Tag: Young Adult

Kate’s Review: “This Delicious Death”

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Book: “This Delicious Death” by Kayla Cottingham

Publishing Info: Sourcebooks Fire, April 2023

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an ARC from the publisher.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: Jennifer’s Body fans will clamor for this new sapphic horror standalone from New York Times bestselling author Kayla Cottingham.

Three years ago, the melting of arctic permafrost released a pathogen of unknown origin into the atmosphere, causing a small percentage of people to undergo a transformation that became known as the Hollowing. Those impacted slowly became intolerant to normal food and were only able to gain sustenance by consuming the flesh of other human beings. Those who went without flesh quickly became feral, turning on their friends and family. However, scientists were able to create a synthetic version of human meat that would satisfy the hunger of those impacted by the Hollowing. As a result, humanity slowly began to return to normal, albeit with lasting fear and distrust for the people they’d pejoratively dubbed ghouls.

Zoey, Celeste, Valeria, and Jasmine are all ghouls living in Southern California. As a last hurrah before their graduation they decided to attend a musical festival in the desert. They have a cooler filled with hard seltzers and SynFlesh and are ready to party.

But on the first night of the festival Val goes feral, and ends up killing and eating a boy. As other festival guests start disappearing around them the girls soon discover someone is drugging ghouls and making them feral. And if they can’t figure out how to stop it, and soon, no one at the festival is safe.

Review: Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire for sending me an ARC of this novel!

I read Kayla Cottingham’s debut novel “My Dearest Darkest” last year and enjoyed it due to the tone and the characters. I was also lucky enough to be able to say hello during ALAAC 2022, and she was super awesome and gracious over my awkward fangirling. So when I was offered a copy of her newest horror novel “This Delicious Death”, I jumped at the chance. Partially because I really wanted to see what she followed her debut up with. But also because when I saw that it was about cannibal monster girls going to a music festival, I was fully invested and on board.

Another example of a book that teenage Kate would have been so into. (source)

This was just such a fun read from start to finish. I really liked all of the characters, especially the core friend group of Zoe, Celeste, Jasmine, and Valeria, and I liked the ‘zombie’ (if that’s even the right word) mythos that Cottingham has created for the story. In terms of the characters, our core four feel like a pretty realistic and typical group of teenage girls with the usual insecurities and ride or die friend dynamics, just with a bit of a flesh eating twist to round it all out. While I wasn’t super invested in the will they or won’t they dynamic of Zoe and Celeste, I did like them a lot as friends and really liked how all of these girls have seen some serious shit and are still processing, all while relying on each other. You get to see flashbacks to when all of them were first infected with the Hollowing illness that transformed them into ‘ghouls’ that now can only live on human flesh (synthetically produced now, however), and how they all dealt with that change, that trauma, and how they all came together as friends who are now close as close can be. I loved their banter and their humor, and I loved as they band together to help protect Valeria after she goes feral and kills someone, and how they want to solve what is happening. The gal pal flesh eating teenage gumshoe vibe REALLY worked for me, and you throw that into a conspiracy whodunnit with the backdrop of a Coachella-esque music festival and you have a really, REALLY unique and fun story that will appeal to teens and adults alike. And along with all that, I really really liked all of the representation this book had, with trans characters, lesbian and bisexual characters, characters from different racial and ethnic backgrounds.

And now the horror. The references to “Jennifer’s Body” in the description of this book are pretty on point both in theme and tone, but I also felt like we got some “Left 4 Dead” elements with the descriptions of the way that the ‘ghouls’ look (to me, very much like The Witch in those games. If you know, you know!). I really liked how Cottingham thought out of how The Hollowing pandemic and fall out would have worked, from the way information would have spread to how the population would have reacted to how it would have adapted to try and contain it/cure those who were turned into ‘ghouls’. We get sprinkles here and there of outside perspectives beyond our main character flashbacks, and it fills in some of the blanks with a nice blend of genuinely unsettling bits as well as some fun tongue in cheek/cynical moments that would fit right in in a Verhoeven film. Cottingham doesn’t hold back on the gore and body horror elements either, with full on descriptions of gnarly transformations, some cannibalism, and moments so bloody you feel a bit like you’re in a literary splash zone a la “Evil Dead: The Musical”. It really is a blast.

“This Delicious Death” is the perfect horror read for the time of year we are in, with vacations and road trips abound. It makes it all the more perfect given that we are still trying to navigate a pandemic, albeit a potentially waning one, and the messiness that can come with the aftermath. Recommended reading to be sure.

Rating 9: A fun and gory body horror meets girl’s road trip tale, “This Delicious Death” is a must read horror novel for all your summer vacation plans!

Reader’s Advisory:

“This Delicious Death” is included on the Goodreads lists “Queer Horror”, and “Cannibal Books”.

Kate’s Review: “Hungry Ghost”

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Book: “Hungry Ghost” by Victoria Ying

Publishing Info: First Second, April 2023

Where Did I Get This Book: I received a finished copy from First Second.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: A beautiful and heart-wrenching young adult graphic novel takes a look at eating disorders, family dynamics, and ultimately, a journey to self-love.

Valerie Chu is quiet, studious, and above all, thin. No one, not even her best friend Jordan, knows that she has been binging and purging for years. But when tragedy strikes, Val finds herself taking a good, hard look at her priorities, her choices, and her own body. The path to happiness may lead her away from her hometown and her mother’s toxic projections—but first she will have to find the strength to seek help.

Review: Thank you to First Second for sending me a finished copy of this graphic novel!

I had been eying “Hungry Ghost” by Victoria Ying for awhile, and even had it on my NetGalley shelf ready to go, when I was lucky enough to be given the opportunity to receive a print copy and to review it for the blog. The cover caught my eye from the jump, and then reading into the backstory and summary I was even more interested. Disordered eating is something that is a difficult and charged topic, but an important one to talk about. So I sat down and began my read, and found it to be a very emotional experience.

