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Read 8/13-8/16

Four Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Saga Press for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I'm so happy vampires have been getting a resurgence the past few years. I've loved reading vampire novels since I was a young preteen who definitely shouldn't have been in the paranormal romance section of the bookstore but had a mother who was happy to let me read whatever interested me. This book was everything vampire books should be. It's dark and gothic, with amazing moments of political intrigue, and queer as hell. I really enjoyed how the story unfolded, while there are certainly moments that are not the most shocking it's because Chupeco laid the clues out for us to discover and work out along the way. Remy was a great main character. I really enjoyed being in his head as he struggled with his loyalties and personal desires. I also really loved Xiaodan and Zidan. They are the epitome of grumpy/sunshine and their interactions were always so cute but their interactions with Remy were just pure gold. I think a lot of people will struggle with the world building with this and I've read a few reviews that mention it. The setting feels Victorian-esque. with horses and buggy's and a lack of electricity but there's also a strong medical science presence with recent developments of analyzing DNA from blood samples and genetic modification. It's not something that particularly bothered me but I can see how it would frustrate others. I think based on how vampires have plagued the human population it makes sense why medical science would receive more attention than other disciplines. It's even seen very early on in the book when Remy describes the medicine he and other Reapers must take in order to remain strong enough to fight vampires. Another aspect of the world I'm endlessly fascinated by is all the different vampire courts and I hope we get to see more of them and how they differ from each other in the next book. I can't wait to hold this chunky book in my hands, luckily the release date isn't too far away!

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Read 6/20-6/21

Four Stars

No one writes characters like Casey McQuiston. They're just the perfect level of quirky and fun. I loved this book because I loved the characters. August, who spent her childhood as a reluctant P.I. has been bouncing from school to school and major to major trying to figure out what she wants to do with her life. Jane, is a charming outgoing punk literally straight out of the 70s, who's found herself stuck on a subway line. There's also August's three eclectic roommates. Niko, a good physic and terrible bartender. Myla, Niko's girlfriend who makes sculptures out of things like mouse traps and tiny frog bones. Wes, lost his inheritance when he quit school to be gay and create art, now works as a tattoo artist at night and sleeps most of the day away with his dog Noodles. I also have to mention Isaiah/Annie Depresant who lives across the hall, an accountant by day and a fabulous Drag Queen by night. That's not even getting into the amazing cast of characters who work at Pancake Billy's House of Pancakes where August finds herself employed.

I loved the mystery element that wormed its way throughout the book. There's the mystery of the missing Uncle that's followed August around since before her birth and then the mystery of who Jane is and how to get her off the subway. Parts of the mysteries will not be surprising but uncovering the answers was still deeply satisfying. One of my favorite elements of the book was the bit of mixed media with missed connection posts and articles that all subtly and not so subtly feature Jane throughout the years. I will say the pacing was a bit slower than what I was hoping for. I wanted a faster read when I picked this up and there are moments where the story feels a little sluggish. That said McQuiston has now been cemented as a favorite author and I can't wait to read what they put out next.

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Read 6/6-6/7

Four Stars

This was such a wild ride! I was so sucked into the mystery of Aces and some of these scenes gave me serious chills. Reading this late at night was uhhh maybe not the best choice. I enjoyed nearly every second of this book and the things I didn't really like are small and more me nitpicking aspects of the story. Chiamaka and Devon were excellent narrators. I love the differing perspective each brought to the story. Chiamaka comes from a wealthy family but never fit in at school until she makes a plan to claw her way to the top in high school. Devon is a scholarship student who loves music and can't wait for the day when he can help his mother out of poverty. I loved the way each secret about the two was slowly revealed and got worse and worse and the book went on. I think if you know the premise of Get Out, on of this books comps, it is fairly easy to guess at what's going on but the journey to that discovery was still amazing.

I'm still a little confused by aspects of Terrell's character. There are some threads that were laid out and then never discussed again. I understand the purpose behind some of them and without getting too spoilery the idea is to cast suspicion on to every other character in this book including our narrators. However, I think there were some things that warranted further explanation and examination. I'm also a little on the fence on how I feel about Chiamaka's easy acknowledgement of her sexuality. On the one hand, yeah for some people there's not really any big questioning moments or worry about being anything but straight. On the other hand, in the beginning of the book Chiamaka is shocked that Devon is gay because he's Black. If she feels that way about Devon why would she not feel any kind of dilemma about her own sexuality? The epilogue was another aspect I was iffy on but because it's literally the end of the book, I can't really say much about it. All in all this was a great book, I highly enjoyed it and I look forward to reading more from Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé.

