📚All July Reads + Reviews

July had a lot of great releases. I've read a few 5s and 5+ (personal taste)

Messed up the dates sorry for the ugly graphic, lost the original 14 -23 image

Princess of Dune

5 + Stars

This is a great volume companion to add to the original trilogy because it happens 2 to 3 years before the classic Volume 1. I've been rereading the original and fitting these in between, and they go well with the original author. They keep the language, the mood, and the characters remain the same personality. Although it's Princess, there is more than Irulan and Chani's POV. Lots of action, because this is the setup for House Atreides to be sent to Arrakis for the major trap. We even have a bit of the Baron. An ambitious high-ranking officer (Moko Zhenha) decided to ask for Princess Irulan's hand in marriage and ends up humiliated, losing everything, and the next step is to get revenge on the Emperor. My favorite of Irulan's sisters is Wensicia (to me this is exactly how I see her, not like they portrayed her in the mini-series TV show of 2000). I was so excited to have her at the climax at the end as a major plot figure.

With Chani, she is about 14 years old and snappy. She is trying to find her path and dealing with her stepbrother. We get more of her parents, emotional scenes, her mother, Jamis, Liet, and Khouro are great characters.

Dune - Reread still 5+

Messiah volume 2, this is a shorter book that makes a bridge into the Children of Dune and I always think that it should have been part of book 1. It's still 4 stars, although I love Alia Atreides very much.

Drowning

5+ Stars

Omg, this is so cool! The author makes a great emotional connection between the reader and the main family involved in this crash. They have lost their oldest daughter to a stupid accident at the pool, and their marriage crumbled. Now the dad is paranoid and must see his youngest safe, so he flies with her instead of letting her go on her own. His paranoia will save the day. They are sinking inside the plane. They are sinking!!! With very few hours of air left, the mom, who is a professional diver and works fixing underwater structures, will do all possible to make the authorities listen to her plan.

I need to read Falling too!!

A Wedding and a Killing

4.5 Stars

4.5 My review doesn't reflect the characters' beliefs, religious identity, or opinions (for me, this series is entertaining and like visiting friends each weekend, but these friends are characters in a book). Having 15 books already in this series, I am glad the author experiments with different themes and beliefs. Some appeal to some readers, some appeal to others, and that's ok.

In this one we explore themes like gossip, corruption and domestic violence, also catholic community.

A shooting occurs at a church, interrupting the eloping wedding of our dear Archie, Mac and Gnarly (yes, you can't have those two getting married without Gnarly a.k.a Thug's Life).

If you know this author, you know I'll tell you that you can't skip this one or you'll miss a laugh-out-loud scene of confessions that is as sweet as hilarious. The humor style of this author is quite classical: a sort of avalanche once the first joke lands, a great scene comes with a crescendo, adding to this scene the Gnarly rehabilitation short story after the epilogue (not in the audio version, but I got the kindle version as well so I could read it, do not stand between and a gnarly dedicated short story. ), which is the cherry on top if you like humor.

Did not love the narrator this time.

(P. S. Don't forget the cannoli

I like that the people stand together for each other and what is right.

The wife's description of her husband ahahh that was more info than they were expecting.

I can imagine Mac's expression sometimes in the middle of all this, trying to understand if he is still on planet Earth. )

Rex Rocket

5 Stars

First there was Max Meow, now for the puppy lovers.

Pure fun. Not only is the story filled with action, adventure, missions, humor, and unexpected surprises, but it also features puns and hilarious moments. The characters are fully developed with amazing personalities. Check out that crew (banana, dog, shark, bunny, robot) just the best cast of heroes. At the end of the book, there are two easy, step-by-step drawing guides for Spud the robot and Rex Rocket in two poses. My favorite mission was the hairy monster, with a great plot twist. There are no quiet moments; it's fun and energetic from page one to the last, already hinting at the next adventure, including menacing burgers.

Winterset Hollow

5+ stars. Delightful and with humor among the gore. Lol. "I brought sandwiches " lol in the middle of a carnage.

