I'm the Grim Reaper, Vol. 1,

Rating: 3 for ethical dilemma conversations

My Thoughts:

The saturated red illustrations are fabulous and fitting to the theme. Also, although this is labeled as volume 1, it gives a good amount of story in this volume. Similar to Demonslayer, Scarlet, despite her bargain with Satan, is not all bad. In the high school classroom, use these popular manga to talk about complex ethical decisions that create characters that are complicated. Use this for sociology class too. It will be a great way to link to studentsʻ interest before going into something like Frankenstein.

From the Publisher:

When Scarlet finds herself doomed to eternal punishment in Hell for a sinful life she can’t even remember, Satan himself offers her a deal: return to earth and kill one marked sinner per day…as his grim reaper!

Using the power of Hell, Scarlet quickly learns the ropes of being a reaper: bring in one sinner per day, regardless of their sins, and avoid the ninth circle herself. This work brings her into the path of Chase, a disgraced former detective trying to solve a high-level case that seems wrapped up in Scarlet’s former life. Scarlet decides to partner with Chase to find the answers to her locked memories—as long as Chase doesn’t discover Scarlet’s bloodstained bargain with Satan first.

This volume collects episodes 1–16 of the popular WEBTOON, exclusive never-before-seen content, and a bonus short story!
 

Publication Information:

Author: Graveweaver

Publisher: Viz Media LLC (September 10, 2024)

Print length: 240 pages

Hammajang Luck

 

Rating: 4 for making up a new category: mahudystopianfuturism (ish)

My Thoughts:

I am going to make up a new "genre" or category for this book based on the title "Hammajang." Anyone outside of Hawaiʻi will not know/understand "hammajang" in the same way that the shaka or aloha is both international and Hawaiʻi-centric at the same time. Hammajang is an old school plantation pidgen term for "messed up," "kapakahi," chaotic. So right away, this title, by writer Makana Yamamoto (Hawaiian first name, Japanese last name) identifies as local literature, perhaps by a local writer. Indeed, they are from Maui, but if you look at the author picture, they look less Hawaiian than perhaps hapa haole/kepani. So local adjacent?

Then there is the setting. This book is touted as a mix of Ocean's 8 and Blade Runner. In other words, this is an all female heist book with the two main characters in a love hate love queer relationship. It is also like Blade Runner because of the man made world in space where even the daylight is manufactured. No androids, but it is a seedy urban setting where the few are uber rich and the majority are generationally poor. 

I wanted to call this Hawaiian futurism, but this is definitely not Hawaiʻi. Any kind of novel labeled as Hawaiʻi has to both be in Hawaiʻi, but in addition, the ʻāina should have its own chracteristics, its own role as a character in the novel. This is not that. They have more plantation values where families continue to be colonized by the big luna and really, no one gets out of that system through legal means.

Also, the definition for Afro futurism does include science fiction locales and Africans in a diaspora that also can include space stations and other planets, but it usually shows a future where Africans thrive, not get stuck in the same struggle to just survive. So maybe this is not a futurism as I originally thought.

This has nothing to do with the story. I liked the story. I always like a good heist adventure, even with an angry butchy Edie. She is more complicated than just being angry and bitter. What works with this book is that the characters have kuleana. That is why I am trying to label this. This is a queer story, in a colonized future that feels like Honolulu now. Perhaps this is a mahudystopianfuturism. 

Whatever this is called, it will be a familiar story to our high school students looking for queer science fiction, heist fiction and small kine pidgen and local food moʻolelo.

From the Publisher:

Edie is done with crime. Eight years behind bars changes a person—costs them too much time with too many of the people who need them most.

And it’s all Angel’s fault. She sold Edie out in what should have been the greatest moment of their lives. Instead, Edie was shipped off to the icy prison planet spinning far below the soaring skybridges and neon catacombs of Kepler space station—of home—to spend the best part of a decade alone.

But then a chance for early parole appears out of nowhere and Edie steps into the pallid sunlight to find none other than Angel waiting—and she has an offer.

