Village Idiot

there were some interesting ideas here that were new to me, but they were only explored at the surface level. i liked the last couple of chapters.

certain other parts i felt were too simplistic or self-congratulatory and the writing was meh at best. the chapters were barely connected to each other and to the main idea. entertaining, though.

and i appreciated how short it was.

Okay, I am soooo in love. It's been a long time since I've been obsessed with a book like this. I'll try to sort out my feelings by making a list.

Why I loved it:
1. Not to judge a book etc but have you seen the cover? So gorgeous.

2. I'm no expert in German culture but I loved its influences in the book. The language of course and I think I recognized some of the mythology and customs? Apparently the OG Goose Girl is also a German story, which is really neat.

3. The storytelling was so compelling, not one boring moment! I could not put it down, other than when I had to walk off my feelings or something. When I couldn't read it, I'd switch to the audiobook (which is also amazingly narrated, btw). The ending, which was probably tricky with so many threads, was satisfying as well, for the most part.

4. Vanja herself! All this time when I prayed for an anti-heroine, she's who I meant. The story starts with her slipping into her different alter egos to pull off a heist, but even so, it surprised me how layered she was as a character. The gist of it is that she's a high-profile thief, she's a con-woman, she's a princess, she's a maid, but she's also just a heavily traumatized kid, trying to survive. She wrestles with her morality and her trauma throughout the story. She's insecure, she's badass, she's smart. And she's funny. I love love loved her.

5. Death and Fortune trying to co-parent killed me. They're kinda terrible because they don't really understand humans, but that also makes them so funny. The resolution of that whole 'You need to pick one of us to serve' thing was a bit too simple, maybe? But it's fine anyway, because this way they can actually have a good relationship with Vanja, which I'm so looking forward to. Hope to see more of them in the next book (which I will be ordering ASAP!!!).

6. Actually good queer rep? The MC and the love interest are het but it's heavily implied that they're demisexual. 2 prominent side characters are sapphic - and they weren't done in a boring-yawning-sloppy-lazy way either; they're well-rounded, complex characters (though one more than the other, I guess).

7. Which brings me to the next point, Gisele and Vanja's crazy ass friendship? I loved it so much. It was like their hate and love and resentment and longing and shame and everything was just stacked one on top of the other like a pile of pancakes... and I ate it all up. And both of them developed and got so much better as people. Loved the part where Gisele tells her parents to fuck off, so cathartic. It will be interesting to see what their actual friendship looks like after the dust settles. I know in like the epilogue they were sitting in a group of friends, but still.

8. Emeric was so sweet!! So smart and respectful and he and Vanja fit together so well. He also communicates and emotes like a normal person, very refreshing after having to slog through those ‘cool, silent, mysterious' types. An adorably perfect love interest, no notes.

10. Ragne!!!!!! I love her.

11. The whole scene with the Godly Courts council or whatever they were called was funny. I'd love to see more of the gods.

The list of what I didn't care for as much is super short and kinda minor - there were some anachronistic expressions (‘in this economy?' stopped me cold. it was funny tho), and I felt that the characters would have been more believable aged up a bit ? Like the MC and Gisele are 16 in this book, and Emeric is around that age as well. Ehh, I don't know, it just seems like a lot for teenagers, but I feel that about most YA I guess.

Overall, this is easily the best fiction book I read this year and I can see it becoming a favorite to re-read. Easyyy 5 stars. Thank you for writing this lovely book, author Margaret Owen!

Overall, I enjoyed the Minimum Wage Magic audiobook a lot, even though I felt that the plot kind of came apart at the end. I haven't read the Heartstrikers series (I didn't even know DFZ was a spin-off till I was like halfway through), but I could follow it easily. I finished it in 2 days, which is extremely quick for me.

What I liked:
1. This world is super cool, and the author really paints a picture without being overly descriptive.
2. Nick is a great character, can't wait to see more of him in book 2.
3. You can feel Opal's pride and desperation, and even though she's sometimes dumb because of that, you kinda have to root for her!
4. Messed uppp parental relationships. I love it.
5. Very low romance, and it seems to be a setup for a slow burn, which was great. Their friendship/partnership felt sweet and natural.

What I disliked:
1. Opal has almost ridiculous levels of plot armor. Things just.. work out. It feels too easy.
2. Opal's a bit too nice in a way that feels flat for someone in her situation? At some points, it was like girl don't you have bigger fish to fry rn??
3. At the end, it kinda felt like the whole quest was... not useless exactly, but something like it? Like what did they gain after all that? I mean, they did a good deed I guess...

In any case, for me Minimum Wage Magic was 3.5 ⭐, rounding up to 4. Will definitely be reading Part-time Gods.

This review is for the whole series not just Vol. 1.

Very relatable and sweet. I loved how the mangaka focused on Uno's emotional journey (about having low self-esteem and struggling to meet society's expectations of ‘normal') parallel to the romance. I loved her character development even though it did follow the manga formula (being surrounded by great people who know how to say just the right things, serendipitous events, linear progress, sudden mindset shifts).

Satou - I feel like she wasn't nearly as rounded a character, but she was so cute I can't even complain.

I don't know any other manga with main characters who are asexual and I was pleasantly surprised when that part was discussed in a mature way. It also touches on some other issues that I don't usually see in manga - childhood neglect, complex parental relationships, workplace harassment, codependency maybe (satou with her sister). Again, all of that was solved way too easily, but still, it was refreshing.

Overall, this manga is adorable and I loved it. Always makes my day to come across gems like this!