Happy February March! The first month of 2025 has felt like it passed in a blur while simultaneously being the longest month to ever exist and all I'm desperately trying to do is stay afloat amidst all the chaos. I was originally planning to post this last month, but as always the February slump took me out and we're now onto month #3... On the bright side, I managed to read three incredible books to start the year that in retrospect, pretty much summarizes my entire reading taste: macabre fairytales, epic Asian-inspired fantasies, and magical worlds filled with nostalgia.
pages: 336 | source: own, e-book
publication date: October 29th, 2024
tags: young adult, gothic, horror, lgbtqia+
rating: 8.6/10
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I might be incredibly late to this realization but I just figured out that C.G. Drews is the same person as PaperFury which was a book blogger I followed back in high school. With that lightbulb moment, I was genuinely so excited to read Don't Let the Forest In because a story about tragic love, monstrous forests, and macabre stories coming to life sounds like the perfect combination to a top tier read - and let me just say, it absolutely did not disappoint.
The story opens following Andrew as he returns to Wickwood Academy for his senior year. Already anxious about what's to come, he finds his tight-knit community falling apart when his twin sister Dove and best friend Thomas seem to be at odds with each other. Worse, Thomas is acting completely different and disappearing into the woods at night only to appear in the morning covered in leaves and blood. After trying to figure out what is going on, Thomas finally reveals that the monsters of his drawings, inspired by Andrew's stories, are coming to life and coming for everything that he holds dear and this time they have their sights set on Andrew.
This book has the most gorgeously haunting writing and the atmosphere was just top tier stunning. I started reading this and legit could not stop myself from turning the page because I just had to know what was going to happen. There are also these beautifully grotesque drawings of Thomas' creatures that just add the extra touch of eerie. I loved Andrew and Thomas' relationship with each other as they each navigate their feelings in the midst of so much bloodshed. This book truly just planted its twisted roots deep into my heart and is staying there forever because I would honestly protect Thomas and Andrew with my entire life, they are so precious.
favorite line: I like how you are. There's an entire world of ink and magic stuffed into your head and, and I think it's beautiful. I just wish everything didn't hurt you so much.
pages: 465 | source: own, physical
publication date: January 07, 2025
tags: adult, romance, fantasy, asian
rating: 8.2/10
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When I tell you it's been a minute since a romance has left me absolutely breathless, Immortal quite possibly delivered everything I wanted it to be. Set in the same world as Sue Lynn Tan's Celestial Kingdoms duology, we follow Liyen as she ascends the throne after her grandfather's death and her journey to free her people from the centuries-old agreement with the immortals that puts Tianxia under the Golden Desert's control. What started as a trip tino the Immortal Realm to pledge her loyalty turns into a bigger political conflict when forgotten enemy forces start slipping through the cracks of their prison and secrets begin to unravel.
Immortal has everything I loved in Sue Lynn Tan's debut duology minus the love triangle which made it instantly better because that was hands down my least favorite part. It has also been such a long time since I've fallen in love with a fictional couple and rooted so hard for the male love interested. As the General of War, Zhangwei has sass and depth that made me instantly root for him. He also pulls out the "touch her and you'll die" line and actually backed it up with action. Seriously, the lines that he says to Liyen made me actually want to cry (case in point the quote below).
Characters aside, Sue Lynn Tan continues to write a vast and complex story whose plot feels like an entire C-drama. We get to explore more of the Immortal Realms as well as delve into the history of Tianxia's existence and purpose. There are so many twists that reveal how sometimes there is truth behind both sides of the story and a hero can be a villain (and vice versa) depending on who is telling the tale. Incredibly rich and beautiful in both plot and writing, Immortal truly ticked all the boxes for becoming an instant favorite and I'm so glad I loved it.
favorite line: Dawn would be dark without you. You make life more interesting.
pages: 372 | source: own, physical
publication date: January 14th, 2025
tags: adult, fantasy, fabulism, romance, asian, cozy
rating: 8.2/10
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links with an (*) are affiliate where, when used to purchase gives me a small commission to support my blog at no extra cost to you!
If I'm to be completely honest, I've seen a lot of mixed reviews about this book and I 100% get the points presented. However, I am simply just obsessed with this book soley based on how it made me feel and how long I've been thinking about this book since finishing it. With a premise surrounding a pawn shop that allows you to sell your regrets, the story adopts a very Ghibli-esque way of unfolding its events. I feel like going into the story with the same child-like sense of wonder that I had when approaching a lot of Ghibli films as a child allowed me to not become as affected by some of the common pitfalls that other readers experienced.
That's an incredibly long way of saying that this story truly takes your on a journey and explores so many different places of a fantastical world entered by jumping through puddles that the pawn shop is only a focus for maybe the first 20-30 pages. It does feel like the author is trying to set up this complex and beautiful world and trying to evoke the feeling one would get when seeing the world from Spirited Away for the first time. There's a lot going on, some things are presented and never brought back, and it can feel incredibly overwhelming. At the same time, there are these two characters who just met and the instant connection is a little too...instant.
All the aside, something about the world itself just drew me in. From the village that worked to hang up the night sky to the practice of tattooing one's life story with magical ink, there was so much that I found simply fascinating and nostalgic. And while the characters themselves weren't my absolute favorite, I still enjoyed being part of their journey. The biggest hit was the climax of the story itself when all the secrets are revealed - it felt like I couldn't catch my breath and I was running alongside Hana and Keishin and my anxiety was through the roof.
Water Moon ultimately is a story whose entire vibe struck a chord of nostalgia within me and for that I was able to overlook some elements that normally would have stuck out to me. I do think it'll be a gamble for anyone going into the story but if you're in the mood to simply be swept away and not worry too much about the characters and just enjoy the world, this might be an unexpected surprise.
favorite line: And you are an ocean Hana...I drowned in you a long time ago and I did not even know it.
I absolutely was not anticipated this post to take me months to get through but I'm glad it's finally finished. I have been in a pretty bad reading slump since January but getting to think back and try to articulate my thoughts for these three reads is slowly reigniting that desire to read again. Here's to hoping that March and the rest of 2025 is a bit more consistent because lord knows we need a little bit of escapism recently with all the insanity that is happening in society.
Have you read any stand-out books yet in 2025 or read any of the titles mentioned here? Please let me know your thoughts!
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