Thursday, February 18, 2021

"Everything is F*cked: A Book About Hope" by Mark Manson || Book Review



I read the "Subtle art of not giving a f*ck" by the same author a few months ago and I really enjoyed it (you can fine my review of it here), so I was very excited to read one more of his books. 


Unfortunately, this one did not live up to the quality of the other one and it didn't have as much of an interest or hold on me and this is the reason I'm rating this one lower. I gave this book 3* while I had rated the subtle art with 4*. The narrator was great and this really helped me get through the book more easily. I'm not sure if I'd like it as much if I had to go through the effort of actually reading it.

My main problem was that it felt repetitive and at a few points it tired me out. I think this was partly because it was actually repetitive, but also partly because some of the ideas were also introduced and talked about in the previous book I read so maybe that added to this feeling.

I liked some of the stories it included like about Nietche's friend Meta (pretty sure I butchered both of their names and I'm not even going to try to write their full names) and her life and about the Buddhist monk who set himself on fire. I felt like I learned quite a few new things and it made me go and research more details about them.

It was interesting to read his views about religions - all kinds of them - about people and about the thinking and feeling brain.


Even though I didn't love it, it was still a good read. It may not be as enjoyable or attention-grabbing as the subtle art, but it is still a good read and it gives you food for thought. It helps you reconsider life and your ideas and learn some new things about life and about yourself. Overall a good read but not great.

Thanks for reading!

Thursday, February 11, 2021

"Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" || Book Review & Book to Movie Comparison



Hello friends!

Today I'm here with a review of the second book in the Harry Potter series. If you'd like to check out my full review of the first book ("The Philosopher's Stone"), you can find it here.

I've always liked the second Harry Potter movie more than the first one so I entered this book with more expectations and hope. Luckily, my expectations were met and I liked the second book of the series much better than the first one. The story of the Chamber of Secrets always seemed more interesting to me and I was very eager to read it. I started reading this book back when I was a teen but I only got halfway through it. You see, I had borrowed it from a friend of mine and she had to leave and take the book back before I could finish it. Many years passed since then and I can say that even though I knew what it was about and remembered a thing or two, for the most part, I didn't really remember much so it was like reading it for the first time.


***RATING***

I really enjoyed this book and it deserves a good rating. I also was sure that I was going to give it a higher rating than the first book which I rated 3*. It wasn't perfect, I still found a couple of small flaws so I couldn't give it 5*, but it has definitely earned 4* from me.


***NON SPOILER REVIEW***

The book was very good, Rowling's writing is brilliant for once more, the atmosphere is magical and the worldbuilding impeccable. One of the things I've come to really admire in her writing is the rich vocabulary. The imagery is vivid and the descriptions are strong. 

Something I really loved about the book was the humor. There were so many funny scenes throughout the book even in the tragic moments and those funny moments were coming from all the characters. I caught myself laughing so many times.

For one more time, I had my objections with the pacing. The first half of the book was a bit slow, while the second half is much faster, more interesting and it goes by easily. It felt like the actual story took a bit to get started and it was quite a long way to get to this point. The book is generally quite long, longer than it should be. There are a couple of scenes that aren't necessary, you could remove them and the story would stay the same, it wouldn't change at all, and it would, in fact, be even better. Then there are a couple of scenes that are important to the plot, but still, they go on and on and they drag so long to the point that it becomes tiring. I believe that if these scenes were trimmed down and if the book was a bit shorter, the story would have been much stronger, more solid, and compact. This is one complaint I had for the best book as well and it is the main reason I removed a star from my rating in both cases.

It starts to look like a pattern now that each book ends with a talk between Harry and Dumbledore which results in a beautiful lesson. This is something I've come to love and hope to see in the other books as well.


***REVIEW & BOOK TO MOVIE COMPARISON***SPOILERS***

I loved that we got to see a bit more of Voldemort and we got to learn more about his life as a young student. Tom Riddle's story was dark and mysterious and it really grabbed my attention. I loved learning what he was like and how he turned into Voldemort.

It was great to finally see Ron's house and life and having Harry be with them like it was his actual family was heartwarming and beautiful. It was also the first time we actually got to see how an all-magical family actually lives and goes through their routine. We've seen plenty of the muggle life with the Dursleys, but now that Harry got to spend time with Ron and his family we got to explore a whole other reality and this is so exciting.