This is a very personal and unflinching story about Valerie Chu, a teenage Asian-American girl who has been pressured by her mother to stay thin since she was a girl, so much so that she has started making herself throw up in her teenage years and obsessively counting calories whenever she eats. It’s a really difficult read at times, but I liked how candid and straight forward Ying was with what Valerie was going through, and how complicated the various factors feeding into it could be. I really found Valerie’s inner turmoil to be compelling and upsetting, and I liked how Ying explores the familial pressure from her mother, the self pressure from Valerie herself due to seeing thinness everywhere as an ideal, and the pressures to be a perfect person and to have control, and how once control is gone how much it can make things spiral. For Valerie it’s the sudden tragic death of her father that sends her off, due to her grief, and the perceived need to be there for her devastated mother whose insistence on Valerie’s thin physique has been a pall over Valerie since childhood. There were so many moments in here that made me tear up, and I liked how Ying was sensitive but also very honest about these issues and how toxic all of this is for Valerie.

I also liked the depictions of how complicated Valerie’s relationships were with her loved ones. The most obvious one is her mother, whose domineering insistence on Valerie being thin has set up her disordered eating and mental health issues. It is made very clear that her mother is very wrong for putting this kind of pressure on Valerie (from the jump you see her denying Valerie a piece of her own birthday cake when she is in grade school, which is just… wow), but Ying is also very careful to not make her into a two dimensional villain. At first I was very ‘um maybe we should be calling this out a bit more?’, but thinking about it it started working for me a bit more because 1) this is her mother, and family dynamics can be so hard to disentangle, 2) it’s clear that it’s not just her Mom that has this hang up, as we also see some of her extended family voicing similar opinions, and 3) the death of Valerie’s Dad makes her mother’s emotional state all the more fragile and complex. Ying doesn’t excuse it, but also shows that sometimes people have to stand up for themselves or set boundaries in other ways. There is also the relationship between Valerie and her best friend Jordan, who is fat and is completely comfortable within her body and herself. Valerie adores Jordan, but it’s clear that her own standards of her body are constantly nagging at her (especially since her mother is always commenting on how fat Jordan is), and as things unravel more and more it starts to have an effect on their friendship. It is a really complex web, and I really appreciated that.

And finally I really loved the artwork. Ying is a very talented artist and animator whose work has been seen in various Disney ventures like “Moana”, “Big Hero 6”, and “Frozen” (among others!), as well as other books and graphic novels. And I really liked her style for this story, as it feels very accessible and engaging, while also hitting the emotional moments and beats.

Source: First Second

I really, really enjoyed “Hungry Ghost”. It’s poignant and powerful, and I am pleased that Ying has brought these various difficult and entangled issues to a moving graphic novel.

Rating 9: A gorgeous, emotional, and very personal story about grief, disordered eating, and complex family relationships, “Hungry Ghost” is a must read graphic novel.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Hungry Ghost” is included on the Goodreads lists “2023 YA/MG Books with POC Leads”, and “Great Graphic Novels (Released in 2023)”.

Serena’s Review: “Divine Rivals”

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Book: “Divine Rivals” by Rebecca Ross

Publishing Info: Wednesday Books, April 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: After centuries of sleep, the gods are warring again. But eighteen-year-old Iris Winnow just wants to hold her family together. Her mother is suffering from addiction and her brother is missing from the front lines. Her best bet is to win the columnist promotion at the Oath Gazette.

To combat her worries, Iris writes letters to her brother and slips them beneath her wardrobe door, where they vanish―into the hands of Roman Kitt, her cold and handsome rival at the paper. When he anonymously writes Iris back, the two of them forge a connection that will follow Iris all the way to the front lines of battle: for her brother, the fate of mankind, and love.

Review: I really enjoyed Ross’s “Elements of Cadence” duology. It was lyrical, full of adventure, and centered a lovely romance at its heart. So it was a no brainer to place a request for her next novel when I saw it was due to arrive this spring. And while I don’t think this first book necessarily reaches the highs of that previous series, I did enjoy it a lot and I have high hopes for the next book in the series!

Several months ago, Iris’s life fell apart. Her brother felt compelled to join in a god’s war hundreds of miles away. Her mother fell into depression and alcoholism. And Iris was forced to drop out of school to support her family. Now, she works towards one goal: becoming a reporter for one of the most prestigious newspapers in the city. But she’s not the only one pursuing the position. Unknowing to her, her rival, a young man who is unfortunately as skilled a writer as he is frustrating, also happens to be the mysterious pen pal she found only by chance. But as the war becomes more and more real for Iris, she begins to realize that the world is much greater than she ever imagined, and her pan pal may be the only one who really understands her.

There was a lot to like about this book, but I think the book summary really buries the lead on the true strengths of this book. Yes, it starts out as a fairly standard work rivalry story alongside a sweet pen pal subplot. But about a quarter of the way in, things quickly shift and Iris travels to the front lines of the war. Here, the story really comes alive as it explores the experience of trench warfare and the experiences of those whose lives have been upended while living through a war that is taking place right outside their own front door. I really loved all that Ross had to offer in this part of the book.

This was all obviously a parallel to WWI, with similar tactics used, like trenches and the terrible use of vicous gases. But, of course, this is a fantasy novel, so the constant terror and threat of air raids were replaced by fantastical creatures that could target any town at any moment. I can honestly say that I can’t remember reading a fantasy novel that read anything like this one, and that was incredibly refreshing.

I also really liked Iris as a character. She was brave, but not foolish. Compassionate but also struggling with her conflicting emotions about a war that stole her brother away from her family. I also liked Roman Kitt, and, for the most part, the romance between the two. I think the title of this book does mislead a bit as far as the romance goes, however. The “rivalry” between these two barely warrants the term. Not only do we see very little of it, but it is quickly shunted to the side in favor of a completely cordial friendship building quickly towards romance. Indeed, an entire romantic arch from start to finish takes place within a fairly short period of the middle and end of the book. While I liked the love story, I kind of wish that it had been drawn out between this first book and the one to come. As it was, the romance just barely sidestepped becoming an instalove situation. It’s spared from this category only by the fact that, while quickly established, it does spend a good deal of time building up this relationship.

