Category Archives: Fantasy

Review: A Curse for True Love by Stephanie Garber

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , , ,
A Curse for True Love by Stephanie Garber

A Curse for True Love (Once Upon a Broken Heart #3)
Stephanie Garber
Flatiron Books
Published October 24, 2023

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About A Curse for True Love

Two villains, one girl, and a deadly battle for happily ever after.

Evangeline Fox ventured to the Magnificent North in search of her happy ending, and it seems as if she has it. She’s married to a handsome prince and lives in a legendary castle. But Evangeline has no idea of the devastating price she’s paid for this fairytale. She doesn’t know what she has lost, and her husband is determined to make sure she never finds out . . . but first he must kill Jacks, the Prince of Hearts.

Blood will be shed, hearts will be stolen, and true love will be put to the test in A Curse for True Love, the breathlessly anticipated conclusion to the Once Upon A Broken Heart trilogy.

My Review

After reading the first two books in the series, I wanted to know how Evangeline and Jacks would navigate the obstacles standing between them and whether they could craft their own happily ever after.

I wasn’t expecting some of the directions the series takes. There was a character who seemed like a pretty decent person, perhaps a bit spoiled, but who was beginning to make better choices. Then he took a hard right into serious evil, and I had to recalibrate how I thought about him. Which is okay—it just came as a bit of a surprise.

I can’t decide if I’m starting to outgrow the Bad Boy stories where someone has a pretty long list of wrongs and callous actions to their name, but somehow, I’m still rooting for the heroine to find a way to be with this person. I like Jacks, but I sometimes cringed at the way he treated other people. Reading certain scenes definitely required some willing suspension of disbelief as Evangeline, whose lost memories left her incredibly vulnerable and who knew someone was trying to kill her, didn’t question the reckless stranger who kept appearing out of nowhere.

I did appreciate the romantic tension between them and the continued themes about curses and true love in the fairytale-esque world Garber created. I love the way that the magic works, especially with regard to curses taking a life of their own and stories continually changing with each telling or reading.

All in all, I am glad to have stuck with the series all the way to the end. It was fun reading something so swoony and romantic. I think romantasy fans will like the sweeping fairytale magic of the story world and Evangeline’s starry-eyed commitment to find her happily ever after.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Main characters are white.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. In one scene, a boy and girl begin to undress one another. They fall asleep before getting fully undressed.

Spiritual Content
A group of immortal Fates have limited special abilities. The story also contains vampires. Some humans have the ability to perform spells or curses, which require magic to be broken.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Evangeline hears about a wolf attack that leaves a boy horribly scarred. A boy dies, apparently from some kind of poison. Someone poisons a girl. A large number of vampires bite people. Someone ties up another person and threatens to torture or kill them. A person starts a fire, endangering others’ lives. Someone punches a man repeatedly, breaking his nose and bruising his face.

Drug Content
Evangeline drinks wine at a social event.

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: Breath of the Dragon by Shannon Lee and Fonda Lee

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , , , , ,

Breath of the Dragon (Breathmarked #1)
Shannon Lee and Fonda Lee
Wednesday Books
Published January 7, 2025

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About Breath of the Dragon

The first novel in a sweeping YA fantasy duology based on characters and teachings created by Bruce Lee!

Sixteen-year-old Jun dreams of proving his worth as a warrior in the elite Guardian’s Tournament, held every six years to entrust the magical Scroll of Earth to a new protector. Eager to prove his skills, Jun hopes that a win will restore his father’s honor—righting a horrible mistake that caused their banishment from his home, mother, and twin brother.

But Jun’s father strictly forbids him from participating. There is no future in honing his skills as a warrior, especially considering Jun is not breathmarked, born with a patch of dragon scales and blessed with special abilities like his twin. Determined to be the next Guardian, Jun stows away in the wagon of Chang and his daughter, Ren, performers on their way to the capital where the tournament will take place.

As Jun competes, he quickly realizes he may be fighting for not just a better life, but the fate of the country itself.

