February 2026 Book Review - Fourth Wing

 

Fourth Wing
By Rebecca Yarros
The Empyrean Series #1

 

Warning! Spoilers!

 

IMAGINE Harry Potter without the professors. Eragon without the complex relationship with Sapphira. Any of the enemies-t0-lovers paranormal novels out there without the actual enemy part. That’s Fourth Wing.

I’ll admit, the first third of the book had me hooked. There’s nothing cooler than a badass dragon school. Violet is the daughter of a high-ranking military leader forced to undergo the dragon rider trials at her mother’s whim, rather than become a scribe like her father. She’s weak, unprepared, and hurting because her brother died while serving as a dragon rider. Xaden is introduced as the son of the enemy, forcibly conscripted into the army to make amends for his family’s betrayal. There’s also the hostile Jack Barlowe, who hates Violet’s guts for some reason. There’s peppy friends and some differentiation between dragon species, and no shortage of tribulations.

However, the strong start quickly nosedives into erotica fanfiction land. The world-building is flimsy and unmemorable. Why these age-old super powerful dragons submit to humans at all is a mystery. Violet’s determination to get into Xaden’s pants becomes the sole driving relationship, and every other character blurs into the same person—a Team Violet cheerleader, or a Violet Hater for paper thin reasons. Xaden is supposed to despise Violet. Her mother killed his family. However, despite this initial chapter stating this, there’s never any showdown between them, no real hatred. That’s saved for Jack, who despises Violet without any development or deeper understanding of why. It makes the tension between Violet and Xaden spaghetti-noodle-limp, and Jack’s vendetta a big yawn. You just don’t care.

Plus, the professors who are responsible for running this school (with its high student mortality rate) aren’t present at all. Not one of them is memorable the way Professor Snape or McGonagall was in Harry Potter. If you’re going to have a dragon rider school, at least give the professors some real personality and a stronger mentor relationship agenda with Violet. Instead, it’s the older students teaching the younger cadets everything.

The dragons were the best part by far. I did like the twist that Violet became bonded to two dragons. What if they were at odds with each other? Had different philosophies? However, we barely get any time exploring dragon society. For some reason, bonding with a dragon isn’t enough—they also give our intrepid heroes superpowers. Violet gets lightning and another super-special power, so now the stakes of her dying are at an all-time low. At least give her the taboo mind-reading power which is a death sentence in this society. Instead, there just aren’t any stakes, and by the end, I was bored. The casual modern-day dialog in a medieval setting also continued to remind that this was just soft serve with dragons thrown in.

The baddies show up the last few chapters. They are mean.

Overall, I don’t see how this plot could survive four more novels. Considering the price of books these days, there’s probably better fanfiction out there. Read for an airplane novel, but otherwise, recommend skip. 

Recommended for fans: Sarah J Maas, Stephanie Meyer, Colleen Houck 

December 2022 Book Review: All Systems Red

All Systems Red

By Martha Wells

~Book Review~

*Warning! Minor Spoilers!*

MURDERBOT PROVES INSTANTLY RELATABLE when all it wants to do is watch tv shows. This novella by Martha Wells introduces us to a spacefaring future where the faceless Company is in charge, dispatching droid “SecUnits” like Murderbot to protect missions. Murderbot, who has hacked its governor module and is able to cover its newfound autonomy, immediately uses it to binge all the thousands of sitcoms it can intercept—all while making sure the silly humans mapping a new hostile terrain don’t kill themselves.

It's a quick read that serves as an introduction to a greater series that stays largely in the shadows for this installment. We are teased with greater mysteries lurking, such as why Murderbot dubbed itself such an ominous title, and the crew of humans it protects also stay largely faceless. Our narrator is an android so just the brisk, data-driven facts about the crew at large. There is the head of the exploratory mission, Mensah, who sees the humanity in Murderbot, comical relief like Ratthi, and an interesting augmented human called Gurathin who is less trusting. The team discovers someone is out to sabotage the exploratory missions on this terrain and teams up with Murderbot to save themselves, especially when it appears the Company may be in on it.

Part of the expository style and underwhelming names like “the Company” make All Systems Red feel generic; if this had been published even ten years back its AI storyline grappling with the meaning of humanity and second-class citizenry may have made more of a splash, but compounding with this being a novella, the result is an unremarkable, easy story. Not much is delved into about why Murderbot feels so drawn to the human-written series Sanctuary Moon, for example (387 episodes mentioned!), and its realization at the end is more of an abrupt action to usher in what will likely be deeper questions explored in further works.

Nevertheless, you can’t argue it doesn’t have a unique narrator who pokes fun at our humanity. A nice dive off point for The Murderbot Diaries.



Recommended for fans of: Arkady Martine; Tamsyn Muir; Dennis E. Taylor

August 2022 Book Review: The Last Story of Mina Lee

The Last Story of Mina Lee

By Nancy Jooyoun Kim

~Book Review~

LIFE CAN END abruptly and leave us with too many words left unspoken, too many questions we should have asked but never did. In present day, Margot Lee travels to Koreatown, Los Angeles and discovers that her mother has died under mysterious circumstances. After growing up constantly at loggerheads with her mother who was first generation Korean and never seemed to understand Margot’s American life, Margot sets off to pick up the pieces of who her mother really was. Lush and moving, this first novel of Nancy Jooyoun Kim bridges the divide between mother and daughter with alternating perspectives of their lives in America—one accepted, and the other caught between worlds.

The writing is easy and introspective, capturing the sense of regret and reflection in both Margot and her mother, Mina, as they ponder what could have been. Mina’s chapters are the most engaging as we watch her evolve from timid to taking a stand, and both perspectives capture how isolated and apart they are, no other family except for each other. Kim builds each chapter’s closing to great effect, such as revealing the tragedy Mina left behind, and she shows how the outcome of North and South Korea’s split impacted families for generations.

Margot is joined in her investigation into her mother’s death by an engaging friend Miguel, and Kim does a great job illustrating the mix of Chicano and Korean cultures interfusing on the LA scene. By and large, food plays a central part, and I’ve never finished a book so hungry—whether it is Mina, reminiscing about the past over a bowl of jjigae, or Margot, digging into the traditional cuisine and realizing how much it reminds her of her mother, the dominant role food plays in bringing people together is excellently portrayed:

“Once the meat had browned, Margot laid pieces on Miguel’s plate, like her mother would’ve done, before serving herself. A heaviness gathered in her chest. She wrapped a bite of warm white rice, soft pork belly, and ssamjang in a red lettuce leaf, still wet, and crammed it into her mouth.” –page 127

Overall, a reflective beach read that will certainly make us all reach out to our loved ones and let them know how much they mean to us. It captures the sentiment perfectly that as you grow, the more you understand the choices your parents made.

