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Audience: Young Adult Genre: Fiction/Poetry Overall Content Rating: Somewhat Clean Content Warnings Overall Review To start us off, this one was a reread, so I can't give you my "first impressions" but I can tell you that this book was just as good the second time through as it was the first. One warning before we get into it, though. This story is fairly graphic in the depictions of the MC's eating disorder, it gets into her thoughts and longing for food and then her purging. And the happenings of this book revolve around that, so if you can't handle that, please do not read this book. That said, though, if you can handle all of that, then this book would be a good book to see what happens inside of a person's head. I'm not saying that all those who struggle with eating disorders are similar, but from my own experience with eating disorders, it's fairly similar to the struggles many people go through. The push-and-pull within the character to eat or not to eat was spot-on and unfortunately, the bullying that June (the MC) endured because of her body was also quite believable. It was body-shaming to the extreme and honestly, it made me look down at myself and cringe a little bit. While I enjoyed this book, I want to put out a warning rather than a review of this book: this book is immensely graphic and it's going to make you feel some things unless you're shut down or dissociated or whatever else. Please be careful reading this book and be prepared to put it down if you have to. Overall, while I'd recommend this book to anyone who wants an inside look into what it's like to have an eating disorder, I'd also send a warning to anyone more susceptible to feeling ashamed about their bodies. Y'all, you are beautiful no matter what shape you are, no matter what you weigh, and this book will not change that, but it may change your views on it if you only read the beginning. Author's Notes: This review was originally posted on my other blog and was simply revised to fit my current needs. If you'd like to see the original, please read: https://www.thefrogblogandfriends.org/post/not-hungry-by-kate-karyus-quinn

Audience: 7+ Genres: Racing, Battle Royale, Action Overall Content Rating: Clean Content Warnings Overall Review Every once in a while, Nintendo releases a live-service multiplayer experience to add to their Nintendo Switch Online Membership packages. Previous releases have included Tetris 99, a 99 player online format of the classic game, Tetris, and Super Mario 35, a battle royale which as created for Super Mario Bros' 35th anniversary (who would have thought?). Super Mario 35 was unfortunately shut down around a year after its release, since it was only meant as a spotlight on Mario's 35th year of existence. The most recent 'battle royale' release was a welcome surprise to all fans of the ancient, barely surviving F-Zero series; F-Zero 99. It's a free game exclusive to the Nintendo Switch Online Memberships, meant as an added bonus to the expensive package. But is the game any good, or is it a weak attempt at making the subscription service more appealing? F-Zero hasn't had a release in 20+ years, so the hardcore fans of the series are slobbering over what little content they can get, which is valid. As a fan of the old Paper Mario and Mario RPG series, I completely understand; I'm more than excited to play the rereleases of Mario RPG and Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. However, F-Zero 99 is not a full game, but rather a multiplayer experience involving 99 other racers from around the world. It graphically resembles the F-Zero games from the 90's era, with smoother frames and vastly improved menu screens and GUI. The gameplay involves racing with 98 other players, where each lap, the bottom five players are eliminated. Each race has four laps, so a maximum of 80 players can finish. However, if you're not careful, you can run out of energy by bumping other racers and crashing into walls, which will cause your vehicle to explode. There are Grand Prix events that run every 30 minutes to an hour, interspersed by team challenges and more difficult versions of the race tracks. The Grand Prix eliminate 20 players each race, ending with the 5th race being the finale, with only 20 players remaining. There is also a rivals system, where you're paired with similarly skilled players in a given race, and how you finish compared to them will affect your rank, which is measured with letter grades. I'm currently a B, which isn't bad, but I think my parents are disappointed in me. The gameplay has been slightly updated with new features and updated versions of the original 15 tracks from F-Zero. There's an achievement board, four customizable vehicles, dozens of badges to display on your nameplate, and even a weekly, instantly updating leaderboard. The game is designed to be played daily, as you get check-in prizes and timed events; however, if you want to unlock achievements or progress in the ranked system, you don't have to boot it up every day. It's satisfying, because you don't have to make up for lost time if you get busy and can't (or don't want to) play for a week or two. The online service is smooth and efficient, and you never have to wait for more than a minute for a match to start. Of course, all of these nice features don't amount to much if the game is mediocre. Thankfully, it turned out to be a lovely game. The driving mechanics aren't complicated, but the more you play, the more you figure out how to pull off difficult stretches of track. It's extremely easy to get into, but there are always more difficult challenges and competitive players to face. Of course, if you want a casual experience, that's completely possible, as the matching system is well implemented and there's no requirement to participate in the Grand Prix or hard