“I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel”
me giving frankenstein five stars in 2025? i truly did not see that coming, but for sure
“I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel”
me giving frankenstein five stars in 2025? i truly did not see that coming, but for sure a new favorite classic of mine. and the more i learn about mary shelley, her life, and the circumstances around this book and the rewritten version, the more i love it even more.
this was actually a lot different than what growing up with so many media interpretations had lead me to believe. But this story is told in letters / journal entries from a self taught sailor to his sister, while he is voyaging to the north pole and finds a man in the freezing temperatures. this man is none other than victor frankenstein himself, who is now allowing this sailor to write down the tragedy of his life which involves him creating a man.
this story really makes you think about who really is monstrous, what things other people do to create monsters, and how sometimes becoming what people view as a monster is inevitable because of the sad world we live in. this tale really is all about being othered, and i simply can’t believe the things inside this story from 1818, and how they are still so heartbreakingly executed in 2025.
mary shelley every volume: let me also touch on colonization and its evils real quick
trigger + content warnings: loss of a loved one, child death, grief, talk of colorism, talk of colonization, talk of slavery, lots of talk of death, anxiety, depression, thoughts of suicide, abandonment, religious manipulation, shitty law enforcement
“This was a place stitched together by resistance, by acts of defiance by people who could not or would not go gently down the path the world had d
“This was a place stitched together by resistance, by acts of defiance by people who could not or would not go gently down the path the world had decided was inevitable…”
oh, friends, this one really unexpectedly hit me in my feels, and i loved it completely. this story follows, you guessed it, the residents of a magical inn, in england, that is run by a witch. but this inn is extra special, because you can only find it if you are in need of a safe place to spend some time. the book opens up with our main character, sera, losing most of her magic from casting a very powerful spell. and we follow her, with the help of the inn’s residents, both old and new, trying to get her full magical powers back! but the information she needs is being kept away by her old guild that would rather keep her powerless.
if you’re looking for a love letter to family, both blood and found, pick this book up. if you’re looking for a read that involves healing from your past, in all the different and complicated ways, pick this book up. if you’re looking for depictions of people showing up for the ones they love, in all the different ways, and trusting that magical trust you put in people who make you feel safe, pick this book up. if you’re looking for a story about attempting to dismantle systems that have always been in place to keep you feeling lesser, please pick this book up. (also… if you’re in need of a zombie chicken in your literature, also pick this book up lol!)
i will say, seeing other people only talking about this book and how “cute” it is does have me feeling rather insane. because even though that is very true, this is a cute and cozy feeling book, our main character is setting up a safe place for children who feel unwanted and unlovable to know they are very wanted and so worth loving, after she (and the other adults in this story) have been forced to feel that while growing up themselves. there are so many emotional discussions on depression and other mental health conditions throughout this entire story. and also, this book constantly depicts our south asian mc experiencing racism, colorism, and misogyny at the hands of white supremacy and british colonialism throughout the entire book. while the governing powers also are constantly attempting to keep or mc uninformed, uneducated, and without the knowledge she needs to take back her power. again, this is truly a cozy and heartwarming book of healing, and i do think so much of this story is cute, but i just feel like a lot of people are missing some very big, loud, and integral themes that were expressed throughout this one.
“...his history might be a legacy of power, but hers was a legacy of resistance.”
overall, i loved this and i think it was the perfect blend of warm and hard-hitting that i am yearning for in my cozy fantasy. and i would protect sera and jasmine (and everyone who has been made to believe they were at one time unlovable) with everything i am. i also really appreciated that upon closing this book, i was really left with the reminder that you’re never too old to discover new ways to love yourself, to allow yourself to love new people, to love old people harder, and to unapologetically love the life (and safe places) that you have magically created yourself.
trigger + content warnings: abandonment, depression, a lot of talk of shitty parents, grief, anxiety, racism, xenophobia, colonialism, misogyny, ableism, talk of loss of a loved one
this is a very short, but powerful, story that starts out on a tuesday at 3 am, with our main character on the railing of a bridge, contemplating waysthis is a very short, but powerful, story that starts out on a tuesday at 3 am, with our main character on the railing of a bridge, contemplating ways to get out of an isolated situation that feels rather impossible. but a guardian angel soon comes, and tells her that she is a magical girl, with a magical unique gift, and they have been searching for the greatest magical girl of them all, who will be able to harness the magic of time. but first, she must join a mission to be a bodyguard / bounty hunter.
this book really talks about some very serious things, in a whimsical way that most of us, who grew up with magical girls, can connect with. and i feel it was really impactfully done. like how predatory credit card companies / banks can be, how climate change feels impossible because of the leaders our world has had (and continues to have), turned even to the unfairness with the distribution of resources. how a pandemic has made things feel so much more isolated, and how hard it can be to keep going when everything feels so very heavy to carry on your own. when a two-thousand dollar debt can ruin your entire life, but we live in a world where billionaires spend over seven-thousand a day for their private jets, back and forth to their multiple million dollar homes.
