I picked up Suicide Squad Bad Blood at Free Comic Book Day this year. I think I may have mentioned this before, but I tend to pick up more DC Comics as trade paperbacks and I read Marvel single issues, is that weird? I have a soft spot for the Suicide Squad as I find their missions to be over the top and chaotic. I found Suicide Squad Bad Blood on a shelf and purchased it without knowing much about the story. I’m so glad that I did; Suicide Squad Bad Blood was such a fun read.

The Suicide Squad is sent on a seemingly ordinary mission. They’re tasked with stopping a group of super-powered individuals from destroying warships. This group is revealed to be The Revolutionaries, a group of people who feel that their actions are in good faith in saving the world. The Revolutionaries are much more potent than The Suicide Squad predicted. The Revolutionaries and The Suicide Squad become one team after Amanda Waller steps down as their leader. Instead, The Suicide Squad is introduced to Lok who is much more sadistic. Will The Suicide Squad and The Revolutionaries learn to work together?

I loved the story. I think it’s easy to introduce all of these characters and have them fade away into the background. Instead, I felt that the members of The Revolutionaries each got their own back story as to how they got their powers and how they joined the group. Osita was one of my favorite characters to follow along with. Besides The Revolutionaries, Harley Quinn and Deadshot have their moments to shine. Deadshot in particular has a really strong character arc, especially with the relationship he has with his daughter.

The art coincided with the story. The alternative covers throughout each issue were cool to look at. There was a realistic cover image featuring Osita along with a creepy, smiley Harley Quinn towards the end of the book. There’s a particularly violent encounter that is depicted towards the beginning of the story and I feel the art helps to illustrate that scene.

I was pleasantly surprised by Suicide Squad Bad Blood. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting as there were certain Suicide Squad comic series that I read a few years ago that I wasn’t a fan of. Suicide Squad Bad Blood was entertaining and I’m curious to read more of Tom Taylor’s work in comics.

May is arguably the geekiest month of the year. With May the Fourth and Free Comic Book Day, it’s such a busy month in geek culture. I always celebrate Free Comic Book Day because why not? I love not planning out what I’m looking for and instead showing up to comic book stores and finding cool items that I didn’t know I needed. I stopped at two local places: Mind’s Eye Comics and NerdinOut. Mind’s Eye is one of the best local comic book stores. It’s always relaxing to show up and shop for comics. NerdinOut is more toy focused which isn’t my cup of tea, however, I like that they have pinball in their store. This would be a great place to take kids if you wanted to shop for comics and keep the kids entertained. I wanted to share my Free Comic Book Day purchases from the day.

Punchline Issues #1 – #6 – T. Howard, B. Howard, Melnikov, and Guerrero

When Punchline was first introduced, I feel that she got a lot of hate right away. I think fans thought of her as the next Harley Quinn. I don’t know much about Punchline, so I figured reading these six issues will be a good introduction to her character.

Suicide Squad Bad Blood – Tom Taylor, Bruno Redondo, Daniel Sampere, Adriano Lucas

I love The Suicide Squad. This shouldn’t be a surprise since I tend to cosplay the Harley Quinn looks from the Suicide Squad movies. I love the chaos that the group brings and how these supervillains are forced to work together to do something good. I’m not exactly sure what Suicide Squad Bad Blood is about, but I’m automatically intrigued.

Sana Starros Issues #2 & #3 – Ireland, Pérez Sanchez-Almara

Sana Starros is one of Doctor Aphra’s biggest allies. Unfortunately, I fell behind in the Doctor Aphra comic series. I do intend to catch up one day, but I’ll probably have to pick up the trades versus the single issues. Sana is a character that was introduced early on, but there isn’t much known about her, so it was a pleasant surprise to see that Sana has her own series. I’m looking forward to reading this despite missing out on the first issue.

Darth Vader Black, White, Red – Aaron, Kirk, and Fajardo Jr.

Star Wars Lando – Phillips, Lopez, and Fabela

More Star Wars comics! This shouldn’t be a surprise since I tend to purchase more Star Wars comics and books this month than any other month.