Recommended for fans of: Unknown! A genre outside my usual wheelhouse :) 

June 2021 Book Review: Children of Blood and Bone

 

CHILDREN OF BLOOD AND BONE

by Tomi Adeyemi

~Book Review~

*Warning! Minor Spoilers!*

In the land of Orïsha, the nobles rule with an iron fist. The only threat to their power, the maji and their magical gifts, have been eradicated nearly to extinction. They now live in fear of military raids and are identifiable by their shock-white hair. Zélie remembers her mother’s power to summon souls. Other magi could control the tides or fire, but their connection to the magic of the land is lost now.

Drawing inspiration from Yoruba mythology, Adeyemi has crafted a tale of enemies-to-lovers where different class worlds collide. Zélie meets Amari, a runaway princess who questions the ruthlessness of the nobility, and together they go on a quest to bring magic back to the land. However, on their tail is the zealot crown prince Inan, who is determined to bring back his sister Amari and kill whoever is in her company.

Yes, Children of Blood and Bone has strong The Last Airbender vibes á la Zuko. Inan and Zélie forge a special dream connection and Inan is forced to face an unimaginable truth about himself. Their interactions were some of the most compelling.

There are glimpses of interesting characters and motivations, but the pacing is a big issue. Too much exposition made the story feel bloated, and the characters lost their edges and didn’t feel unique. The mythology wasn’t given enough chance to shine. The book felt a bit too preoccupied with falling in line with your standard YA fantasy we see these days—heavily sanitized and tropey, canned to please an audience who wants a predictable rinse-and-repeat tale about lower class rising against oppressors to bring magic back to the land. I didn’t feel fully immersed and teleported by the story; it was too easy to leave.

You know the saying there are no original story ideas, only original ways to tell the story? Which is true, because the aforementioned The Last Airbender TV series does a marvelous job with its wit, development of the characters, and world-building to feel unique. David Eddings’ Belgariad series sparkles with charm, and Ursula Le Guin’s Earthsea books are an example of how slow pacing can work—because the magical system is so utterly absorbing that it becomes a character in its own right. More contemporarily, there’s Binti, by Nnedi Okorafor, which is a shorter story, but Okorafor masterfully demonstrates that you don’t need more words to transport the reader to a world they don’t want to leave. In Children of Blood and Bone, there are too many words, and they don’t say enough to bring this world to life.

It’s tough because Zélie does have spirit, and her relationship with Inan is one of the best things about the book. This story is often featured on #Diverse Reads and #Own Voices, but it doesn’t feel like we really get Adeyemi’s voice (v. looking at the smoother orchestration and presence in works by Zoraida Córdova, R. F. Kuang, Julie Kagawa). It feels more that the publishing industry is trying to churn out as many of these derivative versions of the post-Twilight & The Hunger Games tropes as it can without giving the authors time to edit and develop their writing to make something truly memorable. Look no further than the string of similar titles that makes all of these works blur together—Children of Blood and Bone, Shadow and Bone, Girls of Paper and Fire, A Court of Frost and Starlight, Isle of Blood and Stone, Blood and Sand, The Forest of Hands and Teeth—we could probably fill a page with “Blood” and “Bone” titles alone.  

The series continues in Children of Virtue and Vengeance. Hopefully with the foundation set, Adeyemi will be able to branch off into new twists and original voice for her characters.

Recommended for fans of: Kiersten White, Daniel José Older, Tochi Onyebuchi

May 2021 Book Review: The Poppy War

THE POPPY WAR

By R.F. Kuang

~Book Review~

*WARNING! CONTAINS SPOILERS!*

IT’S MULAN MEETS NAME OF THE WIND MEETS…HARRY POTTER? Nah, The Poppy War’s heroine Rin has more in common with Jay Kristoff’s Mia from The Nevernight Chronicles or Nona Gray from Mark Lawrence’s Book of the Ancestor series. She’s not an assassin, but Rin is a tough-as-nails overachiever and morally gray decision maker—she doesn’t bat an eyelash over parting with an adorable pig she carries to the mountaintop every day for endurance training, she self-inflicts wounds to stay awake in order to cram for the Empire’s Keju test, and she is so devoted to being the best solider of her class that she gives up her ability to bear children.

In other words, we have a memorable heroine who makes messy and difficult choices! Rin is very much the heart of this story and I was heavily invested in Part I to see what our peasant underdog would do next to survive at Sinegard, the elite military school of the Nikara Empire (a fantasy depiction of China made up of provinces named after the Zodiac and influenced by the Second Sino-Japanese War and the consequences of the opium trade).

Part I of this book is an excellent thrill ride. Against all odds, peasant orphan Fang Runin “Rin” (Mao Zedong influenced) scores high enough on the Empire’s merit test to earn a spot in the elite military school Sinegard, where the best in the Empress’s army are forged to face threats from the Federation of Mugen (Japan influenced) and Hesperia (The West influenced). Rin is a firecracker. While she forges one friendship with the adorable and strategic genius Kitay, she’s largely set against a hostile upper class who despises everything about her from her dark skin down to her impudence to take a spot away from one of their own. Rin largely responds to these threats with her fists, especially tangling with wealthy rival Nezha more than once (and yet, she also can’t help but notice how handsome he is, cuing Zuko reform arch on the horizon!)

Rin is also drawn to the mysterious and powerful Altan, an upper classman who defeats any opponent he faces. He comes from Speer (Taiwan influenced), and is one of the only survivors of the island nation after a horrific explosion, rumored to be tied to the merciless deity known as the Phoenix. More painful still is the Nikara Empire’s hidden role in Speer’s demise. As Rin delves further into her studies, she discovers her own connection to the disturbing powers of the Phoenix and her aptitude for shamanism, which leads the eclectic and humorous Master Jiang to take her under his wing.

Like I said, Part I is a rousing page turner that doesn’t shy away from the consequences of war and establishing Rin as a character who will follow through on her actions no matter the cost. I loved the conversations about strategy and the tests of the academy, as well as her relationship with Master Jiang.

Unfortunately, the book detours in the second half. After developing Sinegard and Rin’s classmates so well in Part I, the story suddenly does an about face after the Federation attacks. Rin is dropped into the middle of war, which could have worked, except she’s assigned to a special Shamanistic branch of the Empress’s service called the Cike. Kuang now has to develop an entirely new set of characters in the Cike, who each have their own magical powers. We’re essentially starting over watching Rin build relationships with each of them—in the middle of a war, which should be when the urgency is at its highest. Instead, this approach to introduce an entirely new set of comrades throws off the pacing and tension, and also leaves the reader confused, not invested, and wondering what’s going on with Nezha, Kitay, and Venka. Rin as well undergoes a facelift of sorts being quite submissive toward her new leader, Altan, as the Phoenix pulls them in different directions and pushes them to answer how far they will go to win the war.

