Danielle
Despite being a Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki fan for years, I hadn’t heard about this until now. It is a shame it isn’t more well known, for despite being from before Ghibli and many of Miyazaki’s more beloved movies and graphic novel, the same brilliance is present here. In fact it has very familiar elements we see in Nausicaa and Princess Mononoke. It is more a story or fable with illustrations rather than a typical manga, but it suits the story. The illustrations are all in colour and gorgeous, with Miyazaki’s signature style. The story, based off a Tibetan folk tale, is strange, yet very poignant. It’s short, but delivers a pretty powerful punch. Highly recommended if you like Miyazaki’s work, especially along the lines of Nausicaa or Princess Mononoke.
A book blogger I follow has been singing the praises of this series and I finally picked it up and I love it! It’s magical and whimsical, but has a bit of an edge to it that elevates it beyond just a cozy fantasy. The artwork is gorgeous! The world is very imaginative, lending the artwork a great pallet to work with. Coco the main character is a delight, and though we haven’t had much time to get to know the other characters, they still leave an impression. There is obvious allusions to deeper things happening that we’re sure to dig into in future volumes, which lends it a sense of mystery. One of the better manga I’ve read in awhile!
This was a cute, sweet, and imaginative steampunk ish sci-fantasy. It definitely had a Ghibli feel to it and was obviously inspired by the likes of Castle in the Sky. The artwork is lovely, the characters likeable, even if not deep. I liked the emphasis on stories and books being a comfort and inspiration. Looking forward to reading more in the series!
I’m always wary when manga is compared to Ghibli, but this one sounded promising and looked gorgeous, so I gave it a try. I certainly think it has the vibe of Princess Mononoke or Nausicaa a little bit, although it remains to be seen if the story fleshes out to be as good as those. The artwork is gorgeous and the premise is really interesting. It has a dark edge to it I wasn’t expecting, but that elevates the story quite a bit. For a first volume it’s a bit short, so there isn’t a lot of character stuff, but I certainly like the main character Pili and the mysterious creature Oak is awesome. I’m hoping future volumes will expand the world and we’ll see Pili continue to grow and discover more of her powers and potential. A very good start to a new series!
I really enjoyed the creative world-building, the unique take on traditional high fantasy races, the slight mix of magic and technology, and the writing style, which was very lush and descriptive. Personally I wasn’t a fan of the continuous descriptors of all the women characters chest and physical attributes - I’d rather their descriptions focus more on other aspects. I also found there was a lot of tell, not show. Rather than being told about the world and races and people, I prefer when books have you experience it through a character. These descriptions also often interrupted the action, which felt jarring. There were a lot of times that the perspective changed from one character to the next with no break or chapter change and I found that hard to follow at times, having to stop to figure out who I was following from one paragraph to the next. While I think those detractors prevented me from loving the book, I still overall enjoyed it and am really intrigued by the world and characters. It is very epic in scope and imaginative. Certainly a very good first book.
A wild and bizarre sci-fi/fantasy adventure, but I really enjoyed it! So unique, even though there are numerous nods to everything from King Arthur to Narnia to Alice in Wonderland to Harry Potter to Studio Ghibli and the most tropey fantasy (all favs of mine). Somehow it still is its own story. Though I didn’t really feel particularly connected to any of the characters, the journey was worth the read. Probably not everyone’s cup of tea, but I loved the absurdness of it all.
I wanted a light book as a palate cleanser between the dense fantasy reads I’ve been reading lately and this definitely fit that bill. I’d call it a cozy mystery. I didn’t find it a page turner or fast paced and I think while I liked the characters and the premise, there was a lot of need to suspend disbelief in regards to the sleuthing the characters do. While initially their amateur detective style works, it gets over used as the story progresses and that rehash lost my interest after awhile. I also thought that the unnecessary separating of ways was an odd inclusion towards the end. If your looking for something with low stakes, a cozy feel and easy read this might be okay, and I did enjoy some of it, but found it a bit too lacklustre in the detective/mystery side and too ‘easy’ to be truly engaging.
“You haven't lived until you've seen a cookie look smug.”
