Candy Bunny Reader

    So many twists and turns! (Pun intended, since the characters spend most of their time in the Labyrinth). And so many more emotional moments. I think this is my new favorite so far, more than the previous book!

  I don't think I need to explain what it is about because I think we pretty much all know. So far it's a slice of life fantasy about Akko (our lead witch) and her friends.  I've actually known about Little Witch Academia for a long time, but didn't get around to it until now when I saw that my local libraries had copies of one of the manga adaptations (it started out as an anime film then series). This version is only three volumes long and is written by Keisuke Sato ! What did I think of volume 1? This was fun! This was some cute fun. I have a feeling it's going to kick into a more serious story later on, but so far volume 1 gets 5 stars from me!  To be honest, it all kind of reminded me of another anime I like called Kaleido Star . From the main character being inspired by watching a live show to the character dynamics and archetypes. It's a nice coincidence! So far my favorite character is Sucy. She's so funny and relatable. 

    I feel like I will do this with the rest of the series, since it's a popular one. I am still waiting for my hold of book 3 to come in from my local library. 

  This is the stand-alone sequel to When it All Syncs Up by Maya Ameyaw , which I read and reviewed earlier this year! You can read that review here .  Under All the Lights follows Aisha's (from the first book) boyfriend Ollie, who is a amateur musician. Recently his family has fallen on hard times financially, and he has been having a lot of conflicts with his dad. When a homemade music video of his goes viral after being shared by popular singer Jesse Jacobs after a musical festival, he is given an offer by Jesse's record label to tour around the country (Canada) with him! Ollie accepts the offer. His goal is to help his family, and maybe the tour will be his one way ticket to a good music school. But he has to do all of this while managing his anxiety, which isn't easy. Just like When it All Syncs Up , it's a book that deals with a lot of heavy stuff (but handled in a good way!) while also pursuing ones dreams. The book is also very diverse, too. Ollie is Algerian-Ca...

Please read the full list of trigger warnings for this book here: https://booktriggerwarnings.com/Pet_by_Akwaeke_Emezi  Pet by Akwaeke Emezi is a young adult dystopian (although set in a utopia), speculative, and urban fantasy book. It is set in a utopian community called Lucille that has is run by Angels (people considered good) and has (supposedly) eliminated all of the Monsters (people considered bad) after a revolution a long time ago.  The main character is a trans girl named Jam who has selective mutism. One day she accidentally brings to life one of her mother's paintings, and a creature emerges from it named Pet. Pet is there to search for and destroy a Monster that still exists in Lucille. It needs Jam's help because the Monster is at Redemption's (Jam's best friend) house.  The whole situation is shocking and confusing, but Jam will do anything to help and protect her best friend and his family.  This book wasn't very long (only 12 chapters), but it reall...

Omg this might be my favorite One Piece spinoff novel so far! One Piece: Law's Story by Eichiro Oda and Shusei Sakagami is the story of the character Trafalgar D. Water Law on how he met his closest crew members (Bepo, Shachi, and Penguin) and formed the Heart Pirates. He learns a lot about doctoring and martial arts, but especially life, love, and kindness from his new guardian, an eccentric elderly scientist named Wolf.  I can't get too into it because you'd have to be very familiar with One Piece to understand it, but let's just say this book warmed my heart so much! It's very emotional and well written, and it definitely made me love Law even more as a character. I am so glad we get books like these to get to know certain characters in the world of One Piece more. That's because in the main storyline, we only get bits and pieces of other characters backstories, but books like these put it all together.  So yeah, I gave it 5 stars . It's a must read f...

Yes, I am just reposting what I posted over on Instagram, but I think this makes the post more fun to look at.   

I am so glad I decided to try another book from this author! Spells for Lost Things by Jenna Evans Welch is a dual POV book about two teenagers: Willow and Mason. Willow has felt disconnected from her mother ever since her parents got divorced. Mason has been from foster home to foster home and never felt a connection with anyone.  The two end up meeting on accident when Willow is whisked away with her mother to Salem, Massachusetts to look into and sell the childhood house that Willow's mother inherited, and Mason's new foster family lives nearby. The two teenagers end up going on a scavenger hunt to find out the truth about Willow's supposed family curse. At the same time, Mason tries to figure out where in the world his birth mother is.  It's such a lovely story about healing from generational trauma! I also loved all the real-life witchy things that are sprinkled throughout the story. I gave this book 5 stars .  

