Danielle

Where do I even start with this? Once again I feel like Sanderson writes books just for me personally and this felt even more so than others. I kept thinking, ‘this reminds me of manga/anime I really love, or like Final Fantasy', and lo and behold, those were exactly the inspiration behind this story. But Sanderson never copies other art, he uses it as a stepping stone and then creates something completely his own. I loved the ties to the bigger Cosmere, but that it can be read without that and still enjoyed, much like Tess of the Emerald Sea. The humour, the world-building, the magic, the mystery and most especially the overarching theme of the importance of art and storytelling were all elements I loved and very much in Sanderson's playground. I feel the romance is on the lighter side, but that's okay because it never dives into the eye rolling gooeyness that can feel unrealistic or forced. This was a refreshing slow burn and I really enjoyed seeing them grow in love through trials and empathy and understanding. The little snippets about art and how we view it and what constitutes art had me highlighting quotes SO often. I love that Sanderson included thoughts on the subject amongst all the other things this book does so well. I also loved seeing empathy and forgiveness at the forefront of the themes, things our world could use a little more of these days and a good reminder that just because someone made a mistake or poor decision, doesn't mean they are a horrible person and maybe deserve a chance to do better. Overall I loved this, another wonderful story from Sanderson, well worth reading!

A beautiful poetic religious allegory. It made me think of the well known elements in a different light and I loved the language used. To use music as the basis was so poignant, as I really feel music is a spiritual experience in and of itself. It's not the depth of Lewis or Tolkien, but as a poem it's simplicity has its own beauty. I really liked it.

At the end of this book Laini Taylor says: “...I am a scavenger of shiny things: fairy tales, dead languages, weird folk beliefs, fascinating religions, and more.” I am thankful she collects these things and then spins them into her own strange, captivating, magical and dark other-worldly tales and stories because her books are absolutely delicious to read. I was a bit skeptical at first because this was tagged as being a ‘fairytale romance' or ‘fantasy romance' genre, and there are so many ways that can go sideways. There is an odd occasion when I don't mind fantasy books with heavy romance leanings - basically romance in a fantasy setting, but on the whole I prefer the fantasy part to come first and foremost and the romance is secondary. Laini Taylor made this book of short stories part of the latter category and also managed to make it not cringe-worthy ‘teen romance' tropey either. Rather this reads like original Grimm's fairy tales with all the dark, dangerous and eerie atmosphere they were meant to have. Non-Disney-fied fairy tales where you are more likely to be thankful that kind of magic doesn't exist because it often exacts a price and isn't filled with butterflies and happy endings. Her signature lyrical writing is also present, pulling you into images of the world with words as wonderful as a fine wine. I'm a huge fan of her writing and this book was just another addition to many of her books and stories I love. Whether she is taking us on an adventure with little winged fairies, or on an expedition to a fabled city in the desert filled with mysteries and gods and magic or to the mountains and forests of dark fey, it is always a journey well worth taking!

I really loved this book for so many reasons that I feel maybe are more personal than that it was excellent in and of itself, but seeing others rave about it as well makes me think it's more universal than I thought. My fascination with anything ocean related, the theme of loneliness, legacy, family, and human connection, Tova as an older and more mature character, and tiny bits of wisdom and insight were all things that touched me on a personal level. Marcellus was a brilliant character. I love stories that show humanity through an uncommon lens (think Death from The Book Thief - an absolute favorite of mine), and having us view the story in parts from a Giant Pacific Octopus was an ingenious bit of storytelling (and humorous at times). This book felt like a hug, but not a super gooey or sappy one OR a really dark gloomy one either, which I appreciated. It had a nice balance to it that never strayed too far in either direction. Is it mind-blowing...maybe not, but it is well told, has great characters and a feel-good story, and is just a bit different enough to make it enjoyable.

I really, really enjoyed this book! Maybe it's not the best-written book on the planet or going to win piles of awards, but sometimes a book comes along that you need at that moment and this book was exactly what I needed right now! Heart-warming without being cheesy, inspiring without preaching and characters that I really enjoyed reading about. I did call a few things before they happened, but in a way that was comforting. I laughed, I cried and was moved by the message, which are the usual ticks for me to love a story and book. Maybe it was the timing, but I also think it was just a really good read!

