Blink

 Tell me a story... about facing your past

Blink by Christopher Sebela, Nick Filardi, and Hayden Sherman (Illustrations)

Publication date: May 16, 2023

Date read: March 25, 2023

Wren Booker was three when she was found alone and covered in blood on the streets of New York. Since that day, she’s been haunted by the childhood she can't remember…until decades later when she finds a cryptic website streaming multiple CCT feeds from strange rooms in a ruined building. Something clicks, setting off hidden memories that lead her back to a place she’s seen in lifelong nightmares. Hunting for answers, Wren breaks in and finds herself lost in the camera-filled dark mazes of a decayed social experiment known only as BLINK...which she quickly discovers is not abandoned at all.

I was intrigued by this comic, mostly because of the cover artwork, so I decided to give it a shot.

First, the negative: this storyline was confusing! A downside of science fiction can often be a convoluted, confusing plot, which is what this comic suffered from. The idea behind it was intriguing, and the story was actually super creepy in a lot of places, which was great - but the story as a whole was just too hard to follow. Add in a lot of dark pages (atmospheric, sure, but sometimes hard to tell what's going on), and it just didn't work for me. [Example - it took me until page 83 to realize that Wren was female. Oops.]

The positive: The art was really fascinating. Non-traditional formatting on a lot of pages, and just really cool imagery throughout. A comic book can live or die based on the art, and I thought this art was great. I would definitely seek out these artists in the future. And I did really like the idea behind the story, so I might even read more by Sebela, even though this specific story didn't work for me. 

Overall, I felt that this was a big shot by these creators and that it just didn't quite make it. The artwork was amazing, though, so if you're open to a bit of weird sci-fi in your comics, it's a quick read and could be worth checking out. 

Rating: 2.5/5 stars

Content warning: night terrors, death of parents, blood, graphic violence, body horror

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

The Christmas Countdown

Tell me a story... of finding your holiday spirit

The Christmas Countdown by Holly Cassidy

Expected Publication date: October 22, 2024

Date read: July 12, 2024

All Callie wants for Christmas is to hibernate. She's still reeling from being dumped by her childhood sweetheart, and under no circumstances will she go home for the holidays considering her ex will be right next door with his new, perfect partner. Callie is officially in grinch mode, but her meddling sister, Anita, won’t let her give up on life, love, and Christmas quite so easily. So Anita stages a Christmas intervention for Callie with a homemade Advent calendar challenge—cheerful tasks to push Callie out of her comfort zone and into the holiday spirit, inspired by a childhood tradition. Callie reluctantly plays along, but when she comes face-to-face with a charming baker who just might be the spoonful of sugar she needs, her strict rules on love and the holidays are tested. As they strike a deal to do the activities together, could the twenty-four little doors on Callie’s Advent calendar not only open up one, but two closed-off hearts?

You know how sometimes, after you've had a long, stressful day, you just want to sit back with a hot chocolate and throw on the latest Hallmark Christmas Romance and unwind? Well, that's what this is, except in book form. 

There's nothing super complex in this story, and it's incredible predictable, and pretty cheesy (the two towns mentioned are Fallbrook and Pineville, which are just about as eye-rollingly Hallmark as you can get). And yet, it's also all pretty adorable and like a sweet little hug after a tough day. 

I liked both main characters a lot - they were both sweet and fun and I enjoyed Callie's clumsiness. Marco is just the perfect sweet guy who comes to her rescue, but isn't pretentious about it. The "villains" of the book - Callie's ex-boyfriend, Oliver, and her boss, Grant - are just as horrible as they need to be, but never feel truly over the top. (Grant's sexism made me so mad, though!). 

Overall, this is just a cute Hallmark Christmas romance that's an easy read for when you're feeling stressed or trying to get into the holiday spirit. Not the kind of book if you're looking for surprises or a lot of substance, just an enjoyable, predictable romance. Recommended for readers who love romance, and especially for those who look forward to Hallmark Christmas movie season every year. 

Rating: 4/5 stars

Content warning: sexism, gaslighting

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book

Roll for Initiative

 Tell me a story... about finding where you belong

Roll for Initiative by Jaime Formato

Publication date: September 27, 2022

Date read: July 24, 2023

Riley Henderson has never taken a bus to school in her entire life. Or made an afterschool snack, or finished her homework on her own, or—ewww—done her own laundry. That’s what her older brother Devin was for. But now Devin’s gone. He’s off in California attending a fancy college gaming program while Riley is stuck alone in Florida with her mom. That is, until a cool nerd named Lucy gives Riley no choice but to get over her shyness and fear of rejection and become friends. The best part is . . . both girls are into Dungeons & Dragons. In fact, playing D&D was something Riley and Devin used to do together, with Devin as the dungeon master, guiding Riley through his intricately planned campaigns. So, of course, Riley is more than a little nervous when Lucy suggests that she run a campaign for them. For the chance at a friend, though, she’s willing to give it a shot. Soon, their party grows and with the help of her new D&D friends, Riley discovers that not only can she function without Devin, she kind of likes it. But when Devin runs into trouble with his program and returns home, it's pretty clear, even to Riley, that since he can’t navigate his own life, he’s going to live Riley’s for her. Now she has to help Devin go back to college and prove to her mom that she can take care of herself . . . all before the upcoming Winter-Con.

