this anthology was really fun and diverse in stories. a phoenix first must burnis a collection of short stories abouactual rating: 3.5 stars
rep: black
this anthology was really fun and diverse in stories. a phoenix first must burnis a collection of short stories about black girls in different settings. i enjoyed the lore and culture of the black community in different environments and characters of different backgrounds. however, there were some stories that fell short in terms of execution which just meant that i wasn’t drawn into the story as much as i wanted. there’s a wide range of stories with females taking back control, finding love after being betrayed, having strength in the toughest times. the resilience of women shines through....more
sophia has memories of her mother of a past that never happened before. she got them after her mom passed away when she was six. the world was giving sophia has memories of her mother of a past that never happened before. she got them after her mom passed away when she was six. the world was giving her flashbacks of moments she has never personally experienced before. somehow, she met a schoolmate who has such flashbacks and shares the same birthday as her.
after guessing that maybe the upcoming eclipse could thin the lines of the universes, all sophia can think about is meeting her mother. sophia, dj, and luke will venture further into this theory even when none of the adults will believe them. throughout the novel, sophia developed friendships with a rebel and an artist. all of them are grieving or missing someone. what ifs peppered their minds and hence, they set out to find out for themselves–whether parallel universes do exist.
sophia finds out that the grass is not always greener on the other side. a painful inevitability that she needs to experience. the topics of family and grief are tight heavily together. sophia lost her mother at a young age yet she has weird deja vu-like moments of a parallel her living with a mother who is still alive. this false sense of hope can get confusing for young sophia who misses her mother, especially when she sees her father grieving by himself and refusing to talk about his late wife. nobody has it easy when a loved one dies and they tend to grief on their own without communicating with others....more
after getting lost in the rain on the way to her vacay cabin, eileen is transported into rachel flower’s quixotic falls series. yes, she’s inside a toafter getting lost in the rain on the way to her vacay cabin, eileen is transported into rachel flower’s quixotic falls series. yes, she’s inside a town that she read in a book, she’s meeting characters who only existed in words. except for this one grumpy guy who might be rachel flower’s next male lead but never written about because rachel flower passed away before she could publish her next book.
”I promise to tell you the truth.”
not gonna lie, eileen is annoying at the start. with time, she realized that she’s afraid. while her friends moved forward with their lives, eileen is stuck at the present, doing nothing, being nothing, having no one romantically special. since she was burned in a past relationship, eileen has no idea how to move forward from there and whether she can find someone new is a whole other question to worry about. ultimately, a novel love story is a romance. love comes when you least expect it and at the most unexpected setting. eileen has never thought that she would find a love in a fictional world in real life.
anders was just minding his own business in the middle of the road and in the pouring rain when a car hits him. out comes a stranger in this fictional town that he has been living in for a few years. he doesn’t know what to make of eileen but he can’t deny that he was intrigued. for all the secrets of this town, she is entirely real. soon, they would fall in love yet there’s still a chasm created by the past between them. everyone could see their love story blossoming yet, it isn’t enough.
Sometimes, a book can change your life. It’s hard to explain that to someone who doesn’t read, or who has never felt their heart bend so strongly toward a story that it might just snap in two. Some books are a comfort, some a reprieve, others a vacation, a lesson, a heartbreak. I’d met countless stories by the time I read a book that changed my life.
overall, it must’ve been so magical to step into a fictional world and meeting the characters you’ve been reading about. eileen adjusted to this change in her life quite well and anders, while a grumpy man, was really sweet to eileen....more
aug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yaug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yunifer and ishid!!!!! omg, the communication, the visual, the love. everything was done perfectly. i appreciated that there was no third party involved (i don’t think ishid would even allow that to happen.) ishid had a rough childhood – with his father blaming him for killing his mother and then the trauma of witnessing his father’s death and, on top of that, the emperor was an abusive tyrant. he grew up fearing his fire powers and stayed away from yunifer even though he was interested in her.
fast forward, at a ball, they met and had a one night stand which yunifer wanted to pretend it’s all a mistake since ishid will be meeting the actual female lead one year from now. however, ishid’s reactions melted her and they started dating. i loved ishid’s contrast when he’s with yunifer vs when he’s with other people. they had never truly seen him happy or smiling prior to yunifer. his trauma due to his childhood was pretty upsetting and i loved that yunifer slowly healed him by showing him that he is loved and is loveable.
