April Mystery Book review - Witchshadow by Susan Dennard

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆

Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I'm omitting the cover synopsis for this one, because Witchshadow is the fifth book in the Witchlands series, so I don't want to give spoilers from the jump to anyone who wants to read the series and hasn't yet. Instead, I'm including the synopsis from the cover of the first book, so anyone interested knows what the series is about, and then I'll talk a bit about the series as a whole.

From the cover of Truthwitch:

"Young witches Safiya and Iseult have a habit of finding trouble. After clashing with a powerful Guildmaster and his ruthless Bloodwitch bodyguard, the friends are forced to flee their home.

Safi must avoid capture at all costs, as she is a rare Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lies. Many would kill for her magic, so Safi must keep it hidden, lest she be used in the struggle between empires. And Iseult's true powers are hidden even from herself.

In a chance encounter at Court, Safi meets Prince Merik and makes him a reluctant ally. However, his help may not slow down the Bloodwitch now hot on the girls' heels. All Safi and Iseult want is their freedom, but danger lies ahead. With war coming, treaties breaking, and a magical contagion sweeping the land, the friends will have to fight emperors and mercenaries alike, for some will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch."

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So, the story centers around Safi and Iseult but involves a whole cast of characters, and the first book starts just as the Twenty Year Truce, which has kept several warring empires from destroying each other for nearly two decades, is about to end. Politically, tensions are high because this collapse of already tenuous peace is looming, and with the end drawing near anyway there's every chance that one of the signers will choose to violate the truce and end it early just to get a jump on the war that will inevitably come soon anyway. Personally, tensions are also high for Safi and Iseult because a Bloodwitch has discovered Safi's magic and begun to track them, so now they have to sneak out of Venaza City without being discovered, something made extra tricky because Iseult is Nomatsi and prejudices against the Nomatsi run high in the city, drawing her added attention. 

Of course, things immediately go wrong when they try to escape Venaza City, and things continue to go wrong from there, but along the way, we meet several fascinating characters, like Merik Nihar, his threadbrother Cullen, and Cullen's heart thread Ryber. We learn more about Aeduan, the Bloodwitch, and his complicated past, delve into the stories of Paladins and the Cahr Awen, and discover long-forgotten Cartorran history. Things get impossibly complicated, and I have to say, I wish I kept a notebook with me while I read to take notes. There's SO much backstory, and it's incredible, but it's a lot to keep track of! Fortunately, losing track of things just means getting rocked by huge reveals instead of seeing them coming. 

March Mystery Book review - Fable for the End of the World by Ava Reid

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆

Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"By encouraging massive accumulations of debt from its underclass, a single corporation, Caerus, controls all aspects of society.

Inesa lives with her brother in a half-sunken town where they scrape by running a taxidermy shop. Unbeknownst to her, their cruel and indolent mother has accrued an enormous debt - enough to qualify one of her children for Caerus's livestreamed assassination spectacle: the Lamb's Gauntlet.

Melinoe is a Caerus assassin, trained to track and kill the sacrificial Lambs. The product of neural reconditioning and physiological alteration, she is a living weapon, known for her cold brutality and deadly beauty. She has never failed to assassinate one of her marks.

When Inesa learns that her mother has offered her as a sacrifice, at first she despairs -  the Gauntlet is always a bloodbath for the impoverished debtors. But she's had years of practice surviving in the apocalyptic wastes, and with the help of her hunter brother, she might stand a chance of staying alive.

For Melinoe, this is a game she can't afford to lose. Despite her reputation for mercilessness, she is haunted by painful flashbacks. After her last Gauntlet, where she broke down on livestream, she desperately needs redemption.

As Mel pursues Inesa across the wasteland, both girls begin to question everything: Inesa wonders if there's more to life than survival, while Mel wonders if she's capable of more than killing. And both wonder if, against all odds, they might be falling in love."

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Ohhhh, I hate Inesa's mom so much. She straight up sucks so bad, there's no nuance to it at all. Beyond my hatred for her, my feelings about this book are thoroughly middle of the road. The idea behind the world is intriguing, but from the jump I had questions - like, people can rack up a bunch of debt and then nominate seemingly anyone to take their place in a gauntlet? Unless I missed something, it seemed like that was the case, although maybe it's just people you're related to. Either way, though, it seems a little too free-for-all to be like yeah, you get into huge debt and then you can just pick a name to nominate. I know this premise is so that Inesa will end up in the Gauntlet, but it just doesn't feel justified. Give me like...her mom somehow tricked her and got her to cosign as an account holder or something, you know?

Beyond that, everything just feels one-dimensional. They drip information about the creation of the Angels program, but I don't think it's enough. Inesa, Luka, their mom, and the few people we're introduced to in town all fall flat and, in Inesa's case, it didn't seem like she was fully developed and things about her sort of flip flop depending on what the scene calls for. I'm a little more forgiving of the inconsistencies with Melinoe, since part of her whole thing is that Caerus wipes the Angels' memories and does all kinds of shit to them, but with her as well it was like...the Angels are augmented super killing machines, but then Luka hits her with a glancing shot and she has to stop for hours to regroup, and then she takes a stimulant, gets hit in the head, and is completely destroyed after. Unstoppable killing machine, unless she's in a Gauntlet for more than an hour, I guess, or she gets bonked on the head extra hard.

