Heroine Complex by Sarah Kuhn Review

Heroine Complex by Sarah Kuhn (Heroine Complex #1)

Publisher: DAW Books

Pages: 378

Release Date: July 5, 2016

Summary: Being a superheroine is hard. Working for one is even harder.

Evie Tanaka is the put-upon personal assistant to Aveda Jupiter, her childhood best friend and San Francisco’s most beloved superheroine. She’s great at her job—blending into the background, handling her boss’s epic diva tantrums, and getting demon blood out of leather pants.

Unfortunately, she’s not nearly as together when it comes to running her own life, standing up for herself, or raising her tempestuous teenage sister, Bea.

But everything changes when Evie’s forced to pose as her glamorous boss for one night, and her darkest comes out: she has powers, too. Now it’s up to her to contend with murderous cupcakes, nosy gossip bloggers, and supernatural karaoke battles—all while juggling unexpected romance and Aveda’s increasingly outrageous demands. And when a larger threat emerges, Evie must finally take charge and become a superheroine in her own right… or see her city fall to a full-on demonic invasion.

My Rating:★★★★☆

My Thoughts: Heroine Complex follows Evie Tanaka, assistant to her superhero best-friend Aveda Jupiter! When problems arise, Evie has to take over for Aveda and learns more about herself when she’s tasked with filling in for her best friend. With humor, mystery, and themes of family and friendship, Heroine Complex is a fun and action-packed adventure!

After having read No More Heroes and now Heroine Complex, I’m happy to be getting back into superhero books again!! Heroine Complex book had been on my tbr for some time and I’m so glad I finally read it! It was the perfect mix of comedy, action, and adventure! ❤

Evie Tanaka is the assistant to Aveda Jupiter, San Francisco’s beloved superhero! Both Evie and Avenda have been friends since they were little. Now in their 20’s, they work as part of a team to keep San Francisco safe from demons that take on forms depending on their surroundings.

Told through 1st person POV, we follow Evie as she fills in for Aveda (as she recovers from an injury) one night and finds herself unleashing a super power she’d hoped would have been better left forgotten. Now Evie finds herself taking on a role she never wanted all while helping Aveda’s image with her fans!

What was great about the POV, was the real and comedic voice Evie had! It was great being in her head and reading about her journey on becoming a hero. This also gave so much depth to the characters and plot, it all really came on the page! Aside from that, we better understand the stress she’s put under and how she’s almost hidden in Aveda’s shadow. She is an intelligent, funny, and compassionate person who better understands herself as the novel progresses and it was great to read how much she grew and came to accept who she is.

What I also loved about the writing-style was the fun/superhero vibe it had, which really delivered a perfect atmosphere to the story! 

The group dynamic was one of my favorite parts of this novel! Aside from Aveda and Evie, there’s also Nate, the scientist/healer of the team, Lucy, who joins Evie in assisting during Aveda’s battles with demons, Scott who’s an expert with magic, and Bea Evie’s little sister, who joins the team soon after!

Its clear there’s such a strong bond between Evie and the team, with the humor, banter, and support they offer each other all throughout the story. Just reading Evie build the bonds with her team, especially Aveda and her sister Bea was wonderful to read about.

Throughout the story its clear that Aveda does manipulate + demand Evie to do a lot of tasks for her, it was clear that the Aveda’s demands were beginning to put a lot pressure on Evie, as she struggled to better understand who she was, while not only taking care of Aveda, but her younger sister Bea all by herself. Evie slowly, but surely finds the confidence to forge her own identity and better understand who she is and not only see herself as Aveda’s assistant.

Over the course of Heroine Complex, Evie stand up for herself and calls out Aveda for the toxic behavior she shows in their complex friendship. While they have history and really care for each other, it was great to see Aveda finally understand the manipulative ways of her behavior and see the both of them strengthen their friendship even more as they supported and were there for each other.

It was so great to see diversity in this story! There’s Evie & her sister Bea who are 1/2 Japanese, Aveda who’s Chinese, and Lucy who’s lesbian!

While I’ve seen many YA bloggers talk about this book, I went into this novel not knowing it is  more Adult/NA (but that didn’t bother me, its just something I figured out as I read). So, there is a romantic story line with Evie and another character, with sex, discussions of sex, but it was also great to read that there was also discussion of sex-positivity in this novel!

There was so much to plot, from the demon’s the team must take down, to Evie learning to accept herself and her abilities, growing closer with her team and them growing closer with each other to keep San Francisco safe from the demons and it was great to read Kuhn pack so much into this story!

