In this graphic novel, we follow Megan, the teenage granddaughter of Kim Boggs. One day, Megan goes into storage and finds a box of her grandmothers things, among them, her grandmothers diary. In the diary Megan reads about Edward, which backs up the stories that she remembers her grandmother telling her when she was a little girl. Determined to see if Edward was real, Megan goes to the castle on the hill. When she meets Edward, he tells her that he has made a mistake, which is causing quite a stir in the town. Edward and Megan then work together to try to fix things.

First of all, I have to say that I LOVED that this graphic novel picked up with a quote right from the very end of the movie! What a lovely touch that was! It actually made me a little teary.

Overall, the plot was simple and straightforward. I found it interesting, but it didn’t totally captivate me. I enjoyed the characters and I am definitely looking forward to learning more about them in the next volume.

The artwork has a lovely strangeness to it, and the color palette created the perfect tone for each of the panels!

I would definitely recommend this to any Edward Scissorhands fan! Though I would caution readers that this collection lives in the teen section, so just keep that in mind when it comes to tone, characters, and other such things.

I'm so happy that I was able to read this second volume so close to the first. If you can, I highly recommend getting your hands on both and binge reading them!

Just like volume one, I enjoyed the simple and straightforward plot. The artwork remained the same with all of it's lovely strangeness.

In this volume, I really enjoyed that we learned a bit more about Megan's mom and why she is so bitter toward her mother, Kim Boggs. The use of flashbacks was a great touch, but I do wish they had just a little bit of context.

I found the tone in this one to be much more creepy, which I really enjoyed! However, most of it was still upbeat and fun.

After absolutely loving The Beast of London, but feeling lukewarm about Fortress of Blood, I was a little nervous going into this one. But of course I was absolutely thrilled to have received an ARC (thanks again to L.D. Goffigan!). So after cruising through the short story collection, I immediately jumped into this one.

Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.


My thoughts:
I enjoyed this read! Again, the first couple of chapters did a wonderful job summarizing all of the important things from the first two books in order to catch the reader up.

The pacing was quick and the overall storyline was interesting. A few twists caught me off guard, while others were a bit predictable. I wasn't totally hooked like the first book, but I was very intrigued to see what was going to happen.

I liked the characters and how they were protective of one another. Even though it has only been a few weeks since they had all been together, you could tell the situations they fought through really bound them.

I thought that the romance factor was a nice light touch that added some depth to the characters and the general storyline.


Beware, the negatives:
The repetition was a bit of a problem again. Example the double use of "wore" here: "She wore a gown of midnight blue, the golden mask she wore resembled the shape of two stars."

I’m a big fan of when authors let the readers slowly piece things together on their own. In this book, I was indeed able to piece things together but soon after, one of the characters would give a full explanation. This is fine, as many readers may not have been able to piece the story together yet. However, I felt that there was too much explanation here in a handful of situations. A few times I caught myself thinking, “Yes, we’ve been over this already…"

One line totally confused me: "He reached down to grip my bruised arms, yanking me towards him so violently that the chains that could me to the wall disintegrated." Immediately after that he bone cracked when she hit the floor. It seems like she also would have been severely injured by the yank as well if it was powerful enough to disintegrate chain.


My favorite passages:
The dark has never bothered me before, but after the events of the past few weeks, it now seemed foreboding.

I fear dark times are ahead. I would urge you to focus on the light in the darkness, on the one thing that makes humanity worth fighting for: love.

It is the sum of our actions which define us, Szabina. Not single ones.

My mouth twitched with amusement as he awkwardly shoved one of my waling suits into my bag.
"You have to fold it," I prodded. For someone so brilliant, he was making a simple task needlessly complicated.
"Ah," he muttered, his cheeks flaming as he folded the suit and placed in into my bag.

"You insult those of us who love you by insisting you're a monster."

Death was a cruel thing; instantaneous, impersonal, and permanent.

After I walked Jonathan to the door, I found Abe in the study. He was seated by the window, pretending to read a book on geography.
"That book is upside down," I teasingly pointed out, as I entered the room.
"Ah," he replied, embarrassed. He set the book down, not looking at me.


My final thoughts:
Overall, I enjoyed this read! It's a quick and light vampire story that I would definitely recommend to anyone that likes books in the same vein as Twilight, but with a more adult twist of course! And no werewolves or god-awful sparkly vampires!

Though I had some issues with it, I thought that it was a good conclusion to the trilogy... If this is a trilogy? Everything seemed to be all wrapped up, but I suppose there could be more!

DNF.

I really tried with this one. I got well over halfway through and realized that I had absolutely no interest in pushing through to the end.

I really liked idea of the plot. I like the characters alright. But I just could not deal with the writing style.

I didn't like the choppiness of the writing at all. It was incredibly distracting to me. There were so many short sentences and paragraphs... For example "An attempt to push barriers. Or a desire to learn. Usually it was that. A wish to know more." Far too often I found myself editing and trying to merge the sentences for better flow.

There were also so many similes... many of which just did not work for me. This was such a bummer to me because the author is clearly capable of writing wonderful description, as seen when she describes the tea house in Hanami.

