Dec 18, 2017
Manga & Light Novels New & Upcoming Releases

Review – Shiver: Junji Ito Selected Short Stories by Junji Ito

Shiver: Juji Ito Selected Stories
By: Junji Ito
Translator: Jocelyne Allen
Release Date: December 19, 2017
Publisher: VIZ Media LLC
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


I have always loved horror stories. Yet few manage to evoke that raw fear and discomfort that so many strive for. Junji Ito’s works are one exception to that rule. Never have I come across a Juji Ito story that hasn’t managed to make me feel something. Releasing tomorrow, December 19, 2017, Shiver: Junji Ito Selected Stories is certainly no exception to the rule.

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Dec 14, 2017
From Our TBR Pile Throwback Thursday

#ThrowbackThursday Review – The Forgotten Beasts of Eld by Patricia McKillip

The Forgotten Beasts of Eld
By: Patricia McKillip
Website: http://www.patriciamckillip.com/
Release Date: September 17, 2017
Publisher: Tachyon Publications
Award: World Fantasy Award for Best Novel (1975); Mythopoeic Fantasy Award Nominee (1975)
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


Patricia McKillip’s novel The Forgotten Beasts of Eld was republished by Tachyon Publications. This World Fantasy Award winning novel is a true treasure, a book that is most definitely worth reading.

The Forgotten Beasts of Eld is a standalone fantasy novel by Patricia McKillip. Sybel is a wizard, the latest in a long line of powerful wizards. She lives atop Eld Mountain, constantly calling the powerful and mystical creatures of long lost stories to her doorstep. Sybel is completely disinterested in the world of men, but that world comes knocking on her door in the form of an infant – a cousin whose mother is dead and whose kingly father, if he is truly the father at all, is apt to kill him. Slowly, Sybel is introduced to the world below, to love, to revenge, and more power than even she thought possible.

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Dec 12, 2017
From Our TBR Pile Graphic Novels

Review – Lumberjanes Vol. 1

Lumberjanes Vol. 1
By: Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis, Faith Hicks, Brooke A. Allen
Release Date: April 7, 2015
Publisher: BOOM! Box
Series: Lumberjanes
Award: Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards for Best New Series & Best Publication for Teens (ages 13-17)(2015); Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Graphic Novels & Comics (2015)
Rating:


I’d recently heard some very good things about Lumberjanes by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis, Faith Hicks, and Brooke Allen. When I found copies available in my local library I immediately delved in. This is a fun fantasy/mystery series that follows a group of girls at a Lumberjane sleepaway camp. The forest they’re camping in holds secrets, though, and seems to be filled with magical creatures. The story follows these girls as they go on various adventures and try to solve the mysteries of the woods.

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Dec 11, 2017
From Our TBR Pile Manga & Light Novels

Review – The Ancient Magus’ Bride, Vol. 1 by Kore Yamazaki

The Ancient Magus' Bride, Vol. 1
By: Kore Yamazaki
Translator: Adrienne Beck
Website: http://haiiroattachment.blog.fc2.com/
Release Date: May 12, 2015
Publisher: Seven Seas
Series: The Ancient Magus' Bride
Rating:


I am very late to the party on this one. Usually I keep up with each season’s anime releases, but alas, I’ve fallen behind. But a new anime usually means Amazon discounts on its corresponding manga, so I picked up the first volume of The Ancient Magus’ Bride by Kore Yamazaki.

Chise Hatori is the main character, a Japanese girl who was orphaned at a young age. She has long since gave up on everything, entering the realms of magical beings and was previously sold into slavery. When she is purchased at auction by an ancient, inhuman magus, Elias Ainsworth, Chise is given a new lease on life. Suddenly she finds herself freed and apprenticed to a mage. Now she has the ability to move forward – to learn about magic, her potential, and to heal.

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Dec 10, 2017
Manga & Light Novels New & Upcoming Releases

Review – Zodiac War by NisiOisin

Zodiac War
By: NisiOisin
Illustrator: Hikaru Nakamura
Translator: Nathan A. Collins
Release Date: October 10, 2017
Publisher: VIZ Media
Rating:


I can’t believe I’ve never read a book by NisiOisin before. Not only that, I’ve only just started watching Bakemonogatari. Finally I can say that I’ve read something by this author! I happened to come across an absolutely beautiful copy of Zodiac War by NisiOisin in my local bookstore not too long ago and immediately picked up a copy.

This book is about the Zodiac War, a battle that occurs every twelve years between fighters which represent each of the twelve zodiacs. What you see is pretty much what you get here. The story opens with the introduction of this year’s Zodiac War by the overseer of the event before following each of the combatants as they utilize everything they possibly can in order to secure victory.