There was never a dull moment and I loved how many different sides there were of Heroine Complex to tell! It was also great to see the impact of blogging/media on Aveda and her image as a superhero, it was a unique and interesting aspect I enjoyed reading about.

I will admit I did find the pacing to be rather slow, hence the 4-stars and it would have been great to get a little more development on the super powers/demons as they got discussed even more over the course of the story!

Aside from that…

Heroine Complex is a delightful superhero and urban fantasy story! There are strong themes of friendship, family, self-identity, and finding yourself! With so much character and story depth, this action-packed, heroic adventure was such a fun and immersive read!

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The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell Review

The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell (TLM #1)

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Release Date: July 18, 2017

Pages: 512

Summary: Stop the Magician. Steal the book. Save the future.

In modern-day New York, magic is all but extinct. The remaining few who have an affinity for magic—the Mageus—live in the shadows, hiding who they are. Any Mageus who enters Manhattan becomes trapped by the Brink, a dark energy barrier that confines them to the island. Crossing it means losing their power—and often their lives.

Esta is a talented thief, and she’s been raised to steal magical artifacts from the sinister Order that created the Brink. With her innate ability to manipulate time, Esta can pilfer from the past, collecting these artifacts before the Order even realizes she’s there. And all of Esta’s training has been for one final job: traveling back to 1902 to steal an ancient book containing the secrets of the Order—and the Brink—before the Magician can destroy it and doom the Mageus to a hopeless future.

But Old New York is a dangerous world ruled by ruthless gangs and secret societies, a world where the very air crackles with magic. Nothing is as it seems, including the Magician himself. And for Esta to save her future, she may have to betray everyone in the past. 

My Rating:★★★☆☆

My Thoughts: The Last Magician mixes fantasy with historical fiction as we follow Esta and her mission to travel back to 1902 to find an ancient book protected by the Order! With the book she will be able to save Mageus, such as herself, in the present and hopefully, future! Maxwell’s novel has elements of fantasy, mystery and adventure to keep you turning the page!

After reading the synopsis, hearing great buzz, and reading such positive reviews, I went into The Last Magician expecting to really enjoy it, sadly that wasn’t the case and I found myself quite disappointed.

While this book wasn’t necessarily my cup of tea, there were definitely elements I really enjoyed and the plot itself has me intrigued to read the sequel and see what happens next!

Overall my biggest issue was the writing-style. It felt very flat to me and did more “telling” rather than showing. Because of that, it gave too much of the characters upfront and never really left room for interpretation. With the writing, so much of the characters motivations and personalities were stated so obviously and the writing itself was very direct, so I never really felt connected to any of the characters.

While it was great to also see the story from differing perspectives through the 3rd person POV, the pacing did become extremely slow and because of the writing style, the characters and elements of the story felt very flat to me. I had to put down the book a number of times within the couple weeks I read it, because the pacing and writing never really clicked.

While I found the characters a little difficult to connect to, Maxwell did make the story very character driven which I liked!

There was definitely a fantastical/magical tone that came with the story, though the writing which I liked! I also really enjoyed how the writing flowed well among the multiple POV’s. Being split among 4 parts, I did find parts 1 & 4 to be the most fast paced and immersive!

Time travel is something I enjoy in stories and felt that Maxwell did a great job at easily transitioning the tone of the story from present to early 1900’s and the setting, while very surface level at times, was presented well.

The plot itself left me very invested to see how Esta would be able to find the Ars Arcana, the Book and use it to bring down the Order, an ancient + secret organization that doesn’t like magicians such as herself.  The first chapter really pulled me into the story as the action started right away!

Professor Lachlan, her father-figure and guardian has trained her as a thief to find and protect artifacts used by the Order. So, he instructs her to use her ability to manipulate time to travel to 1902, find the Magician and prevent them from losing the book and ensure she can bring the book back to her time.

Once in the past, we learn more about characters such as Harte Darrigan who wants to find the book as well, but to be able to escape New York and start a new life. There’s also a gang introduced called The Devil’s Own, led by Dolph Saunders who’s crew is made up of Mageus and he’s looking for the book as well.

Esta spends a majority of the book with The Devil’s Own and I couldn’t help but compare the group to the crew in Six Of Crows! While they do have their differences, to be honest there were so many similarities that I picked up on between the characters. I never really found a connection to them, because they felt too much like characters I’d read before.