Nevertheless, this is great military fantasy and I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of Rin’s school friends and enemies. The series continues in The Dragon Republic and The Burning God. For more on historical influences behind The Poppy War, check out this great post by Kevin Kaichuang Yang here: https://readbytiffany.com/2020/11/15/everything-you-need-to-know-before-you-read-the-poppy-war-by-r-f-kuang/

Recommended for fans of: Fonda Lee, Alison Goodman, Mark Lawrence, and Jay Kristoff

April 2021 Book Review: Beasts Made of Night

BEASTS MADE OF NIGHT

by Tochi Onyebuchi

~Book Review~

*WARNING! CONTAINS SPOILERS!*



GUILT. RESENTMENT. SHAME. Our past mistakes can make us sick, and in Taj’s world, actually take the form of sin-beasts, shadowy creatures of nightmare that wage destruction. The city of Kos uses magicians to draw out the sin from the rich and makes the lower class sin-eaters destroy the sin-beasts, imprinting a memory of the sin in their skins.

Taj is the most talented of sin-eaters, who has withstood even the colossal sins that take on the forms of dragons. However, his skills and uncanny ability to connect with the sin-beasts earns royal attention and draws him into a plot to destroy Kos…

The idea at the foundation of Beasts Made of Night is excellent. Taj feels wholly organic, born from the city and does all he can to survive with cocky flair without ever sacrificing his loyalty to the community he’s grown up with. There were quite a few unique characters. With a bit more time and restructuring, this book has potential to be a truly exceptional book.

However, the execution fails it. The idea of “sin” manifesting as guilt that can make a person physically ill is so fascinating, but it’s never explored. For example, what is considered a sin in this world? There is a passing reference of a council that defines morality, but it is never articulated. If “sin” only comes from feeling guilty, then why the heck are so many of the rich upper class the ones with the most extravagant sin-beasts? Are they shaving their guilt over decisions they make for the city, and if so, why don’t we see more of that awareness battling within them? What about people who are sociopathic or psychopathic and don’t feel guilty about committing actions like murder? Is sin even the best word to describe what’s going on with these beasts?

While I was trying to figure this out, the story moved along at a lurching pace that just couldn’t find its plot. There were a couple key relationships that really stood out: Taj’s relationship with Bo, who is his lifelong friend and fellow sin-eater, and surprisingly, a meeting halfway through the story with the mysterious Zainab, an experienced sin-eater with a spider tattoo on her face. Honestly, I felt that in that meeting between Taj and Zainab, that’s where the story should have started. There was incredible potential there with the pitying look she gave him and her no-nonsense approach to training that could have organized the story in a more coherent way.

However, that’s a bit of the issue with this novel—there are many ideas circulating and too many characters, and the result is a discordant plot. If it was just a focus on these characters + Azru (loved the scene with the peppers!) and Aliya, who also had unique relationships with Taj, that would have been enough to unpack right there.

As it is, the book ends in a confusing battle, and although I wasn’t surprised by the “true” villain—can’t trust those overly sweet characters!—the impact fell flat since there hadn’t been any time spent on developing the villain’s motivations on a more complex level.

All in all, really excited to see what this author does in the future. The imagination and characters are fierce, but there needs to be more fine tuning in the execution.

Recommended for fans of: Nnedi Okorafor, Tomi Adeyemi, Rick Riordan

March 2021 Book Review: Gods of Jade and Shadow

Gods of Jade and Shadow

By Silvia Moreno-Garcia

~Book Review~

*WARNING! CONTAINS SPOILERS!*

ONE OF THE MOST INTRIGUING UNDERWORLDS is Xibalba, the Place of Fear (or Place of Astonishment), that holds a memorable place in Maya mythology. Ruled by the death gods Hun-Kamé and his brother Vucub-Kamé (older translations can be Hun-Camé and Vucub-Kamé), Xibalba promises the most tribulations and tricks a soul can find oneself up against, what with a treacherous Black Road, frightful Houses full of jaguars, bats, and flying blades, and a ballcourt where the losing team pays with their lives. It is evocative of the struggles of life amongst teeming jungles of biodiversity, but it has a softer side, too, as Moreno-Garcia explores in Gods of Jade and Shadow.

Set in the Jazz Age, the story begins with a Cinderella flair of sorts with Casiopea Tun stuck serving the whims of her grandfather’s demanding family in a small town in southern Mexico. While dreaming of a life far from this one, Casiopea finds a mysterious box in her grandfather’s house and unwittingly releases Hun-Kamé, deposed ruler of Xibalba. Turns out that Casiopea’s grandfather threw in with Hun-Kamé’s ambitious brother Vucub-Kamé to overthrow the death god and scatter his body parts so he could never return. Undaunted to find himself in the age of flappers and cabaret, Hun-Kamé wastes no time enlisting Casiopea to help him recover his missing body parts so he may retake his place on the Jade Palace throne. However, Vucub-Kamé is alerted to his brother’s release and enlists Casiopea’s loathsome cousin Martin to stop them.

Hands down, the most exhilarating part of the story is at the end when Casiopea competes against Martin to travel Xibalba’s Black Road and reach the World Tree first. Also, any part that features Xibalba. The writing style is lyrical but tells instead of shows, making it difficult to connect with any of the characters. The characters felt like they had no heart, and it was hard to tell Hun-Kamé’s voice/character apart from his brother (as opposed to the wonderful drawn rivalry of say, Mufasa and Scar in The Lion King). Indeed, there wasn’t much justification for why Vucub-Kamé should be overthrown—had the underworld eroded under his care? Was he oppressing his demon subjects or being more horrific to souls than usual? It’s not explored which brother would be the better ruler aside from birthright. Why did Vucub-Kamé want to get rid of Hun-Kamé aside from his own ambition? That’s the level we’re missing to really understand the heart of their relationship.

The plot doesn’t help, as it follows a simplistic formula of 1) collect this body part from forgettable demon minion A, and 2) repeat for demons B – C. There wasn’t much of a struggle or tension built up in any of these face-offs. The Jazz Age’s influence was told to us rather than flowing as a natural part of the story, and Martin is about as formidable as an old sock.

However, Hun-Kamé and Casiopea’s slow burn romance is sweet, and Casiopea refreshingly has plenty of spunk and agency. She doesn’t take sh*t and isn’t afraid to speak up in the overtly patriarchal world. The story wraps up in a satisfying conclusion, but the biggest drawback is the woodenness of the characters and the lack of heart, as we constantly feel like we’re being kept at arm’s length from any raw emotion. Granted, this is tough when writing “distant” god-like characters. Overall, Moreno-Garcia has spun a classic tale that expertly balances both the fear and beauty of Xibalba.

Recommended for fans of: N.K. Jemisin, Rick Riordan, and Aliette de Bodard

February 2021 Book Review: Trail of Lightning

TRAIL OF LIGHTNING

By Rebecca Roanhorse

~Book Review~

*WARNING! CONTAINS SPOILERS!*

YOU MEAN TO TELL ME that a cataclysmic flood destroys the world as we know it, leading to the rebirth of the Navajo Nation in a mysterious and dangerous Sixth World where gods and monsters reclaim the earth? I am totally here for this. The tension is real!

