Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire – Review

Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire
Series: Wayward Children #7
Publisher: Tordotcom
Published January 4th 2022
Genres: Fiction, Fantasy
Pages: 160
Format: Hardback
Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

Welcome to the Whitethorn Institute. The first step is always admitting you need help, and you’ve already taken that step by requesting a transfer into our company.

There is another school for children who fall through doors and fall back out again.
It isn’t as friendly as Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children.
And it isn’t as safe.

When Eleanor West decided to open her school, her sanctuary, her Home for Wayward Children, she knew from the beginning that there would be children she couldn’t save; when Cora decides she needs a different direction, a different fate, a different prophecy, Miss West reluctantly agrees to transfer her to the other school, where things are run very differently by Whitethorn, the Headmaster.

She will soon discover that not all doors are welcoming…

This is the first book in which we get to see some other schools like Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children. It’s name is Whitethorn Institute and it’s far from a good place! Cora, who we have met in past books, intends to change schools and go to Whitethorn Institute, but this place is far from what she expects.

I’m so happy this series got up again! I wasn’t a big fan of the last two books but this was fantastic!

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Fairyloot December 2021 Unboxing

Welcome to another unboxing from Fairyloot! 🙂 This time we’ll open December’s box!

FairyLoot is an amazing YA bookish subscription box that I’ve been getting for quite many years and would highly recommend getting.

Wanna check out what this box included? Just keep reading!

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune – Review

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune
Series: N/A
Publisher: Tor
Published September 21st 2021
Genres: Fantasy, LGBTQ+, Fiction
Pages: 384
Format: Paperback
Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

Under the Whispering Door is a contemporary fantasy with TJ Klune’s signature “quirk and charm” (PW) about a ghost who refuses to cross over and the ferryman he falls in love with.

When a reaper comes to collect Wallace Price from his own funeral, Wallace suspects he really might be dead.

Instead of leading him directly to the afterlife, the reaper takes him to a small village. On the outskirts, off the path through the woods, tucked between mountains, is a particular tea shop, run by a man named Hugo. Hugo is the tea shop’s owner to locals and the ferryman to souls who need to cross over.

But Wallace isn’t ready to abandon the life he barely lived. With Hugo’s help he finally starts to learn about all the things he missed in life.

When the Manager, a curious and powerful being, arrives at the tea shop and gives Wallace one week to cross over, Wallace sets about living a lifetime in seven days.

By turns heartwarming and heartbreaking, this absorbing tale of grief and hope is told with TJ Klune’s signature warmth, humor, and extraordinary empathy. 

This follows Wallace Price, a bit of a scrooge that manages a big law company. He dies shortly after the beginning of the book.

Then he is dead and the story follows his ghost in what could be described as the last station before the afterlife. He meets Hugo the ferryman, who is responsible for helping these souls cross, and the reaper Mei – and then we have Nelson and Apollo, who are souls that haven’t crossed yet.

Owlcrate Unboxing November 2021

Hey guys! Here’s the unboxing for Owlcrate November’s box! Hope you enjoy! The theme of the month is Dreaming in the Dark!

Owlcrate is an amazing YA bookish subscription box that I would highly recommend getting. Plus, if you live in Europe like me, it still arrives incredibly fast and somehow  (for me) it doesn’t get more expensive than any other box coming from Europe – although obviously, it changes from country to country…

If you want to check out what this box included, just keep reading! I will show photos of all the items, information on them and some of my thoughts!

Unwritten by Tara Gilboy – ARC Review

Unwritten by Tara Gilboy

Series: N/A

Publisher: Jolly Fish Press

Published October, 16th 2018

Genres: Middle Grade, Fantasy

Pages: 198

Format: ARC

Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

* Received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you very much! This doesn’t affect the review in any way. My opinions are, as always, my own.*

Twelve-year-old Gracie Freeman is living a normal life, but she is haunted by the fact that she is actually a character from a story, an unpublished fairy tale she’s never read. When she was a baby, her parents learned that she was supposed to die in the story, and with the help of a magic book, took her out of the story, and into the outside world, where she could be safe.

But Gracie longs to know what the story says about her. Despite her mother’s warnings, Gracie seeks out the story’s author, setting in motion a chain of events that draws herself, her mother, and other former storybook characters back into the forgotten tale. Inside the story, Gracie struggles to navigate the blurred boundary between who she really is and the surprising things the author wrote about her. As the story moves toward its deadly climax, Gracie realizes she’ll have to face a dark truth and figure out her own fairy tale ending.

