Blog Tour Review: Dungeons & Dimwits by James Mascia

August 20, 2026 Dini @ dinipandareads2 Comments

Happy Thursday, friends! I’m here today as part of the blog tour hosted by Toppling Stacks Tours for Dungeons & Dimwits by James Mascia and illustrated by Xoana Kodaris, and I’ll be sharing my thoughts on this new debut graphic novel.

Thanks to Dren Productions for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

^{Click the banner above or here to check out the other incredible bloggers on the blog tour!}

Dungeons & Dimwits: Issue 1
Publisher: Dren Productions
Publication Date: 3 February 2025
Genre: MG Fantasy Graphic Novel

Rating:

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📖 SYNOPSIS

What happens when the game your playing goes completely out of control?

That’s what happens when a group of friends are playing their latest role-playing game. The game takes over and the players suddenly find themselves in their character’s shoes and fighting for their lives.

A little Jumanji with a Critical Role theme that pokes fun at TTRPGs and the people who play them.

Dungeons & Dimwits takes all the funny, quirky, humorous (and sometimes kinda screwed up) things that happen when we play our tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs) and puts them into stories. If you you play these games, and don’t see yourself in here somewhere, you aren’t playing correctly.

📚 BUY A COPY

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Blood, death, violence

Dungeons & Dimwits was a highly entertaining MG graphic novel! Here we have a group of friends who magically get sucked into their TTRPG and they wind up assuming their character roles in a fantastical game world facing monsters, baddies, and other dangers of their creation. It gave Stranger Things x Jumanji x Delicious in Dungeon (the battles specifically) x Dungeon Crawler Carl (but for a younger audience). If you like the sound of all of the above, then I would recommend checking it out. Much like the group in Stranger Things, this group of friends will bicker constantly over how to do every little thing, but there’s never any doubt about them always being in each other’s corner, no matter what happens.

Blog Tour Review: Hollow Magic by Mars Lauderbaugh

August 13, 2026 Dini @ dinipandareads1 Comment

Happy Thursday, friends! I’m here today as part of the blog tour hosted by Toppling Stacks Tours for Hollow Magic by Mars Lauderbaugh, and I’ll be sharing my thoughts on this new debut graphic novel.

Thanks to Feiwel & Friends for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

^{Click the banner above or here to check out the other incredible bloggers on the blog tour!}

Hollow Magic
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Publication Date: 11 August 2026
Genre: YA Fantasy Graphic Novel
Rep: Queer, LGBTQ+, Trans

Rating:

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📖 SYNOPSIS

Seventeen-year-old Rosefinch has been traveling along the weather-beaten coast for two years on a quest to find a witch strong enough to help her control her magic. Her magic is volatile, hard to wield, and Rosefinch is tired of the pain of magical backlash. When she’s directed to the sea-side village of Harp, she discovers the ancient castle of a long-lost Witch Queen with the inhabitants long gone; the only remaining soul is a knight encased in solid ice guarding the door.

When she attempts to lift the curse, she frees Thierry, a human with no memory of who they are, wrapped in cursed magic so strong that they cannot leave the castle. Thierry is soft spoken, strong, and in possession of a fey sword that should be impossible for them to have. But they have secrets of their own, as do other members of the Harp family still hidden within the walls.

Harp castle was left in ruins for a reason, and Rosefinch must find a way to cure the curse or lose Thierry—and the chance to learn the truth about the Witch Queen—forever.

📚 BUY A COPY

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Blood, murder (recounted)

TL;DR: Overall, I thought Hollow Magic was a good debut graphic novel with a beautiful art style that helped bring the story to life. I would be curious to see what the author comes out with next! Check this out if you’re looking for a light(ish), easy-to-breeze-through, low-angst graphic novel featuring magic, witches, fey, and found family.

Blog Tour Review: The Ocean Would Paint Me Blue by Zoulfa Katouh

June 6, 2026 Dini @ dinipandareads4 Comments

Hi friends, I’m excited to be back with a blog tour review today! I’m here to share my thoughts (and a few favourite quotes) as part of the blog tour hosted by Toppling Stacks Tours for The Ocean Would Paint Me Blue by Zoulfa Katouh.

