Cryptids, Creatures & Critters: A Manual of Monsters & Mythos from Around the World by Rachel Quinney

 

Cryptids, Creatures & Critters: A Manual of Monsters & Mythos from Around the World by Rachel Quinney

My Rating: ★★★★★

I received a copy from Andrews McMeel Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

If you are someone who has always been interested in cryptids, folklore, and mythology, then this is going to be a good book for you! Inside, you will find information on everything from unicorns to Medusa. There is so much information packed inside that you’re bound to enjoy it whether or not you’re already familiar with it. I love that it also makes a point to cover the origins and how the stories have been impacted and changed by colonization, religion, and technology. There’s also pictures included all throughout the book. I think this is an excellent read that I cannot recommend enough.

I Got Abducted by Aliens and Now I'm Trapped in a Rom-Com (Cosmic Chaos #1) by Kimberly Lemming

 

I Got Abducted by Aliens and Now I'm Trapped in a Rom-Com by Kimberly Lemming

My Rating: ★★★★★

Dorothy Valentine, aka Dory, is on the edge of proving her family wrong about her life dream. Instead of becoming a pageant queen or finding herself a husband her mom can brag about, she’s spent years pursuing her PhD. Unfortunately for Dory, things go awry while she’s getting some excellent footage of the meerkats she’s been studying. Not only does she get attacked by a lion, but she also gets abducted by aliens! Now she’s determined to escape this strange planet full of extinct animals from Earth all while caught up in a throuple!

I was so excited when I saw that this book was on the way. I really enjoyed the Mead Mishaps series, so I was READY for this to drop. We follow Dory, a wildlife biologist, as her entire life is turned upside down. Instead of getting closer to finally having her PhD, she’s abducted by aliens after almost getting killed by a lion. While trying to find a way off of a strange planet full of extinct animals from Earth, she finds herself partnering up with the lion that tried to kill her as they face off with a whole bunch of prehistoric animals from Earth.

If this book sounds up your alley and you’re looking for something fun to read, I highly recommend picking this up. This was such a crazy and fun story! Plus, there’s a great cast of characters. Toto (the lion) ended up being my favorite character, but I loved a number of the characters, including Intern. We also see Dory become a member of a throuple and see everyone go on one hilariously crazy journey together. If you think you know where the story is going, I promise you that you’ll discover that there are still some hilarious surprises.

Cult of the Kraken (Avery & Carter #4) by Shane Carrow

 

Cult of the Kraken by Shane Carrow

My Rating: ★★★

The Great War may be over, but Lucas Avery and Sam Carter are working to get to the bottom of paranormal mysteries. This time around, they’re guests aboard the HMS Pathfinder to figure out why ships are sinking around the same area. While most believe there’s a perfectly good reason since the ocean has a mind of its own, there are some who believe there may be some paranormal activity going on. Once Avery and Carter lock eyes with a Kraken neither even entertained as a possibility, they know this is exactly why they were sent to investigate.

While the previous book was a disappointing read, I’m excited to announce that Shane is back on his A-game with this one! We follow Avery and Carter as they’re sent aboard the HMS Pathfinder on a mission to investigate what has been sinking ships in the area. However, seeing a Kraken for themselves is enough to leave them a little shaken! Once they wash up on Uskay, they quickly discover that it’s the unexpected real source of the mystery.

I really enjoyed reading this! One thing I love about this series is the friendship and banter between Avery and Carter, and that is something we missed out on between the duo in the previous book. However, they’re back together and forging ahead at full speed this time around, and it was so exciting to read! I hope to see this continue once Emily reenters the story. The plot was excellent, and without spoiling the story, you’re going to be Team Kraken. Trust me on this. While what they were doing wasn’t right, it was also 100% understandable given the circumstances and how badly they’d been wronged.

However, I do wish there was foreshadowing rather than being told what was going to happen before it happened, but I can live with that since the story was pretty good. My only other complaint is that the Spanish in this book is spelled wrong and appears to have English grammar rules applied to it. I’m not even fluent in Spanish and these mistakes took me straight out of the story.

All in all, this was an enjoyable read and it really breathed life back into the series. I’m excited to eventually pick up the next book and see where Avery and Carter go from here!

Men of the Harem, Vol. 1 by Alphatart

 

Men of the Harem, Vol. 1 by Alphatart

My Rating: ★★★★

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

Latrasil Valentine Tarium is soothing a broken heart after the love of her life decides to marry someone else. Not only did she have to hear the news from someone else, but he also had the nerve to ask for her to wait five years for him. In the midst of everything, Latrasil learns that her older brother is abdicating and that she will be inheriting the throne when her father passes. Throwing herself into her studies, she also hatches a revenge plan. She’s going to take multiple consorts once she’s emperor, and then make her ex select one of her consorts. Oh my!

While this wasn’t what I was expecting, it was still a pretty good read. We follow Latrasil from the time that she meets her first love up until she’s a scorned woman ready to put her revenge plan into effect. It was more serious than I was expecting, and politics ended up being a much larger plot than I was expecting. However, it’s not always serious. There’s some pretty funny events, which allows us to see another side to the characters. I really enjoyed reading this and look forward to seeing where the story goes from here. Plus, the artwork is stunning! If an art book for the series came out somewhere down the line, I would be all over it.