The more I read these books the more I grow to love Ron and I start to see what people have been talking about movie-Ron versus book-Ron. Book-Ron is awesome, he's not just funny, he is smart, helpful, and loveable. Movie-Ron is mostly just goofy, just a character to provide comic relief and this is annoying. I could already see a couple of Ron's lines that were given to Hermione in the movie and not only does this ruin the character, but it makes absolutely no sense. There are certain things that logically only Ron should know being pureblood and raised by wizards, on the contrary, it makes absolutely no sense for Hermione to know those things. Even if she reads a lot there are some things that she and Harry could not have known since they were raised by muggles. Book-Hermione on the other hand is far less likable than movie-Hermione who is in fact pretty awesome.

One thing that the movie did better than the book in my opinion was the chamber of secrets scene. In the book, it was way too much talking and so little action. It felt like they were talking for so long and the action was too short. I get that Riddle was trying to delay the whole thing to make sure that Ginny would die and he would return to life but it felt so disappointing that when the time of action came it wasn't even much of a fight. In the movie though, the scene is much better, there is some talking and then quite a bit of action. Harry runs a little bit, tries to get away from the snake, tries to outsmart it and when the snake attacks him it feels like quite a threat so when he kills it, it's much more satisfying.

On the other hand, I loved the final chapter of the book and I thought it was so much better than the final scenes in the movie. I loved the part where they talk to Dumbledore about what happened and I also loved when Harry and Dumbledore confront Lucius. In the movie this scene was more subtle, it was more implied, but in the book, everything was said out loud! In the book, they looked him in the eyes and confronted him with no fear or doubt whatsoever and just talked to him straight and it was so awesome! I loved it! I also liked the scene where Doby gets freed more in the book. Oh, Doby was just so annoying most of the time but I really felt sorry for him and it was so sweet and heart-warming when he was finally free.

I really liked the addition of Lockhart. Don't get me wrong, I thought he was an incredibly annoying character and a horrible person, but his presence in the book was so funny and entertaining. He was written perfectly to be this incompetent, obnoxious idiot. His character feels as real as any other in this book. I enjoyed him but I'm surely glad he is gone.


***END OF SPOILERS***

So, these were my thoughts about it. Overall, it was quite an enjoyable read. I liked it and thought it was better than the first one. I'll soon read the third book in the series and I'm really curious about it.


Sunday, January 17, 2021

Books I'll probably never read || Βook Tag


Hello friends! I was looking for something new to post and I found this Tag. It's a bit older, I've no idea if it is around anymore, but I still liked it and wanted to take part in it. 

I initially found this tag at Cat on the bookshelf's blog, but apparently, it was created by littlespider9 channel on YouTube.

 

So... Let's get started!


A really hyped book you're not interested in reading?



I tried reading "Paper Towns" a while back and I really couldn't get into it. Even though I usually like John Green's books and I think he is a good writer in general, I didn't like this one. I tried watching the movie as well and I found it boring as well, so I completely gave up on it and I'm probably not going to be reading it.




A series you won't start/won't be finishing?


I can say with confidence that I won't be reading "The Mortal Instruments" series. I pretty much knew what it was about, but I was never really interested in it. It doesn't sound like the book I usually pick or enjoy reading. Still, the hype around these books was (and still is) overwhelming and this made me curious to see what the fuss was about, so a few years ago I decided to give it a try. I started reading "The City of Bones" but I DNF'd it. I couldn't get into it, I thought the writing was weak and the plot didn't seem very interesting to me. So I most probably won't try reading it again.



A classic that you're just not interested in?




I don't have any comments about this one... It's "Romeo and Juliet". No interest whatsoever to read this classic book and I probably won't ever try it.





Any genres you've never read?

There is no genre that I don't read at all, no book that I refuse to read just because it is said genre. I want and try to read a large variety of books, authors, and genres. However, there sure are certain genres that I prefer and others that I don't. I've read a little bit of every genre so far and plan to do so in the future as well, so the closest answer I can give to this question is a genre that I don't usually pick up, or it's one of my last choices. So the genre I don't usually reach for is paranormal... it's just not really my thing and out of all the genres, it's the one I'm least likely to pick.


A book on your shelves you'll probably never actually read?



"The eternal ones"... I bought this book a while back mostly because it had a beautiful cover, but I never got to read it. Many years have passed since and even though I still have it on my bookshelves and I still love the cover I don't think I'll ever read it.



I really loved this tag and I want to tag my friend over at My trending books because I'm really curious to see her answers. 


Thanks for reading!