Thanks to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

^{Click the banner above or here to check out the other incredible bloggers on the blog tour!}

The Ocean Would Paint Me Blue
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: 2 June 2026
Genre: YA Contemporary

Rating:

^{(4.75 pandas rounded up)}

📖 SYNOPSIS

From the celebrated author of As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow comes a poignant novel about a Syrian American girl who uses a magical sketchbook to turn her grief into art, painting miraculous murals of her mother’s life in Syria.

Seventeen-year-old Jihad Dabbagh has always seen life with a heightened sense for colors, one of many magical blessings the women in her family possess. But Jihad’s gift changes depending on her mood. When depression sets in, the world is a colorless oasis, and in the wake of her mother’s sudden death, the world has become a permanent shade of grey.

Broken by tragedy, Jihad’s family doesn’t believe her color loss. Her father sends her to the elite Braxton Academy to finish her senior year. There, Jihad’s name and hijab put a target on her back. Her haven comes in the form of an old sketchbook carved from a tree in her hometown in Syria—a country she only knew through her mother’s stories. Jihad hasn’t picked up a brush in over a year, but finds herself channeling the colors of her hurt, pain, and grief as she paints the story of her mother’s journey in Syria.

When graffiti of that same mural starts magically popping up all over New York, her art goes viral and the world takes notice, the threat of legal consequences is imminent. To reclaim her voice, Jihad will have to paint a new future for herself and Braxton, guided by the resilience of her mother’s story.

📚 BUY A COPY

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Classism, Murder (mentioned briefly in recounting)

OK, honestly, I do think this is a solid 5-star read, but I haven’t been able to stop thinking about how I wanted certain parts of that ending to be a little bit different—and it has been nagging at me since I finished this—so I’m giving it a 4.75. 🤭 That doesn’t really make it any less of a 5-star quality read, though, and it is also one of my favourite YA contemporaries in a long time!

TL;DR: The Ocean Would Paint Me Blue enraged me. It filled me with sorrow and sadness, and maybe even a lottle bit of hatred, but it also infused me with hope. I lost track of the number of times I cried while reading this—tears of anger and frustration at injustices, tears of grief and sorrow, and also tears of joy for true and simple kindnesses that were healing. Jihad and Jamie were complex and wonderfully crafted characters and I loved the friendship that grew between them. By the end of this review, you’ll definitely be able to tell that this book made me feel MANY things. 😂 This was another stunning novel by Katouh and it has solidified her in my YA auto-buy authors list, because even if her stories always gut me, she always manages to soothe my heart by the time we reach the last page. What a gift!

ARC Review: Behind Five Willows by June Hur

May 25, 2026 Dini @ dinipandareads5 Comments

Special thanks to the author and Feiwel & Friends for providing a digital ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

Behind Five Willows
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Publication Date: 26 May 2026
Genre: Young Adult Historical Romance

Panda Rating:

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📖 SYNOPSIS

From the New York Times-bestselling author of A Crane Among Wolves comes a warm and romantic homage to Jane Austen set in historical Korea, about a reader and a writer who secretly fight against government book banning and find themselves irresistibly drawn together.

As the dutiful second-eldest daughter of a poor family, society would have Haewon believe that her only hope of a decent life is to marry well. But during a time of rampant government censorship and book banning, she instead works as an illegal book transcriber to make a little extra money. It’s dangerous work, but she loves it—especially when she gets to transcribe the work of her favorite author, known as Black Lotus.

When her older sister becomes smitten with a wealthy young gentleman, Haewon is roped into chaperoning them during their courtship. Which wouldn’t be so terrible… if it weren’t for the young man’s uptight and annoying best friend who also accompanies them.

