Tag: romance

Book Review

Moons Reads: The Knight and the Moth

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The Knight and The Moth by Rachel Gillig

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

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.

As you may have gleaned from the two previous reviews, I like Rachel Gillig’s books, and as soon as I knew The Knight and the Moth would be in existence I have wanted it, so very amazingly, Orbit sent me an early review copy to read (I have read it twice already, and love it), and I can’t wait for my final copy to arrive (preordered).

As you can gather, I really enjoyed this one and can only say the writing gets better with each book.

The Knight and the Moth follows Six (Sybil Delling), one of six Diviners that live in a cathedral in the center of the kingdom of Traum. And she divines through dreams and visions she receives from six figures called the Omens and upon which the kingdom is built.

But then, a king and his knights, and one particularly “rude” one came into the cathedral for a divination. This triggers a sudden disappearance of the other Diviners, one by one until Six is the last one left. So she takes matters into her hand and decides to seek the rude knight Rodrick and try to find her missing Diviners.

She gets way more than she ever bargained for.

The characters are interesting, starting with Sybil, who is strong and big and not the perfectly dainty damsel in distress, which was refreshing to read. And we have Rodrick, our knight who is an unusual and unexpected knight. Of course, we all know there will be romance happening between them. But the rest of the main characters, the ones we keep seeing and that are a regular part are fascinating, including an older female knight and a gargoyle.

The gargoyle is my favourite character. I absolutely loved him to pieces, but I couldn’t get enough of him.

And of course, we have the Omens, all six of them, which each have their own powers, their own little piece of the kingdom that they govern and their region-specific lore to give you a varied world, with some odd customs, some charming ones and some horrid ones too because nothing is perfect. And of course, the overall world and how it treats Diviners as Six encounters more fo the world she had never seen until her “family” started disappearing.

The ending was deadly. I won’t say it surprised me (except that in my head I kinda thought this may be standalone and well, with that end it for sure isn’t) because I could see a lot of it coming and could put the pieces together, but the way it surprises some of the characters was well done and it made sense for them to not see it. I did hope it was going to be different, and I now will have to wait to read whatever comes next because I need it. That is the worst part, the needing to read the next book because why leave me on that ending like that.

If you like romantasy, magical worldbuilding that at times makes you ponder spirituality and be a little philosophical, knights and prophecies and magical objects, alongside a lot of lore and thoughts of gods (kinda like Trudi Canavan’s Age of Five trilogy, which is my favourite of her series), then this is the book for you, but beware because it will take over your mind and heart and you won’t want to put the book down.

Book Review

Moon Reads: Two Twisted Crowns

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Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig

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

Nothing is perfect, and as such, the reviews in this blog are chaotic. My main aim is to share my thoughts, joy and opinions on a book, not make a publication perfect review. This blog endorses authenticity, showing up and joy over perfection.

As I mentioned in my previous review, I am doing a Rachel Gillig series, so this is the second one with the second book in the series “The Shepherd King”. This is the conclusion to the story and I will admit there was something satisfying about it being a duology.

In One Dark Window, we end with Elspeth making some really difficult choices, giving control to the Nightmare, which absolutely devastates Ravyn, but he is going to keep going and he’s going to keep trying to connect with her and get her back.

At this point, we have all but one card, the one for which there is only one copy made, and the most important one of the set (I did not say this in the past review but for each card it has a number and there are as many copies of it with their magic as the number it has). And of course, Nightmare is the only one who knows where it is, because of reasons that may be a blatant spoiler and therefore I will avoid mentioning.

Anyway, this book we follow Nightmare and Ravyn, and also we follow those left behind in the kingdom, trying to wrangle the kingdom from the king and desperately have something to save when the 12 cards are found.

The balance in viewpoints on this one was a lot harder to achieve and is probably the thing that made me frustrated. We get a bit of both sides, the adventure triyng to find the card and the kingdom and politics, but we barely really understand how Elspeth is doing given that she is now trapped inside Nightmare and her own body.