I also liked the idea of the feuding gods in this story, and the fact that the humans caught up in the war don’t have a full understanding of the history between these characters. But that also gets to my main issue with this book: in many ways it feels like an extended prequel. A very interesting and romantic prequel, but still. It was only towards the last quarter of the book that it really felt like the story got started. I still enjoyed my read overall, but I think the pacing was questionable, and perhaps, depending on how the next book goes, there might have been some better decisions to make with how this story was broken up. The one thing I can say for sure, the fact that the story really picks up towards the end of the book really leaves the reader primed for the second book. Despite a few quibbles here and there, I’ll definitely be right there in line to read the second one as soon as it’s available!

Rating 8: Lyrical and atmospheric, this book uses the fantastical to illustrate the horrors of war and the bravery of those who risk it all to save those they love.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Divine Rivals” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Working Women in Fantasy and Female fantasy authors – Children’s, YA and adult.

Serena’s Review: “Silver in the Bone”

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Book: “Silver in the Bone” by Alexandra Bracken

Publishing Info: Knopf Books for Young Readers, April 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: Netgalley!

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: Tamsin Lark didn’t ask to be a Hollower. As a mortal with no magical talent, she was never meant to break into ancient crypts, or compete with sorceresses and Cunningfolk for the treasures inside. But after her thieving foster father disappeared without so much as a goodbye, it was the only way to keep herself—and her brother, Cabell—alive.

Ten years later, rumors are swirling that her guardian vanished with a powerful ring from Arthurian legend. A run-in with her rival Emrys ignites Tamsin’s hope that the ring could free Cabell from a curse that threatens both of them. But they aren’t the only ones who covet the ring.

As word spreads, greedy Hollowers start circling, and many would kill to have it for themselves. While Emrys is the last person Tamsin would choose to partner with, she needs all the help she can get to edge out her competitors in the race for the ring. Together, they dive headfirst into a vipers’ nest of dark magic, exposing a deadly secret with the power to awaken ghosts of the past and shatter her last hope of saving her brother. . . .

Review: Here I am, still getting sucked in by the covers with hands holding up swords. Not to say that I was swindled by this book, just that I’m a sucker for marketing, even when that marketing is starting to reach max capacity, I’d imagine. However, with this books focus on Arthurian legend, which, of course, heavily features a fabled sword, I guess I can give this one a pass on not just cashing in on the trends. But enough about that, let’s get into the review!

While devoid of any magic herself, Tamsin has grown up in the world of Hollowers, those adventurers who seek out and raids the highly warded crypts of ancient sorceresses. But after she and her brother were abandoned by the Hollower who raised them, she’s had to forge a life for herself however she can. And while participating in a dangerous world that she can only halfway understand would be more than most would choose, Tamsin has another goal: saving her brother who is struggling with an ever more debilitating curse. So when gets wind of an incredibly rare relic that could be the answer to her brother’s curse, Tamsin will do anything to claim it for herself, even going so far as teaming up with the boy who has been her rival for as long as she can remember.

First of all, I want to note how surprised I was to find that this was a contemporary YA fantasy story. I mean, I guess there were no clear indications one way or another, but that cover image sure does look “second world” fantasy to me! The average modern teen isn’t walking around with delicate, silver hand bracelets like that, that’s for sure. So I was fairly taken aback to start this novel and be immediately confronted with cell phones, cars, and the like. I do wish the marketing (either the cover or the book description) had made this more clear, as I had to work hard at the beginning of this read to recalibrate my expectations. It wasn’t an obvious attempt at misrepresenting a book, but I do think the overall affect obfuscates the kind of story readers are actually getting.

Preferences, of course, always lead my to picking up the “second world” fantasy over a contemporary story, so on one hand, I was glad that this book essentially forced my hand into something I wouldn’t typically read. And, overall, I do think it was a fun read. The book is absolutely brimming with new ideas and magical concepts, many of which I thought were very original and intriguing. However, the sheer number of fantastical elements also began to overlap one another in ways that I think began to confuse the issue. I was never quite clear on the history of the sorceresses, or some of the basic details about how their crypts were set up. I think it was meant to read as a combination of something like the tomb raiders of Egyptian burial sites and Arthurian legends. But as I read, I became more and more distracted by some of the details. Just how many of these sorceresses were there? How did they all manage to create these elaborate, curse-riddled hiding places before their deaths? How is there still such a thriving “business” in the raiding of these places? And on top of these questions, there were the curses themselves, the magical items, the potions, the portals. It was just a lot. So, while there was never a lack of ideas, I do think that the story could have used a good polish. A few fewer ideas that were more developed and fleshed out would have been preferred to the overwhelming number of ideas, all of which were very loosely explained.

I did like Tamsin as a character, especially in the first part of the book. I thought her history, her relationship with her brother, and the cobbled together life that she had built for them was interesting and full of nuance. She’s clearly not a perfect character, trying to hold together her small family through sheer force of will, sometimes to the extent that it’s clear she doesn’t fully understand those she loves most. I also really liked the idea that she operated in a magical world that she, being nonmagical herself, couldn’t fully see or experience. Unfortunately, the book chooses to “solve” this problem for her fairly early on, and I thought this was a big turning point to the negative for me. I would have vastly preferred to read a book that held true to that original premise rather than setting up this entire concept only to “magic potion” (quite literally) the entire problem away.

However, I did enjoy the reading experience itself. While I had questions about some of the fantasy elements and was disappointed by the character turn for Tamsin, I thought the pacing and plotting was very solid. It was a fun, fast read, and I think it will appeal to a lot of YA fantasy fans, especially those who like contemporary fantasy. I liked the way the Arthurian elements were woven throughout the book, and I thought for a topic that is very, veeeery well-covered, this book did a good job of standing out from a very crowded room.

