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Spy x Family: Family Portrait (2023)

Concept/Art: Tatsuya Endo

Author: Aya Yajima

Guess my current anime obsession 🩸🕵️‍♂️ 👧 🐶

I’m obsessed with Spy x Family! First time I watch the anime AND read the manga at the same time as they’re being released. And that also includes reading the novel that barely got published in America just two weeks ago 😅

The novel Family Portrait is what it states it is— an intimate portrait of each key member of the Forger family (and Franky)! It consists of 4 episodic, appropriately titled as “missions” :

Mission 1: Anya and Damian

Mission 2: Anya and Yuri

Mission 3: Franky and Loid (my favorite)

Mission 4: Anya, Yor, and Loid

(and a bonus short story from an outsider’s perspective of our beloved Forgers) 💕

It’s nothing absolutely spectacular and, of course, doesn’t change the main canon in any way, but it’s nice to see some stories that let the audience get to know these beloved characters in a more intimate way!

One of favorite things in particular is that this novel shows Loid being a ✨soft ✨ husband and father. Of course, it’s still all for the mission (👀), but seeing him be a little sweeter just makes my little fangirly heart soar.

Not the way I planned to start off my 2024, but it still makes me happy ☺️

Rating: 4/5

There’s still a few things I want to post about 2023, so I’ll be playing catch up soon! Happy new year everyone!

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It’s been a while— more book nail art! A bit more of the comic book nail art, but also a splash of some classic literature 📚

First — previous nail art — next 💅

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The Ruins (2006)

Author: Scott Smith

TikTok had hyped this book up to be absolutely frightening and scary. My horror-loving brother had the same sentiments, so I went into this thinking I was going to be scared out of my mind (because I am a baby when it comes to horror), but I came out fine lol.

The Ruins follows a group of 6 friends (a German, a Greek, and 2 pairs of American couples) while on vacation in Mexico. The German’s brother disappeared and his last known whereabouts were in an archeological area which is where the friends head off to. They are cornered by a group of Mayans who don’t allow them to go back once they have stepped too far into the ruins. What follows is their survival of what lives in the Mayan jungle.

It had a pretty slow start for me tbh. Along with this, the author definitely spends a lot of time describing things or mentioning things that don’t move the plot along. Giving a hand job and then describing said hand job’s bodily actions wasn’t that important imo.

It’s tragic and very genuinely frightening with its imagery, but there’s so many cis-white-male-isms that bring it down for me.

It is a very original piece of work, but some of it was not for me. I’m sure there’s many who would enjoy this though!

Overall rating: 3.5/5

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Red, White & Royal Blue (2019)

Author: Casey McQuiston

Slowly realizing almost all the novels I’ve read this year have been a little bit gay so far lol

Well this came out a little late 🙃 long story short— I’m a teacher now! And that takes up a lot of time sadly.

Me reading this book was another case of me wanting to read before the movie! At this point, the movie has been out for a while now, but I have yet to see it and not sure when. But anywho

I’ll admit that I wasn’t entirely impressed with this book in the beginning. It took a while for me to get used to the fanfic-y writing style and how sometimes the dialogue didn’t seem realistic to me, but as it progressed I did get thoroughly invested— especially towards the end!

I’m not the biggest fan of the enemies-to-lovers trope, but this novel did it pretty well.

As for the story: Alex, the Hispanic American First Son of the United States and Henry, the Prince of Wales one day fall onto a cake and then shenanigans ensue!

Not the most realistic thing ever, but it is ultimately a fun escapism read. Definitely something I might’ve like to read at the time of the 2016 election 🙃 although this novel seems like it was written for the author’s own need of escapism lol.

Overall rating: 3.75/5

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Books with Pictures: Batman and Robin Eternal (vol 1-2) (2015-2016)

Writers: James Tynion IV & Scott Snyder

In which I just decided to skip a bunch of arcs to get to the one I really wanted to read 🙈

I was just really in a Robin mood and I saw a screenshot on Instagram from this story arc that got my attention and I needed the context for this:

My ultimate thing is that I very much love seeing Batman be a dad, so I needed to see how he followed up with Dick’s confession of what he saw after being in contact with Scarecrow fear gas for the first time.

I was just too lazy to read Batman Eternal. I did have the basic understanding is that Dick was still working with Spyral but the bat family is aware that he’s alive. Oh, and Batman has amnesia.

