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A review by marimoose
Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao
adventurous
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
It is February and crying over the last 40 pages of a Studio Ghibli/Alice in Wonderland-inspired crossover was definitely NOT on this year's bingo list.
I have words with everyone comparing this to a Studio Ghibli movie. Because yes, it gave Whisper of the Heart/Spirited Away trippy vibes, YALL ARE NOT WRONG, but by the halfway point I was getting the sinking feeling that it was going in the Makoto Shinkai direction. Like, I absolutely LOVED 5 Centimetres Per Second and Your Name, but y'all. The amount of crying I did for both those movies could fill up a room full of buckets. Just like the amount of crying I did for this. Damn. Book.
But when the story revolves around themes of choice and regret? Yeah, I was done for.
That all said, this book was hella whimsical. It's an adult Alice traipsing into Wonderland when she chose to follow the white rabbit instead of staying comfortably by her tree. In a similar case, this is what Keishin did when he chose to go to Japan instead of stay at his university. And event after event just takes him--and Hana, the mysterious pawnshop owner--further down the rabbit hole into a fantastical adventure quest in search of Hana's missing father. Was this a cozy fantasy? I don't think so. Was this sort of a fetch quest? Yes. But was I riding this wave to the very end? Hell yes.
I have words with everyone comparing this to a Studio Ghibli movie. Because yes, it gave Whisper of the Heart/Spirited Away trippy vibes, YALL ARE NOT WRONG, but by the halfway point I was getting the sinking feeling that it was going in the Makoto Shinkai direction. Like, I absolutely LOVED 5 Centimetres Per Second and Your Name, but y'all. The amount of crying I did for both those movies could fill up a room full of buckets. Just like the amount of crying I did for this. Damn. Book.
But when the story revolves around themes of choice and regret? Yeah, I was done for.
That all said, this book was hella whimsical. It's an adult Alice traipsing into Wonderland when she chose to follow the white rabbit instead of staying comfortably by her tree. In a similar case, this is what Keishin did when he chose to go to Japan instead of stay at his university. And event after event just takes him--and Hana, the mysterious pawnshop owner--further down the rabbit hole into a fantastical adventure quest in search of Hana's missing father. Was this a cozy fantasy? I don't think so. Was this sort of a fetch quest? Yes. But was I riding this wave to the very end? Hell yes.