chelsealouise's reviews
342 reviews

4/5 Stars: ‘What Stars Are Made Of’ is a Middle Grade, Family Contemporary by Sarah Allen; ‘What Stars Are Made Of’ is a tender portrait of a compassionate heroine trying to make things right in her universe and in the lives of those she loves. Allen, who was also born with Turner Syndrome, explores themes of family loyalty and personal resilience and resolve, wrapping them up in a clever story of science; how the universe works and how stars can truly guide the way. The protagonist’s optimism is infectious, with sparklingly first-person narrative directed straight at the reader.

5/5 Stars: ‘Long Way Down’ by Jason Reynolds.
→ Age Range: Young Adult.
→ Genre: Verse, BAME Contemporary.
→ Trigger Warnings: Death, Gun Violence, Grief.

In-depth Rating:
→ Plot: ★★★★★
→ Character Development: ★★★★★
→ Setting: ★★★★★
→ Entertainment Level: ★★★★★
→ Writing: ★★★★★

General Comments: Grief can cause reckless behaviour, and this hard-hitting meditation on the urge for revenge exposes its dangers. Written in verse, ‘Long Way Down’ is breathtakingly gripping and spectacular. You almost read it without breathing; the action is tense, the language powerful. Please bear in mind that the themes and language are strong.

Favourite Quote: “People always love people more when they're dead.”

Time Read: One Day.
→ Audiobook: Yes.
→ Audiobook Narrator: Jason Reynolds.

4/5 Stars: ‘The Diviners’ (Book #1 of ‘The Diviners’) by Libba Bray.
→ Age Range: Young Adult.
→ Genre: Horror, Historical Fiction.
→ Trigger Warnings: Racism, Domestic Violence, Murder.

In-depth Rating:
→ Plot: ★★★★
→ Character Development: ★★★★
→ Setting: ★★★★
→ Entertainment Level: ★★★★★
→ Writing: ★★★★★

General Comments: Set in 1920s ‘Prohibition-Era’ New York City; the intricate plot and magnificently imagined details of characters, dialogue and setting take told to create a dark and pulse-quickening plot. Sophisticated, with decade-specific references, it vividly captures the atmosphere of the Roaring 20s; thrown in with a twisting plot and plenty of spine-tingling supernatural and occultist elements. Magical.

Favourite Quote: ‘People will believe anything if it means they can go on with their lives and not have to think too hard about it.’

Time Read: Five Days.
→ Audiobook: Yes.
→ Audiobook Narrator: January LaVoy.

4.5/5 Stars: ‘Lair of Dreams’ (Book #2 of ‘The Diviners’) by Libba Bray.
→ Age Range: Young Adult.
→ Genre: Horror, Historical Fiction.
→ Trigger Warnings: Racism, Homophobia, Death.

In-depth Rating:
→ Plot: ★★★★★
→ Character Development: ★★★★★
→ Setting: ★★★★★
→ Entertainment Level: ★★★★★
→ Writing: ★★★★★

General Comments: The ambitious sequel trikes just the right balance in its division of narrative might; developing each of the dizzyingly large cast of diverse characters with an impressive attention to detail, and with period-specific, witty dialogue. It weaves a chilling mystery with a truly elusive solution, add in several poignant love stories, agonising injustice, and monstrous dreams and the stage is set for more.

Favourite Quote: ‘For dreams, too, are ghosts, desires chased in sleep, gone by morning.’

Time Read: Five Days.
→ Audiobook: Yes.
→ Audiobook Narrator: January LaVoy.

4.5/5 Stars: ‘Uzumaki’ is a New Adult, Horror Manga by Junji Ito and translated by Yuji Oniki; ‘Uzumaki’ is gorgeous in the way a tarantula is: hardly fitting traditional ideals of beauty, but still displaying a dark elegance. The book has an overarching narrative but begins as a series of short, relatively self-contained chapters. As the Manga progresses, this narrative becomes more and more prevalent, until the final 'act,' where each chapter leads directly into the next until the very end. While the nature of having the Manga follow specific characters in a small setting almost necessitates tying things together in a final conclusion, the comic is at its best in its first two thirds, when the spiral is more a connecting theme than a connecting plot device. Horror certainly can work in the longer form, but there’s a reason why so many of the best horror stories are short stories. The last third, which serves almost as one larger story, loses some steam as it progresses, but thankfully manages to pull itself together for a solid, if not satisfying, conclusion. The other two-thirds of the Manga, however, is pure horror excellence. Mainstream Horror movies often emphasise the shocking side of horror, using jump-scares to give audiences a rush of endorphins that keep them coming back for more. 'Uzumaki,' by contrast, more often than not leans toward the methodical side of horror — though Ito can certainly pull off the frightening surprise when he wants to. The comic is at its best when Ito spends page after page of adding layer after layer of dread, until the tension finally breaks and the reader is faced with that which they feared. It’s a testament to the captivating quality of Ito’s horror that the reader feels unable to escape, despite, of course, having complete control over the book. The other quality of horror that Ito revels in throughout 'Uzumaki' is the grotesque. There are a few stories in the book, such as 'The Snail,' that isn’t quite what one would call “scary,” and yet are nonetheless horrifying in the way they make the reader’s stomach roil. This isn’t simple torture porn, though; there’s an inventiveness to 'Uzumaki’s' more disgusting parts, often laced with irony, that keeps it from seeming a simple exercise in poor taste. While 'Uzumaki' isn’t necessarily a book everyone should own, it is a must-have for horror fans.

