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2.51k reviews by:
popthebutterfly
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc and physical arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Blood Like Fate
Author: Liselle Sambury
Book Series: Blood Like Magic Book 2
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Black MC, Black characters, Asian characters, Black demiromantic character, Black trans cousin (male to female), Hispanic love interest, gay Black characters mentioned
Recommended For...: young adult readers, urban fantasy, paranormal, witches, LGBT, Black witches, sci-fi, magic
Publication Date: August 9, 2022
Genre: YA Urban Fantasy
Age Relevance: 15+ (death, grief, cursing, drug use, drug abuse, gore, blood magic, dieting, eating disorder, panic attack, sickness, slavery, racism, depression, therapy, gun violence, romance, homophobia)
Explanation of Above: There is death and grief talked about and shown. There is some cursing in this book. Drug use, drug abuse, and addiction are all mentioned. There is a lot of blood gore mentioned in the book and there is a use of blood magic. Dieting and an eating disorder are mentioned and slightly shown in the book. There is one instance of a panic attack mentioned. There is sickness mentioned off and on in the book and there is some sickness that is making viable sores on victims. Slavery and racism are mentioned in the book. Homophobia is mentioned in the book. There is some depression talked about in the book, as well as therapy. There is one scene with gun violence shown. There is a slight romance.
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Pages: 480
Synopsis: Voya Thomas may have passed her Calling to become a full-fledged witch, but the cost was higher than she’d ever imagined.
Her grandmother is gone.
Her cousin hates her.
And her family doesn’t believe that she has what it takes to lead them.
What’s more, Voya can’t let go of her feelings for Luc, sponsor son of the genius billionaire Justin Tremblay—the man that Luc believes Voya killed. Consequently, Luc wants nothing to do with her. Even her own ancestors seem to have lost faith in her. Every day Voya begs for their guidance, but her calls go unanswered.
As Voya struggles to convince everyone—herself included—that she can be a good Matriarch, she has a vision of a terrifying, deadly future. A vision that would spell the end of the Toronto witches. With a newfound sense of purpose, Voya must do whatever it takes to bring her shattered community together and stop what's coming for them before it’s too late.
Even if it means taking down the boy she loves—who might be the mastermind behind the coming devastation.
Review: I really loved this book overall! I thought the book did well to keep the action level from the first book going and while I think both can be read in a bit of a standalone fashion, both do so well to complement each other. The writing is so well done and it’s hard to believe I had an arc when this was so well done. The character develop was also well done, as was the world building. I also love how the author ties in so much into her books. There’s a lot in this book and series about history, community, acceptance, and healing and I’m so impressed with how well the author was able to blend all of these together. I’m not normally an urban sci-fi fantasy reader, but this one should be held as the example of how they should be written! I also hope that one day we’ll return to this world, but regardless if we do or not Liselle Sambury has a fan in me now until forever.
The only issue I had with the book is that it immediately picked up where book 1 left off, so it was a bit confusing to get back into, but it wasn’t bad at all compared to other books I’ve read.
Verdict: Very well done! Highly recommend this series!
Book: Blood Like Fate
Author: Liselle Sambury
Book Series: Blood Like Magic Book 2
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Black MC, Black characters, Asian characters, Black demiromantic character, Black trans cousin (male to female), Hispanic love interest, gay Black characters mentioned
Recommended For...: young adult readers, urban fantasy, paranormal, witches, LGBT, Black witches, sci-fi, magic
Publication Date: August 9, 2022
Genre: YA Urban Fantasy
Age Relevance: 15+ (death, grief, cursing, drug use, drug abuse, gore, blood magic, dieting, eating disorder, panic attack, sickness, slavery, racism, depression, therapy, gun violence, romance, homophobia)
Explanation of Above: There is death and grief talked about and shown. There is some cursing in this book. Drug use, drug abuse, and addiction are all mentioned. There is a lot of blood gore mentioned in the book and there is a use of blood magic. Dieting and an eating disorder are mentioned and slightly shown in the book. There is one instance of a panic attack mentioned. There is sickness mentioned off and on in the book and there is some sickness that is making viable sores on victims. Slavery and racism are mentioned in the book. Homophobia is mentioned in the book. There is some depression talked about in the book, as well as therapy. There is one scene with gun violence shown. There is a slight romance.
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Pages: 480
Synopsis: Voya Thomas may have passed her Calling to become a full-fledged witch, but the cost was higher than she’d ever imagined.
Her grandmother is gone.
Her cousin hates her.
And her family doesn’t believe that she has what it takes to lead them.
What’s more, Voya can’t let go of her feelings for Luc, sponsor son of the genius billionaire Justin Tremblay—the man that Luc believes Voya killed. Consequently, Luc wants nothing to do with her. Even her own ancestors seem to have lost faith in her. Every day Voya begs for their guidance, but her calls go unanswered.
As Voya struggles to convince everyone—herself included—that she can be a good Matriarch, she has a vision of a terrifying, deadly future. A vision that would spell the end of the Toronto witches. With a newfound sense of purpose, Voya must do whatever it takes to bring her shattered community together and stop what's coming for them before it’s too late.
Even if it means taking down the boy she loves—who might be the mastermind behind the coming devastation.
Review: I really loved this book overall! I thought the book did well to keep the action level from the first book going and while I think both can be read in a bit of a standalone fashion, both do so well to complement each other. The writing is so well done and it’s hard to believe I had an arc when this was so well done. The character develop was also well done, as was the world building. I also love how the author ties in so much into her books. There’s a lot in this book and series about history, community, acceptance, and healing and I’m so impressed with how well the author was able to blend all of these together. I’m not normally an urban sci-fi fantasy reader, but this one should be held as the example of how they should be written! I also hope that one day we’ll return to this world, but regardless if we do or not Liselle Sambury has a fan in me now until forever.
The only issue I had with the book is that it immediately picked up where book 1 left off, so it was a bit confusing to get back into, but it wasn’t bad at all compared to other books I’ve read.
Verdict: Very well done! Highly recommend this series!