races. The maps are tight and interesting, with satisfying turns and fun boosts. The old mechanics are still fun, and the new mechanics (such as super sparks, spin attacks, and the skyway) create an intense, fast-paced, fun-packed experience. If you already have Nintendo Switch Online and haven't tried out F-Zero 99, I would recommend you check it out immediately. It's not everyone's cup of tea, but the excitement of racing and battling might catch you by surprise. If you're on the fence about buying the subscription, this is a game that might tip you over the edge. This F-Zero installment is a fantastic little game and certainly helps pad out the membership. Especially if you're considering the individual simple package, F-Zero 99 is worth the money, since it is one of many features included in the basic package. Even though F-Zero 99 is not the fully fleshed-out game that crazed, desperate fans were pining for, it's a solid game that will hopefully stick around for many years to come.

Audience: Young Adult/Adult Genre: Nonfiction Overall Content Rating: Clean Content Warnings None Overall Review Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8 is a book written by Higashida after he's grown up. After writing his first book at age thirteen, you can see the changes in what he's experienced. This book addresses what Higashida has learned in his adult life, what he's faced, and what he's still thinking about. Gone is the 13-year-old, but still present is the longing for people to just understand what it's like to be nonverbal and/or autistic. Similar to The Reason I Jump (Higashida's first book), this book is separated into sections that have different explanations of different things. Unlike The Reason I Jump, however, this book is essentially split into parts and chapters, making it easier to read and understand, while also providing a sort of fluidity between chapters rather than just answering questions. Overall, there was a lot of emphasis put on parents and caretakers in this book, and I believe that's what the primary audience is here. While anyone who wants to understand nonverbal autism can read it, this book is geared toward those who are responsible for these incredible people. This is one book that sincerely shares what it's like to struggle with comprehension and verbality and anything along those lines, while still seeming like a person in their own right. Higashida is one of my favorite autism rep authors to date and I would so recommend this book to anyone wanting to understand autism more. As displayed above, there are no content warnings for this book, so I hope that anyone interested feels the freedom to read this! Author's Note: This review was originally posted on my other blog, TheFrogBlog, and was changed to fit the purposes of this blog. To see the original blog post, please read: https://www.thefrogblogandfriends.org/post/fall-down-7-times-get-up-8-by-naoki-higashida

Audience: Young Adult Genre: Fantasy/Horror/Paranormal Overall Content Rating: Clean Content Warnings Overall Review Considering this book is a fantastical horror story, it's a bit surprising that there are as few content warnings as there are. While there was death involved, it was immensely non-graphic in the way that it was described. In each death scene, there was no real blood or gore described, and most of the time, there wasn't even a body, just clothes left behind to the point where we could only imagine their disappearance and wonder if they were, in fact, dead. Before we continue, though, I have to admit that I am a biased fan of Zappia's work. Out of all my favorite authors, she's rather close to the top, if not at the top, simply because of how her books grasp my attention and seem to fit all my hopes and dreams when it comes to book content. While not all her books are as clean as this one, they're usually more on the clean side and she does an amazing job approaching more serious issues with a good tone and overall solid voice of reason. Though this doesn't entirely top Eliza and Her Monsters, Zappia's second novel and the one I read first, it is my second or third favorite of her books, which may not seem to be saying much, but in my book, that puts this book pretty high up there. As with Zappia's latest works, such as Now Entering Addamsville, there's a lot of solid worldbuilding going on here and it's so brilliant to see the world be woven together as you delve deeper. Separated into different shorter stories all coming into this one whole, you see many different points of view before you get the full picture. Who is the witch? Who is Heike's father? Why is Doctor Death so ominous? Nobody knows the answers to all these things until the end (unless they're much smarter than I, which is very well possible) and that really drives the book home for me. In terms of suspense, it's as if there is none, and yet is a ton all at the same time. I could put the book down and pick it back up if I had to, but when I was reading, I was hooked unless I was vigorously interrupted. The characters themselves never seem to reveal their true selves, either. Just when I thought I was getting to know them, there were another few layers for me to unfold. And just when I began to like one character (Wenzel), I found my heart tugged towards another (Hilda and then Heike). The gradual build of their traits and wants and desires, especially toward the end, really gripped me and I loved to see them build new relationships with new characters as other hidden relationships were revealed. The hatred of one character for another seemed to be there, but until they directly referenced it, I wasn't entirely sure if it was, and it's those kinds of details that I found all throughout this book that made it so endearing to me. Overall, this was a terrific read and another job well done by Zappia. I'm so glad I got to read this book!

