I'm not quite the Darkling fan that a lot of other people are, but man. This graphic novel is GORGEOUS. I absolutely love the color palette, the purples and pinks. The landscapes. The way the magic is illustrated. Everything about the art, I am in love with. I will be immediately looking for anything else Pendergast has illustrated because I loved it that much.

Anyone who has read Shadow and Bone knows that the Darkling is a complicated, morally grey character. We get a different side of him in this, a side that I think humanizes him a bit. Honestly, I think Bardugo could write an entire book on just the Darkling and I would read it.

I don't actually own any of the Shadow and Bone books, but I'm thinking about buying this one because I just think it's so beautiful. Might be my favorite thing about the Grishaverse; you know, right behind Six of Crows.

Short story collections are usually hit or miss for me, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one! The stories are just the right amount of spooky/creepy while also hitting on real world issues. I didn't realize the time connections until later in the book, but I think that's brilliant. Spanning a wide range of time, looking at the same family. It really creates an interconnectedness for the stories throughout.

Honestly, if you're looking for something a little bit creepy to read this October, I'd recomend this! The audiobook was fantastically done, and you get a wide range of monsters in it. Both huuman and non-human.

A strong, feminist take on the Medusa myth, punctuated by some beautiful artwork. Where Medusa is usually made to be the monster, Burton looks at the ways that men shaped her story to be that way. She hits the nail on the head for the ways a lot of women are generally treated, especially through Medusa and Perseus forming a relationship. It was such an interesting way to weave the story, and I really enjoyed it!

For the most part, this is a pretty character driven story, focused on Medusa and her journey finding confidence once again. While I think there are some areas that could have been expanded a bit more, overall it's a satisfying retelling of Greek mythology. Especiallly if you enjoy different twists!

What an important, beautiful, endearing middle grade graphic novel. There are so many middle grade readers who will relate to Marlene. All of her life, she is constantly told that she has "bad hair." That she needs to go weekly to get it straightened in order to fit in with society. But all she wants is to wear her curly hair, to be herself. 

Everything about this book works so well together, from the art style to the writing to the characters. The emotion comes through so well, not just through the illustrations, but through the writing as well. My favorite scene was definitely when Marlene was at her aunt's house, learning about her hair and why so many people said her hair was "bad." The fact that she eventually gets to just be herself is so heartwarming; I loved it so much.

There are some lovely side characters as well. Marlene's best friend always has her back, even trying to help her figure out how to wear her hair naturally. Of course, her aunt is amazing, and we get to see Marlene's relationship with her mom evolve throughout the book as well. All of these relationships help Marlene on her journey in learning to be herself, and I can see so many kids being drawn to her story.

All in all, if you're looking for a good, heartwarming graphic novel to read this October, definitely pick this one up!

Attending an elite boarding school in China means that Alice always kind of feels left out. As the only scholarship student, she dosen't really fit in with her rich, high society classmates. So when Alice actually gets the ability to turn invisible, it doesn't feel much different from normal. 

When Alice's parents can no longer find the money to help pay for her tuition, she comes up with a scheme to raise the money, using her newfound invisibility. She'll sell the darkest secrets of her classmates and get information no one else can. But when the scheme starts to turn towards the more criminal side, Alice has to decide if it's worth it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Inkyard Press for an advanced copy of this to review! What immediately drew me in was the cover; it might make the light for one of the best covers that I've seen all year. How can you not want to read that book just by looking at the cover? It's so intriguing!

But I digress. Luckily, the story inside the book was just as enticing at the cover. We get a bit of academic rivals to enemies, and trust me. You can feel that tension almost from the beginning. You're going to be rooting for them throughout the entire book, even as they get deeper into a possible criminal enterprise. Liang did a great job creating these three dimensional characters who are doing some shady things, but you still fall in love with them anyway. Give me a good morally grey character any day.

And the premise! Alice is kind of exposing the underbelling of the Beijing elite, willing to do whatever it takes to get the money she needs. You know she's going to get trapped in some kind of morally questionable situation, and it's what really drives teh story. I was hooked into this intrigued, and enjoyed the way Liang wove the supernatural into it. I think a lot of teens will really loved this story!

All in all, if you like genre-blended kind of stories with a tense plot and good characters, I'd highly recommend picking this one up!
------
Rivals to lovers set in China, with a bit of a supernatural angle. Such a great read! Stay tuned for a full review to come!

I'll admit, I audibly stopped and said "what?" at the end of this book because that's where it's going to end? What the heck. This is why I have been mostly waiting to read series once they are all published. But I digress!

The stakes were risen in this book, and I thoroughly enjoyed the chemistry between Evangeline and Jacks. Between all the running and the curses and the magic, their relationship is growing and changing, even if they don't want to admit it. As readers, you definitely want them to get together. Definitely a will they, won't they kind of situation.

