Sia Martinez and the Moonlit Beginning of Everything by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland

Sia Martinez and the Moonlit Beginning of Everything by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland
My Rating: ★★★

Sia Martinez’s life was turned upside down when ICE took her mom. Just when she thought it couldn’t get any worse, her mom went missing while trying to get back to the states and hasn’t been seen since. Trying to continue her life, Sia is thrown off by the rift growing between her and her best friend, Rose. It doesn’t get better when Rose warns her not to get too close to the new boy in town, Noah, but Sia finds herself becoming more and more drawn to him. At least, she was until his own secrets come spilling out and leave her furious. Ready to give up boys and make up with her best friend, the unbelievable happens: a UFO crash lands and Sia’s mom, injured but alive, walks out.

I picked up this book because I thought it had an interesting concept taking a very real situation and throwing a bit of science fiction in. I will say that opening the book, it may seem a bit daunting when you see that it has 224 chapters but fear not! These chapters are primarily 1-3 pages long. That said, I do think that several of the chapters did not need to be separated from one another and the separation disrupted the flow in those instances.

I loved several of the characters, specifically Sia and her parents, Rose and her mom, Rose’s girlfriend, Noah, and even River. The friendship between Sia and Rose is very realistic and while it was sad to see them go through some bumps in their relationship, it made a lot of sense and took me back to my own teenage years. It was also fun to see the two of them make up, even under the craziest of circumstances.

Before the story starts, there is a short list of trigger warnings so that readers can choose to bow out. The list includes sexual assault, PTSD, domestic violence, racist violence, and of course death of a parent. The opening of the book was very sad and realistic with Sia mourning the loss of her mother on top of the circumstances in which she went missing. The book also deals with a lot of racism, and the difference between the racism that Sia and her family experiences and the racism that Rose and her family experiences. In addition, Sia also deals with PTSD from a sexual assault that she goes into detail about later in the book.

One of the things I liked about the sci-fi aspect of this book is how slowly it starts. First, Sia is in disbelief. Then it is kind of a crazy and weird coincidence. By the time there is a UFO crash and Sia’s mom comes walking out, we already went through a very slow introduction to science fiction to ease readers into it. However, from this point on, it’s a huge whirlwind and the story is flying at ultra-speed. Because of this, there is a lot of exposition that weighs down the progression of the second half of the book.

While I loved the story, I am not exactly happy with the ending. I wish there were more time spent on wrapping it up. I felt a little like I was watching a television series and accidentally skipped the three episodes prior to the series finale. Between this and the amount of exposition that was thrown in to keep up with the fast-paced science fiction aspect rolling at record speed and the chapters that needed to be combined into a single chapter, I knocked two stars off my rating.

The Other Daughter by Lauren Willig

The Other Daughter by Lauren Willig
My Rating: ★★★★

Rachel Woodley is content being a governess in France until her mother suddenly dies. Shattered, she returns to England where she is forced to clear out her childhood home in record speed when Rachel discovers a photo of her father hiding under her mother’s pillow. Why is there a picture of her late father under her mother’s pillow, and how was it taken recently? Shocked to the core, Rachel learns that not only is her father very much alive, but also a well-respected earl with another family. Furious, she’s determined to meet her father and take revenge on him and his other family.

In this juicy book, we follow Rachel Woodley as she goes from governess to pretending to be a rich party girl named Vera so she can get closer to the sister she never knew and take her revenge. I thoroughly enjoyed this book from beginning to end. It was interesting to watch Rachel go from a governess and relying on her meager savings until she finds a new job to pretending to be a rich party girl staying in a lavish home. It was interesting to watch her slowly truly become Vera only to realize that this new persona isn’t who she really is, and the life she could’ve had is not as great as she thought it’d be. Plus, revenge is not always sweet, especially when you don’t know the whole story.

While the setting was grand and fun, I think that it also has a great cast of characters. I personally found it interesting that every character we meet is not who they appear to be on the surface. Characters who are seemingly the life of the party are suffering from debilitating depression, sweet and thoughtful characters are just sharks lurking in the water, and people Rachel thought she knew well turn out to be the exact opposite of what she thought. I particularly liked Rachel’s sister, Olivia. She seems meek, cold, and distant but really isn’t.

I will say that some of the dialogue was a bit cringey and try hard, particularly the dialogue between characters at parties. It got better as the story progressed, but it strongly came off as a bunch of people trying very hard to be cool and it just was not working. It kept taking me out of the story when it first started, but once I got used to it, it did not faze me often.