The magic system in this book was introduced very well and I found the idea of the Brink to be the most interesting aspect. The magical barrier that kept magicians trapped in New York was explored through the multiple POV’s in different ways and I really enjoyed that. But it would have been great to get more background on the magic because many aspects were very surface level.

As Esta becomes more involved with the characters in that time period, she learns more about the Order and how they work in early 1900’s New York and just how much is at stake if she doesn’t find the Book.

Overall this book had a lot of well thought out elements, I just personally found that the execution of the story sadly didn’t really work for me.

The ending did have twists and turns I didn’t expect, but it did feel a little too rushed when all the pieces finally came together. However, I was left very interested to see where the plot would be headed in the sequel!

The Last Magician is an enjoyable historical + urban fantasy novel to check out! While the pacing can be slow at points and the writing a little flat, the story itself has a lot of good elements for an immersive and character-driven tale!

Warcross by Marie Lu Playlist

To celebrate its release day, today’s Reading Playlist is inspired by Marie Lu’s Warcross!🕹🎮✨🎧

I was lucky enough to get an ARC earlier this year and flew through it in less than a day! It was everything and more I expected from a Marie Lu book and I absolutely adored it!

Marie Lu blended action, intrigue, world-building, pacing, character development, basically everything so perfectly!

If you’ve read Warcross or are planning to, you can check out my full ARC Review Here! {It’s spoiler-free}

Tracks featured in today’s playlist are from Final Fantasy XV, Fire Emblem Awakening, Kingdom Hearts 3D, & Kindom Hearts World Tour Orchestra!

Not only did I feel video game soundtracks went perfectly with Warcross, but I really felt the songs really captured moments from the story and especially the world!

Hope you enjoy! + Let me know your thoughts on this playlist in the comments below! 😀❤

Songs:

• Access The Grid (Kingdom Hearts 3D) • The World Of Dream Drops (Kingdom Hearts 3D)

• Majestic Wings (Kingdom Hearts 3D) • The Nightmare (Kingdom Hearts 3D)

• Rinzler Recompiled (Kingdom Hearts 3D) • Prelude~Fire Emblem Awakening

• The Fight Is On! (Final Fantasy XV) • Sacred Distance (Kingdom Hearts 3D)

• Veiled In Black (Final Fantasy XV) • Wave Of Darkness~Kingdom Hearts Orchestra World Tour

• Link To All (Kingdom Hearts 3D)

August 2017 Wrap-Up

# Of Books Read: 6

1.Warcross by Marie Lu (Warcross #1)

Warcross Full ARC Review

Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons BYR

Release Date: September 12, 2017

Pages: 368

My Rating:★★★★★

Overall Thoughts: Warcross was a masterpiece from start to finish! Emika is a bounty hunter and hacker! When she finds a way to hack herself into Warcross, she soon gets a call from its creator Hideo Tanaka. He needs her help to ensure the safety of Warcross from a possible hack and soon she’s in Tokyo taking part in Warcross herself. This book did not let me down! Marie Lu did a fantastic job with pacing, world-building, character development (+such a diverse cast <3), everything! Being a gamer myself, I loved the references and was immediately hooked from page 1! Warcross had the perfect amount of intrigue, action, and immersive plot +setting! Highly recommend picking up Warcross ❤ ❤

2. The Royal Tutor Vol. 1 by Higasa Akai

The Royal Tutor Volume 1 Full Review

Publisher: Yen Press

Release Date: May 23, 2017

Pages: 192

My Rating:★★★★☆ ½

Overall Thoughts: The Royal Tutor easily became one of my new favorite manga series! It was fun, fast-paced, and so funny! Following Heine, this 1st volume centers around him meeting the princes and securing his role as their new tutor. The princes are all very different, so Heine learns more about them and how he can get them to accept him. Loved it so much & can’t wait for Volume 2! ❤ ❤

3. The Island At The End Of Everything by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

The Island At The End Of Everything Full Review

Publisher: Chicken House

Release Date: May 4, 2017

Pages: 288

My Rating:★★★★☆ ½

Overall Thoughts: This was a tale I won’t forget! Hargrave used such a poetic and lyrical 1st person POV that brought settings and characters to life. Taking place in 1900’s Phillipines, we follow Ami and her journey to return to her mother on Culion Island. They have been separated due to the spread of leprosy and a government official forcing those w/ + without leprosy to be separated and forced onto another island.  The Island At The End Of Everything is a tale of friendship, family, courage, and finding your way home!

