Apr 09, 2019
From Our TBR Pile

#UltimateBlogTour Review – After the Green Withered by Kristin Ward

After the Green Withered
By: Kristin Ward
Release Date: May 13, 2018
Publisher: Self Published
Series: After the Green Withered #1
Rating:


I am thrilled to be a part of the Ultimate Blog Tour for Kristin Ward’s novel After the Green Withered, winner of the 2018 Best Indie Book Award. This dystopian novel is the first book in a series, also titled After the Green Withered, which is aimed at a young adult audience. The story follows an eighteen year old named Enora as she graduates high school and is enrolled in an academy where the elites and heads of society graduate and are doled jobs. Despite not wanting to go, Enora has no choice. The change would give her parents more water credits, which they desperately need. But the lack of water isn’t the only thing Enora and her world struggle with. There are other forces at work. Everything isn’t as it seems, and secrets better left hidden are slowly brought to life.

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Mar 25, 2019
From Our TBR Pile Manga & Light Novels

#MangaMonday Review – Giant Spider & Me: A Post Apocalyptic Tale, Vol. 2 by Kikori Morino

Giant Spider & Me: A Post Apocalyptic Tale, Vol. 2
By: Kikori Morino
Release Date: July 3, 2018; (original Japanese) September 8, 2017
Publisher: Seven Seas
Series: Giant Spider & Me #2
Rating:


Quite some time ago, I read the first volume of a manga about a young girl and her pet giant spider living in a post apocalyptic world. Finally, I’ve read the second volume. Giant Spider & Me: A Post Apocalyptic Tale, Vol. 2 by Kikori Morino continues the story of Nagi and her giant spider, Asa. The second volume ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, and the story picks right back up where we left off here. Nagi’s home was damaged in a storm. Unable to repair the roof herself, she must venture into town and find someone willing to do the work. However, most people see giant spiders as monsters, not pets, and contention arises.

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Mar 16, 2019
New & Upcoming Releases

Review – The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djeli Clark

The Haunting of Tram Car 015
By: P. Djeli Clark
Release Date: February 19, 2019
Publisher: Tor.com
Rating:


The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djeli Clark is a fantasy novella set in a 1912 Cairo that is ripe with magic, djinn, and a haunted tram car. Set in the same universe as Clark’s short story A Dead Djinn in Cairo, it is a real treat that you don’t want to miss. I haven’t had so much fun reading a book since Catherynne Valente’s Space Opera.

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Mar 14, 2019
New & Upcoming Releases

Review – Ruin’s Wake by Patrick Edwards

Ruin's Wake
By: Patrick Edwards
Release Date: March 12, 2019
Publisher: Titan Books
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


A wonderful debut novel, Ruin’s Wake by Patrick Edwards draws the reader into the story immediately. The tale is one of love, revenge, discovery, and individuality set in a world dragging itself out of ruin. The story is set on earth sometime in the far future about 500 years after something called The Ruin, a cataclysmic event which wiped out current civilization. Knowledge was lost, but humanity survived. From the ashes a totalitarian government rose. This is the story of three people trying to survive in this world and save the things most dear to them.

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Mar 11, 2019
Manga & Light Novels New & Upcoming Releases

#MangaMonday Review – Candy Color Paradox, Vol. 1 by Isaku Natsume

Candy Color Paradox, Vol. 1
By: Isaku Natsume
Illustrator: Isaku Natsume (Art); Vanessa Satone (Touch-up & Lettering); Yukiko Whitley (Cover & Graphic Design)
Translator: Adrienne Beck
Release Date: March 12, 2019
Publisher: SuBLime
Series: Candy Color Paradox #1
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


Released in English for the first time this week, Candy Color Paradox, Vol. 1 by Isaku Natsume is a yaoi manga. Satoshi Onoe is a reporter. One morning he’s given a new partner for stakeouts. Motoharu Kaburagi is a great photographer who uses every unconventional method there is and an attitude Onoe simply can’t stand. But as the unwilling partners get to know one another, their attitudes towards each other begin to change and they begin to grow closer.

