Posted February 4, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
Love Everlasting
Genres: Fantasy,
Graphic Novels,
Horror Pages: 136
Series: Love Everlasting #3 Rating: 
Synopsis: The next epic chapter of the acclaimed Eisner, Harvey, and Ringo nominated series!
Love Everlasting goes West, exploring the tropes and thrills of Old West Romance as everything shifts perspective and we discover the Cowboy's secret origin. Following the Cowboy as he follows Joan, we learn how Joan was first trapped in these stories...and how she might finally escape! The answers to the questions you've been asking are here in an addictive page-turner that will make you laugh and cry at the story of Joan and her Cowboy.
Collects issues #11-15.
I really really love the art in Tom King et al’s Love Everlasting — I’m glad it’s been consistent, it’s a style I’ve enjoyed. Buuuut the story is getting really frustrating: whenever you think you’re getting somewhere, Joan gets reset and goes through another love story.
I get that the repetition is part of the point, and it’s probably a lot of fun coming up with the multiple love stories in different styles (and the funny titles), but we really really have to start getting somewhere for real.
I’d read a volume four, but it’ll need to feel like a step forward for actually understanding why this is happening.
Rating: 3/5 (“liked it”)
Tags: book reviews, books, Clayton Cowles, comics, Elsa Charretier, graphic novels, horror, Matt Hollingsworth, SF/F, Tom King
Posted February 3, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
Walking Practice
Genres: Horror,
Science Fiction Pages: 166
Rating: 
Synopsis: Squid Game meets The Left Hand of Darkness meets Under the Skin in this radical literary sensation from South Korea about an alien's hunt for food that transforms into an existential crisis about what it means to be human.
After crashing their spacecraft in the middle of nowhere, a shapeshifting alien find themself stranded on an unfamiliar planet and disabled by Earth's gravity. To survive, they will need to practice walking. And what better way than to hunt for food? As they discover, humans are delicious.
Intelligent, clever, and adaptable, the alien shift their gender, appearance, and conduct to suit a prey's sexual preference, then attack at the pivotal moment of their encounter. They use a variety of hunting tools, including a popular dating app, to target the juiciest prey and carry a backpack filled with torturous instruments and cleaning equipment. But the alien's existence begins to unravel one night when they fail to kill their latest meal.
Thrust into an ill-fated chase across the city, the alien is confronted with the psychological and physical tolls their experience on Earth has taken. Questioning what they must do to sustain their own survival, they begin to understand why humans also fight to live. But their hunger is insatiable, and the alien once again targets a new prey, not knowing what awaits...
Dolki Min's haunting debut novel is part psychological thriller, part searing critique of the social structures that marginalize those who are different--the disabled, queer, and nonconformist. Walking Practice uncovers humanity in who we consider to be alien, and illuminates how alienation can shape the human experience.
Walking Practice features 21 black-and-white line drawings throughout.
Translated from the Korean by Victoria Caudle.
Dolki Min’s Walking Practice (as translated by Victoria Caudle) was not to my taste, but interesting all the same. The alien narrator’s story is very much a metaphor for queerness (inasfar as something so obvious is still a metaphor) and transgression, and maybe also disability/neurodivergence too. There are observations about gender which aren’t particularly fresh/startling/unusual for a queer narrative, but nonetheless, pretty well expressed. The alien’s physiology and issues on earth are thought out enthusiastically, aiming for wildly non-human and doing a pretty good job of it.
Buuut the gore/sex was just a lot, and the scene which seemed kinda fatphobic where it wasn’t clear if it was a critique or joining in was… offputting, and the formatting when the alien is in its own form was a bit maddening and difficult to read. I did appreciate the translators’ note about the orthographic choices in the original and trying to find a way to mirror that in English — she didn’t have an easy job here!
So not a total success for me, but it was interesting.
Rating: 2/5 (“it was okay”)
Tags: book reviews, books, Dolki Min, horror, SF/F
Posted January 31, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments
Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation
Genres: Fantasy,
Light Novels,
Romance Pages: 379
Series: Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation (LN) #3 Rating: 
Synopsis: SHOOT DOWN THE SUN
The bloody war against the Wen Clan once led Wei Wuxian to seek power in demonic cultivation, and the dark acts he committed drove a wedge between him and Lan Wangji. Now, those old sins come back to haunt him as his reincarnated identity is revealed to the cultivation world. But even as the other clans call for Wei Wuxian’s death, Lan Wangji stands by him, making Wei Wuxian realize what he took for disapproval in the past might have been a much deeper emotion.