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc and finished copy from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: The Valkyrie’s Daughter
Author: Tiana Warner
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 4/5
Diversity: Sapphic MC and character, f/f romance
Recommended For...: young adult readers, fantasy, mythology, Norse mythology, romance, LGBT
Publication Date: July 26, 2022
Genre: YA Fantasy Mythology
Age Relevance: 14+ (violence, gore, animal death, homophobia, grief, death)
Explanation of Above: There is some violence and gore in this book, but nothing very descriptive or long. There’s also death mentioned and shown in this book, including a winged horse’s death shown. There is grief mentioned and shown in this book throughout. There is also one line where there’s a line stated about Loki birthing Sleipnir that reads a bit homophobic/transphobic since Loki is gender fluid and has birthed some of his children (it’s basically a scoff at how Loki could have done it).
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Pages: 389
Synopsis: For as long as Sigrid could remember, she’s wanted to become a mighty, fearless valkyrie. But without a winged mare, she’s a mere stable hand, left wondering who her parents were and why she’s so different. So when the Eye shows her a vision where she's leading a valkyrie charge on the legendary eight-legged horse Sleipnir, she grabs the possibility of this greater destiny with both hands, refusing to let go.
Too bad that the only one who can help her get there is Mariam, an enemy valkyrie who begrudgingly agrees to lead her to Helheim but who certainly can’t be trusted―even if she does make Sigrid more than a little flustered. As they cross the nine worlds, battling night elves, riding sea serpents, and hurtling into fire to learn the truth about Sigrid’s birthright, an unexpected but powerful bond forms.
As her feelings for Mariam deepen into something fiery and undeniable, Fate has other plans for Sigrid. What happens when the one thing you think you were meant to do might end the nine worlds?
Review: For the most part I really enjoyed this book. It gave me Eragon/early 00s YA book vibes and it’s a fun read overall. The book is action packed and there’s hardly any downtime in the book. The book is a little tropey but it’s a fun Norse Mythology read that has a lot of fun callbacks to Norse mythology. The book also has great character development and world building. The book is evenly paced and well written as well.
However, the only issue I had with the book is that this is a world based heavily on Norse mythology with winged horses and going into the afterlife and such. Gods are known, but our MC doesn’t know that Loki gave birth to Sleipnir or that he’s what we would call gender fluid? That he’s changed genders and species many times and gave birth more than once? There’s a line in the book where our MC is reading about Loki giving birth and it reads as a scoff of disbelief. That’s the only instance of slight homophobia in the book, everyone in the book was really open minded and it didn’t even come into question about our MC and her LI’s romance, but I really wish that one line was re-written to be better and that the issue of her not knowing some of her own Norse mythology was better explained as well.
Verdict: It’s great! I loved it.
Book: The Valkyrie’s Daughter
Author: Tiana Warner
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 4/5
Diversity: Sapphic MC and character, f/f romance
Recommended For...: young adult readers, fantasy, mythology, Norse mythology, romance, LGBT
Publication Date: July 26, 2022
Genre: YA Fantasy Mythology
Age Relevance: 14+ (violence, gore, animal death, homophobia, grief, death)
Explanation of Above: There is some violence and gore in this book, but nothing very descriptive or long. There’s also death mentioned and shown in this book, including a winged horse’s death shown. There is grief mentioned and shown in this book throughout. There is also one line where there’s a line stated about Loki birthing Sleipnir that reads a bit homophobic/transphobic since Loki is gender fluid and has birthed some of his children (it’s basically a scoff at how Loki could have done it).
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Pages: 389
Synopsis: For as long as Sigrid could remember, she’s wanted to become a mighty, fearless valkyrie. But without a winged mare, she’s a mere stable hand, left wondering who her parents were and why she’s so different. So when the Eye shows her a vision where she's leading a valkyrie charge on the legendary eight-legged horse Sleipnir, she grabs the possibility of this greater destiny with both hands, refusing to let go.
Too bad that the only one who can help her get there is Mariam, an enemy valkyrie who begrudgingly agrees to lead her to Helheim but who certainly can’t be trusted―even if she does make Sigrid more than a little flustered. As they cross the nine worlds, battling night elves, riding sea serpents, and hurtling into fire to learn the truth about Sigrid’s birthright, an unexpected but powerful bond forms.
As her feelings for Mariam deepen into something fiery and undeniable, Fate has other plans for Sigrid. What happens when the one thing you think you were meant to do might end the nine worlds?
Review: For the most part I really enjoyed this book. It gave me Eragon/early 00s YA book vibes and it’s a fun read overall. The book is action packed and there’s hardly any downtime in the book. The book is a little tropey but it’s a fun Norse Mythology read that has a lot of fun callbacks to Norse mythology. The book also has great character development and world building. The book is evenly paced and well written as well.
However, the only issue I had with the book is that this is a world based heavily on Norse mythology with winged horses and going into the afterlife and such. Gods are known, but our MC doesn’t know that Loki gave birth to Sleipnir or that he’s what we would call gender fluid? That he’s changed genders and species many times and gave birth more than once? There’s a line in the book where our MC is reading about Loki giving birth and it reads as a scoff of disbelief. That’s the only instance of slight homophobia in the book, everyone in the book was really open minded and it didn’t even come into question about our MC and her LI’s romance, but I really wish that one line was re-written to be better and that the issue of her not knowing some of her own Norse mythology was better explained as well.
Verdict: It’s great! I loved it.
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Disclaimer: I received this physical arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: It’s All In How You Fall
Author: Sarah Henning
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: MC has spinal stenosis
Recommended For...: young adult readers, contemporary, romance, sports romance, gymnastics, tennis
Publication Date: May 31, 2022
Genre: YA Contemporary Romance
Age Relevance: 13+ (romance, injuries, cursing)
Explanation of Above: There is romance in this book; it’s a sports romance/in love with the brother’s best friend trope. There are injuries mentioned throughout the book from spines to other body parts but nothing is gorily depicted. There is some slight cursing, but it’s very sparring.
Publisher: Poppy/Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 303
Synopsis: Gymnast Caroline Kepler has three state balance beam titles, a new trick even most elites can’t do, and chronic, undeniable back pain. While she might never be an Olympian, she has dreams of leveling up to elite, making Nationals, and competing in college. But when one epic face-plant changes all that and Caroline’s back pain goes from chronic to career-ending, her dreams are shattered and her life is flipped upside down.