One last job. One last deal. One last target. The trillionaire tech god they failed to bring down last time. There’s just one thing Edie needs to do—trust Angel again—which also happens to be the last thing Edie wants to do. What could possibly go all hammajang about this plan?

Publication Information:

Author: Makana Yamamoto
Publisher: Harper Voyager (January 14, 2025)
Print length: 356 pages
High school

Gihigugma, Ace of Hearts

 

Rating: 3 - meet cute, innocent, Filipinos in diaspora

My Thoughts: 

The publishers call this a Crazy Rich Asians meets Bend it Like Beckham. I don't agree. This is not about the uber rich Asians, and although Jomar is a tennis player in London, this is really about that awkward love. He is a good boy, a little clueless, a little lost. He comes from the Philippines straight to London without even securing a place to stay so always has that small fish in a big pond aspect about him. He is trying to keep his scholarship to go to college and play tennis, but he also seems to be the kind of lost puppy that people want to take under their wing, whether it is his new doubles partner, the James Bond nerd from the airport, or the security guard that coaches him until he gets fired for letting him into the stadium at night to practice. Others naturally gravitate towards him because he wears his heart on his sleeve and his says gushy things like "you are my home." 

Mitch, half-white, half Filipina, is an American who is a little more awkward than she should be considering her father lives in London and her mother in America. She should be more sophisticated as someone who constantly travels between families, but she is not. I could not quite figure her out. When it reveals what she is hiding, it is not enough for her to treat Jomar the way she does. As an American college student in London, I felt like she lost some of her American-ness in the middle of the book. 

Despite the minor issue I had with Mitch, I think this is a cute read. I read it from my phone in one sitting so that is a good sign that this is a read worthy, swoon worthy book for YA. Their relationship is very chaste and innocent, so this is good for younger YA too. The only other issue that I have is the cover. I am not sure why it looks like he is shirtless as this is not that kind of book. I would have had her kissing her hand as that happens  a lot. AND, put a shirt on. 

From the Publisher:

When Jomar's tennis ambitions crash into Mitchelle's wounded heart during one charmingly disastrous karaoke night, they'll discover that the biggest matches aren't played on courts—but in learning to love despite the ghosts of the past.

Jomar Montalbano thinks he's ready for anything. A rising tennis star from the Philippines, he lands in London with one suitcase, one college scholarship, and zero idea how to survive without rice. He's counting on a few wins—but definitely not falling for Mitchelle Tanner.

She's the quiet girl with a vintage camera, a craving for halo-halo, and a smile that hides as much as it shows. Half-American, half-Filipina, and fully impossible to read.

He's used to power and control—but around her, he's completely unstrung.

From vulnerable confessions in a darkroom's glow to rallies that feel like Wimbledon wins, Jomar discovers that love—like tennis—is all about timing, risk, and knowing when to fight for the point.

Set in London's rainy alleys and sunlit parks, woven with island warmth and humor, Gihigugma, Ace of Hearts is an adventure about home, heart, and the courage to choose love against all odds.

Love at eighteen isn't always a mistake. Sometimes, it's a miracle.

Publication Information:

Author: Melanie King-Smith

Publisher: MiLFY Books (September 30, 2025)

Print length: 234 pages

Reading age: 13-18

Bright Red Fruit

 

Rating: 5 for heartwrenching story telling and poetry that will make you cry

My Thoughts:

Safia Elhillo. Safia. Elhillo. If I see her name on a book, I grab it. I have not been disappointed. For all the brown girls who think their world is small. For all the brown girls who think their word is confining. For all the brown girls who think they are invisible. This is your author. This is your poetess. Author of my favorite novel in verse, Home is Not a Country as well as the book of poems Girls That Never Die comes my new favorite Bright Red Fruit.

I wanted to shake Samira, yell at her to wake up, but also hug her on the floor of the bathroom. That is how viscerally this hit me. I feel like I have been in this kind of relationship. I feel like I have lost good friends forever because of this kind of relationship. I have carried this shame of my own actions that got dredged up from this novel in verse. I have also recognized the achingly precise portrayal of Samira's story as in some ways, all of our stories. Would this have saved my younger self if I had read this then? Maybe not. But I hope it will speak to someone who needs to be immersed in Samira's story. I hope the words crackle into a large, cautionary billboard sign for someone who needs the message called out. If not, I  hope the message readers get from this is that they are enough. They are more than enough. 