On the world-building front, Roanhorse knocks it out of the park. The descriptions of the desert, the mesas, the forests of ponderosa and blue spruce carpeting lonely peaks, are all utterly gorgeous, and there is a constant air of menace as ghosts and children-eating monsters roam the hills. Descendants of clans inherit specific magical powers to help them survive their gritty and post-apocalyptic reality, and we get a wise-cracking Coyote who has an invested interest in our heroine Maggie Hoskie.

However, the plot quickly splits into too many threads as the book struggles with what it wants to be. What seems to be a promising monster slaying adventure/mystery gets derailed by an unnecessary love triangle that overtakes the initial premise. Someone is behind the release of increasingly dangerous monsters upon Dinétah, and loner monster slayer Maggie Hoskie teams up with medicine man Kai to investigate.

A common complaint I’ve had of late is the main character proves to be the least engaging, and Trail of Lightning continues my frustrations. Initially I liked Maggie Hoskie, Dinétah monster hunter with lineage gifts of supernatural speed and bloodlust. Despite being quite humorless, she kicked ass, and I was sucked in by the promise of a dark and tangled relationship with her former mysterious mentor, Neizgháni.

Here’s where the issue came in: this book seemed like it should have started with her training and adventures with Neizgháni. The flashbacks with him take up such a significant part of the book that it begs the question why this wasn’t the original storyline in the first place. The consequence is we keep being told about this deep connection they had, as well as how betrayed she feels by him, that we’re dying to have the two reunite already (Never mind what’s happening with Maggie and present day traveling companion Kai). The former mentor-student reunion doesn’t happen until the last quarter of the book, and when it does, it’s in this weird stand-off in a monster dueling ring where he kisses her out of the blue. It feels quite out of left field for someone who had been so carefully guarded about his emotions before.

It also leads to the book taking an abrupt turn toward romance and resolving the love triangle between Maggie, Neizgháni, and good guy healer Kai. This felt like such a departure from Maggie’s character to suddenly be so held up by boyz, and it left the end of the book feeling messy, as if it wasn’t quite sure what it wanted to be.

It would have been interesting for Neizgháni to have joined Maggie and Kai at the start of their investigation into the monsters, and keep these three as the focal point to really flesh out their relationships. Instead, the plot gets constantly distracted by side quests that we don’t really care about, and at the end, it’s a bit confusing when the main quest gets addressed almost as if by accident. I didn’t buy the villain’s true goal; it seemed a very complicated way to get what he wanted.

This book is still easy to get lost in, and although the urban fantasy aspects and romance’s fight to take over the driver’s seat distracted the plot, I am still excited to see where Roanhorse goes in future installments of The Sixth World series, such as Storm of Locusts.

Recommended for fans of: Patricia Briggs, Ilona Andrews, Karsten Knight, and Tony Hillerman

January 2021 Book Review: Labyrinth Lost

LABYRINTH LOST (Brooklyn Brujas)

By Zoraida Córdova 

~Book Review~ 

*WARNING! CONTAINS SPOILERS!*


THERE’S NOTHING IN A YOUNG WITCH’S LIFE like making your entire family disappear on your Deathday. Alex is a Bruja waiting to inherit her powers, but unlike her sisters (psychic Rose and healer Lula), she would rather not have anything to do with magic. After her attempt to rid herself of her powers during her Deathday goes wrong, banishing her family to the underworld of Los Lagos, Alex teams up with a mysterious Brujo named Nova and her best friend Rishi to save them from the power-hungry Devourer.

I’ve been on an underworld kick and can’t get enough! Los Lagos proves to be no exception, full of perils like a lost soul river, misunderstood harpies, and everlasting festivities with fairy folk in a seemingly cheerful meadow. It’s easy to get immersed in Córdova’s writing, which neatly balances plot with world-building and has an easy, straightforward style.

The most intriguing character by far is Nova. He’s the bad boy archetype who actually executes on it, and displays genuine remorse after. He felt the most fleshed-out and sympathetic to get invested in. Rishi was interesting as well, incredibly loyal and brave to pursue Alex into the underworld without magic powers. As is a common trend in YA novels, our main character Alex proves to be the weakest of the three. Suffering from insecurity, awkward dialogue, and a brooding, harsh personality, she’s difficult to warm up to, and indeed, the biggest mystery was why both Nova and Rishi would be so into her. It’s difficult to make the reluctant heroine character work when the audience is here for the magic and thrill of having supernatural powers, and Alex comes up short in this regard.

But it matters not! We have a great supporting group of characters including the spirited Lula, cynical harpies, and the mysterious world of Los Lagos itself. The Devourer is a bit one-dimensional but it’s nevertheless interesting to learn the backstory behind her desire to reshape the underworld in her image. Best of all, the other two books in Brooklyn Brujas (Bruja Born and Wayward Witch) focus on the more engaging characters of Lula and Rose, as well as include appearances by the enigmatic Nova.

Overall, this book is fun and all about Alex defining her place in her family, both blood born and made. Latinix influences (Alex is of Ecuadorian and Puerto Rican background) intermix with modern day Brooklyn to create an atmosphere brimming with magic and mystery, where Deos walk among skyscrapers and the spirit world is just a spell’s cast away.

Recommended for fans of: Daniel José Older, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, and Sarah Fine

December 2020 Book Review: The Star-Touched Queen

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, everyone! Last Book Review of 2020!

THE STAR-TOUCHED QUEEN

By Roshani Chokshi

~Book Review~

*Warning! Contains Spoilers!*



IMMERSE YOURSELF in a retelling of classic love-lost romance that is lush, atmospheric, and driven by mystery. Drawing from Hindu mythology such as the tale of Savitri and Satyavan, and Shiva and Parvati, Chokshi weaves an underworld adventure that takes you to a throne room woven of stars, down passages filled with doors whispering about secrets of the past, and into the heart of self-discovery.

Chokshi writes with vivid purple prose that flares into the over-dramatic at times, but at others it strikes just the right chord to illuminate heroine Maya’s struggles with self-worth. She is a princess, but despite being the son of the raja, her life is bleak due to being born under a dark horoscope that partners her with Death. The courtiers and the raja’s wives blame her for every misfortune.

On her wedding day, Maya chooses a mysterious suitor Amar who promises her a kingdom with magic and power beyond her wildest dreams, who swears that if she becomes his queen, she will be an equal in all decisions. However, it is in a land beyond the strange Night Bazar where wishes can be granted for your voice or first child, in a place entirely otherworldly. In this kingdom called Akaran, Maya must learn the inner workings of a beautiful tapestry that contains all the life threads of every being to preserve balance between realms. But a mysterious woman haunts Maya, warning that her new husband is really her captor.