Rating 7: Perhaps suffering from a case of a few too many ideas, this book still stands out as a fun, unique contemporary fantasy story that tackles the Arthurian legend in an interesting way.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Silver in the Bone” is on this (and others like it) Goodreads list: YA Releases April 2023.

Serena’s Review: “He Who Breaks the Earth”

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Book: “He Who Breaks the Earth” by Caitlin Sangster

Publishing Info: Margaret K. McElderry Books, April 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: Mateo spent years believing he suffered from a strange wasting sickness, but he’s finally learned the much darker truth. Now he will do whatever it takes to save himself, even if it means betraying Lia, the one girl who’s ever made him care about something more than his research.

It doesn’t help that his father kidnapped the last living member of Lia’s family, and though it means Mateo will get to see her again, it’s only because Lia is already hunting them.

Anwei’s rage can’t be contained after the disaster at the tomb that ended with Knox almost dying. Worse, she learned that the brother she’d been desperate to avenge has been living a life of luxury, raised by the monster of her nightmares. With the power of an ancient, nameless god running in her veins, Anwei vows to end the shapeshifter once and for all.

But the members of her crew each have their own motivations—and their own gods whispering in their ears. Anwei has never put much stock in the divine, but as she gets closer to the shapeshifter she’s chased for so long, she realizes that the gods’ plan and her own might diverge. But Anwei has only one goal: revenge, and she’ll destroy anyone standing in her way.

Previously Reviewed: “She Who Rides the Storm”

Review: I always love being able to read books in a series back-to-back. I suspect this inclination is the same as the one that has lead to the preference for binge watching shows for many viewers. I just want to sink into a world and stay there as along as I can. Also, as a SFF reader, many of the stories I consume require a decent amount of brain power and memory to fully understand the world and culture of the story. So there’s a premium to be found in not having to re-learn all of that from book to book when there’s a year plus waiting between stories. All of that to say, I was excited to jump right on to the second and final book in this duology after finishing up the first one.

After the explosive events at the end of the previous book, nothing is as it seemed. Anwei’s entire world has been shaken. Her brother, a beloved sibling whose “death” she has been trying to avenge for much of her life, has instead been alive and well living with her worst enemies. What’s worse, she almost lost Knox in the pursuit of this vengeance. But now her fury cannot be contained, and she vows to hunt down the shapeshifters who have so destroyed her life. For his part, her brother Mateo has had to face some harsh truths about his own existence. Now, both siblings will have to confront just how far they will go in the pursuit of their goals. And who they are willing to sacrifice along the way.

I was in a pretty good place to start this book coming off the last one. While the first book was quite a commitment, page-length-wise, this definitely felt like one of those reads that would benefit from a back-to-back read. For one thing, the pacing and reveals came hot and heavy towards the end of the first book, leaving most of character reeling from one discovery or near miss or another. There was a lot revealed, and I was excited to see how it would all be resolved here in the second book.

One of the things that has stood out from the very beginning of this read was the quality of the writing itself. It is clear that the author has a very clear vision for her characters, both their strengths and flaws. This last part, in particular, is difficult to pull off. How do you write characters who behave badly, who make selfish choices, who risk others in the pursuit of their own goals without alienating readers from those same characters who, ostensibly, are still the “heroes” of the story? But I think Sangster really has a handle on how to do this. As alluded to in the book description, both Anwei and Mateo face choices that will seem them prioritizing themselves and their goals over the ones they care about. However, the characterization is so solid that their decisions, even while questionable and, at times, incredibly poor, make sense within the realm of them both being flawed individuals.

I also still very much like the overall world-building and the use of shape-shifters. Shape shifters are the sorts of paranormal creatures that you rarely see, often falling to the side in favor of the ever popular vampires, werewolves, and ghosts. There were some interesting twists and turns to be found in this aspect of the story, as well. I also really liked the way the gods and their powers/connections with each character were used.

I will say that I some of my positive reception of this book could come down to the fact that I was able to read it immediately after the first one. For readers who have had to wait the full year, there is a lot of wading in that will likely need to be done to refamiliarize yourself with this world and the characters. As such, the pacing can also feel a bit slow and tedious at times. I do wonder, overall, whether this series and Sangster’s writing in general might have better translated to adult fantasy. I think some of the pacing and expansive world-building might have worked better with that audience than with younger readers who like faster moving stories.

Overall, if you enjoyed the first book, I think this is a good conclusion to the duology and will appeal to those fans. In general, readers who are looking for a more “meaty” YA fantasy, this might be a good read for you!

Rating 8: A solid conclusion to a unique YA fantasy duology, though the overall pacing might be slower than younger audiences may appreciate.

Reader’s Advisory:

“He Who Breaks the Earth” can be found on this Goodreads list: YA Novels of 2023.

Book Club Review: “Great or Nothing”

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We are part of a group of librarian friends who have had an ongoing book club running for the last several years. Each “season” (we’re nerds) we pick a theme and each of us chooses a book within that theme for us all to read. Our current theme is retellings and re-imaginings.  For this blog, we will post a joint review of each book we read for book club. We’ll also post the next book coming up in book club. So feel free to read along with us or use our book selections and questions in your own book club!

Book: “Great or Nothing” by Joy McCullough, Caroline Tung Richmond, Tess Sharpe, & Jessica Spotswood

Publishing Info: Delacorte, March 2022

Where Did We Get This Book: The library!

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat | Amazon | Indiebound

Retelling/Re-imagining: “Little Women”

Book Description: A reimagining of Little Women set in the spring of 1942, when the United States is suddenly embroiled in the second World War, this story, told from each March sister’s point of view, is one of grief, love, and self-discovery.

In the spring of 1942, the United States is reeling from the attack on Pearl Harbor. While the US starts sending troops to the front, the March family of Concord, Massachusetts grieves their own enormous loss: the death of their daughter, Beth.