i understood the magical girl of time, what she was feeling, and just the impossibleness of it all. but i am going to continue to try to be hopeful, despite it being so heartbreaking seeing the ones who pay for it all every time.
trigger + content warnings: depression, thoughts of suicide, loss of parents + grandparents, talk of debt / credit card debt, grief, ocd depiction, mention of domestic violence, pandemic mention, terrorist attack, bomb threat at airport
this is a thriller that is drawing a lot of inspiration from love island, because it stars a reality tv show being hosted inside a villa (aka a compouthis is a thriller that is drawing a lot of inspiration from love island, because it stars a reality tv show being hosted inside a villa (aka a compound) where ten women and ten men will do challenges, get prizes, and be forced to couple up to stay inside the safety of the villa. and i use the word “safety” because outside of the compound's walls, there is a dystopian mystery that has left the world as we know it in shambles. there are wars going on, climate change has accelerated past the point of any control, the healthcare system is even more in shambles, the housing crisis has reached new devastating levels, but capitalism is still thriving.
we follow lily, as she is waking up alongside the other nine women on day one, and we continue to watch her navigate this reality, while struggling with feeling embarrassment of her past. yet, we also see her willing to do almost anything to stay in the safety of this televised production, where you are able to win food, water, construction supplies, and a ton of luxury gifts. some of these prizes are from group tasks, but sometimes they are from individual challenges, and you cannot talk about them with your costars. you’re also not allowed to talk about other things from the outside, like your job, until there are only five people left in the compound. and that is also when the rules against violence towards your costars are lifted. but if you break the rules before that, there will be consequences after the initial warning.
okay, i think you probably get the idea and vibe of what is going on. it’s eerie and unsettling to read, but it also feels impossible to stop reading. i actually thought this was going to be a five star at the halfway mark, because of the themes of living in this consumerist world, where people just want more and more unapologetically, while the world is literally burning down around us. it really successfully executes the use of satire to show these broken systems, and how most people are just trying to live in this machine that just constantly takes and takes (>.< now i am going to be hearing hamilton while writing the rest of this review). unfortunately, the themes that started out so powerful, just started feeling a little redundant to me, and the story started to feel a little boring.
again, i really respected and enjoyed what was being said. it was very thought provoking and just so very unique as a story in general. i just think the mystery of what was going on outside the compound really had me too curious. and again, i know this is not the point of this story, but i was left disappointed when turning that last page, simply because i just wanted a little bit of answers. i didn’t need to know everything, but i just needed something more. my mind was creating monsters, executions, alien producers… like lol i am insane. But i still highly recommend this one, especially if you like love island.
oh, and lily is bi, and we also meet a few other queer cast members! (and i will admit to you here, that if this would have taken the sapphic route, whew, it would have at least been a four.) lastly, i just want to end this review by saying that, even through disappointment, i did enjoy the feeling at the very end of this, that we as humans do need connection, and community, and we can’t do all of this alone.
trigger + content warnings: talk of war, talk of colorism + racism, talk of body image + food, mention of student teacher relationship in past, drowning (forcing someone underwater for a min for a challenge), misogyny + sexism, starvation, dehydration, blood, death of animals for food (ducks), vomit, fire, physical abuse on page - involving a man being abusive to a women in the villa, talk of loss of family in past, sickness / illness, talk of stalking to past, talk of suicide, cheating, self harm (to attempt to get help), talk of shitty parents, abandonment, gore, violence
i really can’t with this novella’s title, but let’s just pretend we don't see and move on. so this is around 100 pages and stars max and geraldine, who are two beloved side characters in the zodiac academy world. we get to see them finally realize that they really do like each other, even if their wishes for the throne might go against one another, and we also get to see them throw darcy and tory a birthday party. (which very weirdly enough, is also the day i read this story!)
geraldine just always makes me laugh, for better or worse, and seeing max obsessed with her is just a really sweet dynamic. also seeing the twin’s love her, is just very heartwarming. i really did have fun with this, but you by no means have to read this to understand anything new about the series. But it was so worth it to read about some charm bracelets, i won’t lie.
“In her opinion, cults and capitalism made for an awful combination”
this has been on my tbr for a few years now, and oh my gosh i cannot believe i
“In her opinion, cults and capitalism made for an awful combination”
this has been on my tbr for a few years now, and oh my gosh i cannot believe i was just letting the story sit on my bookshelves. what a treat and what a joy to read. this felt like such a classic fantasy type story, but was completely reimagined in such a unique way. i really am a little obsessed.
where to start and how to be not too long winded? okay, this story follows three people and their very unique stories that just happen to all entwined with one another's journeys. this story follows three people:
jian - a young boy who was raised as the hero of prophecy, but maybe a prophecy is no longer something to be honored
taishi - who is a windwalker and the greatest war artist of her time, who is also elderly and disabled, and who might be able to teach once again.
sali - a viper strike warrior, who was very close with the late khan, and who only wants her people to be free, at any cost.