Audience: 13+ Genres: Indie, RPG Overall Content: Moderately Clean Content Warnings: Overall Review: The internet has had a lot to say about the controversial and wildly popular game, Undertale. There have been severe haters and severe supporters, thousands upon thousands of internet memes and jokes, and hundreds of discussions about whether it is a good game or not. However, before you continue reading, try to put all of the things you've heard about this game aside, whether it be good or ill. Some people may not know what Undertale is, or have only heard snippets about what it's like. Others may have seen someone play the game and formed an opinion already. If you're in either of these two groups, try to leave your opinions and biases behind. It must be decided, with a clear, unfiltered playthrough, whether Undertale is a good game. And so, I started the game knowing only that there are multiple endings and there's a character named Sans. What did I find out? Well... I found out that Undertale is not only an objectively good game, but a culturally impactful masterpiece. For so many reasons, this game made me fall in love with it the moment I started playing. I beat one of the game's endings and started to play again, in a completely different way, to attempt to get another ending. Why did I feel so motivated by the storytelling and gameplay of Undertale? How did this game become one of my favorite games of all time, despite the fact that I've barely played over 10 hours? Before I answer that question, I do want to say that this game isn't a perfectly clean game. There is some minor cursing, and a few characters with some suggestive dialogue. However, these instances are infrequent and usually very vague; most, if not all, of the suggestive content would soar over a young player's head. This story is also somewhat dark, especially if the player decides to do certain things. The game itself is very thought-provoking, with powerful dialogue, world-building, and storytelling to spread an intensely meaningful message. This isn't a long game—I completed one playthrough in just under five hours—but the impact of its story will affect me far longer than any other game I've ever played. This is a game that makes you think, makes you feel, makes you believe, makes you hope, and most of all, makes you determined. It's filled with incredible jokes, funny one-liners, incredibly comical and well-developed characters, and beautifully amusing subversions of video game tropes and themes. It's just as much of an emotionally impactful experience as it is a unique, enjoyable RPG. All that aside, Undertale is a fantastic, enjoyable RPG with awesome combat and impeccable story and characters. The art direction is simplistic yet powerful, pushing past the boundaries normally associated with 2-D RPG adventures. The world of the underground, where the game takes place, is fleshed out perfectly, in both serious and comedic ways. The scenery is very impressive, but the art truly gets to shine when it comes to the characters. The designs of the characters, from an artistic standpoint, are impeccable, giving so much life and personality to each individual character, important to the plot or not. And the dialogue captures each personality so well, with their own inflections, tendencies, and disposition. There's not a single boring character in the entire game, and I can say that with full confidence. The storytelling is more wonderful than words can describe. Within the relative shortness of the game, Toby Fox (the creator of Undertale) wrote a story with incredible tightness yet abundant room for interpretation. He wrote a story that's incredibly meaningful and impactful as well as being hilarious and comedically genius. He wrote a story that has countless possible explanations, meanings, and allegorical implications, all while pointing towards the one message he wanted to tell with his game. It's always a treat to see what a character is going to say next, whether it be a goofy, unexpected joke or a sad, profound piece of lore. The combat system is the icing on the cake when it comes to Undertale's metaphorical deliciousness. Unlike other RPGs, Undertale's battling system consists of controlling a little red heart and dodging tons of unique, intrinsically fascinating attacks. It feels like a beautiful, fresh spin on 80's arcade games. In addition to dodging enemy attacks, you can face your enemies in multiple ways. You can either attack using a timing bar, or interact with the enemies socially in an attempt to give or receive mercy, ending the battle. It's really enjoyable, no matter what tactic or variety of tactics you use. The biggest and most talked about aspect of Undertale is its endings. Undertale has 4 main endings, but up to 93 varied endings with unique dialogue and slight variances in plot. In fact, previous playthroughs of the game affect future playthroughs and games, as well as adding meta jokes and 4th wall-breaking moments. Even though you can beat the game once in under five hours, you can complete half a dozen playthroughs and still have more to explore. Overall, Undertale has quickly managed to become one of my favorite games ever. Its impressive stories, charming characters, lovely settings, and deep allegorical messages meld together into one of the most unique, awe-inspiring experiences of its decade. If you haven't gotten a chance to play this game, I'm ordering you right now to buy it, clear your schedule for a while, and delve into the meaningful world of Undertale. You will not regret it.