I enjoyed this book and found it difficult to put down. I found the mystery of Akaran and Maya and Amar’s past lives to be riveting, and I really wanted to know what the deal was between them and Nritti. This was quite a feat, since the characters of Maya and Amar are underdeveloped. Maya is self-loathing and makes many questionable decisions, including trusting Nritti (in both present and former lives when she has full knowledge of her motivations). The best scene is when Maya confronts her father in the underworld about their tragic relationship. Amar is a cardboard personality who I could never quite get a sense of, and the romance is vanilla. I thought it would have been an interesting twist if Nritti ended up being the “dark side” of Maya, or if Amar did have ill intentions, which would have spiced things up and given the main characters not only flaws but agency to act upon them.

However, the story works despite the lackluster leads since the world itself is a character in its own right, and I loved the little details like the elephant who knits clouds and the flesh-eating demon horse. I was hoping the makara (sea dragon) would show up—but maybe that is in the next book.

Speaking of which, Maya’s younger sister Gauri did have a great spark. While this book is a standalone, Chokshi’s second novel in this world, A Crown of Wishes, follows her and a boy Maya sees possible futures for.

Overall, Chokshi’s signature style is like an unfurling love letter, dreamy and full of little currents that delight, and you can expect to be fully submerged in worlds far beyond this one.

Recommended for fans of: Maggie Stiefvater, Renée Ahdieh, Laini Taylor, and Sarah J. Maas

July 2020 Book Review: Welcome to Night Vale

Mostly Void, Partially Stars: Welcome to Night Vale Episodes, Volume 1

By Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor

~Book Review~

WHAT IS NIGHT VALE, you ask? It is that quirky place at the intersection of the banal and the great unknown, waxing poetic about the lamentations of the living while mowing the lawn. A sci fi Monty Python, or Twilight Zone social commentary with humor. Dragons running for mayor. A domineering Glow Cloud heading up the PTA. And the interns, bless them; too many intern heads role. Such is life.

It’s great storytelling, and it’s great writing. We get to know the residents of this small town in the middle of a desert through the local radio broadcaster Cecil. We have Old Woman Josie, who is dealing with angels who’ve taken up in her home for mysterious reasons; the city council who forbids entrance to the Dog Park for mysterious reasons; outsider scientist Carlos, who is desperate to make sense of the mysterious reasons but in whom Cecil’s interests are not so mysterious—and even you, the reader, make an appearance.

Originally a podcast, each chapter is an episode with an introduction into the minds of the creators, and each episode ends with a humorously wise quote commenting on the absurdity and weirdness of life itself. One of my favorite episodes is about “the Dark Planet,” which filled me will all sorts of delicious chills and curiosity.

If I had any critique, I feel the segments on traffic could have been a bit more humorous and engaging. But, maybe that is me wanting to project my own frustrations about getting stuck in traffic so frequently.

For writers everywhere, this is a fantastic example of how to overcome writer’s block—introduce a bit of chaos. Turn things on their head. Make it wacky and fun. There is a Faceless Old Woman who Secretly lives in your home, a forest that does not want you to leave, and there may not be answers for any of these things, but we can take comfort in the very resilient human nature that insists on preserving through all of the strangeness by embracing it all.

Recommended for fans of: Monty Python, Twilight Zone, Twin Peaks

June 2020 Book Review: Into the Magic Shop

Into the Magic Shop: A Neurosurgeon's Quest to Discover the Mysteries of the Brain and the Secrets of the Heart

By James R. Doty

~Book Review~

THIS IS A BOOK IMPORTANT for this time. For times when you’re hurting. For times when you’re scared. For every time.

I think a lot now about the people we are when we pick up certain books. I began reading this book when my family member fighting colon cancer recommended it. Said family member devours books as if they’re candy, and so by now, I’ve heard of so many incredible novels that I’ve lost hope of ever catching up.

This time when he made a recommendation to me, I heard him. I wanted this connection between us. I opened the book.

The opening chapter I read aloud to my husband. A neurosurgeon is faced with the delicate operation of removing a tumor from the brain of a four year old. The operating room is brought to life with the sounds, the crunches. They should teach us the sounds a head makes as it’s opening up, Doty tells us, and it’s gruesomely fascinating.

My husband winced after every other sentence and commented this seems extremely graphic.

My response was now that’s great writing.

I’ve always wondered about people who enter careers of the highest stress level. Pilots. Police Officers. Astronauts. Doctors. They’re decision makers. Lives depend on decisions they need to make in a split moment. Doty dives into this form of hypervigilance and the road he took to achieve such focus: which begins with a summer spent in a strip mall magic shop. It begins with his anger, his frustration at an inability to control the chain of events swallowing his family. It begins with his trust in a stranger named Ruth.

From their relationship, Doty learns the deepest magic: how to control what controls us in our everyday lives—the brain. It’s an earnestly compelling account of Doty’s life—how he balanced a dysfunctional family life and jobs with school, fighting for the chance to go to medical school, succeeding beyond his wildest dreams, and losing it all—only to discover that his real dream he had yet to achieve.

It’s a message on kindness. On patience. On what brings meaning to life.

It’s about the beautiful relationship between the brain and the heart, interwoven in the language of neuroscience.

If you’ve ever wondered what goes through the mind of a surgeon, then this book is a riveting place to start. It is an argument for compassion and empathy, a message that can never be shared enough.

Recommended for fans of: Dalai Lama, Michelle Obama, Oprah, medical memoir

March 2020 Book Review: The Ship of the Dead

THE SHIP OF THE DEAD

Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard, #3

By Rick Riordan

~Book Review~

Warning! Spoilers!

MY MOTHER introduced me to Norse mythology early through opera. It was an uphill battle for her to find someone willing to go to an opera in our family, as our first question was inevitability, “How long is it?” I was intrigued by the drama and memorable arias of Georges Bizet’s “Carmen,” and so she lured me to the boss level: Richard Wagner's “The Ring Cycle.” She knew that I was a fan of The Lord of Rings, and so it proved an easy sell to young me, since anything involving devious deities and magic rings held my interest.

Norse tales didn’t entrance younger me quite as much as Greek, Maya, Navajo, and Egyptian mythos, and the 17 hour total of Wagner’s Ring Cycle broke me—that’s not counting trying to escape from the parking garage. Through the years, I’ve circled back to it, wanting to fall in love with the Nine Worlds, ice giants, and the doomsday serpent Jörmungandr. It might have taken Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston to play Thor and Loki in the Marvel interpretation, but now I am here for it. It has been a delight uncovering layer after layer of legend wreathed with tragedy, betrayal, and hubris. Maybe I’m ready to give “The Ring Cycle” another shot.

Most recently, I finished Rick Riordan’s Gods of Asgard trilogy, and it’s a comedic treat. I really loved Magnus, but Alex Fierro is one of the most memorable characters I’ve encountered in quite some time. This series is probably my favorite since the original Percy Jackson and the Olympians. I actually feel like the second installment The Hammer of Thor was the strongest in terms of instilling the tension and threat of Loki, who is set on starting Ragnarök, the great battle to end life as we know it, but The Ship of the Dead proved a satisfying finale while leaving the door open just a little for when we might see our heroes again.