For teachers who want to use this:

• Check out the Penguin Random House teacher guide. It will give you some good ideas on things to do pre- during- and post-reading. I trust this publisher and the teachers they use to create their guides. 
• As a former yearbook advisor and a poet, I like to spend some time before a novel in verse talking about visual literacy cues. I like to look at white space in gutters, in bleeds, between words, between lines. It adds to the meaning making of novels in verse  in ways that cannot be done in prose. 
• Use some of these as mentor texts for students' own writing.

From the Publisher:

Bad girl. No matter how hard Samira tries, she can’t shake her reputation. She’s never gotten the benefit of the doubt—not from her mother or the aunties who watch her like a hawk.

Samira is determined to have a perfect summer filled with fun parties, exploring DC, and growing as a poet—until a scandalous rumor has her grounded and unable to leave her house. When Samira turns to a poetry forum for solace, she catches the eye of an older, charismatic poet named Horus. For the first time, Samira feels wanted. But soon she’s keeping a bigger secret than ever before—one that that could prove her reputation and jeopardize her place in her community.

In this gripping coming-of-age novel from the critically acclaimed author Safia Elhillo, a young woman searches to find the balance between honoring her family, her artistry, and her authentic self.

Publication Information:

Author: Safia Elhillo

Publisher: Make Me a World (March 25, 2025)

Print length: 400 pages

Grade level: 7-12

Angelica and the Bear Prince (graphic novel)

 

Rating: 3 for unexpected depth and complex themes 

My Thoughts:

The title and the cover made me think that this was going to be a kids graphic novel, but it is not. The graphics are light and childlike on the outside, but the story deals with YA themes like burnout, grief, isolation. Angelica, the main character, suffers from debilitating depression like symptoms, but her internship at a local community theatre and her online friendship with the theatre's mascot, Peri the Bear, starts her on a journey of healing. This odd little magic, with some scenes playing out graphically without dialogue, seems to be a strength of Trung Le Nguyen. He also authored The Magic Fish. 

It is not that Angelica is without a support system of her own, but this story just made me think that sometimes we can feel alone in a crowd, so this relationship with the bear is a great reminder that sometimes our teens need to work things out for themselves. There will be students in your class who need to read this. 

It is cute on the outside. The bear itself is adorable and not at all kinky/fetishy. I also think the budding romance is what makes this cozy. However, I maybe wanted a little more on self healing and catharsis, even if that might not be the intention for this particular graphic novel. 

From the Publisher:

Angelica was the girl who could do it all—until suddenly, she couldn’t. Burnout hit hard. Now, after some very low moments, she’s ready to get her life back together, thanks to her friends, and one very surprising source of comfort.

A bear.

Peri is the mascot of the local theater. He’s been sending Angelica supportive messages from his social. They’ve become friends, and Angelica might even have . . . a crush?

Determined to find the human behind the bear costume, Angelica gets an internship at the theater. She might never go back to being the girl who can do everything, but perhaps she is becoming the girl who can magically have it all.

Publication Information:

Author/Illustrator: Trung Le Nguyen
Publisher: Random House Graphic (October 7, 2025)

Print length: 224 pages

Grade levels: 7-10

My Mother, the Mermaid Chaser

 

Rating: 5 for generational trauma and healing, prose in two voices, complexity

My Thoughts:

I am actually taking the time to read this again. In my quest to finish it, I read it quickly, but I am re reading it to take my time and enjoy this haunting story. This is a companion piece to Hoang's earler book, My Father, the Panda Killer. I always meant to read that one first. The title is compelling and the title is just as stunning. The timing of that one, though was not ideal personally. It had nothing to do with when the publisher released it. Just that I was in the midst of submitting for a promotion at the university and I needed to focus on writing rather than reading.  Long story short, I read this one first. The absence, the seeming gaps in understanding and motive seemed to be a result of my not reading the first book. I still have not read the first book. However, on my rereading, I realize that this feeling of missing, of absence, that I viscerally felt as a reader may be part of the intended tone of this piece. 

