Top New Releases I've Read (January-March 2020)

For the first quarter of 2020, I haven't read that many new releases even though I had quite the list of anticipated releases (*cough* procrastinating *cough*). I felt like half of what I've read was so-so but there were definitely some great reads in the bunch. Surprisingly, I have yet to give out 5 stars to any of the titles I'm about to talk about.

I'll be going through the books in the order I've read them so feel free to jump to the review you're interested in:

Come Tumbling Down (Wayward Children #5) by Seanan McGuire
Wicked As You Wish by Rin Chupeco
Crescent City: House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas

Yes No Maybe So

by Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed

Young Adult, Contemporary

Yes No Maybe So is a story of religion, family, relationships and finding your footing in a world that is still building barriers between people. Told in dual perspectives, this story sheds light on the religious discrimination, particularly Islamophobia and anti-Semitism, that is still present in modern-day America. It discusses about the power young teens have in creating change within their community however small it may be.

What I love most about this book was the characters.

Jamie is the embodiment of awkwardness and I felt all his overthinking in social situations. However, past the awkwardness he was a truly nice guy who would be such a great friend to have. He has such an amazing family filled with such supportive people. His little sister, Sophie was surprisingly mature for her age, his mom knew what to say to have me laughing out loud and don’t get me started on his grandma who was a social media queen. Jamie was also Jewish and some of their religious customs were represented throughout the book. It was interesting reading his perspective on anti-Semitism and the overall political tension in America and I really loved his views on power of youth in changing the future. It made me more aware of the societal problems still rampant in America and it was quite encouraging reading that we all have the power to make changes in the world no matter how small we may think it to be.

Maya, on the other hand, was much more socially confident, though unlike Jamie, her family is falling apart with her parents having temporarily split, leaving Maya with a summer full of uncertainty with nothing to distract her. That is until she was forced to canvass with Jamie. In the beginning, I was quite annoyed with Maya given that she was rather whiny and self-absorbed but like what teen wouldn’t behave like that her certain situation. Still, it wasn't fun to read about. Though after a couple of chapters she started to be much less whiny and I really admired her strength and confidence in certain scenes. I also loved how she was proud of her heritage and religion and didn’t shy away from the challenges imposed on her because of these things. She was such a badass for not breaking in those highly Islamophobic situations.

I just fell in love with their friendship (and later relationship) because their dynamic led to a lot of banter and heartwarming moments. It really solidified my love for the friends-to-lovers trope because of the gradual and realistic build of a healthy relationship.

A large part of this novel tackles religious discrimination and harmful stereotypes and I feel like I cannot truly comment on the representation of these elements given that I’m not Jewish or Muslim or even live in America. So I couldn’t even fully understand the politics in the US but objectively, I do think the authors did the representations respectfully. However, while I did not connect with these aspects, I still did appreciate the overall messages of racial equality and youth empowerment.

There were some aspects that I felt could’ve been done better and therefore, didn’t receive the full 5/5 stars rating but they could all be improved in the final copy. Overall I loved this story and I would highly recommend picking it up.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Come Tumbling Down

(Wayward Children #5)

by Seanan McGuire

Young Adult, Urban Fantasy

Come Tumbling Down is the fifth instalment in the Wayward Children series and acts as a continuation of Jack and Jill's story, featuring a terrifying trip back to the Moors. Jack has returned to Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children seeking help to solve a deadly problem threatening the balance of her logical, wicked world. Given that the timeline of the series jumps around between books, you will need to have read the first three books in these series (aka Every Heart a Doorway, Down Among the Sticks and Bones and Beneath a Sugar Sky) for character backgrounds and context.

I really don't have much to say that will not be spoilery but I'll say that Jack and Jill's story is my favourite in the series so it's safe to say that I was especially excited to learn more about what happened to them. And I was not disappointed. I felt that the story more so revolved on Jack's character above anything else and the expansion of the Moors, which were both interesting, terrifying and saddening. This novella also dealt with OCD representation which was the root cause of Jack's vulnerability given the events in the story and since I do not have OCD I cannot speak for the representation but I do hope it was done respectfully. I greatly appreciated the messages this book conveyed and what more can I say other than that I love this multiverse Seanan Mcguire has crafted and I'll always be excited for the upcoming books in this series. And I do hope that all the central characters find their doorways home.

I can confidently say that I'll probably love ever instalment in this series and I'm hoping the Seanan McGuire keeps on expanding this universe. I know that this series isn't for everybody and that some would prefer longer books, but I don't really feel that way. I just love these snippets into these characters' lives and the straightforwardness of these novellas. When you're usually reading long books/series, novellas are great pallet cleansers and what's better than a series I adore.

Wicked As You Wish

by Rin Chupeco

Young Adult, Urban Fantasy

Wicked As You Wish is set in urban fantasy world and features a diverse cast of characters on their quest to restore the Kingdom of Avalon. Twelve years ago, the Snow Queen cast a curse over the land trapping the kingdom in perpetual winter. Prince Alexei Tsarevich was only five years old when his parents were murdered and his kingdom curse, and now he is forced to hide in a dusty town devoid of any magic. There he befriends, Tala, a girl born of the infamous Makiling line of Spellbreakers. When the legendary firebird appears on Alex’s eighteenth birthday, it sparks hope for freeing Avalon and sets off a series of cataclysmic events that sees Alex, Tala and ragtag group of new friends on the road to thaw Avalon once and for all.

