All posts by Kasey

About Kasey

Reads things. Writes things. Fluent in sarcasm. Willful optimist. Cat companion, chocolate connoisseur, coffee drinker. There are some who call me Mom.

Review: If Looks Could Kill by Julie Berry

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If Looks Could Kill by Julie Berry

If Looks Could Kill
Julie Berry
Simon & Schuster
Published September 16, 2025

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About If Looks Could Kill

From Printz Honor–winning and New York Times bestselling author Julie Berry, a true-crime-nailbiter-turned-mythic-odyssey pitting Jack the Ripper against Medusa. A defiant love song to sisterhood, a survivors’ battle cry, and a romantic literary tour de force laced with humor.

It’s autumn 1888, and Jack the Ripper is on the run. As London police close in, he flees England for New York City seeking new victims. But a primal force of female vengeance has had enough. With serpents for hair and a fearsome gaze, an awakened Medusa is hunting for one Jack.

And other dangers lurk in Manhattan’s Bowery. Salvation Army volunteers Tabitha and Pearl discover that a girl they once helped has been forced to work in a local brothel. Tabitha’s an upstate city girl with a wry humor and a thirst for adventure, while farmgirl Pearl takes everything with stone-cold seriousness. Their brittle partnership is tested as they team up with an aspiring girl reporter and a handsome Irish bartender to mount a rescue effort, only to find their fates entwine with Medusa’s and Jack’s.

My Review

What a cleverly told story. I love that the book centers the female characters and their role in helping others, especially those threatened by a serial killer and those forced into human trafficking. The story includes a lot of real people, which I always find fascinating. Detailed notes in the back of the book clarify what was real versus where the author took artistic license.

Most of the story is told from Tabitha’s perspective, and I absolutely loved her voice. She’s spunky and speaks directly to the narrator, sometimes noting her reaction to the way that people around her behave. At first, she and Pearl don’t see eye to eye or get along. But it’s not long before they realize they have a shared interest in helping another girl escape from a local brothel.

A sweet romance develops between Tabitha and someone she meets while working with the Salvation Army. The romance develops slowly, partly because Tabitha at first assumes her hopeful beau is interested in the lovely Pearl rather than her. The two eventually recognize one another’s feelings, and that added a some warmth to the story.

As someone who grew up watching the movie version of Guys and Dolls, I really appreciated the descriptions of the Salvation Army and their efforts to preach the Gospel on the streets. I had to laugh at Pearl’s relentless boldness in a few moments.

The story pulls together a lot of separate elements, from the work of the Salvation Army to the poverty and abuse of girls within widely known trafficking ring to the murders of Jack the Ripper to a reimagining of the mythical Medusa. The disparate parts fit together so nicely. I love that the author also creates space to celebrate faith in the midst of this tale as well.

Fans of historical fiction with a bit of magical realism will not want to miss If Looks Could Kill.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 15 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing. References to girls being forced into sex trafficking. It’s implied that one character was assaulted by a family member.

Spiritual Content
Tabitha and Pearl are both members of the Salvation Army and take their faith seriously. Both girls have spiritual experiences in which they pray for direction and receive answers. Some characters transform into Medusas, with snakes for hair and a gaze that stuns or petrifies their victims.

Violent Content
Brief graphic descriptions of murder and dismemberment. One character uses slivers of human organs to try to make a potion that will cure illness. See sexual content for more information.

Drug Content
Some scenes take place in a saloon or pub and show (adult) characters drinking alcohol or smoking.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: The Essential Christmas Classics by Charles Dickens, ETA Hoffman, et al

Anthology or Collection, Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , ,

The Essential Christmas Classics Boxed Set by
Charles Dickens, E. T. A. Hoffman et al
Aladdin
Published October 7, 2025

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Essential Christmas Classics Collection (Boxed Set)

Celebrate the holidays with this collection of Christmas classics, including A Christmas Carol, The Nutcracker, and a collection of holiday short stories—together in one hardcover boxed set!