4.Down Among The Sticks And Bones (Wayward Children #2)

Down Among The Sticks And Bones Full Review

Publisher: Tor Books

Release Date: June 13, 2017

Pages: 189

My Rating:★★★★☆

Overall Thoughts: This novel sets as more of a prequel and follows Jack & Jill (twin sisters) who are introduced in Every Heart A Doorway. Their parents have their own selfish desires for how they want their “perfect child” to be and because of that the twins undergo a journey wanting to better understand who they are when they get transported to the Moors. It was dark, whimsical, and atmospheric. While there was a large reason this book really resonated with me, I had some sort of disconnect with the writing (for me there was more showing than telling at times) and felt I loved the 1st book a little more. However, I will definitely be reading the final book to see how it wraps up!

5.Princess Princess Ever After by Katie O’Neill

Princess Princess Ever After Full Review

Publisher: Oni Press

Release Date: September 20, 2016

Pages: 56

My Rating:★★★★☆ ½

Overall Thoughts: This is sweet + diverse middle grade story that follows 2 princesses falling in love. Princess Sadie is trapped in a tower and when Princess Amira hears her call for help, she comes to the rescue. Soon after, the 2 travel across the kingdom in search of others to save and embark on an adventure. O’Neill puts clever twists and spins on classic fairy tale tropes and I loved that! There’s so many inspiring & positive messages in this novel, which is both fun and fast-paced!

6.Daughter Of The Burning City by Amanda Foody

Daughter Of The Burning City Full Review

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Release Date: July 25, 2017

Pages: 384

My Rating:★★★★☆

Overall Thoughts: Sorina soon realizes her illusions are starting to get killed off, so she begins to investigate and figure out why. Foody delivers such a unique and creative concept and that is what I loved about DOTBC so much! I love reading from Sorina’s POV, getting the circus/carnival atmosphere, and was happy to see differing sexualities among the main cast! However, I felt the world-building could have been developed a little more and much was mentioned and not really expanded on. Regardless, there’s mystery, magic, politics, and a little romance dark and immersive debut!

Additional Posts From This Month:

~None This Month~

What books did you read this month? 😄📚✨

Daughter Of The Burning City by Amanda Foody Review

Daughter Of The Burning City by Amanda Foody

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Release Date: July 25, 2017

Pages: 384

Summary: Sixteen-year-old Sorina has spent most of her life within the smoldering borders of the Gomorrah Festival. Yet even among the many unusual members of the traveling circus-city, Sorina stands apart as the only illusion-worker born in hundreds of years. This rare talent allows her to create illusions that others can see, feel and touch, with personalities all their own. Her creations are her family, and together they make up the cast of the Festival’s Freak Show.

But no matter how lifelike they may seem, her illusions are still just that—illusions, and not truly real. Or so she always believed…until one of them is murdered.

Desperate to protect her family, Sorina must track down the culprit and determine how they killed a person who doesn’t actually exist. Her search for answers leads her to the self-proclaimed gossip-worker Luca, and their investigation sends them through a haze of political turmoil and forbidden romance, and into the most sinister corners of the Festival. But as the killer continues murdering Sorina’s illusions one by one, she must unravel the horrifying truth before all of her loved ones disappear.

My Rating:★★★★☆

My Thoughts: Melding fantasy with elements of mystery, Foody’s novel follows Sorina as she soon discovers her illusions are being killed off and attempts to solve the case. Daughter Of The Burning City is filled with a unique and engaging world + mystery and magic at every turn!

Ever since I’d heard about Foody’s debut novel, I immediately put it onto my tbr and couldn’t wait to read it!

To start off, I loved the creativity of the Gomorrah Festival and in general the whole concept of DOTBC. With the descriptions of food to clothing, with each turn of the page I could always picture the festival/circus atmosphere and setting.

We follow Sorina, who is the Girl Who Sees Without Eyes. Her ability to create illusions (Illusion-Worker) has allowed her to be a part of the Gomorrah Festival Freak Show, using them as part of an act.

However they are not just illusions, but also her family. So, when they suddenly start being killed off, Sorina is worried for their safety.

She soon meets Luca, who has the ability to escape death. With his knowledge of many in Gomorrah/Up-Mountains they team up to try and solve the case.

I loved the unique dynamic she had with each of her illusions, through the fist person POV, they were so much more than just her family. She cared for them as they did for her. Villiam (the owner of their show) was like a father figure to Sorina, and with her role to one day take over, it was clear he put a lot of faith in Sorina.