As the only son of a noble, Seojun has a lot expected of him. Wealth. Status. Respectability. Certainly not frivolous and often illicit activities such as reading fiction. But Seojun loves to do something even more scandalous: writing. He’s kept his work secret from his father and friends, but with each passing day, the pressure of being his father’s son and the dispiriting actions of the government make Seojun question the purpose of it all. The only thing keeping him going are the encouraging letters he receives from his transcriber, known only as Magpie.

When his best friend falls hard for a girl of lower social status, Seojun finds himself forced to act as chaperone to the infatuated couple—along with the girl’s younger sister, who is as irritating as she is judgmental. But as Haewon and Seojun spend more time together, they begin to suspect they may have judged each other too quickly…

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Classism, sexism, misogyny, past death of a family member (recounted briefly), past attempted murder of a family member (recounted briefly), censorship, mild violence

TL;DR: I’ve been looking forward to reading this book ever since it first came on my radar. A Pride & Prejudice remix set in Joseon era Korea featuring characters with a passion for fiction and a forbidden romance? I loved the sound of it and I’m happy to say that I enjoyed this so much! Hur excels at weaving the historical Korean context into a story that most are familiar with, and still makes it her own by introducing elements of intrigue and rebellion. Haewon and Seojun were great characters full of passion and longing, and though I wished their romance and arcs had been a bit more developed, I still loved both of them. I especially loved the yearning and by the end, I did get weepy. 🥹 Overall, this was a really great historical and romantic YA, and a pretty fun read for those who enjoy Pride & Prejudice with a twist! I would definitely recommend it.

Blog Tour Review: You’re Dead to Me, Reed Walker by Gwenyth Reitz

May 16, 2026May 16, 2026 Dini @ dinipandareads4 Comments

Thanks to Roaring Book Press for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

^{Click the banner above or here to check out the other incredible bloggers on the blog tour!}

You’re Dead to Me, Reed Walker
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Publication Date: 12 May 2026
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance

Rating:

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📖 SYNOPSIS

A swoonworthy YA supernatural romcom where two academic rivals are trapped as ghosts to haunt the same house.

They’d kill each other… if they weren’t already dead.

Tessa Sinclair is a winner. Winner of spelling bees, science fairs, and scholarships. So when she finds herself unexpectedly dead after a graduation party in an abandoned mansion, she’s none too pleased. What’s worse, her academic rival—the Harvard-bound, Mr. Perfect Reed Walker—is there too, deceased, smug, and annoying as hell.

Being a ghost is hard enough, but it’s a thousand times worse having to haunt the same house with your nemesis. But as Tessa and Reed retreat to R.I.P in their respective corners of the mansion, a mystery unfurls about the exact cause of their deaths.

Though they’d rather die (again) than work together, they’ll need to find a way to overcome their differences to hunt down a murderer on the loose. And should they happen to fall for each other along the way… who ever said you can’t find love after death?

📚 BUY A COPY

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Murders (described in semi-graphic detail), child death, underage drinking and intoxication, stalking, abusive and toxic relationship and ex-partner, panic attacks

TL;DR: You’re Dead to Me, Reed Walker was a surprising YA supernatural romcom debut. It’s a really easy read to slip into and I found myself having a great time following Tessa and Reed—I’m so glad we got both of their POVs in this because it really served to allow us to get to know the characters so much better. Of the two, I admit that Reed was my favourite, but I did enjoy their banter, their playfulness, their chemistry, and also, the mysterious turns this story takes. It is much darker and heavier than I anticipated, but as someone who loves what the turns entailed, it made me enjoy the storyline even more! That said, as it does confront some difficult topics, please read with care and view the content warnings beforehand. Overall, an exciting YA debut and I’m looking forward to seeing what the author puts out next.

Blog Tour Review: Until We Meet Again by Lily Kim Qian

April 23, 2026 Dini @ dinipandareads2 Comments

Hi friends, I’m excited to be back for another blog tour today and this time it’s for an upcoming graphic novel memoir! I’m here to share my thoughts as part of the blog tour hosted by Toppling Stacks Tours for Until We Meet Again by Lily Kim Qian.