  My second Vera Brogsol book! The first one I read was Anya's Ghost back in 2022 when I first started my blog. You can read that review here . Plain Jane and the Mermaid is a historical fiction story. It's about Jane, a young woman that just lost her parents. She can't inherit any of what her parents left her because she is a woman, so her uncle tries to take it all for himself. Jane learns if she gets married, her husband can inherit what her parents left her, so she tries to hurry up and find someone to propose to.  Jane tries to propose to her childhood friend Peter, but it backfires because he thinks she only likes him because of his looks. After they get into a fight, Peter is abducted by a mermaid! Jane ends up getting help from the village witch to go underwater and get Peter back. Along the way she gets help from some unlikely people, and goes on a journey to accept herself as she is. This was such an enchanting novel! I liked how it played into some real world my...

A double review (kind of)! The Firelight Apprentice by Bree Paulsen (same author as the Garlic duology) is set in a steampunk-ish city after a war. The main character Safi is a young girl with a gift for magic. Her older sister Ada is hesitant to send her to an apprentice, especially with the combination of liches (monsters who steal people's magic) roaming around, and after they've lost their mother in the war. The girls' father thinks that it would be good for Safi to hone her powers, and maybe even be a magician for the king. Safi gets to become the apprentice for a group of traveling magicians after seeing one of their shows one day. She learns quickly and enjoys her time with them, but back home things don't look so good... I'll leave it there! This graphic novel was just as heartwarming and magical as the other two books I've read from the author! I think she is slowly becoming a favorite author of mine. I gave it 5 stars !  As for Hilda and the Troll b...

I am briefly coming out of my semi hiatus to post all this week and part of next week. Anyway! You know I had to read this book after reading and liking The Starless Sea by the same author. You can read the review for that book here . The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern is a historical fantasy book about a mysterious traveling circus that only appears to visitors at nighttime. The book follows several characters that are responsible for running the circus (to name a few): Celia, Marco, Chandresh, Tsukiko, siblings Poppet and Widget, and many others. There are also some chapters following a devoted circus visitor named Bailey.  It's a very whimsical book, but the circus does have a rather sinister secret behind it, and it mostly involves Celia and Marco. I love the way this author writes, it is so atmospheric! I like how everyone's stories come together at the end, and all of the twists, too.  I gave this book 5 stars . It's a new favorite! 

  As a One Piece fan, I had to pick these up. This is not going to be like my typical reviews since there isn't much to say about these two books. I also can't get too into them because I know not everyone here has read or watched One Piece. Wanted! is just a compilation of random comic stories that creator Eichiro Oda wrote before he officially started One Piece. The last comic, Romance Dawn, is basically a rough draft for One Piece! i gave it 4 stars . One Piece Heroines Volume 1 is a light novel of stand alone stories set in the world of One Piece following four of the female characters: Nami, Robin, Vivi, and Perona. They are pretty lighthearted, so they're great for reading if you want a break from the intensity of the main One Piece storyline.  Or if you're in the mood for something more chill. I gave it 5 stars .

  I didn't forget that it's Disability Pride Month! Here is my pick (although really, you should read about disabled characters all year long).  Lavender Clouds by Bex Ollerton is a collection of comic strips about the author and their experience being neurodivergent (being autistic and having ADHD) and having mental health issues. The comic strips range from funny and relatable to more emotional and heartfelt. Either way, Bex's message for you as the reader is: the sky doesn't need to be clear in order to be beautiful. You can interpret what that means.  I loved this book so much! This is the book I wish I always had growing up, as an autistic person who also has anxiety. The illustrations are really pretty, too! I gave this book 5 stars .  

    This book is a prequel to my favorite of the Disney Fairies movies: Tinker Bell and the Secret of the Wings! Wings of Starlight by Allison Saft is the story of how Queen Clarion and Lord Milori that we're all familiar with from Secret of the Wings met, fell in love, and, unfortunately, how Milori got his wings broken. This story is set before Clarion becomes queen of Pixie Hollow. Lately, Nightmares, which are scary creatures filled with negative energy from the bad dreams of human children from the Mainland, have been attacking the warmer seasons of Pixie Hollow. Apparently, they came from Winter. Several fairies of the warmer seasons don't trust the Winter fairies (including the current queen. Elvina), but Clarion secretly meets and teams up with Milori (here, he's the Warden of the Winter Woods). They work together to come up with a plan to seal away the Nightmares once and for all, but it isn't easy!  This was such a beautifully well-written book! It is a must ...

