This is a graphic novel I picked up when I was reading a number of things that felt heavy and needed a break. When I was asking for something light this was one of the suggestions and it absolutely fit the bill for something light.

The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor is fun. It’s not a graphic novel that takes itself seriously. Humor is at every turn to where there are times I had to roll my eyes almost at the silliness that was taking place.

The art is nice. The wide eyes of the characters reminds me of Bob’s Burgers where they constantly looked a little shocked, but the exaggerated emotions really make up for it and shine through.

Really, this was fun. There was a comfort to it and I do finally have the next one on hold after my library got it, but I also feel like it’s not something that is really going to stick with me for a long time.

It’s been weeks now since I have finished this. I have tried to write a review on this book before and didn’t know how. It’s one that had continued to sit with me as I’ve picked up other books since. It has haunted me (affectionate).

If there were two words that I could use to sum up the vibe of Don’t Let the Forest In it would be pain and suffering (once again this is affectionate). This is my warning for potential readers that this is very teen angst which does have it lean pretty heavy into the YA because of that, so for those who are outside of the target age range, that could be an issue. The angst works for me, in part because of other things happening in the story, but I know it won’t for everyone.

Part one of why the angst worked so well for me is Andrew clearly needs a hug. He is someone who needs a long hug, therapist and medication. His mental illness is acknowledged and talked about (though I would argue people did fail him but not the point right now). His eating disorder is also talked about. All in all, I’m saying that while there is a lot of angst, it didn’t entirely feel like that sole teen angst of no one understands me or I’m getting into situations because I think I know everything. Andrew really is someone who just needs help.

Andrew and Thomas’ relationship is messy and one of the furtherest things from healthy that could be, but I ate it up. I loved their codependency. The way they craved each other and couldn’t seem to really function without each other was delicious.

The monsters were equal parts terrifying and fascinating! I’m so glad that I decided to tandem this as the illustrations really helped me picture what I otherwise couldn’t seem to piece together for myself.

Drews writing was… hauntingly beautiful. It was so easy to feel all the emotions that Andrew was feeling. They created this atmosphere that made me want to keep reading because my anxiety would spike as Andrew’s did. It left me fully engrossed, absorbed into this world of monsters coming alive.

This was a book club book and I think that was an excellent choice. With that ending it really allowed room for a lot of discussion which was excellent! Highly recommend reading this with someone so that you can discuss it.

Don’t Let the Forest In left me mesmerized. Drews writing left me captivated and hungry for more of their work, as well as botanical horror. I can’t wait to read more from this author and see what they come up with next.

Walking Practice is one of those books I happened to stumble on while browsing through the book store. The cover caught my attention, the summary sounded so odd and perfect for the mood that I was in and luckily the audiobook was available, so I quickly checked it out and well… this was weird. Really weird.

Upon reading the summary, I didn’t fully know what to expect. An alien figuring out life and being a little weird. I didn’t know what that was going to look like, but being as wildly… horny as this was isn’t what I was expecting. I don’t think I have another word to really describe it other than horny. That did catch me off guard and was a little jarring, but as I continued I found it harder and harder to put down.

The gore is written in such a way that makes it feel like a borderline horror/comedy, but as I continued reading there is a sadness to this. The alien is struggling how we humans see gender and sexuality and how, especially in more conservative areas, people are expected to be in this box based on their sex marker at birth. Society continually having these expectations and forcing them on people or leaving them ostracized contributes to a loneliness that can’t seem to be defeated. While the main character is an alien, their thoughts were relatable and helped to defeat some of that loneliness that fitting into a box society has created stains me with.

The narration was excellent. I really think it’s one of the best narrated books I’ve ever had the pleasure of listening too. The number of inflections and tone really helped creature this whimsical and fun book that was hard to put down.

Walking Practice was odd. It was gory. It was absolutely magical. What Doki Min, and the narrator Nicki Endres, did here was beautiful and I do imagine this book is going to stick with me for a while.