Reading: DISNEY MANGA: BEAUTY AND THE BEAST - BELLE'S TALE (FULL COLOR EDITION) - Mallory Reaves (author), Studio Dice/Gabriella Sinopoli (illustrator)

1st Line: "Once upon a time, in the beautiful city of Paris ... "

Review: Disney Manga has re-released these two ediitions of Beauty and the Beast - one told from Belle's viewpoint, the other through the Beast's eyes - both based on the live-action film version from 2017. A smart move, as even the color scheme of each book differs depending on the character, and either way the images really pop like art from the page.This is Belle's tale, and in it you get the same essential classic story of the young book-loving girl who sets out to find her missing father before finding herself trapped in an enchanted castle, and here whether it's Belle's feelings on her father or her village, Gaston, or the Beast himself, readers are provided more depth into both her character and thoughts. It adds depth to the story, and works very well in manga form. Though I did like the Beast's version a bit better (scroll up for review), both are colorful, exciting takes to both characters and their love story - Belle's more introspective and quiet, the Beast's more aggressive and gruff - and together provide an even mre insightful tale as old as time than previously depicted.  3.5/5 stars

NOTE: I receved a free ARC of this title from the publisher, in exchange for an honest review. 

Reading: THE TRANSCENDENT ONE-SIDED LOVE OF YOSHIDA THE CATCH VOL. 1 - Shizuki Fujisawa

1st Line: " 'Oh ... it's Yoshida-san, from the planning department!' "

Review: Yoshida is a young, very handsome business executive by day, very intelligent and successful in his job, his all-business aloofness adding to his mystique that sees so many women in his office crushing on him. Cool, sophisticated, Yoshida has his you-know-what together ... untiil after work, when he heads over to a tiny office where a crew of artists struggle with weekly deadlines to put out the latest issue of their manga, under the direction of the manga's creator and writer, the beautiful and super-focused workaholic Sena Shimakaze. Here, Yoshida - know as Chief - tries to hold the crew and weekly publication together even as he internally struggles with his own love for Sena; they've known each other since school, and he's been completely in love with her nearly all that time. Here, Yoshida's cool, together side frazzles and frays as he works hard to help Sena's manga - a publishing business he helped her to start - a success, while still unable to reveal his true feelings for her after all this time. Even the small office staff is Team Chief, recognizing his devotion and love for their boss and trying to hep bring them together but the problem is that Sensei (Sena) is so wrapped up in her work and business (plus, honestly, she's a scatterbrain), in all these years she is still not only a grown woman clueless to things like dating and finding a partner - but in all this time, she's never even once realized how incredibly ga-ga Yoshida is for her, which makes his orderly, together life anything but. Volume 1 sets up the situation and characters nicely, both humor and emotions sometimes over-the-top as you can expect with manga, and at times Sena is so darn dense as to what is going on around her - even when her entire staff is all but shoving the hapless, helpless Yoshida in her face - that you could all but smack her, but the humor is charming here, and poor Yoshida's struggle to make the love of his life see the light - and him - make for the pulling of a few heartstrings until Volume 2 comes along.  3.5/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Reading: DEADLY DIRECTOR'S CUT - Vicki Delany

1st Line: " 'LIGHTS. CAMERA. ACTION!' "

Review: Book two of the prolific Delany's 1950s-set Catskill Summer Resort mystery series finds Haggerman's Hotel manager Elizabeth Grady's resort up to its armpits in drama. Multi-Academy Award-winning director Elias Theropodous has chosen to film a few key scenes of his latest masterpiece in the Catskills, and Haggerman's finds itself swarmed with actors, crew, tourists, ovely-curious guests - even hotel staff who'd rather watch a potential Oscar-winner being filmed over doing theirr jobs. Add to this the local sheriff and a small battalion of reporters from around the country, after the irascible, sexist and overbearing director has what appears to be a heart attack during a hotel event, and is reported DOA at the hospital, poisoned. With the safety level of her resort (not to mention kitchen) under attack, Elizabeth wastes no time in wading into the fray of hidden motives, scandalous backstories, and the questionable morals of movie industry types - most of whom seem to have had at least some gripe with the deceased director. 