as for yunifer, she was transmigrated into the novel but adjusted pretty quickly. i liked that she is headstrong and kind. she knew when she needs to give space for ishid and when she could push him a little bit more. her relationship with her father is quite sad as well. i think it’s hard for him to reconcile with his past guilt, but yunifer is showing him that everything is okay and that they can move forward together. she truly healed many people throughout the book.
i kinda wished we had cassian and raella’s story, but i guess it’s just not meant to be. the overall plot of the emperor and the monsters was quite interesting as well, considering i was just looking forward to a fluffy romance. overall, i had so much fun. i finished this so quickly.
definitely one of my favourite manga/webtoon series....more
aug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yaug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yunifer and ishid!!!!! omg, the communication, the visual, the love. everything was done perfectly. i appreciated that there was no third party involved (i don’t think ishid would even allow that to happen.) ishid had a rough childhood – with his father blaming him for killing his mother and then the trauma of witnessing his father’s death and, on top of that, the emperor was an abusive tyrant. he grew up fearing his fire powers and stayed away from yunifer even though he was interested in her.
fast forward, at a ball, they met and had a one night stand which yunifer wanted to pretend it’s all a mistake since ishid will be meeting the actual female lead one year from now. however, ishid’s reactions melted her and they started dating. i loved ishid’s contrast when he’s with yunifer vs when he’s with other people. they had never truly seen him happy or smiling prior to yunifer. his trauma due to his childhood was pretty upsetting and i loved that yunifer slowly healed him by showing him that he is loved and is loveable.
as for yunifer, she was transmigrated into the novel but adjusted pretty quickly. i liked that she is headstrong and kind. she knew when she needs to give space for ishid and when she could push him a little bit more. her relationship with her father is quite sad as well. i think it’s hard for him to reconcile with his past guilt, but yunifer is showing him that everything is okay and that they can move forward together. she truly healed many people throughout the book.
i kinda wished we had cassian and raella’s story, but i guess it’s just not meant to be. the overall plot of the emperor and the monsters was quite interesting as well, considering i was just looking forward to a fluffy romance. overall, i had so much fun. i finished this so quickly.
definitely one of my favourite manga/webtoon series....more
aug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yaug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yunifer and ishid!!!!! omg, the communication, the visual, the love. everything was done perfectly. i appreciated that there was no third party involved (i don’t think ishid would even allow that to happen.) ishid had a rough childhood – with his father blaming him for killing his mother and then the trauma of witnessing his father’s death and, on top of that, the emperor was an abusive tyrant. he grew up fearing his fire powers and stayed away from yunifer even though he was interested in her.
fast forward, at a ball, they met and had a one night stand which yunifer wanted to pretend it’s all a mistake since ishid will be meeting the actual female lead one year from now. however, ishid’s reactions melted her and they started dating. i loved ishid’s contrast when he’s with yunifer vs when he’s with other people. they had never truly seen him happy or smiling prior to yunifer. his trauma due to his childhood was pretty upsetting and i loved that yunifer slowly healed him by showing him that he is loved and is loveable.
as for yunifer, she was transmigrated into the novel but adjusted pretty quickly. i liked that she is headstrong and kind. she knew when she needs to give space for ishid and when she could push him a little bit more. her relationship with her father is quite sad as well. i think it’s hard for him to reconcile with his past guilt, but yunifer is showing him that everything is okay and that they can move forward together. she truly healed many people throughout the book.
i kinda wished we had cassian and raella’s story, but i guess it’s just not meant to be. the overall plot of the emperor and the monsters was quite interesting as well, considering i was just looking forward to a fluffy romance. overall, i had so much fun. i finished this so quickly.
definitely one of my favourite manga/webtoon series....more
aug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yaug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yunifer and ishid!!!!! omg, the communication, the visual, the love. everything was done perfectly. i appreciated that there was no third party involved (i don’t think ishid would even allow that to happen.) ishid had a rough childhood – with his father blaming him for killing his mother and then the trauma of witnessing his father’s death and, on top of that, the emperor was an abusive tyrant. he grew up fearing his fire powers and stayed away from yunifer even though he was interested in her.
fast forward, at a ball, they met and had a one night stand which yunifer wanted to pretend it’s all a mistake since ishid will be meeting the actual female lead one year from now. however, ishid’s reactions melted her and they started dating. i loved ishid’s contrast when he’s with yunifer vs when he’s with other people. they had never truly seen him happy or smiling prior to yunifer. his trauma due to his childhood was pretty upsetting and i loved that yunifer slowly healed him by showing him that he is loved and is loveable.