Think the Wind in the Willow characters hunt down humans and are no longer the prey during the annual festival of Barley Day. Slightly complex, but if you read Watership Down, this will be right there next to it. I will keep these together from now on to reread. Not only we get the humans' and the animals' Povs in this hunt, we get in each interlude, the rhythming story of the classic that created the animals on that island. They think they are visiting a location of a beloved classic and will live a lord of the Flies experience.

Adrift

5 stars

So sad. Amazing thriller, the way this author uses the different Povs to break and create subtle cliffhangers, making us expect the worst without knowing when it will happen. It builds up and many women will relate to this family's situation in very different levels. Amazing mood. This is my first time reading this author and loved it. The end felt almost too happy for the story but satisfying.

We know the husband is a maniac killer, but his son has no idea, the mother stays and endures all for her child. Fear is the air they breathe each moment.

Monsters and Apprentice

5+ stars

When I realized it wasn't a portal or urban fantasy, I jumped right into it. Super cool concept of magic and world building. A young thief finds his path to be the apprentice of a hunter of magical creatures (monsters) that are born by from secrets kept and secrets that can harm, but nor all are dark. Rolan learns to see the bigger picture and to think more than himself and his character development is great, so is the world and secondary characters' story.

Has a lot of hilarious moments (don't feed apples to the horse), beware of Supper (the goat). Rlonan's thoughts and commentaries are perfect to balance the darkness abd emotional. Definitely want this to be a series and can't wait for the next one. Easy to visualize, also wished it was an RPG I could play.

The master is grumpy and a lonely knight hurt by the past, but Rolan is a great healer.

Has a hint of cozy but with a lot of action as well. We written, full of elements that are fantasy adventure favorites without feeling derivative of one specific work.

Bone and Brides

4 Stars

Refreshing take on dark unseelie fae with a lot of cinematography/ imagery descriptions and elements. A portal fantasy with great characters. Loved the ghosts ones and Lumi's entire concept of stitching skeletons back together. Totally gives Guilhermo Del toro and Tim Burton vibes.

They Say A Girl Died Here

5 Stars

I like the fact that it's a family of four women like the author says bounded by blood, divided by years: grandma with Alzheimer's, nurse mother overloaded, overwhelmed and exhausted, new adult main character survivor of a horrible attack that makes her quit college, move away with her family, has a very strong fear and hate for men. Lastly, her 12 year old sister who just got her period. The MC gets involved in the resolution of the death of two young women. She is like an investigative journalist and uncovers many secrets and unexpected connections. I didn't mind her obsession in discovering the truth with the hints of paranormal but the author takes the end to another path away from my preferred expectations. The end is OK, wraps things well, satisfying.

Such a Lucky Girl

5 Stars

Awesome take on modern/contemporary times. What if witchcraft had social media, and self-help books? Very cool that the author mixed the experience of reading self-help books into the idea of visualization, materialization, spells, curses, the evil eye, and cults. This has so many layers, a great metaphor for social pressure, social media blind following, and influencers. A take on envy, understanding why they are grieving, with witchy/demon paranormal elements.

Teddy Bears Never Die

5+ Stars

This is one of my fav horror mysteries by the new imprint RunForIt. Awesome. An orphan girl seeking revenge she does all in her power to learn how her mother really died. Coincidentally, other people died that day in the same location, so they dismiss her as an unsolved murder. The best part? A kid she knows from school (knows well) ends up possessing a teddy bear, and together they solve a paranormal, terrible secret and mystery with ghosts, curses and zombies in the mix.

Very cool. They were great main characters. I wanted to badly that this was made into a game and we could switch playing her or the bear, or co-op and two could play a part in the action. I felt sad at the end for the villain, in a way he just couldn't cope with grief. A creative take on the resentment/grief/mystety/revenge/friendship/second chances/let it go. Dark, gore-ish horror... the way we love our Asian horror.

Twelve To Murder

5 Stars

I liked this one a lot, it has a fun/satisfying plot twist in the very last chapters. We get back into some hilarious scenes as usual for this author, who balances super intricate puzzles, tension, and main characters in life-threatening situations , but also light sweet romance.

