Viking has bought The Young Pathfinders, a middle-grade graphic novel series by Francesco Sedita and Prescott Seraydarian. The book will be illustrated by Steve Hamaker. The Young Pathfinders is an adventure story featuring a diverse group of kids thrown together in a summer camp project. Researching their town’s history leads to a mysterious, abandoned castle that was once home to an eccentric inventor, and may still be home to great treasure.
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Rating: 4 out of 5.
I had to pick this one up when I read the premise and thought it would be a fun read – I wasn’t wrong. I will definitely be picking up other volumes as this was just a joy to read. A fun, puzzle solving mystery with a group of new friends. The art style is fun and vibrant, and the story flows super fast. I can’t wait to see what else they find on their adventures.
Wilder and her friends continue their adventures, exploring the secrets of their sleepy hometown.
Wilder, Macy, Dot, Karma and Ed continue their hunt for notorious pirate Black Mary’s secret treasure, and uncover their sleepy town’s hidden secrets. With tensions running high, and the smell of the sea (and unclaimed treasure) fresh on the breeze, the girls will have to work together to keep clear of the Denbys and Horace Shipp, not to mention Wilder’s increasingly suspicious sheriff mom, to get out of this without walking the plank!
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Rating: 4 out of 5.
I’ve been wanting to pick up the second volume of Misfit City for a while now and finally was able to – then made sure to devour it in one setting. Being a great lover of The Goonies I instantly give points to anything that references it and this one for sure does that. Sure, it plays on a lot of the same themes and tropes, but it was just a fun time. I loved the dive into Black Mary’s story that happened in this one and how the story wrapped up especially. There were some instances where I felt like some of the characters were hard to tell apart, so it might have been nice to have a slightly smaller group, or have more unique traits to them, but that didn’t decrease my enjoyment in the story as they had their adventure and discovered the truth.
Cute, clever, and comically ingenious, Andrés Colmenares’ popular shark comics are a sweet, sincere tonic for these anxious, troubled times
This hardcover collection features the cute, uplifting and ingenious aquatic cartoons of Andrés Colmenares, the creator of Wawawiwa Comics, followed by millions of fans around the globe. While sharks are one of the ocean’s deadliest predators, these sharks can smell insecurity, doubt, and gloom, and are quick to strike — with kindness, cuteness, and positivity!
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Rating: 5 out of 5.
After reading a number of the short form comic books that have come out in the last year, I was really excited to pick this one up, especially after reading the synopsis and seeing the art style. This would be the perfect book to flip through if you’re needing a quick laugh, smile or pick me up. I loved all the scenarios in this book and the little snippets of friendships and life between the different creatures features (one of my favorites involved penguins, but there were so many good ones!). I especially loved the continuing thread of the main shark and his fish friend as they interacted with other characters and lived their lives. All in all it was fun and heartwarming, sure to put a smile on anyone’s face.
Stella thought she’d made up a lie on the spot, asking her childhood friend if he remembered the strange public broadcast TV show with the unsettling host she and all the neighborhood kids appeared on years ago. But he does remember. And so does her mom. So why doesn’t Stella? The more she investigates the show and the grip it has on her hometown, the eerier the mystery grows.
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Rating: 3 out of 5.
Most of this story I spent not really knowing where it was going, but I did enjoy how the different pieces fell into place. I didn’t quite feel the ending suited it, but I think that was the result of what often happens with short stories – you end up wanting more. Whether it be more background, more foundation or just more plot to the story. I would have liked to delve more into who the Uncle Bob character was and find out the why of how things were, but I understand the author’s motivation in leaving such things out. At its core this is a psychological story and some of the elements are left open for the reader’s interpretation.
Now I know what you are thinking, there are still two weeks left in the year, so how can I be absolutely sure there won’t be something else I read that breaks its way into my top 5? There might be and if there is, then I’ll admit that fact when the time comes, but I’m fairly sure that these are pretty set on being my top 5 books of the year, so let’s get into it!
Night of the Dragon by Julie Kagawa – I still haven’t forgiven Julie Kagawa for destroying me with this book, but her Shadow of the Fox trilogy has a distinguished place on my favorites shelf. I can easily see myself reading these books time and again as I loved the characters and world that she created. All three books ended up being 5 stars for me which is saying something when you are talking about a series. I was both scared and excited for the last book, and in the last 50 or so pages my boyfriend had to deal with me sobbing my eyes out and not knowing what was wrong. If you haven’t already, please read these books, they were amazing!