Saturday, January 9, 2021

"Avatar The Last Airbender - The Promise" || Book Review & Book Talk




These were the last things I read in 2020 and it was the best way to close the reading year. If you're interested to see my review of the prequel story that I read before this one, you can check it out here.


The story takes place right after the ending of the show and it follows the heroes as they try to restore balance to the world.  

***SHORT REVIEW***NON SPOILER***

The art is absolutely stunning. At many moments I had to pause reading just to stare a bit more at the beautiful art. The story flows perfectly and the pacing is great. The plot is rock-solid, it makes sense and it is realistic, but at the same time, it is unique and engaging. The story doesn't shy away from truths and important messages, but then again when did the "Avatar" ever do that? Never. Even though it is a kid's show (and comic books in this case) it is consistently very strong in themes, messages and successfully handles very mature content. Avatar continues to give great material not only from an artistic and creative point of view but also thematically and morally. It is thought-provoking and rich in content, and even though it may be handling heavier, more serious subjects at times, it does it perfectly without the main plot ever losing interest or pace and what helps with this is that the action and non-action scenes are evenly and beautifully spread out through the books. The conflicts are set right from the beginning in Part 1 and then we follow each plotline as they all gradually lead to their resolution in Part 3.

If I really have to say something about each part individually, I'd say that:
  • Part 1 was great. It established an immediate connection to what has been previously going on in the story (in the series), as well as set a solid ground for the beginning of this new story. It was interesting and engaging. The introduction was both familiar and new and it felt like a great way to start. It set the atmosphere and themes.
  • Part 2 was my least favorite. Even though it was a bit stronger in themes compared to the first part and Aang, Katara, and Zuko's storylines were great, Toph and Sokka's storyline was weak, boring, and somewhat irrelevant. I couldn't care for it and the story would have been the same (and actually better) if the whole "metal-bending school" subplot was removed or reduced significantly.
  • Part 3 was my favorite of all and of course, it would be since it's the part that has the whole climax of the story which is by definition the most interesting part. I loved it, I can't find anything wrong with it, really, it was great! It was a great continuation and the outcome of the story was really good, it felt realistic but also exciting. It foreshadows the next parts of the story ("The search" comic books) and it looks really interesting, you can see that things are about to go down makes you really eager to see how everything is going to turn out.
As a whole, I absolutely loved it! I rated parts 1 & 3 with 5* and I gave part 2 4* on Goodreads. My rating for the story as a whole would be 4,75* if I had to be exact, but since I really loved it anyway, I'm still going to give it 5*.



***LONGER REVIEW***SPOILERS***BOOK TALK***

I loved seeing Yu Dao, how the people have mixed and become this new thing, and how this city thrives by being a beautiful combination of 2 different nations. I really liked Kori and her story and how she represents her people. Those people who are made from 2 different nations, they've been born and raised in this situation where for more than two generations these two peoples have coexisted (they have worked together, they've created families) this is their reality, their life and apparently it works well for most of them. Of course, they wouldn't want their whole lives shattered for the second time in their recent history. They are now caught between two rival nations who have conflicted interests about their home and who are about to change their lives forever. It is hard but beautifully realistic.

Zuko's subplot is the main one and it is easily the best one compared to the others by far. I absolutely adored the interactions between Zuko and Ozai! These kinds of scenes really help to get deeper into the characters, to get to know and understand them better. It was strange and so nice too that even though Ozai is wrong about a hell of a lot of things, he was right about some of the things he said to Zuko and he had a point like for example about Zuko's indecisiveness and his lack of self-confidence and lack of trust in his own abilities. Not that he meant to help him of course, no way, he meant to mislead and confuse him even more and he even succeeded it to a certain level. These meetings always leave Zuko more complicated, lost, and tired than before, they don't really have much to offer to him. Ozai's views are corrupt and he tries to give them to his son, but he shows resistance to that, but Ozai does have a point and I think Zuko knows that as well (and if he doesn't by that time, he definitely has realized it by the end of Book 3 after everything that's happened) that he cannot be a Fire Lord if he is so insecure and so doubtful. He has to give himself some credit, he has to start trusting his instincts and believing in himself. He has to become a little bit stronger and more decisive and more certain about his opinions and choices. He shouldn't need "promises" and safety nets as he put it.