Thanks to First Second Books for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

^{Click the banner above or here to check out the other incredible bloggers on the blog tour!}

Until We Meet Again
Publisher: First Second Books
Publication Date: 21 April 2026
Genre: Memoir
Rep: Chinese, AAPI, Depression

📖 SYNOPSIS

A poignant and vividly illustrated graphic memoir about a young woman’s search for belonging as her immigrant family moves between Canada and China.

Lily isn’t sure where home is anymore. Her family is constantly on the move, resettling in different towns across Canada and, eventually, in Shanghai, China. Her father plays the role of primary caregiver while her mother is absent for long periods of time. When she reappears, her strange behavior turns Lily’s life upside down. As Lily enters her college years, she strives to better understand her family and her place in the world. But can she escape the inherited trauma passed down by her immigrant parents?

📚 BUY A COPY

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Trauma, mental health struggles

Until We Meet Again is a heartfelt and introspective memoir. The author reflects on her childhood moving from state to state, coming-of-age in a place that should feel like home but doesn’t quite, and dealing with a parent who struggles with mental health. The way the story is written feels almost cathartic to the author. I don’t know if that’s the right way to put it, but there was so much vulnerability reflected on the pages, and recounting what she’s been through felt like a release, or at the very least another way to process her experiences. I don’t know if this was written with younger audiences in mind either, but I think it would be suitable, as the author touches on heavier topics without diving too deeply.

It was heartbreaking to read about her relationship with her mother, but I loved the depiction of a fairly healthy relationship between father and daughter. What I especially appreciated was how the author drew attention to the stigma of mental health in Asian culture—something which is still prevalent today, especially with older generations. A lot of what she said about it rang true to my own experiences—you push it aside so you pretend it doesn’t exist and that the person who has mental health issues, in a way, doesn’t exist beyond someone to pity or politely ignore. It was sad, but thankfully, it seems that those who most needed help in her story got it in the end and to this day are doing much better for it.

The reason this piqued my interest because I too am a child of frequent moves and I always seek out stories about people who have experienced something similar, if not had a mirror experience to my own. I wished that she had delved deeper into her experience of the diaspora child returning to her “home country”. There were a few things about language and expectations from the people are you (based on how you present, your name, etc.) that did ring true to my own experience, but I think it would’ve been nice to get a deeper reflection on how that changed her perspective about her upbringing and experiences.

Ultimately though, I did enjoy this memoir. The art style was vivid and rich in colour and expression. The combination of colour and illustration created stunning and visceral imagery, and I think did a great job of emphasizing the turmoil she experienced in her childhood, and other experiences growing up. You could feel the confusion, fear, and frustration, but also the quiet, peaceful and healing moments in the author’s journey.

Blog Tour Review: Forgive-Me-Not by Mari Costa

April 13, 2026April 14, 2026 Dini @ dinipandareads8 Comments

Hi friends, I’m excited to be back for another blog tour today and this time it’s for an adorable new graphic novel! I’m here to share my thoughts as part of the blog tour hosted by Toppling Stacks Tours for Forgive-Me-Not by Mari Costa.

Thanks to First Second Books for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

^{Click the banner above or here to check out the other incredible bloggers on the blog tour!}

Forgive-Me-Not
Publisher: First Second Books
Publication Date: 14 April 2026
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Rep: LGBTQIA+, Queer

Rating:

^{(4.5 pandas)}

📖 SYNOPSIS

A queer “enemies to lovers” journey of a lost princess and a changeling who was made to take the heir’s place as part of a fey scheme.

Aisling is many things to many people: princess, heir to the throne, teenage daughter of two loving parents… She’s also about to learn a lot more about herself: changeling. Fey creature. Hunted. Feared. Loved?

