I received this book from Tor in exchange for an honest review.

Trouble the Saints is a blend of history,  romance, magical realism... and revenge. It’s a potent combination that results in a fantastic story that I could not put down. This is one of those books where you stay up way too late in order to finish. 

I struggled a bit with the structure of the book. It’s broken up into three parts, each narrated by a different character. But it’s not a very obvious division, so I spent the first couple of pages of each section trying to figure out who was narrating. But once you get past that, you’re left with a story definitely worth reading. 

This book was a blind date, so of course I went into it without expectations. And I really enjoyed it! It’s the first book in a series about an apprentice-wizard/police constable named Peter Grant. It’s a bit grisly and dark, with fantastic world building and interesting characters. I struggled a bit with the British slang, but I was able to figure most of it out. The plot was very dense, and I think I may have missed some things - it left me a bit confused at times. This may need a reread before I look up the next book in the series - because I definitely want to continue with it!

A young adult novel about a plus-sized superhero, and with a ton of LGBTQ+ representation? Yes please! 

Murphy covers some heavy topics in this story, but still manages to imbue it with a lightness that makes this a fast and enjoyable read. Some of the heavy stuff struck close to home for me - especially the situation with Faith’s grandmother. I guess that really made me emotionally invested in the story. 

The pacing was a bit unbalanced - the action in the second half caught me a bit off guard, as the first half had leaned more toward contemporary romance territory. But that didn’t really take much away from my overall enjoyment of the story. 

Did you know this book is based on an actual comic book series? I had no idea, but I guarantee I’m now going to read it - Murphy has made me a fan! And I believe this is actually going to be a duology, so there will be more Faith goodness to come!

This Place: 150 Years Retold is a graphic novel anthology that covers some of the history of First Nations in Canada. Each story begins with a timeline and factual explanation of what the story is about. The authors don’t pull any punches. It’s not a comfortable read, and it shouldn’t be. It’s time for all of us to be uncomfortable and face some ugly truths about our history. Please read it. 

I received this graphic novel from Black Panel Press in exchange for an honest review. 

I’ve always been fascinated by the stories of the Lost Generation in Paris, so I was thrilled to learn that Jeanne & Modigliani covers the same era. This book explores the entirety of the relationship between the two - a toxic and emotionally damaging affair. 

Jeanne, an artist in her own right, sacrificed her art for the love of her life - the tortured, alcoholic Modigliani. His darkness brought them both to an unfortunate end, after years of passion and anger in equal measure. Van der Straeten captures this all beautifully with stark black and white illustrations and Jeanne’s poignant inner thoughts and feelings. It’s a powerful story; one that demands to be read with slow and thoughtful consideration.  It’s also a book you’ll want to read more than once - I certainly plan to. 

This book is so stinking cute! And the illustrations are gorgeous. I’d recommend it to any whovian to read to their child. 

I’m just going to say it - no one does horror like Grady Hendrix. Yup - I think he’s even better than King! Hendrix just has a way with character creation and development; they have depth and layers, which encourages a more emotional connection with the central characters. So you get really invested in who escapes the story unscathed. And! He always takes the quirkiest premise and makes it feel completely natural. Like this particular gem - a ladies book club in the ‘90s faces off against a vampire that just moved into town. Bonkers. Yet - a fantastic story.