Magnus is the son of Frey, God of Summer, and that has been an enjoyable path to focus on a hero who isn’t the best fighter and is more the healing-regeneration type. He has two fabulous friends to help on the battlefront: the shapeshifting half-siblings Alex and Samirah “Sam” al-Abbas, children of Loki. Rounding out their crew are the lovable dwarf Blitzen and my personal favorite, the elf Hearthstone.

The book may have been stronger if it kept focused on the core group. We also do have Thomas Jefferson Jr. and Mallory Keen who join them on a nautical journey to stop Loki from launching the doomsday Ship of the Dead (created out of fingernails, there’s an image for ya). As much as I enjoyed hearing about their backstories, and Mallory’s emotional response when confronted with her Norse parent was particularly well done, it did inflate the book and was a bit lost under everything else that was happening: wolf fights, tangles with underseas giants, Hearthstone facing his father, and a plethora of other quests. Add on top of that new Norse characters and deities making an appearance, and it was difficult to keep track of everyone. Loki’s menace felt a bit deflated with everything else going on, as by the time the heroes face the famous trickster again, I felt a bit out of breath—these kids got fortitude!

However, I loved that “flyting” was the key to Loki’s downfall. Early on, Magnus trains with demigod celebs Percy Jackson and Annabelle Chase with the blade, but he’s not the best. Flyting stayed consistent with Magnus’s character and let the rest of his crew showcase their strengths.

The relationships were rock solid. Sam and Amir stay true to each other and are utterly adorable. I like that Amir is the normal guy but supports Sam how he can. I liked Sam’s arch of balancing her dual heritage as she navigates incorporating practices of her Islamic faith like Ramadan with a Valkyrie save-the-world quest. I’ve always loved Magnus and Alex. They are utterly fascinated with each other, and little by little, they push and pull on one another, and ultimately can’t think of anyone else they’d rather be with. Magnus comes to know when Alex, who is genderfluid, is identifying as a boy or a girl, and Alex comes to trust Magnus after a hard and difficult life. Their interactions were the most captivating.

As such, Ship of the Dead is written in Riordan’s signature style of irreverent, edge-of-your seat, nonstop action mission after mission—perhaps too many—but the emotional depth was there in the finale. I’m excited for what Rick will do next.


Recommended for fans of: J.K. Rowling, Christopher Paolini, Roshani Chokshi

January 2018 Book Review: The Cursed Child

THE CURSED CHILD

By J. K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, and John Tiffany

~Book Review~ 

*Warning! Major Spoilers Ahead!*

MULTITUDES SWARMED OVER THIS SCRIPT, eager to relive the magic and wonder of J.K. Rowling’s much beloved Harry Potter series. I still remember the day Book One hit the shelves of our classroom, and our 6^th grade teacher read Chapter 1 to us. By that afternoon I had already checked out a copy from the library and devoured it page to page.

It had everything I enjoyed in a fantasy book back then. Sympathetic protagonist with tragic back story who may not be so ordinary? Check. A magic school with a hat that sorts you into houses? Awesome. A secret wizarding world hidden amongst the alleys of London where you can buy things like wands and owls? Double check. A nasty but oddly endearing school rival? Sign me up. Two loyal best mates to stick it to school rival and go on crazy adventures with you? I’m liking this. A Hagrid? Triple check. Don’t even get me started on the unpleasant but riveting antics of Snape!

Years later in England I may have been one of those ultra fans who dressed up like a witch to attend a Harry Potter release party for The Goblet of Fire. I let that slip to my spouse recently and he said with a look of terror: “You never told me this before we got married.”

Yeah, you’re stuck with me now, buddy.

So in today’s gritty surreal day and age where the times I could get lost in a Rowling book are a distant golden memory, I was guardedly cautious to read The Cursed Child. I finished it, too, in a day like I had The Sorcerer’s Stone.

Unfortunately it was for all the wrong reasons.

This is a play, so it is all dialogue based. I thought for Harry Potter I could handle that, but I realized the reason I fell in love with this wizarding world is because of the world-building. Each book would introduce something new, like the chocolate frogs, to gillyweed, to the Marauder’s Map, to the Whomping Willow, to time-turners for Hermoine to make it all of her classes, and it all left me thinking “Clever. That is so clever! Love it!”

This play is more of a homage to all of the past magical objects and plot devices of Rowling’s world but doesn’t introduce anything new (unless you count the Trolley Witch *shudders*). It focuses on family relationships for the Potters’ child Albus and Draco’s child Scorpius to learn that they are fine just the way they are.

Albus is having a woe-is-me crisis because he is the son of the legendary Harry Potter who ends up in Slytherin. (First world problems.) Scorpius is suffering as well under rumors that he is the son of Voldemort. In a well-intentioned attempt to change things for the better, they steal a time turner from the Ministry of Magic and go back in time to stop Voldemort from killing Cedric Diggory. Naturally, neither of this pair is Hermoine Granger, so they end up dooming the future to a number of frightful Voldemort eras until Albus and his father Harry can reconcile.

*Too* much is crammed in. Every character, even Ludo Bago, gets some dialogue time, and the result is that no character outside of Albus, Scorpius, and Harry feels developed. There is particularly a lack of Rose Granger-Weasley (hey, if they’re going to pay homage to everything from Polyjuice potion to dementors then might as well have a heroic trio). It felt like doing fan service to the events of the old series as a whole and every character gets their cameo—but the result is an oversimplified jumble of events rather than a cohesive story.

The villain (and I liked the idea of Voldemort having a daughter!) dampens the whole message of the play: that you have the freewill to choose who you want to be. Because of course, any child of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named must choose to be unequivocally evil. After we’ve seen that being in Slytherin doesn’t mean you’re destined to be a dark wizard and being the son of Draco Malfoy doesn’t mean you are a douche (love Draco’s growth, by the way! He felt more mature than Harry – fatherhood has been good for him!), then along comes Voldemort’s daughter and she is bad to the bone. (At one point, Albus tells Scorpius he can’t be the son of Voldemort because he can’t believe Voldemort would ever have a kind child, which is downer news for the all the Voldemort spawn wandering around out there). It would have more hit the message home and been entertaining if it was a villainous Hufflepuff on the loose. Or, for this story’s sake, an evil Gryffindor.

(Love that my computer spell check has all of the House names in its dictionary, by the way.)

Anyway, if you are going to read this play, which, if you grew up with Harry Potter and the gang, then you probably are, those are my fair warnings. Don’t expect too much. Don’t get too hung up on all the time travel inconsistencies. Don’t pout too much when your favorite character doesn’t get much stage time. Just absorb, smile at the witty lines, and take a moment to fondly remember the Triwizard Tournament, Diagon Alley, Hogwarts, Platform Nine and Three Quarters…then move on.   