Ghost Squad by Claribel Ortega – This was one of those books that I ended up being so mad at myself about, because I pre-ordered it and then didn’t read it for months! Once I read it I was kicking myself SO HARD because I loved it so much. Even though this was Ortega’s debut I will be checking out her future books based on this read alone. I loved the way she integrated culture, throwback references and her characters are rich and fully fledged. Plus – Chunk alone gets five stars (and all the Goonies references killed me). If you love spooky middle grades that are full of heart and humor, then you NEED to pick this one up.
The Wild Path by Sarah R. Baughman – Oh man, this book. This was another one that had me tearing up because there were definitely parts of it I could identify with. The mystery involving what Claire sees and finds out was a wonderful string to weave through the story and I again couldn’t help but fall in love with the characters and setting. When I originally signed on the the blog tour for this one it was because I was truly interested in the story, but I very quickly fell in love with it. This is another author whose other works I want to check out sooner rather than later not just because of the content, but because her writing style was also such a joy to read.
Night of the Mannequins by Stephen Graham Jones – Ok, I’ll admit it, because I had enjoyed Mapping the Interior so much I was pretty sure I was going to enjoy this one as well – but I didn’t know how much. I really enjoy his writing style so it was easy to fall right into this one. I pretty quickly devoured it and was so happy I had decided to pick it up. It’s humorous and dark at the same time, with just enough psychological twist that I was really happy. I can’t wait to pick up more of his work and see if I like them just as much.
The books I’ve mentioned up until this point haven’t been in any kind of order, I haven’t assigned certain spots to them, but I can pretty confidently say which book is my absolute number one of 2020. So I’m going to actually include my full review of this one.
Don’t Read the Comments by Eric Smith – I was super excited about this book when I heard about it. Being a gamer myself I’m very aware of the toxicity that can be found in the gaming community, especially when it comes to female players, so having a book that tackles this head on was such a joy to see.
I was not disappointed at all and can easily say that Don’t Read the Comments will likely appear in my favorite books of the year list. It not only discussed the gaming community and how celebrities in that community are treated, but also addressed other issues in the gaming community, different family dynamics and issues and so much more. The discussion regarding how Divya guards her identity and information out of fear of being pursued or doxxed is something that is seen in a number of industries, not just the gaming community.
I fell in love with so many of the characters, even when they perhaps weren’t acting the best. They were all moving cogs within the story that contributed greatly to the plot. There were also wonderfully inserted moments of humor that not only lightened the events, but perfectly added a realness to the story. This was really such a wonderful read and I wholeheartedly recommend it.
So there you have it – my top 5 of 2020. What were your favorite books?
Bonnie Drummond is from the wrong side of the tracks, raised in a family of liars and criminals. No matter how hard she tries to stay on the straight and narrow, she always finds herself sucked back into the family drama, forced to sacrifice everything she’s earned to protect her family.
But this time they’ve gone too far—crossed the wrong people—and to save them she’ll have to put her life on the line.
Roman Kozlov, enforcer for a New Orleans mafiya family, is the poster child for the life Bonnie is struggling to escape. But he’s also as alluring as he is dangerous, and it doesn’t take long for their lives to begin to mesh.
With Roman, Bonnie finds the family she never had.
As their race for answers heats up, so too does the budding romance between them. And with danger nipping at her heels and love threatening her heart, Bonnie must come face-to-face with her past if she wants to have a future.
After reading Hers to Tame I was excited to get the chance to read more from Rhenna Morgan and I have to say I wasn’t disappointed. I really enjoyed this story as well as the relationship between Roman and Bonnie. Bonnie of course was hesitant to some things because of her history with her family and Roman was definitely an alpha personality, but the way things came together was wonderful.
Though this one is part of a series you can definitely read it without reading the previous books. Morgan’s writing style is quick to read and has a ton of not only character development, but the plot is paced really well and constantly keeps you going forward.
A native Oklahoman, Rhenna Morgan is a certified romance junkie. Whether it’s contemporary, paranormal, or fantasy you’re after, Rhenna’s stories pack romantic escape full of new, exciting worlds, and strong, intuitive men who fight to keep the women they want. For advance release news and exclusive content, sign up for her newsletter at http://RhennaMorgan.com. You’ll also find all of her social links there, along with her smoking hot inspiration boards.