Audience: 10+ Genres: Shooter, 3D Platformer, Adventure Overall Content Rating: Clean Content Warnings Overall Review I wasn't sure what to expect from Metroid Prime: Remastered. I had never played a 3D Metroid game before, and I haven't had the opportunity to play many first person shooters. Coming out on the other side, I'm extremely glad I played the game, and I'm excited to play more games like it in the near future. Metroid Prime: Remastered takes place on a planet known as Tallon IV. You play as Samus Aran, a deep space bounty hunter tasked with infiltrating a pirate operation taking place above the planet. After the ship crash lands on the planet due to your success, Samus flies down to the planet's surface to insure the destruction of the pirates, only to unveil a dark and nefarious plan which would destroy the peaceful, lush world and unlock a terrifying, deadly power. Samus must collect twelve ancient artifacts created by the ancient, extinct Chozo inhabitants to open a barricade to a mysterious crater, which appears to be the source of this wicked power. While there is no dialogue and the main character never utters a word, there is plenty of lore to be discovered through ancient Chozo scripts and detailed pirate logs (which are poorly encrypted, you'd think they'd TRY to hide their plans a little better). It's a fascinating story with a wonderful payoff by the end. The world of Tallon IV is absolutely gorgeous. Its ambiance and smoothness make it a marvelous treat to look at. Each area, of which there are five (technically six but you're there for approximately two seconds so whatever), is distinct and stunning in its own way. I particularly enjoyed the beautiful greenery of the Tallon Overworld and the bleak industrialized caves of the Phazon Mines. The enemies look realistic and intimidating, artistically rendered with grim undertones. The foreboding music and fluctuating lighting gives each area its own uniquely dangerous feel. The designs of Samus' suits, weapons are sleek and intense, which makes playing as her feel extremely cool. The game mechanics are smooth and methodical, especially in terms of Samus' movement. There is no sprinting, which could be seen as a detriment, but I quite like it. It gives every movement a purposeful feeling, and causes you to slow down and think about each attack and jump logically. There is a large amount of parkour in the world, and due to the floaty game physics, it is satisfying to pull off big, elaborate moves. The blasters, however, are extremely quick and satisfying to use, which couples with Samus' heavy, methodical movement nicely. Once you get the hang of the controls, which is not that difficult to do, you never have a moment where you get frustrated with the game's mechanics (unless you're like me and fail easy jumps four times in a row). The enemies are fun, although they can be slightly repetitive at times. There are many variants of the same enemies, which is interesting, but not as interesting as fully unique creatures would have been. However, the bosses in this game truly shine. Two of the bosses are simple and similar, but the other eight bosses are genuinely some of the coolest and most unique bosses I've ever had the pleasure of fighting. They're difficult in their own ways, but don't feel too unfair (besides the Omega Pirate oh my goodness that thing would not die). It was enjoyable fighting them and pleasurable beating them. Their designs were intense and awesome-looking, and their attacks were fun and intriguing. I only have one major gripe about this game, and that would be the fact that you have to backtrack a lot. The game has a really fun world map, where the individual levels are all connected in multiple ways, making it genuinely feel like an expansive world while still maintaining a linear, level-like experience. However, due to the lack of fast travel, this means that you often have to traverse back and forth in the same level areas to collect and drop off artifacts, as well as find new doors and weapons. Pathways you had to begrudgingly pass due to not having the right weapon type only become passable later in the game, meaning you'll need to hike back and forth between many of the areas at least a dozen times. This is especially true of the area near your landed ship. However, the enemies occasionally change in certain areas and it is somewhat enjoyable to open up doors you had to pass earlier, as if they're a bit of treasure you can finally obtain. Overall, this game was really enjoyable. It took about 30 hours for me to