Under the strain of their grief, Beth’s remaining sisters fracture, each going their own way with Jo nursing her wounds and building planes in Boston, Meg holding down the home front with Marmee, and Amy living a secret life as a Red Cross volunteer in London–the same city where one Mr. Theodore Laurence is stationed as an army pilot.

Each March sister’s point of view is written by a separate author, three in prose and Beth’s in verse, still holding the family together from beyond the grave. Woven together, these threads tell a story of finding one’s way in a world undergoing catastrophic change.

Kate’s Thoughts

I’m someone who has what is probably an average relationship with the book “Little Women”. I read it once a long time ago, I really like the 1994 film with Winona Ryder, and when I was working at a historic Victorian house I was one of the people who would lead a “Little Women” themed Christmas tour. I’m not super wedded to the book like I am “Anne of Green Gables”, but I like it enough. When I saw that Book Club was going to take on a “Little Women” re-imagining that takes place during World War II, it struck me as a perfect time period to revisit this story of sisters growing up during war time and learning hard life lessons while also finding their places in the world. And I was happy to see that I was right.

“Great or Nothing” is written in four different perspectives from four different authors, one for each March sister. The story plunks us midway through the original tale, with Beth already dead and Jo, Meg, and Amy separated and feeling the distance (especially since they all left on a sour note between the three of them). The surviving sisters take on roles that women could have during WWII that perfectly fit each of them. We have Meg at the home front doing fundraising, planting victory gardens, and teaching children. We have Jo working in a plane factory, doing a whole Rosie the Riveter thing. And we have Amy in London volunteering for the Red Cross, and meeting up with Laurie who is fighting in Europe. Beth also has a perspective, with poetry being used because she’s dead, I guess? Regardless, I really felt like all of these settings were perfect for the various sisters, and I mostly liked how all of the sisters felt like their core characters set in a new time. I think that my favorite was Meg’s, as the home front has always fascinated me with war bonds, fund raising, and advocacy, but I did like Jo’s story of working in a factory and finding romance with a lady war reporter named Charlie (as a true Professor Bhaer fan, I loved how they brought this relationship into this story with a queer twist). That said, I did find it a little bit of a bummer that we were at a point in the story where Meg, Jo, and Amy weren’t really interacting with each other, as that is part of the charm of the original story for me. It seemed like an odd choice, but at the same time since it was four different authors writing each sister, I suppose that makes some sense so as not to step on each other’s toes.

“Great or Nothing” is a really well thought out re-imagining of a classic tale, with a nice blending of voices from different authors to give Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy March interesting stories in the 20th century.

Serena’s Thoughts

I’m probably similar to Kate in my devotion levels to the original “Little Women.” Enjoyed the book, liked the 90s version of the movie well enough, really liked the recent one that was released a few years ago. But, like Kate, I don’t have any strong emotions attached to it, which in many ways makes it the perfect book for a retelling! If you’re not a devoted fan, you won’t get as mad at changes!

Anyways, the first thing that stood out to me was how much I liked the change in time period. There are a million and one WWII books out there, but this story really took a unique angle at exploring all of the very different ways that women contributed to the war front, both at home and abroad. Not only did this give the reader a wide range of angles on this particular time of history, but all of these choices also worked perfectly with the characters themselves. I was also very impressed with how well the different writing styles of all of the authors worked together. Perhaps….too impressed? If I hadn’t know that this was authored by four different people, I’m not sure I would have guessed, and I’m not sure that’s really for the best. Obviously, cohesion on this sort of project is key, but I also think you lose something from the original goal if every author’s voice is paired down to the point that they’re indistinguishable from each other.

As for the story, I thought it did a good job of hitting the major plot points that fans will look for. That said, I didn’t necessarily enjoy many of these chapters. While I liked the look at the types of work that Meg and Jo were doing, their personal arcs I found more frustrating. Honestly, if I had to hear one more time about the big fight they all got into, I think I would have screamed. In this way, I felt like this book really missed the mark on the overall theme of “Little Women.” Yes, the sisters have their quarrels, but the primary heart of the story is built around the deep bonds they all share. So for this book to spend the vast majority of its time with each sister endlessly reflecting on their broken ties…it just felt like a bummer and a let down of the original premise. This being the case, Amy’s story rose to the top for me as the only one that felt as it had any real action or stakes involved. I enjoyed getting to see her and Teddy’s romance play out more in real-time as well, rather than the off-page romance we get in the original.

Overall, I felt like this book was ok. I didn’t love anything it was doing, but I also didn’t hate any of it. I think Meg and Jo both could have been done better by, but I really enjoyed Beth’s poetry sections and Amy’s plot line. Fans of the original looking for a unique take will likely enjoy this, however.

Kate’s Rating 8: A great new setting for a classic tale of sisters growing up and finding themselves, “Great or Nothing” is a successful “Little Women” retelling.

Serena’s Rating 7: An interesting reimaging with an excellent use of shifting the historical setting, but it still somehow feels as if it misses the mark on the heart of the original story.

Book Club Questions

  1. What did you think of the time period in this retelling? Do you think that World War II fit in with the “Little Women” story?
  2. Each of the March sisters was written by a different author. Did you like any sister more than the others?
  3. Did the Beth sections with the poetry work for you as you were reading? Would you have preferred to see another character’s perspective over Beth’s, like Laurie, or Marmee?
  4. Which of the sister’s plots would you like to be in? The homefront? A factory? Acting as a Red Cross volunteer overseas? Something else?
  5. What is your experience with the original “Little Women” story?

Reader’s Advisory

“Great or Nothing” is included on the Goodreads lists “Book Riot 2022 #21: Read a Queer Retelling of a Classic of the Canon, Fairytale, Folklore, or Myth”, and “YA & Middle Grade Retellings of “Little Women””.

