Book Review: When Dealing With Dragons by Dana Swift

This was one of the sweetest and most poignant dragon books I've read this year. I was drawn in by the title, which brought to mind a classic Wrede book that was my entire personality when I was twelve. This book has dragons, which automatically draws my interest, but it also has a sweet love story, a struggle to protect animals in a world that would destroy them and finding a place where you're completely loved, accepted and safe with family and when I put all of that together, the vibes and the feelings I'm left with after finishing this book are pure exhilaration because I LOVED this story. Which means I need to go back and read the rest of Swift's books as soon as I can gather them in my library.

When Dealing With Dragons has a world where people have bonded with dragons, allowing them to craft the metal that the dragons are associated with, such as copper, bronze, tin or silver. This story follows two school rivals, Farren Walsh, a young woman hoping to become a dragon veterinarian like her father, and James Murphy, a dragon racer from a prominent silver-crafting family. James is Farren's biggest competition for a college scholarship so when James Murphy manages to gain an internship with her father at their dragon sanctuary for the summer, Farren is forced to work with her school nemesis on a daily basis. But Farren has a secret she is trying to protect, something that could change everything about the rules of the world around them. James has a secret of his own to keep, using the internship to gain the knowledge he needs to become a veterinarian himself in the future and to get away from his father, but he is also trying to hide how Farren has been his crush for years. As time passes, Farren starts to learn more about James and begins to understand his dreams and his fears, realizing that she was wrong about him and his actions for years. But Farren knows her secret needs to stay safe and she does not know if she can trust James to keep it because of the reputation his family has with dragons and the racing world. If she gets too close, her secret could be exposed, bringing down everything she and her family have been trying so hard to protect and Farren can't allow that to happen.

The world-building here was excellent. The idea behind the bonding of dragons to humans and how this relationship has been fostered was so intriguing. I loved seeing both sides of the equation with how Farren and her world was about the protection of dragons, cultivating trust and love with their training of the dragons, while the other side was James's family who kept dragons in cages and forced them to shield themselves in their metal by using fear tactics and sometimes even resorting to abuse. This entire world felt carefully considered and developed, enough to make me feel rage for the dragons that suffered on the page and off and to feel awe at the idea of taking care of dragons in such a way that they would still be able to trust you after some horrible histories for some of them. I thought the system of keeping the people affiliated with certain metals to their own class an intriguing one because of the struggle it gave to Farren and James. Farren's family is copper and because James is from a silver family, any relationship between them would be frowned upon as it's only been so long before mixing "metals" was considered illegal. All of these details helped to fill in so many corners of this world, to rachet the tension about the secret the Walsh family is hiding and about how much James is trying to distance himself from his own silver family. Knowing these details about the world was something I kept in the back of my mind while reading the book, keeping the tension moving as Farren and James started to work together and highlighting the struggle they would face at every new trial they faced.

As for the characters, Swift filled this book with some very interesting people. Oh Farren, you sweet, silly child. I loved this girl, I really did, from the moment she appeared on the page and her determination to believe the worst about her school nemesis, James. Farren was intelligent and fearless and admirable at every turn in this book. Swift made an interesting choice to write this book as a dual-person narrative and really, I loved the switching between these two kids because their banter and their gradual growth together was so sweet to witness. Because while I thought Farren's opinions of James were harsh at times, it helped to jump over to James to see things as he did, to see his struggle to overcome his shyness to be able to talk to the girl of his dreams. James was a cinnamon roll lead, a young man conscious of the privileges he had and yet yearning for something else, a place to feel safe and at home. He was quick to help and protect Farren, willing to risk himself to keep her safe from dragons, willing to lie to keep her secret once he learned it. They were so wonderful together and it was beautiful to see their coming together by the end of the book. I thought the contrast between the two sets of parents to be an interesting dynamic, one that highlighted the found family that James quickly became a part of by joining the Walsh sanctuary for dragons with his internship.

The Walsh parents were a partnership that worked together and kept their business moving while also taking pride in the strides their daughter was making. On the other hand, the Murphy parents were the ones quick to judge and disregard others, even their own son, in the pursuit for whatever it was they wanted. Even secondary characters, like Colm, a young man trying to become better than James and who treats Farren horribly and Cara, a former friend of Farren's that has been pushed away because of the secret but who still tries over and over to be Farren's friend, are so well-developed in the few scenes they are in that they feel as well-known as the rest of the cast. Even the dragons deserve their own call-out because each one felt so individual and unique, impressive when you consider that they don't speak. I loved Hort, James's dragon, a playful racer that James had trained since he was a baby and I even loved Bex, Hort's mother, a dragon that had been a racer but was now being used for other purposes by the Murphys. Everything felt important about these characters, serving to show how the audience needed to care for the dragons just as much as the people trying to save them.