Next, let's talk about the romance. It was forced, and that's an understatement. Inesa is on the run from the Angel that she knows murdered a CHILD in her village. This Angel is actively trying to murder her. Yet in her first encounter with Melinoe she's so frozen by her gaze that she wonders if she was hypnotized and then when she and Luka are regrouping afterward she's reflecting on how she just doesn't have it in her to hate the Angel. It doesn't take long for her to be thinking about how beautiful she is. Same with Melinoe - her whole existence as she knows it depends on her murdering this stranger, it's her job, she's not only been conditioned to think this is okay, she knows that if she fails she's going to be turned into a mindless sex slave for some rich asshole, and yet the entire chase she's like "wow, she's so pretty." Just...really doesn't work for me, man. It's a steep mountain to climb already, but there was just zero effort to even try to make it plausible.

And finally, the Gauntlet itself...so little actually happens, and there's a bunch of stuff with the cameras that is so weird and, again, unearned and contrived, and it doesn't make sense. I'm really trying to not post open spoilers, but it's like fake out after fake out after nonsense fakeout, and then at the end of the book I was like wow, there is ZERO payoff to any of this. Deeply unsatisfying. I gave the book three stars because a. I didn't DNF and b. I did find the first probably third or so of it okay enough, but overall it was a frustrating reading experience.

Greenwild - Pari Thomson

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆☆ 

Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Eleven-year-old Daisy Thistledown is on the run. Her mother has been keeping big, glittering secrets, and now she has vanished. Daisy knows it's up to her to find Ma - but someone is hunting her across London. Someone determined to stop her from discovering the truth.

So when Daisy flees to safety through a mysterious hidden doorway, she can barely believe her eyes - she has stepped out of the city and into another world.

This is the Greenwild. Bursting with magic and full of amazing natural wonders, it seems too astonishing to be true. But not only is this land of green magic real, it holds the key to finding Daisy's mother. 

And someone wants to destroy it.

Daisy must band together with a botanical genius, a boy who can talk with animals, and a spunky cat to uncover the truth about who she really is. Only then can she channel the power that will change her whole world...and save the Greenwild itself."

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First mystery book of 2026! God, I loved it. I will say that it clocks in at 364 pages and I think that could have been pared down a touch, but for the most part I found the entire thing very compelling and hard to put down, and I whizzed through it. The world of the Greenwild felt so vivid, I could see everything I was reading and wish there was a place like it that I could visit in real life. I thought the characters were well-developed, and the way they made an already lively world feel even more alive was glorious. And I thought the way they incorporated illustrations periodically throughout the book was a very nice touch. All around a delight.

Specifically, while I think there were certain characters that it was obvious from the beginning were bad news (sorry for maybe spoilers, but Craven? Come on, dude's name is CRAVEN, no one gives that name to a good guy, and it's SO clear immediately that he sucks), I think the mystery Thomson wove was a good one, and I thought there were some awesome reveals (some that I guessed and some that I didn't, and some that made me cry!). I thought the book took on a lot of complex stuff in a really nuanced way - not the whole climate change thing, it took that on well in a very not nuanced way, which I'm more than fine with, but OTHER things - and I feel like a lot of kids reading this would be able to see themselves in various characters. 

I was lowkey bummed when I realized before reading that this was part of a series, just because I have SO many things I want to read that every time I discover a new series, I'm like cool, even MORE! It's daunting. But in this case, I think it was very earned, and I've got a hold on the second book at the library. Very excited to find out what happens next!

Revelle - Lyssa Mia Smith

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆☆ 

Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Luxe Revelle, star of her family's fantastical show, knows the splendor is just an illusion. With Prohibition threatening their livelihood, her family struggles to make a living, watering down champagne and patching holes in their sequined costumes. So when the son of Charmant's wealthiest family makes Luxe an offer - all the liquor the Revelles need to stay in business, in exchange for posing as his girl and helping him become mayor - she can't refuse.

The moment Jamison Port sets foot in Charmant, he can't shake the feeling of familiarity. An orphan with as few memories as gemstones, he's desperate to learn what happened to his parents. But as he delves into the island's secrets, he risks angering the wrong person and discovering a truth that just might break his heart.

When Luxe and Jamison accidentally meet, the sparks that fly are more than her magical enchantments. But keeping secrets from powerful people is a dangerous game...one that could destroy them both."

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I read a lot of books, and I'd say I enjoy the majority of them, but it's been a bit since I read a book that had me as riveted as this one. The initial draw was already there - a historical fantasy set during Prohibition on a mysterious, magical island off the coast of New York, I'll read that book any day. And then I started reading and it was even better than I had expected. The world was gorgeous and intriguing, and the pacing was perfect. Just enough mystery to be tantalizing while information was revealed at exactly the right time to keep you wanting to read one more chapter.

Speaking of reveals, MY GOD, there were a few that got big reactions from me, to the point where I had to try and recap the entire book to my husband when I had about three or four chapters left because I was like "what is happening?! How will they get out of it??" I was reeling for probably the last half of the book. I read this at night before bed, and it was so hard to put it down when I had to go to bed.

Beyond the plot hooks and excitement, I think the thing that ultimately made me fall in love with Revelle was the character building. There was a pretty solid cast that was built out, and I found them all so lovely and endearing! I'm not sure I could pick a favorite if I tried. The book started off feeling like it would primarily focus on Luxe and Jamison, and while most of the action obviously centered around them, the way it became almost an ensemble story was really impressive. Villainous villains, starry-eyed love interests, fiercely dedicated family...all so well-crafted.