A story focused on child actors, agents, exploring, narcissistic personality, acting or manipulating, deception, betrayals, and paranoia.

I laughed a lot with the hostage situation, seems contradictory, right? It's such a great scene. I wonder if this was the book that set Lauren Carr on the path to flesh out the geezer squad in her Chris M. Series.

How The Other Half Die

4 Stars

Don't you think you'll know the truth until you read the last chapter than the epilogue. Ah! That epilogue.

I've been noting a new format trend for murder mysteries where the first murder happens around the 50% mark, which makes the books into two mysteries, two parts. First, we are going to establish connections with the characters and learn more about their circumstances and relationships. There is a lot of YA drama and angst, perfect for the appropriate age. Now we are trying to figure out who is going to die and how. Adding plot twists and red herrings (in this case, I thought I knew who was going to be the killer, but they ended up dead.)

Second part, (around chapter 19) we have a body, and it wasn't an accident. This is where the pacing gets faster with their investigation and uncovering the motive that leads to some justice.

Multiple Pov helps to slow down the revelation.

The Lady Who Cried Murder

4.5 Stars

From the volumes of this series so far (this is the sixth), I found this one darker and very relevant to our contemporary society. In the first volumes, the author gave us humor balanced with high tension and murder. In this one, we can relate to the fear of abusive, powerful men who use their influence to put women down. There are some details in this one that are dark (murder itself is, but cutting the victim's specific organ makes it brutal. Some fans prefer mysteries darker so I recommend this one rather than too much humor). So we read this with a silent respect for all the women victimized in this world who never got a chance to be discovered, given justice, or rest. Khloe fakes her kidnapping for fame and publicity but when she has something true to tell no one believes her.

If you like Karin Slaughter's darker stories about women, this is the one to start with. It also reads like a standalone and after I read the author's inspiration, it made sense that it doesn't have a personal tone.

So you know I screamed when Gnarly gets stabbed!!! (Molly also didn't like it, let them keep the dessert). After the scare of having David shot last volume now I am afraid of volume 7 eheheh

Six Must Die

3.5 Stars

3.5 This is my first novel by this author. I like escape room book themes because I dislike them seriously in real life, so it's one of the perfect stress/tension settings for a murder mystery. The things I liked about the story: from those who survived one year ago, only one doesn't remember how Matt died. One year later, they are drawn to play a new escape room with a terrible name. Instead of getting answers (she does) they are stuck in a terrible revenge plot. The one commanding all is forcing each one to expose their terrible secrets, which made me want to reread 13 Reasons Why. I didn't guess the major plot twist.

The things I didn't like much:

Repetitions. A lot.

The fact that it has different POVs slows down and doubles the repetition. It's more focused on plot more than on intelligent new adults, they are no teens anymore.

As a light read that we can read while being distracted, traveling, or at the beach can be a fun ok read for fans of escape rooms.

Spindlewood

4.5 stars

Missed reading one like this a gothic mystery in a spirits academy. It will please Wednesday and Kelcie Murphy's fans. She can't see ghosts at all but she joins the academy to feel what her family experience. An academy that has for a motto not to lie and face consequences. With investigation and misdirection like a magician, she gets far enough to learn what happened to her parents. I hope it's a series and there will be more.

The Missing Magic of Sparrow Xia

4.5 Stars

This is a fun elemental academy. Fire benders are rare, and two siblings join. The main character is the youngest if this two siblings, and the oldest is kind of a bully. Interestingly, it borrows from the Asian strict traditional family where the parents want the best for their kids, show little emotion/love but expect great things, and the kids feel the pressure to excel. In this world, growing up means losing magical powers, and some are not taking this well.

Adults will like to read this one for some themes focused on family relationships but it's a simple academy perfect to introduce the genre to those who never read fantasy academies before. This is not a negative remark, sometimes I want to read something lighter and this would be a good mystery with fun elements. I recommend it to all who liked the series Witchlings, and other magical academies where the first-year students save the day.