Enter Alex Zavala, a three-sport athlete who’s both incredibly cute and incredibly off-limits. He offers to give Caroline a crash course in all the sports she’s missed, and she has an offer for him in return: For every sport Alex teaches her, she’ll play matchmaker for him. Deal done, Caroline “dates” new sports with Alex for the rest of the summer, which is loads more fun than wallowing in despair. Just as Caroline starts to see herself as more than her past athletic successes, she picks up something she didn’t bargain for: a big fat crush on Alex. Turns out life was way easier when it was just layout-fulls and beam burns....
Enter Alex Zavala, a three-sport athlete who’s both incredibly cute and incredibly off-limits. He offers to give Caroline a crash course in all the sports she’s missed, and she has an offer for him in return: For every sport Alex teaches her, she’ll play matchmaker for him. Deal done, Caroline “dates” new sports with Alex for the rest of the summer, which is loads more fun than wallowing in despair. Just as Caroline starts to see herself as more than her past athletic successes, she picks up something she didn’t bargain for: a big fat crush on Alex. Turns out life was way easier when it was just layout-fulls and beam burns....
Review: This is a great palate cleanser read or a great read for anyone who is craving some sports romance. The book was well written and it immediately grabs your attention from the get-go. The book does great developing the romance and I didn’t feel like it was too rush. I loved the tropes and the book did well to play into them. The character development is amazing and the world building was well done as well.
The only issue I had with the book is that I wish there was a bit more in the book. I wanted to see more of Caroline’s journey after gymnastics, but I’ll just remain hopeful that we eventually get a side sequel with Sunny or Peregrine or Nat. I also wanted to see more of Caroline trying different sports and them going into how to play them.
Verdict: It was so good! I recommend for those looking for sports romance books!
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adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc and physical arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: The Witchery
Author: S. Isabelle
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 3.5/5
Diversity: Black characters and MCs, Sapphic character, f/f romance mentioned
Recommended For...: young adult readers, supernatural, fantasy, witches, witchcraft, werewolves, LGBT, urban fantasy
Publication Date: July 26, 2022
Genre: YA Supernatural Fantasy
Age Relevance: 14+ (alcohol consumption, romance, cursing, religion, religious trauma, racism, panic attack, gore, violence, death, grief, murder)
Explanation of Above: There is some alcohol consumption mentioned early on in the book very briefly. There is some romance in the book. There is some slight cursing and some religion and religious trauma shown and mentioned. There is one instance of racism being mentioned in the book and one panic attack shown. There is some gore, violence, a few deaths, and a murder mentioned. There is also some grief shown and mentioned.
Publisher: Scholastic
Pages: 371
Synopsis: THE HAUNTING SEASON IS HERE AND THE WOLVES ARE AWAKE.
Haelsford, Florida is a Hellmouth. Or at least, that’s what Logan, a baby witch struggling to control her powers, thinks as she arrives to the witchtown to begin the new school year at Mesmortes Coven Academy. She is immediately taken under the wing of the infamous Red Three. Iris is a deathwitch who wants nothing more than to break the town’s curse; Jailah is one of the most powerful witches at the academy but her thirst for power may lead her down a dark path; and Thalia, the talented greenwitch, is on the run from her religious family and a past that still haunts her.
Fear and prejudice still fuel the uneasy truce between humans and witches who are forced to work together when the Haunting Season begins and Wolves rise from the swamp to feed. With this approaching, two Hammersmitt boys prepare to make their first sacrifices to the witches in exchange for protection. But as they become involved with the Mesmortes witches’ plan to end the Wolves’ reign of terror once and for all, old dangers lie in wait.
The cost to break the curse may be greater than any witch or human could ever know.
Review: For the most part I liked this book. I thought that the book did ok with the multi-POV from 6 perspectives and that this would be a good HP replacement book. The book is action-packed and really focuses on friendship and the connections we make. The book is also fun, set in a supernatural world where witchcraft is kinda normal. I felt like the character development was well done and the world building was as well.
However, there were some issues I had with the book. The book is kinda weirdly wrote and is disjointed. I had to read the summery to figure out what was happening in the beginning and it was a really confusing book is a lot of the parts, but especially the beginning. All of the parts are there for a great novel and I have no doubt in my mind that it’ll be polished up for the finalized version, but for the arc it was just a bit of a mess in the beginning and with little confusing aspects here and there throughout the book, it makes it feel like a second book in a series rather than a first.
Verdict: It’s good, but needs a little more love.
Book: The Witchery
Author: S. Isabelle
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 3.5/5
Diversity: Black characters and MCs, Sapphic character, f/f romance mentioned
Recommended For...: young adult readers, supernatural, fantasy, witches, witchcraft, werewolves, LGBT, urban fantasy
Publication Date: July 26, 2022
Genre: YA Supernatural Fantasy
Age Relevance: 14+ (alcohol consumption, romance, cursing, religion, religious trauma, racism, panic attack, gore, violence, death, grief, murder)
Explanation of Above: There is some alcohol consumption mentioned early on in the book very briefly. There is some romance in the book. There is some slight cursing and some religion and religious trauma shown and mentioned. There is one instance of racism being mentioned in the book and one panic attack shown. There is some gore, violence, a few deaths, and a murder mentioned. There is also some grief shown and mentioned.
Publisher: Scholastic
Pages: 371
Synopsis: THE HAUNTING SEASON IS HERE AND THE WOLVES ARE AWAKE.
Haelsford, Florida is a Hellmouth. Or at least, that’s what Logan, a baby witch struggling to control her powers, thinks as she arrives to the witchtown to begin the new school year at Mesmortes Coven Academy. She is immediately taken under the wing of the infamous Red Three. Iris is a deathwitch who wants nothing more than to break the town’s curse; Jailah is one of the most powerful witches at the academy but her thirst for power may lead her down a dark path; and Thalia, the talented greenwitch, is on the run from her religious family and a past that still haunts her.
Fear and prejudice still fuel the uneasy truce between humans and witches who are forced to work together when the Haunting Season begins and Wolves rise from the swamp to feed. With this approaching, two Hammersmitt boys prepare to make their first sacrifices to the witches in exchange for protection. But as they become involved with the Mesmortes witches’ plan to end the Wolves’ reign of terror once and for all, old dangers lie in wait.
