Manga: Familia Chronicle Episode Lyu 2

Familia Chronicle Episode Lyu Volume 2 
Rating: 5/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review! 

In an attempt to rescue Anna, a patron's daughter, Lyu has made the dangerous mistake of falling into the Grand Casino's V.I.P. room trap. The girl is in her sights, but outnumbered and facing dwindling funds, Lyu can feel the situation heading for an all-out brawl-that is, until Syr comes forward to try her own hand at the game...!

I'm going to say it....but I am loving this spin off a wee bit more than the main series or Sword Oratoria, it has to be said. This series has a slightly different vibe to the other two series, there's not as much of a focus on the Gods and Goddesses and the dungeon and so on, or at least not yet and I do find that interesting, but it provides some different situations so far. 

Things are exciting right from the start, Lyu doesn't hold back at all and she tosses the gauntlet right down from the start. I'm not going to lie, we get a little bit Compulsive Gambler in this volume with all the dirty gambling tactics and I was living for it. Syr also gets the chance to step up as she makes a play of her own and I was so curious to see what she had up her sleeve, especially as she requested a brief meeting with Bell. 

I was honestly on the edge of my seat and then clapping and cheering for Syr so many times, what a badass. Cervantes is such a disgusting creep it's unreal, but holy wow do we get an intense reveal about his past and about Lyu's right before it all kicks off in time for the volume to end because of course. 

Smoothly paced, volume 2 keeps you hanging on with tension and an edge of the seat card game with super high stakes, and then an epic reveal that has you going "OMG" before leaving you wanting more! I can't get enough of Lyu, quite frankly! 

Manga: Sword Art Online Hollow Realization 2

SAO Hollow Realization Volume 2 
Rating: 3/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy 
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review! 

After a harmless dungeon-crawling adventure with Premiere escalates into a high-level battle called the "Ground Quest," Kirito discovers remnants of the floating castle of Aincrad-a world that should have been destroyed long ago. Determined to find more clues to the puzzle and uncover Premiere's identity, Kirito decides to delve deeper into this mysterious quest...Just where could it all lead? 

My goldfish brain appreciated the little refresher at the beginning of this volume, before we dove in to the story. Of course something went wrong with the safety measures....I can't say I was surprised. There's obviously something messed up with the game and the quests and everything, this is SAO after all, but there's something suspicious about Premier too. The majority of this volume, however, was spent with our characters in game, going to school to learn the basics of the game and how it works...but in a school setting. I wasn't entirely sure of the point to this, it seemed just like an opportunity for Yuki to get to experience what school is "really like" as they have to complete various quests to help the ghosts move on. As well as letting Premier experience it too to reinforce how human she seems. 

We do have a new big quest triggered in the second part of this volume, but I'm not really sure what the point of the flash forward was after it, to then go back and carry on. I could understand if it was at the beginning of the volume, but it was right after one section of the story ended and we started another...we flashed forward...and then went back. It just seemed a little unnecessary. Maybe I'm just irritable because Genesis is getting on my last nerve. 

Once we get past the rather mundane first half of the volume, we do get some action as we have a raid and a face off with Genesis, followed by a shock ending as a familiar face pops up! For the most part I feel like a lot of this volume was a bit....meh. 

Blog Tour: Queen Of Sea and Stars

Hey guys, I've got a slightly different post from reviews for today! I'm so pleased to be taking part in the blog tour for Queen of Sea and Stars by Anna McKerrow! 

In Queen of Sea and Stars Faye Morgan, a hereditary witch, moves away from her tiny coastal village in Scotland to London to be with her new boyfriend, Rav. But though she hopes she can live a normal life in a new city, her blood bond to the realms of faerie can't be denied. With a faerie war brewing, can Faye realise her destiny and discover who she really is? Queen of Sea and Stars is a tale of faery magic, desire and modern witchcraft. 

I know we're all on some faerie hype right now, which is why I'm hoping you guys will check this out, because not only does it have faerie...but it has witches too! It's the sequel to Daughter of Light and Shadows...now you have two books to binge read. You're welcome. 

And now, in keeping with the book and it's themes, I have some fun, witchy, tarot, content for you guys from the author herself, it's time to see what's in store for Faye according to the tarot.... 

Ace of Pentacles - The Maker/Earth and The Sun

These two cards (taken from The Tarot of the Sidhe by Emily Carding) show the appeal of Falias, the faerie kingdom of earth, for Faye Morgan. Faye is half faerie and the call of faerie is strong in her blood. She yearns to find her place in the faerie world as well as the human one. Falias is the elemental kingdom of Earth and you can see all the strength and fertility of the earth in the Maker card here. In this deck Emily Carding calls the Pentacles/Earth element suit the Makers, because it’s the earth element that creates and gives physical form to new life, new ideas, feelings and drives. The realm of Falias is accessed through a faerie forest and is full of crystal, stone, earth, blood and plant life. The theme of creation and pregnancy runs through this book - Ace Pentacles can also often represent a new baby.