Next Book Club Pick: “The Raven and the Reindeer” by T. Kingfisher

Serena’s Review: “She Who Rides the Storm”

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Book: “She Who Rides the Storm” by Caitlin Sangster

Publishing Info: Margaret K. McElderry Books, September 2021

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+!

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: Long ago, shapeshifting monsters ruled the Commonwealth using blasphemous magic that fed on the souls of their subjects. Now, hundreds of years later, a new tomb has been uncovered, and despite the legends that disturbing a shapeshifter’s final resting place will wake them once again, the Warlord is determined to dig it up.

But it isn’t just the Warlord who means to brave the traps and pitfalls guarding the crypt.

A healer obsessed with tracking down the man who murdered her twin brother.

A runaway member of the Warlord’s Devoted order, haunted by his sister’s ghost.

A snotty archaeologist bent on finding the cure to his magical wasting disease.

A girl desperate to escape the cloistered life she didn’t choose.

All four are out to steal the same cursed sword rumored to be at the very bottom of the tomb. But of course, some treasures should never see the light of day, and some secrets are best left buried…

Review: Honesty time: this book has been languishing on my Edelweiss+ TBR pile for quite some time. Mostly it’s just because I’ve been intimidated by the length and never felt confident that I really had the time to slot this one in. But then I strayed across the sequel that is coming out next month, and I knew that if there was ever a time to make this one happen, now what that time! So let’s dive in to this beast of a book!

History does and will repeat, even in the most diligent of societies. So it is in the Commonwealth where once terrible shapeshifters plagued the land with their disturbing magic that fed on souls. And now when a tomb of one of the most powerful of these shapeshifters is discovered, one would think it would be wise to leave it alone. But the Warlord is determined to dig up the past, and so an unwise venture begins. However, four others are determined to gain the treasure rumored to be hidden in the tomb for themselves, each with their own motives and means.

So, as I mentioned above, this book is definitely living up to the “epic fantasy” standard, coming in at a whopping 608 pages. Now, this can often go two ways. Either that page count is necessary and utilized to its full extent to create a vivid, complicated, lived-in world. Or…it can be squandered and leave the reader slogging through pages of exposition. I’m please to say that this is definitely the former. It is slow moving, however, and takes its time showing its hand. This isn’t a criticism, per se, but a warning to readers who make like a faster plot. The book simply begins, plopping readers down in the midst of this world and only revealing facts about it as they come up naturally in this story. As we have four characters’ POVs to get through, the reader really has to be ready to sit back and let these details slip through slowly.

I also liked all four of our main characters. They all had distinct-sounding voices and very different ways of looking at the world. I particularly enjoyed when we jumped from one character’s perspective directly to another’s and seeing how they interpreted the same event in completely different ways. They weren’t all likeable all the time either, making each feel like fully developed individuals. That being the case, however, I also felt a bit detached from them all at times, as well as frustrated. As a reader, we are primed to expect certain things and to look for certain narrative cues. That being the case, it’s hard to not want to shout at characters when they make decisions that we, the reader, know are going to end up going badly! But I will say, to this book’s credit, at least these bad choices made sense based on each character’s priorities and approach to life and were generally coming from a place of wanting to do good, as frustrating as it was to read at times.

This book also ends with a bang. For all that it can be a bit of a slower read (and those 600 pages are no joke), it did manage to keep up a pretty steady pace throughout and then ratchet up right at the end. Indeed, there were several twists and turns that came right at the end that I definitely wasn’t expecting. And this is one of those situations where my delay in reading this has paid off as I now get to go straight into the second one. I’d say this book is probably a good choice for those fantasy fans who enjoy large amounts of world-building, but the heist plot itself was definitely more of a back-burner element than the description implied.

Rating 7: A solid fantasy novel that manages to balance its four characters and sprawling world deftly, though it’s long page count and slower plot could prove challenging for some readers.

Reader’s Advisory:

“She Who Rides the Storm” isn’t on any Goodreads lists, but it should be on Archeology in Science Fiction and Fantasy.

Kate’s Review: “Codex Black (Book 1): A Fire Among Clouds”

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Book: “Codex Black (Book 1): A Fire Among Clouds” by Camilo Moncada Lozano & Angel Di Santiago (Colorist)

Publishing Info: IDW Publishing, April 2023

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an eARC from the publisher.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: Navigate through monsters, mysteries, and the will of the gods with two young extraordinary adventurers in fifteenth-century Mesoamerica as they search for a missing father.

Donají is a fearless Zapotec girl who, even though she’s only fifteen, is heralded as a hero by her village. In Codex Black, Donají sets out on an adventure–accompanied by the god that lives inside of her poncho–to find her missing father. Along the way, she meets an 18-year-old winged Mexica warrior named Itzcacalotl, and over time their temporary partnership blooms into an incredible friendship.

The search brings the young pair closer to danger and deeper into mystery than either could have predicted. What exactly was Donají’s father involved with? And how did a simple search for a missing relative lead Donají and Itzcacalotl into a fight with a terrifying bat monster to defend an entire village?!

Review: Thank you to IDW Comics for sending me an eARC of this graphic novel!

I told myself that I was going to try and do more graphic novels this year, as I felt like 2022 was a bit more sparse than it should have been. And with that goal I’ve found some pretty fun reads, some of which have been suggested to me or offered up, and were therein probably not been on my radar without the outside help. And that’s really worked out in my favor! The most recent of these is “Codex Black (Book 1): A Fire Among Clouds”, a young adult fantasy graphic novel that takes place in a pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, and involves two teenagers who have found themselves with magical abilities and powers. The premise alone sounded awesome, and when I saw the artwork I was even more eager to dive in!

