Happy Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead)! I had to post this today since it fits perfectly with the day and the book. Gustavo is a shy little ghost who loves playing the violin. He is very good at doing all the ghostly things that ghosts do: walking through walls, haunting objects, making objects fly and glowing in the dark.
But he is shy and he finds it very hard to make friends, or queueing to buy “eye” scream (love the pun, honestly), so as the Day of the Dead comes near, he decides to be brave and do something to deal with this.
The artwork is adorable, the little Mexican details all over the place and the illustrations made my heart warm and fond, and it was such a lovely sweet story about being spooky, making friends, and being a little courage. And even though it is not focused on Day of the Dead as the main theme, the spooky topic, the shyness, everything made this little adorable book a winner in my heart, and I loved it.
Absolutely recommend as a lovely spooky season gift, or read out loud book to share with children, it may be good for talking about not just Halloween but other countries and their specific traditions.
The Okay Witch and the Hungry Shadow by Emma Steinkellner
Rating:
Read before: No
Ownership: Preordered
A while ago I reviewed The Okay Witch, which was a refreshing new graphic novel with a lovely story about family and coming into your magic powers. And then, when I saw there was a second one, I immediately preordered it.
In this sequel, Moth Hush already has magic powers, but as much as it has changed her life, in the same way it hasn’t changed her life much. She is still getting bullied at school, still a misfit and no one seems to even know she saved the day in summer because she saved it so well no one knew about it.
What is even worse is that she starts her first day to school matching with the dorkiest most ridiculous teacher, who then catches her mum’s attention and they start dating, making it even worse for poor Moth. She is so tired of magic being so awesome and yet being quite useless and not making her life better, why cant she have a better life?
So when a mysterious charm promises to help her become a new version of herself, more confident, cool and popular, Moth is attracted to it like a moth to the flame [yes, I couldn’t resist that, sorry for the bad pun use]. But is magic really the answer to her problems or is it maybe a little more complicated than that, and what could go wrong by this suddenly very well timed and placed charm making it to her life just then?
Avoiding spoilers I have to say that the book was lovely, it comes with a refresher of what happened previously and then gives you the story. The biggest thing for me was that there was a lot of tell in the first half of the book, adding lore and stories but most of it is spoken by the characters and therefore it felt a bit slow to read through it when it was just characters walking through a museum kind of thing.
However, it does pick up quite well and recover from this by the second half of the story and then it gets very interesting, and I liked the whole development of the charm and everything else, worth a read, and I recommend that if you haven’t read the first one yet, you should buy both and enjoy some witchy magical stories!
Ownership: An Illumicrate copy, a proof copy and a normal copy because who doesn’t have enough books?
Spoilers: None
Disclaimer: Receiving a review copy from the publisher does not affect my opinion of the book. If you think I review it highly it is due to me knowing my taste well and therefore not requesting books I won’t enjoy. And I am not obligated to review the book if I do not like it, so you may not see bad reviews due to me preferring not to hype down a particular book. I only do reviews of books I disagreed with if I think it is worth bringing a topic or warning to light.
Don’t you love it when you have a wonderful model that is very excited to see you prepare the books for pictures? Puppy was very excited and wanted to be part of this, but I don’t think he would be up to the actual story because he is too softhearted.
The Unbroken is many things in one single book, and that is a lot to balance and work in the book, which is probably why it didn’t really wow me or win me over as much as I had hoped. It does feel at times like it is all over the place trying to get all the many many threads it is balancing and weaving into this tale, but other times you can see the tapestry it is making and it is breathtaking.
Because the Unbroken is about rebellion, and the dynamics of the colonisers and the colonised. It is about those tensions and the things that are imposed or changed or put on others because one side lost and the other didn’t, and how it may change perspectives the further down the generations or circumstances go from the time of the conquest.
But it is also about loyalty, about Touraine and Luca, about being a soldier, about the meaning of family and if it is the one you are born into or the one that is made through time and that survives the trials of life.
And finally, it is also a story about love and romance and emotions and identity. And therefore it explores the depths of oneself.