I'm not exactly sure how a book can be funny, whimsical, cozy, and kind of macabre at the same time, but T. Kingfisher seems to be able to balance those elements to great effect. Even her darker stuff tends to have an unexpected witty side, so having what is essentially a cozy fantasy, also have a weird and morbid side doesn't surprise me. This is my first foray into her younger fiction and I was delighted. I haven't had this much fun with a book in quite a while. I laughed out loud and loved the use of magically baked goods as the basis for most of the shenanigans along the way. The book starts out as a sort of murder mystery but progresses into a much bigger-scale adventure, and I appreciated how the main character Mona is able to grow over the course of it. Mona has an amusing inner voice and I liked how she struggled with things along the way and wasn't just an instant hero or a Mary Sue character. She questions things, questions herself, and gets rightly emotional over what's happening and I found that gave her a levity you don't always find in kid's fiction. The supporting characters were an entertaining bunch of offbeat, peculiar, and quirky bunch, I especially liked Knackering Molly and her skeleton horse. I also think that T. Kingfisher doesn't sugar coat (LOL!) her story. There are real consequences at the end and not everything turns out okay. Mona struggles with this and I highly appreciated that Kingfisher doesn't treat kids like they can't handle the idea that endings aren't all happily ever afters, or if that's all they've read, to encounter and story that doesn't entirely go that route. I found this more meaningful than a lot of YA I've read recently which seems more concerned with eye-rolling romance and tropes than actually tackling something deeper. Anyway, I highly, highly recommend this book and I think it deserves the highest accolades. I continue to highly enjoy T. Kingfisher's writing and look forward to diving into more of her younger fiction soon.
Just so you know going in, this is a very short book. Having said that, it is quite good. It seems inspired by a fable or fairytale, although Susanna Clarke mentions a different inspiration at the end. In fact the explanation for the story's inspiration is longer than the story itself. I would say that's its biggest detractor. The atmosphere it invokes and the story itself is still worth a read.
This is such a hard one to review! I'm.....not a big fan of the character Lift. She seems to be a love her or hate her character, and while I feel hate is a pretty strong word for my reaction to her, I do find her really difficult to like. Having said that, I do like this story and her ideal does pull on my heartstrings. There is a lot in this short book to chew on in the grander scheme of Cosmere and Stormlight Archive things, so it is essential to read and worth plugging through even if Lift is annoying to you. It looks like she will play a much larger role in the coming books, and Brandon has mentioned she's one of his favourite characters, so she's not going anywhere anytime soon. I hope that over time her story will make up for the things I dislike about her character, which Brandon has managed to do with some of the other characters I wasn't a big fan of the first time or at the beginning, so I do have hope she'll grow on me. But I digress. This one is for sure essential to read if you're reading the larger Stormlight Archive books, but your enjoyment of it may depend on whether Lift is a hit or miss for you.
This was such a charming read! There were so many elements that I enjoyed in this story, probably because they are things I like outside of the book itself. From the love of books, to cozy cottagecore, to highly imaginative fantastical creatures and characters, and the warm hug that is found family. I think I also enjoyed our main character's journey from anti-social introvert librarian to entrepreneur of her own little shop, and becoming part of a community again in the process. Can I also just say Caz and Meep? Sentient plants are the best fantastical creatures I've come across in a while! I did feel like the story started to meander a bit towards the end and I was anxious for the conclusion and not really because it had me on the edge of my seat. I mean you kind of know what's going to happen anyway and it it just took a bit of an unnecessary amount of time to get there in my opinion. BUT that's a small quibble overall! It was just the right amount of charming, cozy, and fantastical otherwise and I really loved it.
It has been YEARS since I've read this and I forgot how much I utterly loved it! I know why Anne is such a beloved character all over the world, but for me personally, I think that I relate to Anne the most with respect to her imagination. The vividness and extravagance of her imagination was something I had a similar abundance of as a child and I vividly remember how my surroundings lent themselves to it in my own made-up places and situations. Reading it now again as an adult, it brings back that innocence and joy I had in letting my imagination run wild. I also highly appreciate L.M. Montgomery's very lyrical and poetic writing. It's so sumptuous in places but never loses the down-to-earth feel of this small rural place in PEI either. I also love how much she was in tune with the nature of people and the little statements or observations she makes throughout about the characters would make me smile or laugh or nod in appreciation of how she captured the heart of people. Speaking of laughing, she also was very witty and deft with her humor, I found myself laughing a lot throughout. Maybe it was the timing of this reread, but I realized it is probably among my favourite books and I always forget to add it as one. It's just such a classic, that I don't automatically think to include it in my favs list, it just seems a given.