Love the artwork of the cover and chapter illustrations.

Lucy Lancaster Cooks up Trouble

5 Stars

So FUN. Science with a little magic (although she "has" magic, this series is about mistakes and fixing them). Lucy is a great character. She is creative and enthusiastic, so she causes trouble sometimes, and this time she cooks up a tiny elephant that stumbles into everyone's science projects, but she is responsible and caring too. She stays after school cleaning and fixing everything. She may have magic, and we don't, but we learn from her to do the right thing and be kind and inspired, which is a secret kind of magic too.

P.s- the story starts with a great invisible ink project, in my time we used lemon juice to write secret messages this one uses baking soda and grape juice (and it's safe)

Easy Discipline

5 + Stars

I could go on and on about how I loved this one (after sampling other volumes) I'll try to hit the highest marks and keep it short.

Easy vs Hard discipline. Easy making one terrible chore more interesting (my practice example: I hate laundry time, I dedicate that time to humor audiobook, now I look forward to laundry) vs hard discipline, forcing myself a to do list and making pauses between loading the machine to scroll reels endlessly and add 4 hours to the process).

This is an amazing book for many stages of our lives, but also to apply in different areas. It teaches us to become better people in any given chore or loving activity more than it teaches us how to do something specific. It's a philosophy and way of life rather than an instructional manual.

I recommend it to those who are too strict with themselves to find a path around an inevitable chore that seems impossible by changing the goal. (Forgive my arrogance in showcasing some of my personal examples).

I am an extreme introvert. I did lives on Insta because I focused on giving the authors a voice on my page and getting them more readers; I was the teacher version who, when in a classroom, assumes the part of parent/educator of the students in the absent hours of their family. That is not acting or lying; it's assuming a part with my truest personality.

Perfect for parents who want to have as much information to guide their children when it comes to repetition, exhausting training. The author is aware that some areas need muscle memory (like piano); others don't (like medicine, we don't want our doctor to go on autopilot). So when it comes to applying our time to a specific dream, chore, activity, career, we have to question if it's just a wish, if we just want the outcome not the journey, if the dream is appropriate for us or an endless, frustrating pursuit that ends up wasting our time.

Some chapters seem like things we heard already but approached from a different view which gives a refreshing though provoking way of trying again but with success. Surround yourself with the people and environment that are relevant for your steps and goals.

What I love most about this book, which I reread already being one of my favorites, is that it doesn't allow excuses: from the smallest activities to being enslaved to a job we hate, there is always a way to turn the half-lemonade, empty glass made with the lemons life gives us into a half-full glass of lemonade.

It has a lot of examples, mentioned from entrepreneurs to two of my favorite games: Civilization and Settlers of Catan, and much more.

"If you live in a place of chaos and scarcity, move to one with encouragement and community.

If you can't move, shift daily to a better work environment with quiet and serenity.

If you can't shift, trip to a place of wonder and inspiration.

If you can't trio, shape your current place with stimulation and motivation.

If you can't shape, schedule your week into focus and deep work blocks. "

We Love You Bunny

5+ Stars

Bunny, this was delightful! A very psychedelic satire into the world of authors who do all for inspiration, to create, to feel and succeed. An Alice down the rabbit hole of humor, dark humor, magic realism, college literature, murder, creative writing courses, critiques and plagiarism... horror... beware of poets, bunny.

At the end of this volume (which I read first before devouring the first volume and loved it even more for that) we become a bunny too. Right bunny? Yes, I'm fiction too bunny.

BlackTongue Thief

5 + Stars

5+ This is one of the most satisfying fantasy volumes that could be an awesome game campaign. Progressive, our thief becomes one to avoid a worse fate, but he gets trapped in an awesome quest. From zero to... make your own choices and decide the right path, my kind of thief. Amazing cast of characters, humor, lyrical (ues, he is quite read and educated) but also likes to collect vulgarities and obscene words, vivid imagery of gore, action/adventure. Includes a cat, beware of the kraken... and more. I have laughed aloud several times with this one. Will keep it close, also recommend the audio, and can't wait for a new volume.