The Sun is here to shine favourably on Faye in her journeying to Falias. Her road to discovering who she is isn't easy, but there is a great truth and brightness in Falias for her, should she choose to accept it. Unlike Murias, a world bathed in perpetual moonlight, Falias is sun-dappled and warm. The faery figure on the card is holding her hand out for Faye, inviting her to join the faerie dance. 

I hope you're suitably intrigued, and will check out the book...what's not to love about it?! There's some more excellent content coming to you in the coming days so don't forget to check out the other tour stops! 

Manga: Final Fantasy Lost Stranger 2

Final Fantasy: Lost Stranger Volume 2 
Rating: 4/5 
Buy or Borrow: Buy 
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review! 

Shogo and his party continue their trek up the mountain. At the summit, the dragon that killed his sister awaits. The group's perseverance has earned them a spot on the raid team, but the respect of Randolph, the raid's leader, is another matter entirely. All is silent... and then suddenly, the dragon is upon them. Throwing caution to the wind, the adventurers pelt the creature with arrows, spells, and strikes, but their efforts are in vain. In an instant, the team is decimated. Randolph orders the few who escape the beast's wrath to retreat, but one man remains, standing tall amid the falling snow...

Shogo is struggling a little bit as we join him at the beginning of this volume, he can't quite keep up with the others but I liked that and seeing the contrast between him taking charge and leading everyone a little bit later. 

A good chunk of this volume is taken up with trying to defeat our characters winged nemesis, the dragon, who they swiftly face, along with the aftermath of that battle. I enjoyed how Shogo used his game knowledge when it came to battling the dragon and I love how little tidbits about FF are scattered throughout thanks to Shogo's narrative. I was a little worried that that aspect may end up getting forgotten and therefore dropped but so far it's been consistent without being too much. 

With this volume that particular chapter of the story is neatly closed and Shogo makes some progress by getting recognised as an adventurer just in time to head off to Mysidia, as he sets out to find what he needs to revive his sister. Of course, it's not that easy and we soon discover his next obstacle and his possible ways around it....along with a surprise reveal about Sara. 

We also get introduced to our next antagonists, the Forbidden Arts guild who are kind of terrorists and it was literally a matter of time before they showed up after they were teased at one point. They're the Magus Sisters, bosses you might recognise from FF4. 

While we had a quiet little interlude between the epic battle with the dragon and the battle with the sisters, it wasn't long before the action sparked off again and there appears to be a bit of intrigue to do with Shogo. 

This volume moves steadily forward with a nice balance between action and calmer moments, moving the story forward and dropping some fun game bits in too, along with a dose of intrigue!  

Review: Bloodwitch

Bloodwitch 
Rating: 5/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review! 

High in a snowy mountain range, a monastery that holds more than just faith clings to the side of a cliff. Below, thwarted by a lake, a bloodthirsty horde of raiders await the coming of winter and the frozen path to destroy the sanctuary and its secrets.

The Bloodwitch Aeduan has teamed up with the Threadwitch Iseult and the magical girl Owl to stop the destruction. But to do so, he must confront his own father, and his past. 

The time is here friends, it's time to focus on Baeduan....*cough* I mean Aeduan. I'm not going to lie,  as much as I love Merik, I didn't quite love Windwitch as much as I loved Truthwitch so as excited as I was for this one...I was a bit wary. As it turns out, I didn't need to worry because Bloodwitch is simply excellent. I would advise you to watch out for that ending though! *screams in to the void* 

Like I said, this time we're focusing a bit more on Aeduan, he has a decision to make and a side to pick, and wow do I ship him with Iseult to the extent my heart hurt when he tried to push her away! Thankfully Iseult can see through him, but he does end up in quite a bit of trouble throughout this book and is it wrong of me to say that I kind of enjoyed seeing him regress back a little to his darker self at one point!? I'm still surprised by how much I've come to like Aeduan over the course of this series, but this book solidified for me that I made the right choice to love his character. We get some heartbreaking insight in to his past, and he'd already come a long way as a character since we first met him...but by the end of this book he's come even further and he's accepted himself and who and what he is and wants to be. 

Of course, just because we're focusing a bit more on Aeduan doesn't mean we don't see any of the other characters or delve deeper in to them. Safiya has a solid plan to deal with her situation, although honestly? Vaness is growing on me and I kind of ship her with Vivia but shh. Anyway, we see Safi struggle a bit in this book as she's using her powers and seeing some very real consequences to them and she has to deal with that, and she has such a natural and realistic reaction to it. But she's still the Safi who won't take any crap from anyone as is evidenced towards the end of the book, I live for the strength she has and how badass she is. I also live for her little bond with Vaness and we do see a more vulnerable side to Vaness. We also have an interesting twist with Safi as she comes up with a genius plan, implements it...and her power is changed, which wasn't quite what she was going for so it'll be interesting to see how this will play out! As well as the whole....Mathew and Habim....thing. I was kind of sad we didn't get to see as much of Caden, Zander and Lev though! 

Meanwhile, Iseult is with Aeduan, of course we had to make the poor guy suffer even more. Obviously Iseult and Safi want to get back to each other, but Iseult is taking care of Aeduan. She's still struggling with some things from the last book, and I had to say she has a few moments when I cheered as she gets her hero on. Although she ends up tangled up with Leopold who I still don't trust further than I can throw him but maybe I'm being overly suspicious. 