First of all, in full disclosure, I must admit to being a big Dungeons & Dragons nerd, so this book was right up my alley. I wish that I had had friends like Riley when I was younger and could have gotten into the game at that age. (I didn't start playing D&D until just a few years ago). 

This book was adorable and had such a great character development for Riley. Even aside from the gaming aspect, she had to go from someone who had her older brother to do everything for her to someone who became fiercely independent and self-sufficient. I also loved that she actually had a hard time with it - her development showed that change and independence isn't easy and takes hard work, but can be worth it in the end. 

As for the D&D plot, I don't feel that it is necessary for readers to be familiar with the game in order to get the plot. Even Riley's campaigns don't completely follow strict D&D rules, and with the new kids joining her game, the mechanics are explained enough that a non-gamer shouldn't have any difficulty following along. 

I think this book also did a great job dealing with how games like this are not only for boys, addressing bullying and gatekeeping (even if it was mostly in the form of Riley's own brother and not other kids at school). Also just how hard it is to go up against someone when you want to be a part of something or disagree with what they are doing. And the gatekeeper in this case being Riley's brother also showed how difficult it can be when the person you're in disagreement with is also someone who you love. This book did an amazing job showing Riley's conflicting emotions and how she finally had to deal with the issue. 

Side note: Riley's brother, Devin, is the worst. Yes, he has his own redemptive arc and is also a good life lesson about how hard it is for a perfectionist to handle not being perfect, and how to get past that. And I know that his arc was also really important for Riley in order to become the person she needed to be. But, in the reading moment, I really wanted to hurt him. (But I also think that was the point.)

Overall, I absolutely loved this book. Riley and her friends are the kids that I want my own children to grow up to be, and are the kids that I wish I knew when I was 12. I think this book will appeal to most middle grade readers, especially young girls or gamers of all genders. As said before, you don't have to be into D&D in order to enjoy this book, but I think those readers that do will really get some extra enjoyment out of the story. But this is a well-rounded story about gaining independence and finding yourself that I think is perfect for all middle grade readers. Highly recommended. 

Rating: 5/5 stars

Content warning: feelings of abandonment

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book

Daughters of Oduma

 Tell me a story... about fighting for your family

Daughters of Oduma by Moses Ose Utomi 

Publication date: February 7, 2023

Date read: July 30, 2023

Eat. Dance. Fight. This is the life of the girls who compete in the Isle’s elite, all-female fighting sport of Bowing. But it isn’t really Dirt’s life anymore. At sixteen, she is old and has retired from competition. Instead, she spends her days coaching the younger sisters of the Mud Fam and dreading her fast-approaching birthday, when she’ll have to leave her sisters to fulfill whatever destiny the Gods choose for her. Dirt’s young sisters are coming along nicely, and the Mud Fam is sure to win the upcoming South God Bow tournament, which is the tiny Fam needs the new recruits that come with victory. Then an attack from a powerful rival leaves the Mud without their top Bower, and Dirt is the only one who can compete in the tournament. But Dirt is old, out of shape, and afraid. She has never wanted to be a leader. Victory seems impossible—yet defeat would mean the end of her beloved Fam. And no way is Dirt going to let that happen. 

I found this book difficult to get into at first. It throws the reader into a world with no context as to why it is the way it is, and the language - while English - is inflected in a way that does not flow very well at first when reading it on the page. (I think that this book would actually work really well as an audiobook, and I'm kind of sad that I didn't read it in that format). 

The setting is also very different from our world, but not in an apocalyptic way - just in an almost ancient tribal fashion. The Fams - Mud, Vine, Creek, Sand, and Rock - as well as those who don't fight in the tournaments, like the Butterfly girls and Flagga boys, all seem a normal way of life for them even though they don't resemble anything about our own. Because we were just thrown in to this world, it did feel a little odd for me at first, but it eventually begins to seem normal within the context of the story. 

I really loved that this society revolved around fighting in a way almost similar to Japanese Sumo - fights are performed for pride, honor, and ritual, and the most respect in each Fam is given to the best and oldest fighter. Also, only females can be fighters, and the word "fat" is used as a complement - almost an honorific - and only the fattest fighters were capable of being the best. It's a very unique way of looking at things and I think a really interesting world for teen girls to read about. 

This is not a book that I would recommend to everyone, simply because the world-building and unique speech patterns make for a difficult book to get into, but I think it's a really good story that teen girls especially would like. Plus, there is enough violence and fighting to interest some teen boys as well. 

Rating: 4 stars

Content warning: graphic injury/spinal injury

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.