The cost to break the curse may be greater than any witch or human could ever know.
Review: For the most part I liked this book. I thought that the book did ok with the multi-POV from 6 perspectives and that this would be a good HP replacement book. The book is action-packed and really focuses on friendship and the connections we make. The book is also fun, set in a supernatural world where witchcraft is kinda normal. I felt like the character development was well done and the world building was as well.
However, there were some issues I had with the book. The book is kinda weirdly wrote and is disjointed. I had to read the summery to figure out what was happening in the beginning and it was a really confusing book is a lot of the parts, but especially the beginning. All of the parts are there for a great novel and I have no doubt in my mind that it’ll be polished up for the finalized version, but for the arc it was just a bit of a mess in the beginning and with little confusing aspects here and there throughout the book, it makes it feel like a second book in a series rather than a first.
Verdict: It’s good, but needs a little more love.
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Etta Invincible
Author: Reese Eschmann
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Black hard-of-hearing/Meniere’s Disease MC, ASL used a little, Columbian character
Recommended For...: middle grade readers, fantasy, magic trains, comic books hybird, graphic novels hybrid
Publication Date: July12, 2022
Genre: MG Fantasy
Age Relevance: 9+ (racism, anxiety, lost animal, animal kidnapping, violence, scary moments)
Explanation of Above: There is some racism mentioned in the book in regards to medicine and how hard it is for Black people to be treated adequately by the healthcare industry. There are some showings of anxiety. There is a dog who gets lost and then found to be kidnapped in the book. There is some very slight showings of violence in the book. There are a couple of scary moments that could be a bit hard for younger or more sensitive readers, but this would be a great bonding book for younger children and their guardians, especially if you want to show them characters who are hard of hearing.
Publisher: Aladdin
Pages: 368
Synopsis: A girl with hearing loss and a boy adjusting to life in a new country connect through their love of comics and get entangled in their own fantastical adventure.
Twelve-year-old Etta Johnson has Loud Days where she can hear just fine and Quiet Days where sounds come from far away and she gets to retreat into her thoughts. Etta spends most of her time alone, working on her comic book about Invisible Girl, the superhero who takes down super villain Petra Fide and does all the things Etta thinks she can’t.
But when Louisa May Alcott, a friendly Goldendoodle from across the street, disappears, Etta and the dog’s boy, Eleazar, must find their inner heroes to save her. The catch? LMA has run onto a magical train that mysteriously arrived at the station near Etta and Eleazar’s houses. On-board, they discover each train car is its own magical world with individual riddles and challenges that must be solved before they can reach the engine room and rescue LMA.
Only, the stakes are even higher than they thought. The train’s magic is malfunctioning and spreading a purple smoke called The Fear through the streets of Chicago. Etta and Eleazar are the only ones who can save the city, save Louisa May Alcott—and save each other.
Review: I think my favorite this about this book is that the MC is hard of hearing and the way that this aspect of her life is written in the book and pops up frequently in terms of writing, ASL, understanding one another, etc. is beautifully done in my opinion. I am not considered hard of hearing, but I do have what might be an auditory processing disorder or some other sort of hearing issue, so sometimes it is really hard for me to understand what is being said even if I’m looking at someone and paying as much attention to them as I possibly can and even if I can see their lips moving. I have to use captions when watching shows and stuff and I sometimes ask someone to repeat themselves or speak slower for me. So I understood to a degree how Etta felt when that aspect of her life came up. I also thought that the book was genius when it came to showing how Etta and her friend communicated even though he was more comfortable speaking Spanish and she hasn’t learned that yet. They used a translator and it really shows the ingenuity of children who will always find ways to play and interact with each other regardless of any language barriers. I also loved the comic aspect of the book, but wish that there were more panels in the book. I would also consider this a great HP replacement read if you are looking for those like I constantly am. Lastly, I thought the world building and character development was well done and the book was well paced.
The only real issue I had with the book is that I thought it would be better split up into multiple books or that it didn’t incorporate the comic book aspect enough, but otherwise it was really well done.
Verdict: I loved this book! Highly recommend!
Book: Etta Invincible
Author: Reese Eschmann
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Black hard-of-hearing/Meniere’s Disease MC, ASL used a little, Columbian character
Recommended For...: middle grade readers, fantasy, magic trains, comic books hybird, graphic novels hybrid
Publication Date: July12, 2022
Genre: MG Fantasy
Age Relevance: 9+ (racism, anxiety, lost animal, animal kidnapping, violence, scary moments)
Explanation of Above: There is some racism mentioned in the book in regards to medicine and how hard it is for Black people to be treated adequately by the healthcare industry. There are some showings of anxiety. There is a dog who gets lost and then found to be kidnapped in the book. There is some very slight showings of violence in the book. There are a couple of scary moments that could be a bit hard for younger or more sensitive readers, but this would be a great bonding book for younger children and their guardians, especially if you want to show them characters who are hard of hearing.
Publisher: Aladdin
Pages: 368
Synopsis: A girl with hearing loss and a boy adjusting to life in a new country connect through their love of comics and get entangled in their own fantastical adventure.
Twelve-year-old Etta Johnson has Loud Days where she can hear just fine and Quiet Days where sounds come from far away and she gets to retreat into her thoughts. Etta spends most of her time alone, working on her comic book about Invisible Girl, the superhero who takes down super villain Petra Fide and does all the things Etta thinks she can’t.
But when Louisa May Alcott, a friendly Goldendoodle from across the street, disappears, Etta and the dog’s boy, Eleazar, must find their inner heroes to save her. The catch? LMA has run onto a magical train that mysteriously arrived at the station near Etta and Eleazar’s houses. On-board, they discover each train car is its own magical world with individual riddles and challenges that must be solved before they can reach the engine room and rescue LMA.
Only, the stakes are even higher than they thought. The train’s magic is malfunctioning and spreading a purple smoke called The Fear through the streets of Chicago. Etta and Eleazar are the only ones who can save the city, save Louisa May Alcott—and save each other.