I would say that this was overall enjoyable. Cassandra Cain makes her comeback in the New 52 in this story-- before it all gets rebooted again lol. Despite the title, Batman (in the present) remains mostly not present. The only glimmers of Batman we see is when we are taken back to Batman and (Dick) Robin's first case with the Scarecrow, via flashbacks, which I honestly don't mind. Bruce and Dick are my favorite Batman and Robin dynamic, so this was very much my taste 👌

This is a Robins story and I was happy to see them all working together-- even Damian making a last minute appearance.

As for the story, a villain, Mother whom Batman in the past tried to hide from Robin, returns many years later. Mother essentially uses traumatized children to become her army in cleansing the world and she offers Batman a “better” partner. In the present, she finally starts enacting her plans.

I love seeing Batfam have their Batfam moments and there is plenty of that here!

Overall rating: 4/5

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Out of Darkness (2015)

Author: Ashley Hope Pérez

I have said before about books making me feel empty by the end, but this one really takes the cake.

My nail art book club assigned banned books as the most recent theme and I picked this one based on a list of banned books I saw online and the synopsis caught my attention.

This was a GREAT book, but it is not for everyone.

TW: racism, SA, child SA, graphic death, language, violence, etc.

The book takes place in New London, Texas in the late 1930s months before the unfortunate (real life) tragedy of the New London school explosion.

The book focuses on Naomi, a Mexican American teenager, and African American teenager, Wash and their forbidden romance. Take it as a slight Romeo and Juliet adaptation.

I read this in under a week. The story grips you tightly and it’s so hard to put down until it gets to the point that you need to put it down just to compose yourself momentarily.

Please heed the above trigger warnings before reading, but I am blown away as well.

As for the story itself, my only criticism is that I think the initial romance was kind of forced and I would have loved to see more chapters on Wash’s background, but otherwise, it is great.

Overall rating: 4.75/5

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Books with Pictures: Flashpoint (2011)

Writer: Geoff Johns

Penciller: Andy Kubert

Inkers: Sandra Hope

In preparation to see The Flash (which I saw on Thursday night), I decided to dive into the comic it is partially based on. That said, this story has a lot of tie-ins and I don’t have all of them 👍

Which I think is why this story fell flat because there was a lot of context missing. I only have The World of Flashpoint featuring Batman tie in which I will read hopefully soon.

I don’t have the comic that leads into this story, so to me, it looks like Barry Allen wakes up in a world where he isn’t The Flash and his mom is alive and well. However, there is also a war going on with the Atlanteans and the Amazons— they are most definitely not like the Aquaman and Wonder Woman we know and love. Barry then joins forces with Cyborg and Batman, who in this universe is Thomas Wayne and Bruce was actually the one to get killed in that alley that night, to get his powers back and fix the timeline.

Yes, it sounds very exciting and, at times, it is! But the ending really falls flat, which I don’t know what that says about the story if you need the tie ins to get the full picture. Otherwise, art is gorgeous and I loved the very, very ending with that touching moment between Flash and (Bruce Wayne) Batman.

As for the movie, I had fun with it! Absolutely loved Michael Keaton’s Batman. Not the perfect movie, but I went in expecting fan service which is exactly what I got ⚡️

Overall rating: 3/5

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They Both Die at the End (2017)

Author: Adam Silvera

I just keep picking books that break me 😭

However, the title kinda implies that so that’s on me.

Back again! These teaching certification exams are no joke 😩 I managed to get this book in that I finished in under a week!

In “They Both Die at the End,” we follow the last day of Mateo and Rufus: two Hispanic teenagers who know they will die within the next 24 hours thanks to Death-Cast. Death-Cast is a service that notifies you around midnight that you’re going to die.

Mateo, reserved and anxious, and Rufus, rough and spontaneous, find themselves paired with each other as Last Friends™️ on End Day™️.

If you spend the whole time wishing that they’ll survive— just as I did— you’ll only be hurting yourself more lol. The shows the magic of how a relationship can blossom when you’re with the right person. Mateo and Rufus couldn’t be more different from one another, but that’s why they were right for each other at the end very end.

Overall rating: 4/5

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Books with Pictures: Batman: The Adventures Continue: Season One

Writers: Alan Burnett & Paul Dini

Artist: Ty Templeton

BTAS is one of my all time favorite things and I was super excited about a comic continuation. But upon reading this first volume, I was frankly underwhelmed.

