Under The Book Cover: graphic novel

Blogtober 2022 Day 6: Finally Fall Book Tag

blogtober 12:00:00 PM

Hi hello ghouls and goblins and welcome to day 6 of Blogtober 2022! Today I will be doing the Finally Fall Book Tag created by Tall Tales. Unfortunately, it does not appear that they have any videos up anymore but there are a ton of other creators that have done this tag, so be sure to go check some of them out and show them some love! I’m a sucker for a fun book tag because I really love sharing book recommendations and talking about some books I have a lot of love for. This one is a super cozy themed tag and I had a lot of fun answering these prompts. If any of these books are of interest to you, I’ve linked their Goodreads pages in the book covers so you can easily add them to your TBR! Let’s get spooky!

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1. In Fall, the air is crisp and clear: name a book with a vivid setting!

From Tormented Tides by Val E. Lane is the perfect atmospheric read for Fall! It’s set in a coastal town and involves pirates and curses and has such amazing vibes that really make you feel like you’re in the story, falling in love with a hot ghost pirate. I loved this book so much and I have not stopped thinking about it since I finished reading it back in July. If you’re looking for a book to read that can really be summed up by saying vibes, this is the book you want to read.

2. Nature is beautiful, but also dying: name a book that is beautifully written, but also deals with a heavy topic like loss or grief.

Funeral Girl by Emma K. Ohland absolutely broke my heart and stitched it back together again. It’s an incredibly beautiful book that I will probably never stop singing the praises of and recommending to everyone, but it’s also heartbreaking. It deals with grief and loss and navigating how to deal with those feelings and not allow them to completely consume you. It’s about family and friendship and death and it’s handled in such a wonderful way and I promise that it’s a book you don’t want to miss.

3. Fall is back to school season: share a non-fiction book that taught you something new.

I will admit that I haven’t read this book yet, but I absolutely plan to so I’m still going to say this answer is valid. I don’t tend to read non-fiction as it’s a genre I don’t gravitate towards and probably never will. But there are always exceptions and I truly believe that I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy is one of those exceptions. I’ve heard nothing but praise for this memoir so I definitely want to read it and experience what everyone is talking about. I’ve also heard it can be very triggering as well so if you do plan to pick this up, please check the trigger warnings and make sure you’re in a good mental state before reading!

4. In order to keep warm, it’s good to spend some time with the people we love: name a fictional family/household/friend group that you’d like to be a part of.

Delilah Green Doesn’t Care by Ashley Herring Blake is one of my favorite books of 2022 and I would absolutely love to be part of the friend group that is in this book (and the sequel)! I fell so in love with these characters and I think they would be such a great friend group to be a part of. I can imagine having so much fun causing mischief with Delilah, reading books with Claire, and maybe even talking about interior design with Astrid! I’m super excited for Iris Kelly Doesn’t Date coming out next year because I just know I’m going to love it.

5. The colorful leaves are piling up on the ground: show us a pile of fall-colored spines!

Okay so this isn’t technically what the prompt is asking for, but I don’t really have any Fall colored spines out on my shelf at the moment. Plus, I’m a bit lazy. But these three books definitely give me Fall vibes based on their covers and all three are on my TBR. They all have very different plots, which I love seeing book covers that give off similar vibes but that are totally different from each other once you actually open those books and read what’s beyond the cover.

6. Fall is the perfect time for some storytelling by the fireside: share a book wherein somebody is telling a story.

Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes is the first book that came to mind for this prompt. While the entire book is not Claire recounting the events that occurred on the Aurora, a good portion of it is and that totally counts, right? Dead Silence is an amazingly eerie story about a ghost ship, a space crew, and a twenty year old mystery that you may or may not want answers to. I read this back in February and it has stuck with me all these months later. If you love space and horror, this is definitely a winning pick.

7. The nights are getting darker: share a dark, creepy read.

Petrified Women by Jeremy Ray. Now, I don't get spooked easily anymore. I feel like I'm pretty desensitized to most horror so it takes a lot to scare me or give me the creeps when I'm reading a horror book. But I just so happened to be reading through this book when, at 2:36AM, my doorbell rang twice. I thought I was hallucinating but it turns out I wasn't which is, you know, great for me. It was a whole thing that I won't get into, but when I tell you my soul left my body when that happened right at a spooky moment in this book, I mean I thought I was going to cease to exist. Was this book creepy? Yes. Was my reading experience heightened by that crazy doorbell ring? Absolutely. This is one I won't be forgetting anytime soon and I had such a good time reading it!

8. The days are getting colder: name a short, heartwarming read that could warm up somebody’s cold and rainy day.

Garlic and the Vampire by Bree Paulsen! I actually haven't read this book yet but I've had it recommended to me by a friend on Goodreads. It seems like such a cute and heartwarming graphic novel that would be a wonderful read around the spooky season. I also believe there is a sequel that looks just as adorable as this one! While I do love reading scary books during October, there’s just something about this cute cover that gives me comfy and chill vibes that I also love to read!

9. Fall returns every year: name an old favorite that you’d like to return to soon.

To no one's surprise, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab. I have a copy that I read and annotated and I want to go back and annotate more because I know that every time I read this book, I'll catch new things or have new feelings. I had such a fun time annotating and I can't wait to do it again! But this is definitely a Fall vibes book and I definitely plan to read it around this time every year.