Review: I think my favorite this about this book is that the MC is hard of hearing and the way that this aspect of her life is written in the book and pops up frequently in terms of writing, ASL, understanding one another, etc. is beautifully done in my opinion. I am not considered hard of hearing, but I do have what might be an auditory processing disorder or some other sort of hearing issue, so sometimes it is really hard for me to understand what is being said even if I’m looking at someone and paying as much attention to them as I possibly can and even if I can see their lips moving. I have to use captions when watching shows and stuff and I sometimes ask someone to repeat themselves or speak slower for me. So I understood to a degree how Etta felt when that aspect of her life came up. I also thought that the book was genius when it came to showing how Etta and her friend communicated even though he was more comfortable speaking Spanish and she hasn’t learned that yet. They used a translator and it really shows the ingenuity of children who will always find ways to play and interact with each other regardless of any language barriers. I also loved the comic aspect of the book, but wish that there were more panels in the book. I would also consider this a great HP replacement read if you are looking for those like I constantly am. Lastly, I thought the world building and character development was well done and the book was well paced.
The only real issue I had with the book is that I thought it would be better split up into multiple books or that it didn’t incorporate the comic book aspect enough, but otherwise it was really well done.
Verdict: I loved this book! Highly recommend!
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
Disclaimer: I received this finished copy from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Santiago: Chronicles of a Young Traveler
Author: Eduardo Rios Lasso
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 3/5
Diversity: Character with autoimmune condition, character with anxiety
Recommended For...: contemporary, fiction, travel, world travel, adventure, anxiety
Publication Date: June 6, 2022
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Age Relevance: 16+ (fatphobia, romance, human trafficking, religion, child abuse, death)
Explanation of Above: There is some slight mentions of weight and it leans into fatphobia territory. There is some slight romance in the book. There are talks about religion and human trafficking and child abuse are mentioned as well. There is also some death in the book.
Publisher: Zibarna Books
Pages: 345
Synopsis: SANTIAGO – Chronicles of a Young Traveler is a fiction novel, a coming-of-age story inspired by actual live events. The main character is Santiago, a 26-year-old Santiago fresh out of Law School in Panama that has always longed to see the world, but his anxiety gets in the way. But one day, after years of saving, Santiago courageously buys a ticket around the world. His parents think he’s crazy, but he takes a leap of faith and sets out alone. His grandmother played an essential role in his life and was very supportive.
Meanwhile, Santiago finds out his best friend Laura, who played a crucial role in helping him organize the trip, cannot join him for part of the trip as they had planned because she battles a recently diagnosed autoimmune disease. Will he regret his decision to leave her behind? Will their friendship survive or blossom into something more? On his journeys from New York to Lisbon, Paris to Sarajevo, and Istanbul to Bali, Santiago must overcome his shyness and open up his heart despite facing challenges, such as scams and confronting complex issues like human trafficking. Join Santiago on a journey of self-discovery and adventure like no other.
Review: For the most part I thought this was a good book. It had a lot of great moments and if you’re a new traveler then this book would be the perfect companion for you to take with you on your journeys. The book did well to have a good story with a great plot line. I would have liked to see it a bit more, but it did well to get to the point. The story was easy to follow and it’s just such an easy breezy book, so you can pick it up and put it down multiple times so you can catch your plane or train.
However, I had a few issues with the book. I felt like the book did a lot of telling and not showing. The writing is a bit clunky and it doesn’t flow that well. There’s very little character development and world building, but that is a flaw in the telling not showing plan of the book. The MC also talked so much older than 26 and the way they acted was just very different than how I expected it. I think if the story was a bit more revised to paint a picture to the audience rather than to narrate one to it, then it would have been a better book for me.
Verdict: It’s good, but needs some work in my opinion.
Book: Santiago: Chronicles of a Young Traveler
Author: Eduardo Rios Lasso
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 3/5
Diversity: Character with autoimmune condition, character with anxiety
Recommended For...: contemporary, fiction, travel, world travel, adventure, anxiety
Publication Date: June 6, 2022
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Age Relevance: 16+ (fatphobia, romance, human trafficking, religion, child abuse, death)
Explanation of Above: There is some slight mentions of weight and it leans into fatphobia territory. There is some slight romance in the book. There are talks about religion and human trafficking and child abuse are mentioned as well. There is also some death in the book.
Publisher: Zibarna Books
Pages: 345
Synopsis: SANTIAGO – Chronicles of a Young Traveler is a fiction novel, a coming-of-age story inspired by actual live events. The main character is Santiago, a 26-year-old Santiago fresh out of Law School in Panama that has always longed to see the world, but his anxiety gets in the way. But one day, after years of saving, Santiago courageously buys a ticket around the world. His parents think he’s crazy, but he takes a leap of faith and sets out alone. His grandmother played an essential role in his life and was very supportive.
Meanwhile, Santiago finds out his best friend Laura, who played a crucial role in helping him organize the trip, cannot join him for part of the trip as they had planned because she battles a recently diagnosed autoimmune disease. Will he regret his decision to leave her behind? Will their friendship survive or blossom into something more? On his journeys from New York to Lisbon, Paris to Sarajevo, and Istanbul to Bali, Santiago must overcome his shyness and open up his heart despite facing challenges, such as scams and confronting complex issues like human trafficking. Join Santiago on a journey of self-discovery and adventure like no other.
Review: For the most part I thought this was a good book. It had a lot of great moments and if you’re a new traveler then this book would be the perfect companion for you to take with you on your journeys. The book did well to have a good story with a great plot line. I would have liked to see it a bit more, but it did well to get to the point. The story was easy to follow and it’s just such an easy breezy book, so you can pick it up and put it down multiple times so you can catch your plane or train.
However, I had a few issues with the book. I felt like the book did a lot of telling and not showing. The writing is a bit clunky and it doesn’t flow that well. There’s very little character development and world building, but that is a flaw in the telling not showing plan of the book. The MC also talked so much older than 26 and the way they acted was just very different than how I expected it. I think if the story was a bit more revised to paint a picture to the audience rather than to narrate one to it, then it would have been a better book for me.
Verdict: It’s good, but needs some work in my opinion.
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc and arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: We Made It All Up
Author: Margot Harrison
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 3/5
Diversity: m/m romance… kinda?