as for yunifer, she was transmigrated into the novel but adjusted pretty quickly. i liked that she is headstrong and kind. she knew when she needs to give space for ishid and when she could push him a little bit more. her relationship with her father is quite sad as well. i think it’s hard for him to reconcile with his past guilt, but yunifer is showing him that everything is okay and that they can move forward together. she truly healed many people throughout the book.
i kinda wished we had cassian and raella’s story, but i guess it’s just not meant to be. the overall plot of the emperor and the monsters was quite interesting as well, considering i was just looking forward to a fluffy romance. overall, i had so much fun. i finished this so quickly.
definitely one of my favourite manga/webtoon series....more
aug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yaug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yunifer and ishid!!!!! omg, the communication, the visual, the love. everything was done perfectly. i appreciated that there was no third party involved (i don’t think ishid would even allow that to happen.) ishid had a rough childhood – with his father blaming him for killing his mother and then the trauma of witnessing his father’s death and, on top of that, the emperor was an abusive tyrant. he grew up fearing his fire powers and stayed away from yunifer even though he was interested in her.
fast forward, at a ball, they met and had a one night stand which yunifer wanted to pretend it’s all a mistake since ishid will be meeting the actual female lead one year from now. however, ishid’s reactions melted her and they started dating. i loved ishid’s contrast when he’s with yunifer vs when he’s with other people. they had never truly seen him happy or smiling prior to yunifer. his trauma due to his childhood was pretty upsetting and i loved that yunifer slowly healed him by showing him that he is loved and is loveable.
as for yunifer, she was transmigrated into the novel but adjusted pretty quickly. i liked that she is headstrong and kind. she knew when she needs to give space for ishid and when she could push him a little bit more. her relationship with her father is quite sad as well. i think it’s hard for him to reconcile with his past guilt, but yunifer is showing him that everything is okay and that they can move forward together. she truly healed many people throughout the book.
i kinda wished we had cassian and raella’s story, but i guess it’s just not meant to be. the overall plot of the emperor and the monsters was quite interesting as well, considering i was just looking forward to a fluffy romance. overall, i had so much fun. i finished this so quickly.
definitely one of my favourite manga/webtoon series....more
aug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yaug 2024 completed: 87 chapters + 17 special chapters
actual rating: 4.5 stars this review is for the whole series.
so. freaking. adorable!!!!!! i loved yunifer and ishid!!!!! omg, the communication, the visual, the love. everything was done perfectly. i appreciated that there was no third party involved (i don’t think ishid would even allow that to happen.) ishid had a rough childhood – with his father blaming him for killing his mother and then the trauma of witnessing his father’s death and, on top of that, the emperor was an abusive tyrant. he grew up fearing his fire powers and stayed away from yunifer even though he was interested in her.
fast forward, at a ball, they met and had a one night stand which yunifer wanted to pretend it’s all a mistake since ishid will be meeting the actual female lead one year from now. however, ishid’s reactions melted her and they started dating. i loved ishid’s contrast when he’s with yunifer vs when he’s with other people. they had never truly seen him happy or smiling prior to yunifer. his trauma due to his childhood was pretty upsetting and i loved that yunifer slowly healed him by showing him that he is loved and is loveable.
as for yunifer, she was transmigrated into the novel but adjusted pretty quickly. i liked that she is headstrong and kind. she knew when she needs to give space for ishid and when she could push him a little bit more. her relationship with her father is quite sad as well. i think it’s hard for him to reconcile with his past guilt, but yunifer is showing him that everything is okay and that they can move forward together. she truly healed many people throughout the book.
i kinda wished we had cassian and raella’s story, but i guess it’s just not meant to be. the overall plot of the emperor and the monsters was quite interesting as well, considering i was just looking forward to a fluffy romance. overall, i had so much fun. i finished this so quickly.
definitely one of my favourite manga/webtoon series....more
what a start to a trilogy that’s filled with magic and politics. the book is written in the perspectivrep: bi MC, trans SC, gender neutral SC (xe/xir)
what a start to a trilogy that’s filled with magic and politics. the book is written in the perspectives about four characters and flip flops between two main timelines. this was confusing for me at first since it was still hard to pinpoint who was where and doing what, but after awhile, it got better. which i would like to attribute to the writer’s ability in drawing characters together in their distinctive voices and characteristics.
xiala is a ship captain who accepted a job in transporting someone to tova, the jewel of the continent, within a short amount of day. as a teek, although disgraced, she can calm the waters with her powers, making her the perfect person for this task. the person onboard is serapio, a blind and scarred man. he has a mission that he needs to fulfil at tova. he is the crow god reborn. not only does he have great hearing than most, he can communicate with the crows. his mission is tied to celestial prophecies and he’s destined to be one of the destined. the journey to tova was treacherous and i was glad that their relationship developed slowly and wasn’t out of necessity.
