"Avatar The Last Airbender - Smoke and Shadow" || Book Review

 

Hello friends!

I'm back with another comic book review. This time it is "Smoke and Shadow" from the universe of Avatar the Last Airbender. If you want to read my last ATLA review ("ATLA - Team Avatar Tales") you can check it out here.

 I was very eager to read this one, because of things I had heard about it or because of scenes from it I had stumbled upon on Instagram or Youtube. The story is interesting and keeps you turning the pages. It is rich in action and feelings as well. The pacing is a bit off in the first two parts but really takes off in the third part and it definitely pays off. I enjoyed these comic books as much as the previous ones, although admittedly I thought that Part 3 was better than Parts 1 and 2. This is why I rated Parts 1 and 2 with 4* and I gave Part 3 a 5* rating.

***SPOILERS AHEAD***

My main objection to this story is that it takes place in a very short period of time, so much so that it doesn't really make sense for many of those things to change like this and take place in such a short period of time. As I understood it, the story takes place over the span of a couple of days, so it was weird to me that over just a couple of days - or even a couple of weeks - a group of people (like the Safe Nation Society) would grow so popular amongst the common people, that they would have so much acknowledgment, support, and trust that they're heroes. It seems strange to me that, even with the children disappearing, there would be so much and widespread unrest within a couple of days of the investigations starting. It would make more sense and it'd be way more impactful if it was implied that the whole thing took place over a period of a couple of months; they could show us an exhausted Zuko, a desperate Aang, a devastated Mai, and even an arrogant, almost-victorious Azula. It would also give Ukano more time to regret his decisions and change his mind, whereas, the way it is now, it seems like he make each decision overnight and changed his mind every other day.

I wasn't a fan of Mai and Kei Lo at all, but I lived for the cute little moments between her and Zuko. I really wish and hope they get together in the future. The hints and the electric moments between them were great and really got the vibes through. It was quite open-ended between them but I am certain that these two will end up together eventually. They belong together!

Ukano drove me mad at the beginning but I was happy to see him change his mind in the end and help the children. It was nice to experience his change of heart, his character arch and also the evolution of his relationship with Mai. 

Kiyi was hands-down the most adorable and precious thing in the whole story! I really loved her, I thought she was so cute, I loved seeing her so much in love with her big brother, and I was excited to see her fire bending!

There was something deeply satisfying about Ursa finally facing Ozai and their scene was short, but it was very strong and conveyed what it needed to very well. The ending in general was satisfying and tied many loose ends together, but it still left so many questions to be answered in the next comic books, so I'm really eager to read more of them soon!

That's about it for today's review...

Thank you for reading!

Goodreads Book Tag

Hello, my amazing book friends!

It's been a long time since my last post, but I'm still here and I've come back with a book tag so that we can start again with a light and happy post! I found this book tag on Zeezee with Books' blog, but it was apparently originally created by Words of Clover Youtube Channel so if you like this tag you can go and check them out as well. So let's go...

• What was the last book you marked as read?

The last book I marked as "read" is the comic book "Avatar the Last Airbender: Shadow and Bone - Part 2".

• What are you currently reading?

I'm currently reading two books:

(A) "Avatar the Last Airbender: Shadow and Bone - Part 3", and

(B) "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince"

• What was the last book you marked as TBR?

I've heard only the best comments and reviews about this book and I can't help but be curious and want to read it! "Piranesi" by Susanna Clarke.

• What book do you plan to read next?

That will have to be "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" because I really need to finally be done with this series.

• Do you use the star rating system? ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I don't particularly like this rating system or take it too seriously, but I use it, yes, and I try to use it as well as possible.

• 
  Are you doing a 2022 reading challenge?
  

Yes, I have been doing the Goodreads reading challenge since 2018 - sometimes more successfully than others - and I'm doing it this year as well.

• Do you have a wishlist?

I don't know if this is a feature on Goodreads, if it is I've never used it, but I kind of have a wishlist of books in my head.

• What book do you plan to buy next?

I have no idea, honestly. I very rarely buy books anymore, so I haven't given it much thought. My wishlist is definitely bigger than I can afford and most certainly bigger than my house can fit, so I have to be selective.

• Do you have favorite quotes? Would you like to share a few?

I have like 300 quotes and I love many of them, so it's really hard to pick just a few, but I will try...

"We accept the love we think we deserve."

"It is our choices that show what we truly are far more than our abilities."

"It takes 10 times as long to put yourself back together as it does to fall apart."

"Oh, to reach the point of death and realize one has not lived at all."

"Change is the end result of all true learning."

"A mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone if it is to keep its edge."

• Who are your favorite authors?

I like many authors for many different reasons, so I can't really pick.

• Have you joined any group?

I have joined three groups that I've been invited to, but to be honest, I haven't spent time on any of them so I don't really know what's going on with them...

• Who do you tag?

I tag anyone who liked this tag and wants to do it! I would love to see other people's answers!

This tag was nice and different. I enjoyed it and it also gave me a new post idea. The question about the quotes was my favorite one, it made me want to go through my favorite quotes and remember why I love them and what they mean to me. So this gave me the idea to make a new blog post entirely about these quotes so that I can analyze them and explain my thoughts on them. Would you be interested in a post like this? Would you read it? Please let me know...

Oh, and of course, I shouldn't forget... Please, feel free to add/follow me on Goodreads. I'm always excited to find more reading buddies! For the link click the image below...

Thank you for reading!