My Review

Jun displays a huge amount of growth as a character through this first book in the duology. He begins as a talented and ambitious kid whose interest in the tournament has more to do with proving his ability to others and finally making his dad proud of him. As the story progresses and he meets other fighters and allies, he begins to see the larger picture and the broader scope of responsibility in the role of the Guardian.

I thought that growth was really realistic and well-paced. I also enjoyed the ways that his relationships with other characters developed over the course of the story.

For some reason, I didn’t expect as much of the story to be centered on literal one-on-one fighting in a competitive setting. The early chapters show Jun competing for victory at his martial arts school, where the top student will go on to compete in a national tournament. Then, once he gets to the city, more scenes focus on the matches between fighters.

At some points, I could see why a scene was important to the larger story. The fights started to feel repetitive after a while, though.

Breath of the Dragon nicely wraps up the central plot of the book while setting up the major conflict in the sequel. We are left with new threads to pull in the next book, and I’m interested to see where the story goes.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 15 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Some swearing and a few F-bombs.

Romance/Sexual Content
Jun feels attracted to a girl and jealous when someone else shows interest in her, too.

Spiritual Content
People revere the Dragon, whose breath gives extraordinary ability to certain people, and the Lady of Many Hands, who recorded his teachings in two indestructible scrolls. In the West, only the Guardian and those he permits to can look at the Dragon scroll.

Some characters have dragon scales on their bodies, which is evidence that they have special abilities from the Dragon. Others have a strong presence of Breath inside them, which they can draw on for energy and power.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Battle violence. Fatal combat. Soldiers kill unarmed workers. Reference to execution. Death of a parent.

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.

Review: Sylvia Doe and the 100-Year Flood by Robert Beatty

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Magical Realism, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , , , , , ,

Sylvia Doe and the 100-Year Flood
Robert Beatty
Disney Hyperion
Published October 8, 2024

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About Sylvia Doe and the 100-Year Flood

Sylvia Doe doesn’t know where she was born or the people she came from. She doesn’t even know her real last name. Sylvia has lived at the Highground Home for Children in the mountains of North Carolina for as long as she can remember. Whenever the administrators place her with a foster family in the city, she runs away, back to her horse Kitty Hawk—her best friend—and the other horses in the herd, the only place she feels like she belongs.

When Hurricane Jessamine causes the remote mountain valley where she lives to flood, Sylvia must rescue her beloved horses. But she begins to encounter strange and wondrous things floating down the river. Glittering gemstones and wild animals that don’t belong — everything’s out of place. Then she spots an unconscious boy floating in the water. As she drags him onto the shore and their adventure together begins, Sylvia wonders who he is and where he came from. And why does she feel such a strong connection to this mysterious boy?

SYLVIA DOE has earned the prestigious STARRED REVIEW from both Kirkus Reviews and Publisher’s Weekly. The award-winning author Kwame Alexander praised the story, saying “Magical realism at its best!”

My Review

This book came out right around the time when Hurricane Helene devastated western North Carolina with rain and flooding. It took me a while to circle back to read the story, but I’d heard so many amazing things about it that I didn’t want to miss it.

Robert Beatty has an incredible ability to write about difficult or intense things in what feels like this very gentle way. Sylvia Doe and the 100-year Flood has some high-energy scenes in which the characters face situations of peril as they’re swept away by floodwater or desperately searching for storm survivors. Yet the tone of the story remains gentle. I love that.

The story includes a little bit of romance between Sylvia and another character. It stays very sweet, with some blushing and attraction. I think there’s a scene where the two snuggle together and another where they kiss each other. I like that their feelings for one another don’t overtake the story and that the disaster situations remain the focus despite their shifting emotions.

Sylvia has been in foster care since she was found alone in the wilderness. She recognizes that the foster care system, and in particular, her social worker, is trying to do good things. The story doesn’t demonize the system or highlight its many challenges or places it can cause harm. But it does present a story in which the system, even as it functions the way it should, isn’t a good fit for Sylvia as a child. She needs something the foster care system can’t provide for her.