I always feel like I do such a bad job with these because I talk around the actual content of the book when I should probably be describing specific things that make me feel the way I do, but just like with every other review that I do this, I don't know how to talk about specifics without spoiling things! All I have to say is if you like magic, if you like intriguing historical fiction, if you like cool stories...read this book.

Lasagna Means I Love You - Kate O'Shaughnessy

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Nan was all the family Mo ever needed. But suddenly she's gone, and Mo finds herself in foster care after her uncle decides she's not worth sticking around for. Nan left her a notebook and advised her to get a hobby, like ferret racing or palm reading. But how could a hobby fix anything in her newly topsy-turvy life?

Then Mo discovers a handmade cookbook filled with someone else's family recipes. Even though Nan never cooked, Mo can't tear her eyes away. Not so much from the recipes, but the stories attached to them. Though, when she makes herself a pot of soup, it is every bit as comforting as the recipe notes said.

Soon Mo is asking everyone she meets for their family recipes. Teaching herself to make them. Collecting the stories behind them. Building a website to share them. And, okay, secretly hoping that a long-lost relative will find her and give her a family recipe all her own.

But when everything starts to unravel again, Mo realizes that if she wants a family recipe - or a real family - she's going to have to make it up herself."

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This is one of the books on a nominee list for one of the book award committees I joined. I feel like I'm super behind reading through the list, so I checked out a whole stack of books, grabbed this one with zero idea of what to expect, and I was blown away. It's a gorgeous story, nothing at all like I expected. The cover is so playful, I expected something very lighthearted and silly, which it was at times, but it was emotional, sometimes heartbreaking, and it was so full of heart.

Immediately, something I appreciated about this story was that it centers around grief and foster care. There are so few books that touch on these topics (more now than there used to be, but still), and I have SO many students navigating losing a parent or other loved one, living in foster care, group homes, etc...I want them to be able to see that experience reflected in the books they're reading, to have that little boost of "I'm not alone in this." 

I will say, my students in foster care likely have a different experience than Mo, and this is something that the story touches on. It warmed my heart that this was something that stuck with Mo and that, when presented with an opportunity to try and do something about the inequity in this system, she takes it. Mo has a big heart, and you can see throughout her journey that she's trying to do the best she can to leave the world around her a brighter place.

One of my favorite things about this book was the sense of community it created. Mo's best friend, Crystal, Crystal's family, and many others rally around her to embrace and support her. I swear, I'm a little dehydrated after reading this from crying at so many beautiful moments. I don't want to spoil anything, but appropriately, the scene where the book gets its title from was one of my favorites of the whole book. I felt like I was there, experiencing things with Mo, and it filled my heart in the same way it did hers.

I feel like I've barely said anything of substance about this book, but my brain and heart are still overflowing from the experience of reading it. I loved it so much that as soon as I finished reading it, I ordered a copy for my school library. I hope my students enjoy it as much as I did.

One of the Good Ones - Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover: 

"When teen social activist and history buff Kezi Smith is killed under mysterious circumstances after attending a social justice rally, her devastated sister Happi and their family are left reeling in the aftermath. As Kezi becomes another immortalized victim in the fight against police brutality, Happi begins to question the idealized way her sister is remembered. Perfect. Angelic.

One of the good ones.

Even the phrase rings wrong in her mind - why are only certain people deemed worthy to be missed? Happy and her sister Genny embark on a journey to honor Kezi in their own way, using an heirloom copy of The Negro Motorist Green Book as their guide. But there's a twist to Kezi's story that no one could've ever expected - one that will change everything all over again."

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Well, already talked a tiny bit about this, since it's my June mystery read, but now I've read it, so I'm going to talk about it some more. As predicted, it was very emotional. Heartbreaking, frustrating, and intense. It clocks in at 330 pages, and there is so much packed into each of those pages that I wanted more. I thought it was excellent, but with such nuanced content (and so many details to get into), while it was handled well, I think it would have been even better with more time to develop everything.

My one gripe, possibly born out of the fact that I finished the last half of this in the middle of the night when I couldn't sleep and was therefore very scared reading it alone in the darkness, is how the last few chapters played out. I don't want to spoil anything, but there were opportunities seeded that never came to fruition, and I thought doing more with those opportunities would have built toward a more satisfying conclusion than the abrupt ending we got. Other than that (and even with this gripe, the ending was mind-blowing), incredible writing. I can't do half stars...maybe I could figure it out, but I haven't...but this would be a solid 4.5, maybe a 4.75, from me.

The Truth According to Ember - Danica Nava

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Ember Lee Cardinal has not always been a liar - well, not for anything that counted at least. But her job search is not going well and when her resume is rejected for the thirty-seventh time, she takes matters into her own hands. She gets 'creative' listing her qualifications and answers the ethnicity question on applications with a lie - a half-lie, technically. No one wanted Native American Ember, but white Ember has just landed her dream accounting job on Park Avenue (Oklahoma City, that is).