As for the plot, I knew what the secret was within the first few chapters but the rest of it caught me by surprise. Swift set things up in such a brilliant way that when the reveals hit, I'll be honest, I did not see that coming. I had my beliefs and Swift managed to turn them on their head and then twist them again because WHAT JUST HAPPENED!? Still, to talk any more about what happens would veer into spoiler territory so I'll move on. I loved the journey that Farren took to learn that what she thought was wrong and that learning to trust and open herself up to others was a good thing. I loved that James was able to find somewhere to be himself and to gain the confidence he needed to become Farren's friend with the hopes of something more because a love story based on a friendship is so heart-warming when done right, just as Swift managed to do here. And I loved the strides these people made to keep dragons safe, to make a difference in the way their world treated them and to gain a safer means of existence for them with the Walsh sanctuary and the services they provided as veterinarians. Changes have to start small and this book shows that even one person can make a difference.

Read this book for the dragons and stay for the sweet love story and the acceptance that every person deserves to find for themselves to be happy, whatever their future might hold.

Rating on my Scale: 10 Stars. I know I give a lot of 10 Stars but I've honestly lucked out with a lot of my reads in recent memory. If a book leaves me feeling happy enough to kick my feet, smile and sigh a little, it deserves all the stars. Simple as that.

My thanks to NetGalley, Wednesday Books and Dana Swift for the eARC of this book in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are my own.

Book Review: Wildflower by Becky Jenkinson

I read the synopsis of this book and was hooked by the comparison to Ella Enchanted. I absolutely adored that book when I was a kid and was more than willing to try reading this book for that reason alone. But then Fliss and Will stole my heart and I wanted to defend those two to the death against every wrong and attack in this book and I fell in love with the story and the people in it. They were messy and sincere and everything to drive home a tale about a girl that finally figures out how to keep things for herself and to fight for what she wants and that she is so much more than a girl with a curse when it finally comes down to it.

I am not exaggerating when I say that I absolutely adored this book. It was just that good.

Wildflower follows Felicity "Fliss" Farrow, a young woman working as a florist who has the ability to draw out the magic in flowers, enhancing every bouquet she makes with the sentiments each flower stands for, hoping to ease heartache, offer sympathy or bring joy to the people who receive them. Fliss is also cursed to tell the truth and as a result of that, she has had to contend with various forms of distrust from the people around her,  with everyone unsure of what Fliss could probably inform the Queen about them. Fliss receives an anonymous request one day for a flower she has never heard of before and determined to prove herself as trustworthy and reliable, Fliss heads into the forest on her own to find the flower. She ends up having to ask Willoh Vane for help, a sorcerer who has been in a feud with the crown prince for the last few years. Fliss has been there as witness for many of their fiery encounters as a result of her best friend being the fiancé to the prince and tensions are running higher than normal because of rebels stealing from wagons in the north and the wedding being only weeks away. As more anonymous requests arrive and Fliss and Will continue to work together to gather these flowers, Fliss begins to wonder what the recipient would want these powerful flowers for when no one seems to know for certain what these flowers together can do. When Fliss starts to believe someone has a wicked plan that requires those flowers, she tries to stop them with Will's help, hoping to save her home, family and friends before it's too late. 

When the book starts, it felt like the familiar cozy fantasy setting, filled with magic and secrets. Within pages readers learned about the strain that Fliss dealt with on a daily basis living with her curse and how it affected her each and every interaction. The citadel is on edge because one of their soldiers died in an attack and the royal family is claiming that everyone will be kept safe within the walls of their home. Every detail fills in this isolated existence that Fliss has been forced to lead, her loneliness leading her to take risks to find her mysterious requests because she just has to do this, no one understands what it means to her to be able to fulfill these requests. At the same time, when Fliss takes those chances and goes out on her own, she's finding that her life in the citadel is confining, and as result, what she knows about the outside world has been affected because the whole truth doesn't reach the citizens of the citadel. Every point about the world helps to highlight themes that start to take shape and grow as Fliss moves on from her role as a florist into someone able to take charge and save the kingdom.