In exchange we get a lot of the back story for most characters. We get to understand Elspeth’s family better, the founding of the Kingdom and where the king comes from, and we also learn how the cards came to be and the cost they incurred in being made. I loved learning about it, but again, as we learn more fo the past and how it came to be, I wish we had some more depth into some of the characters we encounter frequently through it.

As the story is tying a lot of pieces together to drive to the end, it felt at times a bit rushed or trying to expose more than it should. And so it was a little bit less effective at the story telling and chokehold on me than the first. I still was captivated and wanted to get to the end, but I noticed those things more than I wished I had.

Regardless, I still recommend it, it was a lot of fun, the worldbuild was spot on and very magical, it was dark but also like a fairy tale, and the lore was superb.

Book Review

Moon Reads: One Dark Window

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One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

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

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.

I realised that I had reviewed this on storygraph and raved about it on Instagram stories and to some friends, but had not actually put this up on the blog. And since The Knight and the Moth is publishing this month, why not make it a Rachel Gillig series of posts.

I had received this book free from the publisher when it first came out and at the time I was a little burnt out on similar stories so set it aside and forgot. And as I was clearing and packing books, this lovely one came up and I started reading.

I could not put it down. I read until stupid o’clock in the morning just to finish it. And as soon as I finished it was already ordering the next one. I could not wait (the wait was agony, I needed to know!). Honestly, the book had wrapped its beautifully crafted story around me, and I could (did) not want to leave.

So, I’ve raved about loving it but what is it about?

We follow Elspeth, a survivor of a mysterious “plague” that left her with some odd powers, particularly a monster she calls Nightmare that lives in her head (rent free). However, Nightmare can sometimes be very helpful (if he wants to) by protecting her, and keeping her (their) secrets.

But the kingdom of Blunder is a dangerous place for a survivor that shouldn’t have survived. And when she has an encounter with a highway man, suddenly her life seems to move from predictable to chaotic. And so an adventure to save the kingdom from a cruel king, and discover why magic is forbidden or limited to the twelve Providence Cards. The stakes rise as the time goes and as they try to survive, including her own Nightmare.

The overall world-building is crafted in a n intriguing way, it makes you feel like a fairy tale world. You feel the magic of it, the way the citizens live, how the cards influence life in such deep ways, and you discover the world Elspeth had been avoiding due to technically being a survivor that shouldn’t have survived.

It touches on faith, family, on magic, obviously it has a ormance story and some interesting swoony characters to tie everything nicely. There is a lot of sass and funny scenes too, and a lot of stakes, but it all ties in nicely to a point where you just want to find out what comes in the next book.

I enjoyed it a lot, and can recommend it for a gripping romantasy.

Book Review

Moon Reads: The Invisible Man & His Soon-to-Be Wife

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The Invisible Man & His Soon-to-Be Wife by Iwatobineko

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

Nothing is perfect, and as such, the reviews in this blog are chaotic. My main aim is to share my thoughts, joy and opinions on a book, not make a publication perfect review. This blog endorses authenticity, showing up and joy over perfection.

As you may already know, I have a soft spot for manga, and when this popped up on my recommendations (I can’t remember where) I had to try it out. The art style looked adorable and the premise too.

The series basically asks, what would happen if you had an invisible man and a blind woman work together and fall in love?

Yakou Shizuka, who is quiet, bashful and blind works at a detective agency as a secretary and assistant. Her boss, Tounome, is a gentleman and the main investigator, with the added talent of being invisible. This is particularly helpful for investigations, even if it can generally be a bit of a difficulty for relationships and other things, but this is not an issue at all for Yakou as she can sense him and know when he’s near.

The fact that Yakou can sense him makes Tounome interested even more on her and so it starts that he decides to invite her out for a date and woo her slowly. So you get a cute slow burn romance story, and you also get a few mysteries and detective agency plots to keep the overall story going. On top of that the agency has two more characters, a human who is super good at tech and a wonderful tracking beastwoman, who also do detective work, and who are quite invested in the developing relationship between Yakou and Tounome.