“Codex Black: A Fire Among Clouds” is a really enjoyable first volume in the series. It has a lot it has to do in terms of setting up time and place, as well as a cast of characters, AS WELL as building a fantasy world within a historical context. We meet our two protagonists and see where they fit into the story, and Lozano does a great job of not only introducing them and making them connect, we also get a great sense for who they are. The first is Donají, a Zapotec teenage girl from a mountain village, is determined to find her father, a man who left their village and never returned, but did leave behind a poncho that houses the God Chicahualizteotl, who is there to assist her on her journey. The second is Itzcacalotl, a teenage Mexica boy who, while on a caravan with warriors, falls into a cavern and is gifted with crow wings. These two teens eventually come together and begin a journey of fantastical proportions, as Donají looks for her missing father and Itzcacalotl comes along for the ride and stumble upon thieves, monsters, and historical figures. I really loved both Donají and Itzcacalotl and their characterizations, and how Lozano slowly peels back and explores their personalities, strengths, and flaws. Dojaní is feisty and strong willed, while Itzcacalotl is a bit more reserved but also very determined to prove himself, and together they make an endearing team. I loved seeing them start to realize the powers that they both are wielding, be it the protectiveness of Donají’s poncho or Itzcacalotl’s wings, and how they interacted with friends, foes, historical figures (like Cosijoeza, one of the last coquitaos of the Zapotec people), and monsters from Mesoamerican lore and myth.

But what stood out to me most in this graphic novel was the VERY well presented historical context and information that was provided at the back of the book. As a woman who went to an American high school at the turn of the 21st century, I have VERY little working knowledge about Mesoamerican/Pre-Columbian civilizations and cultures (outside of a grade school unit on the Mayans). I’ve learned bits here and there through other books I’ve read, but it’s not extensive. So I LOVE that Lozano has such a great, accessible, and thorough historical notes section at the end of the book. It talks about the various myths of these different groups of people, and also gives historical notes and context to the events that were going on in Mexico during the time of this book before European imperialism started to take over. Given that I had been opening multiple tabs on my browser to look up some of this context, finding a good deal of it at the end of the PDF was really refreshing.

And finally, the artwork. I like Lozano’s style, with clear influence by manga and anime, with all the intricate details that harken to the cultures and styles of the people that the story is about. It’s varied and unique and I really liked it.

(Source: IDW Comics)

I will definitely be going forward in the “Codex Black” series. It’s so unique and filled with so much heart, I really can’t wait to see where it goes next.

Rating 8: Filled to the brim with fantastical mythology, engaging and well presented history, enjoyable characters, and lots of heart to spare, “Codex Black: A Fire Among Clouds” is a great introduction to a fun fantasy adventure!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Codex Black (Book 1): A Fire Among Clouds” would fit in on the Goodreads list “Mesoamerican Mythology in YA and MG Fiction”.

Serena’s Review: “Flowerheart”

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Book: “Flowerheart” by Catherine Bakewell

Publishing Info: HarperTeen, March 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: Clara’s magic has always been wild. But it’s never been dangerous. Then a simple touch causes poisonous flowers to bloom in her father’s chest.

The only way to heal him is to cast an extremely difficult spell that requires perfect control. And the only person willing to help is her former best friend, Xavier, who’s grown from a sweet, shy child into a mysterious and distant young man.

Xavier names a terrible price in return, knowing Clara will give anything to save her father. As she struggles to reconcile the new Xavier with the boy she once loved, she discovers their bargain is only one of the heavy secrets he’s hiding. And as she hunts for the truth, she instead finds the root of a terrible darkness that’s taken hold in the queendom—a darkness only Clara’s magic is powerful enough to stop.

Review: This is definitely one of those books that I first looked at because of the cover. It immediately stood out when I was scrolling through Edelweiss+ planning out my spring reading schedule. Tons of books with daggers and swords on the covers, lots of duo characters drawn in that cartoonish style that is so popular right now (not that I dislike this style per se, just there’s a lot of it). This cover’s unique art immediately stood out and had me clicking through to the description. So well done there!

Clara has always struggled to control her magic, so much so that the local leaders have presented her with a terrible ultimatum to prevent her from injuring others. But before she can go through with it, the worst happens and an innocent touch causes her magic to sprout poisonous plants in her father’s chest, dooming him to a painful and slow death. When an old friend offers to help her tame her magic in an attempt to save her father’s life, she doesn’t even hesitate in the face of the steep price he requests. But when it becomes clear that Xavier is caught up in much darker forces than she had previously known, Clara begins to wonder with just whom did she strike her perilous bargain?

One thing that I found interesting when I was looking into this book was that it was marketed as a “cottage core” fantasy novel. What does that even mean? As far as I’m aware “cottage core” is a style of interior decoration. I’m not sure how that translates to a genre of book? Digging deeper, I discovered that there seems to be a recent trend of labeling some books “cozy fantasy,” which I imagine is just a spin-off from the more popular “cozy mystery” subcategory. Based on the latter, I’d guess that a cozy fantasy novel would be a story that avoids darker themes or graphic descriptions. Like cozy mysteries, they would focus on lighter topics and have happy endings, essentially. All of this to say, while I could see how cozy fantasy would apply to this story, I still have no clue about “cottage core.” And honestly, I’m not a fan of that description; interior decoration styles and genres of books are just not the same thing. Sorry, not sorry.

Anyways, that rant aside, I can definitely see how this book could fall into the “cozy” category. Overall, it does stay on the lighter side of things and the plot wraps up with a nice bow at the end. But this book also highlights why a lot of cozy mysteries don’t work for me either. Look, I don’t need tragedy around every corner and tons of graphic violence, but if you paint in only bright colors, without any shades of grey, the entire thing starts to just lose focus and interest. Clara is fine. Xavier is fine. This world and magic are fine. But I didn’t care about any of them.

I also found the magic system and world to be barely fleshed out at all. Towards the second third of the book, we begin to learn about a magical illness that is going around that leaves its victims comatose. This was the first thing to trigger my interest, but even that quickly sank into the quagmire of dullness that I found this read. Nothing was objectively bad, but it all was just so flat feeling that even small points of interest quickly faded away.

