This series has such a charming art style, like something you would see from older, more whimsical children's books. Each chapter focuses on Nicola's wandering with the devil salesman Simon, going from your typical "you find yourself in a tavern" beginnings to staying in a creepy, ghost-infested hotel. Each story has some good laughs, great artwork, and the right amount of fluff to make it an enjoyable read. Can't wait to see more of this world with Nicola!

Picked this manga up because I had seen some snippets of the anime and was interested to see what exactly the plot line is. It's always difficult to give your thoughts on a manga's first volume since it's pretty much an introduction and set up to the story, but this volume was sufficiently creepy enough to get my attention. I'm interested to see what exactly the outcome to all this will be, whether it's some kind of social experiment thing or something more nihilistic. Either way, you just know it's going to end in tears.

When I heard that there was a sequel to East, a book I devoured and treasured in high school, I was excited, but a little surprised. East was a fairly open and shut book, being a wonderfully immersive retelling of East of the Sun, West of the Moon. I wonder if, after 15 years, the author wanted to jump on the "what happens after happily ever after?" train to try and broaden the relationship between Rose and Charles. It, uh....it doesn't go well.

I don't think I've ever read a more unnecessary book. It feels like a retread of the first, especially the third act in particular, as Rose goes off to save Charles from the clutches of the Troll Queen, only now it's their child and for some reason Charles has amnesia. This latter bit was probably the worst aspect of the book for me. Throughout the majority of the story, we don't get the couple we grew to love in East. We don't get to see how their relationship has matured or who they are around each other after three years and a child. It's back to square one, with Charles having as little agency as he had before.

I didn't really care for most of the new characters, except maybe Sib, but only because her involvement gives a little bit more insight into the magic of this world. Estelle was, I have no idea, just a child to tag along and give additional perspective. None of them grew on me like the original cast did. I will say the Morae are a big highlight of the book, with the weaving of the three cloaks scene being the closest this ever comes to feeling like the first book.

Too many perspectives and too short of chapters made the story feel so clunky. Did we really need the mother's perspective? The Troll Queen's? Even when some of those don't even come out to a full page and feel more like interruptions when other characters are going through something far more interesting? 

And as I'm nit picking, let's talk about that cover. It came out along with a redesign of East's cover, having Rose and the white bear on it. Naturally, you would think that the white snake would have an equal amount of importance to the story, given that it's on the cover in a way that mirrors the bear. Nah, this snake is nothing more than a goon for the Troll Queen that maybe has five lines of dialogue in the whole thing. He gets his moments to be evil and threatening sure, but he never goes above the role of effective henchman. Just.....come on, that's a pretty pathetic reflection when you compare the two covers with the context of the story.

If you liked East, I can't say that you should pick this book up as a continuation. At the best of times, which is rare, it does feel like that magical tale of a woman going up against insurmountable odds to save the people she loves, but at the worst, it feels like nothing. 

Not afraid to be shameless and admit that the sole reason I picked up this book was because Robin Goodfellow was the narrator. I have a chaotic brand to maintain and having a vested interest in troublemakers is definitely going to make me a bit biased. Of course, this isn't Robin's story, they're not in the business of telling us their own adventures, but rather others'. There are moments where they influence the story, but they're never the main focus. Instead that goes to Miss Maelys Mitchelmore and Lady Georgianna Landrake, who, I'm sorry to admit, aren't exactly interesting enough to completely distract me from wanting more of the trickster's presence.

The first half had enough going for it, a mysterious curse, sapphic temptations, and a cast of characters that were endearing. Miss. Bickle's eccentricities were a constant delight and Mr. Caesar's role as the straight man made for a well balanced core cast. Unfortunately, once the main conflict wrapped up about halfway through, I wondered what could possibly fill up the remaining page length. Hall devotes the rest of the story to Mitchelmore and Landrake's budding relationship, something I think would have been better developed through the initial conflict, and confusingly adds another curse into the mix. It made the first one seem somewhat superfluous, especially since it never really adds anything to the story once that plot point wraps up. 

