Olivia Cole's voice as Alicia, a teenage girl grappling with the trauma of sexual abuse, is bone-chillingly powerful and effective. The words drips with fatigue, fatigue from helplessness, from the world that only sees you as one thing, from the wolves at your door that only want to eat and dominate. The book does hurt, but it's a very real hurt that some people never even understand a fraction of. Dear Medusa doesn't waste time on niceties, it doesn't treat its hard topics as delicate things to be handled lightly, it punches hard because it needs to be heard. I always enjoy books that effortlessly translate the emotions of the characters into its readers and this book achieves this in spades. I've been fortunate to not have gone through Alicia's situation, but I know it's so so important to have this story out there for those that have.

Despite its rough moments, there is beauty in this book, the beauty of survival, of finding your peers, of connecting and finding commonality through shared injustices. 

A treat for any Amphibia fan! Note that this book does take place over the course of the series, so it would be best to read once finished with the TV series.

Marcy's journal provides a fun and introspective look at the events of Amphibia through her and Anne's internal monologue. It was neat to learn more about Marcy's time in Newtopia, but boy the dramatic irony of her going into her friendship with Andrias and explaining her guilt does get a little emotional at times when you know what's coming.

I was hoping to see a bit more encyclopedia like entries, since Marcy is a known dissector of information and will write literally anything interesting down. But I get you want to make this most appealing to the kids who watch the show. 

There are times when Marcy (and Anne once the journal flips to her POV) describe their relationships with the other girls and honestly sometimes it goes deeper than it did in the show. They're able to verbalize their internal discoveries in a way that kind of hits harder? I dont' know if that's me misremembering the show or feeling more nostalgic towards it. Either way, you get an amazing view of their friendship in these pages.

The ending comes off a bit abrupt, but it makes sense given the reality of the situation. I'm glad that there an entry or two that tied into the epilogue of the show while also leaving a door open for a possible continuation. Don't tease us Matt!

I am shocked that there aren't more Latine historical fantasies out there. There is definitely gap in mythology fantasies for kids this book fills, since there aren't a lot of those that focus on Mesoamerica. The world of this graphic novel is wonderfully built, full of gods, creatures, and magic, with enough action and character to delight younger readers.

There were times where I fell off the plot a bit. Lots of elements at once that I couldn't keep up with that were presented in a very vague way. It packs a lot into one volume and it can get overwhelming at times.

Everything about this book just hit so right with me. The surly protagonist whose main comforts lies in academia and study and balks at any kind of social interaction. The entitled brat boy love interest that's also a bit of a neat freak with a secret. The depiction of faeries as morally ambiguous with a penchant for messing around with humans to deadly results. All up my avenue. 

There are times when the more thrilling moments don't really land, mostly more towards the climax where a lot of the action is more referenced than shown, but there are others that keep their intended intensity. 

Though written in a more academic voice, the tone never got too dense or overly jargony. If you have some knowledge of fae tropes and lore you'll pick everything up real easy. I will say on ebook the footnotes can be a bit of a pain as you constantly have to find your way back to your place in the chapter after reading them at the end, but that may just be my settings. 

Bambleby has my entire heart and it only irks me a bit that that's exactly what he would want, but I love the match up he has with Emily as their personalities compliment each other well. Can't wait to see more of them in future installments!

Trust Catriona Ward to know the best way to misdirect and pull the rug out from under readers just when they thought they had everything figured out. Through some perspective shifts, multiple time lines, and unreliable narrating, we're pulled every which way as we follow the mysterious inhabitants of the isle Altnaharra. There were definitely some Shirley Jackson vibes here, as that lingering feeling of dread makes you feel as if something horrible is about to happen.

It's a little slow moving at parts with some imagery that can be hard to visualize at times, but it gets the point across. I think there was so much misdirection at one point though that I had a hard time putting all the pieces together once all the answers are revealed. Could definitely benefit from a reread knowing what I know now. 

I think this is one of the few books that actually deserve the title of emotional roller coasters. It's sweet and cute moments shine and its darker, more emotional scenes give you a real gut punch. It's character driven plot really lets you get close to our protagonists, serving up a lot of empathetic connections. 

It's definitely a hard read at times, especially for those who have experience with mental illness and substance abuse, so be wary of that.

The fact that Peter S. Beagle wrote this book when he was only nineteen only really shows how masterful he is when it comes to compelling emotional storytelling. Though it does have some of the growing pains first novels typically have, such as a shaky story structure and dense writing, you still find yourself connecting so deeply to these characters. They philosophize, they struggle, they try to find meaning in their lives or deaths while also trying to decipher if there really is any meaning to be found at all. 

It's a slow read that's more reflective and gets into the inner turmoil of the characters. The living have their issues with some aspect of life and trying to find some sort of comfort in the dead, while the dead try to find solace in matters usually left to the living. The book moves from one big discussion to another, so it's very character driven. 

If you liked The Last Unicorn and are willing to pick up another one of his books that focuses more on internal conflicts and reflection, then absolutely go for this one.

After a few pages in, I know this book isn't going to be for everyone. It has a quality of being snarkily verbose, which can irk those not really amused by that tone, but I'm a simple person that gets a little kick out of a personification of Death swearing like a sailor. It's a book where you're enjoyment of it is really going to depend on your admiration for the writing style and our ensemble of characters. It's slow, constantly jumping between characters, backstories, and motives, but, if you're invested in all of those, it feels like no time goes by at all. 

Though we follow a good number of people, each feels like a developed character. Everything has something to lose and something to gain here, you're rooting for everyone in various different ways. 

I really liked the novel's aspect of humanity's capability to feel so deeply is what makes us human. The fragility of life affects our ability to experience complex emotions, rather than looking down an endless shaft of eternity and feeling nothing. It's a lot to take in, so I wish I hadn't raced through this book to finish it for a challenge. At least it opens me up for a reread at some point.

Morally flexible characters trying to be better in a world where everything is against them to be so are my bread and butter. I was so invested in Owen's world and characters where everything felt so big and complex yet still comprehensible. Ragne was a delight and Vanya's cat and mouse dynamic with Emeric was adorable. The relationships took a natural time to develop right alongside the characters' motivations and aspirations. The book had a feeling of being just enough, whether regarding the plot, character dynamics, pace, and worldbuilding. Definitely going to continue with this one.

This collection is very much the kind when the story hits it hits and when it doesn't you just shrug, move onto the next one, and hope it's better. There are some great unsettling, sad, dark stories in this anthology, so make sure you're ready for that, but there's also a good handful that are a bit more hopeful. There were some were I didn't really gel with a writer's style or I wasn't engaged with a certain conflict or lead character, as to be expected when going into a collection with a wide range of stories. I'm glad that this anthology gave so many indigenous writers to submit stories that provide a diverse set of experiences from multiple different tribes. 

Some highlights from me would be:

White Hills
Navajos Don't Wear Elk Teeth
Quantum
Scariest. Story. Ever
The Scientist's Horror Story
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