And that's where a video game structure might really have come in handy. There's too much to fit into one book, but plenty for a game with multiple playthroughs. On this route, Cai can date Bo. On this route, she skips romance entirely to learn more about Kama. On this route, she absolutely obliterates the competition early on. Heck, can we add that rival kid from the first chapter as DLC?

My point is that the world is so vast that I felt really locked in to the choices that actually appeared on the page. Love triangles aren't my thing, for example. (I accept the fault is with the reader here.) Especially the kind where the two options get increasingly hostile with each other, and then the MC. Spending most of the time on the romance took away the potential of the competition plot for me, but I'm sure it'd be the selling point for other readers. There are just so many enticing ideas and plot hooks dangling in front of me, and the book only had time to chase down one of them. Alas!

The food content is mixed for me. I cook a lot, and I cook Asian food a lot. Make no mistake, I'm very mid. That being said, I expected more cooking here. This book is overflowing with sumptuous descriptions of food and eating, but the actual cooking techniques and moments are surprisingly sparse. The first round gave us some insight into Cai's ingredient choices, but after that, there's very little. Cai's supposedly a genius cook, but we never get any look into that genius. I cheered when (mild spoiler alert) the final theme ingredient was eggs, because eggs are used to make noodles, and we'd spent the entire book hearing that she's a master of noodle-making. I couldn't wait for her to show off kneading the dough, the stretching, the twisting, the flourish with her knife as she cut noodles with precision. Everyone else would finally see her at her best and most brilliant. But instead she made omurice? Right after she admits in the narrative how much she misses making noodles for an audience? Anyway, this last point in particular doesn't seem to bother anyone else, so I'm gonna put a mark in the curmudgeon column for me.

Overall, this book didn't land with me, but if you told me it was being converted into a video game, I'd buy it in a heartbeat.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sweet July Books for an advance copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!