It's a love letter to nature, community, family, friends, childhood, imagination, coming of age, and simple pleasures of life. It's a true Canadian treasure, wholesome, and endearing.
I have literally had this book on my TBR for YEARS! And I am so sad that I haven't read it until now. This book hit everything right for me, and after a long string of disappointing YA fantasy and fairytale retellings, I was happy to finally find one I loved, even if it is an older release.
Firstly, I found the writing to be exquisite, being atmospheric and lyrical, but not so much so that it detracts from the story. It transported me to that world and wrapped me in it. The ancient, maze-like castle, the mysterious forest, the magical realm, and all the varied fairy denizens hidden in the Wildwood –are described in striking detail and made it a place I wanted to wander to myself.
The main character Jena and her frog companion were my favourites by far and a huge reason why I loved this book. Level-headed, family-oriented, smart, and determined, Jena has a lot of qualities to admire. But also, to be wary of! It would be easy to have made her this all-encompassing hero, but Marillier shows that even our best qualities can become toxic if not kept in check and when not considering others. The story is at its heart a coming-of-age story and Jena must learn to grow as well as let go, and her journey there feels very real.
Jena's sisters are not as detailed and therefore I didn't find my connection to them to be very strong, only through the lens of Jena's love for them is there any kind of feeling for them. In fact, her older sister Tatiana was probably the most annoying of the bunch. The love at first sight and wasting away and ignoring your family because you're pining over love is just too base and toxic, and if I had one detraction to mention about this book it would be her storyline. I was thoroughly annoyed with her!
The villain of the story was suitably slimy and made my skin crawl every time he appeared, but his motivations allow him some humanity and therefore he's not just a cookie-cutter bad guy, but also all the more frustrating in how he chooses to act.
There are surprise reveals and lessons to be learned, which is very fitting for a fairytale. I was satisfied with the ending, even if the story was a bit drawn out in the middle and took longer to get to the conclusion than was maybe necessary. I didn't mind since I liked the world so much.
Much of what I dislike about YA fantasy was done so much better in Wildwood Dancing. Delicious writing, strong family bonds, friendship, a strong main character but with room to learn and grow, a dark, mysterious, and magical world, and a main romance born out of friendship rather than love at first sight.
I just fell in love with this book and will definitely be putting it on my favs list.
The second book in the Emily Wilde series continues to deliver much of what I highly enjoyed from the first book - a bit of charm, wit, fairy cottage-core, slightly unsettling magic and magical creatures, a mystery, travel, and fantasy forest atmosphere and vibes galore - but it doesn't stray too far from the formula. If you're looking for this to greatly expand or do something different from the first book, then you may be disappointed, but if you are okay with a new adventure along the same lines as book one, you'll certainly enjoy the continuing story of Emily & Wendell. I think more than anything the atmosphere, location, Emily's ‘voice' through her journal entries, and the imaginative and unsettling magical creatures that she encounters are what I like the best and this second book continues to excel in these areas, so I still found great enjoyment in reading it. Once again I found myself wanting to go out myself and traipse into a damp, wild forest and look for fairy doors when I was done reading and that usually means it did a good job of pulling me into that world. Looking forward to Book 3!
I read the first volume of this back in 2016 and remember mildly enjoying it, despite it not being completed. Then I never continued to read the subsequent volumes, but when I heard there would be a completed Omnibus of the whole thing, I got excited to finally finish it.
First off, I just want to say that the physical edition is beautiful. The pages are high-quality gloss, it has a good hardcover, and the artwork is amazing. I also really liked that the binding allowed it to open fully even in the middle and end, since it is so large, and I didn't have to break the spine to see or read in the center.