The third volume of MXTX’s Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation flew by for me, with just a little pacing mismatch for me because of the rapid flips between the two timelines. It’s true that the long interludes in the past in Heaven Official’s Blessing weren’t always appealing either, but it’s weird and disorientating to flip back and forth quickly between chapters. I guess there’s no perfect answer there.
I loved seeing a bit more of young Wei Ying and Lan Zhan, all the same, especially Wei Wuxian’s first kiss, and all the tragic goings on of the fall of the Jiang Clan. I’m curious how much we ever learn about Wei Wuxian’s time in the Burial Mounds, and how he got back out: it might be one of those cases where less is more, much as in Heaven Official’s Blessing we never learn exactly how much Xie Lian has been poisoned, tortured, nearly killed, etc.
There are still a lot of characters and a lot going on, but I feel like I’ve got hold of most of the important things now. I’m curious how everything comes together, and — unusually for me — very tempted to start on the next book right away.
Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)
Tags: book reviews, books, danmei, light novels, Mò Xiāng Tóng Xiù, romance, SF/F
Posted January 30, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
Solo Leveling
Genres: Fantasy,
Manga Pages: 296
Series: Solo Leveling #13 Rating: Synopsis: Outnumbered a hundred to one, Jinwoo and his shadow army ready themselves for the fight that will determine the fate of the whole world. As hunters worldwide gather to make mankind’s last stand, Jinwoo focuses on the gate closest to home and those he loves. A superior strategy is his only hope in the face of such overwhelming odds, but as the first wave emerges, it’s clear his foes are already a step ahead of the new Shadow Monarch... Has Jinwoo leveled up enough to defend humanity from certain destruction?!
If I understand rightly, this 13th volume is the last of Solo Leveling‘s main story, which… it feels like the last 2-3 volumes all happened in a massive rush, because so much happens here. I wasn’t surprised by the fact that ultimately — despite all his allies — Jinwoo went at it totally alone. The clue is in the title: Solo Leveling. In the end, all he can depend on is himself: he learned that lesson very early on.
Now we know why he needed to learn it.
I don’t entirely know how I feel about the time travel plot here: it diminishes some of the sacrifices so far, but it entails a different kind of sacrifice, so… hm.
I think I’d like to read the light novels now: I wasn’t sure at the outset whether I would, because this isn’t my go-to style of story. But, in the end, I like reading a little of everything, and I’m curious to read in a bit more detail, and get an idea of where the story here might’ve been interpreted differently.
[Note: since writing the review, I have indeed started on the light novels, and I love them. Reviews will come eventually, though I still have a huge backlog of written but not yet posted reviews.]
Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)
Tags: book reviews, books, Chugong, Dubu, manga, SF/F
Posted January 27, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 1 Comment
Paladin's Faith
Genres: Fantasy,
Romance Pages: 449
Series: The Saint of Steel #4 Rating: Synopsis: Marguerite Florian is a spy with two problems: a former employer wants her dead, and one of her new bodyguards is a far too good-looking paladin with a martyr complex. Shane is a paladin with three problems: his god is dead, his client is much too attractive for his peace of mind and a powerful organisation is trying to have them both killed. Add in a brilliant artificer with a device that may change the world, a glittering and dangerous court and demon-led cult, and Shane and Marguerite will be lucky to escape with their souls intact, never mind their hearts...
I was really hoping T. Kingfisher’s Paladin’s Faith would pick up the threads from Paladin’s Hope — you know, that epilogue! It did reference it, but the impact was relatively low, and instead Marguerite, Shane and Wren are teaming up to handle some courtly intrigue, maybe help get a world-changing invention out there, and of course, fall in love and feel intensely guilty about it (in Shane’s case, at least).
As ever, Kingfisher’s paladins are all running pretty much the same software, and Shane’s particularly self-hating. It took me a bit to gel with him as a character because of his intense self-doubt, but… I stopped noticing it so much partway through the story, so it did even out a bit. I wasn’t as into the relationship between him and Marguerite, but that also felt somewhat less of the focus than in other books.