This book is in two voices, and whenever I read books in two alternating voices, the story is meant to be jarring. The reader is along for the ride, but from the backseat. I equate it to feeling like I have been kidnapped with my blindfold on. I am trying to figure out who these people are based on just the story being unveiled by the two people in the front (they are not having a dialogue, they are just having alternate monologues). 

Paul is the heart of this story. He sits in contrast to his sister Jane who is more central in My Father, the Panda Killer. Paul is the open, soft one and Jane is his hard, sharp edged counter. At least that is what I get from this one. It is perhaps why I am waiting to put a little more reading distance between this book and Jane's book. 

One thing that Hoang does that is very crucial for YA is that her prose balances the very heavy trauma with tenderness, humor and empathy. The anticipatory questions I had early on were "When is it better for a mother to abandon her children to an abusive father?" "What might be the implications of this abandonment on the children as they grow up?" Hoang does not shy away from showing the trauma, but she also opens up a door for empathy to seep in.  

As I was rushing through on the first read, there are some slow parts that I skipped over to get to the end, however, I picked it up again because some stories, like this one, deserve a little more patience to blossom. 

From the Publisher:

San Jose, 2008: Paul yearns to know more about the mother who abandoned his family, but she is the only topic no one discusses. Now’s he’s in Vietnam, feeling displaced and considered an outsider. Plus, a ghost is haunting him even though he doesn’t believe in ghosts. His cousin and the grandmother he’s never met before now keep telling him that he’ll get answers only if he’s willing to open his ears.

Vũng Tâu, 1975: Ngọc Lan is eleven when her family breaks apart: her brother is drafted into the army; her father leaves on the last helicopter to the US. She and her sister are sent from Vietnam on a harrowing journey by boat. Only Ngọc Lan will survive. But what is the American dream when you are haunted by the death of your sister, missing your homeland; seeing ghostly mermaid sightings; lost in an abusive marriage; struggling as a parent?

Told in the alternating perspectives of Paul and Ngọc Lan, My Mother, the Mermaid Chaser is a haunting story about the intergenerational effects of war, estranged family bonds, and how a teenager discovers a new connection to a lost part of himself.

Publication Information:

Author: Jamie Jo Hoang

Publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers (September 23, 2025)

Print length: 384 pages

Grade level: 7-9

How to Build a Fashion Icon: Notes on Confidence

Rating: 3 for a memoir that teaches some powerful rules on self efficacy and confidence

My Thoughts:

If you are into fashion, you will of course know Law Roach and Zendaya. However, the best way to read the book is to listen to the audiobook and have Law Roach read his words. I started reading it because he was one of the new judges on Project Runway (when Heidi Klum also came back to host). Law is brutal but speaks slowly and clearly. He knows what he likes and what he does not like. His taste level and eye for fashion that suits a certain body type is trusted by many women of different sizes.  

Learn about his travel up into the fashion world, going from faking it till he makes it, to being able to retire early.

From the Publisher:

Law Roach is the mastermind behind looks that have broken the Internet time and again—from Zendaya at the Met Gala to Anya Taylor-Joy at the Golden Globes, from Lewis Hamilton’s iconic streetwear to Céline Dion’s style renaissance. Nobody knows better than Law how to turn an outfit into a moment of fashion history.

In a little over a decade, he’s gone from industry outsider to the most celebrated name in style, having been honored two consecutive years with the Hollywood Reporter’s prestigious Stylist of the Year award and receiving the Council of Fashion Designers of America’s inaugural Stylist Award in 2022.

Now, for the first time ever, Law shares the secrets of his approach. With How to Build a Fashion Icon, he takes readers behind the scenes of his process and journey, revealing his tips, tricks, and most memorable styling moments to show readers how to live their most iconic and fashionable lives.