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Feb 25, 2019
From Our TBR Pile Manga & Light Novels

Review – Nijigahara Holograph by Inio Asano

Nijigahara Holograph
By: Inio Asano
Illustrator: Inio Asano
Translator: Matt Thorn
Release Date: March 9, 2014 (English); July 25, 2006 (Original Japanese)
Publisher: Fantagraphics
Rating:


Nijigahara Holograph by Inio Asano, the creator of the award winning Solanin, is a standalone 300 page manga, and perfect for those who aren’t looking to get into yet another long-running series. The story is one involving alternate timelines, violence, and the surreal. There are frightened whispers among the children about a monster that lives in the tunnel behind the school. The usually beautiful butterflies hold an almost ominous presence, suddenly being found everywhere. The lives of the students and teachers are interwoven in ways unforeseen on the surface, ways that aren’t always visible or expected.

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Feb 22, 2019
From Our TBR Pile Manga & Light Novels

Review – Occultic;Nine Vol 2 by Chiyomaru Shikura

Occultic;Nine Vol 2
By: Chiyomaru Shikura
Illustrator: pako
Translator: Adam Lensenmayer
Release Date: Feb 25, 2017
Publisher: J-Novel Club; Seven Seas
Series: Occultic;Nine #2
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


It has been quite a while since I’ve binged a series like I am with this one. Occultic;Nine, Vol. 2 by Chiyomaru Shikura is a truly great second volume in this series by the creator of Steins;Gate.

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Feb 19, 2019
Graphic Novels New & Upcoming Releases

Review – Chronin Volume 1: The Knife at Your Back by Alison Wiglus

Chronin Volume 1: The Knife at Your Back
By: Alison Wiglus
Release Date: February 19, 2019
Publisher: Tor Books
Series: Chronin #1
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


It’s no secret I love manga, but what may be less known is my propensity for the Meji Era. The crash of modernity and tradition provides a fascinating backdrop to any story (and tends to speak to my history major heart). Surprising no one, I immediately downloaded an e-arc of Chronin Volume 1: The Knife at Your Back by Alison Wiglus as soon as I saw the cover art.

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Feb 17, 2019
From Our TBR Pile

Review – The Future Is Female! 25 Classic Science Fiction Stories by Women, from Pulp Pioneers to Ursula K. Le Guin edited by Lisa Yaszek

The Future Is Female! 25 Classic Science Fiction Stories by Women, from Pulp Pioneers to Ursula K Le Guin
By: Lisa Yaszek (editor)
Release Date: September 25, 2018
Publisher: Library of America
Rating:


Anthologies can be tricky beasts. Even in themed anthologies, authors and their stories can be very varied, sometimes wildly so. The Future is Female! 25 Classic Science Fiction Stories By Women, From Pulp Pioneers to Ursula K. Le Guin is an anthology from editor Lisa Yaszek that defies all expectations. Each story is better than the one preceding it. Each one is memorable, lingering in the back of your mind long after moving on to the next tale. Each one is the sort of story that could be pointed to and said, ‘This is the heart of science fiction. This is our legacy. This is what we aspire to.’

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Feb 13, 2019
Graphic Novels New & Upcoming Releases

Review – Submerged by Vita Ayala and Lisa Sterle

Submerged
By: Vita Ayala
Illustrator: Lisa Sterle (artist); Stelladia (colorist); Rachel Deering (letterer)
Release Date: February 12, 2019
Publisher: Vault Comics
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


A graphic novel of true beauty, both artistically and literarily, Submerged Volume 1 by Vita Ayala and Lisa Sterle is a brand new release not to be missed. This is a story of many things. It is a story of family, a story of coming to terms and letting go, it’s about relationships. It is a story many can relate to, on one level or another, and one that is so very worth reading.

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