As for the characters, Fliss and Will were the absolute best couple to follow for this tale. Fliss and Will each had their own personal hardships and the fact that they were able to have fun together made me smile because a couple like this is everything fantasy readers could want. Fliss had determination and a stubborn streak a mile wide and I wanted to slap her upside the head when she risked her life but I loved this young woman so much. Will quickly became a favorite the moment he stepped onto the page, his banter with Fliss making me smirk with him because his charm was enchanting and I could see Fliss thawing towards him every time they came together. I was disappointed with other characters, particularly Card and Bash, Fliss's best friend and the prince, who kept a very narrow view of everything happening in the book. I was ready to chuck them out the window but I was confident that Jenkinson would do something brilliant with them because of the fact that I felt so against them and their actions. If I could love Fliss and Will and then want to throttle Card and Bash for their treatment of Fliss and Will, I was sure their development would get to where it needed to go.

Which brings me to the more adult characters in this book. If I wanted to wring Bash's neck, that was nothing compared to what I wanted to do to Queen Fern. The Queen had been calling Fliss in to report directly to her anything she felt she needed to know and because of Fliss's curse, the poor girl could not refuse to give the information. Fliss was forced to learn the limits of her curse, how to withhold things to keep certain facts safe and the fact that this started when she was still almost a child was appalling. There was also the lack of communication with Fliss's mother, Lilibeth, who refused to ever explain why Fliss ended up cursed in the first place. The treatment of Fliss by these adults made me want to pull my hair out because she was a child that was being taken advantage of and as the victim of the curse, she deserved some answers. These women highlighted the theme of trust, or rather the lack of it, to believe in Fliss and to treat her with respect instead of as a tool. This treatment helped Fliss in gaining agency over her life, to understand that she was worth more than the information she provided by being forced to tell the truth. She wasn't something to be discarded if she had nothing to report or even to be disregarded because they would rather doubt her words than truly face what was right in front of them. For a cozy fantasy, these instances elevated the story for me and I was ready for Fliss to take a stand and prove just exactly who she was and how important she could be, cursed or not. I was cheering for Fliss and for Will every step of the way. 

In the end, Wildflower was exactly the kind of romantic cozy fantasy I was hoping to find. Read this if you're looking for a story about a young woman who manages to push the boundaries of her world and learn that to the right people, you are enough, faults and all.

Rating on my Scale: 10 Stars. The vibes on this one, cozy and romantic and inclusive, everything made me get to that ending and made me get a little teary-eyed. When tears make an appearance, it's an automatic 10 Star read for me, no questions asked. 

My thanks to NetGalley, Del Rey, Random House Worlds, Inklore and Becky Jenkinson for the eARC of this book in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are my own.

Book Review: Evie and Her Nightmares by Francesca Zappia

When I first read the title of the next release by Francesca Zappia, Evie and Her Nightmares, I immediately thought of the book Eliza and Her Monsters. There is something everyone needs to understand about that book, my dear Eliza. Eliza and Her Monsters is the one book I usually recommend to readers on social media. I've talked about how important the book is to me in my group chat of reader friends. I love Eliza and Her Monsters still to this day, I have favorite passages that I go back and read over again, knowing that they'll break my heart but I embrace those feelings and then everything that comes after that. So the symmetry to the title made me think it had something to do with that book and I immediately jumped at the chance to request it to review. Evie and Eliza do, in fact, exist in the same world and with that in place, I knew I was about to find a new favorite to read. I have favorite passages already that I want to read again and again in Evie and Her Nightmares. I want to tell all my friends and family to read this book. When I finished reading this story, I had to choke back a few tears because it was the small hours of the morning and the one thought in my head was ALL THE STARS IN THE WORLD to rate this book.

Evie and Her Nightmares is a beautiful, stunning, heart-wrenching read and it was perfect.

This story follows Evie Leigh, picking up at the funeral service for her best friend who suddenly passed away. Alissa committed suicide and now Evie is struggling to figure out how she should be acting at the service. Should she be outwardly sad? Should she be sitting up front with Alissa's family? Evie is autistic and she wants to be blunt and honest with the fact that she doesn't know what to do and this situation makes her want to leave. So she does. Everyone asks how she's feeling but Evie doesn't know how to answer them. While trying to avoid what is going on in her world, she receives a last birthday gift from Alissa, Alissa's set of the Children of Hypnos books. Evie tried to read them once but they didn't appeal to her but now, for the sake of her lost friend, she tries to read them again. Realizing that she loves the story, Evie decides to start playing The Children of Hypnos Online, joining a gaming community that Alissa was also a part of when she was alive. Determined to become the best, Evie devotes all the time she can to this online game, all the while leaving behind the things she used to care about. Evie is skipping track practice, talking back to teachers and letting her grades slip but none of it matters as much as the game. Except the more Evie avoids the real world, the worse it'll be when she is finally forced to face the loss of her best friend.