Recommended For...: young adult readers, thriller, mystery, murder mystery
Publication Date: July 12, 2022
Genre: YA Thriller Mystery
Age Relevance: 16+ (romance, cursing, abelism, underage alcohol consumption, sexual content, bullying, death, parental death, child abuse, child sexual abuse, gore, fetishization, homophobia, suicide, sexual assault)
Explanation of Above: There is some romance in the book. There is a lot of cursing and some mentions and showings of underage alcohol consumption. There is some slight abelism mentioned, child abuse mentioned vaguely, child sexual assault mentioned vaguely, slight homophobia, and one mention of suicide. There is a very brief scene of sexual assault mentioned. There is some bullying shown in the book and death and parental death are mentioned. There is some blood gore shown in the book. Finally, there is a LOT of fanfic about these two boys and it leans into fetishization of the characters as them being in a gay relationship with each other but with the MC and another girl constantly wanting them to get together/seeing them as a sexual object/using their stories about them to write about their own personal trauma and personifying it onto them.
Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 370
Synopsis: Celeste is the talk of the town when she moves to Montana from Montreal, but the only friend she makes is Vivvy, the heir to the town’s name and a social pariah. Inspired by a passion-fueled school incident, they begin writing a love-story fan fic between the popular guy and the school stoner, one that gradually reveals Celeste’s past. While their bond makes Celeste feel safe and alive again, Vivvy keeps prodding Celeste to turn fantasy into reality. When they finally try, one drunken night on a dark mountainside, Celeste is the one who ends up kissing golden boy Joss. And Joss ends up dead.
Celeste doesn’t remember the end of that night and can’t be sure she didn’t deliver the killing blow. Could she still be that scared of getting close to a boy? Secrets are hard to keep in a small town, and even Vivvy seems to suspect her. Exploring the winding passages of the cave where Joss died, Celeste learns he had his own dark secrets, as does Vivvy. The town isn’t as innocent as it appears.
Celeste doesn’t remember the end of that night and can’t be sure she didn’t deliver the killing blow. Could she still be that scared of getting close to a boy? Secrets are hard to keep in a small town, and even Vivvy seems to suspect her. Exploring the winding passages of the cave where Joss died, Celeste learns he had his own dark secrets, as does Vivvy. The town isn’t as innocent as it appears.
Review: This was an ok but strange book. For the most part I thought the book had an ok plot line and the story would have been great if a few things had changed in my opinion. I liked the creepy atmosphere of the book and I thought that the book did well to show how obsession can lead to some bad things.
However, this book was an absolute train wreck. The book is told in this back and forth style and it gets so confusing so quickly. It would have been better if a few chapters were in the past then one or two in the future, but constantly switching was awful. The book is also really hard to get into, but it’s also really hard to get back into. I left the book for a couple of days and when I came back, I couldn’t figure out what was going on for the life of me. The story didn’t stick with me and even with all of my notes I was completely at a loss as to what was happening and who people were. It’s an easily forgettable book in that regard. The book also made me feel extremely uncomfortable. I didn’t like the fetishization culture that was happening in the book and the book didn’t really resolve that issue in my opinion. The way the MC was writing about these two boys and then fetishizing them in public was awful and for it to be unresolved really made me not like the author. There’s a huge problem with fetishization in the book community and I just think that it could have been better done as a cautionary tale.
Verdict: Overall, I didn’t like it. I think that there are some salvageable aspects and this book could be something great, but it was not put together in my arc so I don’t have hope for it in the final version. It’s definitely not for me, but it could be for you!
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
Disclaimer: I received this physical finshed copy from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: The Wizard’s Ward
Author: Jame McAleese
Book Series: Vale Book 1
Rating: 3/5
Recommended For...: young adult readers, fantasy, high fantasy
Publication Date: April 30, 2022
Genre: YA Fantasy
Age Relevance: 16+ (romance, war, alcohol consumption, possible attempted sexual assault, torture, gore, blood magic, death)
Explanation of Above: There is some slight romance in the book and there is some alcohol consumption shown in the book. There is a war ongoing in the book and there is some torture and gore mentioned. There is also blood magic shown and used in the book, as well as death. There is also a possible attempted sexual assault, but it is very vague.
Publisher: Vale Media LLC
Pages: 291
Synopsis: Francis has gray blood.
The King of the Elves ordered all gray bloods be put to death, by any means necessary. Francis, the Wizard's Ward, has been hiding in plain sight all her life, under the care of Billington, the King's wizard. When Billington disappears from the Cardinal castle, Francis enlists the help of her first love, a battle-ridden soldier called X, to find the only family she's ever known.
But outside the castle walls, there is a war raging between kingdoms and Francis faces countless dangers that plague the land of Vale. Shapeshifting bounty hunters search for military deserters, pirates maraud Vale's seas, combat-trained dragons dwell in the witch's mountains, and betrayals harden once-warmed hearts.
As the journey pushes Francis to her limits, she uncovers the true power of her gray blood, a power that could fulfill a prophecy and bring down a psychotic king.
Vale: The Wizard's Ward is the first installment of an epic young adult fantasy franchise.
The King of the Elves ordered all gray bloods be put to death, by any means necessary. Francis, the Wizard's Ward, has been hiding in plain sight all her life, under the care of Billington, the King's wizard. When Billington disappears from the Cardinal castle, Francis enlists the help of her first love, a battle-ridden soldier called X, to find the only family she's ever known.
But outside the castle walls, there is a war raging between kingdoms and Francis faces countless dangers that plague the land of Vale. Shapeshifting bounty hunters search for military deserters, pirates maraud Vale's seas, combat-trained dragons dwell in the witch's mountains, and betrayals harden once-warmed hearts.
As the journey pushes Francis to her limits, she uncovers the true power of her gray blood, a power that could fulfill a prophecy and bring down a psychotic king.
Vale: The Wizard's Ward is the first installment of an epic young adult fantasy franchise.
Review: For the most part I thought this was an ok book. Overall I liked the story and the characters were well developed. I think this will be an amazing storyline in the future and with a bit more editing it’ll be an epic fantasy novel series.
However, there are a few things that I had issue with. There were undefined time skips throughout the book. The pacing was way too fast but yet there was a lot of background information, which meant we didn’t get to the heart of the plot until about 200 pages in. There was lots of telling and not showing in the book and it lacked a lot of world building for me. There’s also an issue with blood magic being used which made me a bit weary of the text and while I’m not educated on the matter I think the author should review blood libel to make sure to avoid any antisemetic writing.
