Books

Book Review

Moon Reads: Fox & Rabbit

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Fox & Rabbit and Fox & Rabbit Make Believe by Beth Ferry and Gergely Dudas

Rating: MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px Grey

Series: Fox & Rabbit, first two volumes

Read before: No

Ownership: Found the first in Forbidden Planet, could not resist, read it ordered the second one and third.

This was an impulse buy because it had a fox and a rabbit on the cover and they are the main characters, plus they are relatively small books and easy to read. What can I say? In the same line of comics like Jelly & Narwhal, we have Fox and Rabbit who are best friends and have adventures together.

The very first one has a few episodes of stories of them having adventures and it also introduces us to other friends like the robin who is always thinking about food. I really loved the robin. Or the turtle that is always late and asking what they have missed. But overall the adventures are wholesome and sweet, and they just were a nice pause and lovely to read.

The second book picks up a little after the first and is all about using your imagination and having adventures in a variety of ways which was adorable, a bit more “fast” paced than the first book but still good.

As much as they are simple books and easy to read, they are good at touching on confidence, friendship and how to navigate certain situations, so it was lovely to read, plus I accidentally shared this with my best friend and there was a chapter that was perfect for our friendship so it felt particularly fated to be a good book.

Book Review

Moon Reads: The Last Witch

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The Last Witch by McCreery, Glass and Nesterenko

Rating: MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px

Read before: No

Ownership: Saw it in Forbidden Planet last month, couldn’t resist it, bought it.

Ok, so apparently this was initially released in smaller episodes, but now it is a full book and honestly, it is a very interesting story of a young girl who goes on a dare to a tower where a witch lives, but I mean, it’s all a tale, right? right?

It gets even better, or should I say worse, when her little brother joins in and lo and behold the witch was not a story, so there is danger. Turns out this sets a chain reaction kinda thing that turns into a quest to become a witcha nd defeat a big enemy that is trying hard to destroy the world, and so we follow our main character around the “world” and on her quest to learn, master her powers, and save as many people as she can.

The reason it is not a five fox is that it has some continuity problems that kept me scratching my head or absolute blanks in the story where I genuinely had no clue where it had gone. But the story is good and the artwork interesting, it does start quite slow and then suddenly everything is happening. That was also a downside. We get so many pages of slow world-building and her friendship with townpeople, but once she is on her quest you barely get some pages of some parts of the action and this upset me, because I get you don’t need a blow by blow breakdown but there is just not enough to understand fully what is going and it was just a bit like “hey, you could put more details since we had a lot of prologue”.

But it is still a fun story, so if you need a witchy graphic novel with old story kinda legend vibes, then this is a good choice.

Book Review

Moon Reads: Doves in the Dining Room

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Doves in the Dining Room by Laura Laakso

Rating: MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px

Read before: Not the finished version, and not complete.

Ownership: Preordered a copy because I cannot resist anything from Laura

Series: The Wilde Investigations

Am I reviewing the short story or just sharing a picture of Finn or maybe both?

What I do have to say is that if you want a murder mystery that is all wrapped up with a bow and feels like you are playing Clue but even more brilliant, alongside a good main character that has EDS, Ehler-Danlos Syndrom, is bisexual and a bad ass, then this book is for you. And if you have read any of the books in this series, this is a book with a lot of Wishearth in it and totally worth it.

When Yannia gets invited to a wedding and suddenly gruesome accidents start happening that seem like someone is trying to boycott, she comes to the rescue and to the investigation of it. But the question is who did it and why?

I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would, it is very self contained in that ti all happens at the wedding venue in a very small set of suspects and it slowly becomes more and more interesting, alongside a good cast and a lot of good times next to a fire, because otherwise it wouldn’t be the same story.

If you need something to fill the gap between Roots of Corruption and The Wildest Hunger which is coming out in October, then this is a good gem to do so, it will leave you hungry for more but also happy to have read it and enjoying a good mystery.

Book Review

MoonReads: Garlic & the Vampire

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Garlic & the Vampire by Bree Paulsen

Rating: MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px Grey

Read before: No

Ownership: Ordered on my own

This was an adorable little graphic novel. The premise is that a witch has enchanted her vegetable switch personality and they are sentient and her children, so we have Garlic who wants to be brave and a few others. Everything is as normal until they see smoke coming out of the castle and the legends of a vampire being there crop up into the gossip thread running through the town and among the vegetables and fruits the witch has.

So Garlic ends up being volunteered to help fight the vampire or at least confront it because you know, everyone knows that vampires don’t like garlic. Or so is the overall logic.