complete, although it can probably easily be completed in 20 or 25. I tend to complete games more slowly than other people. It has no profane or inappropriate content, and minimal blood and gore. The game obviously contains shooting and violence, as the point of the game is to eradicate the villainous pirates, but it is never gory or excessive. It's an enjoyable first-person shooter with awesome gameplay, despite some flaws. If you're on the fence about buying this game, or you simply enjoy a good first-person shooter or sci-fi adventure, I would 100% recommend this game. Metroid Prime: Remastered is a remaster done right, and it gives hope to both Metroid and Nintendo fans that their beloved, outdated games will come back in the future, better than ever.

Audience: Young Adult/Adult Genre: Historical Fiction/Romance Overall Content Rating: Clean Content Warnings Overall Review (Note: I was obligated to write a review as a result of being sent an e-ARC. I was not obligated to write a positive review and anything good that was written about the book was quite well-earned. There will be mentions about me speaking to the author personally, just as a forewarning. This is not my typical way of writing reviews) First and foremost, I loved talking to Kellyn before I got this book. She is such a sweet author and really sold me on it from the beginning, forewarning me that it did address some suicide topics but that everything was approached in a mature way. And she was absolutely right about that! When I first got the book, though, I wasn't sure what to think about it. So, in the end, whatever I thought ended up being shoved aside because the degree to which I'd tried to box things in just... didn't fit. I thought it'd be historical fiction, for example, and it was, but it also felt more contemporary than I was expecting. My favorite part of this book—and I mean this (mostly) as a joke—was the mention of Winnie Hilton's pet dog, Potato, who happens to be ahem not the most well-behaved dog out there. He entered only in Chapter 6, but he made me so happy with only a few sentences dedicated to him that I felt the need to mention him in this review. My favorite character overall is Patrick Hilton, one of our MCs. His character arc is so drastic and it's amazing to see his transformation as the story goes on. At first, I was slightly curious, then I detested him, and by the end, he was close to making me swoon. Like, girls, this kind of transformation is what we should all want in a guy, at least in my opinion. Overall, I loved this book. I wasn't riveted right from the beginning, but I was certainly interested. But once the true action began, I was pulled through the story effortlessly. I had so many different favorite parts and there's so little to critique with this book! I loved reading through it! It's a poignant story with vivid images and it's full of twists that I honestly didn't expect as I read through it. But the main draw was its Christian aspect. Almost every hard decision that the characters had to face they brought to God, and though I did find it hard to imagine at the end that none of the characters were outright atheists or denied the faith entirely (there were some doubters, but none that vehemently denied the faith, which shocked me), I did appreciate the rock-solid faith of the main character, Cassie. Patrick grew in his faith a ton, and by the end, he was as solid in it as Cassie was, which I admired. Before I finish this off, though, I want to address the character who struggled with suicidal ideation and actually attempted to commit suicide. Her reasoning for it was mainly the reasoning of a person going through heavy grief. This was not the development of a person who had been depressed for a while, but instead a sudden event that she was unable to handle and therefore, she tried to "escape." She did fail, and it wasn't talked about in detail, but everyone was very careful about her after that. To the point where we remain close to her for the duration of the story, not just because she's the friend of one of the main characters, but also as if a reassurance that "no, she's not going to die." It's with that, though, that I leave you all. I hope you enjoyed this book review, I hope that you read this book (Kellyn is an amazing person and her writing is also awesome, so I'm going to want you to support her in like... every way possible), and ultimately, I just hope that you aren't upset that you read this (and that it was so long. Sorry about that). Thank you so much for reading and have a blessed day!