Stitch Head Pirate

5 Stars

Never let others dictate who you are or not, what you can do or not. Good to have friends who support us. Very well drawn, lots of pages. Definitely a favorite, we live pirates and sea adventures, especially with a sidekick parrot... I mean, bat and a funny crew. Eheh.

He may be the first monster to have been created (of the 311) but he has a wonderful heart.

The Dead Row Club

4 Stars

This is a roller coaster of twists and rankings. I felt the first 40% was a 3, then something 5 happened and cooled down to a 4... 3, then a 5. Here are the highlights for me: I have always been curious about how the children of celebrities live or cope with their parents' success, but when they are serial killers... Besides the thrilling murder mystery, the characters argue for the existence or not of the death penalty, awreness to the fact that we help/support criminals to be documentary stars and publish books because of our morbid attraction to wrong things. Everything related to the name Stephanie was my favorite.

The cons:

The slow burn comes from a delayed format, giving us the first body murder investigation starts only about the 50% mark, and also different POVs.

This book feels like 3 mashed into one. Lots of twists and surprises.

Brides

5 Stars

After getting past the first letters, which can be frustrating to keep track of, the author starts to converge these characters, uniting them into a single location. Apart from the 1903 medical facility, in the past, around the 50% mark, it was focused on Transylvania.

Highlights that I loved in this book: the author's writing style (made me want to look forward to the next book), the fact that are letters, the large cast, the slice of life of these women and their life situation, it's more about what is said in the letters rather than trying to keep track who wrote what because the content of the letters stars to knitting all together, we only discover who the lady afflicted in 1903 at the end and the entire revelation, as who the Brides were. Putting the puzzle together is awesome, from the main characters like Mafalda, Lucy, and Alice to the aunt and the baroness. When it lights up inside our minds how the puzzle comes together, it's very satisfying, and it happens more than a few times. The clues are provided in a very subtle way; if we miss one sentence, we miss one connection. Well done.

Instead of having a classic where the women are without choice, seduced and enslaved by all, we actually feel that we are living in that time, relating to these characters, which makes the classic novel look rushed and empty (I still love it, though, but now I keep these two novels together on my shelf) with Carmilla beside it.

When we finish the book, we understand how confusing the first letters may appear, but I recommend you stick to the story, trust the author, and get the reward.

Camp Zero Fatal Glitch

4 Stars

A new eerie series kicks off with a summer camp (kind of a correction camp). A Squid Game with plot twists for kids. They play, they rank each other, and the one at the bottom gets far away from those 1 million game credits and is taken by mechanical vultures. The books start with a strange robot in a room... it appears to be an experience. In volume 1, we're following Sophia, who has the worst mindset and choices. She hurts her little sister and won't confess, worse, she lies a lot. This is a book of terrible things and terrible evil betrayals without redemption with a Stine vibe of ending. Can't wait for the next episode Let's Play a Game to see what kind of setting it will be, and perhaps learn more about what is happening with that robot and experience from page 1 to the last.

Horror is more psychological, and the tension of not knowing what is happening and making bad choices, like pushing each other under the bus to win.

Great cover, illustrations, and it's short and full of tension.

Grove Hollow

4 Stars

Besides the comp titles the publisher offers, I also felt it had a hint of Practical Magic House with the aunt and her friends. I enjoyed this one a lot. It has a beautiful naked cover and end pages, which I didn't know, and the surprise was great.

Lots of high-school, relatable scenes and issues as well.

Small Wonder

5+ stars

I loved this one as much as I am a Rebel. A classic zero-to-hero adventure of two siblings left alone to find their way in the midst of a war of kings and knights. He does all he can to protect his 5-year-old brother, the companion of a very smart horse.

The marks of the king explained at the end shouldn't be inspiration for leaders only, but for all; in modern times, we would be OK if it started with our world leaders.

