It's rare to find Asian authors on BookSirens, so I was excited to request this sci-fi thriller arc. But ultimately, it ended bei2.5 stars rounded up.
It's rare to find Asian authors on BookSirens, so I was excited to request this sci-fi thriller arc. But ultimately, it ended being up a disappointing read.
I wasn't put off by its short length (I'm a fan of short stories and novelettes), but this story felt like the rough draft for something that could've been longer and more fleshed out. As it stands, this story wasn't anything special. It's your typical "people on a spaceship suffering mental breakdowns due to a monster which might or might not be real."
It's decent if this is your intro to sci-fi thriller/lite horror, but it felt a lot like previous stories I've already read or movies I've already watched about people trapped on a spaceship with a monster. While I appreciated the diverse cast of characters, I didn't really feel connected to any of them. There wasn't enough time to build up any feelings towards the characters or their predicament. And when it all ended, it just felt anticlimactic.
I would've loved it if this was a full-length novel with worldbuilding and characterization. There's an idea for a novel in this story, but it's hard for me to recommend it in its current format.
Thank you to Timber Ghost Press and BookSirens for this arc....more
I wasn't expecting to read my goddamn biography. (Bonus Asian generational trauma!!!)
I almost shed a tear or two because of how 4.5 stars rounded up.
I wasn't expecting to read my goddamn biography. (Bonus Asian generational trauma!!!)
I almost shed a tear or two because of how relatable this was, and I'm talking about all three POVs: Roz's, her mother's, and her grandmother's.
Roz's issues with weight and being a bigger girl in high school and going to prom and being a normie vs. nerding out with nerd friends? Hard relate. Her mother's decision to run away to the other side of the world to escape her mother? My own mother can definitely relate. Her grandmother's experiences in post-Japanese occupied China and her very strict to the point of abusive parenting? No comment, except switch China for Singapore and you have my biography.
I absolutely loved the comparisons between all three women's lives at age 16, especially the societal pressures and stigmas that each faced during their childhoods, and how those changed (or stayed the same in certain regards) as the POV bounces back and forth between the three women. The pressure on Roz's grandmother and mother to find men and get married irritated the hell out of me and made me glad I face zero pressure on that front (for now).
Loved the happy ending at the end and the message of acceptance. It's heavy in some parts (ex. victim blaming, women's lack of agency in the 50s, etc.), but I'm glad that the story ended on a positive note. I think teens (and adults too) would find this graphic novel relatable.
I'm only knocking down half a star because I'd love more introspection and more personal first-person type of POVs for each of the characters. I felt a bit disconnected from the story and characters because they're presented matter-of-factly in certain parts. But, this might just be me so ymmv.
Thank you to Annick Press and Edelweiss for this arc.
Merged review:
4.5 stars rounded up.
I wasn't expecting to read my goddamn biography. (Bonus Asian generational trauma!!!)
I almost shed a tear or two because of how relatable this was, and I'm talking about all three POVs: Roz's, her mother's, and her grandmother's.
Roz's issues with weight and being a bigger girl in high school and going to prom and being a normie vs. nerding out with nerd friends? Hard relate. Her mother's decision to run away to the other side of the world to escape her mother? My own mother can definitely relate. Her grandmother's experiences in post-Japanese occupied China and her very strict to the point of abusive parenting? No comment, except switch China for Singapore and you have my biography.
I absolutely loved the comparisons between all three women's lives at age 16, especially the societal pressures and stigmas that each faced during their childhoods, and how those changed (or stayed the same in certain regards) as the POV bounces back and forth between the three women. The pressure on Roz's grandmother and mother to find men and get married irritated the hell out of me and made me glad I face zero pressure on that front (for now).
Loved the happy ending at the end and the message of acceptance. It's heavy in some parts (ex. victim blaming, women's lack of agency in the 50s, etc.), but I'm glad that the story ended on a positive note. I think teens (and adults too) would find this graphic novel relatable.