The world-building in this book is everything you can expect from a high school setting. Evie attends her classes with people who avoid looking at her because they know the loss that she had suffered. They know that Alissa should be with her but she isn't and because of the way she died, everyone would rather avoid the situation altogether instead of paying her any attention. The school is filled with everyone you expected to see and that you used to know in school, from the sympathetic teachers to the hateful classmates that use Alissa as a way to insult Evie. This book perfectly captured that sense of being a teenager and struggling with making choices for the future all the while knowing the struggles that will come with college and finding a job and everything else after that. Which brings in the why about what Alissa did and how different characters, including Evie, are trying to find the reason that drove Alissa to what she did. My heart hurt wandering the school halls with Evie, visiting Alissa's house, hiding in Evie's room while she played online and sitting in the room while Evie tried to start therapy. Everything felt real and because it felt real, it hurt to see Evie avoiding reality. This world felt like opening a window into someone's life and watching all the pieces falling and moving as the story developed.

My lovely, brutally honest Evie, you are one of the best examples of autism I've seen in a book in recent memory. I recognized so many aspects of people I know in this character and for that, I loved her. I found her grief to be authentic and her reactions to the people around her to be incredibly realistic. I was right there with her when she talked back to a teacher and when she fought back against an incredibly rude classmate. I felt her struggle to find a way to interact with Alissa's parents all while not knowing how to stop from making things worse with anything she said or did. I found it interesting that the other character we learned more about, besides Alissa in Evie's memories, was Ash, Alissa's older brother. Ash as a character was someone who was in Evie's corner, feeling her anger and her grief at Alissa's loss and searching for answers. Literally, the moment these two characters really interacted involved the two of them bumping into each other where Alissa was found, because they each thought that it was possible they could find something that Alissa left behind, something that could give them some answers. As the story developed, I appreciated how much effort Ash put into comforting Evie when she needed help and how in turn, Evie became someone Ash could confide in as well. I also adored the fact that Ash was a Monstrous Sea fan. That automatically made me want to help him to be happy along with my dear Evie.

As for the themes of the book, the idea of loss and grief and the effects it has on people, the word that kept circling in my mind was kintsugi. Kintsugi is the ancient Japanese art of repairing broken things, ceramic cups and bowls, with gold or sometimes some other substance, all to show that just because they were broken, it's not the end. The cracks are celebrated, showing a story about the history of the piece. The scars are something to be celebrated and admired, and if the term is applied to people, can show resilience. This word kept going around and around in my head, especially when I thought as I opened this book that I was ready to get my heart broken and put together again while reading this story which reminded me of the term. Kintsugi stayed with my thoughts along with the idea that Evie and Ash, and Ash's parents, and Evie's mom, had all gone through some kind of devastating loss, they had become broken, and they were learning, or had learned, how to fit their broken pieces back together, to make themselves whole again. Watching Evie learn to be more authentic, to be able to say what she wanted and not necessarily be the people pleaser she claimed to have been, all helped with showing how she was remaking herself. Who was Evie without the best friend she thought would always be by her side? What did Evie have to live for and what was it that made Alissa feel like she couldn't stay?

Zappia also adds in the usual adults who don't how to talk about suicide and the adults who dare to judge a girl because she didn't ask for help before she made the decision that she made. All of this highlights how difficult it is to understand the complexities of suicide, showing how many people will never know why someone killed themselves or even if there was anything they could have done that would have made a difference. At the same time, there are no answers given, and that helps with the idea that grief and loss and growing up is different for everyone. No one knows for sure what is going on in someone else's mind but these characters, my dear Evie, are learning what they need to continue on and that lesson is a good one to learn. The book ends on the note of hope of acceptance and it made me cry when I read those last words.

In the end, I truly, sincerely loved and adored this book. If you're a fan of Eliza, you'll find a new favorite with this release. Evie's struggles and her hope for the future are something to be admired and I, for one, am so grateful that this book exists.

Rating on my Scale: All the Stars in the World or 10 Glowing Stars!! Now when I talk about a book you just have to read, it will either be Eliza and Her Monsters or Evie and Her Nightmares. Here's hoping we might see something else from this world again in the future. You never know what the future might hold, after all.

My thanks to Netgalley, HarperCollins Children's Books, Greenwillow Books and Francesca Zappia for the eARC of this book in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.

Book Review: A Date with Death by Kelly Creagh

As a member of a reader family, there's always a wide array of books available that someone somewhere is reading. Raised with two siblings, we each had a set of authors that we followed, book genres we favored, things that set us apart from one another so that our libraries were diverse. With my sister, we even had the odd occasion where we refused to read the same thing the other one was reading, simply because they'd found the book first. Then there would be the times where my sister and I were completely in sync. We'd each separately go to a bookstore and come home with some books that we didn't immediately tell the other about. At least until the moment that we see the other with the exact SAME BOOK we'd just bought the day before. One book that happened with?

