laurelthebooks's Reviews (662)

A surprisingly sweet ending to this duology, A Venom Dark and Sweet continues Ning’s adventure in hunting down the root of the poisoned tea that killed her mother.

While I felt this half of the story was more straightforward than the first book, the magical elements really came to the forefront here. If dramatic, slightly star-crossed lovers separated by an all-consuming evil are your jam, then I recommend you read The Book of Tea. It isn’t a complex story, but I enjoyed its simplicity and the magical world it took place in. 

The next time someone asks me for graphic memoir suggestions this will be at the top of the list. The conversations Jacob has in here show many of the realities of living as a minority woman in America. There's humor and heartbreak here on the page - it covers topics that shouldn't be too tough to talk about but are often considered taboo.

I hope you decide to read it.

This, like all book ratings, narrowed down to bias for me. Many of the people in my life that I love have a deep and abiding passion for video games. I don't, but the strong nostalgia gaming elements reminded me of the people closest to me so I was invested.

Personal bias about video game nerds aside, I feel that Zevin managed to craft some wonderful characters here. Sam's narration was more convincing than Sadie's for me, but both characters lept from the page as Zevin tackled their hopes, struggles, dreams, and glaring personality flaws. I hated both of these characters at some points and rooted for them at others which is an impressive amount of dimension to communicate on the page. Even when I didn't like Sadie and Sam, I didn't want to put the book down. Also, if Easter eggs and references are your thing? This book is full of them - which perhaps the Hokusai cover, Shakespeare reference for a title, and Emily Dickinson poem at the front tells you before you even begin reading.

Well-written and complex, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow may not have a traditional plot and makes some interesting narration choices, but in the end is a book I'd love to hand to people to read. I feel that this is a book you don't need to know video games to love, but one that you will love even more if you do.

If you are a short story lover, you want to check out this collection. You want horror? It has some. You want sci-fi? It has some. You want fantasy? It also has some. There are bigger-name authors such as Tananarive Dune and some fresh to the scene as well - but the collection feels balanced in content as we get a sampling across the many areas of speculative fiction.

I tried to pick a favorite story and failed, as I kept finding things I wanted to point out in different stories. There are ones that feel like they’ve been lifted out of a folktale, and there are others that feel like a tantalizing taste of an enormous imagined world. Maybe “Housewarming for a Lion Goddess” by Aline-Mwezi Niyonsenga? Or “Exiles of the Witchery” by Ivana Akotowaa Ofori? Oh, or “Hanfo Driver” by Ada Nnadi; that one made me grin. The breadth of stories available here is phenomenal, and there are so many vibrant tales packed into these pages. Not to mention that the cover itself is gorgeous (applause to artist Manzi Jackson).

If you aren't familiar with many African or African diaspora authors here is a chance to find 33 of them in concert, arrayed and edited to a stunning degree (although of course there are plenty outside of this collection too). Even as someone who isn’t a horror fan I devoured the stories here that fell into that genre. 

The latest novella of The Singing Hills cycle, Into the Riverlands, is still about stories - but it focuses more than ever on cleric Chih and their own sense of story. The Riverlands mirror the jianghu and any fan of wuxia will love this novella - but even with the increased action and more time spent with Chih, there is still commentary on what a story can be. Unlike the previous two entries where the characters are happy to expound on their stories, there is disagreement over which stories will be told and which will not.

It did also leave me with the urge to rewatch several of my favorite c-dramas, but that aside I found myself surprised with how much thought this novella evoked. I love stories and am a fan of both The Empress of Salt and Fortune and When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain. Into the Riverlands is the one that has challenged me the most out of all three novellas in the series though - and I have a feeling I may end up reading this entry more than any other. A worthy addition to cleric Chih and Almost Brillaint's stories. 

Fairly stunned I’ve never heard of thus before - dystopian school setting? disabled protagonist? fae? Stunning!

If YA dystopias are your jam put this on your list. The Call definitely flirts with horror, but it’s a fascinating coming of age as well. It explores coming of age in a civilization that cannot see a future - a complete degradation of culture and what growing up in a society that doesn’t expect you to live looks like.

This was a fast read for me, and I will be hopping directly into the sequel (and trying to balance my desire to now read more works that relate to the fae with my current towering tbr!).

 The absolute chaos here reminds me of A Light from Uncommon Stars simply because there is so much going on at the same time - and this is one of those books where you want to read the dates at the start of the chapter carefully or you will lost. That being said, this was a read you have to pay careful attention to.

The Ballad of Perilous Graves is chockful of adventure, character, random details, heart, and some fine music and magic. There's even a Spotify playlist for the book that I highly recommend checking out while reading. Books with multiple narrators don't always hit the spot for me since just one narrator I don't like can throw me off, but I had no issues with any of the narrators here. Even the shift between a child narrator and an adult fit the story being told. This is a sink or swim book, and Jennings drops the reader right into the heart of things to start.

If you're looking for a lively, entertaining fantasy book look no further! There is so much chaos in this one. (Also, if New Orleans has a claim on any part of you? Definitely check it out, you can tell the author loves the city deeply.)