GIRL LEAVE HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 3 stars because the concept is interesting even if this is the most male-centric thing I have ever read in my life. The best part of this was each time the alphabet would reach the name of a person in Heti's life, and you would get a full view of her relationship & thoughts on that person through those sentences starting with their name. Unfortunately, her thoughts on a lot of the people in her life are excruciating.
Sugar Rush: Choose Your Own Adventure (43,295 words) by The_Lavender_Creator Chapters: 3/3 Fandom: Wayward Children Series - Seanan McGuire Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Onishi Sumi, Emily Carlton, Kade West, Christopher Flores (Wayward Children Series), Stephanie (Wayward Children Series), Antoinette "Antsy" Ricci, Cora Miller (Wayward Children Series), Jack Wolcott, Gideon (Wayward Children Series), Skeleton Girl (Wayward Children Series), Regan Lewis, Eleanor West (Wayward Children Series), Yulia (Wayward Children Series), Wizard of Fondant, Layla "The Baker", Alexis Chopper, Nancy Whitman Additional Tags: Choose Your Own Adventure, Choose Your Own Ending, Ships Vary On Pathway, Possible Character Death, POV Alternating, Book 11: Through Gates of Garnet and Gold
Summary: What will Emily, Kade, and Christopher do with the power to travel through the Doors at will? Only you can decide...
This book is just Maharet, Mekare, Jesse and Khayman to me. No one else exists. There's nothing else. What's that about Lestat? La la la I can't hear you
In June, I sent three of the books in my Samantha Parkington collection to @samantha-and-nellie on Tumblr so they could be digitally scanned for ditigal reading and distribution. The books I sent were Hello, Samantha (the board book which came with the purchase of the My First Samantha ragdoll), The Diary of Raquel Reyes (which came with the purchase of the Raquel doll), and Raquel Reyes Saves the Wedding (which is, more or less, a proper novelization of the fictional diary that came with the doll).
The books have now been digitized and can be accessed in the links below.
The posts by @samantha-and-nellie releasing the scans are here: 1 | 2 | 3
It should also be noted that the scan for Hello, Samantha includes a board cover, which I personally cut out of the packaging for the My First Samantha doll. The book comes slotted within the board cover, which is part of a horizontal board that hovers over the doll within its box (photo right).
Marriage Under Moon (2135 words) by The_Lavender_Creator Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Wayward Children Series - Seanan McGuire Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Alexis Chopper/Jack Wolcott Characters: Alexis Chopper, Jack Wolcott, Dr. Bleak (Wayward Children Series), Alexis Chopper's Parents, Jill Wolcott Additional Tags: The Moors (Wayward Children Series - Seanan McGuire), Marriage Proposal, Marriage, Same-Sex Marriage, Engagement, Blood Magic, kinda. you'll get it
Oracle Unleashed (473 words) by The_Lavender_Creator Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Twilight Series - All Media Types, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Jacob Black/Alice Cullen Characters: Jacob Black, Alice Cullen Additional Tags: Long-Haired Jacob Black, Jacob Black Does Not Imprint on Renesmee Cullen, Past Alice Cullen/Jasper Hale, Jasper Hale Is Dead, Fix-It of Sorts Summary: After the timely death of her mate and the birth of Renesmee, Alice finds herself seeking comfort in the unknowable.
A young vampire named Cora finds her faith exploited by her priest, as her search for redemption against her new killer nature leaves her vulnerable to a man with his own blood-soaked agenda. The Confessional explores grooming and exploitation in a really interesting way, but it doesn't explore the juxtaposition between Orville using Cora's romantic feelings for him as a way to leverage her for his use, and the vampiresses in the coven's brothel using men's sexual interest in them as leverage to steal their blood.
The strongest point of the graphic novel comes in the vast amounts of Catholic guilt experienced by Cora and the ways it's visualized. She transforms into a succubus-esque demon form when she feeds, literally feeding the sin she sought out Father Orville in order to escape, and bears a permanent burn of a cross over her heart from continuing to wear it into immortality. Her guilt follows her through every window. However, Cora's guilt isn't exactly resolved, so much as her guilt for acting as an agent of God begins to outweigh the guilt she has for feeding as a means of survival.
The art style was gorgeous, with a few specific elements I really enjoyed. I enjoyed the way bubble-lettered words would flow across a panel for emphasis toward movement, etc., and the comic's lack of fear around nudity. There's no double standard where gore is okay but nudity and sexuality are deemed too explicit on these pages.
In summary, I really liked it! I just think a little more thought could have gone into the religious and moral side of Cora's escape from Father Orville's hold.
"Ammick says what a pity 'twas Jane 'ad died barren. 'I deny that,' says Mosse. 'I maintain she was fruitful in the 'ighest sense o' the word.'"