I also really enjoyed Luca’s mysterious character + not only that, I also really loved the banter between both Luca & Sorina!

Foody did a great job at developing an aura of mystery throughout her novel. With Sorina trying to solve the case, I found myself making connections and solving the mysteries as the story progressed! I won’t spoil who it was, but the mystery of the story was one of my favorite parts and Foody did it so well. I found myself jumping back and forth between suspects because I constantly making new connections throughout the novel.

As mentioned above, I adored the creativity of DOTBC. It really came to life through the 1st person POV! I felt connected to Sorina and could really picture her unique world.

There was a lot of diverse representation of different sexualities among the main cast! From what I read, saw on twitter from the author + read from other reviews: Luca identified as demiromantic asexual, Sorina identified as bisexual, and Nicoleta (one of Sorina’s illusions) identified as lesbian.

Additionally, I love that Foody was able to build such a world in just one book! I find that there are never enough standalones in YA Fantasy, so if your looking for another one to add to your list, definitely add Daughter Of The Burning City. I will definitely be checking out Foody’s next books, because honestly this book was just so much fun to read! I just loved the creativity of her worlds + concepts!<3~
However, I did feel the world building could have used a little more development (such as setting and politics). Its clear there is so much history to the world of Gomorrah, the Up/Down Mountains and who rules them! However, I felt there were moments that when info was mentioned that could have used more expansion or it was mentioned sporadically and more description would have helped. I was very invested in the world and it would have been great to get more history to it.

Additionally there were a few moments I felt the pacing was a bit slow!

Aside from that..

If you like magic, politics, a bit of romance, plus the perfect amount of mystery/paranormal elements, then Daughter Of The Burning City is the dark and immersive YA Fantasy to check out!

Princess Princess Ever After by Katie O’Neill Review

Princess Princess Ever After by Katie O’Neill

Publisher: Oni Press

Release Date: September 20, 2016

Pages: 56

Summary:When the heroic princess Amira rescues the kind-hearted princess Sadie from her tower prison, neither expects to find a true friend in the bargain. Yet as they adventure across the kingdom, they discover that they bring out the very best in the other person. They’ll need to join forces and use all the know-how, kindness, and bravery they have in order to defeat their greatest foe yet: a jealous sorceress, who wants to get rid of Sadie once and for all.

Join Sadie and Amira, two very different princesses with very different strengths, on their journey to figure out what happily ever after really means — and how they can find it with each other.

My Rating:★★★★☆ ½

My Thoughts: This fast-paced fairy tale follows 2 princesses and their adventures across a kingdom. Not only are there so many positive and inspiring messages in Princess Princess Ever After, but O’Neill also puts twists and spins on fairy tale tropes!

I loved this graphic novel ❤ it was pretty quick, but adorable!~ I also felt myself getting into another reading slump, but Princess Princess Ever After, pulled me right out of it!

The story begins with Amira who is traveling across the kingdom when she hears Sadie from her tower and decides to rescue her from her tower.

“Dozens of princes already failed. What makes you any different?

Because I am no prince!”

From the very beginning its clear that there is a connection between Princess Amira and Sadie! They develop a great friendship as they leave the tower and travel across the kingdom.

Princess Amira is shown to have dark skin, while Sadie is shown to be “big-boned” and obviously there is a sweet relationship that develops between the two over the course of the story.  It was great to see tons of diversity!

Its revealed that Sadie sabotaged all those who would attempt to rescue her because she was told by a sorceress to never leave.

Not long after, they meet Prince Valdric who needs their help to get revenge on an ogre (who also managed to destroy a village nearby). After its discovered that the ogre was just dancing, Sadie and Amira spend the day teaching the ogre to dance more safely to avoid destroying anymore villages.

What I loved about this story was the twist and spins O’Neill put on classic fairy tale tropes. Its revealed that Prince Valdric feels there’s a lot of pressure on him, by his family to be the type of prince who slays monsters, etc., but reveals that isn’t who he really is, or wants to be.

When the sorceress returns to take back Sadie, she takes Amira instead and its revealed that the sorceress is actually Sadie’s sister (the current queen). After they save the day, Sadie takes the throne, but it will take time before she can fully take on her role.

As for Amira, she knows she still needs to learn more about what it means to be a hero. Sadly the two spend time apart for quite a number of years.

However, by the end they’re reunited and have their happily ever after.

