Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It celebrates lovely lists, wonderful books and the bookish community. This week’s topic is Books Involving Food (That Aren’t Cookbooks). It was submitted by Cathy @ WhatCathyReadNext and Hopewell’s Public Library of Life.
This one was interesting! Here I go!
Legends & Lattes: I feel this one is obvious.
Mooncakes: I feel this one is also obvious.
Yumi and the Nightmare Painter: Painted and Yumi spend a significant amount of time at Design’s ramen place.
A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking: Again, I feel this is another obvious choice.
Dreadful: Garlic Festival! 🧄🎉
Kingdom of the Wicked: Emilia’s family owns and manages their own restaurant. The food descriptions made me hungry, and were one of the few things I liked about this book.
Otherworldly: Ellery works at a diner. It’s also where they and Knox meet. Knox also has a goldfish cracker addiction.
The Lost Story: There’s so much discussion about Golden Apple Christmas Cake in this book. And there’s a recipe for it at the end of the novel.
The Ghostkeeper: Much like The Lost Story, there’s a bakery item featured here. Also like The Lost Story, there is a recipe for a bakery item – Fife’s Fantastical (Ghostly) Scones – featured here.
Guess who crashed yet again last night? …Me. It was me. (I really should stop doing that.)
Spell the Month in Books is a monthly post created and hosted by Jana @ Reviews from the Stacks. I started participating in it a few months ago. It’s typically a Saturday post (as I might have mentioned above), but let’s all agree the Mar had a busy day yesterday and maybe, accidentally fell asleep before they could post.
It’s finally December, the heart of the holiday season and the end of the year. Baking intensifies 🍪 and Christmas decorations are everywhere 🔔 and trees are up🎄and snow is sometimes on the ground ❄️⛄- not to mention gifts 🎁🌟 and friendship.
But yeah, let’s get to spelling December with books.
D
Dreadful Tale of Prosper Redding, The
AUTHOR: Alexandra Bracken
RELEASE DATE: 5 September 2017
BOOK DESCRIPTION:
The first in a “devious and delightful” new series by Alexandra Bracken, #1 New York Times best-selling author of The Darkest Minds, soon to be a major motion picture.
“I would say it’s a pleasure to meet thee, Prosperity Oceanus Redding, but truly, I only anticipate the delights of destroying thy happiness?”
Prosper is the only unexceptional Redding in his old and storied family history – that is, until he discovers the demon living inside him. Turns out Prosper’s great-great-great-great-great-something grandfather made-and then broke-a contract with a malefactor, a demon who exchanges fortune for eternal servitude. And, weirdly enough, eight-hundred-year-old Alastor isn’t exactly the forgiving type.
The fiend has reawakened with one purpose – to destroy the family whose success he ensured and who then betrayed him. With only days to break the curse and banish Alastor back to the demon realm, Prosper is playing unwilling host to the fiend, who delights in tormenting him with nasty insults and constant attempts to trick him into a contract. Yeah, Prosper will take his afterlife without a side of eternal servitude, thanks.
But with the help of his long-lost uncle, Barnabas, and his daughter, Nell, a witch-in-training, it seems like Prosper has at least a fighting chance of ridding himself of Alastor before the demon escapes and wreaks havoc on his family.
Little does Prosper know, the malefactor’s control over his body grows stronger with each passing night and there’s a lot Alastor isn’t telling his dim-witted (but admittedly strong-willed) human host?
From #1 New York Times best-selling author Alexandra Bracken comes a tale of betrayal and revenge, of old hurts passed down from generation to generation. Can you ever fully right a wrong, ever truly escape your history? Or will Prosper and Alastor be doomed to repeat it?
Don’t miss Evermore, the first book in Alyson Noël’s #1 New York Times bestselling The Immortals series. Enter an enchanting new world where true love never dies…
After a horrible accident claimed the lives of her family, sixteen-year-old Ever Bloom can see people’s auras, hear their thoughts, and know someone’s entire life story by touching them. Going out of her way to avoid human contact and suppress her abilities, she has been branded a freak at her new high school―but everything changes when she meets Damen Auguste.