i feel like i really am not doing the story justice, but we also have a school setting with some really cool students who i can’t wait to see more of. we have uprisings, and the things people are willing to do in the name of oppression - both to oppress people and to free people. and we have some of the best fighting scenes i’ve ever had the honor of reading. if you haven’t picked this book up yet, please let this be the recommendation you needed for you to do so!
trigger + content warnings: abandonment, talk of war, talk of the horrors of war, vomit, blood, bullying, spider mentions, violence, fighting, battle, poisoning, needles (big warning for this one lol), drinking, talk of slavery, abuse, self harm for blood for magic, talk of loss, drug use, attempted robbing
“I will love you, even when all the mortals have forgotten about us and we are nothing but stardust.”
this was a really good installment! we still
“I will love you, even when all the mortals have forgotten about us and we are nothing but stardust.”
this was a really good installment! we still have themes of healing, in all the different ways, at the forefront of this story, but we also get to see the underworld thriving with a queen who is rebuilding her new home with her king. and seeing persephone want to experience everything, without missing out on anything, to truly be the person she wants to be? oh, it was just everything.
and we also get to see so much backstory from other characters within this volume. like, i really was shedding some tears over minthe! and i think that really speaks to this author being such a good story teller. and a reminder that i am still (and forever) obsessed with daphne. and lastly, we love a timely and educational katabasis word drop moment! lol >.<
cws from the author at the start of this book: physical + mental abuse, sexual trauma, + toxic relationships
other tw/cw i wrote down: blood, nightmares, neglectful parents in past, mention of loss of mom in past
please believe me when i say that i wanted to love this so badly. i also do not want to turn anyone away frARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley
please believe me when i say that i wanted to love this so badly. i also do not want to turn anyone away from picking up a sapphic gothic story, so please just take this review with a grain of salt, and maybe i just read this at the wrong time. (also, there is a melanie name drop, so if we are friends, you will probably giggle extra when you pick this up.) >.<
we meet salem when she is fleeing from a wedding, and she meets a very beautiful girl at a bar, and they have a really amazing night together. well, flash forward a little bit and now salem is taking a two week getaway, where she will be staying at a gothic manor on an isolated island, and the owner of the house is none other than rayne, the girl who has had that amazing night with. yet, no one stays on the island after november 1st, because something is for sure haunting the forests. but maybe both our mcs end up isolated there together, where they are forced to figure out what is happening on this island… or else.
the set up was great, and i extra love the trope of “omg we had a one night stand prior” so i was extra excited! and the atmosphere is so eerie and paints such lush easy to see and feel settings! and, as always, harley has such wonderful prose, that it always feels like a treat to read a story by them.
but it breaks my heart to say that i just didn’t love these characters, and i felt really not invested in their relationship, romantic or sexual. And i feel insane typing that, becuase if you were to ask me what author is currently writing the sexiest books, id probably say harley! but this one just wasn’t giving me that, which feels horrible to type. and the actual mystery just felt so very obvious from the very start, which led to zero thrilling suspense for me. but maybe it is just because i was overhyping this subconsciously, which is why i still really recommend it and want you all to give this one a try if you are interested!
trigger + content warnings: talk of dead animal (deer), blood, anxiety, “cancer” used as a descriptor, missing people (including young girls), loss of mother in past / loss of loved ones, homophobia (negative light), talk of murder, religious trauma, religious killings, talk of cheating in past (on one of the mcs), human experimentation, domestic abuse in past, guns, fire
“From the monsters with claws. And the monsters with crowns.”
i had a really good time with this start of a new fantasy romance series! i truly don
“From the monsters with claws. And the monsters with crowns.”
i had a really good time with this start of a new fantasy romance series! i truly don’t want to say too much, because i think me going into this one not really knowing anything made the experience even better for me. but the very basic premise is that very dangerous monsters attack the kingdoms of this world. and we follow a princess who very unexpectedly has to make a journey with a prince from another kingdom. there are a lot of people looking to benefit from this arrangement, but our princess is just trying to see the world that has been previously hidden from her, and slowly also finds out some of the secrets that could change so many lives.
this was just fun, and i will say that maybe it lulled in the middle a little bit, but the ending was truly a five star from me. i will for sure be picking up book two upon release. also, many of you know that i have a deep love for the witcher (especially wild hunt) in my heart, and this does have major geralt of rivia vibes, but also yennefer and ciri, too! the monsters were cool and actually were frightening. the twists and turns were truly unexpected. The atmosphere was lush and somehow even cozy. And the banter had me kicking my feet a little too, i won’t lie.
