Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon?

This is a review for Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? story by Fujino Omori, art by Kunieda.
I gave this book ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 5 stars, I loved it.

Bell Cranel is a fairly average guy with a fairly average dream to save a really pretty girl who is cornered by a monster and then they will fall in love.  Good thing for Bell that monsters exist and he can fight them by going into the dungeon.  What will happen if his fantasy is reversed and he is the one saved from a monster by a beautiful girl?

In this series gods and goddesses are real and they bestow blessings on humans that give the humans special abilities and make them part of the god or goddesses' familia.  Bell is the only member of his goddesses' familia but he doesn't mind.  Bell is determined to get stronger and he fights monsters every day.

I am really enjoying this series so far.  The world created in this series is interesting.  The idea of gods and goddesses willingly coming to live among humans and bestow blessings on them is intriguing.  The cast of gods and goddesses that have been introduced in this first volume is quite diverse; Norse, Greek and Hindu deities have made appearances.  Bell is a lovable idiot with surprising depths.  The story lines are good and the plot moves along well.  There is a lot of comedy but it doesn't overshadow the serious points.

I recommend this very highly.  If you enjoyed Magi or Sword Art Online you will enjoy this series.

You should also check out the anime available on crunchyroll!

Jala and the Wolves

This is a review for Jala and the Wolves by Marti Dumas.
I gave this book ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 5 stars, I loved it.

Jala is a curious six year old girl.  She loves to read, especially about animals, she is always learning new facts about them.  Jala knows her mother is magic, her mother always knows what she is thinking and when she is hungry after all!  One day she finds a mysterious mirror in her room and she just knows her magic mother put it there.  Jala travels into the mirror like Alice and Jala finds a wolf pack on the other side.
 
 This book is perfect for younger readers.  The narrative moves well, the language is simple and the story is intriguing.  Most children will find something in Jala that is familiar.  I don't think there is a child alive who hasn't pretended to be an animal at least once in their life. 

I enjoyed this book a lot!  Jala is an adorable child.  She is special and magical and just grabs your heart strings. Jala reminded me a lot of myself as a child.  I have always been a bookwork.  I had a special place in my room to curl up with my books and read.  I would have loved to find a magic mirror or wardrobe or rabbit hole to take me off on a magical adventure.  Coming home at the end and finding my mother making me breakfast would have been the perfect end.

I recommend this book to all lovers of magical adventure.  It is short and sweet and tells a great tale.

I received this book through GoodReads First Reads program.

The Ancient Magus' Bride

This is a review for Volume 1 of The Ancient Magus' Bride by Kore Yamazaki.
I gave this book ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 5 stars, I loved it.

Chise Hatori is just an orphan, just an orphan who can see things other people can't.  No one wanted her, her family shoved her back and forth until she somehow ended up in a strange auction house being sold to the highest bidder.  The person who bought her has a strange outward appearance but he is very kind to her and even says he wants to marry her.  Now she is in training to be a mage learning about all of the strange magic in the world around her.

I remember being interested when this title was announced for publication, but I was a bit on the fence about buying it.  When I saw it in the store today I decided to flip through it a bit and I just knew I had to buy it.

Chise has a tragic back story that we don't know much about though it is being revealed in small pieces.  Elias is a mysterious figure, he raises many questions and he is very adept at avoiding answering any of them.  There are many magical beings in the world and Chise is a wonderful lens for the reader to learn about them.

I really enjoyed this first volume.  It is very interesting subject matter and Chise very loveable.  Elias is intriguing and all of the various magical beings, both good and bad, are well developed and designed.  I highly recommend this series!  It has a nice balance of humor and serious content.  The art is wonderful and brings everything to life in an amazing way.  The only downside is waiting 4 months for the next volume after the cliffhanger this one ended on!