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Read 5/25-5/29

Five Stars

I've been sitting on this trying to come up with the words to describe how much I loved this book and they're just not coming to me. So: THIS BOOK WAS SO GOOD! PLEASE PREORDER IT IMMEDIATELY YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT! That's it, that's all I've really got. If you like ATLA you'll like Jade Fire Gold. There are some small cute similarities like the mentor of our exiled prince loving tea and our prince being less than enthused. There's also elemental magic but unlike in ATLA it's possible to wield more than one element, though it is rarer for someone to be able to do so.

Literally every character in this is perfect. From our protagonists, Ahn and Altan, to their supporting cast of Tang Wei, Linxi, Tai Shun, and Leiye. I just love them all so much! Ahn was perfect as a kind of dark chosen one. She has the potential to save everyone or destroy the kingdom. I enjoyed her slow discovery of her mysterious past and her struggles to understand her forbidden magic. Atlan is such a tragic hero but luckily Tang Wei keeps him from getting too caught up in his past drama. Tang Wei brought a lot of needed levity to the story and her relationship with Linxi was so sweet. Tai Shun is a precious baby who must be protected at all costs. I always love a snarky shady character and Leiye fits the bill perfectly. Honestly though we need to talk about that epilogue because my brain hasn't stopped screaming since I read it! June please tell me there's a book two! I need to know what's going to happen next!

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Read 1/4-1/5

Five Stars

Thank you to Penguin and Netgalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This has been on my radar for quite a while now and I'm so excited that I was able to read an early copy! I'm happy to report this is my first 5-star read of the year! There was so much good in this book and it was utterly addicting, I could not stop turning the pages (well...tapping the right side of my screen, but you get the point). Only the threat of work in the morning kept me from staying up all night to finish, though I did stay up way later than I meant to. The nonlinear timeline of this book kept me hooked as I was desperate to see what would happen in the present during the bank robbery and very interested in learning about each girl Nora had become in her mother's cons and how those experiences shaped her.

I really enjoyed the characters. Nora is clever and slick; a few years out of the con game hasn't made her rusty in the slightest. When she needs to recall her mother's teachings they come right back to her. I adored her relationship with Wes but that may be because Wes is the best and I just want to keep him close and protect him from everything. Wes is just so genuinely good. This is demonstrated multiple times in the first few chapters when he keeps trying to put himself between the robbers and the other victims trapped in the bank. I think the synopsis implies that this book is a sort of love triangle situation and that's not the case. Wes and Nora were close friends who dated in the past but they remain best friends, even if the relationship had to heal around Wes's broken trust when he learns Nora's secrets. Wes is hurt at the start of this book because Nora has been keeping another secret from him, her relationship with Iris. Even though he would have been happy for both of them. Iris was absolutely fantastic, a whip-smart girl with a penchant for fifties fashion (right down to the proper undergarments) and just a bit of a fire obsession. She also suffered from endometriosis and I really liked seeing that and the discussion around how debilitating it can be in this book.

I was fascinated by Nora's relationship with her mother. The evolution of the relationship was so interesting to read. The manipulation and the gaslighting all wrapped up and twisted with Nora's hero-worship of her mother made for such an interesting read. This book does an excellent job of balancing a classic thriller story of a girl trying to outwit bank robbers to ensure she and her friends escape while also offering a deep examination of trauma and what it takes to survive. That said there are content warnings to look out for including psychological and emotional abuse, child abuse, domestic abuse, child sexual abuse, and violence. Tess Sharpe goes more in detail about the content warning on her Tumblr and there is a link to the specific post on Goodreads from her.

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Read 3/7-3/11

Five Stars

I've waited a little bit after finishing The Ones We're Meant to Find hoping some coherent thoughts would find their way into my brain and it's just not happening. This book has left me speechless. It's no secret that I loved Joan' first novel, Descendant of the Crane and this book is just as good (maybe better but don't tell Hesina!) The genre is a bit different, more of dystopian sci-fi setting but there's still the classic Joan plot twists that left me screaming and some super sad scenes that brought out all of my tears.

This is primarily a book about sisters, Celia and Kasey. Cee has been stuck on an abandoned island with only an outdated robot for company. She's lost most of her memory but knows that she has a sister out in the world and is trying her best to get back to her. Kasey back home in eco-city, a floating metropolis designed to protect people from the decaying planet, has no idea what happened to her sister after a camera records her taking a boat out to sea more than three months prior. Kasey rules her life by logic and science and logic says that Celia should have died of dehydration or drowning after being missing for so long but she can't stop the hope that Celia will be found. Celia is the only one who could break through Kasey's stoicism. I loved the sisters so much, their relationship and characterization was so much more complex than the initial assumption of social butterfly and stoic loner.