Guardians of the Galaxy #1 – Lanzing, Kelly, Walker, and Hollingsworth

It must be the hype from the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 being released this month that made me purchase this comic. I haven’t seen Vol. 3 yet, but this issue will keep me entertained until then.

This was a much bigger haul than I anticipated. It’s funny because normally I have a small stack of the Free Comics, but this year, I ended up not picking up any of them. I found myself reading through the Free Comics and donating them a month or so later. I figured I’d save space on my comics shelf for all of my purchases instead. Feel free to post in the comments which comics you picked up on Free Comic Book Day!

CW: Graphic violence, dark content, murder, etc. (This won’t be discussed in my review, but more for a content warning for this series in general)

Recently, I have been re-reading some of my favorite graphic novels or comic series that I own. One of those series is Nailbiter. Nailbiter is a horror graphic novel series set in a small town in Oregon. This series feels like a mix of Criminals Minds, Se7en, and Twin Peaks put together in a story. I first read Nailbiter in 2016 and I credit the series for helping me get more into reading comics. With that being said, I never fully finished the series. I wanted to change that, so I spent a few weeks reading all six books. This series did not disappoint and it remains one of my all-time favorite graphic novel series.

Nailbiter tells the story of NSA agent Nicholas Finch who is in a bad place mentally. He gets a call from a colleague, FBI Agent Charles Carroll, to come to Buckaroo, Oregon. Carroll is investigating why so many serial killers are from Buckaroo. As Finch arrives, Carroll has gone missing. Finch wants to find and rescue Carroll, but also figure out what Carroll recovered before he went missing. Finch partners with local Sheriff Crane, a local who grew up in Buckaroo, along with one of the Buckaroo serial killers, Edward “Nailbiter” Warren. The trio finds themselves in danger more often than not, although they do finally get the answers they were so desperately searching for.

I think what makes Nailbiter so good is how each volume truly builds off of the other. Minor characters introduced in the first two volumes end up playing a big role in the later volumes. The last volume ties in with the events of the first volume which I think helps make the series more cohesive. In addition to that, each volume ends on a big cliffhanger, so I found myself going through volume after volume without taking a reading break. I’m glad I ordered all the volumes in one sitting, so I didn’t have to wait to read the next one.

The art in Nailbiter complements the series. There are several panels where you will see a character exploring an area and then see someone sneaking up on that character. It feels like I’m reading a slasher film in that way. I also found myself once I finished the volume, paging through it for a second time to solely focus on the art. This isn’t something that I do all the time, but for Nailbiter, I think it’s so worth it.

I feel accomplished that I finally finished Nailbiter. The last volume wrapped everything up and it felt really satisfying to read. Finishing Nailbiter has encouraged me to take a look at my graphic novels shelf and find other series that I didn’t fully finish reading. As an avid collector, I want to have more completed comic series on my shelves.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier is one of my favorite Marvel films. It’s a pivotal film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe because of the way that the movie permanently changes S.H.I.E.L.D. While at C2E2 this year, I went to a panel about Mental Health in Comics. One of the series that was brought up was Ed Brubaker’s Captain America: Winter Soldier run as this series explored Captain America’s PTSD from the war. After the panel, I purchased the ultimate collection of Captain America: Winter Soldier after the panel ended. Captain America: Winter Soldier is one of the best comic books of all time and I would argue it’s one of the best Marvel graphic novel series to exist to date.

Captain America: Winter Soldier begins with Steve being called in to investigate the murder of Red Skull. Steve can hardly believe that Red Skull was killed and seems pretty suspicious about the timing of his death. As the issues progress, Steve feels that his memories are being manipulated as he is misremembering certain events from the war. Some of those memories involve Bucky Barnes, his partner, who was killed after he tried to disarm a bomb that went off. Steve feels that someone is personally out to get him for revenge or some other purpose. After a major bomb explodes, Steve investigates and sees Bucky from a distance. Steve can’t believe his eyes until Nick Fury concludes that Bucky is alive operating under the alias “The Winter Soldier”. Steve is at a loss, he knows he needs to stop Bucky, but he feels there are parts of him that still remain.

