"Do you believe in the mystical, the fantastical, the improbable, or the impossible? Do you believe that things others dismiss as dreams and imagination actually exist? Do you believe in fairy tales?"

This book reminded me that sometimes my high expectations are somehow exceeded. It's a love letter to literature, an intelligent discussion on Time and Fate, a mix of whimsy and reality. It's an adventure, a romance, a collection of connected stories.

It's going straight on my Favorites shelf.

content warnings:

Spoiler

branding, bodily mutilation, mentions of child abuse, major character death(s), suicidal ideation

rep:

Spoiler

gay MC with anxiety, M/M main romance, bi/pan secondary character, minor past F/F and M/(bi/pan)F

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CONVERSION: 14.2 / 15 = 5 stars

Prose: 10 / 10
Characters & Relationships: 8 / 10
Emotional Impact: 9 / 10
Development / Flow: 10 / 10
Setting: 10 / 10

Diversity & Social Themes: 4 / 5
Intellectual Engagement: 5 / 5
Originality / Trope Execution: 5 / 5
Rereadability: 5 / 5
Memorability: 5 / 5