I think this was an interesting reimagining of Superman's origin story. We get to follow Clark through grade school and dealing with school bullies, joining the Navy after graduation, dealing with mermaids in the ocean, and eventually attending college and being hired at the Daily Planet. The narration in the comics is told in third person omniscient. You get to know Clark's character and growth via the narration and I think Miller did a great job letting us see that this boy and teenager we were seeing had the potential to become the Superman we know and love. Near the end I think the story fell off a bit with me. I don't feel like the comic was long enough to give enough motivation and context to the last conflict explored. I do like that the opening is open ended because I thought it was fitting for something that is supposed to be a character's beginning.

This last issue of this miniseries focuses on Rachel and the residents of San Francisco working together to save both her foster sister, Mary-Beth, and the city. I liked that there was a contrast between the religion of Raven's foster parents and herself. Despite that, they are able to work together in prayer to successfully save everyone. The importance here isn't in the religion but the symbolism that drives home the message that people with different beliefs can work together as a team and accept their differences. A decent ending overall.

I was very excited when I saw this in my local comic shop. A lot of these characters are ones I was previously familiar with and was happy to see showcased. Others were new to me, but interesting nonetheless. All the stories in this anthology are self contained and were each intriguing enough to keep my attention the whole way. I'm always down for seeing more indigenous characters represented in media, and this is a step in the right direction seeing as there isn't enough representation currently.

The Diamond Kingdom begins an attack on the Clover Kingdom in this volume. Asta, Finral, Charmy, and Yami are sent for backup for the Golden Dawn, who are currently dealing with the problem. As usual, Yuno and Asta were happy to see each other and made some friendly rival conversation. We get to see Finral's condescending and pretentious younger brother, Langris. I really appreciated the contrast shown between Langris and Yuno's attitude and behavior toward the members of the Black Bulls. Langris believes himself to be above the Black Bulls in status and makes his lack of respect for them clear. Yuno on the other hand defends his position as Asta's rival and makes it clear that he respects Asta as an equal. I appreciate that despite his rivalry with Asta, Yuno most of all sees him as a friend and brother and does not feel inferior to anyone just because he is a peasant. There is a recurring theme of classicsm explored here. Yuno is an incredibly talented and powerful wizard, yet he is still looked down upon by people like Langris because of his socioeconomic background. I'm just waiting for Yuno, Noelle and Asta floor the expectations of all of the people in the story that have this attitude over and over. 

On another note, Asta was heavily injured in the last battle with Vetto and he will need to deal with the consequences of his injuries going forward. I'm interested in seeing how this is handled story wise. I'm happy to see that Asta remains positive despite more obstacles getting in his way, but I know the journey won't be easy.

The fight with Vetto, member of the Eye of the Midnight Sun, continues. The Black Bulls are up against a real challenge this time and it really feels like the stakes are high. Everyone has a bit of time to shine and we specifically have some spotlight shown on characters whose magic we hadn't explored much before (e.g. Vanessa and Finral). It was especially interesting to see them work together and find creative ways to fight this new enemy. There is also commentary explored on how characters in this world who are magic users heavily rely on magic to the point that it has become a hindrance in many ways. I know Asta stands out due to his lack of magic and that is a constant theme, however I think it also highlights how his approach to problem solving is different because he has experienced the world differently than other wizards. I'm looking forward to this being a plot point that is developed further.The Black Bulls have shown in this volume especially that Asta helps them think out of the box when it comes to utilizing their magic.

I didn't know I was in the mood for an urban fantasy until I picked up this book. As usual, Armentrout does a great job making likeable and interesting characters. We are quickly introduced to The Order, an organization that trains fae hunters for a salary. I took a quick liking to the main character, Ivy. She is sometimes reckless, but she is also a loving friend and someone who is competent in her line of work. Her relationship with Tink was my favorite in the book. Tink is definitely my favorite character. He drives Ivy up a wall but you can also tell that they truly care about each other as friends and he serves as a great companion for her. The story had a good balance of great humor which let me as a reader get to know the characters better through the humorous situations. As far as the romance between Ivy and Ren, I think they "fell in love" a bit quickly. However, I think this is more because the story is told through Ivy's perspective and she is still in the stage of infatuation with Ren. Also, they do spend more time together than an average dating couple would because of their work. In addition to this, their lives are consistently in danger because of their job. I assume that it's kind of like in the military where people get together really fast. Since for a lot of people like that their lives are often in danger they have a need for stability, which they often find through serious romantic relationship. So, in context, it makes sense.

Plot wise, there is a point in the story where there is a traitor in The Order and I feel it was pretty easy to figure out who it was, so there wasn't much of a sense of mystery there. Same goes for the big reveal in the story. I'll refrain from going into details because spoilers. It didn't take away from the fun of the story, though. In general I'm pretty good at predicting twists in stories, but this one was also a bit obvious by the middle. Again, nothing that made the book less enjoyable.