The story basically covers how garlic goes on her little adventure. And honestly, this was a very enjoyable sweet book. The artwork gives it a magical but like old school matter of fact feel while the plot makes it even better. Each of the vegetables has an interesting personality and the overall town and witch and vegetable interaction are brilliant.

To say if garlic actually finds a vampire and what happens would be to spoil the story but I honestly loved the idea of it and the execution of it. But I can definitely say it is an underrated read and worth exploring as a graphic novel for all ages.

Book Review

Moon Reads: Yuzu the Pet Vet (Vol 1 & 2)

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Yuzu the Pet Vet Volumes 1 and 2 by Mingo Ito

Rating: MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px Grey

Read before: No

Series: Yuzu the Pet Vet

Ownership: Bought it on a shopping trip to London because they looked cute.

Yuzu the Pet Vet starts quite slow, with Yuzu having to move to live with her uncle since her mum is sick and in hospital, but her uncle is a vet and she has to help a little with the animals. But the catch si that she is afraid of animals. However, as you read, the little adventures mean that Yuzu starts paying more attention to the animals and gains confidence.

Each volume was a bunch of short stories, each focused on a visitor to the vet and how Yuzu helps, but it also overall includes more plot like her adapting to her new life, a new school, and dealing with her feelings of how to cope with having her mum being sick in the hospital and not being able to see her much, or feeling it is difficult to see her and not wanting to. They also encourage taking good care of animals and loving your pets, alongside learning from each interaction between the owners of the specific pet and the pet, and it is very cute.

The art style is adorable and the animals are always very cute, and the stories are soft and very child-friendly while at the same time dealing with hard topics at times like illness, death and other challenges but also fear and nicer things like making friends or gaining confidence.

Overall, a nice manga to read with children or to give to children to enjoy on their own. Very soft and lovely, but may cause people to want a pet and to want to be involved more with animals.

Book Review

Moon Reads: Diary of an Accidental Witch – Flying High

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Diary of an Accidental Witch – Flying High by Perdita and Honor Cargill

Rating: MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px Grey

Read before: No

Series: Diary of an Accidental Witch, book 2.

Ownership: Review copy provided by the publisher upon request, this does not affect my review and honestly I had this on my wishlist anyway because I enjoyed the first one a lot.

As per above, I really enjoyed the very first book don’t he series, which you can find a review for it here. Flying high picks up more or less after the end of the first book. We find Bea starting a new diary to tell us all about Winter solstice, a special task for her and relating to magical creatures, and some fun events for the Winter Solstice.

There is a lot of flying to be made and competitions and then suddenly things take an odd turn kinda because of her but also not entirely her fault.

The story is quite funny, with a lot of pointers to the previous book, however, it also explains again the rules of games like Go or other magical things you may not have picked up from the first book if you somehow missed it. And the story is once again focused on values and learning to treat others well, and you know, Bea adapting to being a witch secretly, or how to balance her friendships between magical and non-magical friends.

There are some very good moments of considering that not everyone approaches things the same way and that maybe we all do it a little differently and still manage it and how easy it is to forget your privilege or that your view may be quite narrow. And obviously, there is a good party at the end because apparently, witches love parties.

Oh and I read this for #Februwitchy which I forget to say I have been doing because I am a distracted being, but yeah.

Anyway, I recommend you buy this one and the prequel because you’ll have a good laugh with adorable illustrations and it reads just like a diary, good for young readers and slightly older readers, or maybe an adult like me who loves to read and sometimes needs fun soft stories with low stakes and a lot of childhood bliss.

Book Review

Moon Reads: Every Heart a Doorway

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Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire

Rating: MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px Grey

Read Before: No

Ownership: Gifted by a friend from my wishlist

Do you ever wonder what happens to the children that went through the looking glass, or down a rabbit hole, and came back? If you had gone into some kind of Wonderland and then came back to your regular life, how would you cope? Could you manage real life, or maybe have odd powers and be too changed to have a normal life again?

This series of the Wayward Children asks those questions and poses a place for them with the School for Wayward Children, which is sold as a way to rehabilitate children that disappeared and came back with odd stories, but in truth is in a way a refuge for them and to learn to harness their powers.

Every Heart a Doorway was my first book by Seanan McGuire and I enjoyed it a lot. It follows a set of friends such wayward children as a newbie joins and suddenly a lot of deaths start happening in the school and things get a little hairy and difficult. It is easy to blame the new arrival, but is it really her fault or is there more to it?

One thing that this definitely is that this is a chaotic book that relies in a way of the reader perception on what going to a wonderland is. It is not a book that will hold your hand but rather it will entice you to come and stab you in the back, then whisper sweet nothings at you while still holding a knife carefully concealed. And yet, it is a wonderful read that I couldn’t put down and had to finish in a night.