Yes, it's another graphic novel about foodies and food. I've noticed this seems to be my favorite thing to read not just in graphic novels but in general. I should make a post in the future recommending books if you love cooking, baking, food in general, etc. Batter Royale by Leisl Adams is about a high school senior named Rose who loves baking. She works at an old fashioned diner run by the mom of her best friend, Fred. She often gets in trouble for experimenting with baking desserts during her shifts. Rose needs the money so she can pay for college. She gets accepted a world-renowned culinary school, but money still tight in her family, and her parents just announced that they might be separating. Fred's mom's diner is also losing business since a new unicorn themed cafe opened up across the street, and Fred and Rose try to figure out ways to save the diner. But then Rose gets a chance to get money for college and save the diner when a world renowned food critic visi...

Who's your favorite Disney princess? Mine is a tie between Tiana and Rapunzel! Kilala Princess by Rika Tanaka is about Kilala, a girl who loves all things princessy. One day she comes across a mysterious boy named Rei, and he happens to be the prince of a faraway kingdom. He is looking for a magical tiara and the princess who will help save his kingdom. At first, Kilala thinks that her best friend Erica might be who Rei is looking for, as she just won a princess contest. But then Erica gets kidnapped by some mysterious men, so Kilala goes and saves her. Along the way she magically ends up in the world of Snow White. After stopping the Evil Queen, Kilala learns some valuable lessons from Snow White. After that, Kilala and Rei continue to encounter more troubles, and meet more princesses and their lessons. She meets Ariel, and at the end of volume 3 we leave off on a cliffhanger where she meets Cinderella after almost dying when trying to protect Rei from someone he thought he could...

  I think I have found Kate DiCamillo 's most underrated book! Ferris is about Emma Phineas, or "Ferris" as she is nicknamed because she was born at a fair near the Ferris wheel. She is about to have the most unforgettable summers of her life before fifth grade. Ranging from her Uncle Ted's mysterious art project, to her little sister Pinky wanting to be a thief, and her grandmother Charisse's conversation with a ghost. All of these seemingly random events actually do come together gracefully and unexpectedly.  This book is different from most of Kate DiCamillo's books because it's more on the contemporary, slice-of-life side, even though there is a magical realism element with the ghost only Ferris's grandmother can see and talk to. It's a great story about all kinds of love--from family love, to friendship love, to romantic love.  I gave it 5 stars ! So far I've read two Kate DiCamillo books this month that I love! I am very lucky.

It's been a while since I visited the wonderful world Travis Baldree created with Legends and Lattes ! (You can read the review for that book here .) It's also been a while since I took a picture of a book with one of my dolls. That's Venus McFlytrap from G3 Monster High. Bookshops and Bonedust is the prequel to Legends and Lattes . This prequel follows Viv the Orc recovering from an injury from her last battle. She spends time in this seaside town called Murk, where she becomes friendly with a colorful cast of new friends, from a restaurant owner named Brand, to a gnome named Gallina, to a carpenter named Pitts, and even her surgeon named Highlark. She also becomes enemies with a guard named Iridia, but even she becomes more of a frenemy later on. However, Viv spends most of her time at a nearby bookshop and the bakery next door to it. She becomes super close with the rattkin that owns the bookshop, named Fern, and her pet griffet Potroast (they're pictured on the c...

  Another cute romance manga I am kinda late to the party on!  The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity by Saka Mikami follows Rintaro, a boy who goes to a rather lowly public high school. The school is right next to a prestigious all-girls private high school. At Rintaro's family bakery, a girl who frequents there to eat their delicious cake is a girl named Kaoruko. Rintaro starts talking to Kaoruko and they hit it off pretty well, and they find themselves falling in love with each other. However, she goes to the prestigious all girls high school, and Rintaro wonders if they can even keep seeing each other if their respective friend groups have tension with each other since they come from rival high schools. The two teenagers find a way to make it work! I've only read the first volume so far but I am already obsessed. It's just like how I felt when I started A Sign of Affection (speaking of which, I need to read the second omnibus for that!). I've just really been cr...

  Did you love the Tea Dragon Society by Kay O'Neill ? Here's another graphic novel from them! Aquicorn Cove is about Lana and her father. They go to the coast to visit her aunt to help clean up after a big storm. During the cleanup Lana finds and takes care of what she thinks is a seahorse. It turns out it's actually a magical creature called an aquicorn! Lana's aunt actually has a connection to aquicorns, and she tells Lana all about it. The aquicorns also live in coral reef that has been falling apart due to human activity, and they probably have a connection to the coast having bigger, more frequent storms. Lana and her family find a way to save the coral--and the aquicorns, too.  It was a very sweet magical book with a focus on environmentalism! The artwork is lovely, too. There's queer rep, too--the leader of the aquicorns in nonbinary. I should warn you that there is a flashback of a loved one who dies in the book. So this was a 5 star from me!