This was just a really fun, sweet comfortable read with a big heart! The setting was wonderful, the magic was on the light side, but absolutely delightful and there were quotes galore that really hit me in the feels. The found family trope may be overused these days, but it certainly was done well here. Mika is definitely the highlight character for me. The love interest was maybe too brash for my taste to be truly swept away by the light romance, but the rest of it was so good that I still enjoyed it overall. Helped pull me out of a bad reading slump, so there's that too!

I debated between 2 and 3 stars, but ended up with two for a few reasons. First what I did like: Jane as a modern introvert. As an introvert myself, I did find myself relating to her in a lot of ways and when it was just her trying to figure out life and doing her introvert ‘thing' I found myself somewhat enjoying it. BUT, then the whole romance just fell completely flat and even cringy at times. Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre is filled with sumptuous language, a dark, gothic atmosphere and tantalizing, slow-burning romance filled with longing. Combined with Jane's moral compass and strong character, it is what makes the original so beloved. All of these elements were missing from this re-telling, which ended up boiling it down to the bare-bones of the story told in a modern age that lost all the allurement of the original in favor of a bland relationship between a messed up rock star and an introverted art student and absolutely no spark between them whatsoever. I never once felt the butterflies or even understood the allure of their attraction. Despite the age difference and circumstances in the original, as well as all the constrictions of the era it was written in, I FELT the spark in Bronte's Jane Eyre, but this book missed that mark by miles. I'm not against modern re-telling's of classics as some are, so while this was an intriguing concept I thought would be really good, the actual execution didn't live up to it's potential.

Brandon Sanderson just writes what I thoroughly enjoy reading. He manages to pull together elements that I really love in a book - characters I get attached to, original and imaginative world-building and magic, ALL the feels, humor and thoughtful commentary on life. Even in this book, the lightest and very fairytale-like story seems at first to be just a fanciful adventure, but somewhere along the way I was highlighting passages left and right that hit me right in the heart and it had me literally laughing out loud as I read. Don't go into this thinking you'll get the excellence or deepness of the Stormlight Archive books, it certainly feels like a ‘side' project in some ways, but do go into it with the expectation that Sanderson always delivers wonderful stories that are fun to get lost in with the signatures he's known for. I do honestly think some people will not like this one, even fans of his just by its nature alone, but I loved it!

Ah, what a delightful and magical book this was! Academia, mixed with faerie lore - the mischievous, earthy magical and often frightening kind - and topped with a nice sprinkling of humour. It took a bit at the beginning to settle, but once the initial uncertainty faded I was well and truly enchanted by Emily's curmudgeonly, introverted scholarly character and her journal entries describing her encounters with the fae which had a nice balance of storytelling and poetic prose, never getting bogged down by either. The fae realm is described both beautifully and terrifyingly, never over romanticizing it, but also conveying its allure. Just an overall enjoyable book with characters I enjoyed, a fascinating, magical world to get lost in and an story I can't wait to continue diving into in future volumes!

This was such a unique and darkly delightful read. I can totally imagine a Tim Burton-esque movie being made out of it, as it tends toward that dark, magical, slightly strange feel about it. After really liking the first initial part of the book I wasn't sure about it for the rest of the first quarter, as it seemed a bit disjointed but as it progressed, it kept getting better and better. Our main character Marra was likable once her initial frustrating naivete gives way to determination - although I think that is rather part of the point of her character arc. Her companions on the journey are what makes it so entertaining and enjoyable though. The bone dog, the gravewitch, the fairy godmother and the disgraced Knight are the most interesting and likable part for me. The journey isn't of the epic kind, but I kind of liked that it was engaging without needing to delve deep into the lore. Kingfisher has a deft way of conveying the world without bogging it down in a lot of verbiage and I enjoyed that aspect, as well as her ability to make it still feel very fairytale-ish, even with all the tropes turned on end and the bizarre and dark nature of the story. Highly recommended!