Part self-help guide, part manifesto, this book guides readers step-by-step through that process, and along the way, Law weaves in personal anecdotes—from his childhood in the Southside of Chicago to the first time he styled Zendaya—with practical exercises to help readers cultivate the most essential feature of iconic style: confidence.

Publication Information:

Author: Law Roach

Narrator: Law Roach

Publisher: Recorded Books (Oct 01, 2024)

Listening length: 5 hours 15 minutes

 

This Place Kills Me: Graphic Novel

 

Rating: 3 stars for mystery with a twist and a gray and pink illustration style that mirrors my favorite 80's Izod shirt

My Thoughts:

Tamaki takes on deep explorations of power plays, bullying, and identity in this multi genre whodunit. When transfer student Abby, the last to talk to Elizabeth Woodward, is told that her death was by suicide, she just cannot accept that. She goes digging into secrets that could destroy everything. 

With exceptional illustrations by Giroux, this book will capture readers.

 Be warned, however, as there is grooming and sexual abuse, as well as the very real misconception of victim blaming/shaming that could be triggering for some teens. Because of the 80s vibe of the artwork, I felt like the setting was in the 80s, so it was a different time. Perhaps from the viewpoint of a Gen Z or Gen Alpha, the grooming and the outrage FOR Elizabeth is not enough.  As a ladder to this book, perhaps students might read read Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak, published in 1999. This was written pre Google, so paired with This Place Kills Me, perhaps perception will change, or at least readers will feel more empowered to control their own identity. 

From the Publisher:

At Wilberton Academy, few students are more revered than the members of the elite Wilberton Theatrical Society—a.k.a. the WTS—and no one represents that exclusive club better than Elizabeth Woodward. Breathtakingly beautiful, beloved by all, and a talented thespian, it’s no surprise she’s starring as Juliet in the WTS’s performance of Shakespeare’s classic tragedy. But when she’s found dead the morning after opening night, the whole school is thrown into chaos.

Transfer student Abby Kita was one of the last people to see Elizabeth alive, and when local authorities deem the it-girl’s death a suicide, Abby’s not convinced. She’s sure there’s more to Wilburton and the WTS than meets the eye. As she gets tangled in prep school intrigues, Abby quickly realizes that Elizabeth was keeping secrets. Was one of those secrets worth killing for?

Told in comics, letters, diary entries, and news articles, This Place Kills Me is a page-turning whodunnit from award-winning writer Mariko Tamaki and acclaimed illustrator Nicole Goux that will have readers on the edge of their seats and begging for an encore.

Publication Information:

Author: Mariko Tamaki

Illustrator: Nicole Goux

Publisher: Harry N. Abrams (August 19, 2025)

Print length: 272 pages

Reading age: 14-18 years

High Class Homos Vol 1

 

Rating: 3  for kawaii with a twist

My Thoughts:

This is a "beard" story, but the color wave and the illustrations are so cute, it sounds too masculine to call it a "beard" story with a prince that looks like a kid. Still the two characters are childhood friends. Both are royalty so they are getting a lot of pressure to marry well in order to continue their royal bloodline, but both characters are also gay and know that about each other. What better way to get the parents off their back by being beards for each other. Of course this stays in the cheeky "wink, wink" stage and does not get into the sticky reality of progeny, however, this web toon does not need it. With a witty title High-Class Homos as well as kawaii graphics, this book will just sell itself for what it is -- a fun romp. I mean the character's name is Princess Sapphia for goodness sake. If that is not punny, then this sapphic, homosexual romp is not for you. 

The other part of the story, of course, is if the Princess can actually get the girl. No spoilers here. This is only volume 1 so it is too early for real love. 

From the Publisher:

Princess Sapphia is decidedly not into princes, or any boys for that matter. So when her parents begin to push her to marriage, she quickly enlists her equally gay best friend to organize a sham marriage, navigate life and love, and hopefully get the girl, in High-Class Homos.

Princess Sapphia of Mytilene and Prince August of Phthia have been best friends for years. They’re both royalty in their own right, they both love getting to know the castle staff and knights, and they’re both completely and utterly gay. When Princess Sapphia’s parents begin hinting that she needs to get married, she and August begin to put together a plan: Marry each other, continue pursuing their own romances. Simple!