The Janeites does the invaluable service of showing us that fandom drama has always existed, from modern-day ship wars to old-timey military trials over which Austen character is most reminiscent of which gun in their artillery... And also that there will always be people who want smut in their romance novels.
World War I lands a young man in a military regiment filled with Janeites, who proceed to try to induct him into their fandom. Much of the modern-day fandom practices prevalent online are shown here, though with an obvious lack of fanworks: characters headcanon which of Austen's characters would best equate to which gun they have and then have to defend their choices, speculate the life of Austen while equating her to God (going so far as to refer to her home in Bath as holy ground), and refer to other characters by the names of Austen's characters when they do something like them.
This is an unusual entry in fiction about fictional fandoms/fandom members, mostly due to the fact that it centers around men in a fandom based around a woman's work. There's really nothing quite like it.
I found a copy of Angelina Ballerina's Invitation to the Ballet today while at Costco, and bought a copy for myself and my niece since her birthday is coming up and she's started ballet lessons (partially due to the fact I, myself, did ballet when I was younger than she is now). I found it incredibly charming, and I'm very happy with the little inserts it comes with. Tactile materials are always appreciated in children's books, of course, and I am going to proudly display my signed Serena Silvertail poster on my walls.
I will say, I'm quite surprised I found this book. Partially because I've never actually seen an Angelina Ballerina book in person, and partially because it was apparently published in 2003. Or, that's what Goodreads claims. But all of the copyright information in the two copies I have purchased are dated to 2025, so what do I know?
With all of that said and done, here is my traditional Goodreads review of the book:
My review was mostly what I stated above, but I also pointed out how the interactive elements of this book, which come in the forms of letters/cards/etc. mailed to different characters, seems like such a nice way to introduce children to epistolary/multimedia elements in fiction.
On the topic of Angelina Ballerina, here is a video about her and the history of her brand that I quite like, as well as an interview with her illustrator, Helen Craig, that I have re-watched several times. What can I say? I'm a sucker for a little ballerina mouse.
Please note: I do not support Neil Gaiman and have conciously decided to cease reading his books since the sexual assault allegations against him came out in the summer of 2024. Unfortunately, in 2023, I tried to read everything he'd ever published. The world is full of nothing if not ironies. I now know better than to commit myself to reading the complete works of anyone who isn't dead.
And no, the humor of me reading it on Sep. 11 two mere seasons before his cancellation is not lost on me.
I read this entirely due to a vampire bookclub livestream hosted by the YouTuber Maven of the Eventide and proceeded to hate it. I didn't leave a review at the time, which is a same, since my original thoughts have naturally disolved with the tide of time. I don't remember much about it (which is likely a show of it's uality in and of itself, since I'm usually very good at remembering my different books no matter how long it has been) but I remember being utterly unimpressed with the fat representation within the book, which is clearly meant to be the main draw of the novel. Shame.
Shorter than you'd think it would be! I intend to re-read this one whenever I get around to reading The Gilda Stories, since I have a bindup of Carmilla with the short story Carmille.
Read: January 22, 2024
Re-read: February 10, 2026
My rating: 3 of 5 stars ⭐
Review from Second Read: Could have used a few more drafts, but alas.
Initally read to pair with Carmilla, and later re-read as part of a college course I took on the evolution of literary monsters. I also read Dracula for this class, see below.
Review: Why do we keep writing jokes when the peak of comedy was already hit 200 years ago
Was read to be paired with The Vampyre. Short, sweet, and really funny. Meant as a humorous spin on Polidori's novel, following an enslaved Hatian vampire. Highly recommend.
Review: I love when weird shit happens. Especially when it involves lightning.
Scrapped scene placed near the opening of Dracula. That I read it so long before I actually read the novel it originates from is a mix of me being on a short vampire kick, pairing it with the previous few books, and from the copy of Dracula I own being one of the daunting special editons from Barnes & Noble. I still have not touched that special edition, despite having read the book now.
The Vampire Chronicles! I am slowly making my way through the series (by which I mean, I've been reading one book a year.) At the time of writing this, I am in the midst of reading the third book (The Queen Of The Damned). She'll be getting her own review post under the Vampire tag, once I have finished reading it.
These books are really important to me. By which I mean, the physical books I'm reading from. When I turned about fourteen, my mother gave me her personal copies of TVC books, all mass market paperbacks from the 80s. Naturally, they are very dear to me.
"[...] And you'll see the moon the same way, and the same flicker of a candle. And with that same sensibility that you cherish you will see death in all its beauty, life as it is only known on the very point of death. Don't you understand that, Louis? You alone of all creatures can see death that way with impunity. You... alone... under the rising moon... can strike like the hand of God!" Page 83
Read: February 19, 2024
My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars ⭐
More details to follow.