Holy cow! The storyline of this book was so captivating! I definitely had some Divergent feels going on here, but to compare it fully to that trilogy would be incredibly unfair. I felt that this book was darker, much more suspenseful, and honestly... more memorable!

Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.

First of all, I think the premise of this book is incredibly eerie and the plot was very well done! I really enjoyed the suspense factor! I loved that we were dropped into the story just as the main character was; confused and terrified. Then as the story continued on, we gradually learn about the people, the situation, and the history of their world just as the main character does. But won't say much more than that to avoid spoiling it.

I thought that the storyline flowed very well and the pacing was wonderful! I loved the bits at the beginning of each chapter that were cited as "Thoughts of a machine" and that as a reader, I didn't know where this was coming from until I finally figured it out somewhere in the last half of the book.

I loved the characters! Whether they were good or bad, I thought they were all incredibly well developed. These are the types of characters that I know I will remember for a long time; especially Sentra, Marcarious, Callie, and Katarina. Though I do wish we got to know Brad and Trishna just a little bit more.

The creatures were really interesting! We got to know the Kneavox and the Canary beasts pretty well. But it was clear that there were other creatures out there, like the Sweepers. I would have loved to find out more about those and whether or not there were any others!

The action scenes were incredible! I loved how fast-paced and descriptive they were. There were also a lot of them, and I was so thankful that each one was even more exiting than the last!

This book was also a total emotional rollercoaster for me! Some parts made me anxious or afraid, some bits made me cringe, while others made me laugh or tear up. It was really a great journey!


Beware, the negatives:
While there was so much about this book that I really loved, I just couldn't look past the fact that it really needed a strong edit. There were many typos, a ton of grammar mistakes, and issues with formatting, punctuation, apostrophes, and capitalization.

Usually if I find myself editing a book as much as I did with this one, I would have DNFed it. This is the very first case though where the storyline and writing style in general was wonderful enough to allow me to look past the editing.

Another small issue I had was with repetition and info-dumping. Most of this happened in the very beginning of the book, so it took me a while to really get hooked into the story. But again, with some editing, I think that issue would be cleared up.


My favorite passages:
I lie there, mostly with a mixture of fear, confusion, and downright discomfort battling in my brain, as I try to think clearly. How did I get here? Who is this man? Who am I? Am I going to be locked in this frozen body forever? More importantly, why am I still naked?

The dark shadows under my blue eyes made my already pale skin look as if I had died a week ago and that this fact and not caught up with me yet. Yeah

"It is just best if you accept it now. They have complete control of who lives and who dies on this ship. If you want to live, you will have to bend to their will and find some way to hope that all of this isn't for nothing. Hope for your future."


My final thoughts:
I want to give this book five stars so badly. I think it really has the potential to be a five star book for me. But unfortunately, I had to stick with just four stars because of all the editing I found myself doing...

But again, I would most definitely recommend giving this a read and I urge you to try to look past the mistakes. The storyline and characters are really incredible.

I absolutely cannot wait to see where this author goes! She definitely has a major talent when it comes to storyline, character creation, and plot. I really hope to see this book take off! I've also got my fingers crossed for a book two! :) But if this is a standalone, I would be just as satisfied.

DNF.

I started reading this book for a book blogger tour. Right from the start, I just couldn't get into it. The premise of the book was interesting. Some of the humor made me laugh. But I was just so bored. I got to the halfway point and bailed.

Before we dive in, I would like to thank Wynne McLaughlin again for both responding to one of my tweets about Dragon Teeth to let me know about this book, and for sending me a wonderful paperback copy! I am so thrilled to put a copy of this book on my shelves!


My thoughts:
I knew that I was going to love this book right from this page that appears before the prologue:
The following is based on real historical events.
Mostly.

I really love the set up for this book!

The very first paragraph of the prologue is written in a way that addresses the readers, as the narrator asks for us to forgive him for any inaccuracies due to the methods of how he gathered information for this story. This narrator was a reporter named William H. Ballou.

William walks into a saloon in Tin Cup, Nebraska to try to find James Garvey, a man that worked as a guide for paleontologist, Professor Edward Cope. William approaches Garvey and asks to hear his story. Garvey is thrilled to oblige. In chapter one, we dive right into the story that Garvey told to William.

As the book goes on, it is written as if we were experiencing the action first hand, but there are also random breaks where the story was interrupted. Sometimes this is because William had a question, or because something happened in the saloon that interrupted them. Other times, Garvey needed to back track or give William more information to make sure the rest of the story flows well. I thought that this format was absolutely incredible. It kept me totally engaged with the storyline, and I couldn't wait to read more!

Of course, all of the characters were lovely, even if they were quite rough around the edges.

The writing style was lovely. So easy to read because of the upbeat tone and great organization. All of the dialogue was very realistic, and many times I found myself laughing out loud at some of the passages.


My favorite passages:
It's my belief that all of the greatest tales ever told have been told in saloons.

I think history is just an interpretation of events, intended to justify the deeds of the people in power.