On another note, I think the world building could have used some more work and fleshing out. As cool as the idea of a bunch of fae hunters is, I was left with questions such as who funds the Order? All of the fae hunters are paid a salary, a decent salary at that based on the descriptions we get of Ren and Ivy's apartments respectively. I would think that they have to have some structure as to how all of that is being paid for. I wouldn't necessarily need a super detailed explanation. My theory is that they probably have sponsors who are aware of the threat the fae pose to the human world and therefore help them maintain this very organized structure within the Order. This is never actually addressed in the story, however, and I feel like it would have helped me become more immersed and suspend my disbelief a bit better if it had. Another gripe I had was that all fae are thought to be evil by the Order and members are expected to kill any fae on site. That just reads really unrealistic to me. Obviously there are fae creatures such as Tink, who is a brownie, who are harmless (unless you talk to Ivy about his use of her Amazon Prime account). It seems like an unreasonable blanket statement to consider an entire people evil and a threat. It doesn't really leave much space for nuance and it seems a bit strange that this isn't questioned much by any characters except for maybe Ivy. The more questionable thing here is that it is clear that there are other fae like Tink who are against the ways of the ruling class in the fae world. If there is an opposition for the fae ruling class, and if the Order has been around for quite some time, why does the Order not know about these dissenting fae? Why have they not worked out an alliance with these dissenting fae to work together to fight against the rulers of the fae world? It doesn't seem very clear and I think that could have been made into a very strong plot point. This is still the first book, however, so I'm going to ride this out to see if maybe any of this is addressed in future books.

Despite some issues with world building, the story has characters that I love a lot and shows a lot of potential for further world and character development in the sequels. I'm excited to keep reading. A really easy urban fantasy to get into if you're in the market. 

I had such a good time getting to know the individual captains in this volume. Mind you, all of them are crazy, but they're also so funny and likeable. Unfortunately, they still have a traitor in their midst. I'm sure we will come back to that plot point again. Noelle is also able to get some training in and improve her magic control for a special mission assigned to the Black Bulls by the Magician King. They're a much more impressive bunch than everyone seems to think and I'm looking forward to see how the rest of the fights go in this battle royale they're in the middle of. A great volume overall. Looking forward to more.

I pre-ordered this the moment I realized it was coming out this year and I was not disappointed. This book is an anthology that occurs before, after, and during The Folk of the Air series that gives us a further exploration of Cardan's character.  The snippets we get from his childhood allow us to further understand why Cardan was so callous and cruel throughout the series. A lot of his behavior, especially in The Cruel Prince was a coping mechanism that he developed to be able to survive in faerie. We get more detailed glimpses of his relationships with Valerian and Nicasia as well as Locke, which helped further characterize them as well. The parts I enjoyed the most were of course where we got to see more of Jude and Cardan after the events of the last book. If you loved the main characters in this series as much as I did you will not be disappointed in this semi-sequel.

This was an interesting experience. We mainly follow the reencounter between two acquaintances, Clare and Irene. Irene throughout the story seems troubled and inconvenienced by Clare's presence, yet seems to be unable to stay away. We get to see through the lens of three white passing black women, each of them having a different experience living in the United States in the 1920s. Clare has opted to embrace her status as a woman who "passes" for white. She is married to a bigoted and racist white man who is unaware of his wife's racial status. Irene on the other hand, is married to a black man who is unable to "pass". Irene is an unreliable narrator showing increased distrust towards Clare and her own husband. There isn't any basis for her distrust, at least not due to external factors outside of Irene's perception. She becomes increasingly paranoid as the story progresses and it becomes clear that her memory is not the most reliable by the end. Overall, this novella is a very reflective experience that leaves you thinking about what white passing people had to sacrifice in the 1920s to pass for white. 

This story hit really close to home. My father is Cuban and being able to explore Cuba's past through this story was amazing. The story follows the family saga of the Concepción family over many decades. Josefina is the main character throughout the story with a focus on her strained yet loving relationship with her father. Josefina makes decisions in her life that lead her into a complicated marriage, a familial relationship that crosses oceans and decades, and infidelities. All of this is in synchrony with the social, economic and political struggles that Cuba undergoes over the years that indirectly affect her and those she loves. This is a story that is delightful, dark, sad, and also hopeful. There are parts of the story that I'm sure will resonate with a lot of Cuban people like it did with me when they read it. Acevedo really knows how to make you feel and sympathize for these characters. They are all flawed and feel human and at the same time reflect the historical experiences of the Cuban people. I am looking forward to reading more wonderful books by Chantel Acevedo.