Will Sapphia and August be able to pull off a successful engagement and eventual marriage? More importantly, will Sapphia ever land a date with the castle maids? Will August get the nerve to confess to the knight he's been pining after? Follow these high class homos as they navigate life, love, and (occasionally) their actual jobs.

Publication Information:

Author: Momozerii
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing (Nov 11, 2025)
Print length: 272 pages

The Leaving Room

 

Rating: 4 for speculative poetry in verse and trusted author

My Thoughts:

This novel starts as a wondering by the author, or perhaps a hope of the author that when young people, children die, there is an in between place that helps them to transition. The leaving room is such a place. This leaving room is hosted by a Keeper, Gospel. Gospel collects memories in jars and offers the young souls a treat and a hot drink. As a Keeper, the collecting of memories makes her question what are her memories versus what are others' memories. And then a portal opens up and she meets Melodee, another Keeper. In a span of four minutes, their two worlds shift, things fall a part, and rules are broken. This speculative novel is typical for Amber McBride. Readers need to pay attention, most likely re read and try to fall into the world without question. 

From the Publisher:

For fans of You've Reached Sam and If I Stay, a hauntingly beautiful, ultimately hopeful novel-in-verse about a girl in between life and death, by National Book Award Finalist Amber McBride.

Gospel is the Keeper of the Leaving Room—a place all young people must phase through when they die. The young are never ready to leave; they need a moment to remember and a Keeper to help their wispy souls along.

When a random door opens and a Keeper named Melodee arrives, their souls become entangled. Gospel's seriousness melts and Melodee’s fear of connection fades, but still—are Keepers allowed to fall in love? Now they must find a way out of the Leaving Room and be unafraid of their love. In a novel that takes place over four minutes, National Book Award finalist Amber McBride explores connection, memory, and hope in ways that are unforgettable and poignant.

Publication Information:

Author: Amber McBride
Publisher: Feiwel Friends (October 14, 2025)

Print length: 224 pages

Reading age: 12-18

Whale Eyes: A memoir about seeing and being seen

 

Rating: 4 for creating a sliding glass door into the author's life

My Thoughts:

At the beginning of this second Trump presidency, as the power barriers and balance scales were torn down, I vowed that for the next four years, I would not read any book authored by white authors. When I look at the publishing list, when I see what is coming up on my Net Galley feed, when I look at the books on the Goodreads challenges, they are predominantly white authors. As a professor of teacher education, specializing in middle and secondary language arts, I have always touted the idea that the western canonical literature should be a supplement equal to literature by indigenous authors, authors of color, and queer authors. 

So why did I read this book?

I read this book because I saw the New York Times opinion video that Robinson created about his eye condition first. This video is part of a series on "overcoming your discomfort with disability." I realize, and I should have known this already, that disability is also part of the underrepresented narrative in our schools. This memoir is about the author's struggles with strabismus and other eye ailments that he simply calls whale eyes. There are many educators that did not have a clue on how to differentiate for him, and that is tragic. There are the taunts and how strangers do not look him in the eyes, but this is not a memoir full of pity and despair.

This memoir does not shy away from the fact that his world was not ready to teach a kid like him, however, it is also a way for non disabled kids to really read this as a sliding glass door into his condition. With line drawings by Brian Rea, the author and illustrator help readers to feel a little bit of what Robinson deals with. This is the beginning of the empathy journey for readers, but the author also offers up some advice and hope for disabled students. Even if the multiple surgeries, 3-D glasses, etc. did not work for him, Johnson shows them how their disability does not make a person abnormal. 

At the most crucial teaching point of students' lives (middle school), this memoir will help all readers, abled and disabled to understand how to be better humans. 

From the Publisher:

Told through an experimental mix of intimate anecdotes and interactive visuals, this book immerses readers in James’s experiences growing up with strabismus, allowing them to see the world through one eye at a time.

Readers will get lost as they chase words. They’ll stare into this book while taking a vision test. They’ll hold it upside down as they practice “pretend-reading”…and they’ll follow an unlikely trail toward discovering the power of words.