Celebrate the season with this collection of popular holiday stories from Christmases past. This set includes E. T. A. Hoffmann’s The Nutcracker, the story of a girl’s Christmas gift coming to life and battling the sinister mouse king, which later inspired Tchaikovsky’s popular holiday ballet. Next is A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens’s renowned novella about the miserly Ebeneezer Scrooge being confronted with his greed and learning the meaning of Christmas.

Rounding out the set is TheTwelve Classics of Christmas, a collection of twelve holiday short stories. From favorites like Clement C. Moore’s “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas” and O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi” to lesser-known tales from beloved authors like Louisa May Alcott, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and the Brothers Grimm, this anthology is the perfect way to count down to Christmas.

My Reviews

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

This isn’t the first time I’ve read this classic Christmas tale, but it’s the first time I’ve read it in print in a while. Some of the language in this edition is updated to make it a little more modern, but the story still resonates with its powerful themes about charity, kindness, and caring for others.

One element from the story that I can’t unsee is its antisemitic tropes in the setup of the characters of Ebenezer Scrooge and Jacob Marley. Both are miserly men who worked as moneylenders and refused to offer charity to others.

Another icky component is the writing about the famous disabled character. Dickens uses the overly angelic and wise beyond his years Tiny Tim to emphasize the poor and disabled as in need of pity.

I like the message about giving charitably, lifting others up, and offering kindness to those around us as central to the Christmas spirit. It’s strange to think that when I grew up, no one considered this novel as antithetical to the Christian message about Christmas. I’m not sure that is still true.

Certainly anyone believing empathy is a sin would find Scrooge facing eternally punished for refusing to give his wealth to the poor mightily uncomfortable at least. Which is absolutely wild. If you went back in time to my most fervent evangelical days and told me that many of the church leaders I so looked up to would reject empathy and charity as wicked, I wouldn’t have believed you.

Nevertheless, I think that with some additional discussion about the ableism and harmful stereotypes, this book still serves as a reminder of the central values of the Christmas holiday. A lesson far too many of us need to remember.

Content Notes

Recommended for ages 10 up. Ableism surrounding a disabled character. Racist Jewish stereotypes. A total of four ghosts (including his former partner) appear to Scrooge, spiriting him through Christmases of the past, present, and future.

The Nutcracker by E. T. A. Hoffman

This is the original story that inspired the famous ballet by the same title. It’s easy to see how the ballet emerged from the book, but a lot of things happen in these pages that didn’t make it to the stage. Drosselmeier, the clever Godfather who fixes the family’s clocks and makes incredible mechanical toys, appears more morally gray than his ballet counterpart. He makes fun of the main character (named Maria, not Clara) for liking the Nutcracker, whom he intended as a gift for the family, not specifically for her. At one point, he tells a long story to Maria and her brother that spans several chapter and involves a conflict between a king and a mouse queen. This story reveals the identities of the two sides battling in Maria’s playroom.

One thing that I found strange is that Maria is only seven years old when the story takes place. Yet at the end, she gets married to an adult man. It’s also super weird that Maria’s Godfather appears to know the (human) identity of the Nutcracker, but he gave him to Maria’s family as a Christmas gift.

It was interesting to read the original story and see how the ballet was inspired by the elements of the tale. I’m not sure I would have read this book on my own. I think today’s young readers will need some additional context for some moments in the text. Readers curious about the origins of the Nutcracker ballet may find this book appealing.

Content Notes

Recommended for ages 10 up. Situations of peril. A battle between toys and mice leaves toys broken and some mice dead. Descriptions of capturing and killing mice. A mouse torments a girl at night.

Twelve Classics of Christmas by Various Authors

This collection of short Christmas stories features some familiar tales, such as the famous poem about the night before Christmas, the Grimm Brothers’ story of “The Elves and the Shoemaker”, and “The Gift of the Magi” by O’Henry. Other stories might be less familiar than their authors. Short stories by L. Frank Baum, L. M. Montgomery, Louisa May Alcott, Charles Dickens, and F. Scott Fitzgerald appear in the collection.