The first volume is utterly cute and very sweet, it is quite slow but will make you root for them and giggle while the story develops. The “chapters” are short and quick, but they still are fun to read and there is more plot than just their relationship, including the world building happening as the investigations happen, and learning more about the coworkers.

I would recommend it as a soft romance with a little bit of disability, and an interesting take on how to coexist with variety of differences. Very sweet overall.

Book Review

Moon Reads: Doughnuts and Doom

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Doughnuts and Doom by Balazs Lorinczi

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

Nothing is perfect, and as such, the reviews in this blog are chaotic. My main aim is to share my thoughts, joy and opinions on a book, not make a publication perfect review. This blog endorses authenticity, showing up and joy over perfection.

I love a good little graphic novel and Doughnuts and Doom does not disappoint. For starters, what a title!

But our story follows Margot who has troubles being a witch in public or under stress, she just wants to get her license and be able to do her own life. But as she gets a craving for doughnuts to cheer herself up, she accidentally casts a curse on Elena who just wants to be a rock star and make it.

Their lives now accidentally entwined due to Margot’s chaos and her magic being a little out of control, we keep getting some interesting interactions and a cute story.

One of my favourite things is that there are a lot of raw feelings depicted here, the frustration, the anxiety, the fears, they are here and they’re not “positive” or made pretty, instead they cause chaos, they harm, and then our characters have to figure out a way to make things work, or to find a way to keep going.

A feel good lovely graphic novel that will have you craving doughnuts and maybe a good soundtrack in the background to listen too while reading.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: Afterlight Box

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Subscription Box: Afterlight

Theme/Month: November 2022

I bought this one on one of their sales after they had released it as I wanted the book. I am not the biggest fan of romance (I have my moments when I want a romance book but I tend to be picky and need to be in the mood for it).

If however, unlike me, you are a Romance avid reader, I can say Afterlight has come leaps and bounds with their boxes and they are a lovely choice.

As you can see from the picture, this isn’t a hugely big contents box, but rather a love letter to romance, and in this case it was all about Lizzie Huxley-Jones book, Make You Mine This Christmas, a cute love story that now has a “sequel” (don’t quote me on that, it is another book similar to this, I haven’t read it yet). I am bad at this reviewing romance part, woops.

Anyway, it came with a print, author letter and some nice socks which are super soft and cute! I like how little it comes with because then it iisn’t adding clutter or unwanted items, and it feels extra cosy, so if you are looking for present ideas for your Romance lover, why not try Afterlight?

Book Review

Moon Reads: Sixteen Souls

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Sixteen Souls by Rosie Talbot

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

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.

Since it is Halloween and I finally managed to schedule posts for the blog without breaking it (fingers crossed honestly, so much woe and drama to be able to schedule stuff) why not post a good spooky book?

Sixteen souls is many things, for starters, it gives Wednesday and the Addams kinda vibes in some ways, but there is also angst and cuteness, and many ghosts, and a plot for evil, and romance and intrigue, and queerness. Honestly, there is a lot of goodness, but in a way, despite the fact I read this ages ago, it feels like it is also cosy in many ways.

It is weird to say a book is cosy when it deals with soukls, evil plots and all that, but the writing makes it in a way like a cosy spooky hug, and also, it makes me want to go back to York and just wander around it and enjoy the many quirky places.

I like that there’s a plethora of ghosts with personalities and Charlie isn’t the happiest about dealing with all the ghosts but he’s also accepted his lot in life and made friends, something about when life gives you lemons and all that I think but in ghost form. But it is one thing to complain about ghosts messing up things or causing drama and another to have your ghosts and what you are familiar with suddenly go weird and wrong.

Charlie felt like one of those reluctant heroes who will anyway do the right thing because he’s soft, but then also the twists in this book are good and I really enjoyed the vibes perfectly and the story , plus now there’s a sequel/tie in which I have yet to read but looking forward to as I own it.

Read this is you enjoyed watching Wednesday and the Addams, or if you like cosy mysteries with a dollop of queer (not the full cosy vibes), or if you want a York ghosts vibe too.