Damen is gorgeous, exotic and wealthy. He’s the only one who can silence the noise and random energy in her head―wielding a magic so intense, it’s as though he can peer straight into her soul. As Ever is drawn deeper into his enticing world of secrets and mystery, she’s left with more questions than answers. And she has no idea just who he really is―or what he is. The only thing she knows to be true is that she’s falling deeply and helplessly in love with him.
C
Curse for True Love, A
AUTHOR: Stephanie Garber
RELEASE DATE: 24 October 2023
BOOK DESCRIPTION:
Two villains, one girl, and a deadly battle for happily ever after…
Evangeline Fox ventured to the Magnificent North in search of her happy ending, and it seems as if she has it. She’s married to a handsome prince and lives in a legendary castle.
But Evangeline has no idea of the devastating price she’s paid for this fairytale. She doesn’t know what she has lost, and her husband is determined to make sure she never finds out.
But first he must kill Jacks, the Prince of Hearts. Blood will be shed, hearts will be stolen, and true love will be put to the test.
Twenty-nine-year-old Satoru Fujinuma is floundering through life. Amid his daily drudgery, he finds himself in the grip of an incredible, inexplicable, and uncontrollable phenomenon that rewinds time, a condition that seems to only make his drab life worse. But then, one day, everything changes. A terrible incident forever changes Satoru’s life as he knows it…and with it, comes a “Revival” that sends Satoru eighteen years into the past! In the body of his boyhood self, Satoru encounters sights he never imagined he would see again–the smile of his mother, alive and well, his old friends, and Kayo Hinazuki, the girl who was kidnapped and murdered when he was a boy the first time around. To return to the present and prevent the tragedy that brought him back to his childhood in the first place, Satoru begins plotting a way to change Hinazuki’s fate…But up against the clock and a faceless evil, does eleven-year-old Satoru even stand a chance?
M
Mooncakes
AUTHOR: Suzanne Walker, Wendy Xu (Illustrator)
RELEASE DATE: 15 October 2019
BOOK DESCRIPTION:
A story of love and demons, family and witchcraft. Nova Huang knows more about magic than your average teen witch. She works at her grandmothers’ bookshop, where she helps them loan out spell books and investigate any supernatural occurrences in their New England town. One fateful night, she follows reports of a white wolf into the woods, and she comes across the unexpected: her childhood crush, Tam Lang, battling a horse demon in the woods. As a werewolf, Tam has been wandering from place to place for years, unable to call any townhome. Pursued by dark forces eager to claim the magic of wolves and out of options, Tam turns to Nova for help. Their latent feelings are rekindled against the backdrop of witchcraft, untested magic, occult rituals, and family ties both new and old in this enchanting tale of self-discovery.
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • ONE OF TIME MAGAZINE’S 100 BEST YA BOOKS OF ALL TIME
The extraordinary, beloved novel about the ability of books to feed the soul even in the darkest of times.
When Death has a story to tell, you listen.
It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.
Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement.
In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak, author of I Am the Messenger, has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.
E
Everlost
AUTHOR: Neal Shusterman
RELEASE DATE: 1 October 2006
BOOK DESCRIPTION:
Nick and Allie don’t survive the car accident…
…but their souls don’t exactly get where they’re supposed to get either. Instead, they’re caught halfway between life and death, in a sort of limbo known as Everlost: a shadow of the living world, filled with all the things and places that no onger exist. It’s a magical, yet dangerous place where bands of lost children run wild and anyone who stands in the same place too long sinks to the center of the Earth.
When they find Mary, the self-proclaimed queen of lost kids, Nick feels like he he’s found a home, but allie isn’t satisfied spending eternity between worlds. Against all warnings, Allie begins learning the “Criminal Art” of haunting, and ventures into dangerous territory, where a monster called the McGill threatens all the souls of Everlost.
In this imaginative novel, Neal Shusterman explores questions of life, death, and what just might lie in between.
R
Ruin and Rising
AUTHOR: Leigh Bardugo
RELEASE DATE: 17 June 2014
BOOK DESCRIPTION:
Enter the Grishaverse with Book Three of the Shadow and Bone Trilogy by the #1 New York Times-bestselling author of Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom.