Recommended for fans of: reminiscing about the good old Harry Potter days

Upcoming Book Review: For 2018, stay tuned for reads on new genres in addition to fantasy/paranormal including non-fiction!  

December 2017 Book Review: Glimmerglass

GLIMMERGLASS

By Jenna Black

~Book Review~

AVALON has a mesmerizing allure to it, a mysterious city in Britain where magic comes to life. For teenage Dana who has an embittered relationship with her alcoholic mother, she is willing to travel behind the curtain with her fey father and enter the court of faerie.

However, she soon discovers that she is a Faeriewalker who can bring magic into the human world and technology into Avalon. Her rare ability makes her a target, but luckily she befriends fey siblings Ethan and Kimber to help uncover the mystery of who is behind the attacks on her life.

The story is fairly predictable but the core characters are amusing and memorable. I like that Dana and Kimber team up and develop a close friendship, Dana’s bodyguard Finn was the typical close-mouthed serious warrior which I’m always a sucker for, and Dana’s teacher Keane was entertaining with his I-love-you/I-hate-you routine with Dana. Tragically, he’s not the main love interest – that falls to Ethan, Kimber’s brother, who is pretty banal, irritates Dana (but makes her swoon as well!), leaving just the reader still sorely irritated. He didn’t seem to have much going on besides his abs.

The world-building in Glimmerglass reminded me of Eoin Colfer’s Artemis Fowl series. It felt college-age, contemporary, with faerie student dorm houses, modern references name dropped here and there, and a focus on hormones over plot. However, it was a neat concept to explore magic v. technology and what would happen if Dana brought over guns into the faerie land?

Overall, a swift and entertaining read, but for fantasy fans who want more in-depth faerie world building, check out Julie Kagawa’s Iron Fey series.

Recommended for fans of: Carrie Jones, Alexandra Adornetto, Lauren Kate

Upcoming Book Review: The Cursed Child by J. K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, and John Tiffany

November 2017 Book Review: Nightshade

NIGHTSHADE

By Andrea Cremer

~Book Review~

*Warning! Spoilers!*

THIS BOOK IS PARANORMAL CANDY. I binge-read the Nightshade series, cursed violently at the romantic turn of events in the final book, and then tried to get into the Nightshade prequels but just couldn’t. The reason being, the world-building was interesting, but what really hooked me in the main series was the secondary characters.

The similarities to Twilight are striking, but in the right way. The chemistry between Calla and alpha wolf Rem was smokin’, the bond the other wolves had with Calla touching, and the relationship between the werewolves and the Keepers tense enough to keep things interesting. This really is a case where the secondary characters grow in your heart much more than the main duo do, alpha Calla and the human boy she saves from a bear attack, Shay. So naturally, it’s a bit more painful to experience all the bad stuff that usually happens to secondary protagonists, but it’s definitely the type of series that’s addictive.

Calla is a Guardian, an alpha werewolf who serve as protectors for the sorcerous Keepers in a world laden with monsters. She is the betrothed of fellow alpha Ren, who, much like Cassian from Sophie Jordan’s Firelight series (identical plot but with dragon shifters) is much more complex and interesting than whiny, bland Shay. Unfortunately for us all, Calla spots the human Shay wandering around the woods and instead of letting a bear eat him, saves him and thus sets off a forbidden love triangle that will take three books to be resolved.

There is a bit more action in this book than Firelight. Calla unfortunately doesn’t live up to her bad-ass potential in fighting but instead exhibits a bad temper instead, so don’t expect much from her. However, at least we have Ren, Ansel, Bryn, Mason, and Fey who aren’t afraid to get their paws dirty. Tensions flare as motivations behind why the Keepers need Calla and Ren’s marital pack merge and who is the real manipulating enemy come to a head.

Overall an enjoyable read with addictive paranormal romance flair and memorable secondary characters.

Recommended for fans of: Stephanie Meyer, Sophie Jordan, and Courtney Moulton

Upcoming Book Review: Glimmerglass by Jenna Black

October 2017 Book Review: The Girl in the Steel Corset

The Girl in the Steel Corset

By Kate Locke

~Book Review~

Warning! Minor spoilers! 

FINLEY JAYNE, our late 19^th century English heroine, can knock full-grown men out cold in a corset made out of steel, no less. No wonder she is ill-tempered. Paying homage to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as well as reminiscent of Oliver Twist, Kate Locke’s steampunk The Girl in the Steel Corset introduces us to a group of peculiar outsiders, whose newest addition thrashes back and forth between her good and evil natures.

The first couple chapters are exhilarating, as there is nothing more satisfying than seeing a leering brute get taken out by someone he underestimates. Once serving girl Finley comes back to the reality that she has defended herself against someone of upper class, she goes on the run to escape the consequences. She meets Griffin King, who takes her under his wing like the Artful Dodger, and meets fellow uncanny miscreants such as a part-robot and a genius inventor.

Unfortunately, it is here that the book begins to lose its suspense and the plot slows to a meandering crawl around a very surface level exploration of the characters’ lives. There is a shadowy villain, the Machinist, who, predictably, lurks from the shadows and doesn’t effectively establish himself as a menacing threat. Sam, who is part-robot, is super-charged aggressively hostile toward Emily, an inventor, and by the end of it, I still wasn’t convinced as to his reasons for being so. It just made him immensely dislikeable. And Griffin was a bland leader with none of the Artful Dodger’s charm.

All of the potential of Finley’s dual character is lost as she is relegated to share the stage with Griffin’s point of view. It would be an interesting exercise if Griffin didn’t exist and Finley served as the sole main character, gathering the other misfits to her side, and having a more personal, intense relationship with the Machinist in order to build up the tension. Griffin didn’t really serve as anything, certainly not as the fascinating subtle bad influence like the Dodger demonstrated, like the type of mentor who seemingly has good intentions, but whom the more naive “Oliver” character (Finley) needs to learn to establish her independence against. Rather, he just served as a disinteresting romantic prospect and not essential to the plot. Without Griffin, I would venture to say that Finley’s other romantic interest, the swaggering Cockney crime lord Jack Dandy, would still have given the story enough spice.

As such, I am hesitant to continue the series, as the stage is just too over-crowded to provide a more intense, deeper characterization of not just the protagonists, but even of the steampunk world itself. The Girl in the Steel Corset feels like it is trying to be too many things (a romance, a steampunk noir mystery, a philosophical struggle between good and evil natures), and in the end, leaves none of them memorable. I would recommend the series to readers looking for a more light-hearted, slow-paced romance with bits of steampunk magic here and there.

Recommended for fans of: Cassandra Clare, Colleen Houck, and Shelley Adina

Upcoming Book Review: Nightshade by Andrea Cremer 

September 2017 Book Review: The Grimm Legacy

The Grimm Legacy
By Polly Shulman
~Book Review~ 

*Warning! Spoilers!