Love Advice From the Great Duke of Hell, Vol. 2 by unfins

 

Love Advice From the Great Duke of Hell, Vol. 2 by unfins

My Rating: ★★★

I received a copy from WEBTOON Unscrolled through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Now that Paul’s romantic pursuit isn’t going so well, he’s starting to regret summoning the Great Duke of Hell to give him advice. He’s looking at losing his soul in a couple days all while making no progress with his crush! To top things off, he now has competition, but little does he know that it’s the Great Duke of Hell in disguise.

I loved the first volume so much that I almost decided to start following the story in its original WEBTOON format. While I did enjoy this second volume, it was all over the place at times, but it managed to be absolutely hilarious! Plus, the artwork is amazing and really helps in the humor department, especially this time around where the story goes a little off the rails at times.

I don’t want to say too much and start dropping spoilers because it’s one of those stories that’s really easy to accidentally spoil, but if you like the overall premise, I say give it a go. The first volume is top tier humor and the second volume falls a little short, but is still a fun read. I was not expecting that cliffhanger, so I’m excited to see where the story goes from here!

The Lost Queen by Aimee Phan

The Lost Queen by Aimee Phan

My Rating: ★★★★★

I received a copy from PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group/G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Jolie Lam used to be just like any other teenager until she had a strange outbreak at a swim meet. She’s since quit the swim team, her former friends are now among her many bullies. Jolie is the most lonely and miserable she’s ever been! Everything changes when she saves a classmate, Huong Pham, after a terrible accident that happened during PE. There’s something familiar about Huong. Now that they’re friends, Jolie quickly discovers there’s a reason why Huong feels like the sister she never had: they’re the Trung sisters reincarnated!

I absolutely loved this book! We follow Jolie, a high school sophomore, during the roughest year of her life. She’s lost all her friends, she’s being heavily bullied, and even her home life is stressful. Her grandfather is known as a fortune teller, but his visions have begun to take a toll on his mind, and now her bullies are dragging him into things! Thankfully, everything starts to change once Huong enters the picture.

Jolie’s story is inspired by the story of the Trung sisters, who led a rebellion against the Han in Vietnam. Jolie and Huong are the Trung sisters who have been reincarnated and are currently teenagers living in San Jose. As the story continues, we learn what history tells us about the Trung sisters and then what Jolie and Huong remember happened. Plus, we also see them find their elements, unravel a mystery, and prepare to continue the war against their brothers.

I was so excited to read this because it sounded like it was going to be a great book, and it did not disappoint! Plus, I was not familiar with Vietnamese mythology and this book is heavily wrapped up in Vietnamese history and mythology. If you’re a fan of books like the Percy Jackson series, Aru Shah and the End of Time, or We Shall Be Monsters, then this is a book you’re going to want to pick up. I loved every single page. While I do think it was a little heavy handed with some of the typical teenage stereotypes, it was an excellent read. I’m looking forward to checking out more from this author.

The Tale of Iśva Raman by Najeev Nadarajah

The Tale of Iśva Raman by Najeev Nadarajah

My Rating: ★★★★

I received a copy from Bhakthi Nine Presents in exchange for an honest review.

Iśva Raman has spent his life being sheltered and homeschooled by his aunt. Everything changes when he finally gets to attend a public school. Not only does he have bullies, but he also gets cornered by an Asura convinced he knows where the Seed is. Raman has no clue what this person is talking about, but part of his school has been destroyed in the process, and hardly anyone believes his story! Now he’s learning that the very mythology he’s learned in his 15-year-life is real, his aunt was sheltering him to hide his existence, and that his family is still hiding something major!

If you love reading fantasy YA books and enjoy mythology based books such as Aru Shah and the End of Time, We Shall Be Monsters, or the Percy Jackson series, then I highly recommend checking this book out. It’s going to be right up your alley! We follow Iśva Raman right as he’s about to discover a whole new side of his life, all starting with an Asura attack! I will say that the first chapter was very confusing, but I swear that it will all make sense once you get to the second chapter. It’s one of those moments where you just have to trust the process and it will all make sense very soon. I was like, who and what the heck is Karma? Turns out the reason we didn’t know is because Raman didn’t know either!

The story is based in Hindu mythology. While I’m familiar with Hindu mythology thanks to reading the Aru Shah series plus some Googling on my own, I think it’ll be okay for readers who aren’t to go ahead and pick up this book because everything gets explained throughout the story. There isn’t a glossary at the end in the ARC, so I don’t know if there will be in the final publication, but it’ll be easy to look up anything you want to know more about. I think it’s easy enough for a middle school audience to follow whether or not they are familiar with Hindu mythology and culture, so I don’t think there will be any problems for readers who are completely new to it. While the intended audience is middle schoolers, I think that this is an enjoyable read for anyone middle school aged and up.

That said, I really enjoyed reading this. There’s an excellent cast of characters that readers are going to love, or love to hate in some cases, that are just so much fun to see. Wai and Bufosini quickly became my favorite characters, but there’s such a great cast and mentioning my other favorites would be spoilers! There’s so much world building and character growth going on that I had a ton of fun reading this. I’m excited to see where the story will go from here and if Bufosini will eventually become an official member of Raman’s friend group.