Soldier. Summoner. Saint. The nation’s fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army.
The Darkling rules from his shadow throne while a weakened Alina Starkov recovers from their battle under the dubious protection of the zealots who worship her as a Saint. Now her hopes lie with the magic of a long-vanished ancient creature and the chance that an outlaw prince still survives.
What books have you been reading lately? Have you been reading any with an autumnal theme? What have you thought of them?
Thanks again for reading, and have a wonderful day/night!
It’s that time of year again – the time of year where I recommend books for the season! My recommendations of autumn books of 2023! It’s the middle of October, so that means I’m gonna recommend some spooky books and/or just some books with fall vibes in general. There are a bunch of them, after all.
I also understand that, once again, it’s a bit late for this kind of post. But! I hadn’t read a couple of books on this list until the last week or so, so I wanted to actually read them before doing this post. So, sorry it’s kinda later in the month again, but I had a decent reason this time, lol.
Now, I know that I usually do these things in lists of five. The thing is though, I’ve just read too many graphic novels in the last year or so that are just too perfect for this post. So, there’s seven recs here. Deal with it, lol.
Ichabod Crane, a schoolteacher, came to Tarry Town in the glen of Sleepy Hollow to ply his trade in educating young minds. He was a gullible and excitable fellow, often so terrified by locals’ stories of ghosts that he would hurry through the woods on his way home, singing to keep from hysterics.
Until late one night, he finds that maybe they’re not just stories. What is that dark, menacing figure riding behind him on a horse? And what does it have in its hands? And why wasn’t schoolteacher Crane ever seen in Sleepy Hollow again?
I couldn’t help but to start with a classic. Sleepy Hollow has been one of my favorite spooky stories for many years. And though it’s been quite some time since I’ve last read it, I know that it still holds up even now.
If you enjoy unsettling oldies, dullahans, and just a good book for Halloween, give this one a try if you haven’t already. It’s still fantastic.
Kell is one of the last Antari—magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons; Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black.
Kell was raised in Arnes—Red London—and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador, traveling between the frequent bloody regime changes in White London and the court of George III in the dullest of Londons, the one without any magic left to see.
Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they’ll never see. It’s a defiant hobby with dangerous consequences, which Kell is now seeing firsthand.
After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.
Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they’ll first need to stay alive.
Despite some of my annoyances with this series, the Shades of Magic trilogy remains one of my favorite adult fantasy series. I love, love, love these books.
Though this trilogy might not have the strongest of fall vibes, I think the books are great for the season anyway. Cuz I read them in the fall and I was feeling the cozy, magical vibes. And if your not interested in this trilogy, I think that all of Schwab’s books have some autumnal atmospheres.
A sparkling, witchy reimagining of Pride and Prejudice, told from the perspective of the troublesome and—according to her—much-maligned youngest Bennet sister, Lydia.
In this exuberant reimagining of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Lydia Bennet puts pen to paper to relate the real events and aftermath of the classic story from her own perspective. Some facts are well known: Mrs. Bennet suffers from her nerves; Mr. Bennet suffers from Mrs. Bennet, and all five daughters suffer from an estate that is entailed only to male heirs.
But Lydia also suffers from entirely different concerns: her best-loved sister Kitty is really a barn cat, and Wickham is every bit as wicked as the world believes him to be, but what else would you expect from a demon? And if you think Mr. Darcy was uptight about dancing etiquette, wait till you see how he reacts to witchcraft. Most of all, Lydia has yet to learn that when you’re a witch, promises have power…
Full of enchantment, intrigue, danger, and boundless magic, The Scandalous Confessions of Lydia Bennet, Witch, has all the irreverent wit, strength, and romance of Pride and Prejudice—while offering a highly unexpected redemption for the wildest Bennet sister.
The first new book on this list! The Scandalous Confessions of Lydia Bennet, Witch is a novel completely drenched in fall vibes. You’d be hard pressed to find a better book to read during October, if that’s what you’re looking for.
Not only does this book appeal to those who crave that cozy autumn atmosphere, but it’s also an excellent historical fantasy novel. It’s also a magical retelling of Pride and Prejudice, so Austen fans have a huge chance of loving it too.
Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a perfectly normal boy. Well, he would be perfectly normal if he didn’t live in a graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor the world of the dead.
There are dangers and adventures for Bod in the graveyard: the strange and terrible menace of the Sleer; a gravestone entrance to a desert that leads to the city of ghouls; friendship with a witch, and so much more.
But it is in the land of the living that real danger lurks, for it is there that the man Jack lives and he has already killed Bod’s family.
A deliciously dark masterwork by bestselling author Neil Gaiman, with illustrations by award-winning Dave McKean.
Yet another book that it’s been quite some time since I’ve read. Regardless, I still adore it. Anything that Gaiman writes is wonderful in it’s own way, even if I don’t always enjoy it myself. I definitely liked this one though.
This one isn’t admittedly all that scary, as it’s targeted toward middle-grade as well, but it’s still a solid book. Yet another one I’d like to read again this year before Halloween if I can find the time. For those who like The Jungle Book, ghost stories, and found family, give this a shot.
All human beings, as we meet them, are commingled out of good and evil: and Edward Hyde, alone, in the ranks of mankind, was pure evil.
The disturbing Mr. Hyde is making his repugnant presence known in late 19th Century London. But punishment for his vile acts are always parried by the good, and well-respected, Dr. Jekyll. Soon, the secret relationship between the two men will be revealed.
A classic that continues to be referenced today, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde will forever be locked in literary history.
This is by far my absolute favorite creepy classic. Something about it – just the way it’s written – and especially the intriguing dichotomy between Jekyll and Hyde just has absolutely loving this novel.
If you’ve ever had any interest at all in this book, definitely read it. And also, if you like webcomics and graphic novels check out The Glass Scientists by S.H. Cotugno. It’s a brilliant and imaginative retelling, and I love it.
Two twins, one prophecy, and a whole lot of hijinks. From WEBTOON, the #1 digital comic platform, comes a fantastical story about twin siblings Dani and Dorian who have missed the bus to magic school and scramble to find a mentor to teach them before their parents find out. Perfect for fans of THE OKAY WITCH and the 5 Worlds series.
When Dani and Dorian missed the bus to magic school, they never thought they’d wind up declared traitors to their own kind! Now, thanks to a series of mishaps, they are being chased by powerful magic families seeking the prophesied King of Witches and royals searching for missing princes.
But they aren’t alone. With a local troublemaker, a princess, and a teacher who can see the future on their side, they might just be able to clear their names…but can they heal their torn kingdom?
Based on the beloved webcomic from WEBTOON, Hooky is in stunning print format for the first time with exclusive new content sure to please fans new and old.
This is one of the things I read recently. Review incoming – very soon. Hooky was such a cute, Ghibli-esque, Halloween themed story. I love the art, the characters, and the setting and story. It’s all so wonderful.
For fans of cozy Halloween and graphic novels, this is one for you. If you just like good art in general though, and are looking for autumn vibes, then also check this out.
A story of love and demons, family and witchcraft.
Nova Huang knows more about magic than your average teen witch. She works at her grandmothers’ bookshop, where she helps them loan out spell books and investigate any supernatural occurrences in their New England town.
One fateful night, she follows reports of a white wolf into the woods, and she comes across the unexpected: her childhood crush, Tam Lang, battling a horse demon in the woods. As a werewolf, Tam has been wandering from place to place for years, unable to call any town home.
Pursued by dark forces eager to claim the magic of wolves and out of options, Tam turns to Nova for help. Their latent feelings are rekindled against the backdrop of witchcraft, untested magic, occult rituals, and family ties both new and old in this enchanting tale of self-discovery.
There’s nothing more cozy than Mooncakes. It is the ultimate cottage core, fall graphic novel. With baking. And books. And witches and werewolves.
This is a sweet little story that tugged at my heart while I read it. And it has gorgeous artwork! And good queer rep if you’re into that. Definitely look into it regardless.
What books have you been reading this fall? Have any of them had any autumn or spooky vibes? Do we share any of the same favorites?
And if course, thank you to everyone so much for reading, and I hope that you have an awesome day/night!
