Blog Tour Spotlight: The Tiltersmith by Amy Herrick

April 9, 2022April 9, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareads3 Comments

I’m excited to be shining a spotlight on The Tiltersmith by Amy Herrick today! This middle-grade story combines science and folklore to spin a page-turning, action-packed story of friendship, love, teamwork, and environmental stewardship. It sounds like a pretty unique read and certainly like nothing that I’ve read before especially for this age range, and I’m excited to read it at some point! Plus, how great is this cover?!

Myths and monsters collide with climate chaos in a thrilling fantasy adventure

“Vacillating between scientific reasoning and lore from worldwide cultures, the descriptions of beautiful legends of seasons and the sobering study of climate change are so rich.”—Kirkus Reviews

Special thanks to Algonquin Young Readers for having me on tour and for providing an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads: The Tiltersmith
Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers
Publication Date: 06 April 2022
Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy

Spring has arrived in Brooklyn, New York, but winter refuses to let go. Sleet, snow, and even a tornado batter the city. Mr. Ross, the science teacher, believes climate change is the cause, but classmates Edward, Feenix, Danton, and Brigit suspect older, magical forces are at work. When a peculiar character calling himself Superintendent Tiltersmith appears with a keen interest in the foursome, their suspicions are confirmed, and they’re swept up in a battle of wits and courage.

The friends must protect a set of mysterious tools belonging to the Lady of Spring. If they can free her from her underground prison, winter will end. But if the Tiltersmith steals the tools, he will keep the Lady in his power and upset the balance of nature forever.

Perfect for readers of Madeleine L’Engle and Susan Cooper, The Tiltersmith returns to the world of Amy Herrick’s acclaimed Time Fetch in a timely, exciting stand-alone adventure.

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Blog Tour Review: Heartbreak Symphony by Laekan Zea Kemp

April 7, 2022April 7, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareads11 Comments

Hello, friends! It’s my stop on the TBR & Beyond Tours for Heartbreak Symphony by Laekan Zea Kemp and I’m excited to share my review and journal spread with you today!

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

Click here or on the banner above to check out the rest of the amazing bloggers on tour!

Goodreads: Heartbreak Symphony
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: 05 April 2022
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary

Panda Rating:

(4.5 pandas)

Clap When You Land meets On the Come Up in this heart-gripping story about navigating first love and overcoming grief through the power of music.

Aarón Medrano has been haunted by the onstage persona of his favorite musician ever since his mother passed away. He seems to know all of Aarón’s deepest fears, like that his brain doesn’t work the way it should and that’s why his brother and father seems to be pushing him away. He thinks his ticket out is a scholarship to the prestigious Acadia School of Music. That is, if he can avoid blowing his audition.

Mia Villanueva has a haunting of her own and it’s the only family heirloom her parents left her: doubt. It’s the reason she can’t overcome her stage fright or believe that her music is worth making. Even though her trumpet teacher tells her she has a gift, she’s not sure if she’ll ever figure out how to use it or if she’s even deserving of it in the first place.

When Aarón and Mia cross paths, Aarón sees a chance to get close to the girl he’s had a crush on for years and to finally feel connected to someone since losing his mother. Mia sees a chance to hold herself accountable by making them both face their fears, and hopefully make their dreams come true. But soon they’ll realize there’s something much scarier than getting up on stage—falling in love with a broken heart.

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Blog Tour Review: This Rebel Heart by Katherine Locke

April 4, 2022April 4, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareads18 Comments

Hello, friends! It’s my stop on the TBR & Beyond Tours for This Rebel Heart by Katherine Locke and I’m excited to share my review and favourite quotes with you today.

Special thanks to Knopf Books for Young Readers for providing an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

Click here or on the banner above to check out the rest of the amazing bloggers on tour!

Goodreads: This Rebel Heart
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: 05 April 2022
Genre: Young Adult Historical Fiction, Magical Realism

Panda Rating:

(4.5 pandas)

A tale set amid the 1956 Hungarian revolution in post-WWII Communist Budapest.

In the middle of Budapest, there is a river. Csilla knows the river is magic. During WWII, the river kept her family safe when they needed it most–safe from the Holocaust. But that was before the Communists seized power. Before her parents were murdered by the Soviet police. Before Csilla knew things about her father’s legacy that she wishes she could forget.

Now Csilla keeps her head down, planning her escape from this country that has never loved her the way she loves it. But her carefully laid plans fall to pieces when her parents are unexpectedly, publicly exonerated. As the protests in other countries spur talk of a larger revolution in Hungary, Csilla must decide if she believes in the promise and magic of her deeply flawed country enough to risk her life to help save it, or if she should let it burn to the ground.