A short story collection based around supernatural happenings infesting school proms, though I'm sure that was gleamed from the title. I picked it up because it has a contribution from Stephenie Meyer, the author of Twilight. (More on that later.)
The Exterminator's Daughter by Meg Cabot: ⭐⭐
The Corsage by Lauren Myracle: ⭐ ("I would give it 0, if possible")
Madison Avery and the Dim Reaper by Kim Harrison: ⭐⭐⭐
While writing this, I am pursuing my very first re-read of the entire Twilight Saga! However, I don't think I will be covering this book in it, due to how recently I read it for the first time. Oh well. I remember being rather disappointed with this one, even to the point of being rather bored. I don't believe any of the other books have ever bored me, since I'm actually a really big fan of the slow, everyday pace posessed by the Twilight Saga, but I really just couldn't stand Bree Tanner as a perspective character. I missed Bella!
Also, as I am starting my Twilight Saga re-read while reading The Queen Of The Damned, I would be remiss to neglect mentioning my suspicion that the QOTD chapter "The Short Happy Life of Baby Jenks and the Fang Gang" directly inspired this novella. and, of course, my Nico's suspicon that very same chapter named the Twilight antagonist Laurent.
My personal favorite adaptation of the character Claudia, followed closely by the 1994 film Claudia. Which is to say nothing of my feelings for the Claudia presented in the AMC television series! I really like what I've seen of the show so far (season one), but in my mind it's a beast onto itself, whereas the novel, film, and this comic are all clustered together.
The Boys from Blood River by: Rebecca Roanhorse - DNF
Senior Year Sucks by: Julie Murphy - ⭐.5
The Boy and the Bell by: Heidi Heilig - ⭐⭐⭐
A Guidebook For The Newly Sired Desi Vampire by: Samira Ahmed - ⭐.5
In Kind by: Kayla Whaley - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Vampires Never Say Die by: Zovaida Córdova & Natalie C. Parker - ⭐.5
Bestiary by: Laura Ruby - ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5
Mirrors, Windows & Selfies by: Mark Oshiro - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The House of Black Sapphires by: Dhonielle Clayton - DNF
First Kill by: V.E. Schwab - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Average Rating: 2.8 ⭐
Review:Seven Nights for Dying ended with a lackluster twist and featured too much grooming for a casual taste. The Boys from Blood River featured impressively poor writing, rivaling the bafflingly rushed nature of Senior Year Sucks. The Boy and the Bell had an interesting premise, but was bogged down by the choice to dedicate half of the page time to the main character being repeatedly misgendered. A Guidebook For The Newly Sired Desi Vampire tried and failed to make up for its utter lack of substance with half-hearted pop culture references and emoji use. In Kind was beautifully written and told a very rare story about a disabled person who is able to retain their disability after being granted immortality, as well as being able to reclaim stolen agency in the process. Vampires Never Say Die continues the theme of vampire grooming from the first story (yes, even in a platonic sense) and features an amazingly clueless main character in Theolinda. Bestiary was a definite high point in the book, including a futuristic sci-fi setting over the typical urban fantasy claimed by the other stories within and a unique set of vampire powers. Mirrors, Windows & Selfies was an excellently done parody on Tumblr and the sorts of teenagers who typically flock to it (this coming from someone who has been using Tumblr since the age of 14). The House of Black Sapphires manages to come off as a sort of racist caricature, and is best noted for its mention of Charleston, South Carolina. Finally, First Kill reinvents the basic premise from the third story in this collection in an exciting new way, featuring far more depth and build-up, in addition to building out its lore for hunters and vampires in a seamless way.
Not my favorite book in the series; I found this book to drag a lot, which is odd since I didn't get the same feeling from IWTV or QOTD. Though, that could be my utter distaste for most of the characters populating Lestat's childhood, and my disinterest in his rockstar life. I might just be disinterested in Lestat, actually. I truly hope not, due to the fact he has functionally taken the series hostage, along with late Anne's affections.
I originally attempted to read this one soon after I finished IWTV, only to crash into an immediate wall with it and put it on pause for over a year. My read of it took about two months, in comparison to IWTV's few weeks, and was finally snuffed out by me resorting to the audiobook. Oh well.
Finally, the moment we all waited for. I read Dracula for my monster class. Following far too much build up. I didn't review it, but I really liked it. It has a lot of lines that surprised me with their eroticism, despite my knowledge that the modern, sexy vampire can be attributed to Stoker's novel. During my class, I got a video call lecture from Dacre Stoker, his decendant, which was really neat.
I do intend to continue on with different books by Stoker, specifically a wyrm(?) one my professor kept raving about. But that's all non-vampire business for another day.
Alphabetical Diaries by Sheila Heti