I also found it odd that Rachel barely mourned her mother. For someone who was very close with her, Rachel mourned her for a day and occasionally got sad here and there. At first, I thought she was pouring her grief into her revenge plan, but then she got a little sad about her mom exactly one time when the revenge was coming to an end. I just find it extremely unrealistic that she had the fastest mourning period ever for someone she deeply cared about. In fact, she seemed to still be mourning her father even when finding out he was alive while her poor mom was left in the wind.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book and could not put it down. I had so much fun reading about Rachel’s adventures and getting absorbed in all the secrets. The only reason I knocked a star off is because of the awkward party dialogue and Rachel’s practically nonexistent grief about her mother’s passing.

The Tea Dragon Festival (Tea Dragon #2) by Katie O'Neill

 
The Tea Dragon Festival by Katie O'Neill
My Rating: ★★★★

Rinn loves venturing out to the forest to forage for supplies for her family and friends in the village. While she’s grown up with tea dragons, she’s in for a surprise when she stumbles across an entirely different dragon named Aedhan while foraging. Confused, Aedhan can’t understand how they fell asleep for eighty years. You see, they were appointed to protect the village, but somehow fell asleep for several decades and missed its progression! Thankfully, Rinn’s uncle’s, Erik and Hesekiel, are down with investigating what caused this mysteriously long nap while Rinn helps Aedhan come to terms with how much time has passed.

I absolutely loved the first book, so I was delighted when I saw that there was a second installment even though the first book seemingly closed the story at the end. When I started this one, I was surprised to learn that this is actually a prequel. The story picks up sometime before Erik and Hesekiel retire and start their own shop. While they are present in the story, we primarily follow Rinn’s adventures.

I loved Rinn. She’s such a sweet and warm character who loves to forage. When she stumbles upon Aedhan, she’s quickly becomes friends with the well-rested dragon who is baffled by their 80-year-nap. I loved following Rinn as well as learning more about dragons and the magic in the world that Rinn lives in. I also really enjoyed how Rinn found a way to make Aedhan feel at home in the village again and come to terms with the time they missed while sleeping.

As always, the artwork was absolutely stunning. Should there be a third installment, I hope we primarily follow Erik and Hesekiel so that we can learn more about their adventures as well as the magic that runs through their world.

The Hazards of Love Vol. 1: Bright World by Stan Stanley

 
The Hazards of Love Vol. 1: Bright World by Stan Stanley
My Rating: ★★★★

Amparo is always up to something and is known as a delinquent. When a talking cat comes in through their window and offers to grant one wish, Amparo is game. All they need to do is offer up a drop of blood and they’ll become a better person. What could possibly go wrong? Everything! The cat steals Amparo’s name and life, banishing them to some place called the Bright World. Nameless, shoeless, and confused, Amparo is left fighting to get their name and home back while trying not to get eaten along the way.

I received a copy from Oni Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have to say that this is one of the neatest graphic novel concepts I’ve seen in a while. I’m a fan of fantasy, and Bright World is an entirely new and fascinating world. I’m obsessed! We mainly follow Amparo as their life takes quite the turn when they become tapped in Bright World. The main rule of Bright World is that there are no rules. They’re always changing, so any humans who find themselves there can’t seem to find a way to escape. I’m fascinated by this world. I’m also interested in learning more about Amparo’s patron, El Ciervo, as the story continues.

We also loosely follow Amparo’s crush, Iolanthe, in the human world. Iolanthe is a straight edge, rule following, and serious person. When she gets looped into dating who she thinks is Amparo, she slowly becomes aware that something isn’t right when they seem to do a complete personality flip. Once the imposter everyone thinks is Amparo goes missing, we see her leading the search to find out what happened to them.

I wish that Iolanthe’s story was mapped out a little better between each issue. There were times that having the human world suddenly pop up side by side was out of place. In one instance, the human and bright world were depicted side by side across several panels, which was completely and utterly confusing. I had to read the human world panels and come back to read the bright world panels separately because it was just too confusing to read in the order it was laid out in.

The artwork was also absolutely beautiful. I loved looking at how rich and vibrant each panel was on top of the beautiful drawings. I’m super excited to eventually read the second volume and see where the story takes Amparo and company next.