This promise they made was wrong from the beginning and even more than that, Aang's reactions on the matter and his whole stance to it was quite annoying to me. I mean he didn't even kill Ozai, of course, he wasn't going to kill Zuko which makes, even more, annoying the fact that he is considering it so much! He seems unable and unwilling to face the harsh reality that they cannot possibly go through with the Harmony Restoration Movement, they cannot destroy these people's lives like this at least not with what they'd planned so far. It is painfully obvious that they'll have to change their plans, yet Aang (and some of the others except Katara) just refuse to see it, they are so blinded to the reality and to the people's wants and needs. Aang was being so annoyingly stubborn I wanted to scream at him. I expected them to have a little more faith in their friend who's proved to be good and have good intentions, he's also proved to be capable and fair, he has proved that he cares about the people and is willing to help and listen to them. I guess I expected the others to be as open to listening to the people's needs and wants and more openminded to another solution, as well as more willing to trust and co-operate. Katara was the only one who showed some understanding of the whole situation and tried to say it at many points and I respect her for her stance. Then again, if it was only up to Aang, things wouldn't have gone so south, it was the Earth King who made everything worse, a completely clueless and incompetent king who has no idea about the world outside his palace who is now called to make important decisions.

I was also annoyed with Roku and I think that Aang was right to not listen to him. Even though I was annoyed with Aang for the first 2 parts, he at least made up for it in the end, by doing the right thing and making the right decisions. I particularly loved how he articulated his opinions to Roku and Zuko towards the end of Part 3. He was also a bit unfair with the air acolytes during the first 2 parts, which is maybe partly understandable, but still, I thought he was overreacting. Thankfully by the last part, he changed his mind, he came to understand and accept them and he also helped them. Aang of Part 3 is the Aang that I've come to know and love: happy, optimistic, acceptant, and open-minded.

As I said before, Toph's storyline was clearly the weakest. It was the least engaging, the smaller characters (Toph's students) were not interesting at all and the whole metal-bending school sub-plot seemed insignificant and irrelevant to the overall story. I couldn't care about it. This was my only and biggest complaint about this comic. I think it was mostly there to give room for Sokka to be himself (smart and hilarious) and to provide much-needed comic relief what with the whole story being a little bit heavier and more serious. Sokka was indeed funny and I loved him like always, but I can't say the same about the rest of the characters of this storyline.

I wasn't very excited about Zuko and Mai's break up, it made me sad and I didn't want it to happen, even though it made sense plot-wise and it was like their characters to act this way, I still love them together and want them to end up together.

One of the reasons I love Avatar is its characters. They are interesting and relatable, but most importantly they are real people. Real people with flaws and advantages, people who make mistakes, who get confused and struggle sometimes, but they always work and try to become better and end up in a better place, being better people. Which is why even if there are moments that I dislike some of them or get annoyed with them, I still love them in the end, because in the end they find themselves and their truth or at the very least they still have some redeeming qualities and most importantly they have reasons and motives for their actions. They are perfectly fleshed out characters, with layers and depth.

The ending was perfect! It was so satisfying to see the two friends be back together again, just drinking tea and planning their next moves together in unity. It is also very endearing to see them finally understanding each other a little bit more. Uncle Iroh was perfect and I loved seeing him and his tea shop again. What was even more awesome was the ending part with Azula. It's the first time we see her after the ending of the show and perfectly plants the seeds for the next comic book in line ("The Search") and it is incredibly interesting! 


***SO...***

I've been rumbling and going on and on endlessly about this and this post has turned out huge, so to cut the long story short, I loved it! I absolutely loved it and I can't really find something seriously wrong with it! I have a couple of tiny complaints, but they cannot make me not love the overall story! I enjoyed it very much and I recommend it without a doubt. It is a perfect continuation from all points and it's worth your time. I'm going to leave it there, but I'll surely be back with one more post about these comic books because I still have a lot to say about it and I'm not nearly over discussing it. Avatar gives very much food for thought and discussion and I love it for this!


Thanks for bearing with me!
See you soon!



Saturday, January 2, 2021

My Bookish Goals for 2021

Hello and Happy New Year to Everyone!!!


As a kid and a teen, I was always an avid reader, I used to read insane amounts of books every year. Even as a student at University I still managed a good number of books, but adulthood is kinda hard to manage and we are not always warned as to the extent of this difficulty. I never thought that balancing a full-time job, a family, other responsibilities and a hobby (reading in my case) would be so hard and that my reading expectations would be so low, yet managing them would feel so satisfying.