Forgive-Me-Not is the name given to the true princess — the lost teenage biological daughter to the king and queen, who’s grown up in the chaotic and untrustworthy realm of Faerie. When Forgive-Me-Not breaks into Aisling’s room the night before their 18 th birthday looking for revenge, the two embark on a long and arduous journey. And what starts as a confrontational and adversarial pairing grows into a bond of mutual understanding, friendship, and maybe something more…

📚 BUY A COPY

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Kidnapping, torture (recounted), blood, murder, mild violence

TL;DR: Oh my, what an adorable feel-great graphic novel! This had the cheesiest ending but it still had me giggling and feeling a buoyant giddiness that left a big smile on my face long after I’d finished reading. This is a timeless fairytale where princess meets knight and they fall in love, but with a changeling twist and a sapphic bent that I loved.

The artwork was fantastic and complemented the story really well. I loved the contrast between the brighter spring palette human world and the darker autumnal palette of the faerie world. I think this contrast was also reflected well in the personalities between Aisling and Not. I loved the art style so much, with clean lines, intense colours, and very emotive character expressions and actions! There were some chibi-adjacent illustrations that I found adorable, and I particularly loved how the expressions in those scenes were conveyed too.

Blog Tour Review: The Wicked Sea by Jordan Stephanie Gray

April 6, 2026April 6, 2026 Dini @ dinipandareads10 Comments

Hi friends, it’s been a hot minute since I’ve done a tour (not since September 2025!), so I’m excited to be back with a blog tour review today! I’m here to share my thoughts (and a few favourite quotes) as part of the blog tour hosted by Toppling Stacks Tours for The Wicked Sea by Jordan Stephanie Gray.

Thanks to Requited for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

^{Click the banner above or here to check out the other incredible bloggers on the blog tour!}

The Wicked Sea (The Wicked Sea #1)
Publisher: Requited
Publication Date: 7 April 2026
Genre: New Adult Fantasy Romance
Rep: LGBTQIA+, Pansexual

Rating:

^{(3.5 pandas)}

📖 SYNOPSIS

In this dark and sultry romantasy a mermaid battles hatred—and lust—for the wretched warlock who saved her life.

Mermaid Zephyra of the Syl dreams of freedom. On the run from a dangerous captor and years of abuse, she’s shed her tail, grown legs, and hidden herself on land in the merrow-loathing kingdom of Mortia, left to steal and barter on the dirty streets. But her freedom is short-lived when she’s caught and sentenced to death by the brutal warlock, Arion Stone.

Arion is as beautiful as he is cold and deadly, only interested in punishing the merrow he views as evil. He has grown as strong as any warlock might, but at great personal cost…which can only be remedied by the heart of the God of Death, lost to a fabled kingdom beneath the ocean’s treacherous depths.

So Arion offers Zephyra a deal she can’t refuse; help him find the mystical heart, and he’ll spare her life. With no other options, Zephyra agrees, entangling their souls and forbidden desires in a magical bargain until death do they part. But Zephyra’s past is catching up to her, and the enemy she fled seeks vengeance. If Zephyra and Arion can’t learn to fight together–and trust each other–there are worse things awaiting them than just death.

Of course, in the wicked sea, everyone has secrets, and no one should be trusted.
For fans of: Enemies-to-lovers, Magic Sensual Bonds, Winged Romantic Lead, Forced Proximity

📚 BUY A COPY

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Imprisonment, graphic descriptions of torture, gore, dismemberment, blood, violence, death, and murder

TL;DR: The Wicked Sea is a fun fantasy romance featuring killer mermaids and warlocks, a steamy enemies-to-lovers romance, and a thrilling race against time across this world, trailed by powerful and deadly enemies. Don’t let this (beautiful) pastel cover fool you—this story gets dark and very gory, and covers fairly tough topics, so I would recommend checking content/trigger warnings beforehand. While there were elements I wish had been done better to deliver a stronger story, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this! If you’re a fan of Quicksilver and Phantasma, chances are you’ll like this too.