The stories by Alcott and Montgomery were my favorites. Both centered on the idea of charity being a central value of the Christmas holiday. They reminded me of the kinds of characters in their novels, so I enjoyed that. Other stories were a little darker, including “A Kidnapped Santa Claus” in which a team of demons who live near Santa’s workshop kidnap the jolly old elf in order to sow chaos among the children on earth. Dickens offers a predictably eerie story about a cruel gravedigger’s encounter with goblins that makes him change his ways.

Content Notes

Recommended for ages 10 up. Some stories contain magical or spiritual creatures such as demons, goblins, etc. The elves appearing in one story at first have no clothes. (There are no illustrations in the collection.) Some stories contain mentions of going to church. Two stories mention the birth of Jesus and contain characters searching for him.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy the three books in this boxed set in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: Coming Back by Jessi Zabarsky

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Graphic Novel or Adaptation, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , ,

Coming Back
Jessi Zabarsky
RH Graphic
Published January 18, 2022

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Coming Back

A beautiful graphic novel fantasy romance that follows two young women who have to go on their own separate adventures to discover the truth about themselves and about each other.

Preet is magic.

Valissa is not.

Everyone in their village has magic in their bones, and Preet is the strongest of them all. Without any power of her own, how can Valissa ever be worthy of Preet’s love? When their home is attacked, Valissa has a chance to prove herself, but that means leaving Preet behind. On her own for the first time Preet breaks the village’s most sacred laws, and is rejected from the only home she’s ever known and sent into a new world.

Divided by different paths, insecurities, and distance, will Valissa and Preet be able to find their way back to each other?

A beautiful story of two young women who are so focused on proving they’re meant to be together that they end up hurting each other in the process. This gorgeous graphic novel is an LGTBQ+ romance about young love and how it can grow into something strong no matter what obstacles get in the way.

My Review

This graphic novel has a lot of panels with pictures that show action, such as someone performing a ritual. I don’t know that I’ve ever read anything quite like this book before, so it took a little bit of getting used to. Once I felt like I grasped how the author was using still panels to indicate movement or action, it was easier to follow what was happening or fill in the interim movements in my head.

Once I got used to this style of storytelling, I found it really cool. A lot of the scenes have no text or only onomotopeia. There’s something really different about reading a scene without words to interpret what’s happening. It’s like that made me filter the story through a completely different part of my brain. I loved that experience, even though it was unfamiliar.

I also appreciate that this story follows two characters who break the norms of their group. Preet has powerful magic, but she uses it in an unapproved way. In their community, the people depend on those with powerful magic to help one another. Valissa doesn’t have magic, but she doesn’t let that stop her from risking her life to protect her people.

I also enjoyed the color palette of the book. It’s got peach and turquoise tones that make the scenes seem really nature-based. They’re soothing colors, too.

I hadn’t heard of this book, but found it while browsing at the library. I’m really glad I picked it up, and I would love to read more by Jessi Zabarsky.

If you like nature-centered fantasy graphic novels, put this one on your list.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 13 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Two characters are in a relationship.

Spiritual Content
Some characters can do magic, such as changing shape and creating wind, etc. Some characters are mythical creatures.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Prejudice and shaming drive some characters from their home.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I borrowed a copy of this book from my library. All opinions are my own.

Review: Exquisite Things by Abdi Nazemian

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Historical, Magical Realism, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , , ,

Exquisite Things
Abdi Nazemian
HarperCollins
Published September 23, 2025

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Exquisite Things

From Stonewall Award–winning author Abdi Nazemian (Only This Beautiful Moment) comes the epic queer love story of a lifetime. Perfect for fans of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Shahriar believes he was born in the wrong time. All he’s ever wanted is to love and be loved, but 1895 London doesn’t offer him the freedom to be his true self, and Oscar Wilde’s trial for gross indecency has only reaffirmed that. But one night—and one writer—will grant Shahriar what he’s always wished for: the opportunity to live in a time and place where he can love freely. Rechristened as Shams and then as Bram, he finds what feels like eternal happiness. But can anything truly be eternal?

Oliver doesn’t feel that 1920s Boston gives him a lot of options to be his full self. He knows he could only ever love another boy, but that would break his beloved mother’s heart. Oliver finds freedom and acceptance in the secret queer community at Harvard that his cousin introduces him to. When he meets a mysterious boy with eyes as warm as a flame, his life is irrevocably changed, forever.   