One of the main attractions for me was the introduction of Jason Todd to the BTAS universe, which I think should have been planned out a little more. It felt too forced to have him shoehorned as the second Robin when the animated series pretty much established Tim Drake as the second Robin with Jason Todd’s partial origin story.

Maybe just rework it with Jason as the third— or better yet, have this story set in the Batman Beyond setting.

Of course I’ll keep reading to see if Jason comes back in a later story.

The volume ends with a Christmas story featuring Batman and Robin featuring Joker and Scar Face (a severely underutilized villain!), which was pretty fun!

Now my own personal gripes: Nightwing is my favorite bat family member and he’s not in this volume at all 😢. Favoritism aside, I still think he should have been featured in the Red Hood and Deathstroke arc. Most especially with the Deathstroke story since he has a fascination with the protégés (plus his actual origins as a Teen Titans villain). To me, just felt like he was missing.

Not perfect, but I’m still going to move forward with the series and see where it goes.

Rating: 2.75/5

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Troilus and Cressida (1609)

Playwright: William Shakespeare

Idk what to call this since it’s not a novel, but too long for a “Shorty”, not a graphic novel for a “Books with Pictures”, and does not necessarily fit my own guidelines for a “Literary Venture” post. So this is just going to be its own thing!

My book club nail art group assigned us to read any Shakespeare of our choosing! I’ve read a handful of his plays in college, but I ultimately decided on a play I haven’t read: Troilus and Cressida.

In grad school, I read Geoffrey Chaucer’s Troilus and Creseyde so I was already familiar with the story— which solely focuses on the lovers. Having read both now, I think I prefer the Shakespeare 🤔 (and Pandarus is still a creep).

William Shakespeare’s take on this tragic romance takes place during the events of the Trojan War. While the Greeks are trying to convince Achilles to come back to fighting in the war, Troilus is in love with Cressida and recruits her uncle Pandarus to help him out.

I’m here to say that the B-plot of Troilus and Cressida is more interesting than Troilus and Cressida themselves. Is it because I’m still obsessed with “The Song of Achilles” and the B-plot of this play heavily features Achilles and Patroclus? AND Shakespeare wrote them as implied lovers? Yeah probably 😅

Ultimately not my favorite play, especially because I feel there was a lot happening in the end and it ended very suddenly. But not bad overall!

Overall rating: 3.5/5

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If We Were Villains (2017)

Author: M.L. Rio

A book that got inadvertently recommended to me by Tumblr— and I see why 💀

I just…I got so emotionally invested 😭

The story is about 7 students attending a Shakespeare conservatory in 1990s Illinois. They’re all in their last year and only a select few students make it all four years. The story is told from the point of view of one of the students, Oliver Marks. Things get heated between the group and one day, a tragedy strikes and things are never the same.

Ok, this is the best I can summarize without giving anything away. Like, this is a book that needs to be read with fresh eyes. Grow attached to the characters all on your own.

Do the students frequently talk in Shakespearean quotes? Absolutely. It’s like when kids talk in memes and references nowadays.

Is this review making any sense? I dunno. This book broke me y’all! This is definitely a book I’m keeping in my favorites list. I can see myself rereading this a year from now. It’s no wonder I started seeing this book in the The Song of Achilles tag. It’s absolutely right up my alley!

Why is it that I found it in a used book store?? I can’t imagine someone parting with it 🥺

I recommend this book so freaking hard!

Overall rating: 5/5

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Part 5 y’all!

Beginning— previous nail art — next nail art 💅

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One True Loves (2016)

Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid

I did it for Simu Liu 🙈

TJR asked “Castaway, but from the point of view of Tom Hanks’ wife?”

Just kidding, but that’s what this book could be considered.

Emma is set to marry Sam, her childhood friend. Things change when Jesse, the husband she thought had died at sea suddenly comes back into her life alive and well 4 years later. Emma is put in the position of having to pick which she will ultimately stay with. Her former true love or the new love who helped her move on?

Yes, this book is as corny as it sounds. But I ate it up. This book has nearly every romantic drama trope in existence, but I kept going because I wanted to find out who she would pick! That said, this is my least favorite TJR book so far and I still read through it thoroughly invested.