trigger + content warnings from the author: Shield of Sparrows is a heart-stopping romantasy set in a world of deadly monsters and even deadlier mysteries. As such, the story includes elements that might not be suitable for all readers, including combat, violence, blood, gore, death of humans and animals, injury, dismemberment, illness, hospitalization, arson, alcohol use, sexual activity, and graphic language, with mentions of poisoning and trafficking in backstory. Readers who may be sensitive to these elements, please take note. We invite you to grab a blade and prepare for a new world…
additional trigger + content warnings i found while reading: thoughts of suicide, mention of suicide, talk of still births in past, loss of partner during childbirth in past, raids, talk of pregnancy (not mc), talk of infertility (not mcs), forced medical experimentation, fire, one sentence mention of death of a child, talk of human trafficking, domestic abuse in past (not mc)
oh friends, this is a hard one to rate and review. this story follows hana, who is 21 and living in tokyo, where her family has a generationally passeoh friends, this is a hard one to rate and review. this story follows hana, who is 21 and living in tokyo, where her family has a generationally passed down magical pawn shop, hidden somewhat behind a ramen shop. but this shop isn’t for bartering and trading regular items, it’s for having a cup of tea and talking about life choices and regrets. hana grew up knowing that she would inherit the shop one day, but she did not anticipate the shop being broken into, something stolen, and her father going missing on the first day that it is officially hers. but when her first customer, keishin, stumbles in, they end up going on a very magical journey to hopefully find some answers.
this book is beautifully written, like gorgeously so. and i absolutely loved reading hana and keishin going from different magical places, to different magical place, with such lush imagery and prose. i also loved the themes, like fate vs choice, and i thought the end really beautifully tied it all together. but sadly, this book did feel all over the place, and maybe that was intentionally so, because they are jumping from place to place, but it also just felt very unsatisfying to read. and again, the concepts and themes were so good, but we really didn’t get to touch on them for long, because of said jumping all over the place. i am just really torn on this one, but i still highly recommend it!
trigger + content warnings: loss of mother in past, some light body image / talk of eating things, drinking, heart attack in past, blood, mention of cancer, talk of assault, maybe drugging, abandonment, anxiety and anxiety attack, pregnancy and labor scene, talk of death/murder of children
this is a very powerful story that starts out with forty women trapped in an underground bunker, with no theories on why they are even in captivity. tthis is a very powerful story that starts out with forty women trapped in an underground bunker, with no theories on why they are even in captivity. they have no history with one another, they are not from connected places with one another, and the guards beyond their bars refuse to acknowledge them with more than a threat of a whip. our story is being told from the pov of the youngest women being held captive, and the only one who has no memories from what life was like prior to living inside this bunker. but the story really begins during a mere eleven minutes, and then after those eleven minutes where their new world gets revealed a bit more, and an infinite amount of new questions get asked.
this was really thought provoking and truly did leave an impact on me. i felt like some of the concepts were freely given, where others i might be pondering on forever to be honest. but even as much as i respect this story, and feel like it should be read and honored, i closed the book wishing that we just learned a little more. and let me say, i am a reader who loves an open ending. i love theorycrafting and scouring the internet for different interpretations of text! but i truly came out of this story really wishing for just a breadcrumb of anything, and that is ultimately why i just can’t give this five stars, even though i promise you it is close to that for me.
concentration camps, gender roles, capitalism, education systems, end of life options (this act is what california calls it) - lots of hard things are discussed in such few pages, and without ever using these terms. I highly recommend this book, and in addition to everything else i’ve said, this is a really unique story and i think it really will leave a memorable impact on you.
trigger + content warnings: cancer, grief, talk of pain, talk of menstrual cycles, captivity, talk of suicide, suicide, abandonment, anxiety, ptsd, death, very brief dementia mentions
“And, just like that, Guinevere had her answer to the question of whether his tusks would hurt her. They didn't. She knew now how their mouths woul
“And, just like that, Guinevere had her answer to the question of whether his tusks would hurt her. They didn't. She knew now how their mouths would fit together: Perfectly.”
i have to start this by saying that i am very much the target audience for this because i have loved critical role for a very long time. (sidenote: i feel like i summoned brennan lee mulligan dming campaign four because it was announced immediately upon me finishing this!) but basically all you really need to know is that this book is one of the character’s favorite books in campaign two, and it is refrenced a lot during that campaign. i think you can totally read, and love, this story without any previous knowledge of jester or critical role, there are just a few easter eggs (like talk of the world of exandria, and it’s two moons, and even a matron of ravens namedrop) that are mention, that just made me kick my feet a little extra. but again, no hindrance or bearing on the actual tale being told.
tusk love is the love story between oskar, a half orc blacksmith apprentice, and guinevere, a human daughter of merchants, whose paths very unexpectedly collide when guinevere’s caravan is attacked by bandits at the very start of this novel. from there, we follow these two traveling together, from town to town, with a mysterious trunk, and some secrets of their own. and so much adventure ensues!
i loved this completely. not only do i love a traveling story, and getting to watch characters interact with all the different townsfolk, but this story had so many inns - i was living my best reading life. and the tropes in this book? omg this book is so aware of itself, and so funny for it. we have grumpy and sunshine, forced proximity, arranged marriage, and only one bed so many times lol.
and i would for sure consider this cozy romantsy, but this story does center on healing, both from grief and from abuse and abandonment. seeing these two characters who have been made to feel unloveable, not only falling in love with one another, but also loving and accepting themselves, oh, it was just so wonderful. this book is filled with discussions on “healthy” healing, and “safe” disagreement, and learning to relearn and unlearn things. i truly kept tearing up while reading this, because it was so beautiful, on top of already being a story that i would love.