10. Fall is the perfect time for cozy reading nights: share your favorite cozy reading “accessories”!

Who doesn’t love a big cozy blanket, am I right? I have a big crochet blanket that was gifted to me by a wonderful friend of mine who made it for me to bring to the hospital for my chemotherapy treatments. I use it all the time and it’s such a wonderful blanket to cozy up with and read a spooky book! I also love having some ambient music in the background themed to whatever genre book I’m reading at the time. For a beverage, I usually have my Hydro Flask filled with ice cold water, or sometimes I’ll have a nice hot cup of apple cider. And of course, my all-time favorite reading accessory? Sora, of course! I love having my kiddo laying next to me while I read.

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And that does it for the Finally Fall Book Tag! This was such a fun tag to do and I hope I was able to introduce you to some new books that you can add to your TBR! I would love to see your answers to this tag so if you want to do it, consider yourself tagged and be sure to link me your answers in the comments below. Or, if you don’t plan on doing the entire tag, leave me a comment about a book you’re planning on reading during the Fall season. Tomorrow is day 7 and I’ll be sharing some book line poetry so be sure to come back and check it out! Thanks for stopping by and I’ll scare ya later!

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Book Review: Chainmail Bikini: The Anthology of Women Gamers

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Title: Chainmail Bikini: The Anthology of Women Gamers
Author: Edited by Hazel Newlevant
Pages: 103
Genre: Graphic Novel
Release Date: 01 May 2015

From Goodreads: "Chainmail Bikini is an anthology of comics by and about female gamers! 40 cartoonists have contributed comics about the games they’re passionate about—from video games to table-top role-playing to collectible card games. The comics in Chainmail Bikini explore the real-life impact of entering a fantasy world, how games can connect us with each other and teach us about ourselves."

Special thanks to Alexis Montclaire and Word of the Nerd for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for review!

Hello readers! Today I am posting a review about a graphic novel that I was lucky enough to read called Chainmail Bikini. This is definitely not my typical type of book that I read, but I really want to try and branch out more and explore some different genres that are out there. Not only is this a graphic novel, which is something I don't read a lot of and definitely don't review on my blog, but this is a book filled with stories about female gamers.

I really enjoyed reading a new genre of book, especially one about a topic that is close to home. I am not only a reader but also a gamer, so this was a treat to be able to read some stories about other female gamers and their experiences in the world of video games. I have read countless stories about other females being called "fake girl gamers" and such, so reading a book with so many positive stories about how gaming has impacted these various girls was awesome.

I think my favorite out of all of the stories was Pocket Worlds by Anna Rose. It was short but sweet and really captured a feeling that I believe most people feel when playing video games. Out in the real world, a lot of people feel that they lack control over the things that happen in their day to day lives, and it's hard to deal with for some. But in the world of video games, you can quite literally be anyone you could imagine. You can be the hero that saves the princess, a super strong fighter, or travel the world catching incredibly cool pocket monsters. Video games allow an escape that not everyone may be able to experience, and it's so wonderful to read all of these unique experiences.

What I enjoyed most about this collection was the diversity included in its pages. The topics ranged anywhere from video games such as Diablo 2 (and even a reference to the cow level!) to table top games like Dungeons and Dragons. Not only were the topics diverse, but so were the comic artists. There were several trans and non-binary artists and it was really cool to see so much variety in not only the content but also the contributors. Each of the 40 stories that is included in this book is unique and I love getting to read about the individuals and how their lives have been changed by the different forms of gaming, especially because there are so many that bring back memories of how I was introduced to the gaming world.

Each of the stories/comics was fairly short, maybe a few pages at most. While I wished that some of them were longer, I could see the benefit of them being on the shorter side. If you happen to encounter a story that you're not a huge fan of, it's over pretty quickly and you can move on to the next one. There may be some that are a bit abstract and out there, but most of them are super fun and relatable, and it's really fun to get various perspectives of the different genres of games and how differently they can be interpreted by others. For example, Reticulating Splines by Amanda Scurti was a great look into the SIMS game and how it can sometimes lead to questioning yourself and your actions inside the game. It was clever and really got me thinking, and that is something I can always appreciate in writing, even with it being just a few pages long!

As a side note, She's the Backbone of this Facility by Laura Lannes actually had me tear up a bit. It has a great message and gives some real insight into the character/computer thing named GLaDOS. Please excuse my possible incorrect terminology when it comes to this series. I've attempted to play the Portal series before, but got super frustrated when I couldn't get the portal system down so I gave up. But after reading this, it really got me interested in the story and I think it's going to have to be my next game pickup. This was very well written and I'd like to extend a virtual high-five to the writer for getting me emotionally invested in a character I know absolutely nothing about!

Chainmail Bikini is a wonderful collection of personal stories that is sure to entertain fans of any form of gaming. It gives some great insight into female gamers that may not always be advertised or available. All of the stories are sure to make readers remember just why and how they got into gaming and maybe even inspire those who haven't yet taken the plunge into this crazy, beautiful world. I encourage anyone and everyone who is looking for a fun graphic novel to take a look at Chainmail Bikini and prepare for an amazing journey through the world of gaming!