The film adaptation starring Phillipa Soo and Simu Liu comes out next month! I’ll definitely be watching it soon🍿

Overall rating: 3.75/5

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Arsenic and Adobo (2021)

Author: Mia P. Manansala

If Disney Channel made a murder mystery movie

2nd book of the year courtesy of my nail art book club!

Honestly, this is not my most favorite thing ever. It reads like a simultaneous Disney Channel script and fan fiction. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE reading fanfics, but I guess I expect something different from an officially published work.

Lila has moved back to her small town of Shady Palms to work in her family’s Filipino restaurant, Tita Rosie’s Kitchen. Being back in town also means being back in town with an ex boyfriend is who is also a notorious food critic. One day— BOOM— ex boyfriend drops dead in the restaurant and Lila is the prime suspect. What follows is a series of events in which Lila tries to clear her name and figure out who actually killed Derek Winters.

The premise is interesting and has potential, but feels bogged down by flat characters and cliché, cringy dialogue.

However, this is a very food-oriented book and the descriptions of some of these dishes sound absolutely delicious. This is definitely a book that’ll drive your tastebuds. Gotta go look for some Filipino food in my area. 😋

Overall rating: 3/5

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The Cabin at the End of the World (2018)

Author: Paul Tremblay

Here I go trying to read the book before the movie comes out again. I foresee this happening more frequently as the year progresses 🤔

I saw Knock at the Cabin last night and I finished reading the book the night before!

Honestly, I have some beef with the movie and I have some beef with the book itself, but they’re both good in their own ways. The movie is pretty darn faithful to the book up until the last act, which changes a lot for (I think) for better but also for worst.

They both tell the story of Eric, Andrew, and Wen— a gay couple and their adopted daughter on vacation at a cabin when a group of 4 break into their cabin speaking of apocalyptic doom if the three of them don’t make a sacrifice.

Pros:

GREAT set up and a really intense transition into the final act of the story.

Cons:

Final act also gets really pretentious and I got all 🙄 and I also did not agree with one of the deaths because it didn’t really move the plot forward or add anything of value to the story.

As for the movie itself, The Cabin at the End of the World is the superior title. Who knows why he change it to something so generic-sounding. This is a sick title.

Endings are different— for me it didn’t work in the book because it felt too sudden, but it probably could have worked for the movie.

Overall—

Book: 3.25/5

Movie: 3.5/5

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Many comic book ones this time! (Yes, I’m aware I got Deathstroke’s mask colors switched 😩)

Book nail art 1

Book nail art 2

Book nail art 3

Book nail art 4 (you are here)

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Literary Ventures #15: 2022 Books

I didn’t quite make my reading goal this year, but I definitely got out of the major reading slump I was in a year ago! Hence the lack of a 2021 Literary Ventures post.

This year, I found myself trying to read as much as I could while juggling nail art and work responsibilities. I hadn’t read a comic book in a long time, but I did read 6 graphic novels this year! (one is not pictured). A huge thanks for the nail book club on Instagram for pushing me to read more as well!

I probably could have read more, but I also enrolled back in school to get my teaching certification which is still currently taking up the majority of my time, so one of my hobbies had to go in the back burner for now.

Because of this, 3 books that I picked up remain unfinished, but that’s okay! Maybe I can get those completed this year :)

While I didn’t make the goal, I am proud of what I was able to accomplish this year.

I’m sure that I will continue reading this year and can’t wait to start updating that!

Thanks for reading 🥰

What I read in 2022:

Novels:

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll

The Joy Luck Club - Amy Tan

Death on the Nile - Agatha Christie

Before the Batman: An Original Movie Novel - David Lewman

My Sister, The Serial Killer - Oyinkan Braithwaite

The Color Purple - Alice Walker

The Department of Sensitive Crimes - Alexander McCall Smith

The Maidens - Alex Michaelides

The Tale of Despereaux - Kate DiCamillo

Daisy Jones and the Six - Taylor Jenkins Reid

Where the Crawdads Sing - Delia Owens

Graphic novels:

Moon Knight (2016)

Batman: Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth

Batman: Ego

Batman: Zero Year - Secret City

Batman: Zero Year - Dark City

Not pictured:

Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham

The Mountain that Loved a Bird - Alice McLarren / Eric Carle (children’s picture book)