Accountant Ember thrives in corporate life - and her love life seems to be looking up too: Danuwoa Colson, the IT guy and fellow Native who caught her eye on her first day, seems to actually be interested in her too. Despite her unease over the no-dating policy at work, they start to see each other secretly, which somehow makes it even hotter? But when they're caught in a compromising position on a work trip, a scheming colleague blackmails Ember, threatening to expose their relationship. As the manipulation continues to grow, so do Ember's lies. She must make the hard decision to either stay silent or finally tell the truth, which could cost her everything."

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It's always nice after having a couple of lackluster reviews to read a book and think "you know, I quite liked this!" I preordered this book after a bookseller I follow on Instagram posted about it, and when it finally came out and I opened the package, I had to read it right away. (Sorry, TBR piles, I'm not ignoring you, I'm just not reading you yet.) The cover and the premise really captivated me, and I read it pretty quickly. Sadly, I did not write this review pretty quickly...I started it, and then I got busy and came back to it like a week and a half later. So...my memory of the finer details of the book are growing hazy, and this won't be a detailed review. Sorry, blame it on the dummies I work with who won't mask after multiple people test positive for COVID, resulting in a rotating cast of way too many staff members being out sick and me getting more work dumped on me as a result.

Anyway, there were some moments that irked me a bit, just because I was like Ember what in the world are you thinking?! But I don't think that was necessarily a bad thing - she was painted into some tough corners, sometimes by her own (frankly at times strange) lies, but others because other people were assholes. She put a lot of pressure on herself to handle things on her own and to avoid being a burden, and while that led to trouble in ways that would have been easily avoided by just talking to someone, it's supremely relatable to be so afraid of inconveniencing someone else that you dig yourself into a hole trying to handle shit on your own.

It's hard to decide what my favorite part of this book was, but it might be Danuwoa's sister. (I would check the book for her name, but I don't have it with me, so...sorry.) She was so sweet and so fiery and just absolutely hilarious, and I adored her. I also thought Ember's aunt was incredibly warm and kind, and her best friend was a very fun character. High fives all around for the excellent character development, even the catty company receptionist who was friendly until something not at all in Ember's control made her turn on her...the detail and realism were top notch.

Uhh...I'm very tired, and I probably should have waited to finish this review, but I didn't want to leave it for even longer. So I'm just going to say, read this book. It's good! A little spicy, so warning if you aren't into that. But that's just a handful of scenes, and it's still a solid story.

The Sun and The Star - Mark Oshiro and Rick Riordan

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"As the son of Hades, Nico di Angelo has been through so much, from the premature deaths of his mother and sister, to being outed against his will, to losing his friend Jason during the trials of Apollo. But there is a ray of sunshine in his life - literally: his boyfriend, Will Solace, the son of Apollo. Together the two demigods can overcome any obstacle or foe. At least, that's been the case so far...

Now Nico is being plagued by a voice calling out to him from Tartarus, the lowest part of the Underworld. He thinks he knows who it is: a reformed Titan named Bob whom Percy and Annabeth had to leave behind when they escaped Hades's realm. Nico's dreams and Rachel Dare's latest prophecy leave little doubt in Nico's mind that Bob is in some kind of trouble. Nico has to go on this quest, whether Mr. D and Chiron like it or not. And of course Will insists on coming with. But can a being made of light survive in the darkest part of the world? And what does the prophecy mean that Nico will have to 'leave something of equal value behind?'"

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I was a little on the fence about how to rate this book and ended up going a little high, although the initial draw did some of the heavy lifting with that. I will put partial blame for the lower rating on plot on me - I haven't read a book set in this world in a long while, and while I know I read at least the first book in the Trials of Apollo series, I definitely haven't read them all, so there were references to things that I was like uhhhh what?! Turns out the emotional turmoil over losing Jason doesn't hit as hard when...you didn't know Jason died. (Sucks, though. And now I need to finish Trials of Apollo.) Outside of that, though, I dropped my stars a bit mainly because I found the pace slow and thought the driving drama, turmoil between Nico and Will, while overall an interesting choice after a while became kind of manufactured and repetitive.

That said, I still thought it was an enjoyable read. I thought the story touched on some really important things, like dealing with mental health and maintaining your relationships in healthy ways. I also liked seeing kind of a different side of the Underworld - a big part of the initial action involved worry that the quest would be cursed or go poorly because there weren't three questers, but then throughout their adventures, Nico and Will found a third partner in multiple denizens of the Underworld. Given that one of the big parts of Nico's story is wanting to introduce will to his second home and show him the parts of it he loves, even while they're heading to Tartarus, I thought showcasing the heart and kindness of some of its residents was a great way to do that.

Overall, as is true for so many middle grade books that I read, I thought this book should (and more importantly COULD) have been shorter, but otherwise, it was solid. Not the best book I've read set in this universe, but what it lacked in pacing and excitement it made up for in emotion and heart.

One last thought, because this comes up at one point in the book and is never really answered...is the whole "sun and star" thing a reference to something? Because if it is, I did not know to what.

The Manifestor Prophecy - Angie Thomas

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"It's not easy being a Remarkable in the Unremarkable world. Some things are cool - like getting a pet hellhound for your twelfth birthday. Others, not so much - like not being trusted to learn magic because you might use it to take revenge on an annoying neighbor.

All Nic Blake wants is to be a powerful Manifestor like her dad. But before she has a chance to convince him to teach her the gift, a series of shocking revelations and terrifying events launch Nic and two friends on a hunt for a powerful magic tool she's never heard of...to save her father from imprisonment for a crime she refuses to believe he committed."