Edward Drinker Cope was in his mid-thirties, tall and angular, with a pleasant, vaguely handsome face that burned with passion and excitement as he spoke.

"Good judgment comes form experience, Mr. Garvey. And most experience comes as a result of bad judgement. A smooth sea never made a skillful sailor."

"This here preacher... well, there's no doubt he was narrow-minded enough to see through a keyhole with both eyes."

Knowledge is weightless. It's a treasure you an always carry with you.

I admire your loyalty, but I think you're crazy as popcorn on a hot skillet.

Cope and Sternberg followed the riverbank through the dark woods as best they could on horseback.
Cope squinted into the shadows ahead. "I can' see a damnable thi―"
He was cut short by a low-hanging brach that cold cocked him and knocked him from his saddle. This spooked his horse, and it galloped off into the brush.
"Professor Cope!" shouted Sternberg. "Have you injured yourself, sir?"
"Only my pride, I think. But it's had so many lumps recently, I'm sure it will persevere." He began to stand, then fell back, shouting in pain. "My ankle, it would seem, has a different opinion."

Captain Beckwith. Do you have a moment, sir?"
"Well now. That's something you can never be sure of. I try to live my life like I might not."


My final thoughts:
I highly recommend giving this book a read! I know I will be re-reading it again very soon and I cannot wait!

With many thanks to my local library, I was finally able to get my hands on this third volume.

Summary (slight spoilers):
In this volume, we pick up with Fabian traveling to Romania to try to find his friend, Sebastian, who he believes was kidnapped and taken there. In his travels, he learns that the plague has continued to spread, which is causing devastation in many towns. Unfortunately, that is not the only issue; there are also monster people that have been attacking villagers. But these aren’t just any monsters; they have been created by “The Good Doctor,” who convinces them to take a medicine to rid them of the plague…

During his travels, Fabian also meets Van Helsing just in the nick of time. During their battle, Fabian is attacked by one of the monsters. With the poison flowing through his veins, he is forced to submit to the vampire ghosts that haunts him… After that the “ghost” of Fabian can only watch as the Vampire takes over and attacks. To continue on, he must fight his way to regain control.


My thoughts:
The pacing of this volume was very quick, and of course, it was action packed! I enjoyed seeing how the story developed.

Sebastian continues to be my favorite character, but it was interesting to meet Van Helsing as well!

I loved that we got more flashbacks in this volume which allowed us to learn more about Sebastian and Fabian’s relationship. I think their friendship is so wonderful!

At the end of this volume, there were two shorts that were also included. One was a Five Ghosts tale called “The Demon and the Dreamstone.” I enjoyed the story of this one, but didn’t really care for the artwork. The second was “Boats Against The Current.” I liked the artwork of this one, but I have to admit that I thought the storyline was lacking.


Beware, the negative:
My only complaint is that I was confused for a minute when I picked up this volume. I had totally forgotten where we left off in Volume 2... So I wish this volume had just a little bit of a summary to catch the reader up to the storyline.


Favorite lines:
Never doubt the power of the human spirit.

I won’t lose another ally to the darkness.

There are no real monsters, Fabian. Just men and the evil that we do.


My final thoughts:
Another wonderful addition to this series! I cannot wait for Volume 4 to be published!

DNF- Just not for me.

Wow. This is the first comic that I’ve really disliked. So let’s just dive in...

So right away, I didn't like that we just dove into the story without understanding who each of the characters are and what their specific powers were. We got a few flashbacks to their childhood here and there throughout the collection, which were okay. But again, because we didn't learn much about the characters to begin with, the flashbacks were just meh to me.

Further, these flashbacks still didn’t give me enough information to understand, or even like, any of the characters. The characters themselves were so very bland to me. Partially because we didn’t get any background information, but also because they were all so childish and rude.

I didn't love the way the narration flows either. It was pretty rough throughout, but specifically in the first few pages... It's very choppy and some of it just does not flow at all. For example, "the children were either abandoned or put up for adoption… ... The ones who survived.” Then we’re off on another topic. Granted it eventually leads back to where we were, but it was still rough.

I couldn’t stand that things weren’t explained at all. I need some level of world building here. I also would have appreciated more explanation about the siblings relations. We know that they were all born at the same time from various women that weren’t even pregnant. But are they related? Whether they are or not, they were still raised as siblings…so the weird romantic relationships were super gross to me.

I didn’t care for the artwork or the storyline. Some of the panels were better than others, but most seriously lacked a level of detail that I appreciate in comics. There’s not much else I can really say here, overall it just wasn’t for me.

The ending also seemed incredibly rushed. And ew, how old is that carton of milk with the missing child’s photo on the very last page?! The kid had been missing for 20 years. Gross.

To end on a positive note, the one thing that I did like was how some of the chapter titles flow right from the storyline. Specifically, there is one chapter where a waitress is talking and someone asks her what was said, the next panel was the chapter break which was titled, "Thank you for the coffee.”

I highly doubt that I will pick up Volume 2. Part of me wants to, just to see if it improves…. We’ll see.