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BBNYA Blog Tour Review: Accused by M.N. Jolley

March 28, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareads10 Comments

Hello, hello friends! I’m so excited to be back for another blog tour hosted by @The Write Reads for third place BBNYA 2021 finalist Accused (KC Warlock Weekly #1) by M.N. Jolley. Don’t forget to check out all the other bloggers participating in this tour: here or click on the banner below! 😍

*Find out more about the BBNYA competition at the end of my post!*

Special thanks to the author for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads: Accused (The KC Warlock Weekly #1)
Publish Date: 03 November 2020
Genre: Paranormal Fantasy Mystery

Panda Rating:

(3 pandas)

My name is Levi. I’m a journalist, I’m autistic, I’m bad at magic, and I swear I didn’t kill her.

Research for the paper usually falls into a few basic patterns. Someone in the city says there’s a troll under Buck O’Neil Bridge, or they’ll call just so a friendly ear will listen to them complain about a pixie infestation.
That sort of content carries me through slow news weeks. It’s rare that I uncover a murder.
Being framed for murder, though? That’s a first.

With the Wizard’s Council hunting me for a crime I didn’t commit, I’ve got no choice but to solve the murder and clear my name. If I don’t unravel this case, nobody will, and I’ll go down for it so hard I might never see the light of day again

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#FirstLinesFriday: 25 March 2022

March 25, 2022October 23, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareads16 Comments

Happy Friday book lovers! We’re back with another First Lines Friday, a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here are the rules:

Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Finally… reveal the book!

First lines:

“They say you can spot a true shénnóng-shi by their hands—palms colored by the stain of the earth, fingertips scarred from thorns, a permanent crust of soil and blood darkening the crescents of their nails.
I used to look at my hands with pride.
Now, all I can think is, These are the hands that buried my mother.“

Do you recognise the book these first lines come from?

Blog Tour Spotlight: Letter to a Stranger by Colleen Kinder

March 21, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareads3 Comments

Hi, friends! I’m excited to be shining a spotlight on Letters to a Stranger: Essays to the Ones Who Haunt Us by Colleen Kinder on the blog today!

When I first heard about this book, it absolutely delighted the part of me that often thinks about all the people, significant or seemingly insignificant, that I’ve met in life. I think it’s such a romantic notion and I love the idea of writing a letter to whichever person has (un)knowingly left a mark on your person. I haven’t heard of any of the featured authors in this book but I’m excited to dive into it. This seems like a collection of essays that is best taken in over an extended period of time by consuming maybe one or two stories a day to really be able to savour the experience!

Special thanks to Algonquin Books for having me on tour and for providing an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads: Letter to a Stranger: Essays to the Ones Who Haunt Us
Publisher: Algonquin Books
Publication Date: 22 March 2022
Genre: Non-Fiction

Sixty-five extraordinary writers grapple with this mystery: How can an ephemeral encounter with a stranger leave such an eternal mark?

When Colleen Kinder put out a call for authors to write a letter to a stranger about an unforgettable encounter, she opened the floodgates. The responses—intimate and addictive, all written in the second person—began pouring in. These short, insightful essays by a remarkable cast of writers, including Elizabeth Kolbert, Pico Iyer, Lauren Groff, Gregory Pardlo, Faith Adiele, Maggie Shipstead, Lia Purpura, Kiki Petrosino, and Jamil Jan Kochai, are organized around such themes as Gratitude, Wonder, and Farewell and guide us both across the globe and through the mysteries of human connection. Addressed to a first responder after a storm, a gambler encountered on jury duty, a waiter in Istanbul, a taxi driver in Paris, a roomful of travelers watching reality TV in La Paz, and dozens of others, the pieces are replete with observations about how to live and what we seek, and how a stranger’s loaded glance, shared smile, or question posed can alter the course of our lives.

Moving and unforgettable, Letter to a Stranger is an irresistible read for the literary traveler and the perfect gift for anyone who is haunted by a person they met once and will remember forever.

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BBNYA Blog Tour Spotlight: Our Bloody Pearl by D.N. Bryn

March 14, 2022March 15, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareads11 Comments

Hello, friends! I’m excited to be shining a spotlight on Our Bloody Pearl by D.N. Bryn as part of the BBNYA blog tour hosted by The Write Reads. This fantasy filled with blood-thirsty pirates and vicious sirens was part of the top finalists of the BBNYA competition and it’s getting so much love!

More information about the BBNYA competition can be found at the end of my post!

I received this book as part of the 2021 BBNYA competition and the BBNYA tours organised by the TWR Tour team. Thanks to the author and the team for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review!

Click here or on the banner above to check out the rest of the amazing bloggers on tour!

Goodreads: Our Bloody Pearl (These Treacherous Tides #1)
Publisher: Bryn Books
Publication Date: 26 July 2018
Genre: Adult Fantasy

The ocean is uncontrollable and dangerous. But to the sirens who swim the warm island waters, it’s a home more than worth protecting from the humans and their steam-propelled ships. Between their hypnotic voices and the strength of their powerful tails, sirens have little to fear.

That is, until the ruthless pirate captain, Kian, creates a device to cancel out their songs.