The Reimagining of Thornwood House

4.5 Stars

Sweet with romance, cozy scenery, village, people, and mystery. The characters are wonderful. There are a lot of relatable motherhood scenes and fears, trusting and misunderstanding, learning, and getting to know the people. The house is sentient and has a secret. She doesn't speak, but her body language is powerful. Not all is what it seems, kind of a mystery. Change is not always easy, but when people care for more than themselves, it's worth it. Solving the mystery is a tension point with a deadline: the house's life is at stake.

The cover is simply amazing.

I bought an audiobook dot com copy. Liked the narrator a lot.

Midnight Mayhem

5 Stars

Extra point for creativity. This is a great story for those who get easily bored and like to make up super silly, exaggerated what-if stories and make-believe. It also inspires those who usually don't play with what-ifs.

What if the family moves to a new city? What if Kaz can't make new friends and doesn't get used to the new place? What if something as absurd as 2 ingredients together could give you eternal boredom? Fun way to address isolation, new friendships, standing up for a friend who really understands us, helping younger siblings, adapting to change and a new community, trying new things, being brave, getting out there.

The Murders at Astaire Castle

4.5 Stars

I'm conflicted about this one. Awesome start, but the mystery resolution was not my favorite. Here are the things that made me love this one. A few days before Halloween, MacFaraday discovered a hidden European haunted castle on his mountain and property. The stories associated with it are paranormal and eerie, not to mention the murders and suicides that occurred, sealing the place forever. The last person to live there was a horror author who ended up dead, his last manuscript gone, and the story of a werewolf on the premises gained strength.

David gets shot. I'm going to repeat here! DAVID ... gets shot. This author is a master of surprises and mashup themes. To our Scooby-Doo kind of murder mystery, we have a white German Shepherd adding to the characters a very well-behaved service dog, to which Gnarly is very attentive. A missing person reappears but is very connected to nature and the supernatural, giving this volume a Halloweenish vibe.

I got a bit lost with the red herrings and the real culprit but the rest was delightful. These characters are a lot of fun.

Everything You Need to Know About Life You Can Learn from a Dog

5+ Stars

This is brilliant and the artwork is amazing. Each double page is a painting, and the author is right. If we followed each of the puppies' ways to be, we would live in a better world. I definitely need to shake it off and stretch more. I already am a "good boy" for walking and staying curious. A delightful list of ways to improve our lives and be better humans to ourselves and each other. Great size for the font as well.

Everybody's Perfect

4 stars

The perfect book to close June Pride Month with a sci-fi full of recognizable scenarios and a well-done allegory for AIDs and the prejudice of loving "interspecies," if you know this author, you'll know you won't get easy pop references, but subtle start ones, no cliches, and definitely a play with time traveling. I loved the Venice inspiration for this one.

Sneak

5 Stars

Sneaks is a fun one too. An unlikely friendship of a kid always in trouble and a prodigy pianist 12 year old with agoraphobia get together to investigate a neighbor. It's not very long and it grabs us from the very first page because of the main character's life circumstances.

Mayor of Noobtown

4 Stars

Made for an awesome beach day read. Good start, cool character, fun demon sidekick (ish) kind of demon with a lot of banter. Very RPG grinding, with lots of fights and encounters, humor, puns. I will continue this series as audio also which makes it funnier and collect the physical.

Is it Poop?

4.5 Stars

On one side of the page we get the photo of what we find, on the other side which animal it belongs to, if it's poop or not and explanation. The fly is hilarious. Some we didn't guess it looked yes but it was a no. Teaches a lot, very well designed.

The Blossoming Summer

5 Stars

A warm summer walk in a field of blooming flowers.

I love what inspired the author to write this story: the emigration of a family who had to leave the UK to avoid WWII, the reconnection of the family members who had spent years apart out of necessity for survival, and finding their way to each other again. All wth the help of the 13-year-old Rosemary oldest child of three, the loss of hope in adults and cynicism that lead them to gloom and some in a less rightful way, the awareness to the fear and pressure one child feels to fix and please the adults so they can just remain ok (and I feel very relatable to this point because I was never able to heal it in myself) all of the negative points explored by the author are healed and resolved with communication, sincerity, willingness to learn more about each other's interest, passion for gardening as a family activity, respecting each other's passions and accepting differences, learning and overcoming trauma of inheritance/cultural ancestry, dealing with the trauma caused by racism, colonialism.