There were so many positive/inspiring messages in this story about body image, gender, and what it means to be a hero.

I also really love Katie O’Neill’s art style and cannot wait to read her next webcomic turned book: The Tea Dragon Society (which I’m still currently reading & love so much ❤ <3)

I did want to the story stretched out a little longer, because it felt the pacing was just a little too quick. And I really wanted to see more of these amazing characters.

Overall Princess Princess Ever After is a cute and sweet fairy tale of princesses falling in love. It features such inspiring and positive messages, creative spins on classic fairy tale tropes, and is a great read for fans of graphic novels and comics. 

Down Among The Sticks And Bones by Seanan McGuire Review

Down Among The Sticks And Bones by Seanan McGuire (Wayward Children #2)

Publisher: Tor Books

Release Date: June 13, 2017

Pages: 189

Summary: Twin sisters Jack and Jill were seventeen when they found their way home and were packed off to Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children.

This is the story of what happened first…

Jacqueline was her mother’s perfect daughter—polite and quiet, always dressed as a princess. If her mother was sometimes a little strict, it’s because crafting the perfect daughter takes discipline.

Jillian was her father’s perfect daughter—adventurous, thrill-seeking, and a bit of a tom-boy. He really would have preferred a son, but you work with what you’ve got.

They were five when they learned that grown-ups can’t be trusted.

They were twelve when they walked down the impossible staircase and discovered that the pretense of love can never be enough to prepare you a life filled with magic in a land filled with mad scientists and death and choices.

My Rating:★★★★☆ 

My Thoughts: Dark, gothic, and atmospheric, Down Among The Sticks An Bones is a a prequel which follows twins Jacqueline & Jillian and their adventures in the Moors set before the events of Every Heart A Doorway!

What I love about this series, is how McGuire is able to pack in so much story and character depth into such few pages! Every Heart A Doorway was just so unique and magical, I was happy to be getting more tales from this world💖~

Having a twin sister myself, I was beyond heartbroken at the forced separation that Jack & Jill were grown into from the very beginning and seeing the rift between them grow with each turn of the page. Reading passages of their resentment and just few feelings they had for each other, left me feeling so sad!

I felt the story started out completely strong with the background on their parents (Serena & Chester) and how their decision to have children really impacted how Jack & Jill would grow and see themselves. It really set the stage and tone for the rest of the story.

With their parents having their own selfish desires for what they wanted their perfect children to be, Lousie Wolcott (Chester’s mother) did her best with the time she spent with them to remind the girls to be themselves and not let anyone control who they want to become.

This quote resonated with me throughout the rest of the story “She had tried to make sure they knew that there were a hundred, a thousand, a million different ways to be a girl, and all of them were valid…“(34).

Jack was molded by Serena and forced to be a proper lady in her mothers eyes, while Jill was forced to be more of a tomboy, by Chester. Up until the age of 12, they lived very different lives under the same roof and there was a rift between them because of it.

Later they soon find a doorway that leads them to the Moors and their 5 year journey begins.

Jack and Jill go their separate ways and undergo their own personal journey and we get a better understanding of who they are and how they try to break free of their parent’s molds.

Additionally there is an f/f relationship that develops nearing the middle/end of the novel!

I felt the 3rd person narrative really gave a broad scope at the world and each character in this story, which made it easy to get a sense of each character, Jack & Jill’s home life + their new life at the Moors. However, there’s just something about this novel (from the writing-style) that delivered a more “telling” rather than “showing” at times, which made the novel feel rather flat in some aspects.

While the story really did resonate with me, I couldn’t help but still feel a disconnect through the writing. Additionally, unlike Every Heart A Doorway, I felt this novel’s pacing felt much slower, which took me out of the story.

Honestly I have so many conflicting feelings about this book, because while there’s a lot that I really loved about it, I loved Every Heart A Doorway a little more~ 😭❤️🚪

Aside from those minor issues, there was still so much that I really loved about this novel. The uniqueness of the plot itself, the atmosphere of the world, and I also loved the positive messages about what it means to be a girl.

Down Among The Sticks And Bones introduces a much darker and brutal world compared to the first novella, it also delivers such powerful messages on who we are vs. what we become as a product of our environment.

Through thought-provoking writing, McGuire sets the stage for a dark but whimsical fairy tale-like world where the choices we make impact who we become.

While I had a few issues, I really enjoyed this sequel and cannot wait to read how this trilogy wraps up in Beneath A Sugar Sky!