Delany, one of my favorite cozy mystery writers, here yet again shows off her skills at introducing and handling a rather large, active cast of characters - on all sides of the law - without confusing the narrative or reader. The mystery kept me guessing, thanks also to the author's ability to deflectt blame toward this character one minute, then on another the next, and though I haven't read the first book in this series yet - Deadly Summer Nights - I was also very pleased to get the impression here that we learned a bit more about Elizabeth's past, as well as that of her aunt and mother (who also live at Haggerman's), bringing more depth to those characters. And while at first I felt the revelation of the killer to be a bit anti-climactic, as the explanation behind the motive and means continued, the reveal took on a sense of poignancy that was both unexpected and appreciated. Any complaint here would be nit-picking - I would liked to have gotten more than the occasional reminder or sense of the 1950s setting; I just didn't feel it as much, in general, while reading - but as always with Vicki Delany, this is a well-written, very entertaining mystery with a vivid setting, and characters I look forward to revisiting again and again, in book one and beyond. (Available March 1)  4/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Reading: CHEF'S KISS - Jarrett Melendez (author), Danica Brine (illustrator), Hank Jones (colorist), Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou (letterer)

1st Line: " 'Four years of college move-in days, you'd think I'd seen everything.' "

Review: Newly-graduated from college with his English degree, Ben Cook has moved into a house with three friends/roommates, and is officially ready to begin his journalism career. Only problem is, without experience no one will hire him. Even with his friends trying their best to keep his spirits up, a downtrodden Ben is at his lowest when he stumbles one day upon a small upscale restaurant with a "Help Wanted - No Experience Necessary" sign on the door. Between his love of cooking and need to keep the rent paid, Ben hurries in to apply ... running into Liam, a tall, Nordic-looking hunk with a warm smile and friendly manner who is more than happy to give Ben a chance at the job, though it's the bigger, louder, not-so-friendly owner who informs Ben of the three challenges he must face to secure the position - before introducing Ben to the pig who will judge his fate (yes, you read that right).

Can Ben pass the tests? Can Ben keep his heart from leaping out of his chest every time he gets within ten feet of Liam? And how does one cook for a finicky pig? Chef's Kiss answers all of this and more in a charming, off-beat, frothy and funny m/m romance that also has some great things to say about following your dreams - and your dreams, as opposed to those of others. The artwork is equally sweet, characters believable and very easy to like, and (thankfully) the romance isn't in any rush to bloom, but grows naturally from the story; it's nice that Ben doesn't spend all his time mooning over Liam, remembering real-world problems and being there for his own friends along the way ... as well as doing his best to win the resaurant job, if not Liam's heart.

No big plot twists - no shocking revelations or super-corny tropes - and this graphic novel is better for it. Like Ben's cooking: all-natural, delicious, and so easy on the palate. Great book; already hoping for a sequel! (Available April 12)  4/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Reading: THE VIOLIN CONSPIRACY - Brendan Slocumb

1st Line: "On the morning of the worst, most earth-shattering day of Ray McMillian's life, he ordered room service: scrambled eggs for two, one side of regular bacon (for Nicole), one side of vegan sausage (for him), one coffee (for Nicole), one orange juice (for him)."

Review: Having been fascinated by the violin since childhood - never learned, as I didn't have one to practice with - the title alone suckered me into this incredibly skillful debut; a mystery that begins when the life of a Black violinist, whose career is just beginning to bloom, is shattered when his violin is stolen ... and held for a five-million dollar ransom.

Ray McMillian has spent his life loving - living for - classical music. Taking to the violin at an early age, playing seems to be the one thing that gives him genuine peace and happiness, even over the harsh criticism of his mother to just find a job at the local Popeye's, or the realiation that finding Black musicians in the leading orchestras of the world is more rare than a lottery win. Thankfully, Ray's always had Nana, and the opening of the book takes readers back and forth between the early stages of the investigation of the violin's theft, to how Ray grew up loving music and getting inspired by his grandmother ... and how a young Black man in rural North Carolina came to own a violin worth a five-million dollar ransom in the first place. Writer Brendan Slocumb, a natural storyteller, masterfully weaves Ray's backstory as a kid, who often only had his own dream to keep him going, in with the intense jealousy and bigotry he was forced to face in high school for his talent, to his getting out in the "real world" of college and adulthood, only to find that no matter how much fame or experience or talent he had, so much of life - so much of the struggle - still always boiled down to the color of his skin. Aside from a riveting mystery, what this first novel has to say about racial inequality and hate in this country toward its Black population, particularly Black men, is both powerful and enraging ... and a sickening commentary on how little progress we've made in America by 2022, even for those of us who understood that already. Slocumb's talent and TLC with his tale, however, means that the mystery of the missing violin and Ray's personal story (bat-shit greedy family, devoted grandma who became his rock, the teacher who changed his life, the injustices waged against him just because of his skin color) never ever over-shadow each other - and by the time I caught up with how Ray ended up with a Stradivarius everyone wants a piece of, how it was taken, and Ray's one-man hunt to find out who took it ... I was hooked, roaring through the last hundred pages or so hanging onto the coattails of one of the most believable, sympathetic fictional leading characters I've come across in a very, very long time. 