I'm only knocking down half a star because I'd love more introspection and more personal first-person type of POVs for each of the characters. I felt a bit disconnected from the story and characters because they're presented matter-of-factly in certain parts. But, this might just be me so ymmv.
Thank you to Annick Press and Edelweiss for this arc....more
I really loved the creepy vibes and the feminist themes in this short novel. The pacing was great and the atmosphere was fantastic. Alice, the MC, is I really loved the creepy vibes and the feminist themes in this short novel. The pacing was great and the atmosphere was fantastic. Alice, the MC, is a great character to root for. I love that she's feisty and cares a lot about her sister and their cousin, and to an extent, the other girls in their town of Oxenbee. The twists and turns were pretty satisfying, and I really liked the ending. There were several moments where I wondered if Alice would do the right thing or succumb to the mess that she walked into.
I just wished that some concepts were more fully developed and explored. The more important secondary characters, like Fred and Sarah, felt underdeveloped and their personalities and actions seemed inconsistent. The ending with Fred didn't resonate with me. There wasn't enough relationship development between Fred and Alice for me to believe their ending, since Fred seemed really wishy washy the entire time.
Sarah's personality was also inconsistent. It'd be more realistic (in a sense) if the reveal with Sarah didn't change her personality completely. This also includes her use of magic. I wish that magic would've been introduced earlier in the novel, or at least have it explicitly mentioned (since it was implicitly mentioned with the power of the moon bees and moon honey). The magic seemed like it came out of nowhere to fill a plot hole.
There were several copyediting issues throughout the novel too. I think with more edits and more fleshed out secondary characters, this could be a powerful novel.
Other than those issues, the horror was excellent and the feminist themes really shone through.
Thank you to BookSirens and Mathilda Zeller for this arc.
Merged review:
I really loved the creepy vibes and the feminist themes in this short novel. The pacing was great and the atmosphere was fantastic. Alice, the MC, is a great character to root for. I love that she's feisty and cares a lot about her sister and their cousin, and to an extent, the other girls in their town of Oxenbee. The twists and turns were pretty satisfying, and I really liked the ending. There were several moments where I wondered if Alice would do the right thing or succumb to the mess that she walked into.
I just wished that some concepts were more fully developed and explored. The more important secondary characters, like Fred and Sarah, felt underdeveloped and their personalities and actions seemed inconsistent. The ending with Fred didn't resonate with me. There wasn't enough relationship development between Fred and Alice for me to believe their ending, since Fred seemed really wishy washy the entire time.
Sarah's personality was also inconsistent. It'd be more realistic (in a sense) if the reveal with Sarah didn't change her personality completely. This also includes her use of magic. I wish that magic would've been introduced earlier in the novel, or at least have it explicitly mentioned (since it was implicitly mentioned with the power of the moon bees and moon honey). The magic seemed like it came out of nowhere to fill a plot hole.
There were several copyediting issues throughout the novel too. I think with more edits and more fleshed out secondary characters, this could be a powerful novel.
Other than those issues, the horror was excellent and the feminist themes really shone through.
Thank you to BookSirens and Mathilda Zeller for this arc....more
I'm not even halfway through La Reina, but I felt compelled to read this short story because I'm now invested in the Medina family drama like no otherI'm not even halfway through La Reina, but I felt compelled to read this short story because I'm now invested in the Medina family drama like no other lol
I liked this short story! It gives slightly more context to Lenny's relationship with her mother, Isabel, along with a dose of Mexican culture.
I actually wouldn't mind if this was part of a larger collection of Medina family short stories because I'm definitely here for it, especially if the paranormal aspect comes into play....more
I came in with no expectations and let me tell you, I'm now a JD Yanez fan and I want more!
If you're a fan of Tiffany D. Jackson or if you liked Ai JiI came in with no expectations and let me tell you, I'm now a JD Yanez fan and I want more!
