R.M. Romero does such an incredible job blending magical realism with a realistic world. This is my second of her works and I now know I will read anyR.M. Romero does such an incredible job blending magical realism with a realistic world. This is my second of her works and I now know I will read anything she writes. I adored this story so much and could not stop reading it last night. Novels written in verse always draw me in and I am so glad I found Romero's A Warning About Swans last year, which led me to picking up this beauty.
As soon as I saw this being comped as part Hadestown and the myth of "Orpheus and Eurydice”, I knew I had to read it. Many of my favorite myths deal with the Underworld. Romero takes the myth and breathes new life into it with Andres, Renee, and Liora. It follows Andres and Renee as they travel into the Underworld to try and save their girlfriend, Liora from Death.
A beautiful poly romance which touched my heart from the first chapter. Andres comes alive in Romero's very first stanza. He is depicted vividly on every page, his voice as distinct as his story. The story begins with him making a bargain with Death to take his anger away in exchange for something he will love in the future. When one of his girlfriends, Liora goes into a coma, he believes Death is taking who he loves.
Andres is one of the Orpheuses of this story, who not only has to go on a physical journey, but also an emotional one. One of his girlfriends, Renee also takes on the role of Orpheus. She is the one who first suggests saving Liora and uses her magic to help get them into the Underworld. Liora is our Eurydice who gets a much more active role in the plot. I loved the journey all three had to go on.
Along with the characters, the world is just as striking. The Underworld depicted in this story reminded me a bit of Coco but it is very much its own entity. I thought the idea of not only having ghosts of people, but also places, was intriguing. It's one of the most interesting takes I have found of the Underworld. Also, we meet many famous faces and get multiple references to mythology throughout the course of the story. The love of music was a beautiful part of this story.
"Ground control to Major Tom"
I highly recommend Death's Country. Romero is an incredible storyteller, whose writing is a masterpiece. I adored this young adult story about healing and love. A modern-day take on "Orpheus and Eurydice" that is definitely one of my favorite books of the year.
*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.*...more
Pride and Prejudice is one of the most popular romances of all time and I have adored it ever since I first read it many years ago. In Most Ardently,Pride and Prejudice is one of the most popular romances of all time and I have adored it ever since I first read it many years ago. In Most Ardently, Gabe Cole Novoa remixes the classic story with our main character being Oliver Bennet, a young transman, who feels trapped in his society's expectations for women of the time. He was born Elizabeth Bennet and at this point in his life, he is ready to start openly living his true identity as a man.
Many of the original story's main beats play out throughout the plot but with deviations. I love the relationship between Darcy and Oliver. It was great to watch them fall in love during the story and I just could not get enough of them together. The characters are similar to their classic counterparts but a bit younger. Also, I love Oliver's dad just as much as I always loved Elizabeth's father. It was a joy reading the scenes with him. Oliver is a powerful character who you cannot help but love from the very beginning of the story.
I highly recommend picking up the audiobook for this wonderful book. The narrator does an incredible job narrating Oliver's story. I will be buying a copy for my collection and know I will be rereading this very soon.
*I was given an ARC of this book and listened to the audiobook version after it was released. All opinions are my own. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley.*...more
A beautiful retelling of The Nutcracker. I adored the magical aspects of this book that had me hoping for more books from this world. It had me thinkiA beautiful retelling of The Nutcracker. I adored the magical aspects of this book that had me hoping for more books from this world. It had me thinking of the Wood between Worlds in The Magican’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis. I love portal fantasies and I hope we will get to eventually see more of the other worlds mentioned in this novel. Midnight in Everwood is a stunning novel and I know I will be rereading again during the holiday season for years to come. ...more
I am loving this series and am looking forward to seeing what will happen next. Rachel Smythe is taking these Greek myths in ways I never would have iI am loving this series and am looking forward to seeing what will happen next. Rachel Smythe is taking these Greek myths in ways I never would have imagined. What an interesting take on Persephone and Hades. ...more
Nikita Gill has become one of my favorite poets this year. I love how much her poems speak to me on such a personal level. Another incredible collectiNikita Gill has become one of my favorite poets this year. I love how much her poems speak to me on such a personal level. Another incredible collection I know I will read from for the rest of my life. I cannot even pick a favorite because there are too many. Some of them would be: “The Moon Dragon,” “Boy Lost,” “Wendy,” “The Stepmother’s Tale,” and “Kiss the Dread.” I highly recommend this and her other volumes for poetry lovers. ...more
This series just keeps getting better with each book. I cannot wait to read the fifth volume later on this year and see what happens next with Hades aThis series just keeps getting better with each book. I cannot wait to read the fifth volume later on this year and see what happens next with Hades and Persephone. Rachel Smythe’s books are definitely one of the most unique takes on Greek Mythology that I have read. I love this version of the myths. ...more
An interesting take on the world of Wonderland that I cannot wait to see more from. I love Alice's Adventures in Wonderland retellings, and this one wAn interesting take on the world of Wonderland that I cannot wait to see more from. I love Alice's Adventures in Wonderland retellings, and this one was another great example. The Secret of Safe Passage had great originality in the way Baynton takes the elements from the original and reimagines them here. I cannot wait to see what happens next in the Taking Wonderland series and with Ali. ...more
I have been looking forward to reading this excellent book since I finished the first of The Four Winds books at the beginning of last year. ZephyrusI have been looking forward to reading this excellent book since I finished the first of The Four Winds books at the beginning of last year. Zephyrus, The West Wind, interested me as a character in the first book, and I wanted to see where this book took him. I'm happy to say I enjoyed this as much as the first one. The use of Greek mythology and the Scottish ballad Tam Lin were great in this book. There are mentions of The Odyssey and the myth of Hyacinth, which are part of Zephyrus's backstory.