Perle was the first siren captured, and while all since have either been sold or killed, Kian still keeps them prisoner. Though their song is muted and their tail paralyzed, Perle’s hope for escape rekindles as another pirating vessel seizes Kian’s ship. This new captain seems different, with his brilliant smile and his promises that Kian will never again be Perle’s master. But he’s still a human, and a captor in his own way. The compassion he and his rag-tag human family show can’t be sincere… or can it?

Soon it becomes clear that Kian will hunt Perle relentlessly, taking down any siren in her path. As the tides turn, Perle must decide whether to run from Kian forever, or ride the forming wave into battle, hoping their newfound human companions will fight with them.

This adult fantasy novel featuring an nonbinary disabled protagonist is a voyage of laughter and danger where friendships and love abound and sirens are sure to steal—or eat—your heart.

Content/Trigger Warnings: mild gore due to carnivorous sirens and sensations of drowning.

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Blog Tour Spotlight: The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill

March 10, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareads3 Comments

I’m excited to be shining a spotlight on The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill on the blog today!

I have to admit it was the cover art that immediately caught my eye, but this is a fantasy about the power of generosity and love, and how a community suffers when they disappear, and it sounds like there’s a wonderfully heartwarming tale to be found inside. I don’t know about you but a heartwarming tale full of kindness sounds like the perfect read right now, what with everything happening in the world.

Special thanks to Algonquin Young Readers for having me on tour and for providing an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads: The Ogress and the Orphans
Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers
Publication Date: 08 March 2022
Genre: Middle-Grade Fantasy

Stone-in-the-Glen, once a lovely town, has fallen on hard times. Fires, floods, and other calamities have caused the people to lose their library, their school, their park, and even their neighborliness. The people put their faith in the Mayor, a dazzling fellow who promises he alone can help. After all, he is a famous dragon slayer. (At least, no one has seen a dragon in his presence.) Only the clever children of the Orphan House and the kindly Ogress at the edge of town can see how dire the town’s problems are.

Then one day a child goes missing from the Orphan House. At the Mayor’s suggestion, all eyes turn to the Ogress. The Orphans know this can’t be: the Ogress, along with a flock of excellent crows, secretly delivers gifts to the people of Stone-in-the-Glen.

But how can the Orphans tell the story of the Ogress’s goodness to people who refuse to listen? And how can they make their deluded neighbors see the real villain in their midst?

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Book Review: These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong

March 6, 2022August 13, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareads16 Comments

Goodreads: These Violent Delights (These Violent Delights #1)
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Published: 17 November 2020
Genre: YA Historical Fantasy

Panda Rating:

_{(4 pandas)}

The year is 1926, and Shanghai hums to the tune of debauchery.

A blood feud between two gangs runs the streets red, leaving the city helpless in the grip of chaos. At the heart of it all is eighteen-year-old Juliette Cai, a former flapper who has returned to assume her role as the proud heir of the Scarlet Gang—a network of criminals far above the law. Their only rivals in power are the White Flowers, who have fought the Scarlets for generations. And behind every move is their heir, Roma Montagov, Juliette’s first love…and first betrayal.

But when gangsters on both sides show signs of instability culminating in clawing their own throats out, the people start to whisper. Of a contagion, a madness. Of a monster in the shadows. As the deaths stack up, Juliette and Roma must set their guns—and grudges—aside and work together, for if they can’t stop this mayhem, then there will be no city left for either to rule.

ARC Review: Chef’s Kiss by Jarrett Melendez, Danica Brine (Illustration)

February 28, 2022March 1, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareads17 Comments

Special thanks to Oni Press for providing an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

Goodreads: Chef’s Kiss
Publisher: Oni Press
Published: 12 April 2022
Genre: Graphic Novel

Panda Rating:

_{(5 pandas)}

Watch things start to really heat up in the kitchen in this sweet, queer, new adult graphic novel!

Now that college is over, English graduate Ben Cook is on the job hunt looking for something…anything…related to his passion for reading and writing. But interview after interview, hiring committee after hiring committee, Ben soon learns getting the dream job won’t be as easy as he thought. Proofreading? Journalism? Copywriting? Not enough experience. It turns out he doesn’t even have enough experience to be a garbage collector! But when Ben stumbles upon a “Now Hiring—No Experience Necessary” sign outside a restaurant, he jumps at the chance to land his first job. Plus, he can keep looking for a writing job in the meantime. He’s actually not so bad in the kitchen, but he will have to pass a series of cooking tests to prove he’s got the culinary skills to stay on full-time. But it’s only temporary…right?

When Ben begins developing a crush on Liam, one of the other super dreamy chefs at the restaurant, and when he starts ditching his old college friends and his old writing job plans, his career path starts to become much less clear.

TL;DR: This was an absolute treat to read and I would highly recommend it if you’re looking for a wonderfully illustrated graphic novel about new beginnings and finding your way in the world, with wonderful characters and great friendships that are sure to make you smile!