Okay, the first 2/3 of this volume was a bit frustrating and had it ended there, I may have only given it 3 stars, BUT the last 1/3 was AMAZING! A few things I disliked about the beginning was that the use of ‘Deus ex Machina' was WAY overdone. Kaneda and Kei get out of so many things inexplicably that I was almost at eye-rolling by the 2/3 mark, not to mention the constant changing hands of the ‘prize' in ways that just seemed mind-boggling and then happened way too many times to the point that the plot lost all story and it was just a game of hot potato between all the different factions. We almost completely lose all storytelling in favor of action for the sake of action, which the previous volumes seemed to balance much better. Kaneda's immaturity, which I get is part of his character and is present for sure in other volumes, becomes rather annoying in this one, even childish at times with some of the dialogue really being dumbed down. But why did I give this 5 stars in the end? Because the end blows all that out of the water with a stunning conclusion that I didn't see coming and was phenomenally drawn. There was one gut punch after another and everything on the board is wiped out in one fell swoop, leaving a cliff-hanger ending that made me curse not having the next volume along with me. I can only hope that the issues at the beginning of this volume don't continue to show up with the change that happened toward the end, and that the story is given new vitality and direction in the coming volumes. So my advice is to push through the first part and you'll be rewarded at the end!

Although I thought this volume was a bit more uneven than the first, it does still propel the story forward by leaps and bounds, the artwork continues to be amazing and the world-building continues to grow in some interesting ways I hadn't anticipated, so I ate this one up pretty quickly. Maybe I have a different outlook because I had the next volume ready to go right after, so I wasn't looking at this volume as a piece on its own and so I maybe was more forgiving overall, but I still think this is a truly solid manga that deserves it's ‘best of' status and this volume didn't make me think otherwise.

You can't be into manga and not have heard about Akira, and I am no exception. It is on just about every ‘best of' list ever and certainly has been on my radar since my early days getting into manga. However, I never seemed to get around to reading it - until now. Recently I was craving some cyberpunk and while looking for recommendations, of course Akira tops a lot of the lists. So I finally picked it up and I realize now what I've been missing. I see why this is considered top-tier manga. The artwork is amazing, the world gritty, the characters grey and the story highly intriguing, fast-paced and mysterious. Adding supernatural powers, and shady government experiments into the mix adds a little something extra giving me a bit of Stranger Things vibes, even though this pre-dates that by nearly 30 years, so it would actually be Stranger Things that borrowed from it, not the other way around. All the artwork and world-building would be for not if it didn't have a solid story and I think that is where Akira shines. I was pulled in almost immediately and I'm still invested 3 volumes in, even when the characters are frustrating or make stupid decisions, I'm still on board with them and eager to know what comes next. It is certainly action-packed and Otomo's artwork fluidly portrays the action in a realistic way, lending to it being very cinematic. So far it hasn't fallen into many of the pitfalls that manga can be infamous for, truly being it's own work of art and storytelling and I can't wait to get through the whole series!

In the midst of a reading slump, this book kept popping up in various places reminding me that I wanted to read it and with all the positive things being said about it, I thought it would be a good one for a time when no books are engaging me. And it was lovely. Just so light and cozy and comforting and also subtly uplifting to anyone who has ever wanted to start again later in life and make a change toward something more wholesome. There is nothing super profound, but the story still manages to give you that sense of feel good motivation to set out and claim that piece of peace in your life. I also enjoyed how all the elements we're familiar with in a modern coffee shop were spiced up with fantasy overlay. The characters were not greatly fleshed out, but were enjoyable anyway and I found myself warming up to them anyway. A warm hug of a read I highly recommend!