Book Review

Moon Reads: Alone With You In The Ether

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Alone With You In The Ether by Olivie Blake

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

Read before: No

Ownership: Review copy provided upon request from the publisher

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.

If you have read This is How You Lose the Time War, then you will find this book a close and similar read, but also a completely different read all in itself.

It is in itself a story full of stories, where two people, Regan and Aldo, meet up at the Art Institute in Chicago. Partly because both are trying to find answers, and they suddenly appear to find it here.

Without spoiling much, this book deals with big topics including mental heath and other issues, as both characters have their own quirks and challenges. Regan tries to find answers in chaos and being rash and impulsive, whereas Aldo goes into routine and other ways to cope. So their whole meet up is a collision course and also, like a supernova, creates something very interesting.

If you have read Olivie’s books before, then you will be familiar with her style, but if you are not, be aware this is a character driven book, with a lot of heavy “in my own head” chapter or monologue like conversations. There is a lot of thought processing and figuring things out, which is in itself fascinating, but may not be for everyone.

As for the love story part of it, it may not be your conventional love story, which is where it reminds me a lot of This is How You Lose the Time War, even though this is not a book about time travelling or such a complex setup, in this case the complexity comes from the characters and the conversations and interactions.

Overall, an interesting read that makes you think and reflect on things and ponder a lot and very enjoyable.

Subscription Boxes

Moon Hauls: Cursed Illumicrate

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Subscription box: Illumicrate

Theme/Month: Cursed, December 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.

I am slowly catching up, just 6 months behind, right? But let us investigate the contents nevertheless and see what I liked and didn’t like or what my thoughts were, starting from the book at the bottom left:

  • A Marvellous Light with an interesting jacket made of like a plastic see-through version.
  • Starcrossed Lovers calendar, I admit in general I don’t really use wall calendars so this was wasted on me and I am less into quotes but still, I appreciate the free calendar in case it would be used.
  • Gorgeous pin flag, one of my favourite ones sent so far, with a beautiful design, even if I don’t use them. You can totally see a theme of me not hanging things.
  • One of my favourite items in the box, is a pencil tin, I love the tins that protect pencils, and this one is creepy awesome and with a great quote.
  • A Winternight trilogy inspired mug is one of my favourite ones now. But in general, I love the mugs and this is the other favourite item.
  • The collectible pin which is now not a thing but still, lovely to see it.

Lovely box overall, however rnow I am here thinking about how sometimes they don’t consider we don’t all have loads of space to hang things or won our house and therefore in a rented place you cant really fillt he walls of items, so I do wish here were alternatives to hanging things like a desk calendar which would limit the hanging items here to just the one? But this is me just thinking of more possibilities that fit more people.

Book Review

Moon Reads: Last Night at the Telegraph Club

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Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

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

Read before: No

Ownership: Bought for my personal collection

Lily Hu has questions, particularly about herself and why the idea of two women falling in love makes her heart race, or why she clips certain butch female looks, but she is Chinese-American in the 1950s where it is dangerous to seem a little too different and to risk her father’s deportation.

So Lily keeps her questions quiet until she starts hanging out with Kathleen Miller, who is not afraid to go to the Telegraph Club with Lily and hang out there to watch a show. As her world and friendships shift, and priorities change, Lily suddenly is asking more and more questions and saying no to things she might have just shrugged away, and yes to things she would have just wished she did say yes to before.

Last Night at the Telegraph Club, is a trip through the US at the time of red-scare paranoia, and particularly what it means to be defining your sexuality alongside your identity and how you fit in this world and country. The story is written with that everyday type of writing that makes you go through the day of Lily and through things as they happen and it all feels luscious and mundane at the same time.

There are so many details about what being in a country that sees you as different in not only one way feels, and what finding the deep secrets you didn’t even dare admit you kept suddenly are more accept or have somewhere to be not a secret anymore and how liberating that can be but also the risks of letting the truth show.

Wonderful read, and highly recommended overall. It is a very different feel to Malinda Lo’s fantasy books but it still ahs the beauty of being an easy read and yet telling a big story, like an epic poem that everyone knows the lines to and can recite as if it was what everyone does.