Book Description: Nova Huang knows more about magic than your average teen witch. She works at her grandmothers’ bookshop, where she helps them loan out spell books and investigate any supernatural occurrences in their New England town.
One fateful night, she follows reports of a white wolf into the woods, and she comes across the unexpected: her childhood crush, Tam Lang, battling a horse demon. As a werewolf, Tam has been wandering from place to place for years, unable to call any town home. Pursued by dark forces eager to claim the magic of wolves and out of options, Tam turns to Nova for help. Their latent feelings are rekindled through the backdrop of witchcraft, untested magic, occult rituals, and family ties both new and old, in this enchanting tale of self-discovery.
My Review
Star Rating: 🍰🍰🍰 • 3 / 5 cakes!
So. D’you wanna tell me what’s going on?
Okay, to start off this review, I want to immediately make clear that this graphic novel was absolutely adorable. Saccharinely sweet, one might say, and not just because of the gorgeous cover.
At its core, this book is just a chill, slice-of-life story, with some fantasy and romance elements added to the mix. (I know. I have to stop it with these baking puns.) And I enjoyed it for being what it was. Not to mention, the main characters were pretty likeable, which is exceedingly important in a novel. So, before I get into the stuff I didn’t like as much, let’s talk about the things this book did that were fantastic.
First of all: the characters. I liked Nova 🪄🧹 and Tam🐺🌳 – the protagonists. I liked how Nova was a witch and how she used the knowledge and magic she’d gained through her studies in her daily life. It seemed so casual and natural, and there was nothing forced about it. (I also enjoyed how Nova being hard of hearing was handled. I didn’t really know where to put this, but I wanted to mention it, so it’s here.)
I also liked Tam and their werewolf powers, and how the book emphasized that werewolves have magic, which is different from witch magic. I thought that was really cool, and it’s something I’ve never really seen before in a book. I also loved how the book handled Tam’s enby status. It was just a part of their character, and wasn’t their one and only defining character trail. Tam is also self-conscious, brave, and protective.
I missed you too.
Tatyana 🧪💡 was the absolute best character in the novel, though. I loved how she was a total science nerd, and the scepticism she showed towards what could be done with magic, despite knowing that it existed. I also loved how supportive Nova’s grandmas were, and how the relationship mostly focused on in Mooncakes wasn’t the romance (though there was romance) but the found family aspect.
Also, before we get into my cons for the book, I really want to highlight the artwork. It’s seriously good. The cover is merely a prelude to the amazing pictures inside. Wendy Xu is a very talented artist, and should definitely be recognized for it.
Now, it’s time for my grievances. First off, the antagonists sucked. I know, I know, it’s a slice-of-life. But I just kind of expected the villains to be better, is all.
Second off, I did not appreciate the insta-love between Tam and Nova. I should clarify that this point in particular is probably a me thing: I’m a slow-burn type of gal. But I also feel like getting together at the end of Chapter 2, after only meeting again for the first time in years at the end of Chapter 1, was a little too fast. Yeah, I get it – they’re teenagers. It still bothered me. I also would’ve liked to get to know Nova and Tam as individual characters more before we got to know them as a couple. I much preferred all of the found family stuff. (The lesbian grandmas were perfect, though. I loved reading them interact.)
Also, one last criticism. I hated how Nova tried to rub in one of the antagonist’s faces that she was gonna make out with Tam. Like, this individual obviously did not care whatsoever. Not to mention, it seemed kind of childish for a 17-year-old; it honestly sounds more like something a 12-year-old would do. And also, the antagonists were too stupid to use this information, freely given, as some sort of leverage. Like, I was waiting for the other shoe to drop for most of the novel. (Minor spoilers, I guess?)
Anyway, Mooncakes was, over all, pretty great. It was beautifully illustrated, with a likable setting and characters. (Who doesn’t love a witchy story set in New England?!?) This book is great for those of you who enjoy gorgeous graphic novels and some fantasy. It’s a wonderful, cozy read, perfect throughout any time during the fall, though near Halloween might be the best.
Have you read this book? What are your favorite things to read around Halloween? Thank you all for reading, and have a wonderful day/night!