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Ooooh baby, first middle grade from Angie Thomas! I bought this shortly after it came out, and I'm FINALLY getting around to reading it, after way too long of a delay. SO GOOD. I loved the way the action kicked off, and while it seemed like a gargantuan task that Nic, J.D., and Alex were taking on, I thought information was revealed bit by bit in the perfect places. There was so much tension and sense of urgency, but also enough hope that it never got overwhelming or felt impossible. Also, really enjoyed the way small details from early on came back later, and I all around love, love, LOVE J.D. Such a sweet kid and amazing friend. This book flew by for me, and I loved every minute of it.

Second book when?!

😱😱😱😱

October 1st!

The Dream Runners - Shveta Thakrar

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Seven years ago, Tanvi was spirited away to the subterranean realm of Nagalok, where she joined the ranks of the dream runners: human children freed of all memory and emotion, charged with harvesting mortal dreams for the consumption of the naga court.

Venkat knows a different side of Nagalok. As apprentice to the influential Lord Nayan, he shapes the dream runners' wares into the kingdom's most tantalizing commodity. And Nayan has larger plans for these mortal dreams: with a dreamsmith of Venkat's talent, he believes he can use them to end a war between nagas and their ancient foe, the garudas.

But when one of Tanvi's dream harvests goes awry, she begins to remember her life on Earth. Panicked and confused, she turns to the one mortal in Nagalok who can help: Venkat. And as they search for answers, a terrifying truth begins to take shape -  one that could turn the nagas' realm of dreams into a land of waking nightmare."

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This book is a study in contrasts and contradictions. For example, beautiful world building and imagery...but lacking character development. Tons of detail and focus on the mythology of the nagas and garudas...but not enough information for readers (or at least this reader) to really have a grasp on what's happening. I'm curious if someone reading who was more familiar with the naga/garuda stories would have enjoyed this book more having all that background understanding of what the story was inspired by, because the best way I can describe reading this book is that it was like being the person going to see a movie version of a book NOT having read the book. It might still be a decent story...but you're never going to distill all the minutia and little details of a several hundred page long book into a couple hours long movie.

I can't decide if it's better to talk about the things I liked or the things that I didn't first...compromise, alternate?

Thing I loved: All the rich descriptions of Nagalok. The dreamstones dream runners use to collect dreams, all the decor and nature of the realm, the luxurious food, the colorful, beautifully-made clothing...painted a gorgeous picture.

Thing I didn't love: For such a long book, very little actually happened. Like...the synopsis is basically the entire book. Tanvi freaking out because she's starting to remember things and Venkat vacillating between how he can best take care of the dream runners and wanting to be completely loyal to Nayan takes up probably eighty percent of the book, with very little progress actually being made, and there's really no clear "this is the lurking danger" or "here is what you should be concerned about as a reader. It's all very muddy.

Thing I liked: Asha. Very assertive and adventurous. She was super bold and by far the character whose actions and motivations made the most sense. I would be friends with Asha.

Things I didn't like: The other characters, even Tanvi and Venkat, felt so underdeveloped, and it made a lot of what was happening fall flat. I think part of the issue was too many characters, or maybe spending too much time on the same plot points, which meant less time for developing characters. We were introduced to several characters who seemed to be intended as an important part of the story but only showed up a couple times, and even with Tanvi and Venkat, they spent so little time together and their preexisting relationship was never established, so then all of a sudden it was like "oh, they're super into each other, and Venkat has always been enamored with Tanvi and how fiery she was before she went through Dream Runner initiation!" And I was like ....I have seen no evidence to support any of this. What?

So. Anyway. I don't know. Do I think this was a BAD book? No. But to be honest, both this and Shveta Thakrar's last book, Star Daughter, feel like they started with an incredible idea but no clear direction for how to execute that idea. Read it if you want to, but if you don't...you don't.

Reboot Rereads - To All the Boys I've Loved Before

I've never written an individual review for this book/series, but BOY OH BOY have I included it in an excessive number of book lists! I mentioned it in one (as a case for polyamory over love triangles), and I've featured it in at least four, including my top ten favorite series, books to read if you like Animal Crossing, easy to read books (hello, reboot rereads!), and books that feel like a hug. This series is so cozy and comforting, and I continue to adore it. (Also the movies, although I don't know why, but it endlessly bothers me that they decided in the movie series to change the setting to the Pacific Northwest instead of Virginia. Just, why? And I wish they had left it being Peter that got the video taken down.)

Lara Jean, so sweet, so firm in her standards. Kitty, possibly the best character ever written. Margot, eh. But everyone else...wonderful. It's low stakes that feel high stakes, because who amongst us doesn't remember when minor teen dramas ruled our lives? Lovely series to revisit, and I recommend it to anyone looking for something low-stakes and comforting to get into.

Reboot Rereads - Alex, Approximately

I reviewed this book way back when, in 2020, and gave it five stars. I also mention in the review that reading it back then got me out of a reading slump, so what a coincidence that I chose it this time around for the same reason! I still love it - there are serious moments, but you know when things get rocky that it will all turn out okay, so it's such a comfort read. My appreciation for Grace grows every time I read this, and I really love her dad and how supportive and encouraging he is, as well as Porter's parents, who are both so wonderful. In my first review, I gave bonus points for modeling consent in a very natural way, which I still greatly appreciate, and I also give bonus points for the inclusion of roller derby, even if Jenn Bennet does refer to it as "the derby," which in all my years of roller derby participation I have never heard it referred to as.🤣

Anyway, if you're looking for a light, feel-good read, stop sleeping on Jenn Bennett. Her writing is delightful. Three rereads down, baby! And I've been making fairly steady progress on Not "A Nation of Immigrants," so it seems like the reboot is working!