Nevermore by Kelly Creagh.

Which is why I've followed Kelly Creagh to every book release since that first book. Nevermore holds a special place in my heart because of that moment of a pure sister bond manifested as something concrete, a book we both randomly found that we had in common. I check every year to see if there's a new book coming from Kelly Creagh. A Date with Death turned up for request and I didn't think twice about requesting it. Did I have too many books to read on my shelf? Absolutely. Did I let a lot of books pile up that I needed to read and review before I could get to A Date with Death if I was lucky enough to be approved? Most Definitely. But I absolutely, irrefutably, NEEDED to read this book. I sat up in bed and danced when I got my approval. And what was the verdict on the book once I finished reading it?

I LOVED each and every single moment of it.

A Date with Death first follows Helena Hart, a literal ray of sunshine who works as a children's librarian. Helena is at a Halloween party, having just been ditched by her date, when she decides to take a chance and talk to the guy on the balcony, the one dressed like the Grim Reaper. Trying her best to get a conversation going, Helena is taken by surprise when the balcony ledge crumbles behind her. She's even more surprised when her companion catches hold of her hand with his skeletal one. He leaves Helena behind to wonder about what just happened with her near death experience. The book also follows Grim, the being tasked with reaping souls, not saving them. The fact that he spared Helena's life could lead to repercussions for his job and for Helena's continued existence as a member of the living. But Grim couldn't let Helena perish and he also can't leave her alone, drawn to watch and protect her from afar. Determined to find a solution that will keep Helena safe, Grim slowly lets himself get closer to Helena knowing that caring for her could spell the end for them both if they are discovered.

It was easy to sink into this book and just let it wash over me. I loved the setting, the fact that Helena worked a job she adored with kids at the library. I found the idea of the home for Grim and his adopted family, the Netherworld and the Hallowed Halls, to be so interesting. Honestly, I hope Creagh decides to continue writing in this world she created because there were so many ideas about the dimension where Grim takes the souls he reaps and where he takes the time to settle and rest that I'm am itching to know more. The details given about how Grim became the Grim Reaper and who else has managed to get to reside in the Hallowed Halls and how the portals work to the Netherworld just made me want to know everything. There is so much potential here for more books and if those are in the future for us readers, I'm camping out now just to get the chance to know more about this plane of existence.

As for the characters, I loved everyone in this book, and that took me by surprise. I loved Helena and her incredible sense of optimism. I loved how she enjoyed working with children and had done so much to enrich the lives of the kids who came to her in the library. There was storytimes filled with children, a bookmobile that was a pain and then the fun accessories she used like her earrings and her bags and altogether these details showed a woman who not only loved her job and life but also embraced the things that made her different and that brought her joy. I wanted her to find her happiness and I was ready to wring Grim's neck each time he stepped away from her. I trust Creagh's writing though, so I waited patiently for Grim to grow and his evolution over the course of the book was exactly what it needed to be for this story. There were so many things that were hinted and then came through that made me more and more invested in this couple together and in learning exactly what had made Grim. They were the perfect example of the grumpy/sunshine trope. Their scenes together were sweet and spicy and lovely and perfect. There was also Johann, Flora, Cedric and The Few in the Netherworld and I sincerely want to know more about each. The whys about how they ended up with their fates and the whys about how they ended up with their jobs in the Hallowed Halls. Creagh created a cast of characters, a beautiful found family, that I wish I could join in, if only just to listen to the things they would say. Also, if it's possible to put in an application to take Pluto the raven in as a pet, I'll put my name down now. 

As for the overall effect of the book, a lot of what elevates this is the discoveries made about the whys about everything happening in the book. Grim continuously finds himself going back to Helena, drawn to her like a moth to the flame, and as their connection grows he finds himself having to save her again and again. But why is Helena being targeted? Why did Grim become the reaper? What was keeping Grim from truly accepting that he was falling in love with Helena? These questions kept me turning pages and their answers made me sit back and just let the answers wash over me because they were unexpected and yet at the same time, such a good twist. Anything else said veers too far into spoilers but I'll finish by saying that the ending of this book made me smile. 

For me it's simple: I loved this book. I loved the world and its characters. I came to the conclusion a long time ago to read everything that Kelly Creagh writes. This book has just cemented the fact that I made the right decision.

Rating on my Scale: I give a lot of 10 Stars but I sincerely believe that this one was brilliant. I loved the romance and the world-building and the people in this story. Also, the book left me wanting to know more which is also the sign of a job well done for me.