the writing was also phenomenal, and so so so sexy, and now i want to read everything from thea guanzon! (matilda merceria found quaking somewhere!) oh, also, guinever is pan or bi - and we always love to see that rep, too! but yeah, for sure a favorite of 2025 and i recommend this with my whole heart. truly, the only negative thing i have to say about this book is that i absolutely never want to read the word “pearl” again.
trigger + content warnings: death, battle, violence, a lot of talk of loss of mother in recent past, grief, fire, blood, drinking, and having not great parents / parental abuse + abandonment
resilience can look so different and resistance can look so different. and this is a really powerful, and beautiful, and heartbreaking book about a woresilience can look so different and resistance can look so different. and this is a really powerful, and beautiful, and heartbreaking book about a woman finding the power of those two things (alongside her family and her culture) while coming back and performing hamlet in Palestine.
being born into this genocide, and knowing your parents were also born in this genocide, and your grandparents, and so on for over 100 years. all having first memories of realizing they were living under occupation. all having first moments of being a part of an uprising to protect their land. all having stories that may feel unspeakable to even pass down. and all the childhood trauma, growing up in this trauma, trauma still being inflicted in 2025, … it’s so harrowing i don't even have words for it.
but there is also such a strong message of hope, and finding art to help you, and finding power that others cannot take from you. i highly recommend this one. and please remember that Palestine should be free, and we all should be helping to contribute to that freedom, with our voices, our money, and our politicians.
trigger + content warnings: harassment with airport security, racism, xenophobia, colorism, talk of infidelity, genocide, occupation, colonization, war, murder, death, torture, starvation, gun violence, attacks, violence, talk of medication abuse for weight loss, mention of disordered eating in past, abortion in past, miscarriage in past, divorce in past, depression, grief, blood, bad medical care (unprofessional doctor giving pelvic exam care (mental / emotional abuse)
“And so we have entered a strange era of human history: A preventable, curable infectious disease remains our deadliest. That's the world we are cu
“And so we have entered a strange era of human history: A preventable, curable infectious disease remains our deadliest. That's the world we are currently choosing.”
everything really is tuberculosis… and the horrors of capitalism… and big pharma being the true mustache twirling villains, unfortunately. this was a very insightful book about the history, and the still very current epidemic, of the disease that hasn’t gone away just because americans do not believe it impacts them any longer. there is also a personal story, that is very near to john's heart, that is constantly a throughline for this book, and it was very emotionally felt through these pages.
john does not shy away from the racism, colorism, and xenophobia connected to how people (again, history and current) conceptualize and react to tb, very much including stigmas surrounding it. and he also touches on the horrors of industrialization, poverty, and the consumption of products over actual human lives. i am really glad this book exists, i’m thankful for john for using his platform to give a voice to the voiceless, and, at the very least, i hope this really does open people in power’s eyes to the resilience of this bacteria, and how the luck of being born in a “rich” country might not stop this crisis from impacting their lives.
“It reminded me, that when we know about suffering, when we are proximal to it, we are capable of extraordinary generosity. We can do and be so much for each other. But only when we see one another in our full humanity. Not as statistics or problems, but as people who deserve to be alive in the world.”
“I never get to choose you. I’m so tired of not getting to choose you.”
this is a story about a holy war between paladins and necromancy magic. the
“I never get to choose you. I’m so tired of not getting to choose you.”
this is a story about a holy war between paladins and necromancy magic. the majority of this book is flashbacks of wartime itself, but it is sandwiched between two parts of the current timeline where the paladins have lost the war and all the ramifications of that. our main character, helena, has been in a stasis captivity with her memory altered/blocked, but she is being given away to the high reeve, kane, who is greatly responsible for winning the war that killed her friends, and we watch as she is trying to piece together everything that happened alongside the reader. i am so sure that by now you all know what this book is about, so i am going to tell you things i really liked about this story.
☆ my favorite theme in this story is how helena is an overqualified immigrant, who was supposed to feel grateful for the opportunities she was given, where she was just isolated and overworked, while constantly being told she was replaceable, while doing the absolute most for the people who didn’t appreciate her.
☆ in general, i just really loved reading a story not only from the perspective of the hero’s best friend, but a healer who is not protected from seeing first hand all the horrors of war. quite literally forced to put back together pieces, over and over, in a losing war where people in power do not care about the cost as long as they are able to feel righteous.
☆ i loved the reworking of this story being a holy war, with gods, and blessings, and paladins with honor oaths. and I absolutely loved the reconciliation of what happens when you open your eyes and no more miracles are able to be created. (and forever a fan of alchemy and transmutation, too!)
☆ other countries not doing anything during a genocide until it impacts them or their people or, more importantly, when it impacts powerful leaders financially
☆ this story has a big emphasis on hands and what our main characters are able to do with them, which honestly brings me to tears to even type this. but how helena uses her hands in the war to heal, yet they kill all the same, and how kane’s hands were made for killing, yet he can so naturally heal with them. through this war, and being used by people all around them as nothing more than a tool for their destruction, both of their hands end up so very broken, and that stillness is forever gone. let me just move on, but my god, this imagery and accentuation throughout this story was really masterfully done, in my opinion.