THIS IS A HEART-WARMING middle school read in the vein of modern-day fairy tales. Elizabeth is lonely and has trouble fitting into a new school but her luck perks up when she accepts a job at a mysterious repository where patrons check out ancient artifacts instead of books. However, Elizabeth soon catches on that some of the artifacts are far from normal. When objects belonging to these “special” collections start going missing, suspicion falls on her group of newfound repository friends.

The Grimm Legacy is a nice change of pace. Light-hearted, fun, and full of curious rooms to explore like the Garden of Seasons or the sci-fi chamber with its own shrink ray, I was endlessly entertained by where Elizabeth would end up next. Of course, the star of the repository is the Grimm Collection, full of cauldrons that can make delicious meals, seven league boots, and magic carpets. I was mentally urging Elizabeth to hurry up and discover its secret, but eventually, she realizes how much of a unique job she has undertaken. Elizabeth has a well-depicted diverse group of friends with the lovely, intelligent Anjali, handsome jock type Marc who struggles to juggle family obligations, and the sarcastically humorous Aaron. Elizabeth learns to speak up for herself and not to be bossed around by others, especially once it becomes clear that not everyone’s interest in the Grimm Collection is benign. However, it is Anjali’s younger sister Jaya who most often steals the scene, declaring herself the defender of the group by handcrafting special “protection” knots as they go after the artifact thieves.

The charm and creativity of this book is something lacking in many fantasy tales these days that feel like a flat rehash of other authors’ ideas. I felt like I was reading something more along the lines of Harry Potter with the spark and right touch of magic to make the pages fly by. Much recommended when you’re in the mood for a slower read that takes its time to reveal a wondrous secret world.

Recommended for fans of: Lloyd Alexander, JK Rowling, Terry Brooks

Upcoming Book Review: The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kate Locke

August 2017 Book Review: Antigoddess

Antigoddess

By Kendare Blake

~Book Review~

 

IN YA FANTASY WE HAVE SEEN GREEK GODS go through a modern day make-over like in Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series or star as tortured love interests (mainly Hades) such as in Aimee Carter’s The Goddess Test. However, what if they started to die off?

Arguably much of their relevance already has, but it is a fantastic perspective to base a series around. I really enjoyed the dynamic between the two main character deities, Athena and Hermes, who discover they have begun to deteriorate in horrifically painful ways. Athena has wings sprouting in her lungs, for (gods’) sakes! What happened to Demeter really made me cringe. So I was excited for the quest as Athena and Hermes set out to find the source of their unraveling immortality. Along the way, a rift ruptures between Athena and those deities trying to solve the mystery, and those gods who have sided with the enemy.

Then there is Cassandra. *Sigh*. The story would have been better off without her, in my opinion. She is a typical judgy, charmless human protagonist who knows better than anyone else (definitely knows more than these gods who’ve been around a millennium) but, as Fate would unluckily have it, she is a Seer tied to the gods’ fate. That means we get chapters of her judging other people at parties, judging other people in her house, and judging anyone who tries to make her do anything. Very endearing sort, but just skim through her chapters. Luckily she’s not the sole POV.

The story is told with a stark, bloody boldness that is refreshing. You can feel the unpleasant prickle of feathers prickling along the roof of your mouth as Athena suffers. Aphrodite is a nut case, and Demeter is a freakin’ rolled out carpet. There are deaths, and they are in-your-face and rattling. The gods are by far the best characters, feeling just human enough that you root for them more so than the real humans. However, Odysseus was pretty bad-ass.

I would recommend the Goddess War trilogy, if anything, just to hear what gruesome fate has befallen the other gods. There were some major players missing in this installment (Hades and oh yes, Ares) who definitely get their due in subsequent installments. Zeus, however, does remain oddly absent for the overtly self-absorbed shapeshifter who runs rampant around the earth cornering maidens. However, perhaps that is to give more of a spotlight to gods like Athena and Hermes, whom we get to know very well by the end of the series. This is a unique re-imagining of what Greek Gods are doing in today’s world and well worth the read.

Recommended for fans of: Rick Riordan, Ellen Oh, and Sarah Fine

Upcoming Book Review: Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson  

July 2017 Book Review: White Cat

WHITE CAT

By Holly Black

~Book Review~

THE CURSE WORKERS SERIES is truly a breath of fresh air in the genre. My only wish is that I wish Holly Black had delved more into the most interesting thing about it – the curses!

Granted, I feel like the first book, White Cat, is wonderful. The other installations don’t quite capture the magic of a kid named Cassel who discovers he is a rare Transformation worker (voiced on the audio book by Jesse Eisenburg who is a perfect Cassel, I may add). I would recommend the first book in the series and read the others if you’re really head over heels for the characters. Me, not so much, since the focus on all the really cool things that could be achieved with curse working was traded in for a focus on the more everyday lives of our elite high school students.

Anyway, this review is on the first book. And it’s awesome. Sleight of hand, charming, death curses, power over memory – these are but a handful of gifts that a Curse Worker may manifest in an alternate America, where Black has set up a great world full of crime lords employing these curse workers, the law who forbids such practice, and your everyday, normal millennial. Cassel is the type of hero who is smooth talking and doesn’t know when to stop, which often gets himself into trouble, but he also picks up on things and knows when he’s being played, which is cool. He is the one non-gifted son in a gifted Curse Worker family: his mother can charm, his brother Philip is a brawler, and his other brother Barron, is a memory worker, which means he can manipulate memories (scary!) His grandfather is a death worker, which means he can kill people with a touch. What is neat about these curses is that they have “blowback” on the person doing them, which means that however big the curse, so much more will be the price toll upon the curser. His grandfather can lose teeth, fingers, ect for taking a life, that sort of thing.

Cassel does have his faults. He is hopelessly in love with Lila, the daughter of a Curse Worker family mob boss, which is always annoying when you as the reader don’t see what’s so great about her. However, it is revealed early on that Lila is *dead* due to Cassel…or is she? Cassel has memories of doing the deed, but as his brother is a memory worker, it goes to show that in this world, you don’t know who you can trust, and the truth can be far more twisted. Cassel gets entangled in unraveling the mystery behind Lila’s death with the help of a mysterious white cat who appears in his dreams, and the result is a smart alec adventure where Cassel discovers just where he fits in this Curse worker world.

I would definitely recommend – the plot is slow in places, but I highly savored returning to this audio book on my to-and-from work commutes. The ending keeps you on the edge of your seat, and I definitely enjoyed the twists and turns. Cassel is an endearing, flawed protagonist who stands out as real in the very Gary Stu YA fiction spectrum. I’m not as satisfied with the other installments, but this one stands well on its own!

Recommended for fans of: Rick Riordan, Laini Taylor, Jonathan Stroud

Upcoming Book Review: Antigoddess by Kendare Blake