Things I know about Harrow Lake: 1.It’s where my father shot his most disturbing slasher film. 2.There’s something not right about this town.
Lola Nox is the daughter of a celebrated horror filmmaker–she thinks nothing can scare her.
But when her father is brutally attacked in their New York apartment, she’s quickly packed off to live with a grandmother she’s never met in Harrow Lake, the eerie town where her father’s most iconic horror movie was shot. The locals are weirdly obsessed with the film that put their town on the map–and there are strange disappearances, which the police seem determined to explain away.
And there’s someone–or something–stalking her every move.
The more Lola discovers about the town, the more terrifying it becomes. Because Lola’s got secrets of her own. And if she can’t find a way out of Harrow Lake, they might just be the death of her.
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Rating: 4 out of 5.
Harrow Lake is a book that will definitely have you doubting who is reliable and which way is up. There was a good chunk of the book where I was waffling between three or four stars, but the last 100 pages definitely pushed it up to four stars for me. Psychological horror is absolutely my favorite kind of horror and at first I wasn’t sure if this was where it was going. There are definitely some supernatural aspects as well.
I did really enjoy the story once it really got going. So many of the different characters seem either unreliable or like they are clearly holding information back. This sometimes is frustrating as I did find myself wanting more revealed about the town of Harrow Lake and the superstitions/legends that the townspeople had.
A also really enjoyed that as the story continued we found out that Lola herself might not be a reliable narrator as we followed her journey. There’s that constant question of whether or not she’s imagining everything or if there really is something supernatural, and that carried on through the book in its entirety.
If you like psychological horror that slowly unfolds throughout the story, definitely check out this one.
Former Academician Anna Kims research into AI cost her everything. Now, years later, the military has need of her expertise in order to prevent the destruction of their AI-powered fleet.
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Rating: 4 out of 5.
I wasn’t exactly sure what I was getting into with this story, but I knew I wanted to check out some of Yoon Ha Lee’s writing. I loved how we got dumped right into the middle of the story, and got little snippets of information about the ongoing conflict in the world from the main character’s perspective. I would definitely read more from this specific character’s view, but I did finish the story wanting a little bit more. Maybe a little more backstory, a little more fleshing out – but for a snapshot of a single concept/issue, this was a great read.
Aster always looks forward to the Midwinter Festival, a reunion of the entire Vanissen family that includes competitions in witchery and shapeshifting. This year, he’s especially excited to compete in the annual Jolrun tournament-as a witch. He’s determined to show everyone that he’s proud of who he is and what he’s learned, but he knows it won’t be easy to defy tradition.
Ariel has darker things on her mind than the Festival-like the mysterious witch who’s been visiting her dreams, claiming to know the truth about Ariel’s past. She appreciates everything the Vanissens have done for her. But Ariel still craves a place where she truly belongs.
The Festival is a whirlwind of excitement and activity, but for Aster and Ariel, nothing goes according to plan. When a powerful and sinister force invades the reunion, threatening to destroy everything the young witches have fought for, can they find the courage to fight it together? Or will dark magic tear them apart?
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Rating: 4 out of 5.
I’ve been putting off reading this one for far too long, probably because I didn’t want it too end. Safe to say I loved it. It had continuing things found family, diversity and discrimination – especially when it can happen within families. I have loved seeing how all of the characters have grown, but even more so how Aster has come into their own. They’re still young and can still get hurt, but there’s maturity that is coming with growing up. I really enjoyed the very real portrayal of conflicts that other members within a family may have, and how their actions can be misunderstood. Seeing the very real conflicts, and then resolutions when they happen I think is very important. I loved this series and highly recommend picking it up.
I have really been enjoying the Tor.com original short stories that are available and was super happy to see a couple by Stephen Graham Jones out there. Make sure you check out some of the short stories available as so far they are wonderful!
“The Night Cyclist” by Stephen Graham Jones is a horror novelette about a middle-aged chef whose nightly bicycle ride home is interrupted by an unexpected encounter.
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Rating: 4 out of 5.
After loving previous works by Stephen Graham Jones, I was thrilled to find some of his short stories available. I picked up a couple of them but The Night Cyclist was the first one I decided to read. Since the synopsis was very brief I didn’t know just what to expect, but as always I really enjoyed his writing style. It was really atmospheric especially when he was describing the scenes while the main character was cycling. There was just enough darkness to keep me in suspense until the climax of the story.
The Wandering Wordsmith 