“I am not the sea,” he said, “but I have children, too.”
meanwhile, the sun priest is at risk of being usurped and power stolen from them. i think nara’s backstory could be expanded more. out of the four perspectives, i think hers have so much potential to explore and to figure out her next step forward in the future books. as for okoa’s perspective, i’m not too sure if i would 100% need his perspective, but it’s definitely interesting to read his thought process and motivations.
the pre-columbian americas setting is one that i have not much familiarity nor contact with, so it was really interesting to read about such a rich history interwoven within with magic and lore. the magic system was really fun to explore as well. i wasn’t expecting mermaids/sirens and gods to make an appearance.
the next two books will be an adventure to go on. each of the characters are yearning to belong in a place that they might or might not truly feel at home. some of their goals at the start of the book were already achieved, so what’s next? some of them find themselves abandoned and marooned, so what’s next? i wonder what will happen....more
the magic paintbrush focused highly on the plot and the connection to art. amy’s art felt dull and unimpressive lately, ever since she started to takethe magic paintbrush focused highly on the plot and the connection to art. amy’s art felt dull and unimpressive lately, ever since she started to take art seriously. when amy visited lao lao while her parents are on a holiday, she found an ancient paintbrush that gave life to the things she drew. one of the art that came alive was luna, part eagle and part tiger. however, amy soon finds out when the paintbrush was activated by her, an ancient painting of a scary beast came alive and is out to hunt down the paintbrush’s current user. the book is filled with ancient chinese lore which i absolutely loved. although it was a quick read, the author managed to develop amy’s relationship with lao lao and showed that art is best when there’s freedom of expression.
overall thoughts: it was cute and i adored lao lao who has always urged amy to trust amy's own art. when art comes to live, it's a whole new experience....more
usually the mission gets accomplished 95% into the book; near the end. however, lia achieved her destiny right from the start. she was trained to killusually the mission gets accomplished 95% into the book; near the end. however, lia achieved her destiny right from the start. she was trained to kill ruven, the heretic sorcerer that made the royal family into sleeping beauties and silenced the gods, and wake the royals. and she actually did it. when she finally met her god, nin-anna rejected her for her tainted hands. now, lia was accepted by another.
To please the gods, you must reflect the gods.
throughout the story, lia’s faith and believe in the gods were tested and that is where she struggled the most. her determination and intelligence when it came to resolving the situation are something that i enjoyed reading about. the whole politics of saints, gods, and the royal family was an interesting take as well, especially with the queen being unreasonable and unfit to gain such powers. as for the romance, i thought it was pretty good. i couldn’t really grasp on ruven’s character from the start, but it got better afterwards.
i won’t touch on the whole religious aspect of the book since i don’t identify myself as a catholic. however, it’s a very strong element within lia as she discovered the nature of the gods from her own perspective.
overall, it was good for me! i enjoyed rosamund hodge's cruel beauty and crimson bound, so i picked up what monstrous gods....more
although beth and devon are rivals in ornithology, they were attracted to each other right from the start. they admired each other’s tenacity and passalthough beth and devon are rivals in ornithology, they were attracted to each other right from the start. they admired each other’s tenacity and passion for the study of birds. when beth and devon’s paths converge on their way to capture an endangered caladrius, they never did expect their interactions to go past glances and witty comebacks, but fate has another thing lined up for them.
i loved how the author just blended the whole journey of capturing the bird to their romance. we can see the characters falling in love with one another. i, with the public in the story, was cheering for them every step of the way.
also, the whole situation turning out to be a (view spoiler)[recruitment drive for ornithology (hide spoiler)] was hilarious. definitely wasn’t expecting that. overall, i had fun with the silliness, the falling in love, the whole adventure of capturing the endangered bird. india holton has done it again. i'm looking forward to the rest of the series....more
belle ☆ﾐ (thisbellereadstoo)
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