While I still haven't read Caraval (it's on my list, I swear!), I've found I've been able to understand what's going on in this series without much difficulty. So if you're thinking about jumping in without having read the original trilogy, you can do it with this one!

Sayers Wayte has grown up never wanting for anything. Living in a wealthy family means that everything has come easy for him. Until one day, he gets kidnapped. Kidnapped by a man who tells him that his entire life up until then has been a lie. According to this man, he's not who he thinks he is.

Now trapped in a cellar, Sayers has to go along with everything his kidnapper says. If he doesn't, things could end up even worse for him. But as Sayers pretends to be someone else in order to survive, the lines between imagination and reality start to blur. Sayers is no longer sure who he really is. And if he's ever going to get out of the dark room.

Thanks to NetGalley, Robin Roe, and HarperTeen for an advanced copy of Dark Room Etiquette to review! It's the perfect time of year for this kind of dark, gritty story with a hint of hope. Roe's writing in this hooks you from the beginning; once you pick up the book, it's difficult to put it down.

The first thing that hooks you is the characters. While Sayers is not the most likeable person at the beginning of the book, that changes. A lot of this story is about trauma. How trauma changes you, how we process trauma, how there's hope at the end of the journey. This isn't just a book about Sayers's kidnapping; it's also about the healing. It's a heavy book to read, but all of the emotions and the changes Sayers goes through feel grounded in reality.

Outside of Sayers, there are a lot of other well rounded characters as well. After his kidnapping, Sayers gets to see the real side to some of his friends. Which allows him to truly see himself as well. If you're a fan of mostly character driven stories, with a little bit of plot, you'll definitely love this aspect of the story.

All in all, this is a harrowing book about survival. About overcoming trauma. Check the trigger warnings before reading, but if you're in the right place mentally, I highly recommend it!
---------------
This book is dark, tense, but also full of hope. Stay tuned for a full review!

This is not my favorite Deb Caletti thus far. I think it touched on some important topics, especially in relation to social media, but the narrative itself felt a bit all over the place. The main thing that sort of turned me away was the inclusion of so much reference to COVID, mostly because it's not exactly clear <i>when</i> in the actual pandemic this book is set. Is it present day? Earlier in the pandemic? There isn't enough consistency, and it made it harder for me to read.

While I appreciate exploring COVID in fiction, I think it's still too soon to do so. This is a personal opinion, but since I read fiction as an escape (for the most part), the explorations of the pandemic just felt too close to home for me. It was harder for me to get through the story overall.

That being said, I enjoyed the cast of characters and the way they create a family throughout the book. There are a lot of explorations of identity and how identity changes on social media, as well as the actual meaning of family. Harper isn't the most likeable character at the beginning of the book, but she learns a lot throughout the book, and I think there are teens that will definitely realte to that.

All in all, I am torn about this book. But it doesn't replace [book:A Heart in a Body in the World|38244389] for me. That's still my favorite from Deb Caletti.

This is an adorable fairytale kind of rom-com, and I loved it for that. There are a lot of fairytale elements strewn throughout, right up to the plot and the ending. It's a super sweet romance, and the artistic aspects of Micah's life were fantastic. As someone who also used to live in Chicago, I enjoyed hearing a lot of familiar places! 

I will say, Micah reads fairly young, and as long as you know that going in, you'll what to expect with the book. The plot does follow a generic kind of romance/fairytale plot, which is totally fine! Micah is very much learning the ropes of dating and realizing that dating doesn't look like it does in a fairytale. His journey is important for younger teens to see, and I'm glad that Sass put that into words.

Outside of Micah, the rest of the characters are fully fleshed out, with a great little cast that galavants around Chicago. While it's not my favorite book I've read this year, it was still an enjoyable read! Especially if you love romance.

Did I love this as much as I loved [book:Boyfriend Material|50225678]? Unfortunately, no. I still loved getting to read about Luc and Oliver and all of their fun, ridiculous friends. But the cast and the characters are what make this book; for me, the plot just kind of felt all over the place. I didn't mind reading about all of the wedding shenanigans, and we do get quite a lot of good character development for Oliver in particular. There was just something that felt off about it.

In all honesty, I wasn't quite sure what the main conflict was until the last couple of chapters, and then the book ended. There wasn't really a lot of resolution, and while the last scene is adroable and romantic, it seemed like there should be more after that scene. It didn't feel like a satisfying ending to me, and I just felt like it left a lot hanging in the balance. 

However, a lot of the side cast gets to shine in this book and it's fantastic. If there's anything that Alexis Hall is good at, it's writing great characters. And moments of humor. So while I still prefer the first book, I'll keep reading about Luc and Oliver just because Alexis Hall has made me care about them. Because I'd love to see what's next for them!