The Laughing Listener
August 2020
Format: Ebook ARC

Story Rating: 4.5 Stars

“I stopped looking at the bars of my cage and started looking between them. If my life sucks, that just means it hasn’t peaked yet. I’m in the middle of my story. And every tomorrow could be my happily ever after.”



I just… I’m speechless! This book was so good!! I’m not really sure what I was expecting from this story, but it definitely wasn’t this. And I mean that in the best possible way. Romina Garber has blown me away and stolen my heart.

Admittedly, it took me some time to really get invested in this story. The first handful of chapters are slower moving and pretty normal, minus a few minor details. It read more like contemporary/magical realism, which caught me off guard, but intrigued me nevertheless. Around chapter 8-ish, however, the plot takes off running and I’m telling you I COULD NOT PUT THIS DOWN.

“I’m a passenger not just in this vehicle, but in my body, in this country, in my life. Defined by decisions I didn’t make.”

This is one of those books that gets better the less you know going in, so this is going to be weirdly vague. But man, what a ride. I can honestly say I had no idea where the story was going the entire time and I got thrown some MAJOR curveballs. It was great. I can’t wait to see what happens next in book two.

The characters were too precious and I found myself falling a little in love with each of them. Manu is such an amazing, relatable protagonist with a huge heart and watching her grow over the course of the story was amazing. And I would pretty much lay my life on the line for everyone in her little found family. Saysa is the best little feminist Tinkerbell, Tiago the most adorable story-loving protector, Cata who’s fiercely loyal, and everyone else in the manada. I JUST WANT TO GIVE THEM ALL HUGS.



And the world building! I’m so fascinated by the universe that Garber has created. It has pieces of familiar legends and fairy tales, but is something completely new. The descent into this new world was very slow and gradual, which I also really liked. It added to my urgency to keep reading because every new thing I saw made me was MORE. Lately it feels like every fantasy book throws you in head first and I have to struggle to keep up, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it was so nice to get a break.

My absolute FAVORITE aspect of this book though, above all else, was the amazing way Garber wove important messages into the fabric of the story. There are so many different layers to this and I was continuously blown away about how it all connected together. This book is about so many things—immigration, not fitting in, feminism, being from two worlds, gender binaries, self-esteem, friendship, LGBTQ+, found family, and so much more. But it all bleeds together, just like real life. No one fits into a predetermined box, we’re all unique individuals and I LOVED seeing that reflected in this novel.

“Now go forth and shatter every convention.”

FINAL WORD

Such a fun and gripping story with some important things to say. I loved every second and can’t wait for the next book. If you love fantasy, then I definitely recommend.

I was graciously given a free copy of this in exchange for an honest review

#1 ↦ [b:Lobizona|51179882|Lobizona (Wolves of No World, #1)|Romina Garber|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1571242220l/51179882._SX50_SY75_.jpg|72729786] ↦ ✦✦✦✦✧
#2 ↦ [b:Untitled|43311447|Untitled (Wolves of No World, #2)|Romina Garber|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/book/50x75-a91bf249278a81aabab721ef782c4a74.png|73342258] ↦ ????