Captain America: Winter Soldier is a dark story. I liked how Ed Brubaker took Captain America and made him more nuanced. Captain America has always been a positive, upbeat, person who wants to do the right thing. In other comic runs, they gloss over all of Captain America’s experiences in the war. In this series, Steve talks to Sharon Carter in detail about the memories of WWII and what still haunts him. It makes Captain America more human in a lot of ways because he is a regular person at the end of the day and there were major casualties in WWII that won’t be forgotten.

Steve Epting does an amazing job with the art along with Michael Lark who focused on the flashback art panels. In black & white, it shows Steve’s memories from the war which are mixed with reality in which Steve is retelling these stories. The art is interesting to look at and fits with the overall aesthetic of the story.

I couldn’t help but compare this graphic novel to the movie adaptation. For the most part, the movie does a great job of taking the story that Ed Brubaker originally wrote. Some of the major differences include Sharon Carter’s involvement, Red Skull, and Steve being sent Bucky’s original report. The differences do make sense especially because Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) took the Sharon Carter role in the graphic novel.

Captain America: Winter Soldier is one of those Marvel classic stories. It’s a great example of how to re-examine the same characters in new ways.

For most of March, I have been struggling with a reading slump. I tried reading a few books but didn’t get past the first few chapters. On top of that, I have had a few stressful weeks, so I found myself falling asleep earlier instead of reading before I went to bed. After getting coffee with a friend, I was reminded how I haven’t applied for a library card since moving to our house last year. I visited my local library, received my library card, and strolled around the shelves looking for something new to read. I found two books and two manga that I’m planning on reading throughout March and April. I feel invigorated! I am so excited to read the books I borrowed. I wanted to share what’s on my TBR.

Lore by Alexandra Bracken

Lore takes place in New York City and focuses on Lore. She’s a young woman who has ties to the Greek Gods. Every seven years, the gods are brought back to Earth, stripped of their powers, and need to stay alive. This hunt is called the Agon. During the Agon, hunters will step up to the plate to try to kill the gods and take their powers. Lore’s bloodline is linked to one of the gods, so even if she has no interest in this hunt, she is still a target. Lore is approached by Athena during the Agon as Athena is severely wounded. Lore has to decide if it’s worth putting her life on the line to help Athena and potentially stop a horrible person from becoming a god.

Lore reminds me of The Hunger Games if The Hunger Games involved the Greek Gods. I’m only on Chapter #2 now, but I’m looking forward to how this book plays out.

56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard

Ciara and Oliver start dating right before the Covid-19 pandemic begins. Oliver suggests to Ciara that she could move in with him to quarantine together. 35 days later, a body is found by the police in Oliver’s apartment. Is Oliver dead or is he a killer? Did Ciara have something to do with his death? or was it self-defense?

Thrillers are some of my favorite books to read and I liked how 56 Days takes place before Covid. I’m curious to see how this plays out considering that Ciara and Oliver just met and now they are living together. That doesn’t seem like the most logical thing to do. I’m curious about what the twist will be and how everything will be revealed.

Scott Pilgrim Volume #1 by Bryan Lee O’Malley

I have never read the original Scott Pilgrim graphic novels nor have I watched the film adaptation. Scott Pilgrim is one of the most well-known graphic novels out there and I figured now is as good of a time as any to start reading the series.

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Part #1 by Hirohiko Araki

In this manga series, each part of the series stars a family member from the Joestar family. Each Joestar family member has this power that they can harness which they can use to defeat evil and prevent corruption. In this first volume, Jonathan Joestar meets his adopted brother, Dio Brando who hates him right away. Dio turns himself into a vampire and comes for Jonathan’s legacy which prompts Jonathan to take down Dio once and for all.

I have heard good things about Jojo’s Bizarre Adventures. I’m still in the process of finding out the type of manga that I like to read, so I’m trying to read the first volumes in a bunch of different series to see what I’m most interested in.

I’m looking forward to going to my local library more often! The librarian that helped me with my library card insisted that I download the library app. In the app, you can select books to keep on hold. How cool is that?? I clearly haven’t been to a library in a long time because I didn’t realize that libraries have their own apps. I’m glad to be back on a regular reading schedule and have something new to read.