On a more positive note, I enjoyed the worldbuilding of the story, where gods/goddesses, faeries, and all manner of supernatural beings are known to this Regency society and play a moderately active role in it. It made a nice change of pace to see them regarded as accepted elements of the world, though still posing a great deal of danger. If Hall continues with this series, whether it will follow another character Robin finds suitable to fit into a story, I would love to see it take place in another part of the world with different supernatural creatures and how they incorporate themselves into their environments. 

The romance aspect didn't really do much for me. I thought the chemistry was lacking, that there was more of a sensual focus on their relationship, which is fine given the genre, but is entirely lost on me. Georgianna never really broke out of the "broody lady with a dangerous, mysterious past" trope, though Miss Mitchelmore was capable of breaking out of the "naive youth" mold, which made her characterization less tedious. Love the fact that we're seeing the rise of more LGBTQ romances set in the Regency era, a time period I have a bit of fondness for, even if I'm not able to relate to all of them. This will definitely tickle the fancy of anyone looking for one with a historical and fantastical slant to it. 

An epic Spidey tale for the ages. Though there were SEVERAL Spider people that I was not familiar with, I felt like the story handled/balanced them well enough with the more recognizable ones so it never felt too confusing. I'm sure many of them were introduced in this event series (I definitely tracked this story down solely for reading anything that involved Spiderpunk) so I didn't feel outrageously out of the loop. 

While I felt that the story dragged on and off, I never got too bored with it. I wish that the omnibus I read had organized the comics so that certain character-specific issues were included at the time they happened within the overall story. Scarlet Spider, Spiderwoman, and Spiderman 2099 have separate issues that tie directly to the overall plot and are collected after its end, which make them feel like a pointless bit of catch up. They are exciting and important issues, but they could have been integrated a little more coherently. 

Definitely going to see if I can track down some more Spiderverse event comics. 

Firekeeper's Daughter is such a powerful, heartbreaking, but necessary book. Boulley takes the complicated life of Daunis, full of grief and pain. but also an unwavering love and devotion to her family and community. I love how the author speaks of Daunis in relation to her community, that she finds solidarity, wisdom, and support in the Elders that hold the traditions and knowledge of her heritage. Daunis comes from a mixed background, but being Ojibwe is a fundamental part of her character and how she views herself. I loved that she always felt confident in who she was, even when so many refused to recognize her place in the tribe.

I have to say, this book was hard to read at times. Daunis faces so many betrayals and moments where people try and succeed to take advantage of her. It's difficult to see a community in danger because of people who only want to use it for their own selfish desires. The stakes are what make Daunis' every move so important and, even when some decisions don't seem so smart in the moment, you know she's doing everything she can to make sure the people that she loves stay safe. 

Her relationship with Jaimie I felt was handled very maturely. It feels like a natural parallel to Travis' and Lily's, one that knows and respects the aspects of love and what comes with it and one that doesn't. Boulley makes it abundantly clear through so many plotlines that self serving actions are what truly destroy a community and harmony with its members. 

Definitely worthy of its many accolades and a great conversation starter for many of the issues it discusses. 

Romances aren't usually my kind of thing, but when you mix in the qualms of a struggling author with ghostly shenanigans, then that makes a title a little more enticing. It also helps that the story focuses  on the vulnerabilities surrounding grief as well as love. Florence's emotional journey was such a compelling element, especially when she holds so many fears, aspirations, and insecurities that seeing her come to terms with them feels like more of a triumph. 

Though there was plenty of raw emotions in this book, it never turned morose. There is something comforting about seeing Florence rekindle her love for her hometown and finding refuge in her family. Tensions run high at times, but ultimately they're there for each other and somehow make a funeral home feel like a lively place. It's an oddly cozy book at times, full of reflection and soft moments. 

Has some great insight into the process of chocolate making, as well as some scrumptious illustrations that really had me craving some chocolate afterwards. It was a so so reading experience and I mainly read it to fill a category for summer reading, so I can't really give it too high a rating.