☆ being forged into something you didn’t want to become, both by war and the people who were supposed to protect you, but also now being stronger for it (and both sides, and all the complicated feelings, that come with that)
☆ i also feel hard pressed to think of a story that utilizes flashbacks better than this one. it is very unique feeling, and so very effective letting this story be told in this manner.
☆ i swear, every time a ring was activated, i felt like i could feel it too >.< lol
☆ who gets to tell stories after wars are won, and who gets to be remembered and immortalized
☆ ivy, i love you
☆ i saw haunted house instead of clowns tiktok that said “it’s kane searching every place except for the one that mattered” ;___________; brb jumping out a window
i truly kept going back and forth if i wanted to write a review and if i wanted to give this a star rating, but i really did like this and i think a lot of the themes are very powerful. this was a little too long, and you very much felt that during a lot of parts of this book, so i can’t give it five stars, but i still very much enjoyed my reading experience for this, and i truly cannot wait to see what senlinyu does next.
content notes from the author in the back of the book:Alchemised is a work of dark fantasy containing wartime violence, religious abuse, depictions of complex trauma, suicidal ideation, self-harm, human experimentation, medical torture, eugenics, cannibalism, sexual assault, rape, and allusions to necrophilia. Please remember that depiction is not authorial endorsement. Because Alchemised is told in third-person limited point of view, it necessarily involves some distortions of vision as well as missed or misconstrued events. Reader discretion is advised.
additional content and trigger warning i found while reading: slavery, captivity, isolation, racism, xenophobia, misogyny, fear of deportation, needles, drugging, forced medication, blood, death / mass murder / genocide, ptsd, nightmares, gore, loss of loved ones, loss of parents, grief, body control magic, vomit, drinking / intoxication, talk of infertility, talk of pregnancy, birthing scene, talk of abortion, talk of starvation / malnourishment, predatory behavior / insinuation of behind weird with young girls, loss of patients, hospital settings, lack of medical supplies, panic attacks, possession, fire, bombing / explosions, gendered language “female womb”, and i just want to add an extra emphasis on how much suicide ideation is portrayed and how much suicide is talked about in this story.
this is a really beautiful collection of short stories, all having the ebb and flow of the sea crafted seamlessly into them. i enjoyed this so much, tthis is a really beautiful collection of short stories, all having the ebb and flow of the sea crafted seamlessly into them. i enjoyed this so much, that i actually think this solidifies that julie armfield is my newest favorite author, and i just hope she keeps giving the world (and me) her stories.
down below i breakdown each individual story in this anthology collection, with the trigger and content warnings that i wrote down while reading!
━━♡ Mantis ★★★★
“I choose Greek myths and ghost stories, tales that come in under fourteen pages and culminate in violent lessons. I read aloud and let her stop me when she wants to – stories of swans and spiders, bay trees, narcissi, girls transformed into monsters by rivals playing dirty.”
this was a very strong start to the anthology, and there is just something so insanely lulling about this author's writing to me. it for sure reminded me of how much i loved our wives under the sea and it has really similar vibes at first, too! but this is a story about those transformative years, of being a girl and growing up surrounded by people and things that are also transforming you and the way you think and feel (about yourself and the world). shedding your childhood and growing into a body that is being dictated by others while you're still in metamorphosis and learning what your truly want to transform into. and the ending was just great. plus, you all know i'm also going to love a growing up catholic backdrop on top of a really compelling story.
cw/tw: this short story has a lot of talk of body image and parents and friends talking about the mc's body image, also talk of weight and diet and starvation and food, talk of menstruation, blood, drinking, threat of sa, and i would also say just sickness in general with some body horror
━━♡ The Great Sleep ★★★★
“You don't notice the way a city breathes until it changes its sleeping habits.”
this is the type of story crafting where i am just impressively saying "wow, this is so cool, how did you think this up?" and then upon finishing my mind is going wild with metaphor meanings. but this is a tale of a wave of sleeplessness hits the world, and the people impacted now have a personification of their sleep that just kind of hangs out with them and makes life more annoying while they are more and more sleep deprived. and our mc finds comfort in her dreamlessness with someone in her apartment complex who is still able to sleep, even if she is constantly questioning why she hasn't stopped along with most people.
i feel like this instantly made me think of vegas, my current city, and how there is a magic to the restlessness that is pretty indescribable, even if you know it's not the healthiest. but i think this story could be a metaphor for mental health, i think it could maybe be touching on abuse, or maybe how loneliness can feel all consuming. i think this might be about health and people saying wild shit as reasonings for serious things, or if could just be a cool story that i know will stick with me. i really enjoyed this one.
cw/tw: things with sleep and the miserableness of being sleep deprived
━━♡ The Collectables ★★
“That's the problem with kissing. In theory, when someone's good at it, you should be able to keep kissing forever. But of course, forever is too long to do anything without getting bored.”
three women living together, all friends trying to get their phds, who all have been hurt by men. and we get to see one of the women spiraling more and more with her line-drawn paper doll that she is adding bits slowly to. this wasn't my favorite, sadly, but maybe that's because my american ass has to google princess anne and then that really just set the tone for picturing the rest of the story in my mind lol.