I wasn't sure how to rate this one, because at first I loved it. The beginning captured me and I was so into it, but then in the middle....it dragged. It might have just been me and my mood at the time, but I struggled to really feel anything and to keep reading it. I pushed through and was rewarded with an ending I actually loved. Even though I kind of had an inkling early on about a few of the ‘twists' it was still really satisfying to see them come to fruition and really make the story as a whole really endearing. I would say this is on the ‘light' side of fantasy. While the world is interesting, I didn't think it was super fleshed out and it always felt like the story was aimed at a younger audience than it was meant for, which I realize it's a YA novel, but it felt very like pre-teen at times instead of the intended 13-18 age range. Now I can't totally knock it for that, as there is a huge spectrum within YA and it is totally fine to aim it a bit lower for that audience, it just personally didn't hook me in the same way that some of the more in depth YA does, and that's a personal preference. I'm glad I pushed through the slump in the middle, because I did feel it was redeemed in the end and did make me want to pick up book 2, so it wasn't all bad. If I could give it 3 1/2 stars, I would. It is a solid read, just didn't rise above that to make it truly great or memorable.

This was a book club book, but has been on my personal list for a while. Firstly I'm glad this is out there in the world, because it does shed light on how amazing BTS' lyrics are and how they aren't just belting out love tunes, but actually thinking long and deep about the music they are making and most especially how they tied in the psychology of Carl Jung's Persona, Shadow & Ego into their personal experiences on the stunning album Map of the Soul: 7.

Having said that, I did find that the interpretations of a lot of the songs seemed off to me. Like someone who doesn't REALLY know BTS and their journey just looked at the lyrics and analyzed it to fit the psychology they wanted to share and didn't actually deep dive into the personal experience behind it. There were a number of instances where I actually completely disagreed with their conclusions.

A small example is where they were dissecting Interlude: Shadow and made the statement that the lyrics “Please don't let me shine, Don't let me down. Don't let me fly” is of being rich and fearing poverty. Sorry...what? The whole song in my opinion and of many other analyses that I have watched or read has this song being a fear of fame growing so large and high that there is only one direction you can go afterward (down) and a fear that the fame comes with all kinds of pressures, expectations and responsibilities that they never anticipated and it has all become very restrictive and is sometimes causing them to not love it in the way they used to. Now this was only one example, but there were many others that I thought weren't really quite right.

As far as the psychology part, I can't really comment on it, as I've never taken any kind of psychology course or read really anything else other than fluffy pieces online. What I can say is that I did find it very interesting and certainly found myself fitting these concepts to my own life experiences and dissecting them through that lens, which I actually did enjoy.

Overall I felt like it leaned a bit too heavily on the psychology and not as much on the BTS aspect, which is why I wanted to read it in the first place, so I'm not sure I was really satisfied with that aspect of the book.

I am so sad to write this review, but I had such high hopes for this book and I just didn't enjoy it at all. I loved The Daughter of the Moon Goddess and was excited to not only delve back into the world, but also have a nice conclusion. I felt really let down. Xingyin was an amazing character in the first book, independent, likable and strong, but in this book it was like she forgot all the things that made her great and became a soppy love-sick teenager who couldn't put aside the ridiculous love triangle to actually DO anything. She was so headstrong in the first one, but here she lets others make the decisions for her. I mean this book is literally hopping from one thing to another, with no rhyme or reason or meaning, just so that Xingyin could debate herself over the romantic interests. One of which, I can't even believe was a love interest at all in this book, I was definitely not a fan of that twist. The magic, adventure and light romance of the first book is completely gone in favour of a cringey love triangle. I had to push myself to finish it in the end and I was positive that if one or other of the guys eyes ‘shuddered' when Xingyin spoke one more time I was going to remove that word from my dictionary. No disrespect to Sue Lynn Tan, but I just couldn't get on board with this one and the choices she made to take the story were just not my taste at all.

I once again wish you could do 1/2 stars on Goodreads, for while I enjoyed the second book in the Book of Tea Duology, I don't think I liked it quite as much as the first, but also think it was better than just a 3. Judy Lin continues to weave a wonderfully fantastical story of magic and adventure and ties everything up quite nicely in the end. In fact I think the last 1/4 of the book was the best as it amped up the action and stakes felt more urgent than previously. Her writing is sparse, but still manages to weave a world I enjoy reading and delving into. I think I felt the relationships lacking more in this one though. There were a lot of segments strung together and no time for us to care about anyone really deeply before being propelled to the next task or event. I think in that way I wasn't as invested as I was with book 1. But still overall a worthy read and happy to see more Asian fantasy getting out there.