Reboot Rereads - Foolish Hearts

It's been six and a half years since I first read and reviewed Foolish Hearts, and I'm happy to report that it holds up, and I still adore it. For anyone who doesn't want to go back to 2017 to find the original review, here's the summary from the cover:

"The day of the last party of the summer, Claudia overhears a conversation she wasn't supposed to. Now on the wrong side of one of the meanest girls in school, Claudia doesn't know what to expect when the two are paired up to write a paper—let alone when they're both forced to try out for the school production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

But mandatory participation has its upsides—namely, an unexpected friendship, a boy band obsession, and a guy with the best dimpled smile Claudia's ever seen. As Claudia's world starts to expand, she finds that maybe there are some things worth sticking her neck out for."

This book has everything. Pining over a new crush, online roleplaying games, rock climbing even?! What more could you ask for from a book, jokes that make you laugh out loud, maybe? Because it has those too - I read this out loud to Joel a while back, and there were at least two exchanges that I was laughing too hard to get through. And I laughed just as hard reading those exchanges this time around.

Also, Gideon continues to be a perfect love interest and one of the sweetest characters that has ever been created. I'll never stop loving him. And it isn't just him! It's everyone! Claudia is excellent, her whole family is so good, Zoe is amazing, don't even get me STARTED on Noah...Emma Mills knows how to create a lovable character, it's possibly one of her greatest strengths. Definitely what I love the most about her books.

So, anyway, two rereads done! The brain reboot is working!

A Rover's Story - Jasmine Warga

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Meet Resilience, a Mars rover determined to live up to his name.

Res was built to explore Mars. He was not built to have human emotions. But as he learns new things from the NASA scientists who assemble him, he begins to develop human-like feelings. Maybe there's a problem with his programming...

Human emotions or not, launch day comes, and Res blasts off to Mars, accompanied by a friendly drone helicopter named Fly. But Res quickly discovers that Mars is a dangerous place filled with dust storms and giant cliffs. As he navigates Mars's difficult landscape, Res is tested in ways that go beyond space exploration.

As millions of people back on Earth follow his progress, will Res have the determination, courage - and resilience - to succeed...and survive?"

🚀🚀🚀 

If you had asked me if I thought a book about a Mars rover would make me cry, I would probably have scoffed, but cry at this book I did! It's a fairly quick read, mainly chapters from Resilience's point of view, but interspersed with letters written to Resilience from the daughter of one of the scientists working on Res's programming. And it is just so, so good. Seeing Resilience learn and gradually start to make their own choices, Fly's enthusiasm and determination...it was so sweet and inspiring. And the daughter's letters were so heartwarming and sometimes so sad. Gah. Never in a million years would I have predicted this book making me feel so many things.

No Place Like Home - Linh S. Nguyen

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Lan, a teenager who recently came to Canada from Vietnam, spends every day searching for a sense of belonging. Books are the only things that make her feel at ease. But it comes as a shock when a mysterious wind whisks her right into the pages of her latest fantasy read. More shocking still is the fact that she herself summoned this wind!

Plunged into the magical world of Silva, Lan realizes she has much to offer protagonists Annabelle and Marlow. Once a homesick reader and bystander rooting for the very characters that now stand before her, Lan is a budding witch who suddenly has the power to help their quest. Somewhere inside her lies the ability to not only save Annabelle and Marlow's home, but also to shape a familiar tale into something new. 

As Lan faces off against tree guardians, moving corn mazes, heart-eaters, and thoughtless kings, she finds that Silva is not so different from Toronto: new homes can be messy. Now, torn between several places at once, Lan begins to confront an important question: how do you redefine a lost home?"

📚📚📚 

Reading this book was kind of like making a peanut butter sandwich with chunky peanut butter when you're expecting smooth. You expect the story to unfold smoothly, spreading across the page, and then you're like wait...this isn't...hold on... Is this a weird metaphor? Yeah, it is, but that happened to me recently, so it was what came to mind. What I'm saying is that some of the transitions between action and the plot development were a little clunky. It's fine, it was still a good book, it just took some getting used to.

Aside from that, I enjoyed the story. I wish there was a little more natural, gradual character progression, but their adventures were exciting, and I loved the time they spent with the centaurs and the dryads. Part of my issue with the pacing and the way things unfolded was that the story jumped from one adventure into the next relatively quickly, and I kind of wanted the story to be a little longer, so we could get more detail and more development. Admittedly, though...this is a kid's book, and the quick movement from one challenge to the next might keep them more interested. So, take my reaction with a grain of salt.

Pet - Akwaeke Emezi

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"There are no monsters anymore, or so the children in the city of Lucille are taught. Jam and her best friend, Redemption, have grown up with this lesson all their life. But when Jam meets Pet, a creature made of horns and colors and claws, who emerges from one of her mother's paintings and a drop of Jam's blood, she must reconsider what she's been told. Pet has come to hunt a monster - and the shadow of something grim lurks in Redemption's house. Jam must fight not only to protect her best friend, but also uncover the truth, and the answer to the question - how do you save the world from monsters if no one will admit they exist?"