With poignant illustrations by Eisner Award–nominated artist Brian Rea, James’s story equips readers of all ages with the tools to confront their discomfort with disability and turn confused, blank stares into powerful connections.

Publication Information:

Author: James Robinson

Illustrator: Brian Rea

Publisher: Penguin Workshop (March 18, 2025)

Reading age: 10 and up

Girls of Storm and Shadow (Girls of Paper and Fire Book 2)

 

Rating: 2 for getting through it, but also knowing that I am abandoning this series.

My Thoughts:

This second book reminds me of the Harry Potter series or rather the Harry Potter movie that no one really wants to rewatch where Harry and Hermione and Ron are out camping in the wilderness as they look for hoarcruxes. Everyone starts to bicker amongst themselves and the large fight scene is a movie away. That is what this book felt like. I never did like the Lei character. She seems to do the least amount, especially considering she is the main character. However, she did have a large moment at the end of book 1. Still, this one was a slog. Lei's naivete turns into outright dense-ness and stupidity. 

That is really all I had to say about this, except I am glad I got it from the library because I would not want to buy this.  I will link the first book, Girls of Paper and Fire, however, I am not reading the third book. 

From the Publisher

Lei, the naive country girl who became a royal courtesan, is now known as the Moonchosen, the commoner who managed to do what no one else could. But slaying the cruel monarch wasn't the culmination of her destiny -- it was just the beginning. Now Lei, with a massive bounty on her head, must travel the kingdom with her warrior love Wren to gain support from the far-flung rebel clans.

Meanwhile, a plot to eliminate the rebel uprising is taking shape, fueled by dark magic and vengeance. Will Lei succeed in her quest to overthrow the monarchy, or will she succumb to the sinister magic that seeks to destroy her bond with Wren, and their very lives?

Publication Information:

Author: Natasha Ngan
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Page length: 417 pages

A Crane Among Wolves

 

Rating: 4 for emotional ride and a great mystery

My Thoughts:

I did not think that mystery was my genre, however, historical fiction/mystery/romance by June Hur is my genre. I enjoyed this Korean history inspired story even more than Hur's Red Palace. I enjoyed the two mentor rolls for Iseul, both the young female inn keeper and the crusty old detective. Yes, it is inevitable that the two main characters will be entangled eventually in their own love story, but these minor characters brought a lot of interest to the story. The side characters were full-bodied and interesting. 

Perhaps what makes June Hur's books different is that her penchant for detail and an absorption into the atmosphere of ancient Korea makes the characters seem more alive and contemporary. I sometimes forgot that I was reading a story taking place in 1506. That is artistic skill. 

From the Publisher:

Hope is dangerous. Love is deadly.

1506, Joseon. The people suffer under the cruel reign of the tyrant King Yeonsan, powerless to stop him from commandeering their land for his recreational use, banning and burning books, and kidnapping and horrifically abusing women and girls as his personal playthings.

Seventeen-year-old Iseul has lived a sheltered, privileged life despite the kingdom’s turmoil. When her older sister, Suyeon, becomes the king’s latest prey, Iseul leaves the relative safety of her village, traveling through forbidden territory to reach the capital in hopes of stealing her sister back. But she soon discovers the king’s power is absolute, and to challenge his rule is to court certain death.

Prince Daehyun has lived his whole life in the terrifying shadow of his despicable half-brother, the king. Forced to watch King Yeonsan flaunt his predation through executions and rampant abuse of the common folk, Daehyun aches to find a way to dethrone his half-brother once and for all. When staging a coup, failure is fatal, and he’ll need help to pull it off—but there’s no way to know who he can trust.

When Iseul's and Daehyun's fates collide, their contempt for each other is transcended only by their mutual hate for the king. Armed with Iseul’s family connections and Daehyun’s royal access, they reluctantly join forces to launch the riskiest gamble the kingdom has ever seen:

Save her sister. Free the people. Destroy a tyrant.

Publication Information:

Author: June Hur

Publisher: Feiwel and Friends (May 14, 2024)

Print length: 363 pages