The strong connections Sylvia feels to animals, especially horses and birds, will make this one a great fit for animal-loving readers. The magical realism elements add an otherworldly feel that makes Sylvia Doe and the 100-year Flood appealing to readers looking for something beyond the reality in which we live.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Sylvia has light brown skin tones. She has grown up in foster care.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Brief kissing between boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
Some unseen force has pulled animals and other things from other times and places into a flooded North Carolina river.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Reference to flash flooding and hurricane damage. Sylvia spots a group of dead sandhill cranes, apparently killed in the hurricane. Three children die (off-scene) due to the hurricane and flood conditions.

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.

Review: We Are All So Good at Smiling by Amber McBride

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We Are All So Good at Smiling
Amber McBride
Feiwel & Friends
Published January 10, 2023

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About We Are All So Good at Smiling

They Both Die at the End meets The Bell Jar in this haunting, beautiful young adult novel-in-verse about clinical depression and healing from trauma, from National Book Award Finalist Amber McBride.

Whimsy is back in the hospital for treatment of clinical depression. When she meets a boy named Faerry, she recognizes they both have magic in the marrow of their bones. And when Faerry and his family move to the same street, the two start to realize that their lifelines may have twined and untwined many times before.

They are both terrified of the forest at the end of Marsh Creek Lane.

The Forest whispers to Whimsy. The Forest might hold the answers to the part of Faerry he feels is missing. They discover the Forest holds monsters, fairy tales, and pain that they have both been running from for 11 years.

My Review

I don’t know if there’s anyone else in the world who writes quite like Amber McBride. We Are All So Good at Smiling came out at a time when I was bogged down with other reading projects, but it’s been high on my reading list since it was released, and my expectations were high.

They were met, if not exceeded. How often does that happen?

This is a weird book. It mixes fairytales and a magical landscape into a contemporary setting, almost like Rochelle Hassan does in “The Buried and the Bound” series. Somehow, telling the story in verse seems to make it even more ethereal. It reminded me a little bit of The Ghosts of Rose Hill by R. M. Romero.

Some of the references feel pretty on the nose, such as a fairy boy named Faerry. There are so many layers to the story, though, so don’t be tempted to take things too much at face value.

I loved the creepy forest and the way that Whimsy and Faerry’s journey unfolded in connection with it. The way the fairytale characters appeared and how they changed depending on what was happening was really fascinating. I also thought exploring fairytales alongside mental health made for an interesting juxtaposition. It made me think of some of the moments in the book Disfigured: On Fairytales, Disability, and Making Space by Amanda Leduc.

All that to say that I very much got swept away in this remarkable, immersive story. Amber McBride is quickly climbing my list of auto-buy authors because she always delivers such rich, thought-provoking stories. If you haven’t read any of her books, this is a great one to start with. If you like fairytales and/or novels in verse, definitely put this one on your list!

Content Notes

Depression, suicidal thoughts, loss of a close family member, bullying.

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Whimsy and Faerry are Black and have depression.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Whimsy practices Hoodoo, as passed down to her by her grandmother. Her family are conjures. Faerry is a fairy with wings few people can see. The story contains magic as well as fairytale and folktale references and characters.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Bullies call Whimsy names and hold her underwater. Other characters harm Whimsy and Faerry, causing cuts to open on their bodies. References to Whimsy being suicidal at the beginning of the story and in the past.

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.

Review: The Wild Robot by Peter Brown

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The Wild Robot (The Wild Robot #1)
Peter Brown
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published April 5, 2016

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About The Wild Robot

When robot Roz opens her eyes for the first time, she discovers that she is all alone on a remote, wild island. She has no idea how she got there or what her purpose is—but she knows she needs to survive. After battling a violent storm and escaping a vicious bear attack, she realizes that her only hope for survival is to adapt to her surroundings and learn from the island’s unwelcoming animal inhabitants.

As Roz slowly befriends the animals, the island starts to feel like home—until, one day, the robot’s mysterious past comes back to haunt her.

From bestselling and award-winning author and illustrator Peter Brown comes a heartwarming and action-packed novel about what happens when nature and technology collide.

My Review

Okay, so I’m probably one of the last people to read this book, especially now that it’s been made into a movie. The good news is that making something into a movie usually helps to motivate me to read the book if I haven’t already. I like to read the book first so that my first experience with the story is in the author’s words.