Verdict: It’s ok, it’s got potential, but it needs some work still.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc and physical finished copy from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Goth Girl, Queen of the Universe
Author: Lindsay S. Zrull
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Foster care plus size vegetarian MC, Asian character, Black character, Mexican American anxiety disorder character, bipolar disorder character
Recommended For...: young adult readers, contemporary, plus size, foster care, cosplay contests
Publication Date: July 19, 2022
Genre: YA Contemporary
Age Relevance: 14+ (Bullying, Cursing, Schizophrenia, Sexual content, Parental Death, Fatphobia, Anxiety, Panic attack, Suicide, Bipolar, Deportation, Abelism, Racism, Romance)
Explanation of Above: There are mentions of schizophrenia, anxiety, and a very brief mention of bipolar and suicide. There is one scene with a panic attack, but it is quick. There is some bullying shown throughout the book. There is some cursing in the book. There are very brief mentions of sexual content in the form of kink and sex jokes, nothing explicit is shown. There is mention of a parental death and very brief mention of deportation. There is some fatphobia shown in the book and one instance of abelism. There is also one scene of racism shown in the book. There is also some slight romance in the form of kisses.
Publisher: Flux Books
Pages: 341
Synopsis: Bounced between foster homes since the age of seven, Jessica knows better than to set down roots. Most of the kids at her new Michigan high school think she’s a witch anyway (because, you know, goth). The only one who gives her the time of day is geeky Oscar, who wants to recruit her fashion skills for his amateur cosplay group. But Jess is fine showing off her looks to her Insta fans—until a woman claiming to be her biological mother barges into her DMs.
Jess was claimed by the state when her bio mom’s mental illness made her unstable. While their relationship is far from traditional, blood ties are hard to break. There’s only one problem: Jess can’t reunite with her mom in New York City without a bunch of paperwork and she worries her social worker will never approve the trip. That’s when she remembers Oscar’s cosplay group, which is aiming for that big convention in New York . . .
So, Jess joins Oscar’s team—with every intention of using them to get to her mom. But her plan gets complicated when she discovers that, actually, cosplay is pretty great, and so is having friends. And Oscar, who Jess thought was just a shy nerd, can be as gallant and charming as the heroes he pretends to be. As the big convention draws near, Jess will have to decide whether or not chasing a dream of “family” is worth risking the family she’s built for herself.
Review: I really love this book! As someone who grew up with a mom who suffered from mental health issues, I really connected with the main character and her plight. I wasn’t ever in the foster care system, but I could relate to her struggles with her mother. It’s like constantly walking on eggshells and not knowing if your remarks or questions will set them off. It’s not knowing if they’ll come out of their room to make dinner or not. It’s being yelled at for things you didn’t do and having bread thrown at you because they didn’t like the way you folded the towels or they didn’t remember where they set their bible. It’s super hard and being in foster care or not you always feel the effects. I love how unashamed the book discussed mental health, because while there can be significant heartbreak in it, it’s not the end of the world for most and it’s something that can be helped a lot by medication. I really appreciated the ending, because I’m currently in the unknown with my own mother. I don’t know what the future looks like and I’m glad this book left it open as well. The character development was well done and I also really liked the world building. The story was well plotted and it developed very naturally throughout the book.
The only thing I thought the book could improve on was that the romance I thought could be a bit more pronounced (but that’s a personal preference) and I think the cover could have been better designed to fully illustrate the plus size heroine. She’s there and she’s plus size, but she hiding herself and in all her black apparel it’s hard to see that she’s plus size. I think it would be great for young people to see her better.
Verdict: I highly recommend this one for younger kids going through what I did and what this MC is.
Book: Goth Girl, Queen of the Universe
Author: Lindsay S. Zrull
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Foster care plus size vegetarian MC, Asian character, Black character, Mexican American anxiety disorder character, bipolar disorder character
Recommended For...: young adult readers, contemporary, plus size, foster care, cosplay contests
Publication Date: July 19, 2022
Genre: YA Contemporary
Age Relevance: 14+ (Bullying, Cursing, Schizophrenia, Sexual content, Parental Death, Fatphobia, Anxiety, Panic attack, Suicide, Bipolar, Deportation, Abelism, Racism, Romance)
Explanation of Above: There are mentions of schizophrenia, anxiety, and a very brief mention of bipolar and suicide. There is one scene with a panic attack, but it is quick. There is some bullying shown throughout the book. There is some cursing in the book. There are very brief mentions of sexual content in the form of kink and sex jokes, nothing explicit is shown. There is mention of a parental death and very brief mention of deportation. There is some fatphobia shown in the book and one instance of abelism. There is also one scene of racism shown in the book. There is also some slight romance in the form of kisses.
Publisher: Flux Books
Pages: 341
Synopsis: Bounced between foster homes since the age of seven, Jessica knows better than to set down roots. Most of the kids at her new Michigan high school think she’s a witch anyway (because, you know, goth). The only one who gives her the time of day is geeky Oscar, who wants to recruit her fashion skills for his amateur cosplay group. But Jess is fine showing off her looks to her Insta fans—until a woman claiming to be her biological mother barges into her DMs.
Jess was claimed by the state when her bio mom’s mental illness made her unstable. While their relationship is far from traditional, blood ties are hard to break. There’s only one problem: Jess can’t reunite with her mom in New York City without a bunch of paperwork and she worries her social worker will never approve the trip. That’s when she remembers Oscar’s cosplay group, which is aiming for that big convention in New York . . .
So, Jess joins Oscar’s team—with every intention of using them to get to her mom. But her plan gets complicated when she discovers that, actually, cosplay is pretty great, and so is having friends. And Oscar, who Jess thought was just a shy nerd, can be as gallant and charming as the heroes he pretends to be. As the big convention draws near, Jess will have to decide whether or not chasing a dream of “family” is worth risking the family she’s built for herself.