It does brilliant things in all of those areas, posing interesting questions on all the perspectives that you can have, but because it trying to achieve a lot, sometimes it fell a little short or was slow where it should’ve been fast and fast where it would’ve benefitted from a closer slower lense or scope.
Still, a worthy member of the sapphic trifecta and quite an interesting read, if anything it is quite different than others.
Oh, and the final thing to highlight, it is a bit heavy on the military parts as that is a huge part of Touraine’s identity. It surprised me how much it was focused on it since I expected a bit more of other parts of the story and kept getting a lot of this soldier military side. Interesting but another thread to balance in this tale.
One definite winner where the character dynamics and the way they interact with each other but also with their environment. They aren’t just placed there for atmosphere but rather they are living and breathing that place and you do so with them.
Ownership: Review copy provided by the publisher and preordered too.
Spoilers: No, but will talk about the plot vaguely.
Disclaimer: Receiving a review copy from the publisher does not affect my opinion of the book. If you think I review it highly it is due to me knowing my taste well and therefore not requesting books I won’t enjoy. And I am not obligated to review the book if I do not like it, so you may not see bad reviews due to me preferring not to hype down a particular book. I only do reviews of books I disagreed with if I think it is worth bringing a topic or warning to light.
Far From the Light of Heaven is a heavy hitter in the space opera, thriller and murder mystery categories. And it has stuck to me, even months after having read it initially. I want everyone to read it because it is brilliant and like a good dish, it has layers upon layers of flavour that you slowly discover as you turn the pages and keep reading.
One of my favourite things in the book was the way Tade made the existence in space so real. It isn’t a perfect idea like Star Wars and Star Trek where somehow the only times there are technical issues it is for the plot. In this case, you can see the training, the pressure, the many things that may go wrong, and the inconvenience of doing long journeys (the characters don’t get a magic pass at how to go into deep sleep and wake up the same age as they went to sleep as if nothing had happened, for example). The best way to summarise is to say that he asked the question of “this is where we are now with space travel, how would it be to deal with a bunch of stuff going wrong, with a murder mystery, with AI and just have to deal with it?” and honestly, the answer to it is fascinating.
Ragtime as the AI and spaceship is an interesting and nuanced exploration of what AI can be and is at the same time, like a present and future all in one. And that is all I will say about the AI in the book even though I honestly could write an essay on it because it was also another favourite part (yes, apparently this is a review full of favourite parts, ok? the five foxes should have given you a hint).
Finally, I will say that the cast is relatively small even though there is a wider cast of secondary characters that mostly help place the main cast, but even they seem to have a life of their own even if we are not privy to it through the main story. The book also touches on what identity may be and what it is to be alien, or a foreigner, and the way you may be perceived by different groups of people. And finally, it touches on religious beliefs, not in a religious way but more as an exploration of what it is to believe or not and what you believe in.
This is probably Tade’s best work to date and my engineering heart is satisfied.
If you haven’t preordered or ordered it yet, it is coming out on the 29th of October so make sure you grab a copy and maybe read it for a wonderfully spooky and atmospheric horror/thriller feel.
Ownership: Subscribed on their 6 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing an Illumicrate subscription, you can do it on their website.
Illumicrate is a book subscription box, it usually features fantasy and sci-fi but not exclusively young adult, sometimes it features adult too. It usually contains a new release, a pin and several bookish goodies.
The box to complete the sapphic trifecta with a very summery look and some interesting item choices, starting from the book and going clockwise:
She Who Became The Sun, trying to rival the sun with sprayed edges and looks of the book.
A Descendant of the Crane fan, very good of a hot summer day to keep cool.
Poppy War inspired mug, which is very loved by me.
Another of those odd print in a glass kinda portrait holder. I like the portrait holder, not so much the print and I do not care for the fandom.
A compact mirror inspired by Dorian Gray
Lila Bard bust which I mean, a bust is cool but I don’t need it, see no use for it except gather dust and honestly not crazy about it, however I do appreciate the artwork.
The Upper World taster.
Monthly in which is stunning
And finally the theme leaflet!