If you're a fan of Tiffany D. Jackson or if you liked Ai Jiang's Linghun, I'd definitely recommend this. Similar themes include: an unreliable narrator, Gothic vibes but make it BIPOC (in this case, the author fully leans into her Mexican American heritage), and paranormal, horror, and dark fantasy.
Before reading this, I didn't know that Southwestern Gothic is a thing, but now I'm here for the creepy desert vibes. The setting itself is its own character in this novel because of a huge secret that plagues Raina day in and day out.
It did start off kinda slow though with the introduction and establishment of the setting, history, and relationships between characters. Tbh, I can get impatient with these types of things, but the author did it so well here that I could feel myself being immersed in the story. I became more and more invested as the story went on, so I really started caring about Raina and her friends' huge predicament.
And speaking of that, the whole cursed and haunted vibes were definitely vibing. Everything became so much more darker as the story progressed. I was here for ALL of it. Raina's mental health problems. Her will they/won't they relationship with Tommy. Ephraim's ghost/El Sombrerón's obsession with Raina.
Y'all, not even halfway through this, I went and bought the short story about Raina's mom. Now I want a collection of short stories about the Medinas and their ancestors and how Raina's power came to be. More Medina family lore please!!
There was one big thing I disliked though. Some of the longer paragraphs of dialogue came off stilted because they were phrased awkwardly with barely any contractions. I get that some of it might be for emphasis, but since this is a contemporary novel, it sounded really unnatural. No lie, if the dialogue wasn't so awkward, I'd give this 5 stars.
This bit is specifically about the arc. I think it needs another pass with a proofreader. The flashback chapters are supposed to be in past tense, but sometimes the tense would switch in the middle of a paragraph.
Want Need more shadow daddy Zevriel pls and thanks.
Also idk why I keep imagining the Valk as cute chocobos from Final Fantasy when they're clearly a hWant Need more shadow daddy Zevriel pls and thanks.
Also idk why I keep imagining the Valk as cute chocobos from Final Fantasy when they're clearly a hybrid of a phoenix and one of those giant eagles from LOTR. But the heart wants what it wants, I guess.
On a serious note though, I had fun with this book!
I loved how Althea stayed true to herself throughout the entire novel. Typically with these kinds of fantasy novels (sort of a rags to riches trope), the MC completely forgets about their previous life and that really bothers me. But while Althea was navigating the politics of her new world, she still remembered the old world she left behind.
This book felt like it was setting the tone for a sequel and I think it did a pretty good job with balancing worldbuilding while creating a good story. I'm excited to read more! (And I might be hoping for a corruption arc... ...more
This was very strange, awkwardly funnyRead for the January Prompt B: A book by a Latine author for The Diverse Baseline Challenge.
More of a 3.5 stars.
This was very strange, awkwardly funny in the beginning, and heartbreaking in the end. I quite like the "grief as physical horror manifestation" trope and this hit the mark.
The author made me care about a sentient lung creature turned human monster, so kudos for that, honestly. Even though M can't survive without eating humans, I felt so bad for him and his family.
Grief and denial are multifaceted creatures. Everyone deals with it in their own way, and Magos just happened to cut out her dead son's lung and kept it until it became alive and evolved into the shadow of her deceased son....more
It took until 90% into the novel for the dark fantasy to actually show up.
And that last 10% with the dark fantWell, that was a huge waste of my time.
It took until 90% into the novel for the dark fantasy to actually show up.
And that last 10% with the dark fantasy portion? Jesus, I really hope that wasn't some girl power situation because it came out of nowhere and made no sense. There was absolutely zero lead up to it. It felt like the author completely forgot which genre this was supposed to be in.
Mostly, this was just a mystery with supernatural elements. Plotwise, this wasn't all that exciting.
The novel read more like a really long blog post that you clicked on because you saw a cool headline, but then the content ended up being mostly filler. The writing style was very contemporary with tense shifting all over the place. I know this is an arc, but it didn't read like a polished final draft.
The only things I liked were the relationship between the two MCs and the fact that this book was quick and easy to read.