What an absolutely delightful novella! It's the side story I never knew I needed. I love these two characters in the main trilogy, so getting to see them at the centre was a lot of fun. Of course adding in Laini Taylor's amazing writing and whimsical dark storytelling and it was bound to be a win. I think this has set the bar too high for first dates though, I'm not sure I'll be satisfied with anything less than a treasure map and magic. The illustrations were also win, they added a lot to the story and I loved the added artistic element. So worthwhile if you like the original trilogy!

I think I may be missing a lot of the social and political commentary going on in these stories, not being very familiar with South Korea's culture and political landscape, but I still think The Tower was a really interesting read. While not overtly science fiction like Star Trek or Star Wars, The Tower builds this fictional country which exists solely within a massive tower and through a series of interconnected short stories creates a world I found myself becoming more and more fascinated with the more stories I read into it. I give credit to Myung-Hoon Bae for being able to spin all these very different stories into something that encompasses a whole world. I felt myself drawn into each story, even if I felt I may be missing the overall point. I couldn't wait for the inevitable appearance of the dog in each story and felt invested despite the length. I really think it was a refreshing and interesting way to world-build The Tower through the lense of its residents, visitors and work force - basically the every man. It was definitely a great example of show, don't tell. The world and society is slowly revealed while you follow a myriad cast of characters through their everyday lives and I enjoyed that a lot. While I don't think it blew me away, I found it an enjoyable read and a unique way of telling a broader story.

I didn't pick this book up expecting some miracle fix for depression or even some great insight, but more a curiosity about another's experience and how they dealt with it. That's probably a good thing, since I don't really think it is very good at supplying any good advice actually. I've never been in therapy myself, so I can't compare, but I thought the therapist was a bit useless in this all. For simply being a sounding board for the author, sure they were ok, but actually helping her to sort through things...meh, not so much. Now what I did like about the book was more hearing another's unfiltered thoughts about their depression, insecurities and struggles. Seeing Baek Sehee examine herself more closely and see what habits or traits or past experiences contribute to her persistent depressive disorder felt cathartic to me. Although we don't share everything, there were a lot of things she described that resonated with me and had me saying: ‘yes exactly!' Sometimes just knowing another soul struggles with these same things is a comfort. I found myself also thinking about my own self in light of the subjects she brings up and examining my own reason for feeling a certain way, and I don't think that's a bad thing. How can we improve if we never look internally and sometimes dissect what's there? Is this a great book? No I wouldn't say it really is all that helpful or even insightful, however, if you're in a space where you can hear another's story and use that to look at yourself and pull things out on your own that may be helpful or even just comforting, then it's a decent, light read.

At first this was a slow start. Just coming off the high of A Daughter of Smoke and Bone, it took a bit for this one to really reel me in and I was afraid it was going to have second book syndrome. But it just needs to set up a lot before deep diving in a much more epic and magical second helping of this fantastic fantasy tale. We're plunged more into the realms that previously were only hinted at on both sides and the lore deepens and broadens the world-building so much more this time around. Laini Taylor's lyrical writing continues to enchant and the intricacies of politics, war and relationships offer plenty of heart-pounding drama. I'm just really loving the series SO much and feeling so connected to the characters and swept away into the world Laini has created - both fairytale and tragedy and maybe a pinch of hope. Looking forward to the novella and then the final book!

I adore Debbie Tung's comics. We share so many things like introversion, book love and also, unfortunately, a struggle with anxiety and depression. Her other two books sit lovingly on my shelf where I pull them out now and again when I need something for comfort. Her newest book is a compilation of her comics on her own battle with anxiety and depression, but I found SO many things relatable, as I'm sure others will too. It warms my heart and makes the struggle easier to know that someone out there has had the exact feelings and thoughts as I have. There are parts of this book that felt they were plucked from my own experience. I put it down several times to have a cry, because it was expressing what I sometimes can't express, even though I've experienced it. It hit so close to home. Among the experiences, she also places small encouragements and reassurance that it can and will get better. I love this book, as I've loved all the books Debbie Tung has put out into the world. Sharing something so personal must have been difficult for her, but I'm glad she did it for me and all who have struggled with these two difficult mental health issues. There is no mystical answer on how to get better, but rather a shared experience we can work through together.