“The house opened around her the way you crack a chest cavity, the ribs of it, the unnatural gape.”
sadly, i feel like i overhyped this one for myself. during a divorce, two young girls get separated between the parents, and we follow the child that stays with her father. yet, soon after, the father remarries a neighbor who has a wolf for a daughter, and we get to watch them grow up together. i know i like the themes of this, but for some reason the execution just fell short for me.
“...you don't come to a party you weren't invited to.”
me and evie going on tour with all the other orbits for loona lol. no no, okay this story focuses on a very popular girl group, and their incredible fanbase, and two girls who are working on the crew for this tour. and sinister things keep happening on the tour bus and during each city stop. but this is a story about anger and rage and connecting with other people who feel that same anger and rage when you feel like the rest of the world is ignoring it. about pushing back, when you feel you're not being heard or seen. i obviously love the message of this one, i love seeing the romance extra with this setting, and i had a good time with this.
tw/cw: many mentions of violence (car accident, riots, assault), vomit, blood
━━♡ Granite ★★★★★
“Maggie always found it a little unfair that her mother should encourage her to be fiercely independent, whilst also making a horror story out of being alone.”
maggie is 29 and wondering if it's time to settle down with a man who seems better than the rest. she is asking her friends for advice, yet something is going on and someone in her housing complex is also noticing. the pressure from your family, your friends, the entire world to be what is perceived as "normal" and doing things a certain way so you won't regret it later in life.. my god that weight is crushing. especially when you're approaching thirty / in your thirties and the weight of all those expectations from outside factors are also making you feel like you're depreciating by the second. this story story just really perfectly hit for me, in a deeply felt way, and really made me think about the word loneliness and how combatting that can look very different. and also, how as humans, our experiences make us never truly alone (aka: me reading this short story through the tears streaming down my face). also, this story feels like it has a side of comphet discussion, which is always appreciated.
tw/cw: metaphorical illness / sickness
━━♡ Smack ★★★★
“From this pretense of space, she can play-act other nights, other weekends, when the house was furnished with more than the memory of things.”
this was a beautiful, haunting story about a girl who went from her father controlling her, to her husband also trying to control her - the way generation after generation of men like to do to women, especially the ones they claim to love. and in this take we get to see our mc refusing the leave her beach house during a divorce, and jellyfish are flooding the shoreline and making people question a lot of their thoughts on uncontrollable creatures who are able to break expectations, even if only briefly.
tw/cw: rough mental health (probably depression), not being able to sleep, lawyers demanding things of you, divorce, bad relationship in the past, mention of loss of father in past
━━♡ Cassandra After ★★★★
“She slid an arm around me and kissed me on the side of the mouth in a way that made me love her terribly, though I had promised God the opposite only minuets before.”
listen, a story about growing up catholic and being queer is always going to combination that is very deeply felt by me. the guilt, shame, and self punishment is just something that can be very real, and in this story we get to see our mc struggling, both past and present, after the loss of her partner. ahhh, this just really made me feel so many things, but just so much sadness. we also always love some aro/ace discussions being started - and how that can make discovering yourself/labels more difficult sometimes, too. (also, i loved a bonus tie-in from the other short story.)
tw/cw: loss of a partner / loved one, depression depiction, grief, self harm mention (pulling out fingernails), homophobia, cheating
━━♡ Salt Slow ★★★★
“A very slender sort of betrayal, the deliberate absence from a room.”
this final short story is a dystopian talk of two people on a boat, living while the whole world is underwater. we get to see some of their past, and how things in their relationships shaped their present, and we even get some odyssey cameos. this was really heartbreaking to read, but it was so beautifully crafted. and i think that depression, especially after an isolating loss, really could make one feel like they are living in this world depicted. ahh, i won't lie, these last two stories in the collection feel like they have taken a lot from me. but i think that is a testament to how good of an author julia is.
tw/cw: starvation/hunger, pregnancy, talk of miscarrying / loss of a child, blood, death, drowning, dead sea life mentions
“You’re right; for you, I could do something much worse.”
how have i already read 200+ episodes? Ahhhh, as always, i just love these characters, i love the imagination behind this world, and i love the art so much. this eighth installment feels like a really big one, because persephone and hades talk about what she has been… not talking about. the panels in particular for those conversations were truly so beautiful and just perfect. i was so emotional and it was just very thoughtfully done and i really appreciate it. this volume also contains the trial verdict, and zeus is just the worst regardless of the media he is being depicted in haha.