For the past 3 years, I've been setting low reading goals (10, 12, 15 books a year) and for the first 2 years, I didn't even manage to reach those goals. Even though I felt happy for whatever I read I was still a bit disappointed, not because I didn't meet the numbers, but because this number was an indication that I didn't get to do what I love as much as I wished. It also meant that I had very limited time for myself and the things that I enjoy. But finally, last year was the year that I made it! Not only did I reach my goal of 12 books a year, but I read 2 more, reaching a total of 14 books. I was unbelievably happy and excited about this accomplishment because this also means that I can now manage my time and program a lot better and I can invest it a lot better and do a little bit more of the thing that I love.

So, naturally, my reading goal for this year is going to be just a little bit higher, just enough to make it a challenge, but not too high so that it won't unmanageable. 

  1. Read at least 15 books. 
  2. Read at least 1 classic book.
  3. Listen to at least 1 audiobook.
  4. Read at least 1 non-fiction book.
  5. Finally read and finish the Harry Potter series (I read the 1st book last year).
  6. Keep writing my reviews and posting on this blog everything book related.
I feel very optimistic and positive about the next reading year and I really think that it's going to be even better than the last one. 

I wish you all to have a very nice year and enjoy your reading and whatever else you'll be doing! 

Sunday, December 27, 2020

"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J. K. Rowling || A Book Review & Book to Movie Comparison


I'm late for this train for more than a decade, but I finally jumped on it and I'm on it for the whole ride. I started the series and intend to end it -hopefully- within 2021. The "Sorcerer's Stone" is actually the only Harry Potter book I've read before, so it was actually a re-read. I read it for the first time back when I was a teen, more than 10 years ago (God, I'm old), and I enjoyed it quite a lot back then. I never continued with the series though, because back then it was kind of a big deal and I hated the hype around it, I didn't understand the hype so I stubbornly refused to read the rest of the series. As the years passed, I got this scary realization that even though I was a geek and an avid reader in general, there was one story I had no idea about, I could not participate in conversations about, I could not know or talk about it and therefore could not form an opinion and that annoyed me so much! I was already late the first time I read it but imagine after years passed and I actually got the desire to read it, and yet, I couldn't bring myself to the task. But this year was the year I finally got to it and here's my very late review! 



***RATING***

I remember enjoying it so much more the first time around, back then I'd have probably given it a higher rating, but now 3* seems enough and I can't rate it higher. This time around I didn't love it as much and I don't know if it is because it was a re-read, so I was bored because of that (which I don't think is the case, because I almost didn't remember any of it) or if I have outgrown it. I did feel at many points that I may be too old for this book but kept going anyway.



***REVIEW***POSSIBLE SPOILERS***

Rowling's writing is exceptional there is no doubt about that! Not only is it technically flawless, but artistically as well. She very successfully creates a unique atmosphere, which is characterized by a very familiar, warm, and cozy feeling which most readers can recognize and a lot of fans adore and keep coming back for. She sets a beautiful tone and manages to establish very distinct characters and character voices. The characters are memorable and distinct with very clear intentions, goals, and motives. They also feel very close, almost as if you know them and they're your friends already, Rowling has done that by giving them very familiar and real qualities and she hasn't made them merely likable, but actually interesting and layered. The worldbuilding is perfect, Rowling manages to make you immediately emerge into the world she's writing - whether that is the plain, boring muggle world of the Dursleys or the unbelievable magical one of Harry - the imagery is vivid, the magic feels real and each creature is unique. This book is a beautiful introduction to this world without failing to be a continuous adventure that escalates smoothly to the ultimate final adventure with great pacing and rhythm.

Though I did love the last 1/3 of the book and it really sucked me in, I had a little bit of a hard time with the first 2/3. During the first 2/3 of the book I slugged through it and it couldn't really keep my interest constantly throughout, but it rather made me feel like the interest was kind of "on and off". Like one moment I was super invested and the next I was a bit meh, then invested again, then not again and this was pretty much how I felt for the first 2/3 of the book. I can say that the last part of the book was definitely the most interesting, it had the best flow and was eventually what won me over about the book. The ending was beautiful and satisfying.


***BOOK TO MOVIE COMPARISON***SPOILERS***

It is widely considered that the first movie is the best adaptation of the book out of all the Harry Potter books/movies. I cannot yet form an opinion about the rest of the books and their adaptations as I've not read them yet, but I can surely say that it a very good adaptation. It is as faithful to the book as it could possibly be, transfers the story and message successfully, and depicts very well the overall atmosphere as well as the plot and characters. There are very few things that have been cut out, but it doesn't feel like anything significant is missing. That being said, the first movie is not my favorite, not even close, but as an adaptation it's good.