📚📚📚 

Wow, how to even talk about this book. It clocks in at just over two hundred pages, so while it's heavy, it also went by in a blur. I think that was equal parts the length and the writing style - like their main character, Akwaeke Emezi doesn't mince words. The world is introduced and established quickly, Pet emerges from the painting, and the hunt begins. There's no meandering, no side quests. ONLY the hunt. 

I thought that directness was very suitable for the story being told, and I also really appreciated the way what the monster has done was made clear without actually saying "this is what you did, how dare you?" It's difficult to write about sensitive topics like this and strike the right tone/balance, and too often it almost veers into voyeuristic territory. I know it isn't intentional, and it's not like I think authors are out here relishing writing about such terrible things, it's just that sometimes the quest to paint the picture becomes...too much. This was an expert demonstration of how to tell a vivid, heartrending story without spelling out every little detail.

I also love how effortlessly inclusive this book was. Jam, the main character, is trans and chooses not to voice often (extra snaps for specifying VOICING and not SPEAKING), instead preferring to use sign language. Others in her life have learned sign in order to communicate with her, including the town's librarian, who is a wheelchair user, and her best friend, who lives in a three parent household. All of these details are woven into the story with no fanfare. It isn't something different or unusual, it's just life. It's how things are. That's so unusual in the majority of books, and we need more of it. Just...all around, such an incredible book. 

Finally, since I can't end this without saying something about him, Ube is the best example of what a librarian should be. Welcoming, inclusive, and a believer that even if someone is a kid, they deserve access to the truth and to accurate information. They deserve to be given the tools they need to make their own educated decisions. I aspire to be like Ube.

A Taste of Magic - J. Elle

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Twelve-year-old Kyana has just found out the family secret--she's the first witch in her family for generations! Which means mandatory lessons every Saturday at Park Row Magic Academy--a learning center hidden in the back of the local beauty shop. Kyana can't wait to learn some spells to help out at home. The only downside is having to keep her magic a secret from her connected-at-the-hip BFF Nae.

But then the magic school loses their funding, forcing the students to pay a hefty tuition at the school across town or have their magic stripped. Determined not to let that happen, Kyana enters a baking competition with a huge cash prize. After all, she's learned how to make the best desserts from her Memaw. But will Kyana be able to keep up her grades in both magic school and real school while preparing for the competition and without revealing her magic? And what happens when a little taste of magic works its way into her cupcakes in the first round of competition?"

🧁🧁🧁

 Oh, this was such a delightful read. Kyana is enthusiastic, creative, and passionate, both Nae and Ashley are so earnest and sweet, and Memaw is wonderful. Some highlights for me were the nuanced take on the boy that Kyana doesn't get along with (I goofed and already added the book to my school library's collection, so I don't have it with me to reference), the first round of the baking competition, and the public library being featured as a place Kyana regularly goes (what can I say, library shout-outs will always get a thumbs up from me). 

The one not-positive I have to say is that I don't think including Kyana's struggle with her math grade was necessary - it came up pretty early, but after that there was so much other drama going on that it almost seemed to be inserted as an afterthought. Like "oh shoot, I forgot I brought up that her math grade was low, better say something about that" instead of an actual part of the plot. That aside, I thought the story was great. The way J. Elle wove magic into the real world was delightful, and I loved the way Kyana dove into finding a solution to their school losing its funding. Her determination and refusal to quit really tugged at my heart, and seeing her pull multiple communities together to try and make magic happen was amazing.

Very solid read! I highly recommend it, and I hope my students enjoy it as much as I did.

When You Wish Upon a Star - Elizabeth Lim

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Starlight, star bright, first star I see tonight...so begins the wish that changes everything - for Geppetto, for the Blue Fairy, and for a little puppet named Pinocchio. The Blue Fairy isn't supposed to grant wishes in the small village of Pariva, but something about this one awakens some long-buried flicker within. Perhaps it's the hope she senses beneath the old man's loneliness.

Or maybe it's the fact that long ago, before she was the Blue Fairy, she was a young woman named Chiara from this very village, one with a simple wish: to help others find happiness. Her sister Ilaria always teased her for this, for she had big dreams to leave their sleepy village and become a world-renowned opera singer. The two were close, despite their differences. While Ilaria would give anything to have a fairy grant her wish, Chiara didn't believe in the lore for which their village was famous.

Forty years later, Chiara, now the Blue Fairy, defies the rules of magic to help an old friend. But she's discovered by the Scarlet Fairy, formerly Ilaria, who, amid a decades-long grudge, holds the transgression against her sister. They decide to settle things through a good old-fashioned bet, with Pinocchio and Geppetto's fate hanging in the balance.

Will the sisters find a way back to one another? Or is this, like many matters of the heart, a gamble that comes with strings?"

Well, you've read the synopsis. Which means you've basically read the whole book. Chiara (sorry, the Blue Fairy) grants Geppetto's wish, makes the deal with Ilaria, and then we spend way too long learning the way too simple backstory of how Chiara became the good Blue Fairy and Ilaria became the big bad Scarlet Fairy. Like 90% of the book follows Chiara's decision to join the fairies and Ilaria resenting her for it and being a child about it, until she ultimately gives up her heart and becomes the Scarlet Fairy to spite her sister. Fine, but also...kind of weak as far as reasons to literally remove your heart from your chest with the intention to destroy it go.