I still can't believe it's a debut. Also the first title already seto to appear on my Top 10 Reads of 2022 list, come December. A terrific page-turner of a read I still can't stop thinking about.  5/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Reading: SUMMERTIME RENDERING 1 & 2 - Yasuki Tanaka (author), Jocelyn Allen (translator)

1st Line (Vol. 1): "'Hey, Shimpei?'"

1st Line (Vol. 2): "It's so dark ..."

Review: Volumes one and two in the projected six-volume English-language omnibus editions of the hit manga Summertime Rendering (already slated for a live-action adaptation plus a real escape game) opens with our young hero, Shimpei Ajiro, arriving from Tokyo back to his old hometown on the island of Hitogashima for a funeral. Orphaned at a young age, Shimpei grew up with the Kofune family, in particular bonding with the two daughters - Ushio (his own age) and her younger sister Mio. It is Ushio's funeral that has brought Shimpeii back, and he is heartsick over the loss of his close friend and crush from drowning, as he reconnects with Mio and her father and the town residents - but almost right away Shimpei is overwhelmed when he is told that Ushio when found, had marks on her neck, as if strangled, making Shimpei wonder if she drowned, after all. Even worse, Shimpei starts to glimpse Ushio around town in the coming days - a ghost? Warning? - and things grow weirder from there as Shimpei tries to investigate, some of the locals turn more loco, and it becomes obvious that some sinister, deadly, very supernatural forces are about to turn Hitogashima and its residents upside down ... Shimpei squarely in their sights. 

OMG, I loved volume one of this manga so much! Over 350 pages and I careened through it mostly holding my breath, the stakes and violence and gore level growing higher and higher, ratcheting up the suspense up until the very, very climactic ending of volume one at the local Summer Festival. Plot, characterization, art, it's all pure gold here; artist/author Yasuki Tanaka knowing how to tell a story via characters you care about, just before all hell breaks loose and sanity goes out the window.  5/5 stars

Volume 2, picking right up after the events of the Summer Festival, took a tiny bit longer for me to get into with a slower start once the initial action plays out (it's so hard to write these reviews in particular without spoilers, which was why I put the two books into one review), but about a quarter of the way I was hooked again, and even though a manga I tore through all 350+ pages of volume two like my life depended on it, as well - disbelieving, afterward, when I read that four more volumes were to come. I can't IMAGINE the insanity to come, based on what's happened already! Both volumes heartily recommended must-haves for manga, mystery and horror lovers alike.  4.5/5 stars

(Volume 1 due in paperback late May - in hardcover in June, when volume 2 also drops!)

NOTE: I received free ARCs of both titles via Edelweiss and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Reading: THE LAST HOUSE ON THE STREET - Diane Chamberlain

1st Line: "I'm in the middle of a call with a contractor when Natalie, our new administrative assistant, pokes her head into my office."

Review: Told in dual timelines, Diane Chamberlain's latest begins in 2010 with architect Kayla Carter, a woman still reeling from - and dealing with - the death of her husband, killed in an accident while building the dream home the two of them had planned and worked on together for years. Now that same home - the first finished residence in Shadow Ridge Estates, a new upscale development blossoming in Round Hill, North Carolina - is ready for move-in for both Kayla and her four-year-old daughter ... but Kayla can't decide if her dream house has now become a nightmare, especially when a strange, vaguely threatening woman drops by her office one day, seemingly knowing a bit too much about both Kayla and her tragedy.

Round Hill in 1965, still very much segregated and racist, is the bane of Ellie Hockley's existence when - taking after her deceased favorite aunt - the young activist decides to spend one summer off college by working with a program to help register local Black residents to vote. A young, white girl from a (by comparison) privileged family in town, Ellie's parents, brother - even the boy she may or may not be in love with - are vehemently opposed to the young womans putting herself in potential danger, even as their own prejudices and bigotry rise to the surface. But Ellie remains strong in her convictions of racial equality ... even in klan country, where aything could happen to a young, pretty white girl seemingly turning traitor against her own kind ...