As for the story itself, I feel kind of ‘meh' about it. It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't great. As always, Sanderson's world-building is amazing, but this was an odd choice of story to make into a graphic novel. It is so heavily ‘political' that while visually the artwork is amazing, there is so little to actually work with to make it satisfying. The structuring was odd and the characters were only okay for me. I didn't relate or really care about any of them. I miss those deep dives into characterization that we get in Sanderson's full-length novels. The dialogue was very awkward and the transition between certain scenes was very jarring too.
There is a lot of repetitiveness to the story, and it was ‘go here and unrealistically convince someone of this', and then ‘go to the next place' and do the same thing, for a good 2/3 of the book! The motivations and quick turnaround of the character's stances were unbelievable. I think it could have been much better if fleshed out as an actual book as opposed to a graphic novel.
I like the vein of what Sanderson was trying to get at here, I think I like the overall idea of the story and of course, I loved the world-building, but the execution of it fell flat for me. It's a shame though because there was a lot of potential and the groundwork laid down was interesting, I think it just was the wrong format for it.
I had heard about this story a while ago, but only recently heard that it is a prequel to the Skyward series. As I'm just about to read the last book in that series, and it has become one of my all-time favorites, I thought it prudent, but also essential to read where it all started. Some have stated that this isn't Sanderson's best writing, but considering that he wrote it before he was even a published author and it's a free short story you can find on his website, I don't think the expectation should be that it is on par with his later or current works. I highly enjoyed it. Maybe because I like that mix of science fiction and mystery, the detective noir in space vibe, and this has that feel. Despite being an early work, it still is a full-fleshed-out story with interesting characters. The mystery keeps you guessing, and the connections to the Cytoverse are worth giving it a chance. It doesn't really reveal tons about the early days before Skyward, but it does give a glimpse and I was very intrigued about the implications. I don't think this is essential reading for the Skyward series, but if you enjoy that series, it is worth reading just to get that glimpse into how it all started.
I absolutely loved these three “short” stories set in the Skyward series world, told from the perspectives of FM, Jorgen, and Alanik. Seeing the story unfold from their viewpoints was a real treat, and these tales significantly propel the overall narrative. They provide essential background on events happening outside of Spensa's main storyline, making them feel almost necessary to the plot. I highly recommend including them in your read of the Skyward series.
In fact, I found these stories more impactful than the third book, Cytonic, and I certainly enjoyed them more. I read the first two before Cytonic and the last one, Evershore, afterward, and this order felt seamless in terms of the main series' timeline. It didn't spoil anything and made sense in relation to Spensa's journey.
These stories deepened my love for the characters, especially FM and Jorgen, and the Taynix, propelling them even higher in my esteem. Each story stands out on its own, emotionally engaging and immensely enjoyable. I highly, highly recommend adding these to your Skyward series read—they are well worth it.
I hate making comparisons like this, but I feel it to be true in this case, it felt like Naomi Novick's Uprooted and Diana Wynne Jones' Howl's Moving Castle had a baby, with a bit of Jim Henson's Storyteller series thrown in for good measure. Since I happen to really love all of those, this book was right up my alley. There was a strange balance between cozy cottage fantasy and something a little bit darker. There was an edge to it, that didn't devolve into horror by any stretch of the imagination but gave it a grim feel in places. I think that Poranek does a really good job of paying tribute to old folktales in that aspect. Poranek's descriptions are sumptuous and plunge you into the Driada forest world dripping with magic and mystery and ancient things, and that of its strange denizens and the delightful sentient house at the center. I liked that the main character had some pluck and growth and wasn't just going along for the ride. I've gotten tired of YA with waif main characters, and was happy to see the main female lead step up and use resourcefulness, kindness, grit, and bravery. Overall, the story just had a dark charm to it that I enjoyed. I certainly feel like getting lost in my own magical forest now! If you like old folktales, Grimm fairytales (original) with a dash of romance, then it will be right up your alley.