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Dec 07, 2017
Graphic Novels New & Upcoming Releases

Review – Winnebago Graveyard by Steve Niles and Alison Sampson

Winnebago Graveyard
By: Steve Niles; Alison Sampson
Release Date: November
Publisher: Image Comics
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


Winnebago Graveyard is the story of a young family on a summer road trip. When they come across a fair, they stop for the day, intent on fun and absolutely no cell phones. As the day winds down and they’re set to go home, they find their Winnebago is missing, presumably stolen. When the fair’s employees are unwilling to help, they walk on to the next town. But the sheriff here is completely disinterested in their problems. The whole place feels off, wrong. Strangers aren’t welcome here, and soon a missing Winnebago will be the least of this family’s problems.

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Dec 05, 2017
From Our TBR Pile

Review – Humanity’s Hope by Pembroke Sinclair

Humanity's Hope
By: Pembroke Sinclair
Website: http://pembrokesinclair.blogspot.com/
Release Date: July 21, 2017
Publisher: Stitched Smile Publication
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


I’m not sure if things one genuinely enjoys should be called guilty pleasures, but zombie novels would definitely that category for me. I’m always up for a good zombie story. Well, I was offered the chance to read Humanity’s Hope by Pembroke Sinclair, which is, you guessed it, a zombie novel. Let’s take a look, shall we?

Caleb is a teenager just trying to survive in post zombie infested world. It’s safe in the city, or safer than most other places. He has a job, a place to live, and with the help of his psychiatrist is trying to slowly move forward. But there are rumors of experiments done in secret to find a cure for zombie virus, and when a neighbor is killed in an unheard of zombie attack in the city Caleb begins to wonder if there’s any truth to this. Soon he finds himself on the run, apparently immune to the virus. He’s fought zombies before. But humans are stronger and infinitely more clever.

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Dec 04, 2017
From Our TBR Pile Manga & Light Novels

#MangaMonday Review- The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Omnibus Vol. 1

The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Omnibus Volume 1
By: Eiji Otsuka; Housui Yamazaki
Translator: Toshifumi Yoshida; (editor/english adaptation) Carl Gustav Horn
Release Date: September 8, 2015
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Series: The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service
Rating:


One of my favorite manga genres is quickly becoming the horror genre. I had my eye on The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Omnibus Volume 1 by Eiji Otsuka and Housui Yamazaki for some time now. This omnibus edition collects volumes 1 to 4 of the manga together in one place, is a monstrous 640 pages long, and is perfect for binge reading. Which is exactly what I did.

This manga features five students and ex students studying to become monks. However, the job market isn’t what it should be and none of them exactly fit in well with the regular 9 to 5. But that’s just with the living. The dead have lingering desires, wishes they want fulfilled, and even in death they’re willing to pay. This follows Kuro Karatsu and four others as they fulfill the last wishes of the deceased clients.

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Nov 30, 2017
Throwback Thursday

#ThrowbackThursday Review – The Sandman: The Dream Hunters by Neil Gaiman and Yoshitaka Amano

The Sandman: The Dream Hunters
By: Neil Gaiman (writer); Yoshitaka Amano (artist)
Release Date: November 1, 1999; (This Edition) 2000
Publisher: Titan Books Ltd.
Series: The Sandman
Award: Bram Stoker Award for Best Illustrated Narrative (2000); Hugo Award Nominee for Best Related Work (2000); Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards for Best Comics-Related Book (2000)
Rating:


Have you ever heard of The Sandman: The Dream Hunter by Neil Gaiman and Yoshitaka Amano? Yeah, I hadn’t either. I discovered this book tucked away in the graphic novel section of my local library between two volumes of The Sandman graphic novel. The story set within the Sandman universe. This is a novella, though, not a graphic novel. Even better, it’s filled to the brim with one and two page art spreads by none other than Yoshitaka Amano, famed artist for many a Final Fantasy game.

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Nov 25, 2017
Graphic Novels

Review – God Country by Donny Cates and Geoff Shaw

God Country
By: Donny Cates; Geoff Shaw
Release Date: August 2, 2017
Publisher: Image Comics
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


I am always game for a story about a giant Final Fantasy styled ridiculously oversized sword. Look, I just like them. They look cool. And they look cool in artistic formats like video games and graphic novels. When I found out God Country by Donny Cates and Geoff Shaw was about an older gentleman who finds an enormous sword, I knew I needed to read it.

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