My favorite part of this book was learning more about Zephyrus and seeing his interactions with Brielle. Their interactions were quite funny at times, and I enjoyed watching them fall in love. Watching Brielle grow as a person was also an essential part of this book. She is a character that you cannot help but root for and hope that she will succeed. I don't read books that focus heavily on religion too often, but I found Brielle's journey an integral part of her story.
Another aspect of this novel that stands out is learning about Zephyrus's other brother Notus. I'm hoping that we will get a book about him if Alexandria continues with this series. He is a character that I would love to learn more about.
I highly recommend this book and know that I will add this to my collection along with the first.
*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.*...more
Soman Chainani’s book Beasts and Beauty was a highly entertaining book of short stories. Most of the tales were fairy tale retellings, also including Soman Chainani’s book Beasts and Beauty was a highly entertaining book of short stories. Most of the tales were fairy tale retellings, also including a Peter Pan retelling. Soman’s writing was beautifully atmospheric and had me wanting to read more of his work. The illustrations throughout the collection were stunning and fit so well with the darkness that each story exuded.
Each tale has a different way of looking at the original story, along with a diverse cast of characters. My favorites were the “Beauty and the Beast,” “Hansel and Gretel,” and Peter Pan ones. The way he changes these stories was just great, especially Peter Pan.
Overall, this was a collection that I loved as a fan of everything fairy tale retellings. I would love for Soman to create another collection with even more stories, especially Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. It would be an instant read for me. ...more
A wonderful queer graphic novel retelling of "The Little Mermaid" that I highly enjoyed. The art style of this graphic novel was stunning and I cannotA wonderful queer graphic novel retelling of "The Little Mermaid" that I highly enjoyed. The art style of this graphic novel was stunning and I cannot wait to read what will happen next. I loved the twists to the original fairy tale and how Jessi took Corinth and Skylla's story. The Sea in You was absolutely beautiful in every way and I highly recommend it to fans of the original fairy tale. I will be picking up a copy for my collection.
*Thank you to Edelweiss for my ARC of this beautiful book. All opinions are my own.* ...more
Madeline Miller's novels The Song of Achilles and Circe are two of my favorite pieces of literature. I love how she uses Greek Mythology stories and cMadeline Miller's novels The Song of Achilles and Circe are two of my favorite pieces of literature. I love how she uses Greek Mythology stories and creates her own takes on these tales. Galatea is an excellent example of how impactful she can make a story, even one so small. This short story focuses on the aftermath of Pygmalion and Galatea's relationship. It's packed full of emotions and gives Galatea more of an active role in her story.
In the original myth of Pygmalion, the story focuses on the love that Pygmalion feels for a statue he created. Before this, he is disgusted by the other women around him and wants to make a love for himself that would be pure. So, he created Galatea out of marble and prayed to Aphrodite (Venus) to give life to her. Aphrodite gives life to the statue, and Pygmalion gets his happily ever after with who he believes to be the perfect woman. Galatea never speaks during the original myth; her only purpose is to be what her husband wants her to be.
In Galatea, Madeline Miller takes the elements from this story and goes past them. We are seeing what happens after Galatea is not the perfect wife for Pygmalion. I will not go into details, but it is a brutal and haunting read. It is a short story that was not only impactful but also powerful. What an ending. Madeline Miller has such a way with words that makes them all count in incredible ways. I cannot wait to see what she comes out with next! I hope she will eventually do a short story collection with stories similar to this....more
I loved the first book in this series, so I was excited to see that there was going to be a sequel based on Through the Looking Glass. The plot in thiI loved the first book in this series, so I was excited to see that there was going to be a sequel based on Through the Looking Glass. The plot in this book was very enjoyable and it was great getting to follow along with Tyrus and Celia again in a new adventure.