Audience: Young Adult/Adult Genre: Contemporary/Fiction/Christmas Story Overall Content Rating: Clean Content Warnings Overall Review There is one content warning for this book and it's the most minor content warning I've had to report in a long time. This book was so clean and made me so happy reading through it. From the start, we see Christ-centered themes, talk of praying to God and reading their Bibles, and overall just such a vision of Christ-like behavior. And while our two main characters get snowed in together, it's not at all sexual. As soon as anything gets close, they back up and remind themselves to be good. There's not an explicit mention of what denomination they are, but there's definitely a vein of Christianity greatly impacting this story and it's honestly so sweet. This book was quite short and fairly Hallmark movie-esque, but 'tis the season so I read it with excitement because I knew they were going to be together in the end. The journey there, though, was less Hallmark movie-like because there was actually some form of resistance and inner turmoil between the characters. They were clearly trying but they didn't just roll over and let the feelings have their way. Overall, I really appreciated the themes of this book being so pure, and even though it got flirty it was still respectful and not crude. I really enjoyed reading through it and how it uplifted me spiritually and really reminded me that you can be in certain situations and still follow God. I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a cute romcom but who also wants it to be Christ-centered. This one was amazing!

Audience: Adult Genre: Contemporary/Romance, Holiday Fiction, Overall Content Rating: Unclean Content Warnings Overall Review This book was cute and all, but it got suggestive sometimes, more than I thought was needed. From the beginning, we're introduced to the two characters Christian and Megan, who we know, based on the style of the book, are going to somehow fall in love. From the beginning, there's flirting from one party but nerves on the other side, but as they're pushed together by circumstances of their own making, things get pretty intense. I won't rehash the whole content warning section, but it did have a lot of explicit romantic content by the end. I went into this thinking it would be just another innocent sweet Christmas story, but boy was I wrong. Yes, it took place around Christmas time, but innocent and sweet it is not in the slightest. While I understand that this kind of book might be appealing to some people, I really didn't appreciate just how intimate things got and how fast they ramped up physically. A lot of it seemed really... obviously sex-centered, even at the beginning, and it just wasn't appealing to me how they were so public about that. Even from the beginning, there's talk between two characters about one being out with sex in mind. The plotline itself was a classic trope of fake dating turned lovers, but the main piece of the story is them getting snowed in just the two of them. And while it could've been cute and innocent, especially when one of them gets sick... it wasn't. And that was hard for me to read since that's the kind of romance I tend to look for in a book. Overall, I definitely wouldn't recommend this book to anyone unless they're specifically looking for a steamy Christmas read. I was disappointed with this one overall and there's no reason for me to ever look back before getting rid of this one.

Audience: Young Adult/Adult Genre: Contemporary/Romance Overall Content Rating: Clean Content Warnings Overall Review This was perhaps the cutest book I've read all year. The romance, the lack of explicit content, and the swoon-worthy cutesy things all worked together to make me happy and cozy wherever I sat reading. I really enjoyed it and am so ready for another one just like it. To make things better, it was a Christmas-themed book that excited me for the holiday season. Okay, so maybe I'm a sucker for a good romance, but I also appreciated the characters and how they interacted. It reminded me of the book version of a Hallmark movie. It had the same somewhat overused tropes but also the endearing actions of the characters. We have the viewpoints of both of the main love interests and their interactions with both their families and friends, allowing us to see both sides of the picture and how things developed. My favorite character was the main male love interest, Nate. I'm honestly so biased towards any guy who sets their significant other straight in a gentle way, helping them to understand that they are worthy of love and appreciation and whatnot. Like, what's not to love? His development throughout the whole story might not be super dramatic, but for a Hallmark-style story, I think that's to be expected, and honestly, it's still hard not to love. This story follows the main characters through family conflicts and many struggles with self, but in the end, we see it all reconciled in a way that pulls the whole thing together and makes you want to snuggle into fluffy blankets until the blissful feeling passes—and also hope that it doesn't for a good long while. This book was so good, and I cannot recommend it enough for people who want a cute, clean romance and are looking for some literary "Hallmark movies," so to speak.