There’s a lot going on here with the courtly intrigue, and I wouldn’t want to do too many spoilers, but I did get really into this after about 20-25%. There’s a fun cameo from the Clockwork Boys books, there’s some more stuff about how the gods work, a really epic moment for Shane…
And at the end, well, there’s another epilogue with an “oh shit” moment. Less so than Paladin’s Hope, because I wasn’t as invested in what happens there, but… yeah. I really wish there were more books now.
Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)
Tags: book reviews, books, romance, SF/F, T. Kingfisher
Posted January 26, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
The Light Conjurer
Genres: Fantasy,
Manga,
Romance Pages: 146
Series: The Light Conjurer #1 Rating: Synopsis: Rubin, a seemingly useless summoner whose conjuring attempts are comically futile, secretly dreams of defeating a dragon. Fate has a sense of humor when Rubin summons a mysterious prince who coerces him into going to an abandoned castle… where a dragon lives! Can a useless conjurer face the challenge of confronting a legendary beast?
I’m not entirely sure how to rate Gene’s The Light Conjurer, because it sort of depends how you interpret the inclusion of Boa, who crossdresses and initially appears to be a delicate girl. Given he later appears gratuitously naked at times, I’m leaning toward comic relief, which gives me a bit of an icky feeling — though it’s a non-Western narrative, which is worth remembering for context. It doesn’t excuse it, but it is worth keeping in mind.
Anyway, I wasn’t sure how this was going to turn out to be a BL story from the setup, which involves Robin inadvertently summoning Kyle… apparently a young child, though he does claim to be a prince. It does work out in a non-creepy way in the end, is all I’ll say.
It’s all pretty overwrought and dramatic, though I liked that Robin’s father is endlessly supportive and loving, and that their estrangement isn’t due to intentional bad treatment on his part or anything like that. That part works out pretty cute… it’s just that all-in-all it didn’t hang together for me. I don’t think I’ll read more, though I am a tiny bit curious.
Rating: 2/5 (“really liked it”)
Tags: book reviews, books, Gene, manga, romance, SF/F
Posted January 22, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation
Genres: Fantasy,
Light Novels,
Romance Pages: 403
Series: Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation (LN) #2 Rating: Synopsis: HAUNTED BY SIN
Following the trail of a dismembered corpse, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji arrive at the gates of Yi City: an old, abandoned town shrouded in mist and restless spirits. A fiendish foe awaits them in the shadows, heralding a tale of heartbreak and tragedy. When the mysterious corpse’s identity is finally revealed, the hunt for its killer plunges Wei Wuxian back into the depths of the cultivation world's politics, where he must keep his enemies close and Lan Wangji even closer.
Volume two of Mo Xiang Tong Xiu’s Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation contains the Yi City arc, which takes up most of it and is absolutely heartbreaking. It takes a while for the full story to unfurl, and features a long flashback of seemingly limited relevance to Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji’s current story, but nonetheless it’s completely worth it. Son Lang and Xiao Xingchen’s story is so heartbreaking but lovely.
There is also some development between Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian, of course, including a kiss — though Wei Wuxian seems pretty oblivious to the full weight of his and Lan Wangji’s feelings, sigh. The bit where Lan Wangji gets drunk is, aaahhh, so ridiculous.
I’m still suffering a bit from the barrage of names, clans, sects, and relationships, but I have the character and name guide in the back to help, and of course a wiki. I’m getting there! Slowly. I’m gonna head straight into volume three to keep up the momentum.
Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)
Tags: book reviews, books, danmei, light novels, Mò Xiāng Tóng Xiù, romance, SF/F
Posted January 21, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
Solo Leveling
Genres: Fantasy,
Manga Pages: 299
Series: Solo Leveling #12 Rating: Synopsis: Jinwoo faces off against the Monarchs for the first time, and while he's undeniably the strongest hunter in the world, three otherworldly beings prove to be too much for him! But as Jinwoo is about to find out, death means little to the Shadow Monarch, King of the Dead. As Jinwoo Sung finally confronts the true source of his newfound powers, in the real world, a person thought to be lost forever steps in to defend his son's defenseless body!
The Solo Leveling manhwa is ramping up toward the end in volume 12, and it’s a heck of a ride. There are some really cute and touching moments (a certain reunion, and Beru’s… well, most things about Beru, somehow; how is an ant soldier so cute?!), a lot of epic fighting, and a bit more explanation of what exactly is going on.
It’s hard to comment a lot without being super spoilery, but this volume did have some veeery satisfying and long-awaited moments, and while the fight scenes just kinda wash over me, I did want to add that I love the art. The whole thing is consistently gorgeous.