As much as the previous box was really up my street, this one was a huge miss, between fandoms and the items, it just failed to hit the spot with almost everything except the mug and fan, which seems to be something that happens when there is a mug included, I am less keen on the rest of the items. Hopefully the box for August is more up my street.
Ownership: Bought for myself, after it was recommended by a friend (thanks Kayden)
Minority Monsters is like an adventure dive into a new world, where you get a two page comic of one of the “monsters” and then two pages on the particular minority this is focusing on.
The first thing you find is a map to Alphabet Soup Land where all the monsters exist and then a nice foreword followed by the very first two-page comic where you meet the not-so-invisible Bisexual Unicorn in all its glory and it is wonderful! From there you get to meet many more LGBTQ+ creatures, each with a small comic and then a helpful “encyclopaedia” mixed with “field notes” on that particular identity and what it means.
Honestly, the comics are awesome, the artwork is delightful, the details of each creature and their story, alongside the descriptions and more in-depth explanations are just the icing on the perfect cake of a good introductory book to queer identities.
I cannot recommend this enough to everyone as a wonderful book to have in your library!
*Our dog would not move and instead required copious belly rubs so he was added to this picture, he is the mythical belly rubs monster 😉
Tales from the Ocean by Chae Strathie and Erin Brown
Rating:
Read before: No
Ownership: Provided by the publisher after I requested it for review
Disclaimer: Receiving a review copy from the publisher does not affect my opinion of the book. If you think I review it highly it is due to me knowing my taste well and therefore not requesting books I won’t enjoy. And I am not obligated to review the book if I do not like it, so you may not see bad reviews due to me preferring not to hype down a particular book. I only do reviews of books I disagreed with if I think it is worth bringing a topic or warning to light.
Tales from the Ocean is a lovely collection of stories that may seem familiar alongside some new ones that each focus on at least one type of marine life. We have little seahorses crying Stingray when there are none and then not being believed when there is truly one, which is a familiar tale for many with a little boy that cries wolf. And yet the book not only tells a lovely tale but also shows the delightful camouflage abilities of the seahorse alongside their natural enemy, and this is just one of the 20 tales included in the book.
Each of the pages is beautifully illustrated and the whole book is a full-colour experience into many tales and marine life. And the familiar tales woven with true facts about the marine life or just new tales made to fit the particular place that creature plays in the ecosystem and making it a fun story. It was delightful to read. So much I basically didn’t put this book down until I finished all of them and then was left wanting even more stories to feature more creatures.
As such, I recommend this for anyone with a child interested in the ocean and fish and anything that has to do with water, or if you want to use it as educational but fun material, or just nighttime short stories to be read together or out loud to the child. It is a gorgeous book and worth having at hand.
Ownership: Subscribed on their 3 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing a Sakura Co subscription, you can do it on their website.
SakuraCo is a new box that focuses on Japanese tea, sweets and snacks from local makers for you to enjoy. And the idea is that you take a unique snack journey around Japan with the contents of the box. I’ve been subscribed since the first box and so far enjoyed the journey.
This box was all about purple potato, and interesting more savoury flavours. So let’s see what was inside, starting from the top left and going clockwise:
Kombu Arare Crackers, crispy and with sea flavours.
Beni Imo Pie, which has a crispy puff pastry and a potato sweet paste inside, it is odd but tasty.
Sanpincha Tea
Beni Imo Tart, this looks like they had just made you a little pastry and poured the fresh pastry on it. Tastier than the pie.
Owan Bowl with a sakura pattern, currently have mine willed with sweets.
Brown Sugar Shisa Candy, perfection. Hard shell, soft caramel sugar goodness inside.
Okinawa Tofu Chips, nice chips and crispy.
Lightly Salted Red Bean, a bit dry but delicious.
Yuzu Monaka, citrusy and delicious.
Kogane Shikuwasa Manju, also a bit dry but not too sweet or sour or bitter.
Shikuwasa Jelly, refreshing.
Apple and Mango Melange Jelly, delicious, I want more of this please!
Brown Sugar Manju, I am probably not the fondest of manju but the brown sugar part was delicious.