Cytonic is the third book in the Skyward Series, and so far I have absolutely LOVED the series. I admit though, that this one fell a bit short overall. Don't get me wrong, there is still a lot to enjoy about it and there was nothing that made me want to stop reading or feel disappointed in the series, it just wasn't the strongest installment. I felt it started strong and I enjoyed the humour, the creative bizarreness of the Nowhere, the ode to classic adventure stories, and the odd bits of lore that revealed more about Spensa's universe and storyline. However, it also felt a bit hollow. Aside from Chet, there were too many new characters that we don't have a chance to get to know and love like we did in Starsight, I didn't feel connected to any of them, and they felt very one-dimensional. I missed the characters from the first book, especially since I'd just finished reading the short stories Sunreach and ReDawn which I loved, and now to have Spensa spend yet another entire book away from them and an entirely new set of characters felt removed from the main story. Overall there wasn't a lot of meat to it, more like a side quest which would have felt more appropriate as a short story than a full book of the series. But it was still enjoyable for the most part and I still have special fondness for Spensa, Doomslug, and M-Bot, so while it wasn't quite as good overall, it was still fun.
I read this as a kid myself and kept the book all these years, but never reread it or continued the series. But since my Goddaughter has taken to a love of fantasy I thought I'd pass it on to her and she loved it! Now she wants to talk about it with me and I decided to read it again so we can share and talk about it. Now I remember why I loved it as a kid and am surprised how well it holds up all these years later. Even as an adult I found myself enchanted by it and how well written it is for grade school aged story. Adventures, fantastical creatures, and a magical world to explore check off all the things I still love about fantasy. Surprisingly it also has quite the lore attached to it and I'm looking forward to reading the others now too and sharing it all with the next generation of fantasy lovers!
I've put off reading this book for quite a while because of so many people disliking it who are usually wholehearted Sanderson fans. I really should know better and go with my instincts that I'd probably like it, even if I didn't love it. I think a lot has to do with expectations. If you're thinking this is on the level of his Cosmere stuff, then I can understand the disappointment. That's not what this is. It is rather a fun, silly fantasy/sci-fi romp that doesn't take itself too seriously and is meant just to be a light-hearted pulpy read. As I tend to like that type of book once in a while, I quite enjoyed this one. Is it a favourite of Sanderson's, I'd say no. Did it blow me away, again no. However, I just really enjoyed it. It was funny, still a unique world to get lost in, and a fun mix of fantasy and science fiction. I think the enjoyment of this one will depend on your expectations of it and whether this is a genre to enjoy, but I don't think it's as terrible as some reviews made it seem.
I feel like this is a slightly different book from the first one. That's not a bad thing necessarily, but it did take me a while to get over that fact to enjoy it. There is much less of the library and it felt more like a ‘traditional' fantasy in the sense that there was traveling, disparate groups meeting and joining forces and trying to survive against overwhelming odds and foes. There was also MUCH less focus on Livira, who was my favorite character from the first book. I missed her larger presence in this second volume. I also felt the start to middle of this book dragged in places and kept me from being as immersed as I was in the first book, which may be in part due to my expectations of what I thought this story would be and what it was actually. Having said that, I think the end did make up for a lot of the meandering that the first part of the story took and brought it back to what I loved in the first book as well as tying in pieces and mysteries for which the groundwork was laid earlier in the story. I think it is still one of the most unique and intriguing fantasy worlds I have read in a long time and I continue to enjoy what Mark Lawrence is crafting in this trilogy. It may have that shaky “middle book” syndrome a bit, but I get the feeling that will resolve in the final volume, and the things this book sets up will reverberate in the third book. I don't think overall I enjoyed this as much as the first book, but I didn't dislike it by any stretch of the imagination and it still has me excited to see where this all heads in the conclusion.
Another couple of short story gems set in the world of The Library Trilogy and I loved them both! I don't want to give too much away, because I think the premise of both would be spoiled, but if you liked or loved the first book “The Book That Wouldn't Burn”, then you'll definitely love these two short stories as well. Familiar characters make appearances, all the feels will be felt (especially if you're a book nerd who loves stories that celebrate the power of stories and books) and a return to the world(s) Mark Lawrence created feels like a warm hug. Worthy of a read or reread and don't forget to check out the other short story Overdue too!