Spanning one hundred and thirty years of love and longing, this tale of immortal beloveds searching for their perfect place and time is a vibrant hymn to the beauty of being alive, a celebration of queer love and community, and a reminder that behind every tragic thing that ever existed, there is something exquisite.

My Review

I recently read Only This Beautiful Moment, so this wasn’t my first rodeo with Nazemian and storytelling spanning decades. One thing I have to say is that I didn’t have a hard time following the narrative through the different moments in time. Scenes take place in 1895, 1920, 1979-1982, and 2025. Each one contains some pivotal moments, from when Shahriar becomes immortal, to his meeting Oliver and the beginnings of their romance, to the found family Shahriar builds in London in the 1980s and the honoring of the death of one of his family members.

The story shows the rise and ebb of gay rights through those times and the decades in between. It celebrates the way that music inspires hope and new ideas. The story celebrates love as something that changes as we have new experiences. Sometimes love comes from biological connections, and other times, it comes from the family we choose.

Shahriar’s found family is a diverse group, with a Black transgender mom and gay dad and a Black lesbian sister. Each person finds the group at a critical moment. Some scenes show night life in Boston in the 1920s, while others focus on London nightlife in the 1980s.

The resounding truth that rings out through every stop on the timeline is that there have always been communities of queer people, even if they’ve had to exist in hiding. This isn’t a new phenomenon, and it isn’t going to go away. The story shows the heartache that a life in hiding causes but also the joy of community, love, and the power of living an authentic life.

All in all, it’s a beautiful novel. Nazemian’s writing is heavy on dialogue and lighter on setting details, which migh bother some readers. I found it easy to imagine the characters because of their distinct voices. If you like historical fiction and/or books with a lot of musical or literary references, put this one on your reading list.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 15 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used somewhat infrequently. Homophobic slurs appear somewhat infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing. References to sex. Brief nudity.

Spiritual Content
Brief references to Oliver attending church.

Violent Content
Homophobic slurs. A parent hits a teen child. Reference to suicide. Characters are threatened with arrest or expelled from school if known to be gay. Multiple characters are caught in a fire. Someone threatens another person with a knife.

Drug Content
Two adult characters reference going to AA meetings. Characters walk in on a group doing drugs in the bathroom and quickly leave.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: Make Me a Monster by Kalynn Bayron

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Make Me a Monster
Kalynn Bayron
Bloomsbury YA
Published September 30, 2025

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Make Me a Monster

New York Times bestselling author Kalynn Bayron is back with a Frankenstein-tinged horror romance.

Meka is used to death. After all, it’s the family business.

As a newly certified mortician’s assistant at her parents’ funeral home, her days are not for the faint of heart. Luckily her boyfriend Noah isn’t squeamish, and Meka is finally feeling ready to say the three little words that will change everything.

But then tragedy strikes, and Meka’s world is torn apart. Nothing makes sense, especially the strange things start happening. Ravens are circling her home. Strangers are following her. Someone is leaving mysterious items at her door. And worst of all . . .

The dead don’t seem to be staying dead.

Meka thought she understood death better than anyone. Turns out, the family business is a bit more complicated than it seems. And Meka isn’t the only one desperate to unearth their secrets . . . because the truth may be worth dying for.

My Review

Meka’s job working as a mortician’s assistent is such an interesting part of this story. She prepares several “guests” for their wake or funeral services and even accompanies her father when he picks up new guests.

This is something that most readers won’t have a lot of knowledge about, including me, so it adds a lot of interesting background to the story. And as the darker side of the plot unfolds, it also makes a lot of sense why this was included in the story.

If you’re familiar with the story of Frankenstein, you might guess a couple of the plot points before the story reveals them. I didn’t find this to lessen my enjoyment of the story, though. In some ways, it was really satisfying to see Meka put the pieces together and figure out her own role within the story.

I really appreciate that the ending left unanswered questions. It made me think back through the story to try to predict what I think would happen and how it might go.

