fantasy

Review: The Secret World of Briar Rose by Cindy Pham

3.5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Release date: June 2, 2026

100 years ago, Princess Amelia was cursed with an eternal slumber, and the kingdom of Gyldan fell into poverty and ruin. Sisters Corin and Elly find their way to the hidden castle and into Amelia’s dreams.

Almost every star I give this book goes to the premise. The idea of a Sleeping Beauty retelling where the MCs stumble into Sleeping Beauty’s dreams? GOLD. But the relationship between Corin and Elly is lacking; the only time we feel their closeness is when Corin is searching for sister.

Jumping around with a dream world, a past world, and the present world was difficult to keep track of, and made it difficult to stay invested in the plot about 2/3 into it.

Overall, I enjoyed reading it this complicated retelling, and I loved how Pham wrapped up the ending for Corin and Elly.

🏰 Sleeping Beauty retelling
👀 Dual POV
⏳ Multiple timelines
😴 It was all a dream

CW: suicidal ideation, depression

Thank you NetGalley and Peguin Young Readers Group/Kokila for a copy of this eARC!

04.08.26 | leave a comment

Review: Love Lethal, Death Divine by Jelena Dunato

4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Love Lethal, Death Divine follows Liana and Melia, both fighting their fate in different timelines, tied to the same prince and kingdom heading towards disaster. Liana makes a bargain with the gods for three days to get her dead husband back, and Melia is trapped in a political marriage that spirals into war.

I sometimes struggle with dual POV structure, but Dunato did it well, as Liana and Melia were such different characters. The stakes felt high with the political tension, and I loved Liana’s arc.

There wasn’t a lot of romance, and it felt like there could have been so much more for the character development.

Overall a great time-travel, female led fantasy novel!

Thank you Netgalley for the eARC!

04.07.26 | 1 Comment

Review: The Girl With a Thousand Faces by Sunyi Dean

4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Release Date: May 5, 2026

“In the ocean, no one can cry without drowning. Sorrow is silent beneath the waves.”

Mercy Chan woke up during WWII on the shores of Hong Kong with no memories. She has rebuilt her life in the ghost-infested Kowloon Walled City as a ghost-talker. But when an extraordinarily strong ghost infests Kowloon’s waterways, Mercy is confronted with her forgotten childhood.

The world Sunyi Dean created is incredible, an alternate reality ghost story set in Hong Kong during WWII and after. The story unfolds in layers, has just the right amount of horror, while portraying themes of grief and loss.

About halfway through this book, I was confused with the switch from third person, and it became a little difficult to keep up with or pay attention to. BUT, this changed quickly once things started to come to light.

The ending was beautiful but haunting.

And Bao was the best ghost kitty.

Thank you Netgalley and Tor for the eARC!