ARC Review: Better the Devil by Erik J. Brown

January 29, 2026January 27, 2026 Dini @ dinipandareads3 Comments

Special thanks to Sparkpoint Studio and Storytide for providing a digital ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

Better the Devil
Publisher: Storytide
Publication Date: 20 January 2026
Genre: Young Adult Psychological Thriller

Panda Rating:

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📖 SYNOPSIS

A harrowing, edge-of-your-seat psychological thriller about a queer homeless teen who, in a bid for safety, assumes the identity of a boy who went missing ten years ago…only to find that his new home is anything but a safe haven—from All That’s Left in the World author Erik J. Brown! Perfect for fans of Karen McManus, Holly Jackson, and Ryan La Sala.

When a runaway teen is arrested for shoplifting, he’s desperate not to be sent back to the hyper-religious parents he knows will never accept him. While at the police station, he notices a resemblance to the aged-up photos of Nate Beaumont, a child who went missing ten years ago—and, in a moment of desperation, he takes Nate’s identity in hopes that it will help him make a quick getaway.

Before he can run again, Nate’s family arrives and welcomes him home to a life he never had. As “Nate” watches and waits for his chance to run, he finds that the Beaumonts are nurturing and loving, very different from his own parents.

But soon unsettling things start to happen—vandalism, alarms going off in the middle of the night—and it becomes clear that someone knows “Nate” isn’t who he says he is…and that the real Nate wasn’t kidnapped, but murdered.

As he starts to unravel the mystery, he gets ever closer to the devil he may know—and learns he might be their next victim.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Murder, blood, mild gore, killing of animals (recounted), physical abuse, conversion therapy (mentioned), homomisia, torture

TL;DR: Better the Devil wasn’t exactly what I thought it would be. The title, cover, and synopsis led me to expect a slightly more “horror” take on a psychological thriller. While maybe that was my misinterpretation, I do think this wound up being much less thrilling than I wanted. This was a very slow-paced mystery thriller, and while there were interesting parts, I didn’t find that enough happened to make those 400 pages feel worth it.

ARC Review: Temping Is Hell by Cathy Yardley

October 27, 2025 Dini @ dinipandareads6 Comments

Special thanks to Literary Media Tours and the author for providing me a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Temping Is Hell (Necessary Evil #1)
Publication Date: 30 October 2025
Genre: Paranormal Romance

Panda Rating:

_{(4 pandas)}

📖 SYNOPSIS

WORST. JOB. EVER. Kate O’Hara can’t wait until this temp assignment is over. The woman who hired her is a psychotic drama queen, her coworkers are convicts-turned-clerks, and it’s so boring and pointless it makes her skin crawl. Even working with temptation-on-legs CEO Thomas Kestrel won’t sway her — he’s a billionaire with a rep for being ruthless, and as far as she’s concerned, that’s a hard pass. Once she makes enough to pay off her bills, she’s out of this corporate cube farm. Or so she thinks…

WHAT THE HELL? Next thing she knows, she’s accidentally signed over her soul. Literally. And she’s discovered Thomas’s real mission: to kill thirteen bad guys in one year, in order to get his—now his and Kate’s—souls back.

IT’S NOT JUST A JOB. IT’S A MISADVENTURE. From learning to boost the morale of some paper-pushing demons to navigating her way through blood-red tape, Kate has to work closely with her super-hot boss and get her flaky act together, before somebody clocks her out—permanently!

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Gaslighting, cancer, death (recounted, on-page), suicide, blood, violence, attempted murder

TL;DR: Temping Is Hell was a wild paranormal fantasy romcom romp! 🤣 It was definitely a bit bonkers but I mean that in a good way because it was so entertaining and I had a great time reading it! Kate, with her completely unfiltered chaos brain, and Thomas, the billionaire who needs to get his act together, were such an unlikely pairing, but I loved how her chaotic good energy grounded him. The ‘sold-my-soul-to-a-demon’ plot kept me completely engaged and it was fun learning about what happens when you do something like that—it’s not good, that’s for sure! I enjoyed the friendships, the banter, the sarcasm, and the chaos. Overall, this was a fun and humorous read that I would recommend if you’re looking for a paranormal romcom, especially for the spooky season~!