Although many times emigrants introducing fauna and flora to a foreign land results in problems in the ecosystem later, saving that violet from the ground that would be destroyed by war was a beautiful symbol.

The characters have a lot of faith, it doesn't bother me as a humanist/creative artist, I embrace the concepts not as religion, but as words from the dictionary: faith: faith in myself to do better, faith in the fact that authors and books like this make my day or a person better. The same applies to words as love: loving another human being (regardless of the genre, loving a pet or a city, a sports team, or a deity) shouldn't be used to hurt others.

Today, I feel that Rosemary's faith and her father's passion for art inspire me to grab my watercolors and paint fields and fields of flowers.

The Chime Seekers

5+ Stars

Absolutely magical and adventurous. Yanni is not dealing well with his new baby sister. Everything is changing, even where they will move to. It's Halloween, and he stays home with the baby and Amy, a cousin of his age, who is the baby sister for today, but an evil Fae steals the baby away. It's up to Yanni and Amy (an RPG fantasy enthusiast) to go into the fae world, save them, go on a quest, trials, and save the baby girl as well. They must find 3 lost objects and overcome a lot of tricks. Loved the goblins bit. The underwater part was awesome too. As a super fan of Hobbit-kind of adventures and quests, I found this story delightful.

Unicornia Camping

5 Stars

Love this series for so many reasons: awesome monochromatic colors for each volume, super sweet, cute artwork and characters, always treats relatable issues (positive and negative) in a clear, inspiring way.

Camping this summer is in the clouds, the best place ever. Addressing changes in routine that can be scary, leaving home to sleep away from our beds can be challenging, but when friends help, it's all about making new, amazing memories and learning.

There are super fun lists on almost every page with questions or simple lists, which makes us want to list all sorts of things around us and notice more of the world around us. Fear of the dark, worry not, just remember all the wonderful and joyful things around, like friends and funny situations. Very inspiring.

Unicornia Rainbow

5 Stars

Oh no, her messy room and lack of focus lead to losing her headband and missing the flying bus. Roller skates may not be the answer to get to the show but they are a lot of fun. Friendship, tidiness (her room was a mess), more calm, organization, more focus, friendship, being aware of others and the world around us. Fun ending. Love the monochromatic pink pages and cute characters.

Fairy Doors Goblins

4 Stars

This one had naughty Goblins . I alao read the audiobook version. It's delightful and if you can pair it with the book because of the art it's double the fun because the narrator makes the best goblin voices. Short read, wished it had a bit more.

Time to organize that messy room.

Pia in the Forest

4 Stars

Pia is not just an artist she is a super excited and enthusiastic one, and sometimes she can be a bit loud and overwhelming. I love that her father helps and supports her while teaching. Going into the forest to get a pine and record the sounds is the first step in learning to see, respect, and learn to respect others and not be all about oneself. Fun moments. Love the extra activities at the end to record the unexpected.

Mad Cat

4.5 Stars

Lots of pages, high-quality printing and size, with a mystery story to solve, easy to read, the design and pages (illustrations) have simple shapes and big font, easy to follow and read. Fun character, relatable, although the cat doesn't like crowds, she tries to help her friend. The conclusion is funny. Eheh, and if we get mad, we count to ten. Some themes, introverts, friendship, following clues mystery, shapes, numbers, counting to calm down, different personalities, school grounds.

Blast From the Past

5 Stars

Awwwwwww, this one is full of awww, especially for Gnarly stealing breakfasts, barking to let Nac know who is the real owner of the house (Gnarly, of course), Gnarly missing massage appointments because of mean mob guys that Archie has to shoot (lol)

Cool connections of all the murder cases, coincidences or not, with each other, with witness protection and mob hits. Awesome focus on Archie because we learn a big secret about her, and she is one of my favorite characters.

I was a bit sad that the little girl didn't stay, but it was a great ending.