marimoose's reviews
1423 reviews

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.

This was cute! Like, giggle and swing your feet saccharine cute! I've only read one other book by these authors, but I did find that I liked The Soulmate Equation much better, especially in the delivery and the content of the story itself. It was a really interesting spin on the idea of soulmates being scientifically explained through the use of DNA and compatibility matching. I was pretty skeptical about the science being a gimmick to explain away the relationship between the two characters, but the story did end up unfolding in a way that I was satisfied with the conflict resolution at the end. Also, the characters were great. And hot damn, River scienced and mathed so hard I practically melted from time to time.

River and Jess, despite--or because of--their compatibility score, had really good chemistry, and I loved how organic their relationship developed after the compatibility reveal. I think my only quibble about them was that I felt a lot of their interactions were performative in public. It mostly isn't, because they acted the same way around each other when they were alone or with just family, but the whole publicity aspect--and the money incentive--did kind of muddle the surface for me a bit. Overall, though, I'm just really glad that the two of them found a way to make it work. I'm all for the HEA initiative in romances, and the end to this had me closing the book smiling to myself for the longest time!

Also, Felicity Chen is a national treasure, and quite possibly my favorite aspect of this book. I said what I said!

I like the idea of the main character being grumpy, but I really didn't care for Lorelei. And I didn't care for any of the characters to be invested enough to want to continue reading this book. Which is a shame, because I actually really liked the one other book I've read of this author.

If all of Ana's romances started off with the third act break up at the beginning of the story and the rest of it just groveling, I'd for sure be eating all of these books UP. Like damn, I totally was here supporting all of Alessandra's choices, but also. Not gonna lie, I would have folded to Dom 70 pages in. And again several chapters later. And again several chapters after that. Ale, you are made of stronger stuff, my girl. I salute you. 

Anyway, this was cute! I thought Dante knew how to grovel, but Dominic went "HOLD MY BEER" and literally GROVELED. The entire book was him groveling, and like damn, where was this energy for the past ten years, my dude?

The book was definitely another fast and entertaining read. The resolution was fairly expected, and tbh I was fine without the epilogue. I actually started getting more interested in the other characters at some point (I mean, Ana, I need to know your plans for Roman, because he can't possibly be one of the King MMCs, but like, I WOULD NOT BE OPPOSED if you, uh, did a book on him, just saying...). All the same, the spice is, of course, excellent. I just really hope the cleaning service for the Valhalla Club is being paid SUPREMELY WELL for what they have to deal with, especially the poor library...

This was such a strange piece of fiction!

But damn, for a book running under 300 pages, it sure packed a wallop about the Asian immigration and assimilation experience. And all in the guise of a fictional character constantly casted as Generic Asian Man in this fictional TV show called Black and White. It read as a little funny, a little discomforting, a little real, and certainly reflective of the author's lived experience when it comes to having parents immigrating into the United States from Taiwan. While a majority of this experience certainly isn't my own as a SEA diaspora person, parts still resonate, and I found I flew through the audiobook half derisive of the fact that even today, people still see yellow and designate the color as 'other' despite the peoples having also had a history dating just as far back as the country's.

This was definitely a lot of food for thought, and I sped through it fairly quickly.

This book was pretty much THE instruction manual for groveling in a fantasy world. Lara my traitor queen--and I say this as an endearment--literally threw everything in her power to get a shot at that redemption card, and this book. THIS BOOK. Practically threw everything in its power to repeatedly try to break this poor girl.

But anyway.

I might like The Traitor Queen a smidgen better than The Bridge Kingdom (I'm still debating actually 5-starring this or not...leaning toward not for now). There was enough of the world established in its predecessor, so this book didn't have to do as much heavy lifting in terms of the world. But, despite much of the story being action-packed and solely focused on Lara and Aren's trials and tribulations, there are still glimpses of the politics and the overarching story that is clearly not just focused on retaking Ithicana from the Maridrinians. Yes, this is one of the main plots for Lara and Aren, but we're also introduced to the inner workings of a third nation in play. And judging from the characters that we meet in this book to lead to the third book, I'm actually really excited, because from the bits and pieces we got from The Traitor Queen, I'm going to LOVE Keris and Zarrah.

As for the story itself, it follows the events that take place during the end of the first book. Lara is facing the consequences of her actions and searching for away to save Aren from her father's clutches. A lot of obstacles are in the way, however; namely, the fact that she is considered a traitor to the country she's married into. But needs must, and she manages to find characters along the way who will help her in achieving the goals she set out to accomplish. We also get Aren's point of view, and it's fairly grueling on his first few chapters. Needless to say, once Lara gets the ball rolling, things start to escalate and speed up. And suddenly it's become one fast-paced adventure after another.