This zany adventure was a great follow-up to the first book, with lots of riddles, wordplay, and characters that I was looking forward to seeing Savage's take on. I am not as big of a fan of the original book Through the Looking Glass as I am of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, but I will say that Savage's version of this story was awesome. I'm glad that the adventure for Tyrus and Celia was unexpected, especially the ending.
It was great that so much of the plot dealt with the chess battles since chess is an important part of Through the Looking Glass, but that it was not bogged down in chess. Every instance of it in the plot made a lot of sense and it was entertaining to see how it fit into the story overall.
Loved the riddle battle with Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle Dum, the poetry with Humpty and Dumpty, the different chess battles throughout the entire book, the wordplay (both physically in the book and in the story in general), and I loved the eerie scenes with the Black Sheep.
Also, I want to mention how much I love the fact that Tyrus has started a book club in this one and that they are reading Inkheart. Makes me want to read that book again. It's one of my favorites, that I first read in ninth grade. And I hope that this will lead even more young readers to pick it up.
What a great follow-up that added so much more to the world and to the characters as a whole! It was great to see Tyrus and Celia learn even more about themselves and grow as young people. I'm glad that young readers get to see such great character growth throughout both books in this series. This is a series that I love and is a great retelling that I believe young and old readers will both enjoy.
*Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my ARC of the book. All opinions are my own.*...more
Great twisting of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and I loved seeing Sara Ella’s take on the characters from the original story. I will always be a sGreat twisting of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and I loved seeing Sara Ella’s take on the characters from the original story. I will always be a sucker for a great retelling and I love seeing the way an author will take elements from the original and use them in their own stories. I believe that Sara does a great job of this. My favorite part of this book is the relationships, especially between Alice and her sister Charlotte. I cannot wait to see what happens next in the sequel and where the trials go from here. ...more
The Little Mermaid is my favorite Disney movie, and I was excited to see the story from Eric's perspective. I'm so happy to say that I absolutely ad The Little Mermaid is my favorite Disney movie, and I was excited to see the story from Eric's perspective. I'm so happy to say that I absolutely adored Linsey's take on the story. She added so much to the story and to Eric's backstory but, for the most part, did not change the story beats from the original. I enjoyed seeing the events from the movie, especially the scenes when Ariel was doing something that Eric didn't notice, like at their first dinner together with Ariel getting Sebastian out of Grimsby's food.
One of the aspects I loved the most was the addition of Eric's curse and how that plays into his story as a whole. I love what Linsey did with his curse and how that went into his character. Also, I love the dynamic between him, Grimsby, Carlotta, and his friends introduced in the book.
My other favorite part of this book is the relationship between Ariel and Eric. I'm glad we got to have more of them spending time together and their relationship. It was wonderful seeing even more of Ariel's character, who will always be a favorite of mine. I could not help but sing the music that went along with the scenes.
I highly recommend this book to fans of the original story. It was such a great book! I already preordered my own copy of the book.
*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC of the book. All opinions are my own.*...more
This was a great retelling of Hades and Persephone with beautiful artwork. I really enjoyed the characterization of Hades in this one and of PersephonThis was a great retelling of Hades and Persephone with beautiful artwork. I really enjoyed the characterization of Hades in this one and of Persephone and am very interested to see where it goes from here....more
This was such a wonderful read. I adored reading this book the last couple of days and did not want it to end at all. When I had read the description This was such a wonderful read. I adored reading this book the last couple of days and did not want it to end at all. When I had read the description for this book, I knew that I had to read it and man, am I glad that I did. It's a mix of Greek Mythology with the gods of the wind playing a part, and a bit of a Beauty and the Beast/Hades and Persephone retelling. It was everything that I wanted it to be and so much more.
Wren's character was my favorite part of this book. She's a fierce character who is not afraid to stick up for herself, even against a god who initially scares her. I loved reading her interactions with Boreas so much. She always held her own and knew just what buttons to push. She has had a lot of problems in her life that she has to get past and I love how they get through that together. Their slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance was perfect. Boreas was also just great when we got to know him.
Also, I really enjoyed the side characters, especially Orla. I'm glad that Wren got to have such a wonderful friendship in this story.
I highly recommend picking this book up if it even sounds remotely interesting to you. I decided to buy my own copy for my collection. It's definitely a new favorite that I will reread again and again. I can't wait for the other books in this series.
* I received an Advanced Reader's Copy for an honest review from the publisher and NetGalley. Thank you so much for the opportunity. All opinions are my own. *...more
One of the books I have wanted the most for years was a retelling of The Great Gatsby where Nick and Gatsby fell in love. I'm happy to say that this bOne of the books I have wanted the most for years was a retelling of The Great Gatsby where Nick and Gatsby fell in love. I'm happy to say that this beauty came out after nine years of this hope. The Great Gatsby is one of my all-time favorite stories, and as Anna-Marie McLemore says in her author's note, I always believed that Nick loved Jay. I have wanted a story like this ever since I first read the original.