Issa Cracker, they are more refreshing and light than I expected. Seaweed flavoured.
Snow Salt Chinsuko, very soft and flaky, almost melt in your mouth.
Sata Andagi Beni Imo Doughnuts, very nice, wished for more because it is like little doughnut holes filled with a sweet potato paste.
It also came with a postcard and the leaflet with a description of everything alongside more details about why they included them, etc.
Probably not my favourite one as it was a bit repetitive and a lot of manju therefore a bit too dry and not as tasty but still quite good.
Ownership: Proof copy provided by publisher upon request
Disclaimer: Receiving a review copy from the publisher does not affect my opinion of the book. If you think I review it highly it is due to me knowing my taste well and therefore not requesting books I won’t enjoy. And I am not obligated to review the book if I do not like it, so you may not see bad reviews due to me preferring not to hype down a particular book. I only do reviews of books I disagreed with if I think it is worth bringing a topic or warning to light.
A Marvellous Light has an intense start about the circumstances that place our pair of main characters into the plot. Robin has been given a new job and has to make the most of it, even if it appears to be the wrong job and he is way out of his depth. He seems to have a lot of family drama and the book in this sense feels like a very Downton Abbey kinda thing but make it gay.
Then we have Edwin Courcey who is the liaison for the magical world and therefore has to work with Robin. Edwin is prickly and a bit not amused by how little Robin knows but slowly warms up to him. He gives the impression that he has better things to do than his actual role and therefore is just doing it out of politeness.
The plot centres mostly on the romance developing between Edwin and robin, which is probably where I went wrong with this book. I was looking forward to a historical kinda fantasy with romance, whereas the best way to describe A Marvellous Light is that it is a romance with some historical fantasy happening around it.
The magic system and the world are interesting and being dropped in as Robin does was also quite a good way to learn. We also have Miss Morrisey and her sister who are probably the best characters in the book and are the most developed secondary characters of this book outside of the main characters, which again is a shame because, given the development of the characters, it could’ve been something I liked more.
Overall, if you want a sweeping romance with plot and magic happening around it, with a lot of angst and romance and things to force the characters to make quick decisions and maybe have to put their lives on the line, that may read a little like good Downtown Abbey fan fiction with magic and gay, this is the absolute book for you. If instead, you’d like a magical fantasy set in a historical world with some romance in it that is gay, then this may not be exactly for you. You end up getting less of the plot as the book goes and more romance, which I felt sad about because the magic sounded very interesting and I would’ve liked more of that.
Diary of an Accidental Witch by Perdita and Honor Cargill. Illustrated by Katie Saunders.
Rating:
Read Before: No
Ownership: Copy gifted by the publisher once it was requested from the newsletter.
Disclaimer: Receiving a review copy from the publisher does not affect my opinion of the book. If you think I review it highly it is due to me knowing my taste well and therefore not requesting books I won’t enjoy. And I am not obligated to review the book if I do not like it, so you may not see bad reviews due to me preferring not to hype down a particular book. I only do reviews of books I disagreed with if I think it is worth bringing a topic or warning to light.
We’re into October and I felt like Diary of an Accidental Witch is one of those books that is great for this season.
Bea Black has just moved into Little Spellshire with her very distracted father who is a weather scientist, and there has been a mixup on which school she should be going to! Instead of going to the Academy school, she ends up enrolled at The Spellshire School for Extraordinary Arts, and well, you can definitely say they are extraordinary!
And of course, the whole book is written as Bea’s journal where she records the start of her journaling and her move to this place alongside her new school adventures.
From funny quirky remarks about being alone and having no friends or maybe just the one, to how to navigate odd homework assignments, tripping over brooms, being assigned frog duty and then learning you can actually do spells, or ride a broom [without tripping anymore]. The illustrations on the book make this amazing, and even better than it already is, with the fun adventures making it through the pages, and all that magic showing up in the words, and the adventures.
If you like young witches having adventures, or young ordinary not a magical child at all that may or not actually have magical powers in a cute and fun way, this is the book for you.