Someone else said this book reminded them of a Studio Ghibli film and I could not agree more. A lot of Ghibli films focus on themes of environmentalism. In The Ones We're Meant to Find humanity has destroyed the planet, mega quakes are common occurrences, the water has become incredibly polluted, even the air is filled with toxic gas. The lucky few managed to make it to an eco-city, floating above most of the horrors that now plague the Earth. Space is tight in the eco-cities and there's simply not enough room for everyone on Earth, the governing bodies of the eco-cities have become desperate for ideas on how to save humanity. I was fascinated by all the examples of how what's currently being done to the planet can turn into these mega-disasters if nothing is done to course correct. Ghibli films also have beautiful quiet moments that let the larger story breathe. I found those same moments in this book, more so in the beginning before the twists get really crazy and start propelling the story but they were still there in a couple of scenes toward the end. This was a truly beautiful book and I cannot wait to hold the finished copy in my hands.

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Read 1/22-1/23

Five Stars

I don't know that I have the ability to actually write a review for this book. It was so good that thinking about it just makes my brain do this high pitched "squee" noise. Graceling has always been one of my favorite YA novels but I decided since I didn't remember Fire or Bitterblue as well to do a reread of them before I started Winterkeep. I'm really glad I spent the last week back in the Graceling Realm. I'm not sure if some scenes would have touched me quite the same way without the refresher.

Winterkeep is a bit unique from the previous three books in that there are five unique points of view. Two are characters from the previous books, Bitterblue and Giddon, and three are all new characters. I loved that we got to spend more with Giddon and Bitterblue. I loved their relationship and the trust they built between each other in Bitterblue's novel. I will admit there was an aspect of their relationship in that book that I was a little sad not to see realized and boy does it finally get realized here! Giddon is such a precious pining fool and I love him so much. I also loved his relationship with Hava. It's been five years since the end of Bitterblue and Hava has really come out of her shell and developed such a fun slightly mean bit of banter with Giddon. One of the other points of view is Lovisa Cavenda, a student in Winterkeep and daughter of the President of Winterkeep. She tries her best to be a dutiful daughter and follow in the steps of her political parents. Indeed she is a bit of a schemer and is seen sneaking around for much of the book. I wasn't sure of Lovisa at first but she really grew on me and by the end of the book I was in love with her. Another point of view is that of Adventure Fox, one of the blue telepathic foxes that populates Winterkeep. He is bonded to Lovisa's mother and is struggling with some of the rules of foxkind. I was not expecting to love his POV chapters so much when I first heard a fox was going to be one of the POVs. He was such an interesting character and I'm so happy with how his story concluded in this book. The final point of view is that of a mysterious many-eyed thirteen tentacled sea monster known as the Keeper. I loved the Keeper, every thought from it was just such a mood. All the Keeper wants is to collect treasures at the bottom of the ocean, be left alone, and occasionally sing badly. Truly an icon.

The world of Winterkeep was fascinating. It's the first country we're seeing in the Graceling Realm that's a democratic republic and politics actually play a large role in the book. The two political parties The Scholars and The Industrialists are in the middle of a large debate on whether or not to legalize Zilfium a useful fuel that could push the country into a modern age but it would be at the cost of the environment. I liked the emphasis on the importance of education in Winterkeep. I also loved the telepathic foxes and another telepathic creature known as silbercows that I imagined as a sort of manatee. My love for this series was really reignited and I hope we get more Graceling Realm novels. I'm not even sure who I'd want to follow next there are so many options for new storylines after this book.

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Read 3/29-3/30

Five Stars

This book was so brilliantly plotted and incredibly well done. Anna-Marie McLemore did that, I'm in such awe of them. Here's the thing, I was initially hesitant to read this book because I had read one of McLemore's books previously and a couple of their short stories and while I adore their writing style there's been something that stops me from loving (and sometimes even liking) what I've read. When you add in the sensitive nature of the bulk of this book, I didn't want to end up with a similar experience. I honestly could not resist the cover of this book and so I ended up picking it up. There's a dedication in the beginning of this book and an author's note at the end that explains how incredibly personal this story is for McLemore. It's something I could feel while reading the care with how they wrote the two main characters.

Ciela is a girl with magic running through her passed down from her great-grandmother, she's able to look at a person and know what pastry from her family's pastelería will help them the most. However, after the night she and a boy are assaulted at the same party she loses that magic and fears she's lost most of her identity with it. When the boy shows up at her school after the summer she realizes helping him may be the key to getting her magic back. They strike up a tentative friendship in which Ceila learns that Lock has no memory of what really happened that night and has no desire for the details Ceila carries with her. I loved Lock from the moment he pulled out crochet in the middle of class to discovering his secret night time activities to seeing him interact with his 4-year-old sister. He was a great character and he and Celia together were magic.

The magical realism in this book was especially well done. After the party Celia starts to notice pieces of the world around her turning into glass. After a piece shatters in her eye she's tried her best to secretly gather and hide the pieces in her room where they can't hurt anyone else. There's no big stretch required to see the symbolism between this a girl hiding that she was assaulted. I just found that is was so beautifully well done. There are a few other secrets scattered throughout the book and uncovering them was less about big plot twists and more like a flower slowly unfurling and showing its full bloom.