There were so many loose ends. The Meredith Barlow ghost thing went nowhere (unless the ending Joan of Arc magic ghost situation counted). The Freemasons thing went nowhere. The goddamn gumtree was just a literal tree. Literally everything ended up being a red herring with no satisfying explanation or conclusion.
And when the Ellen mystery was finally solved, I already stopped caring by that point.
I've never been more disappointed.
Thank you to Diamond Books and Edelweiss for this arc....more
This wasn't too bad. I actually would've liked it a bit more if there weren't so many subplots running loose. And the way those subplots tied up by thThis wasn't too bad. I actually would've liked it a bit more if there weren't so many subplots running loose. And the way those subplots tied up by the end of the story felt very abrupt and very last minute.
I really liked the idea of this story because it features some of my favorite tropes: multiverse, chosen one, morally grey villains, hidden powers, etc. Combined together, they created a decent story that felt very teen Marvel, so there's definitely an audience for this.
I'm not sure if I'll continue on because it was very tropey and predictable. There weren't really any surprising twists or questionable character choices that compels me to read the second volume.
Also, the ending gave me major Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong vibes. Even though this is a very YA graphic novel, there's a big ethical question there that's definitely being overlooked.
Thank you to Oni Press and NetGalley for this arc....more
Wow, such a wholly visceral and heartbreaking coming of age memoir! This is the story of an immigrant girl in Israel trying to find her way in life whWow, such a wholly visceral and heartbreaking coming of age memoir! This is the story of an immigrant girl in Israel trying to find her way in life while navigating societal pressures and what it means to be a young woman in modern society.
Long story short, it's a hell of lot to take in. And the author/illustrator doesn't pull back any punches.
The illustration isn't my personal favorite, but it definitely gets the point across when it comes to the effects of drugs and substance abuse. The use of bright colors, blending, and blurring the lines between shapes and colors really enhances the storytelling.
I would've liked a more concrete ending instead of something metaphorical, but then again, that's not how life works.
Thank you to Street Noise Books and Edelweiss for this arc....more
While this needs a hell of a lot of copy editing, proofreading, and formatting (and even some developmental editing near the end)3.5 stars rounded up.
While this needs a hell of a lot of copy editing, proofreading, and formatting (and even some developmental editing near the end), I still enjoyed the story and its characters!
I'm usually a pretty harsh reviewer when it comes to readability issues (anything that needs extensive edits is usually either a DNF or gets a low score), but I actually really liked this story. If there was a significant overhaul and this indie novel came out polished instead of in its current raw state, I'd gladly give it a higher rating.
Rukhsaar and Masih were compelling characters. I ended up liking the flashbacks to Rukhsaar's childhood, and I'm speaking as someone who dislikes back and forth flashbacks in general since they distract me. It was really cool to immerse myself in a different society with different values. The misogyny and patriarchy were portrayed so well to the point where I was really irritated and uncomfortable with what was happening to Rukhsaar.
The author also did really well with writing parts of the story from a child's POV. You could feel emotions such as confusion, shame, and wonder that comes with seeing the world through a child's eyes. But I gotta say though, for a kid, Masih was lucky as hell.
Other than the editing problems, I only had a couple of issues with this novel. I wished the setting was described more fully. I had to Google Kabul and various mentioned places to fully understand what I was reading about.
And like other reviewers have mentioned, the last few chapters where Masih reads Arvin's journal felt out of place. It needed developmental edits to really integrate the journal entries and poetry into the actual story itself.
I also wanted more out of Masih's situation since Arvin didn't quite feel fully developed to me.
Overall, this was a quick read and kept me enthralled from beginning to end....more
This is such a great intro to Israeli's brand of apartheid. I'd recommend it to anyone interested since it's such a quick read and can be an intro to This is such a great intro to Israeli's brand of apartheid. I'd recommend it to anyone interested since it's such a quick read and can be an intro to Palestinian and Israeli history starting from Zionism and British colonialism....more
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