also, we just get to see persephone really be a badass, and fight so many monsters, both metaphorically and actually physically, too! just seeing her find her voice, in all the ways, felt really special and really powerful. and i will fully admit i did cry when i saw the pomegranate. again, 200+ episodes in, i just want to see persephone have the life that she wants to have
cws from the author at the start of this book: physical + mental abuse, sexual trauma, + toxic relationships
other tw/cw i wrote down: talk of death, trial / courtroom settings, talk of infertility, blood, hurt animal (they are okay), illness, possession, battle
♡ buddy reading this series with penny ✰ read for free on webtoon
“I have hungered for you in ways you cannot comprehend. I've craved you. More than my sin. You haunt me.”
you all know i keep reading these books because they are truly so much fun, but they are just never perfect reads for me. and also let me remind you that i have praised each book in this world for the amazing twists and turns! so imagine my surprise when i thought this was going to be a five star, because i loved these characters and circle of hell so much, only to be delivered the most nonsensical twist ever. and maybe that’s my bad, for hyping and awaiting what i was really sure would be a mind blowing reveal… only for foolishness.
so in this new spinoff series, we follow a new prince and get to see his hell domain (my jjk biased fingers wanting to type expansion) - and this one follows gluttony, who i truly ended up falling in love with. this story is also a loose cinderella reimagining, where our other mc, adriana, is just trying to make life more bearable for her and her stepsister, while working as a journalist, reporting things that others might not want her reporting. you know, like how ice dragons are attacking and our prince is trying to keep it undercover while he figures out what is going on. So gluttony (aka: gabrielle), assigns adriana to report on his own fantasy love island competition to find a suitor to help him rule his circle of hell. yet, both of them can’t seem to exactly remember things that took place in the past, and you as the reader are trying to piece things together alongside them.
i adored both characters, and their banter was truly 11/10. i loved the setting, and i am always going to eat up a dating competition side story. i actually enjoyed the sex scenes in this, and for the most part didn’t find anything too cringe like i did with book two! and this even has a very adorable baby dragon! truly, the only other negative thing i can say, aside from the twist in this being outlandish, is that you can just tell that this author is a fan of bridgerton, and at times i felt like i was reading from a blue haired lady whistledown. but truly, i had a really good time with this and i am excited for what (and who) comes next!
trigger + content warnings: debt, talk of money problems, abusive home, loss of father in past, grief, battle, blood, drawing blood to do a blood oath, violence, unwanted sexual advances, drinking, magical memory violations
i feel like before i start this review about kerri maniscalco’s adult debut, i have to kind of talk about the original ya series that this is a spin oi feel like before i start this review about kerri maniscalco’s adult debut, i have to kind of talk about the original ya series that this is a spin off/continuation of. Ii know i gave that entire trilogy three stars, but they really were high threes and i think back on that series so fondly. the atmosphere, the main heroine, the yearning and angst - all five stars. and for three years, it was truly so much fun to buddy read these each halloween season.
so i went into this book expecting to enjoy those same aspects that i know this author is amazing at creating! i will say the atmosphere, and the setting of this alternative magical london, was amazing, we barely got to spend any time in it before we went right to heck (literally). and then, the yearning and angst was just replaced with really cringe and over the top sexual dialogue. and you all know that i love steam in books, but this felt like it was done just to “prove” it was an adult book, but it truly was so bad in my opinion. and finally, i just could not care about envy or camilla the way i did for emilia (and i guess wrath too, but emilia supremacy for sure).
but even with those negative aspects that i was really banking on being not negatives, i still had fun reading this book. the writing is so consumable, and the plot really always feels good and like it is at a good pace, which makes the reader never want to put the book down. i also really loved all the tie-ins with that first trilogy that i should probably go back and rate higher since i am writing this review and reminiscing about it so fondly.
lord, three paragraphs written and not a single sentence about what this book is about lol. okay, so basically this is a series about the demon princes of hell, each based on a different seven deadly sin, and what is going on with their specific courts, while also getting a romance. this specific story is about envy, and a very secret game that he is playing, where he is tasked to get a painting done by an artist in london, who is being blackmailed and also going through feeling a lot of grief because her father has passed and her mother has run away.
also, i just loved learning more about the princes of hell. and i also really, really, really loved seeing fae (and vampires and other paranormal creatures) truly enter this story as main players! And one thing that i truly will give kerri maniscalo, is that she can write good twists. I think she has bamboozled me in every story i’ve read by her, and i feel like that is a somewhat hard feat, especially in paranormal romance. and then this book? she was able to pull the rug from under my feet like three times. like, i will give credit where credit is due, and she really deserves credit for making a really fun reading experience for me because of her twists and turns.
but i have to say that i was screaming, going on goodreads and seeing book two is going to be gluttony’s book, because i truly was 110% expecting it to be pride’s with the work that was put in for him at the end of this book! But the tl;dr is that i will be reading it for this halloween season, and i hope it has more of the elements that i love and less of the ones that i do not love so much.
trigger + content warnings: debt, blackmail, loss of parents in past, talk of parent with illness, uncomfortable unwanted sexual advances, talk of infertility, abandonment, grief, abuse, blood, drinking, threat of sa, kidnapping, brief mention of self harm to get blood for a vampire, violence, gore, torture, battle, throwing up, and maybe a cannibalism mention
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