Saving Fable by Scott Reintgen – ARC Review

Saving Fable by Scott Reintgen

Series: Talespinners #1

Publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers

Published September 17th, 2019

Genres: Middle Grade, Fantasy

Pages: 384

Format: ARC

Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

* Received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you very much! This doesn’t affect the review in any way. My opinions are, as always, my own.*

Side characters can be heroes too in this charming and fast-paced adventure that is The Land of Stories meets The Phantom Tollbooth!

Indira has been a character-in-waiting her entire life. So she can’t believe her luck when she’s finally chosen to travel to Fable and study at the renowned Protagonist Preparatory, a school known for producing the best heroes.

But Indira’s dreams of achieving hero status don’t exactly go as planned. A failed audition lands her in the school’s side-character track, and her best efforts to prove advisors–famous characters like Alice from Wonderland and Professor Darcy–wrong are constantly sabotaged. Indira is starting to feel like an evil antagonist might be to blame.

As the danger spreads, Indira discovers all of Fable is under siege. With her friends Maxi and Phoenix by her side, she pieces together clues that will reveal who is behind the dark magic threatening them all. But the more Indira uncovers, the more doubt she feels about her place in this world of stories. After all, can a side character really save the day?

The Rise of Winter by Alex Lyttle

The Rise of Winter by Alex Lyttle

Series: Terra Protectorum #1

Publisher: Central Avenue Publishing

Expected publication: May 1st 2019

Genres: Middle Grade, Fantasy

Pages: 320

Format: ARC

Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

* Received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you very much! This doesn’t affect the review in any way. My opinions are, as always, my own.*

Centuries ago, Terra, the world, was nearly destroyed by humans. In the wake of that destruction, Terra created the Guardians – a group sworn to protect Her. But humans have returned to their plundering ways and Terra needs the Guardians. The Guardians are now fractured, their leader murdered years before. They need a new leader – a new Terra Protectorum – but when a young girl is chosen outrage ensues. Questions demand answers.
 
Why has Terra selected a girl with no knowledge of the Guardians? Why has she chosen a human when it is the humans destroying the earth? And most importantly, why has she chosen the girl whose father murdered the last Terra Protectorum?

Romanov by Nadine Brandes – ARC Review

Romanov by Nadine Brandes

Series: N/A

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Expected publication: May 7th 2019

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fantasy

Pages: 352

Format: ARC

Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

* Received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you very much! This doesn’t affect the review in any way. My opinions are, as always, my own.*

From the author of Fawkes comes a magical take on the story of Anastasia Romanov.

The history books say I died.

They don’t know the half of it.

Anastasia “Nastya” Romanov was given a single mission: to smuggle an ancient spell into her suitcase on her way to exile in Siberia. It might be her family’s only salvation. But the leader of the Bolshevik army is after them . . . and he’s hunted Romanov before.

Nastya’s only chances of saving herself and her family are either to release the spell and deal with the consequences, or to enlist help from Zash, the handsome soldier who doesn’t act like the average Bolshevik. Nastya’s only dabbled in magic, but it doesn’t frighten her half as much as her growing attraction for Zash. She likes him. She thinks he might even like her . . .

That is, until she’s on one side of a firing squad . . . and he’s on the other.

MANGA 1st IMPRESSIONS -Tokyo Ghoul, Black Butler and The Ancient Magus’ Bride

Hi guys! I haven’t done manga reviews in quite a long time, but I’ve recently gotten 3 new manga books that I’ve never tried before but wanted to, so, I decided to do a first impressions on them in one post!

These ones are the three mangas I recently got and read in order:

Tokyo Ghoul, Vol.1 by Sui Ishida

Black Butler, Vol.1 by Yana Toboso

The Ancient Magus’ Bride, Vol.1 by Kore Yamazaki

Like I said, I’ve heard of these books for quite some time and always wanted to get to them, but this is the first time I actually read them. As for my predictions on what I was going to like the most, I was completely wrong!

The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden

 

The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden
Series: Winternight Trilogy #3
Publisher: Del Rey (Ebury Publishing)
First published January 8th 2019
Genres: YA, Historical Fiction, Fantasy
Pages: 384
Format: Hardback
Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

One girl can make a difference…

Moscow has burned nearly to the ground, leaving its people searching for answers – and someone to hold accountable. Vasya finds herself on her own, amid a rabid mob that calls for her death, blaming her witchery for their misfortune.

Then a vengeful demon returns, renewed and stronger than ever, determined to spread chaos in his wake and never be chained again. Enlisting the hateful priest Konstantin as his servant, turmoil plagues the Muscovites and the magical creatures alike, and all find their fates resting on the shoulders of Vasya.

With an uncertain destiny ahead of her, Vasya learns surprising truths of her past as she desperately tries to save Russia, Morozko, and the magical world she treasures. But she may not be able to save them all…