Because I’d read and loved My Dear Henry, Bayron’s reimagining of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, I think I expected the setting to be historical, like set during the time that the original Frankenstein took place. It’s set in the present day, though, and once I realized that, I adjusted to it just fine. I’ve read enough of Kalynn Bayron’s books at this point to know I’ll follow wherever the story leads and love it.

If you are looking for a contemporary story with a strong connection to Frankenstein, you will want this one on your reading list. It’s a great pick for a Halloween read.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing.

Spiritual Content
Some characters have the ability to reanimate the dead.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Body horror. Meka prepares “guests” (deceased people) for viewing at a wake. (Not violent, but might be disturbing to some readers.) Loss of a person close to the narrator.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

MMGM Review: Busted by Dan Gemeinhart

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Busted
Dan Gemeinhart
Henry Holt & Co.
Published October 7, 2025

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Busted

When 12-year-old Oscar Aberdeen decided he would do anything to save the only home he’s ever known, he didn’t realize that anything would include theft, trespassing, gambling, a broken nose, grand theft auto, a federal prison, and a police car chase. He had no idea it would be so dangerous…or so fun. A heartfelt middle-grade romp from the New York Times-bestselling author of The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise.

Oscar Aberdeen is a bit of an oddball. He’s an ace at playing bridge, loves Frank Sinatra, and attends a whole lot of funerals. He’s also the youngest resident of Sunny Days retirement home by more than a half-century―and he wouldn’t have it any other way. So when his grandpa’s suddenly served an eviction notice that threatens their place at Sunny Days, he needs to find some cash. Fast.

Enter Jimmy Deluca, a shady elderly man with a reputation for being bad news, who makes Oscar an offer he can’t refuse. He’s got the drop on riches hidden away on the “outside” and he’ll share the loot with Oscar on one condition: he busts him out of Sunny Days.

In this humdinger of an adventure, the ultimate odd couple, along with an uninvited stowaway, go from high-stakes escape to rollicking escapade as they search for the secret stash―and forge an unlikely friendship along the way. Will Oscar succeed in saving the only home he’s ever known? Or will he have to fuggedaboutit and return a failure?

My Review

Leave it to Dan Gemeinhart to put together this wacky, fast-paced adventure starring an unlikely threesome. I loved Coyote Lost and Found for its wild on-the-road adventure and its quirky characters, and this story delivers those same elements so well.

Oscar is a sweet kid. He is used to playing it safe, so the whole road trip with Jimmy is way outside his comfort zone. I like that each of the people in the car is keeping secrets about themselves. The situations that the characters face draw out those secrets. Jimmy is a fantastic character. He reads like what you might expect of an ex-mob guy, only Oscar censors his liberal use of profanity by replacing those words with “quack”. This adds some extra humor and keeps things a little more PG.

Busted takes the intergenerational friendships trope out for a whole different spin. In the stories I’ve read in which kids befriend an older person, usually the kid is the rebellious or impulsive one and the adult offers wisdom that helps steer them on a better course. Here, the situation is not reversed, because Jimmy does offer some wise words, but he is clearly the rebel, and Oscar is the one trying to keep track of the rules.

One great lesson that comes up through the story is a lesson about the difference between doing what’s right and what’s good. Sometimes those are the same thing, but sometimes they differ. When Oscar reframes the situation he faces looking for the good choice, it helps him figure out a path forward. That idea lends itself to discussion as well.

Content Notes for Busted

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Oscar doesn’t approve of swearing. If he hears some salty language, he cleverly subs “quack” in for the bad words. One character requires frequent substitutions.

Romance/Sexual Content
Some of the Sunny Days residents try to set Oscar up with a girl his age. The two joke about being engaged.

Spiritual Content
Oscar talks about witnessing people as they die and noticing them responding as if they see loved ones calling to them at the end.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Oscar gets hit in the face more than once. At one point, he and his allies steal a car. Vague references to other potentially illegal activity.

Drug Content
Jimmy smokes cigars and drinks a glass of Scotch in one scene.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday

I’m sharing this post as a part of a weekly round-up of middle-grade posts called Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday. Check out other blogs with posts about middle-grade books today on Marvelous Middle-Grade Mondays at Always in the Middle.