Honestly, I was here for the ride. It's not every day I get an entire fantasy book where the FMC spends a majority of it groveling in the most badass--and most unhinged--way possible. While I liked Lara and Aren's budding relationship in the previous book, I did feel like they didn't spend as much time together as they did in this book. I felt the palpable tension and the emotional turmoil both characters went through, especially because they were practically stuck together for most of the story. And yes, I could have honestly done with a bit more spice, but easing that back for their character arcs to make sense was understandable.

Also, I would never want to cross an angry pregnant Sahrina. Give this woman all her happiness. Girl has done ENOUGH.

The end of this book had me grinning tho! Great callback to the beginning of this book, AND the beginning of the first book.

This was fine? I can hardly critique the prose because I thought it was well written, and I liked the snappy and realistic dialogue between the characters. I know there was also a lot of themes woven into this book, including class difference and economic status, but the heart of it was really how Connell and Marianne often got together and wondered off from each other, only to get back together again. As realistic as this was, Normal People is kind of just about...normal people? And that's really nothing new.

Initial thought: I. WHAT.

Actual review:
For a continuation of a book that desperately needed some heavy duty editing, I think Onyx Storm was--on the whole--executed well. It had a lot of the adventure and action portion I sorely wanted from the massive tome that was Iron Flame without all the frustrating miscommunication between the main characters. And it had Xaden Riorson xadening REALLY HARD. I love him. And the dragons. And the bond-banter between Violet and shadow daddy Xaden. And Ridoc and Aaric being general GOATS. And welcome back to your badass energy, Violet Sorrengail.

Did I think this series peaked at Fourth Wing? Yes. Did I think this book could have been a trilogy and a significant amount of characters and plotlines be edited out? Yes, I will lowkey die on that hill. Did I get emotional whiplash to the point where when people did start getting redshirted everywhere, I barely batted an eye? Of course.

But did I gobble this book up regardless? Yes. I could have used more spice, but ya know.

That ending though? Rebecca. REBECCA.

(I will for sure read the next book, but there's a possible trope that might have me walking OUT so I really hope it doesn't come to pass.)

The way this book has emotionally wrecked me is astounding, considering it was supposed to be a very tongue in cheek, humorous adventure story about a thief that accidentally creates a cult and now she has to fix it before an entire town is destroyed. Instead, while the story is very much that, it evolved into a heartbreakingly beautiful piece about family, trust, and love.

And let me tell you, I have been fucking bawling my eyes out every few chapters. I don't know what Margaret Owen did and how she managed it, but my gawd, Emeric and Vanja constantly hit me in my feelings every time; it was like every few pages wafted onions into my eyes and I just sobbed some more.

Yes, the essence of Little Thieves is still there, and Vanja is an absolute joy to read on the page. I loved the back and forth between her perspective as a fairy tale and then her perspective as is. I loved her character growth, and despite her having grown so much as a character, it's clear that she still has so much more to learn. But oh my goodness, all I wanted to do was give her a hug and tell her that she is wanted, and she is not wanting.

And Emeric? Emeric my favorite protractor of a boy. He says the most beautiful things, and he's soft and vulnerable, but absolutely brilliant and competent as well. I love him to bits.

But the two of them together? My gosh, the two of them together is absolutely delightful to read. What I really loved about this book--honestly, I loved a lot about this book--is the fact that one of the major conflicts is the issue of sex between the two characters. It was clear in Little Thieves that both Vanja and Emeric are demisexual in nature, and have a hard time with physical intimacy, despite their obvious love for each other. Throughout the book, there was so much communication and constant check-ins between the two, and y'all, I am AWED to have seen this kind of care to addressing sex and sexual education in a young adult novel. And I VERY MUCH APPRECIATED THAT.

If there was anything to criticize, it was the circular and roundabout fetch quest adventure that slowed the story down for me. But honestly, my issue with this was so minuscule, considering that the longer they did go through this quest, the more time we got to spend with Vanja and Emeric. And the antics Vanja gets into at each town are entertaining enough that I didn't care if the overall plot was indeed a giant fetch quest.

So yeah, I came into this book laughing about the fact that Vanja somehow managed to accidentally form a cult and inadvertently sacrificed her boyfriend to said cult. And then I came out of this book emotionally broken and needing the next book like yesterday. YOU DID THIS, MARGARET. FIX IT.

The reread for this book was particularly more emotional because of what I remember from its sequel--and I remember a lot. Six of Crows was what brought YA back from the brink of collapse for me, and I owe a lot of that to the character work Leigh put in to flesh out every POV in this book and still manage a plot and worldbuilding. And despite there being five POVs, I absolutely loved this magical heist.

I read the annotated edition, so it definitely held more insight into the story and the characters. I did also find that while I found Kaz's and Inej's stories to be the ones I followed with absolute zeal my first time around, this time around my attention was definitely stolen by Nina and Matthias. Save for the "I will have you without armor" quote. That will ALWAYS stay with me forever.

So yeah. Six of Crows duology is peak Leigh Bardugo (even though I still haven't quite forgiven her for tearing out my soul in Crooked Kingdom). Nothing has changed on a reread.