February is over which means that my Romance Reading month has concluded. I had four books and one romance graphic novel on my TBR. I ended up reading the graphic novel plus two of the books. It wasn’t a bad reading month, but I was expecting to do better. Some of the books I was reading took a little bit longer and I was out of town for one weekend in February which didn’t help. Here is everything I read last month.

All The Feels – Finished

All The Feels was a little bit of a letdown. Lauren was a character that I was looking forward to reading about, but she was kind of boring. She’s an ER therapist, yet there’s nothing else memorable about her. She doesn’t have any hobbies or interests outside of her job. I find it hard to believe there wasn’t something that could have been added to make her character more interesting. In contrast to Spoiler Alert, the first book in the series, April was a geologist who was so cool to read about! Besides Lauren, I liked everything else in the book. I rated All The Feels three stars on Goodreads.

Well Played – Finished

Well Played is one of the lowest-rated books in the Well Met book series. Part of the reason for this is because of the “catfishing” that’s centered on romance. Stacey reached out to an old fling and later finds out that she was talking to his cousin and not to him. I didn’t personally have a problem with this because Daniel, the man Stacey was actually communicating with, was apologetic and realized that what he did was wrong. I think what was more concerning to me was what their “fight” was about. Once that happened, I felt more animosity toward Stacey and Daniel as a couple.

I liked Well Played because I love the Renaissance Fest being the backdrop for the story. I think I will avoid catfishing in romance books going forward. I rated Well Played four stars on Goodreads.

The Love Con – Currently Reading

I’m currently reading The Love Con as I wasn’t able to finish it by the end of February. I’m loving it so far. It’s basically a “friends to lovers” romance with the backdrop of a Project Runway Cosplay reality TV show. I’m planning on finishing The Love Con sometime this month.

Book Lovers – Didn’t Read

I didn’t get a chance to read Book Lovers which is completely fine by me. This book would be perfect to read in the summer.

Lore Olympus Vol #1 – Finished

Lore Olympus is so good. I love that there are physical trade paperbacks now and I think I prefer reading Lore Olympus this way versus on an app. I rated Lore Olympus five stars on Goodreads.

As far as what’s next, I plan on finishing The Love Con by the end of the month. March will be a much busier month for me since I will be attending two conventions out of state. I’m not sure how much reading I will get done, but it’s a nice break to be able to read whatever I’m in the mood for versus doing a full reading challenge. My next reading challenge will be Star Wars books in May which I always look forward to.

In 2021, I started to prioritize reading romance books in February. I noticed that when I set aside months out of the year as a theme of what to read, I end up reading more. I love saving my romance books for February because it gives me something to look forward to during winter. My romance “to be read” (TBR) pile is ambitious because I have a lot to read. I wanted to share my Romance TBR along with keeping myself on track for next month.

All The Feels by Olivia Dade

Alexander Woodroe is an actor on one of the most popular TV shows, God of the Gates. After it’s released to the tabloids that he got into a bar fight, his future on the show is uncertain. Lauren Clegg is an ER therapist that’s assigned to keep Alexander on track after his previous bad behavior. As they spend time together, they start to fall for each other and Lauren has to decide if dating Alexander is worth it, especially with being an actor and being followed by paparazzi.

I read the first book in this series, Spoiler Alert, a few years ago and I remember liking it. I like the “God of the Gates” show being the background to the series. It’s refreshing to read a romance book with a protagonist that doesn’t have the stereotypical body type. For example, I read Ali Hazelwood’s books and all her characters are skinny women, so it’s nice to read something different.

Well Played by Jen DeLuca

Stacey has been working at the local Renaissance Faire for several years and finds herself wanting more. She has her eyes on Dex MacLean, a performer in the group “The Dueling Kilts”. Throughout the past year, Stacey thinks she has been sending messages to Dex, but maybe it’s actually someone else. Stacey may not be looking for love, but it might catch up to her anyway.