Delicates (Sheets #2) by Brenna Thummler

 
Delicates by Brenna Thummler
My Rating: ★★★★

I received a copy from Oni Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A year after the events of the first book, Majorie Glatt is trying to figure out her life. She’s about to start eighth grade and has been trying to get the attention of her crush all summer but has found herself a new member of his mean group of friends instead. Her new friends have begun to target one of their classmates, Eliza Duncan. Eliza is obsessed with trying to photograph ghosts, which has made her even less popular than before. Bullied and feeling invisible everywhere else in her life, Eliza is getting closer to wanting to become one of the ghosts she has been trying to find.

I read the first book and loved it, so I knew I had to pick this one up when I saw it was becoming a series. I was a little confused since the first book wrapped up in a way that seemed like a stand-alone story, but I decided to pick it up anyway. The first book is about Majorie, who was trying to find her place in the world as well as figure out how to continue life without her mother. This time around, we see it’s been a year and she’s still trying to find her place. Unfortunately for her, she thinks that place might be with a group of mean people claiming to be her friends.

The story expands a bit, and we follow another character, Eliza, as well. Eliza is used to being bullied and her interests, ghosts and ghost photography, doesn’t help her make friends. She does try, but those who are not bullying her aren’t interested in befriending a girl dubbed as weird. Meanwhile, Majorie is busy trying to fit in with her new friends and stands on the sidelines as the bullying occurs.

As the book continues, we see the two of them begin to overcome their individual struggles. Depression and suicide are present in Eliza’s plot, so that is something to take into consideration before giving this book to younger readers. Bullying is also prevalent. I like that this book encourages readers to speak up about depression in addition to encouraging readers to look at how their actions and their friend’s actions impact others.

I think this is a great follow-up to the first book and it covers some very important topics. I’m interested in seeing if there will be a third book in the series or if this will end at two books.

The Witch and the Beast, Vol. 1 (The Witch and the Beast #1) by Kousuke Satake

The Witch and the Beast, Vol. 1 by Kousuke Satake
My Rating: ★★★★

I received a copy from Kodansha Comics through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Working for the Order of Magical Resonance, Ashaf and Guideau solve any magical problem that comes their way. Whether it’s murderous magical mischief or opening a chest locked by magic, the duo are on it. However, there’s more to the duo that meets the eye, and Guideau has some serious beef with any witch who crosses their path.

I picked this up because it looked and sounded like an interesting take on Beauty and the Beast, and I was certainly not disappointed. It opens with a fast-paced story that demonstrates how evil witches are viewed in the world the characters live in. Of course, there’s a seemingly nice witch who turns out not to be all that meets the eye, and that’s when we learn why Guideau is furious with any and all witches.

As the story progresses, we learn a tiny bit more about the Order of Magical Resonance, but not much. This volume is more of an introduction to the story than anything. Think of it as the opening episode to a new television series. It introduces us to the main characters and the plot, but it leaves its readers with many questions that will be answered throughout the series. I wasn’t expecting it to be anywhere near as dark as it was, but I did still enjoy it. I plan on checking out the next volume and seeing where the story goes next.

Secrets of Camp Whatever Vol. 1 by Chris Grine

 
Secrets of Camp Whatever Vol. 1 by Chris Grine
My Rating: ★★★★★

I received a copy from Oni Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

When Willow’s family moves to Nowhere, her dad insists on dropping her off at his old summer camp. The last thing Willow wants to do is attend camp Whatever, which is plagued with rumors of supernatural creatures on top of being surrounded by an eerie fog. Once Willow arrives, she discovers that camp Whatever isn’t so bad. In fact, she’s determined to get to the bottom of its secrets, especially mysterious supernatural creature that broke in and stole everyone’s snacks along with the batteries to her hearing aids.

This is such a fun graphic novel following Willow and her new group of friends at camp Whatever. I was excited to see Willow as the main character because representation matters, and it’s not often that I see deaf or hard of hearing characters represented in books. Willow goes back and forth between speaking and using sign language, and other characters show interest in learning sign language as they get to know her. Of course, there’s also some prejudiced characters who yell as loud as they can when talking to her and ignore what she has to say. I’m not deaf or hard of hearing myself, but this rings true based on what I know one of my friends often experiences.

I initially thought that Willow was a bit pushy and abrasive, but I grew to love her as the story continued. Once she gets comfortable at the camp, she and her group of new friends really shine. Each of her friends are wonderful on top of the supernatural characters we meet and learn about, which was pretty exciting.

I love how the supernatural world and its risk of being exposed to those who are not friendly is slowly revealed to Willow and company. It reveals a whole new world of interesting and funny characters that I quickly grew to love. I’m really interested in seeing how this aspect continues to expand as well as who they have to go up against to protect everyone in future volumes.