There was also an attempt by the author to deal with mental illness, particularly depression and anxiety. And while I applaud the effort, I don’t think it quite hit the mark. At points, it felt incredibly over-simplified and the metaphors heavy-handed. And then Clara has this weird relationship to her own magic where she speaks to it as a living, thinking being using this strange internal dialogue, which I wasn’t a fan of. It turns out that this particular choice plays a larger role later in the story, but that was still too late to save my reading experience through which I had been perpetually annoyed by this.

Overall, this book wasn’t for me. I do think that readers looking for something in the cozy category may enjoy this one more, but I’ve started coming to the conclusion that “cozy” any genre is just not my cup of tea.

Rating 6: Perhaps other readers looking for just a quick, cozy read will enjoy this, but I found everything from the world-building to characterization to be a bit too watered down to enjoy.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Flowerheart” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Books that inspired or are similar to Studio Ghibli / Hayao Miyazaki films and CozySFF

Kate’s Review: “My Dear Henry: A Jekyll & Hyde Remix”

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Book: “My Dear Henry: A Jekyll & Hyde Remix” by Kalynn Bayron

Publishing Info: Feiwel Friends, March 2023

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an eARC from NetGalley.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: London, 1885. Gabriel Utterson, a 17-year-old law clerk, has returned to London for the first time since his life— and that of his dearest friend, Henry Jekyll—was derailed by a scandal that led to his and Henry’s expulsion from the London Medical School. Whispers about the true nature of Gabriel and Henry’s relationship have followed the boys for two years, and now Gabriel has a chance to start again.

But Gabriel doesn’t want to move on, not without Henry. His friend has become distant and cold since the disastrous events of the prior spring, and now his letters have stopped altogether. Desperate to discover what’s become of him, Gabriel takes to watching the Jekyll house.

In doing so, Gabriel meets Hyde, a a strangely familiar young man with white hair and a magnetic charisma. He claims to be friends with Henry, and Gabriel can’t help but begin to grow jealous at their apparent closeness, especially as Henry continues to act like Gabriel means nothing to him.

But the secret behind Henry’s apathy is only the first part of a deeper mystery that has begun to coalesce. Monsters of all kinds prowl within the London fog—and not all of them are out for blood…

Review: Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this novel!

I first read “Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” in college in my favorite class of all time: “Monsters, Robots, and Cyborgs”. Thank goodness for an unofficial Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature minor! We looked at horror, fantasy, and science fiction stories of the past and present and what they said about cultural and societal anxieties, so of course “Jekyll and Hyde” is ripe for the picking. Think about it: a somewhat obsessive scientist creates a potion that can change him from mild mannered academic to a brutish, cruel, uninhibited psychopath, talk about a great way to talk about the complexities of humankind while creating a suspenseful mystery to explore that. So when I saw that one of the “Remixed Classics” books was going to take on this story, I was VERY excited to see how it was going to be reimagined with newer themes and a more diverse perspective for modern young adult audiences. Suffice to say, “My Dear Henry” by Kalynn Bayron was an anticipated read. And in a lot of ways it lived up to my anticipation.

Bayron reimagines the classic tale of a personified split identity and the calamities that follow, by making our protagonists Henry Jekyll and narrator Gabriel Utterson young adults, Black, and queer, and setting them in a Victorian London that will hold those identities against them. This was immediately resonant and very incisive, and it works so well for the themes of the source material while expanding upon them to make them even more complex. It’s especially clever because there are, indeed, questions as to Robert Louis Stevenson’s sexuality and whether these themes were also hidden in his original “Jekyll and Hyde” idea. To expand upon that and to make Hyde less of a symbol for the uninhibited ‘evil’ of man and instead to make it a symbol of uninhibited ability to be oneself is poignant as hell. As Gabriel and Henry are drawn to each other and fall for each other, the cultural mores at the time makes it so that they have to hide their feelings from others, and when they ARE found out it leads to the path of Jekyll to Hyde, and leads to lots of poignancy and pathos. It makes the “Jekyll and Hyde” story all the more tragic, as this Hyde isn’t a violent madman, he’s a manifestation of love that was criminalized and feared. And to make it even more complex, our main characters are Black, and having Black characters set in Victorian England is a great choice for a few reasons. The first is that it makes the marginalization of Gabriel and Henry even deeper, as the racism in English society has already made them vulnerable, just as it has made their fathers, especially Jekyll Sr. (as he is the one we see more of), all the more intent on stifling their sons because of their already targeted identities. The other is that it is so common to see Black narratives in this time and place ignored or questioned, as if Black people didn’t exist in England during this time period, so to counteract this erasure within this story was really, really enjoyable.

And since it is a remix of an old tale, I do want to talk about how effective of a retelling it was. And I thought that in a lot of ways it succeeded, and in a couple ways it didn’t quite capture it. In terms of successes, it does have the characters and the plot points of the original story, either tweaked, reimagined, or adapted to suit the newer narrative and thematic ideas, and it does this really well. You are definitely reading the Jekyll and Hyde story at the heart of the book, when I’ve seen adaptations that just slap on the idea of a reimagining without actually doing the work to make the new ideas coexist with the old. But I do think that one thing that did let me down about this book was that while it is definitely Jekyll and Hyde, it does give it a whole new flavor that kind of takes the suspense and thrills of the original out of it. It’s very possible that because this story is SO old hat that maybe there aren’t really ways to be held in suspense by it anymore, but I wonder if there could have been a way to make it feel like a thriller and to mine a new kind of suspense? I’m unsure.

Overall, I did enjoy “My Dear Henry” and I liked the directions that Bayron took this classic horror story of identity and repression. It’s an effective reimagining and brings out new ideas from a timeless tale.

Rating 8: A clever remix of “The Curious Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” that takes on the dualities of identity in a society that doesn’t accept certain people for who they are, though it doesn’t capture the suspense that the original had.

Reader’s Advisory:

“My Dear Henry: A Jekyll & Hyde Remix” is included on the Goodreads lists “Black Queer 2023 Releases”, and “Jekyll and Hyde Retellings”.