I think for me, it felt like the kind of ideas I want to explore and like to explore in media about what happens to the dreamers when they come back. It falls right there with my love for Alice Madness Returns and American McGee’s Alice, that push the limits of what is a well behaved returning child from a Wonderland and how they adjust. It asks some interesting questions, like what if the child still wants to return and prefers Wonderland?

An absolute delight to read and now I need to read the rest!

Book Review

Moon Reads: Nevermoor

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Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend

Rating: MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px Grey

Read before: No

Ownership: Part of my library and had been there for ages

I read this in January because it was part of the bookclub from Wonder and honestly, I felt it was long overdue to read.

The story follows Morrigan as she expects to die on her birthday because she is a cursed child that brings bad luck. This is definitely an interesting premise but turns out she gets offered an opportunity to participate in some trials and show her magic, but she is sure her only magic is to curse people and bring bad luck, and that is definitely not special enough magic to pass trials. Unless the plan is to curse everyone with bad luck so she wins?

I enjoyed the humour of it, which is slightly dark but also quite funny and touches on harder topics. [Why is it that children’s books sometimes can touch on topics of death, bad luck and bad stuff in such a way that it leaves a mark and yet it feels light and not too bad?] And the place of Nevermoor is awesome, and her sponsor who is trying to get her to win the trials, and honestly, it is a cute interesting story, I think the main key thing is that it is about trusting yourself, and seeing yourself how others see you.

Morrigan was on top of it all,a good character to go along with, she isn’t perfect but then she isn’t obnoxious or trying too hard. she had accepted her fate in life and was doing her best and suddenly everything changes, and I understood in some level that,it was a fresh opportunity, like a breath of fresh air for her and it takes her a while to figure out what to do with this opportunity and change.

Overall, a recommended book about magic, friendship, self confidence, and making the most of life. You could give this you middle grade readers, read it aloud with your little ones or en joy it yourself as a teen or adult and it is basically a book that hopefully becomes a classic.

Book Review

Moon Reads: Star

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Star by Holly Webb

Rating: MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px Grey

Read Before: No

Ownership: Review copy provided by the publisher in exchange for a review. This does not affect my opinion of the book nor do I receive any other compensation for reviewing it beyond the book.

As I mentioned in the Frost review, Star was my first Holly Webb book, which I read in December and honestly, I loved it. It was the right kind of cute and gentle but also had a little adventure, a little bit of moving in space to another area or in a way living someone else’s experiences.

The story follows Anna, who wishes for snow and borrows a little wooden tiger from her Russian grandmother while she hears stories of her cousins back in Russia. But as she goes for a walk, she wonders about a loose tiger cub in Russia near the village where her cousin lives. As such, we suddenly are now in that village and being the cousin Anna.

The story follows Anna as she tries to save the tiger cub but also not be in danger, and it is very cute, very intriguing and cares about the little animal and just shows how things can affect life, but also to be safe. I really liked some of the measures Anna took to be sensible before leaving her house and a few of the things she cautiously does before approaching the tiger cub.

Overall, the story was enjoyable, made me want to have a few wood-carved animals to display somewhere and just to think about animals and the roles they have and what can happen when we disrupt them.

Recommended for readers that can read on their own or a family read to slightly younger readers with some guidance on topics and explanations on the content, nothing untoward or anything like that but it does deal with hunters and animals and other little things. The illustrations are absolutely stunning and it is so worth reading.

Book Review

Moon Reads: Frost

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Frost by Holly Webb

Rating: MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px MoonKestrel Logo2 20px Grey

Read before: No

Ownership: Gifted by a friend since I love books about foxes.

I had never read a Holly Webb book before I read Star, review to come, and then I was organising my middle grade shelves and realised I had this one by her too, so it felt right to read it and review it.

Frost is a story about a young girl who starts feeding the fox cubs that live near their apartment complex, but she has to do so secretly because you know, urban foxes = bad. The story focuses a little on the present and our main character interacting with eh foxes but also interacting with her family and one of the neighbours in the complex. This part was at first a bit generic but got more particular and showed a lot of character and growth for our little girl.

On the other hand we have the “fox” story, which focuses on a slight time travelling, like being in another body after she listens to a story and decides to feed the fox on a cold snowy night. This somehow means she is in a much older age, 1600s if I remember correctly, and her fox friend is still around but there is also a historical and cultural lesson on snow fairs and the roles of children and life in general.

I really enjoyed the story, and obviously because it has a fox, it was nice to read and just be part fo the fox love shared here.

This book is probably for readers that have a good comprehension level as the story is cute and meant for probably 7+ but it also has a little of historical value and it has illustrations which I loved.