The Blue Fairy's Bookshelf

Batgirl (Volume 1: The Batgirl of Burnside) Cameron Stewart, Babs Tarr, 2015 I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley for the purpose of review. Premise: Babs moves to a new neighborhood for a fresh start, a new look, and a new outlook. Reviewing this book is really hard. I think I'm too old for it. (For what it's worth, I am 33.) I like the art; I like the humor. In principle I like the lighter take and I liked aspects of the story. But for me, it's not my Batgirl, without quite being a brand new Batgirl. In this volume, they did a soft reboot. The character gets a new outfit, new friends, a new neighborhood to protect, and the protagonist has been called (both affectionately and not) "hipster Batgirl". She does live in a Brooklyn analogue, and is making dumb mistakes the way young people in their early twenties do ... although it bothers me a little that at the same time she's struggling with, not college, but her dissertati...

The Magpie Lord (A Charm of Magpies: Book 1) KJ Charles, 2013 Premise: Lucien Varney has returned from abroad to take up the unwanted mantle of Lord Crane after the mysterious deaths of his father and older brother. But someone doesn't want any of his line left alive, and to fight magic he'll need some unconventional help from a young magician... If you've been here long, you probably know that I'm ambivalent towards romance, as a genre. But sometimes... Sometimes romance is just perfect. Particularly when there is magic. And.. I’ll be upfront with you... pretty boys. This book was delightful. It has no pretentions of great “literature”, and it flirts with unreality as most romance does. It was a joy to read, and I've already bought the sequel. This book handily manages what I consider to be a core element of the best romances: give me two interesting characters who are even more interesting together. Lucien and Stephen both have interesting backstori...

From Turtleback Mountain, Orcas Island, WA, 6/13/15 Hi all, You may have noticed that my posting here has been more and more sporadic. I still like writing and sharing book reviews, but I've been extremely busy and haven't been able to finish any posts lately. Part of being busy has been, ironically, related to finally getting a few days off! We just got back from a great camping trip. Lots of hiking and watching wildlife - I'm exhausted, but feel more together than I have in a while. And part of the aforementioned busyness is related to this bit of awesome: Shiny-new, and available later this week! As is now standard for Erin's books, I did a lot of the final editing and all the formatting, so you can blame me for any last lingering typos. Pre-order for Kindle! Paperback should be available this week as well. I love the world that Erin's building, and I think you're going to like meeting Alaji. She's stubborn, sharp and fiercely loyal, a...