Okay, I will start off by saying that this book was not what I was expecting it to be. I thought it was a fairytale re-telling, that it would have lyrical writing and be darkly whimsical. Now while there are elements of these sprinkled in places, I wouldn't say that is what Thistlefoot is overall. So at first it was disappointing because of my own expectations, BUT, and I put a big BUT in there, that doesn't mean it wasn't a great book. Once I got past what I thought it was, I found I actually really liked it. Now to get this out of the way, I would say the bulk of the book is about a 4 star. I had quibbles about the lack of characterization and explanations for a lot of things, the meandering the story does at certain points and a to be honest, Isaac's unlikableness (although I think that was the point of him). I did like that the story felt fresh and new, not a rehash of other fantasy out there. I liked how the story viewed America as having it's own mythical history. I like the magical and supernatural elements. I liked Thistlefoot - yes it's a character! I like how it incorporated the complicated immigrant experience. All these added up to a pretty good story, however, it really shot up to a 5 star at the very end. As all the pieces come together and the point is finally made, I really loved what it had to say. No spoilers here, except to say that at the end I was wiping tears and my storytelling, book loving heart was beaming. It makes a special point about the importance of stories which I also feel very strongly about.
So all that is to say that I think that Thistlefoot has some issues, but in the end it makes up for it in a satisfying way that hit me more emotionally than I expected, so I gave it the higher rating. Overall I think it is a fantasy book tackling a subject rarely covered in the genre and deserves an open minded read where you're likely to find more than just a fantastical journey, but a beating heart at the center with something to say.

I really question why it has taken me so long to start this trilogy. I absolutely LOVE Laini Taylor's writing! The rich, lyrical descriptions just suck me in and create an atmosphere I want to drown in. Her magical worlds are places I want to visit. Whether it was her Faeries of Dreamdark books, which are probably my favourite books about faeries ever, or the magical treasure that is Strange the Dreamer, Laini manages to craft stories that I'm enchanted by.
I think some early reviews that said the love story was a bit too in the ‘love at first sight' category made me hesitate, as I too don't particularly care for that trope, but I shouldn't have listened to that and gone with my gut! I have literally had these books on my shelf for YEARS and I regret it!
With that quibble aside, Laini Taylor creates a mysterious and mythical world that caught me in its snare immediately. Again, her lyrical writing just oozes atmospheric magic. Prague felt like an entrancing character all its own. I wanted to get on a plane and go there to walk the streets and wrap myself in the history, culture and character of the city. And that's just the real Prague we know, then there are other worlds you only glimpse at during the story. Worlds of supernatural creatures, magic and enigmatic secrets. I was definitely a fan of the world-building.
I also found the main character Karou to be a pleasant surprise. I liked her quite a lot. She wasn't moody, sullen or a Mary-Sue. She has quirkiness, passion and spunk and it was so refreshing and honestly a bit inspiring to have a more upbeat lead character. She also has a big heart and values friendship, which I felt drawn too.
Okay, now the loaded love story part. It honestly didn't bother me as much as I thought it would. It niggles, I won't lie, but I suppose when your story is about star-crossed lovers it's almost a given that there will be an almost unbelievable connection between the two and falling in love immediately seems par for the course. I think the ending saves it a bit, but I can't give that away, so you'll have to decide for yourself. If you're dead against that type of love story, steer clear, however, if you can even have a sliver of suspended belief on that part, I think you'll be well rewarded with the rest of story and still on board for the love story part.
Lastly, the ending is a banger. It came so hard and fast with so many little pieces falling into place that all I wanted to do was speed read through it, while also appreciating how much backstory the whole thing was leading up to. Ending on a cliff-hanger was a groaner (in a good way), but I guess the positive side of waiting so long to read this means I can go straight into Book 2. And I am SO ready for the next book!
Overall highly recommended. Best YA fantasy I've read in a LONG time. I'm sorry Laini Taylor for waiting so long to read this book. I won't wait next time, I promise.