Skye

Such a sweet read about kindness, friendship, and love. What does it mean to be good enough? To be a part of community? Leong certainly makes you feel both.

What I loved: the setting, the magic, the vibes. This book was very atmospheric and the magic system was rooted and very cool and rich folklore. The characters were interesting and likable, and I enjoyed seeing the character interactions and how their dynamics with each other changed. We also get a sweet little magical guinea pig fowl!! We love weird little in-between magical creatures.

What really didn’t work for me: the pacing! The book was so painfully slow that many times, it was past the point of being cozy and just felt like it was dragging without a solid plot, until the very end at which it felt exciting yet incredibly rushed. I believe this book had soooo much potential to be soooo good with a tighter edit. It felt so meandering and like it didn’t know where it was going sometimes.

There were way too many characters and not enough time really with any of them. It would have benefited from focusing more on less side characters total, and spending more time with the main characters and “main side characters” rather than having little bits and pieces of so many.

I also think the bit of romance in the book, with the main character, really didn’t work for me and felt totally unnecessary, not adding anything to the story. Honestly, I feel like it took away from the story a bit for me and felt uncharacteristic for the character the author set up. I feel like if they wanted a convincing romance element, there was a really obvious sapphic choice that could have been made, a classic enemies to lovers situation… but alas. Here we are.

I would still definitely recommend the book to anyone looking for a cozy pretty relaxed fantasy, someone interested in Russian folklore or a howls moving castle vibe… just with these caveats. Some people don’t mind a slow pace or romance. I need medium to fast paced books, and romance pretty much only when I feel like it serves a purpose, if I’m not reading a romance novel.

Hopefully, if there’s a book two, we will see more of the house, more of the folklore, a lot more of the magic, and more of the main characters… with a tighter plot and thesis.

Will This Make You Happy reads like the author’s diary, a year in her life as she struggles with what to do with herself… plus recipes! It’s 2020 and we’re jobless, depressed, and have no motivation to do anything. We feel like baking.

This book is for anyone who had a little existential crisis during the pandemic (or really any time) and wants to see some light at the end of the tunnel. Does it provide any answers? No. Does it provide some hope? Probably. Will it make you happy? Maybe.

I also tested two of the recipes from this narrative cookbook: Genmaicha Snickerdoodles and Hojicha Tiramisu. The bakes were delicious, but the steps were unclear at times and didn’t always add up.

Thank you NetGalley and Chronicle Books for the digital Advanced Readers Copy!