This is the second book in the “Willow Creek Renaissance Faire” book series. I read Well Met last year and I loved it! I read reviews of Well Played and a lot of readers didn’t like the catfishing part of the story. I’m not sure how I will feel about that, but I still want to read this book as the other books that come after Well Played are highly rated.

The Love Con by Seressia Glass

Kenya Davenport is a gamer, cosplayer, and Anime fan. She has always wanted to turn her passions into a full career. She auditions and joins the cast of a reality TV show called Cosplay or No Way which will test her cosplay skills. There’s a specific challenge on the show where Kenya enlists her friend, Cameron Lassiter to help assist her. While Kenya and Cameron are good friends, they end up pretending to date on the show. Will Kenya’s feelings for Cameron become a reality even if it means that their friendship will be forever changed?

I had no idea that this book existed until I saw it on a shelf at Barnes & Noble. As a cosplayer, I love the idea of a Project Runway meets cosplay romance book. This book I believe is a “friend to lovers” type of romance which I like to read.

Book Lovers by Emily Henry

Nora Stephens is a successful literary agent who thrives in the publishing industry. She’s convinced by her sister, Libby, to travel to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina to get away for a little bit. As Nora explores the area, she runs into Charlie Lastra, an editor that Nora isn’t a big fan of. Nora has a carefully constructed view of herself and maybe Charlie is the perfect person to break down the wall that she’s built.

Everyone has raved about Emily Henry’s books and I haven’t read a single one. I added this one to my list because I want to see what all the hype is about. I love the setting of this book as it takes place in North Carolina which is such a beautiful part of the US.

Lore Olympus Volume #1 by Rachel Smythe

Lore Olympus is a graphic novel centered around the Greek Gods interacting with each other. Most of the story is centered on Persephone and her budding romance with Hades. Lore Olympus was a Webtoon comic that I started reading and ended up falling behind on. Once I realized that there would be graphic novels being released, I decided to hold off getting caught up on Webtoon and instead buy the graphic novels. One of the best things about Lore Olympus is the art. The art is gorgeous and I love the contrast between Persephone’s bright pink versus Hades and the dark blue Underworld that he calls home.

I’m excited to start reading romance this month! I look forward to it every year. Once the month of February is over, I’ll write a recap post that will feature all the reviews for the books I read and whether I read everything on my list. I’ll have that post written and published in the first few days of March.

Legends & Lattes was one of the most hyped books that I had on my TBR. Every person who read this book described it as if Animal Crossing met Dungeons & Dragons. This sounds right up my alley. I received my copy of Legends & Lattes for Christmas this year and was saving it for January, so there was something I could look forward to in my least favorite months of the year. Legends & Lattes didn’t disappoint, it was the coziest Fantasy book I have ever read.

Viv is finished with her adventuring days. After collecting bounties, she wants to retire to a more peaceful career; building and maintaining a coffee shop. She hires several citizens from Thune who provide their different talents and areas of expertise to grow the business. Although Viv wants to retire, her old adventuring crew won’t let her go that easy.

It should be no surprise that I loved Legends & Lattes. I loved Viv. She’s an orc, so she gives off an intimidating presence no matter where she goes. Once Viv opens this coffee shop, she seems to let down her guard and helps create an open atmosphere in Thune. I liked learning about all the regulars who come to the shop. There’s Pendry, the bard who plays music. Hemington, the college student. Amity is a dire-cat who sleeps in the shop and acts as a protector of sorts. Besides the customers, there’s Tandri, Cal, and Thimble who all play a role in building Legends & Lattes. Each of the characters fit into the story and was easy to keep track of.

While I liked Legends & Lattes, it felt like there wasn’t a driving plot. Each chapter was about Viv expanding her shop, learning a new beverage, or Thimble creating a new recipe. There was conflict throughout the later half of the book, but it sometimes felt a little slow. I think I was hoping for a perfect blend of a coffee shop cozy atmosphere and a driven plot throughout the book.

Legends & Lattes would be a perfect book recommendation for those who are wanting to get into reading Fantasy but don’t want something complex. I loved the scenery throughout the book and can’t wait to see if Travis Baldree will expand on this in any future books.