This story was so beautiful, and I loved the audiobook narration. It was narrated by two different people, Avi Roque and Kyla Garcia. They both did an incredible job and helped draw me even more into the story. It was great having both narrators and getting Nick's and Daisy's distinct voices. Daisy's letters to various people throughout the book gave me even more insight into this character and made me love her.
The romance was beautiful and sweet. I loved getting so much of Gatsby and Nick spending time together throughout the novel. Also, the representation in this book was phenomenal. We had so many queer and Latinx characters. Nick's search for his identity as a Latinx trans man was so important to the overall story. It was so special seeing how many people accepted him in this version of 1920s New York and the community that he was able to form with these people. Especially at the club behind the shop, on Nick's birthday. Those scenes were great. I'm glad he was able to connect with Jay, who was also a transgender man, and how Jay helped him learn about New York society.
I have never been a fan of Daisy's character in the original novel, but I loved her in this book. Her letters to her family back home and other characters were some of the best parts of this entire novel. They gave a look into this character that is unexpected at times. She is a character trying hard to make her way in a society she knows will not accept her for who she is. It's wonderful to see where Anna-Marie takes this storyline with her. Also, I want to touch on Jordan. She was a wonderful character I adored from her introduction in this story until the end. The Jordan in the original novel will never have anything on this Jordan.
I could gush about this book for days, and I'm glad that we get to have a book like this for teens to be able to read. Gatsby is one of my favorite stories, but I have got to say that this version makes me so happy, and I know I will read it over and over again.
*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my ARC of this book. All opinions are my own*...more
I am a big fan of The Princess and the Frog and have been highly looking forward to this new take on the story ever since I first heard about it. ThisI am a big fan of The Princess and the Frog and have been highly looking forward to this new take on the story ever since I first heard about it. This story was absolutely beautiful!
Tiana is one of my favorite Disney princesses, and I was looking forward to seeing more of her story and the other characters. There was so much to love about this book, especially the characters and setting. One of the most important aspects of Tiana's story is the restaurant that she opens with her father. It was great finally getting to see her fulfill this dream and see the success she got from opening it. The setting of New Orleans is definitely one of my favorite aspects of the movie, and I love what Farrah Rochon did with that in this book. It feels so true to that setting.
Tiana is such a strong character that you can't help but root for in all her actions. The deal that she makes with Dr. Facilier makes sense for her to make, even though you know it won't work out in her favor. I love how hard-working she is as a character, but it was great being able to see her learn to let others help her. I loved seeing her work with Naveen, Louis, and Charlotte throughout this book. It was great being able to see even more of these characters and even Dr. Facilier. He's such a fantastic villain, and it was interesting to see more of his motivations throughout this book. I'm glad we got to see his perspective throughout the book. Naveen and Louis were just as great as ever. I won't spoil the plot with them.
I'd also like to talk about Charlotte. Charlotte is such a sweet character who cares so deeply for Tiana, and I'm glad we got to see so much more of their friendship. Her development and story with everyone else was probably one of my favorite aspects of the book. I love Charlotte in the movie, and I'm glad that she was given a more significant role in this book.
Also, seeing more of Tiana and her family was another great addition to this book. The ending was so touching and hit me hard.
*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.*...more
This was a really enjoyable little edition to the series with short comics throughout. I loved most of the stories in this one. Loved having Puck in tThis was a really enjoyable little edition to the series with short comics throughout. I loved most of the stories in this one. Loved having Puck in this world too. I mean how could you do a story called "A Midsummer Night's Scheme" without Puck. You can't. ...more
Definitely, my favorite of the series so far. I loved the focus on Xanthous throughout the book and the emergence of dragons. Everything's better withDefinitely, my favorite of the series so far. I loved the focus on Xanthous throughout the book and the emergence of dragons. Everything's better with dragons, just saying. The humor was spot on throughout the book, and I could not help laughing out loud a lot. Chris has created a world that I don't ever want to end. I enjoy every new entry and cannot wait to see where he takes this from here. This book had so many surprises and I loved seeing the connections to the original series again throughout this one.
Xanthous was definitely my favorite part of this book though. He is dealing with finding his identity while also dealing with problems that could literally destroy the world around him. I love after knowing him for so long in the previous series and then in this one, we get to see him grow into himself. That was just great.
My new favorite characters are Gobzella and Elrick. Gobzilla is hilarious.
I loved following Brystal and the gang throughout this new adventure and into parts of the past of the fairy tale world that we only have ever heard of from characters. Especially, the dragons. All of those scenes were amazing. This series has branched off into something of its own and I'm so excited to see where Chris will continue from here....more
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