Tag: fantasy

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: Spellbound Book Box Club

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Subscription box: Book Box Club

Theme/Month: Spellbound, December 2021

Ownership: Subscribed on their 6 boxes option. Sadly they have announced they are now on their last box so you can’t buy it anymore.

Book Box Club is a young adult subscription box, the unique thing is the Clubhouse where you can chat to the author a month (or so) after the box was shipped and ask questions and just chat around. It also includes several goodies and usually, the choice of book is one that is unique and not in other book boxes so very few chances of duplicate books and a lot of new reads discovery power.

I am still way behind on unboxings, woops, but this December box was a lovely one to have and I am sad that I am behind because there won’t be any more boxes but also glad I’ll have a few to talk about even once they have stopped. But I digress, let us talk about the context of this one starting at the bottom left and going clockwise:

  • Spellbound theme card
  • Crane pencil holder. I love these for fountain pens or for brushes, very useful and the roll up is kinda fun to do.
  • A Rush of Wings by Laura Weymouth. I love her books, what can I say?
  • Clubhouse invite
  • A little Reading Journal notebook to keep track of that reading goal if you do one every year.
  • Stickers for the reading journal which I thought was a fun approach to encourage you to use it and adorable extra.
  • A hanging wooden sign to say “This is where the magic happens” and its witchy and spooky but cool.
  • I forgot to mention but it obviously came with a cute pencil to put in the pencil roll up case.

Overall, a lovely little box with useful items preparing you for the new year and reading goals but also a little bit of magic and decoration.

Book Review

Moon Reads: The Atlas Six

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The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake

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

Read before: No

Ownership: Review copy provided kindly by publisher. This does not influence my review, it just means I can read and review before it is published.

If you like Dark Academia, The Atlas Six is definitely a good one to add to your list! I am not someone that hangs out much in TikTok or booktok so this had flown under my radar, however, once the synopsis showed up, it sounded quite a good book.

We meet six chosen ones, each with a specific magical ability that raises them above and beyond the usual magical beings. Making them exceptional, but the Alexandrian Society, offers them an invitation to join, and only five will make it in. The point, in general, is to pit them against each other and yet ask them to work together and at the same time, they are there to learn and study and become better. Sounds like a tall order of the day for all the candidates!

And honestly, some of the plot twists were quite epic and thankfully not as utterly predictable. Most of the characters are not nice people, which is understandable because if you had that much power, you don’t win by being nice or rather it is harder to stay nice. For me, this was both a strength and a weakness of the book. Why? Because some of the characters I genuinely stopped caring or even really wanting to read about them from the first few pages. The only reason I read more was that they had a point of view of certain things others didn’t since obviously they were the ones that hung together or at least had similar things to show. However, it was also a strength as it gave me characters to consider interesting without fully rooting for them, and then there were a few characters that were mysterious or intriguing and some I liked almost instantly despite their flaws and prickly parts.

Overall the book was quite interesting, I very much want to read the next one and know what happens next and there was a lot of interesting pacing going on alongside some interesting takes on powers and magic that was refreshing to see. Recommended because it is a good magical dark academia vibe and we are here for it.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: Frozen Fantasies Book Box club

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Subscription box: Book Box Club

Theme/Month: Frozen Fantasies, November 2021

Ownership: Subscribed on their 12 boxes option. If you are interested in purchasing a Book Box Club subscription, you can do it on their website.

Book Box Club is a young adult subscription box, the unique thing is the Clubhouse where you can chat to the author a month (or so) after the box was shipped and ask questions and just chat around. It also includes several goodies and usually, the choice of book is one that is unique and not in other book boxes so very few chances of duplicate books and a lot of new reads discovery power.

Entering the cold winter months and we get a very on point box, starting from the bottom right and going clockwise:

  • Theme card, it matches the book and the theme well.
  • A pin set to match the book with the title and ballerina.
  • Midnight in Everwood, a magical tale set in winter by M. A. Kuzniar
  • Promotional bookmark.
  • Sleeping mask with a winter theme, this is very silky soft and even has a slight part to cover the gaps around your nose which I thought was clever.
  • Dark Materials tea towel, not a big fan of the series but I do like tea towels and the artwork.
  • A little room spray to smell of winter and it is gorgeous
  • And finally a witchy hot chocolate that is decadent and delicious and to be fair who doesn’t like a hot chocolate mug in winter?