Fair warning that I am partially biased with this review. I’m always excited whenever there’s a story featuring a Filipino heroine so I can see myself represented in a story. And this book had quite a lot Filipino cultural references and I loved how the author weaved it into the world she created.

World-Building:

The world was quite jarring and a lot to take in at the beginning. If I had to summarise the world, it would be a conglomeration of an alternate version of the modern world mixed with several fantastical/fairytale worlds (Neverland, Wonderland, Avalon, etc). Hence, given the sheer number of different worlds packed into one, there were a lot of mythologies to tie into and, in my opinion, it could’ve been done a bit more seamlessly rather than in your face.

The alternate reality of the real world features a Royal States of America ruled by a Donald Trump-like tyrant (trust me, the comparison cannot be helped) and the world has modern-day technology created from spells. Honestly, some aspects of the alternate reality kind of mirror the real world with power-hungry companies and governments.

Avalon itself was a unique mix of medieval times with modern technology. Think old castles with working indoor toilets or old cottages with modern vehicles. It was honestly a weird and wonderful medieval festival filled with fantastical creatures and magic of course. A large part of the mythology of this world was centred around the history of Avalon which referenced from famous stories around the world such as the iconic Arthurian legend, Vasilisa the Beautiful, Sleeping Beauty, Maria Makiling, Ye Xian, and many more. Though most focused on Arthurian legend and Russian folklore such as the case with the reference of the sword in the stone and the firebird. It’s a lot to take in and I don’t blame you if you get confused.

What I also want to clear up is that this book is not a Filipino retelling of any sort. It has Filipino inspirations but not quite enough to be classified as a Filipino inspired story. I loved how the author featured Filipino culture in the story (albeit some elements were a tad stereotypical) and how she painted a powerful image of Filipinos in the mythology and current state of the world. I was honestly thriving when characters regarded the Lola Urduja, Katipunero’s and the Makilings with awe and reverence. We Filipinos deserve more spotlight in literature and I was just loving those scenes. Though I wish that it also went the extra step further and made the world or the story truly based on Filipino mythology.

Characters:

Tala

Tala and Zoe were probably my favourites. Tala, being our Filipino magic-nullifying heroine, will always make me favour her over the others because I can relate to her on that level, and I love the mythology surrounding her magic. Zoe, the leader of the Bandersnatch (the elite magically-gifted young warriors of Avalon), was such a badass with her lightning whip and her exasperation over the idiocracy of her teammates was such a mood.

Ken was also a mood at times and he had his moments when I laughed out loud at some of the stupid things he says and I love his swords which kind of reminded me of the swords in the anime Inuyasha. Loki was the ever-reliable boy scout and I liked how his staff can change its length at will. They are also non-binary and I’m not speaking on the representation but I’m happy we have more diversity in the story and I think it was handled respectfully. West was that overly quirky character who also happens to be a shapeshifter which at times make up for his quirks given his skills on the battlefield.

Lastly, the last royal left standing, Alex… he was an ass for most of the journey. There were constant references to Alex being Tala’s “best friend” but those felt like the author was just telling us that rather than showing because I didn’t see enough of their friendship to be convinced that they’re even remotely close. Safe to say that our royal prince is a royal pain and I hope that his character improves in later books. Also honourable mention of the firebird which was a gem of an adorable yet sassy sidekick. If there are any plushies of the firebird, I’m down cause it was just adorable. Overall, I feel like I loved the character’s magic more than the actual character and I do hope we get more character development in the future.

Plot/Story:

The plot was pretty trope and predictable at times. And yes, there were those cliché moments. Some of the events that happened were resolved quite conveniently with minimal action or the characters being advantageous over the enemies. The plot was quite high action and supposedly quick pace. I say “supposedly” because I’m pretty sure that certain scenes were action-packed to speed up the plot but the information to take into made some of those scenes slower to get through. I feel like the author packed too much action without the necessary build-up or character insight needed to fully immerse myself in the story. Like a character would get injured or be placed in a life-threatening situation and I didn’t really care.

It was still an entertaining story but it wasn’t the highlight of the overall book. This book felt like it was setting up the foundations of this series and I have no doubts that the later instalments would keep on improving. And since there were probably a dozen or so prophecies included, a lot of foreshadowing has been laid down to make the later books all the more entertaining and immersive.

Overall Thoughts:

I had a fun time reading this book and it was a buddy read with one of my friends on Goodreads (although my timing and actual pacing could’ve been greatly improved). I loved all the Filipino references (no surprise) and I’m beginning to truly appreciate the world. It could use more mythology to truly enrich the setting and have more of that immersive experience. The characters show promise and I can’t wait for them to develop. I am definitely reading this series and I hope that I won’t be let down, and the series will only go upwards from here.

House of Earth and Blood

(Crescent City #1)

by Sarah J. Maas

Young Adult, Urban Fantasy

Bound by blood. Tempted by desire. Unleashed by destiny.

Crescent City: House of Earth and Blood is set in a world similar to Earth but ruled by the supernatural. Bryce Quinlan, half-Fae half-human, is a wild party girl in the streets of Crescent City enjoying everything the city can offer, that is, until the night of her best friends’ bloody murders. Two years later, similar murders spring up again despite having the suspected murderer behind bars. With a dangerous threat rampant on the streets of Crescent City, the Governor tasks Bryce with helping uncover the murderer together with a dark Fallen angel, Hunt Athalar. Bryce needs all the strength she can muster to look into her grief-stricken past and avoid the attraction she feels for her partner because nothing good can come from that.