I do feel like the pace is accelerating, and that maybe if there’d been fewer monster-of-the-week type episodes early on — which we lingered on — then all of this climactic stuff could have been explored a bit more. The pacing feels a bit uneven. It’s not that I haven’t liked all of it, but… yeah.
Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)
Tags: book reviews, books, Chugong, Dubu, manga, SF/F
Posted January 17, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments
Swordcrossed
Genres: Fantasy,
Romance Pages: 384
Rating: Synopsis: The cozy, low stakes of Legends & Lattes meets the scorching bodyguard fantasy of Jennifer L. Armentrout's From Blood and Ash in this enemies-to-lovers romance where, yes, the swords do cross.
Mattinesh Jay, dutiful heir to his struggling family business, needs to hire an experienced swordsman to serve as best man for his arranged marriage. Sword-challenge at the ceremony could destroy all hope of restoring his family's wealth, something that Matti has been trying—and failing—to do for the past ten years.
What he can afford, unfortunately, is part-time con artist and full-time charming menace Luca Piere.
Luca, for his part, is trying to reinvent himself in a new city. All he wants to do is make some easy money and try to forget the crime he committed in his hometown. He didn't plan on being blackmailed into giving sword lessons to a chronically responsible—and inconveniently handsome—wool merchant like Matti.
However, neither Matti's business troubles nor Luca himself are quite what they seem. As the days count down to Matti's wedding, the two of them become entangled in the intrigue and sabotage that have brought Matti's house to the brink of ruin. And when Luca's secrets threaten to drive a blade through their growing alliance, both Matti and Luca will have to answer the question: how many lies are you prepared to strip away, when the truth could mean losing everything you want?
I think the title and emphasis on swords might slightly mis-sell Freya Marske’s Swordcrossed, because though they’re a part of it (and how the main characters initially begin to connect), the story is really more focused around Matti and the problem of his House’s slide into poverty. You could take the swords away and make Luca a dancing teacher, and much would remain the same. One does rather contemplate whether Ellen Kushner’s Swordspoint had something to do with the swordplay elements here; there are certainly some points of similarity. (Though I’m not saying it’s a carbon copy, by any means.)
I think much of the plot is pretty predictable, but there is some genuine tension built up between Luca and Matti — some of their scenes were pretty scorching (especially the ones where they didn’t have sex). I was less sure why I should think they make a good couple; there’s some “opposites attract” sort of stuff, and Luca getting Matti to be a bit more spontaneous, but… I don’t know. When I look back at the story, I’m not sure they had enough that was real to build a happy-ever-after on — the chemistry is there, but not the understanding of how they’d work on a day-to-day basis.
I genuinely loved the detail around the wool industry, though. That offered a bit of weight and detail to it, though a lot of the other worldbuilding was somewhat glanced over.
I didn’t feel this way at all about A Marvellous Light, and the author’s note says that Swordcrossed was actually written first, so maybe I’m being a little hard on it. All in all, I liked it, but it feels a bit thin when I sit and look back at the experience.
Rating: 3/5 (“liked it”)
Tags: book reviews, books, Freya Marske, romance, SF/F
Posted January 16, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments
Loving You When the World Ended
Genres: Manga,
Romance,
Science Fiction Pages: 146
Rating: 
Synopsis: An apocalyptic event forces two strangers to navigate a world where the old order is shattered. Is it survival of the fittest or survival of the richest? Spoiled Nuowan can’t stay alive in this new reality without the help of skilled hotel worker Yu Sen, whom he met only moments before the world ended. Yu’s former military training comes in handy but is kissing out of the blue a survival tactic?
Gene’s Loving You When the World Ended is a pretty short manga focused on the relationship between Nuowan and Yu post-apocalypse. Nuowan is a spoiled rich kid, and Yu’s an ex-military man who saves his life and works hard to keep him alive, since it seems possible that they’re the only humans left.
The apocalyptic stuff is very very light, and the focus is more on the relationship drama: Nuowan is demanding, childish, and wants Yu to put him first and love him no matter what, while ignoring Yu’s feelings. He acts on impulse and all his relationships are really rushed.
The art is OK, cute sometimes, but the story and relationship are pretty meh.
Rating: 1/5 (“didn’t like it”)
Tags: book reviews, books, Gene, manga, romance, SF/F