Overall a cosy feeling box that makes you want to hibernate at home with a book, hot chocolate on the side and a fire roaring in the background keeping you warm while it snows outside and you just feel safe and can escape into a fantasy world!

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: Under the Whispering Door

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Under The Whispering Door by TJ Klune

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

Read Before: No

Ownership: Received a review copy from the publisher in exchange for a review but also preordered.

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.

Welcome to my blog tour post, but also my review, but also where I say I wish I could rate something over 5 foxes.

Under the Whispering Door is my absolute kind of book. It is about death and dying and about what comes next, but it is also about grief which is something that attracts me to books a lot [if you have been reading my reviews for a while, books with any of the themes around death and grief are huge for me]. And it is a book about a tea shop, yes, about tea, and cakes. And there is also a cosy and soft gentle aspect, but there is also fierceness and a touch of weird and I love it.

Wallace Price dies after having lived a corporate job life to the point that his job consumed and defined his life. So when he realizes he is dead and needs to move on, he isn’t quite ready for that. The book focuses on him coming to terms with the fact that maybe his life wasn’t what he thought it was or that maybe there was more to life than a job. But this means he doesn’t have much motivation to move on as he arrives at a cute tea shop where Hugo, the ferryman is there to help him be ready to move on.

There was a lot of focus on the fact that Wallace gets an ultimatum of seven days to move on, but this only really comes later in the book, and therefore it kept me guessing which took a bit off my enjoyment. However, overall the book is a little bit about Wallace learning to see himself in a different light but also to consider the privilege and also the lack of things he had in his life. But I also thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the main cast of characters and the reasons why they’re there.

If grief, death and wholesome but also intense self-review and considering what kind of human you may be, with a point to self-reflecting is not for you, then this book will miss the mark, but if you are open to this type of emotions and reflections, it is a wonderful read and it might bring tears to some readers. Not me but I have a very unusual perspective on grief and death so this was a nice read and some of the views were interesting to read, particularly because it leaves a lot open to fit various beliefs on what comes next in the afterlife, and that was nice to see that it didn’t try to pigeon hole into a single one.

One of the things I want to highlight it that obviously it is centered on death and therefore it touches on a variety of deaths and what brings them on, alongside mental health and other circumstances that may cause anxiety in some readers, or be sensitive subjects to them, so read with care, but if you can dip your toes into this book I recommend doing so.

Book Review

Moon Reads: The Unbroken

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The Unbroken by C. L. Clark

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

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.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Reads: Never Enough Illumicrate

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Subscription box: Illumicrate

Theme/Month: Never Enough, July 2021

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.

Book Review

Moon Reads: Minority Monsters!

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Minority Monsters! by Tab Kimpton

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

Read before: No

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 😉

Book Review

Moon Reads: A Marvellous Light

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A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske

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

Read before: No

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.

Book Review

Moon Reads: I am NOT Starfire

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I am NOT Starfire by Mariko Tamaki and Yoshi Yoshitani

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

Read Before: No

Ownership: Preordered because I like Starfire and the art fo Yoshi Yoshitani

Spoilers: Free of spoilers but will discuss plot.

I was really into Teen Titans when I was younger (the original Cartoon Network ones were so cute) and therefore I have a soft spot for them and when I saw Yoshi Yoshitani was the artist for this I had to get it.

The premise is that Starfire’s daughter is most certainly not like Starfire. Mandy is more of an outcast, less of an extrovert, prefers black and darkness and not the fame and bubbly spirit that her mum is. And also, she is keeping secrets form Starfire who is trying to save the world and keep her daughter well.

Things suddenly get in motion when Mandy gets paired up with other class crush, Claire for a project and therefore starts to feel like she’s making friend,s but also, Starfire’s past is catching up with her and may affect Mandy, and Mandy may have to make big decisions before she feels ready.

If anything this comic is a love letter to Starfire, to not knowing fully your identity, maybe of being first-generation and trying to figure out how to fit in the world but also with the expectations of your family. And it is about being mixed and having doubts, cracks in your identity. It was a very interesting exploration of various themes and at the same time you could see it as a very cute romance and fun superhero book. To me it was both and the art was amazing, alongside a very interesting plot.

Recommended for Teen Titans fans, and anyone who wants a wacky fun superhero and family, and identity graphic novel. I sped through this one and then shared with my friends so they could enjoy it too.