I picked up a copy of The Wild Robot while shopping for my birthday last year. Near Christmas, I found myself in a pretty fierce reading slump, and an illustrated book with short chapters seemed very appealing to me at that moment, so I started reading.

And from the first few chapters, I was hooked on the story. Really, once we got to the animals and their reactions to Roz, I began to deeply invest in what was happening. I love the way that the simple illustrations convey emotion. My heart squeezed at the image of the robot standing at the top of a tree. The robot holding a gosling while he fell asleep was so sweet.

I love the way the book balances an open look at natural order with a more anthropomorphic one about the value of community, familial love, and relationships. The animal characters include predators and prey, and while nobody gets eaten on scene, it’s referenced around the story’s edges. Roz adopts a gosling and raises him until he can join the other geese. She explores what it means to be a mother and what it means to raise someone well.

I enjoyed the different characters and the way they pull together when faced with an unknown threat or pull together to help one of their own community members. This is a sweet story and a pretty quick read. If you haven’t read it yet, definitely check out The Wild Robot.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
The main character is Roz, a robot. Most other characters are animals.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
A hurricane sinks a ship carrying boxes of robots. Some robots get destroyed before they reach the island. Roz accidentally kills a family of geese. The story references predator animals eating other animals. At one point, robots fight the island’s inhabitants. One uses a gun to subdue others.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. All opinions are my own.

Review: The Vanquishers: Rise of the Wrecking Crew by Kalynn Bayron

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Middle Grade 8-12, Paranormal

The Vanquishers: Rise of the Wrecking Crew (Vanquishers #3)
Kalynn Bayron
Bloomsbury USA
Published October 8, 2024

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About The Vanquishers: Rise of the Wrecking Crew

In the heart-stopping conclusion to the Vanquishers series by New York Times bestselling author Kalynn Bayron, it is time for the final stand against the undead.

San Antonio is on lockdown, taken over by the new hive. No one can deny that the undead are back now, but the Vanquishers found out the hard way: when they learned that an old friend is behind the latest string of attacks.

As the Squad hide out at an abandoned combat training facility, honing their vampire-butt-kicking skills, they begin to suspect that they’re not alone. And when a vial of Dracula’s blood–able to give unrivaled power to the vampire that consumes it–is stolen from the bunker, the Vanquishers race to recover it before it falls into the wrong hands.

The Vanquishers have always been Boog’s family, the ones she trusts the most. But what does it mean when a former Vanquisher, one of her heroes, is now hunting the enemy?

My Review

I got ridiculously behind on my reading this past fall. This book is the third and final installment of a series that’s been a lot of fun to read by an author who has such incredible range. We’ve seen Kalynn Bayron write compelling middle grade fantasy, a powerful historical fiction reimagining of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde, and a young adult thriller that was a wild ride, and, of course, the unforgettable young adult fantasy she’s widely known for. And she rocks all of it! Amazing.

The Vanquishers series is a lot of fun. It’s got a supernatural vibe with a cast of great characters in a tight-knit community. I love the community element, and it’s really well-balanced. The adults don’t outshine the kids by being present, but they are present. There are lots of different kinds of families and generations represented. The adults have their own backstory and their own drama happening, but the kids take centerstage and deliver the big moments of the story.

This one is also a great length at just over 200 pages. The back cover copy indicates it’s the finale of the series, but the story contains an epilogue that hints at a new story. Maybe there’s a spin-off coming?? Honestly, I hope that even if this series is really and truly over, we get more paranormal middle grade books from Kalynn Bayron.

The Vanquishers: Rise of the Wrecking Crew is set in the real world (plus vampires), but I could still see it appealing to readers who enjoyed Witchlings by Claribel Ortega.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Boog and several other characters are Black. One character is nonbinary. One has two dads.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Vampires exist in this story world. Some characters are part of an elite group trained to kill vampires with silver, etc.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Several vampires are vanquished in the course of the story. They turn to dust afterward.

Drug Content
A vial of Dracula’s blood can bestow powerful abilities to a vampire who consumes it.

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.