Review: I really love this book! As someone who grew up with a mom who suffered from mental health issues, I really connected with the main character and her plight. I wasn’t ever in the foster care system, but I could relate to her struggles with her mother. It’s like constantly walking on eggshells and not knowing if your remarks or questions will set them off. It’s not knowing if they’ll come out of their room to make dinner or not. It’s being yelled at for things you didn’t do and having bread thrown at you because they didn’t like the way you folded the towels or they didn’t remember where they set their bible. It’s super hard and being in foster care or not you always feel the effects. I love how unashamed the book discussed mental health, because while there can be significant heartbreak in it, it’s not the end of the world for most and it’s something that can be helped a lot by medication. I really appreciated the ending, because I’m currently in the unknown with my own mother. I don’t know what the future looks like and I’m glad this book left it open as well. The character development was well done and I also really liked the world building. The story was well plotted and it developed very naturally throughout the book.
The only thing I thought the book could improve on was that the romance I thought could be a bit more pronounced (but that’s a personal preference) and I think the cover could have been better designed to fully illustrate the plus size heroine. She’s there and she’s plus size, but she hiding herself and in all her black apparel it’s hard to see that she’s plus size. I think it would be great for young people to see her better.
Verdict: I highly recommend this one for younger kids going through what I did and what this MC is.
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Disclaimer: I bought my own copy of the book. Support your authors! All opinions are my own.
Book: Godslayers
Author: Zoe Hana Mikuta
Book Series: Gearbreakers Book 2
Rating: 3.5/5
Diversity: Bisexual Asian inspired MC, Lesbian Asian inspired MC, sapphic romance
Recommended For...: young adult readers, sci-fi, LGBT, queer, dystopian, mechas
Publication Date: June 28, 2022
Genre: YA Sci-Fi Dystopian
Age Relevance:16+ (violence, gore, religion, cursing, torture, alcohol consumption, death, parental death, romance)
Explanation of Above: There was a lot of violence, weapons and physical, and gore with blood and some mentions of vomit. There is also a lot of death mentioned, especially parental death. Religion is discussed and mentioned throughout the book. There is torture mentioned and shown throughout the book. There is a lot of cursing. There is one mention of alcohol consumption. There is some romance and some show of PTSD.
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Pages: 402
Synopsis: The only way to kill a god is from the inside...
The Gearbreakers struck a devastating blow against Godolia on Heavensday, but the cost of victory has been steep. Months later, the few rebels who've managed to escape the tyrannical empire's bloody retribution have fled to the mountains, hunted by the last Zenith--Godolia's only surviving leader.
Eris has been held prisoner since the attack on the capital city, which almost killed her. And she begins to wish it had when she discovers Sona--the girl she loves, the girl she would tear down cities for--also survived, only to be captured and Corrupted by the Zenith. The cybernetic brainwashing that Sona has forcibly undergone now has her believing herself a loyal soldier for Godolia, and Eris' mortal enemy.
With the rebellion shattered and Godolia moving forward with an insidious plan to begin inducting Badlands children into a new Windup Pilot program, the odds have never been more stacked against the Gearbreakers. Their last hope for victory will depend on whether Eris and Sona can somehow find their way back to each other from opposite sides of a war...
Review: For the most part this was a fun read. The book immediately picked up from the first book and it didn’t let up throughout the book. The book is a fun enemies to lovers that plays with a few tropes to keep up that vibe throughout. The character development continued in this book and was great and I loved the romance overall.
However, there were a few issues I had. I was confused throughout most of the book because it just felt like anytime the main characters were in a life or death situation, they immediately got out of it. The book continues to need more background world building. The book is incredibly too fast paced. And the time jumps annoyed the hell out of me. I feel like time jumps are incredibly lazy writing and I wish that more was done with that time than just jumping around and confusing the audience. This is another book that feels like it should have been two books, which is a shame cause the concept overall is amazing.
Verdict: It’s good just needs to be developed more.
Book: Godslayers
Author: Zoe Hana Mikuta
Book Series: Gearbreakers Book 2
Rating: 3.5/5
Diversity: Bisexual Asian inspired MC, Lesbian Asian inspired MC, sapphic romance
Recommended For...: young adult readers, sci-fi, LGBT, queer, dystopian, mechas
Publication Date: June 28, 2022
Genre: YA Sci-Fi Dystopian
Age Relevance:16+ (violence, gore, religion, cursing, torture, alcohol consumption, death, parental death, romance)
Explanation of Above: There was a lot of violence, weapons and physical, and gore with blood and some mentions of vomit. There is also a lot of death mentioned, especially parental death. Religion is discussed and mentioned throughout the book. There is torture mentioned and shown throughout the book. There is a lot of cursing. There is one mention of alcohol consumption. There is some romance and some show of PTSD.
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Pages: 402
Synopsis: The only way to kill a god is from the inside...
The Gearbreakers struck a devastating blow against Godolia on Heavensday, but the cost of victory has been steep. Months later, the few rebels who've managed to escape the tyrannical empire's bloody retribution have fled to the mountains, hunted by the last Zenith--Godolia's only surviving leader.
Eris has been held prisoner since the attack on the capital city, which almost killed her. And she begins to wish it had when she discovers Sona--the girl she loves, the girl she would tear down cities for--also survived, only to be captured and Corrupted by the Zenith. The cybernetic brainwashing that Sona has forcibly undergone now has her believing herself a loyal soldier for Godolia, and Eris' mortal enemy.
With the rebellion shattered and Godolia moving forward with an insidious plan to begin inducting Badlands children into a new Windup Pilot program, the odds have never been more stacked against the Gearbreakers. Their last hope for victory will depend on whether Eris and Sona can somehow find their way back to each other from opposite sides of a war...
Review: For the most part this was a fun read. The book immediately picked up from the first book and it didn’t let up throughout the book. The book is a fun enemies to lovers that plays with a few tropes to keep up that vibe throughout. The character development continued in this book and was great and I loved the romance overall.
However, there were a few issues I had. I was confused throughout most of the book because it just felt like anytime the main characters were in a life or death situation, they immediately got out of it. The book continues to need more background world building. The book is incredibly too fast paced. And the time jumps annoyed the hell out of me. I feel like time jumps are incredibly lazy writing and I wish that more was done with that time than just jumping around and confusing the audience. This is another book that feels like it should have been two books, which is a shame cause the concept overall is amazing.
Verdict: It’s good just needs to be developed more.