My thanks to Netgalley, Gallery Books and Kelly Creagh for the eARC of this book in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.

Book Review: Julia at the Drive-in by Rainbow Rowell

I read everything by Rainbow Rowell. I've been a fan for years so a new short story was an immediate add to my shelf to read.

The simple premise of this story is that a girl, Julia, decides that her new appearance is different enough for her to take a chance and finally talk to the guy she's been watching for three years. When he talks to her and spends time with her at the drive-in where they both are on the last Saturday night before the school year starts, Julia wonders who it is he sees now, Julia or a stranger?

The story is a quick read and Rowell easily fills in the world of this tale. We know that Julia's parents aren't the kind to go out. Julia has a best friend, Chloe, who has taken Julia under her wing even though she's technically the new girl but she picked Julia as her friend and includes her in everything. Then there's Wyatt, the boy in question, the one who has a group of friends with him at the drive-in that he's always together with but when he gets the chance, chooses to sit with Julia during the movie when they both end up on their own at the drive-in. 

In the span of maybe 30 pages, readers learn so much about these kids and Julia especially felt like someone I could have been in high school. I loved her observations and I loved the chance she took to make herself happy. Her worries about how she's seen, the fact that so many seem to act like she's invisible, the fact that one girl choosing her as a friend and how it made such a difference in her life, all of it made Julia so endearing. I wanted this girl to hold her head up and be confident in the fact that she was worth noticing. The way Rowell wrapped this up was perfect.

I knew what the twist or reveal was going to be but it was still such a heart-warming moment in the end. This story is such a sweet moment to witness between two teens who find a chance together and take it.

Rating on my scale: 10 Stars. This was so sweet in the end and I'm really looking forward to reading the rest of the stories in this series.

My thanks to Netgalley, Amazon Original Stories and Rainbow Rowell for the eARC of this story in exchange for a review. All honest opinions are my own.

Book Review: Immortal Game by Allison Saft

I don't know anything about chess. Let's get that out of the way first, as chess is a driving force of this novel. I know the basics, how to set up the board, what the pieces are and how they move. But when it comes to actually being able to play, to see strategy and make attack plans and know how to defend, I know nothing. However, I do enjoy watching chess, seeing others play the game. I enjoy watching shows about chess and reading books about chess players. I understand the joy it can bring and the interest it garners so when I saw that Allison Saft was going to have a book that focused on an important chess tournament, I knew I would read it. Even more, I knew I would love it. This was such a good book filled with flawed characters and a struggle that felt poignant. Everything worked in this book to have readers follow these characters, to care about every one of them and to see how this all played out in the end.

Immortal Game follows Shea Fury, a young woman whose elder sister was taken away by the High King of the Otherworld, the ruler of the fae. Shea has been dreaming of being able to rescue her sister but the Iron Veil keeps the worlds separated. Shea loved playing chess as a child and now as an adult, she competes in championships, spending all of her time studying chess, trying to become the best. When a once in a lifetime invitation from the Otherworld for a chess tournament arrives for Shea, she knows her best chance of getting her sister back is to play and win for the one that defeats the High King at chess will be granted one wish. Once in the Otherworld though, Shea comes to realize that things are more dangerous than she anticipated. The tournament players will do anything to make sure they will be the ones to face the High King and get their wish. To survive, Shea forges an alliance with the princess, Ciara of Bri Leith, an opponent that Shea has known for years and has played against before. Shea has to learn to put their differences aside and get to the end of the tournament to finally put things right again and have her family whole once more.

The world-building was great, drawn with a fine hand to fill in the kind of town that Shea grew up in and the Otherworld where the tournament takes place. Readers learn about how the town has treated the family, specifically how they treated Shea's mother when she randomly ended up pregnant. When Shea's sister Aideen was born, the story grows around her, a mysterious child with an otherworldly presence about her. The town was already against a teenager that randomly got pregnant but when her daughter ends up being "different", tensions in the town and the family get worse. Readers are given glimpses of the past to show how chess was important to Shea and how the town treated her as opposed to her sister. All of this serves to show the connection between the two sisters and why Shea was so determined to get her sister back. I understood the setbacks in the town and the struggles Aideen and Shea had as outsiders in their home. Everything felt real, palpable even, from the town to the castle in the Otherworld, filled with its own dangers that Shea had to learn to defend herself against. The fact that the castle was kept secluded and how the tournament was the first time guests had been there in years showed how the High King had cut himself and his queen, Aideen, off from others. The fae had their rules of hospitality and the vows that were carefully considered between them and humans. The grounds outside of the castle held unknown threats, shown with the different trials the High King, Midir, set to get the players eliminated. The fact that the tournament was only held once every century made it the even that everyone was tuned into and the way the town reacts when Shea is revealed to be attending and then the way the spectators grow in the tournament hall all serve to highlight how much significance the tournament has in both the human and the fae world. All together, every detail helps with understanding the motivating force of one sister determined to rescue the other.