The Last House on the Street is the story of both of these strong women, and how (or even if) their stories might converge in surprising - even shocking - ways. This was my first time reading Diane Chamberlain, after years of hearing so many great things about her work, and while I think I had a stronger connection to Ellie and her story, the book's trips back to 2010 were no less compelling, and 1965 Charmberlain does an intense job of revisiting a volatile, gut-wrenching time in this country's history that - sadly - still resonates today. I had some concerns that the 1965 story was told from the "white" point of view, but Chamberlain gives both Ellie and her story a dignity and earnestness that easily had you watching even the most shocking happen through the young girl's eyes; so much so, by halfway through the book, whenever I had to put it down I found myself constantly wanting to pick iit up again, whenever life intervened. Even if you can kind of guess where you think the ending is going, there are still surprises waiting - making this a compelling, dramatic read that already has me going over Ms. Chamberlain's backlist for more. (4.5/5 stars)

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Reading: FUNGUS AND IRON Vol. 1 - Ayaka Katayama

1st Line: "Area D-18 ... that's where this story takes place."

Review: In a dystopian future, Amigasa rules and runs the world. Everything and everyone is sacrrified for the good of Amigasa, even as a resistance bulds to fight against their all-encompassing rule. Even soldiers within the walls of Area D-18 have been conditioned to readily give their lives to Amigasa ... all except the dyslexic Dante, a young soldier who still finds beauty and humor in his walled-in world, has a tendency to laugh in serious situations, and in short is the oddball who has never fit in with everyone else. Never is this more so than when a troop of soldiers is sent out of the walled encslosure of D-18 to fight the resistance - for most of them, including Dante, this is the first time they've ever even seen the world outside their compound - and all of them wind up dead, some even by their own hand, with the exception of Dante ... who finds not only a weird world full of giant mushrooms outside the wall, but also a young woman name Aoi; the first female he has ever seen. This graphic novel has so much crammed into it - mind control, science fiction fungus monsters, environmental messages, first love pangs, and enough violence to give Quentin Tarantino pause ... and yet with all that, I struggled to get through the book, honestly out of sheer boredom. Long patches of story that seems to go nowhere - or even make that much sense - became grating after awhile, and even a semi-cliffhanger ending couldn't propel me to have much interest in moving onto volume two. Some nice art; otherwise, sadly, a dud.  2/5 stars 

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Reading: GHOULIA AND THE DOOMED MANOR (GHOULIA #4) - Barbara Cantini

1st Line: "One morning, the residents of Crumbling Manor woke to the ringing of the old telephone."

Review: In the fourth (and, it seems final - cue sad music!) volume to this kid's chapter-book series I've have loved from the start (think Wednesday Addams as done by Tim Burton), our beloved zombie gal Ghoulia actually heads off with her family from Crumbling Manor, for a trip to visit her Aunt Witch and cousin Dilbert at their lakeside house, Fancy Manor - a home so crumbling and rundown it in no way fits its name, but is also in such bad shape that the entire family is shocked one day when a For Sale sign is placed at its entrance! It seems the town has assumed the house has been abandoned all these years, and the bank has decided to sell it ... unless a living family member can be found to claim ownership. Problem is, Ghoulia and her entire family are technically - well - dead! As always with the series, this fourth volume is a joy to look at, with darkly-colorful artwork that somehow still comes off warm and charming; brings a smile to the face with each page. Sadly, the story here, though more complex than normal for a Ghoulia story, somehow feels a bit rushed - maybe even strained, as if author Cantini had a bit of trouble coming up with a fresh idea for this one. Still good, and still a great series; I just didn't feel quite the heart with this one as I did with its predecessors. That said, I already miss Ghoulia badly; this was like saying goodbye to an old friend.  3/5 stars 

January Wrap-Up: Slow Start, but One Most-Anticipated Down!

One of my book goals for 2022 is to get to my most-anticipated titles of the year sooner to their release date than later: hence Fiona Davis's The Magnolia Palace (see review), an entertaining fictional story wrapped around fact that had me often stopping my reading to look up images of various artworks mentioned in the book, which really gave the text extra resonance.

Beyond that, I caught up on the adventures of Big Nate and finished the next book in one of my favorite childrens series, The Haunted Library. And while Fearbook Club was a great graphic novel, the rest of January's reading was ... meh, at best. And did the month go fast!

Was well into a few other books that didn't get done by January 31st, but only have eight for the month because I went bat-you-know-what nuts in January with films! Had some streaming services ending that I decided not to renew, so check out the EIGHTEEN FILMS I watched in January below (as always, click on any image to enlarge). No reviews for them yet, - and this may take awhile (big surprise) - but already I feel like I watched more quality films in January than I did in most of 2021; hopefully a good sign.

Hope your 2022 started off well!