Audience: Young Adult Genre: Historical Fiction Overall Content Rating: Somewhat Clean Content Warnings Overall Review My Contrary Mary is a book that I've been looking forward to reading for a long time, and while I don't believe it was as good as The Lady Janies series (reviews coming... eventually haha), it was still pretty good. There were some parts where I was frustrated enough to put the book down, but with all good books, there's gotta be some plot development, and apparently, the turn of events contained in this book tended to make me mad. However, this book did shock me with the amount of sexual content that was mentioned. In past books by this dynamic trio of authors, there's been no mention of such things, so I'm not sure whether they thought that it was called for or not, but it was a major plot point (needing an heir to the France & Scotland thrones). Nothing was graphic, but it was implied many times that they needed to do "the thing" and even one instance of the current King wanting to spectate as they (his son and the queen of Scotland) "did it." Overall it wasn't handled badly, I just didn't appreciate how much of a central point it was. However, I'm not sure that it's something that could've been logically substituted for something more tame. The reason I'm arguing that this book is "Somewhat Clean" is that the number of things that were mentioned were handled (usually) well. The death wasn't graphic and the characters genuinely had to grieve the death, the sexual content was uncomfortable even for the characters in the story, and the one instance of profane language wasn't even actually written out but instead spelled and explained as something else. While arguments may be given otherwise, my opinion is that because they handled it well, it's not a Moderately Clean book and is instead Somewhat Clean. My favorite part of this book (as with the Lady Janies series), was the humor that was spread throughout the book. The characters had fun, but they also had hardships. Despite it all, there were instances where the narrators inserted their own thoughts and they brought a form of levity into the story. I'll leave what they say in the book to be discovered by those who read it, but suffice it to say that there's plenty of sarcasm, irony, and other general humor sprinkled in across the course of the book. Overall, I'm quite happy with this read regardless of what things I didn't like about it. While some things irked me a bit, there was still a story element that kept me reading through and dragged me forward whether I wanted to finish or not. When I wanted to skim, there was the part of me that didn't want to miss any of the things I wanted to read about, so, I kept reading. Hope this review helps and see you next time!

Audience: Young Adult Genre: Steampunk/Gothic Fiction, Retelling, Overall Content Rating: Clean Content Warnings Overall Review Alright, this might be where I admit that I'm a sucker for good steampunk novels, and when I saw this one, I immediately had to pick it up and set aside all my other books. The basic premise is that it's a Mary Poppins Steampunk retelling, as the series title states. It's not a mystery in the traditional sense—I'm not even sure I'd call it that—but I'll respect the author's opinion on that. But let's delve more into this premise! In this story, you follow the journey of Anna-Marie Pauper, our faux Mary Poppins character, as she struggles to free orphan girls from being kidnapped and forced to work in small, deadly spaces. With secretive characters that draw you in from the start and worldbuilding that allows you to see this technological masterpiece, it entertained me from start to finish and the whole time I was excited to read this book, even in the moments where things got a little awkward and uncomfortable. The twists that I found in this book reminded me of those in my favorite fantasy books, where you're constantly waiting to see how each piece will fall into play because you simply can't predict it. I didn't know who was good and who was bad until the very end. The various directions that this book went in reminded me of a well-written fantasy book, where you're constantly waiting to see how each piece will fall into play. Nothing makes sense until it happens and you're better off not trying to make sense of it and just enjoying what's building up in front of you. I believe that the strongest part of this book was the characterization and worldbuilding. The characters were so well-written and respectful. They fit into the story quite well and they draw you in with their wit and their unpredictability. The world just molds around them and it's so easy to see that they belong here, in this fantastical Victorian-era world, full of steam-powered tech and whatever else you find in steampunk novels. Overall, I absolutely adored this book, and maybe it was just me and my obsession with anything steampunk, but I think this one was worthy of a reread.