Even when we eventually get to the action, things are kind of inconsistent and lackluster. Maybe if you're super into Pinocchio this book would be up your alley. I am not, and I found it to be solidly middle of the road. I finished it. There's that.

Amira & Hamza: The War to Save the Worlds - Samira Ahmed

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"On the day of a rare super blue blood moon eclipse, twelve-year-old Amira and her little brother, Hamza, can’t stop their bickering while attending a special exhibit on medieval Islamic astronomy. While stargazer Amira is wowed by the amazing gadgets, a bored Hamza wanders off, stumbling across the mesmerizing and forbidden Box of the Moon. Amira can only watch in horror as Hamza grabs the defunct box and it springs to life, setting off a series of events that could shatter their world—literally.

Suddenly, day turns to night, everyone around Amira and Hamza falls under a sleep spell, and a chunk of the moon breaks off, hurtling toward them at lightning speed, as they come face-to-face with two otherworldly creatures: jinn.

The jinn reveal that the siblings have a role to play in an ancient prophecy. Together, they must journey to the mystical land of Qaf, battle a great evil, and end a civil war to prevent the moon—the stopper between realms—from breaking apart and unleashing terrifying jinn, devs, and ghuls onto earth. Or they might have to say goodbye to their parents and life as they know it, forever.…"

 This was a quick read and I didn't take many notes, so it's going to be a short review. Character development was mostly solid - I really enjoyed Amira and Hamza's relationship, and I thought the two Jinn that brought them to Qaf were both great and balanced each other out well. I did feel like development was frontloaded and the characters that appeared early were fleshed out really well, while then development got skimpy as the book went on, but I suppose that's to be expected...there were just a couple cases where the reader got strangely little given the importance of their role in the story.

I thought the adventure started out very strong, with high stakes and a time crunch. But again, it seemed like partway through the book that fell off a little. Almost like "ope, this book is getting too long, gotta wrap it up!" I was much more engrossed in the earlier challenges than I was in the last couple of Big Deal final challenges - no spoilers, but when they came up against the big bad, I thought maybe it was a fake out because it seemed too easy given all the buildup to it. That said, it was still a good story, and I think my students would get into it. Adding it to my school library, for sure!

Luck of the Titanic - Stacey Lee

 Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Valora Luck has two things: a ticket for the biggest and most luxurious ocean liner in the world, and a dream of leaving England behind and making a life for herself as a circus performer in New York. Much to her surprise, though, she's turned away at the gangway; apparently, Chinese people aren't allowed into America.

But Val has to get on that ship. Her twin brother, Jamie, who has spent two long years at sea, is on board, as is an influential circus owner. Thankfully, there's not much a trained acrobat like Val can't overcome when she puts her mind to it.

As a stowaway, Val should keep her head down and stay out of sight, But the clock is ticking and she has just seven days as the ship makes its way across the Atlantic to find Jamie, audition for the circus owner, and convince him to help get them both into America.

Then one night, the unthinkable happens, and suddenly Val's dreams of a new life are crushed under the weight of the only thing that matters: survival."

 

 I love how coy they are with "the unthinkable happens," like someone picking up this book might not know what it is. Don't want to spoil the big twist! 🤣 Anyway, I definitely chose this book because I've been obsessed with the Titanic since I was a kid and I loved the perspective it was written from. There's a note at the beginning of the book, "of the eight Chinese passengers aboard the Titanic, six survived." This is obviously a fictional version of what happened, but it is amazing to think about so many of this admittedly small number surviving when not only were they in third class, but due to racism and anti-Chinese sentiment specifically, they were viewed even by others in that class as "the lowest." Incredible that with help being focused on women and children in first class specifically, so many of the Chinese passengers managed to make it off the ship to safety. 

Even knowing what happens to the Titanic and knowing that six of the eight Chinese passengers survived, the ending of this book still managed to get me. It was a very emotional conclusion, and I finished reading right before I went to sleep, so of course then I dreamed about being on the Titanic all night. So restful. I couldn't stop reading, though...nightmares seem like a fair trade for an unputdownable book. Val board the Titanic with lofty goals - reunite with her twin brother, find a way to gain an audience with the owner of the Ringling Brothers circus, and convince Jamie to audition and stay in America with her. A significant portion of the book centers around those goals, and there's something so very strange about reading a book and rooting for someone to pull off the impossible and forge a new life for themselves when...you know the boat is going to sink. You know it's not going to happen. 

Even with that knowledge, though, I couldn't help but root for Val. I could see that new life taking shape for her. Hope can be so insidious sometimes, but her determination, grit, and creativity made it impossible not to root for her. Stacey Lee developed the characters so well, it made my heart ache knowing what was coming for them. I didn't want two of the eight Johnnies to die. I wanted them all to make it, I wanted the ship to make it to New York and for everyone to have a happily ever after (except the racist, classist assholes on board, they could fall into the ocean and at the very least ruin their fancy clothes). That's the tough thing about reading a well-written historical fiction set in a tragedy, I suppose...you want a different ending. You want a time machine, to fix all the little things that went wrong and led to the tragedy in the first place. But you have to live with what you get.