The characters in the movie are very close to the ones in the book, they feel like they are the same characters and they are well-made, so a successful interpretation of them nonetheless, but still, I liked the characters in the book way more than in the movies. In the book, Harry is very witty, smart, active, and kind of sassy, while in the movie he's not nearly as interesting and feels like a weaker version of the character and protagonist. Hermione is actually an annoying know-it-all in the book and you understand why others may dislike her while in the movie it feels like Ron is mean to her while she is not all that bad. And Ron is not only funny and likable but also resourceful and creative. They all feel like weaker versions of their own character in the movie. Their friendship feels very real, sweet, and heartwarming both in the book and the movie! 

One part of the book that I loved that wasn't in the movie (I wish it was though) was the Centaurs, their whole existence, how they were described it seemed so interesting to me and the whole meeting with Harry in the forest was one of my favorite parts of the whole book! I'd love to learn more about them in the other books and see them in more scenes.

One thing that I disliked in the book that was not in the movie (and I was glad it was removed) was Peeves. I have no idea if he becomes important later in the series, but up until now he's served no real purpose to the story and I didn't care for him, if anything I found him really annoying and wished he wasn't there.

One of my favorite scenes was towards the ending where Dumbledore talks with Harry. Their discussion not only reveals a lot about the story and characters but also helps develop plenty of characters. Also, Dumbledore's words are just pure wisdom and so quotable. So many beautiful and meaningful quotes I had to stop to take notes and I believe those are about to be even more in the next books as the story proceeds.

I also found the Quidditch scenes quite entertaining which I didn't expect at all. I always thought that the written descriptions were going to be boring, but they were funny and didn't feel like a flat description of a game. 


***END OF SPOILERS***

I'm surely going to be reading the rest of the series very soon and hopefully will get through it in 2021 (one of my bookish goals for the next year). I also have a very strong feeling that I am going to like the next ones more than the first so I'm very curious to get to them.


Thanks for reading!

Wednesday, December 2, 2020

"The Last Airbender: Prequel - Zuko's Story" || Book Review


This is the second book in the ATLA universe that I've read and I was really eager to read it. If you'd like to see what I thought of the first comic book in the series ("The Lost Adventures") you can check it out here.

Zuko is definitely my favorite character of the ATLA universe! I love him and his story to bits so when I discovered this book exists I had to read it as soon as possible! I could not leave it, I really wanted to learn more about his character and backstory!

It is a fun quick read but nothing exceptional. Maybe I feel that way because I expected more getting into it, then I saw that it was good but not as great as I hoped and got disappointed. There were parts of it that I loved and felt really believable and they really belonged with the actual story  (like the appearance of Guru Pathik which I thought was a very nice touch and a connection between Aang and Zuko before they even met). There were also a couple of scenes that I found really emotional like this masked guy Zuko met and what Iroh told Zuko near the end of the book. Then there were some parts that were not so great, that felt wrong, felt like they didn't belong or make sense or that they didn't agree with the main plot and the characters. For example, I always thought that even though Iroh failed at Ba Sing Se he was still an esteemed general, so I always thought that he went with Zuko by choice and despite the arguments of others, not that he was dispatched like this. This did not make sense for either Zuko's arc or Iroh's. There are moments that you feel that the characters wouldn't act this way, or that things would have happened differently.

However, the book manages to create a variety of feelings from pain and empathy for Zuko to anger and despair for all the problems he has to face. At moments it even makes you feel happiness and hope for the characters and for their future. So that was a strong point for the book.

My main problem was the art. I wasn't a fan of the black and white art and I also wasn't a fan of the designs. Obviously, I am not an expert in those things and this is only the second comic book I've read so I have no experience whatsoever, so excuse me if I'm wrong or if I'm missing some kind of artistic point, but I'm only expressing my opinion based on my taste and nothing more. So, back to what I was saying... One of my big complaints was that the characters (the designs) didn't resemble the actual characters (at least as we've known them in the show and other comic books) at all. I tried to look past this and read on, all the while imagining the characters in my head looking like they did in the show, but this still was something that I didn't like.

It does feel like fanfiction at times but not too much and overall it's an okay read. So, while there were things I disliked, I mostly enjoyed it so I decided to give it 3*. It goes by really fast, I read it in two sittings and - even with its advantages and disadvantages - it still holds your interest and attention throughout and it is quite enjoyable.


This Or That || Book Edition

I have done a couple of these on Instagram, but never here, on my blog and I thought it would be a fun idea to try and do it now. I found th...