My dear, darling Shea, you were so awkward and a bit abrasive and I loved every snarling word that came out of your mouth. The attitude this girl had made me snort, I was just happy to see how quick Shea was to fight back even when she was caught off guard. I wanted her to win, I wanted her to find Aideen, I wanted her to just talk to Ciara, and I loved this girl enough that I followed her through every blunder and brash decision she made because I believed in her. Ciara was a surprise, a capable young fae who thought she was somehow not enough to care about. Her connection to Shea was obvious from the start and their back and forth made me smile because when they were allies, they were perfect for each other. Sure, they had trouble really communicating but their growth together made me smile because they were honestly so sweet together. Aideen was the fae with a tragic backstory and I loved her energy as the supportive older sister. She was there for Shea in ways their mother chose not to be and I respected her for that. As for Midir, the High King, the reveals we learn about him over the course of the book made me stand firmly on Shea's side. Other characters of importance included Daniil, a human competitor that has been butting heads with Shea for some time. Now that they are both in the tournament, Shea and Daniil come to a better understanding with each other, and while I nearly hated the guy when he first appeared on the page, I really respected him by the end of the book.

The tournament itself was intriguing from the start. I followed every match carefully and hoped for the best for the characters. The reveals given about the tournament made my jaw drop and I immediately wished I could vent to other readers but I'll content myself to wait for when this is finally released. The stakes were raised with each match and with every elimination. Some of the twists surprised me and I loved every step this book took to get to the conclusion. I'll admit, there was a point where my eyes got a little misty and when that happens, a book is automatically catapulted into favorites territory. I loved this book and it's messy characters and their love of chess. The love story was sweet, the tournament was high-stakes and everything came together in a way that made me eager to see what Saft comes up with next. I'd love to talk more about certain characters and reveals but the gains this book makes depend on those twists so suffice to say that there might be a few things you don't see coming and it is all brilliantly woven together in this book.

Read this book if you love a high stakes tournament with a sweet love story mixed in and characters you grow to love with every page you turn.

Rating on my Scale: 10 Stars. I know I give 10 Stars out a lot. Probably has a lot to do with the moods and impressions I'm left with at the end of each of these great books and I loved this one by the end. I have a few Saft books left to read so I'll end this review with a bit of applause and a smile because I know there's more great books left for me to read. 

My thanks to Netgalley, St. Martin's Press and Allison Saft for the eARC of this book in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.

Book Review: Muñeca by Cynthia Gómez

I'm sorry to say that this beautiful book was not on my radar until I received it for review. The title is what drew me in, the word muñeca bringing back images from my childhood and the words that used to swirl around in my head when I had to use them to speak to everyone in my family who wasn't a kid like me. I was drawn in by the image and then the plot caught my attention, about a young woman who decides to free another young woman from a spell she has been under for six years, and I immediately thought that I had to make sure I had the time to read and review this book. I've already looked into finding a copy of Gómez's short story collection. It will look wonderful next to my copy of Muñeca, where the two of them will proudly stand waiting for my works to join them on the shelf.

I loved this story. I loved these characters. I loved its history and its power and it is truly a magnificent work. I want to pass this around to anyone who will read it and give copies to my relatives. When I want to buy copies to give to my family, that's how I really know I LOVED a book.

Muñeca follows Natalia Fuentes, a young woman in Oakland who has a talent for math and who lost her mother a few years back. Natalia hears about the daughter of her mother's former employer, a young heiress, who has been struck ill and left immobilized for six years. Natalia suspects that someone has cast a spell over the victim, witchcraft being something Natalia has experience with, and the evidence seems to indicate something truly dark was done to the victim. Natalia devises a plan to become the next caretaker for the young woman and offering her a deal. Natalia will break the spell in exchange for a hefty sum. As Natalia enters the house and begins her work, she has to find out who cast the spell and why. All the while, Natalia and her charge begin to develop feelings for one another and Natalia starts to wonder how far she will go with the power she has to break the spell and punish the people responsible for casting it.