She's also with Owl who kind of annoyed me a little? But I did enjoy seeing Iseult coming to understand her and dare I say...bond with her a little? Although much like the Hellbards...not enough of Blueberry this book either! 

Merik...I just...for Gods sake dude, did you have to do the thing and end up having some quality time with Esme?! Speaking of Esme *refers to Windwitch review* Y I K E S. I retract that statement about her entirely. Anyway, Merik is just...suffering. Again. For a good chunk of this book, but there appears to be some hope for a certain character....until it gets torpedoed by that ending. Just....when will his suffering end? 

Vivia...*refers back to Truthwitch review* well....this is awkward. I started to like Vivia during Windwitch and this book solidified my new opinion on her character. While I didn't get to see more of her and Merik working together and repairing their relationship like I'd hoped, I was so proud of Vivia in this book. She's still struggling with her role in leading Nubrevna, which isn't made any easier by her father. He was getting on my last nerve, and the opposition and patronising, derisive characters who don't believe in her ability is something ridiculously relatable to most women, I'm sure. Vivia had me so proud when she stood up to him, and slapped the other crusty old men down in the Council, like the badass she is she says screw them and goes with her own plan and I'm ready to see her save the day and be the hero! 

What got me about this particular book out of all of the Witchlands books so far, is that we have these powerful female characters. Even Esme, as much as I love to hate her, and they're surrounded by men who ignore their opinions, ignore what they have to say, and don't think they're capable of anything and wow is it freaking relatable and infuriating to read about at the same time. I am so ready for the ladies to take over. 

Things are changing in this book, Aeduan as a character changes even more and becomes more resolved, Safi's powers have changed, things have shifted for Vaness and Vivia is striking out on her own. Allegiances have also shifted as well to some extent. 

Bloodwitch steadily builds up towards the final part of the book, showing us more of the world than we'd already seen, and more of the different magics and how everything works, showing us more of Aeduan and his past and letting us get to know his character even better. Building upon what we already know of our characters, bringing in a couple more plot threads and intrigues, before we head in to the final part of the book when things come together. I have to say I was a lot more engaged with this book than Windwitch, sorry Merik. There's lots of excellently written action scenes, and lots of intrigues, one of my ships is sailing, there's a couple of reunions...some more brief than others and as we finish the book the Raider King is launching a new attack. I just have to say though....Safi going to Henrick? Nah. This ain't it. Let's not. 

I was screaming towards the end of this book, screaming and cheering because of all the characters and what they were doing and where they were going and "NO SAFI DON'T DO THE THING! YAAAS ISEULT" and so on. Honestly the last part of the book was pretty insane with the twists, I can't even. We had plot twists throughout the book, don't get me wrong, but the ending of this book blew me away. We've got some seriously epic and intriguing teams up coming to us in the next book, that's all I'm saying, and some characters are heading in to very interesting situations. 

Most importantly, things are all set up to once again move forward and now we've reached a new stage of the story, I feel. 

Manga: Kakegurui Twin

Kakegurui Twin Vol 1 
Rating: 5/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review! 

As a first-year student of the renowned Hyakkaou Private Academy, Mary Saotome knows her future is set for a one-way cruise to the top...That is, until an encounter with an old-classmate-turned-housepet throws the newbie princess into the world of gambling! Can a normal girl like Mary make friends and survive debtless through only wit and luck? 

As you can probably tell from the synopsis, this prequel series starts from when Mary first joins the Academy and when we first meet her, she's a scholarship student and new to gambling. Plus she's not familiar entirely with how the school works which is quite the contrast between the Mary we know from the main series and met in the first volume of the main series. If you fancy reading this before diving in to the main series, don't worry, I don't see why you can't. There's even a refresher on the school's system for such an occasion. 

I was very interested in getting to see this slightly different Mary, but we also got some of her background, her childhood and some information on her family. I've warmed up to her character a lot in the main series, and become more intrigued by her so I was ready to get more information on her. I wasn't entirely expecting her to be how she is in this one though. I could see she was being messed with in the first chapter, and she was so naive to the school and gambling and it was so at odds with the Mary I know....which made me so excited for the coming volumes in this series to see her become the Mary we know from the main series. 

Mary spends this volume acclimatising to the school and gambling and she learns quite quickly. I have to say I felt more of a cheer for her wins than I did for Yumeko's in the beginning of the other series as I feel like Mary is a bit more of an underdog compared to Yumeko the gambling addict. Plus she comes across as such a regular person, I feel like Mary's a bit more relatable. 

We meet one of her childhood acquaintances, Tsuzura, which adds to the intrigue as I don't recall seeing her in the main series so I'm curious about what happens to her. We also meet a student council member who seems to have an issue and a plot against the President.....and now I need volume 2 asap! 

This volume hooked me in so fast, and as usual it had me on the edge of my seat with the high stakes and the twisted rules of certain card and dice games. We see a different, but no less determined, Mary from that we're used to, and we watch her start to build her way up to becoming a winner which is her ultimate goal.