4/5 Stars: ‘Tomie’ is a New Adult, Horror Manga by Junji Ito and translated by Naomi Kokubo; ‘Tomie’ is a femme fatale, insidious and tenacious; bewitching and manipulating men, to drive them to murder, even though the victim is often Tomie herself. ‘Tomie’ is not a cohesive story, but rather, a collection of shorter stories featuring the immortal and regenerative Tomie who tempts men into killing her while destroying their lives. However, the lack of an over-arching plotline makes it easy to put down for a while, as there is no story to be lost. But whether you follow that advice or just sit down and read it in one sitting, it is still a high-tier horror experience. The art is detailed, expressive, gory, and beautiful; Ito uses ‘obsession’ as a root cause of horror, it is the obsession of being the most beautiful girl in the world and the obsession to own the beauty for one’s self. It is best to read ‘Tomie’ with little knowledge.

4/5 Stars: ‘The Prince and the Dressmaker’ is an Ageless, LGBTQ+ Historical Graphic Novel by Jen Wang; ‘The Prince and the Dressmaker’ is a biblio bias-cut whose shimmer is welcomed, despite its optimistic short-sightedness. Talented illustrator Wang has written a lively, engaging, and mould-breaking take on the classic fairy tale with the poor girl who meets Prince Charming. In ‘The Prince and the Dressmaker’, we're given a Prince with a difference and a poor girl with the strength of character to know that she doesn't deserve to live in another person's shadow. Wang's colourful and animated drawings move the story along well and effectively show lots of different moods and emotions as we're asked why what the Prince wears matters and given lots of food for thought about hiding our true selves from our loved ones, and from the world at large. If the unique art style isn’t enough to convince you to read ‘The Prince and the Dressmaker’, then the story definitely will. This graphic novel is not only visually stunning but has a narrative that will keep you at attention and characters that you can’t help but empathise with. The only issue is the ending felt fairly rushed; the story felt like it needed one more chapter to really round out the ending. The side characters are all crucial to the movement of the narrative and are supportive in varying, heartfelt ways; the use of colour in the story helps evoke the feelings of each character throughout the story; and the writing is simple without being uninteresting.

5/5 Stars: ‘Before the Devil Breaks You’ (Book #3 of ‘The Diviners’) by Libba Bray.
→ Age Range: Young Adult.
→ Genre: Horror, Historical Fiction.
→ Trigger Warnings: Discrimination, Mental Maltreatment, Death.

In-depth Rating:
→ Plot: ★★★★★
→ Character Development: ★★★★★
→ Setting: ★★★★★
→ Entertainment Level: ★★★★★
→ Writing: ★★★★★

General Comments: A solid middle entry that continues to spin the stories of its large ensemble of gifted supernatural characters in 1920s New York City. There is no shortage of action: Shadow Men, ravenous ghosts, secret bands of Anarchists, and first sexual experiences, among them. The tone of atmospheric horror is quickly set, and achieved throughout, for this epic. Another riveting, page-turning entry.

Favourite Quote: ‘There was such fear in the world. But love was everywhere if you looked. It was the best thing about humans. That they could stare into the abyss and still open up their hearts. A spit in the eye to fear.’

Time Read: Four Days.
→ Audiobook: Yes.
→ Audiobook Narrator: January LaVoy.

4/5 Stars: ‘The King of Crows’ (Book #4 of ‘The Diviners’) by Libba Bray.
→ Age Range: Young Adult.
→ Genre: Horror, Historical Fiction.
→ Trigger Warnings: Discrimination, Severe Violence, Death.

In-depth Rating:
→ Plot: ★★★
→ Character Development: ★★★
→ Setting: ★★★★★
→ Entertainment Level: ★★★★★
→ Writing: ★★★★★

General Comments: Full of emotional highs and lows, and a thought-provoking look at 1920s America, outside of New York City. Not only does this book, and this entire series, promote tolerance, inclusion, and diversity, but it teaches a lot about history (example: ‘The Great Flood of 1927’), who writes it, and how it is interpreted. Each character arc reaches a propulsive end, wrapping the series up perfectly.

Favourite Quote: ‘Wasn’t that how fairy tales worked? You told just enough of the terrible truth – There are cruel people. Not all parents love you. The world isn’t fair by a long shot. – and you dressed it up in ogres and braves princesses and giants. Mostly, you reminded people that the evils of the world had to be fought. Even if you weren’t sure you’d win. You still had to go into the monster’s den. You had to face your fears. You still had to stand up to the monster.’

Time Read: Three Days.
→ Audiobook: Yes.
→ Audiobook Narrator: January LaVoy.

3.5/5 Stars: ‘I Am Malala’ by Malala Yousafzai.
→ Age Range: Middle Grade.
→ Genre: Memoir, Educational Biography.
→ Trigger Warnings: Terrorism, Gun Violence, Oppression.

In-depth Rating:
→ Plot: ★★★★★
→ Character Development: ★★★
→ Setting: ★★★★
→ Entertainment Level: ★★★
→ Writing: ★★★

General Comments: The remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism; of the fight for girls’ education; of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school; and of brave parents who have fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons. It is remarkable, powerful, and profoundly poignant.

Favourite Quote: ‘To me, the moral of the story was that there will always be hurdles in life, but if you want to achieve a goal, you must continue.’

Time Read: Four Days.
→ Audiobook: No.
→ Audiobook Narrator: -