I'll start with the setting and the world building. Gómez gives a wonderful introduction to Natalia and her current life in Oakland. We learn about what happened to her family, that she was incredibly gifted in math and that she had a good relationship with her mom, whose words she still lives by to this day. We also learn that Natalia started to understand early on that she was queer and how she went about with navigating a life as a bank teller and finding other women she could be friends with and try to have a relationships with as well. We learn about how women held house parties where they could feel safe together and how Natalia found a friend, Doris, who she moved in with and how these women became friends, people she would do anything to protect. At the same time, Gómez shows how Natalia is just another face, invisible in a sense, because those in power won't acknowledge her but this should not be what Natalia keeps for herself. And all of it endeared this young woman to me, a girl who should have been able to fight back but because of the times and who she was, it was almost safer for her to stay unnoticed. We understand within the first 10 pages of this book that Natalia has grit, that she has been forced to endure, and it is almost a sense of injustice that drives her to find a way to help another woman who has been hurt. I could understand this world and its people and I was firmly on Natalia's side through whatever would come her way.

Oh, Natalia, what can I say, she was one tough, intelligent, powerful force. I loved her voice, the way she would make her snide remarks about her employers and yet she would bring her mother's words to mind to keep herself in check. I thought the balance this achieved was perfectly laid out, explaining what the witchcraft she returned to could make of her if she let it get too far and yet she was constantly pushing her boundaries and taking strides with her power. Enough that she was proving that she could be more powerful than anyone had realized before, including her grandmother, who had taught a bit of witchcraft when she was barely a teenager. Her connection with Violeta, the young woman under a spell, was so sweetly done. The fact of the matter is that the story has to work with a couple who could barely communicate together. Their connection is yearning glances and words on paper that they couldn't keep and it was so wonderfully wrought that I believed their connection and I respected the way it worked out. This was a couple I was rooting for and their journey together was beautiful to behold. 

The rest of the cast is filled with faces that all have some kind of hold on the main couple. Natalia has her friend Doris, who is protective of Natalia and knows what has taken Natalia from her steady job to attempting to free Violeta. There is also Violeta's husband, Andres, a man who seems unconcerned about the ailment that befell his wife and spends a large portion of the story haunting the women because he is a man who controls everything even when he's not on the page. There is also Violeta's mother, Mrs. Miramontes, who had previously hired Natalia's mother years earlier, the kind of woman who doesn't recognize Natalia as having spent time in her home because Natalia was the same as the help and not worth the attention. We also see enough of the past to witness Natalia's mother and how she raised her daughter and then also Natalia's grandmother and how those two women were in direct contrast to each other, two sides that Natalia has the potential for within herself. Each of these people serve their purpose in fleshing out the story and as a driving force for the actions of each character. All of these pieces work to create a story of power and rage and redemption that make this book unique as well as a moving love story.

As for the plot, the workings of this book are concise, nothing feels out of place, all questions get answered in due time. I love when I get to the end of a story and feel a sense of vindication, a knowledge that everything in this story had a purpose and the ends have been brought together enough that I love where the development went. I can also smile because this story brought some twists I didn't expect with its resolution and I loved the direction it went with that. The ways this story drew on every bit of information given in the setup were superbly done. I had a moment where I wondered if we'd see one thing on the page, something only spoken of before and when it happened, the way it unfolded was something I did not even consider and yet of course that was the way it went. Moments like those elevate a story, when the author takes their story somewhere it needs to go and surprises you with the reveals. I'm still admiring the way this book was woven together and I want to go back and make notes on favorite lines that hint at what is to come because the skill it took is admirable. Honestly, I'm so impressed by this book.

The title itself also bears mentioning with the connotations it had for the plot and characters. A muneca is a doll, what Violeta was literally turned into as the result of a spell. And yet over the course of this book, the use of the word changed, becoming something that when armed could wreak havoc on those that have wronged them. A plaything one moment and then a force to contend with, I admired the way this changed over the course of this story. When I first saw the title, I initially thought it was supposed to be used as a term of endearment but it was so much more than that and the transformation was another aspect of this story that I was not expecting. Everything about this story was so well-planned, I'm still making connections even as I'm writing this review. That's how I know that this book is something to exclaim over to anyone who will listen.

In the end, I feel like Muñeca is a powerful tale about a woman who learns about what she could take from her past to build something better for her future. It's also a beautifully rendered love story about choice and free will. Together, both make a book that I'm sure will resonate with readers once they've read it.

Rating on my Scale: I'm giving this 10 Stars. I finished this book less than an hour ago and I'm still looking at it and remembering the magic it held and the power and rage it kept in its pages and I think it was just plain awesome. No other words necessary to describe it.

My thanks to Netgalley, Putnam, G.P. Putnam's Sons and Cynthia Gómez for the eARC of this book in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.