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I really liked this book. Wow, it was great. Everything I look for in fantasy, well I suppose this is more of a dark fantasy, but that's probably why I like it.

Look at the cover !! Super pretty, and i'm not gonna lie it is why I picked up the book in the first place. The story itself though is what kept me reading.

This is the first book in the Outcast Chronicles trilogy. It does a really fantastic job of setting the series up, introducing characters and fleshing out the world. It covers the span of about 30 years, and follows the perspective of about four (or five I can't remember) characters. 

The main perspective (in my opinion) seems to be Sorne, the halfbreed son of the king, and Imoshen, a T'en woman (the magic people).

I love the world that Daniells has thrown us into. Its harsh, unfair, struggling. There's hatred, war and corruption. None of the characters are perfect. They make mistakes and have flaws. It's fantasy, and yet very real. It reflects real life.

This book ended in a cliff hanger, but then that's not very surprising, as it is part of a trilogy. I can't say if this series will have a happy ending in any sense, but if it does, the characters are going have to work very very hard for it.

I am very interested to read the rest of this series.

I wanted to like this book. I really did. Unfortunately, I just couldn't.

I liked the idea of dragons. Yay, gimme some awesome overgrown lizards. I can't comment on how well the dragons were portrayed in this novel, heck, I can't even tell you how much of the word was fleshed out. I didn't get that far.

I finished reading at around chapter eight. I know, I know, not very far in. Here's the thing though, I found myself trudging through this book. Constantly checking how long I had to go until I was done. Then I realised, why am I even reading it? Whats the point of reading a book that is making me not want to read. Now, this is probably me being quite harsh, but well, whatever. 

I think that my main problem with this book is the insta-love. I can't stand it. I'm sorry, I just can't. And this book was particularly bad. Like I don't even think Cody knew the dragon's name and he had fallen in love. The dragon I can understand, because they have this dragon power thing, which lets them know if its true love, and their soul mate and blah blah blah. But Cody? Nope, he's a regular old (well, he aint old, but yanno) human. I'm sorry to those who do like insta-love. I just don't. Its not for me.

If insta-love is your thing, then I would definitely recommend this book. Hopefully you'll make it past chapter eight.

Okay, So I must confess, when I started reading this book, I though I was reading an entirely different novel. I was going through of books that I had saved in a 'to-read' list, which I had sorted about genre. Some how this one made it into my m-m steampunk section.

However, after my initial surprise at this not being an m-m romance, but a m-f romance, I very quickly enjoyed myself. The novel is a really high quality book, that I do not regret reading, nor buying. I will definitely be re-reading this in the future.

The world-building was amazing. Perfect. A clear, solid picture was painted, details given, and things made sense. I love steampunk, so to read a steampunk novel with good world building always make me smile. 

The characters are great. I loved Mina. She is a good, strong female lead, who is not afraid to do what she needs to. She can save herself when she gets into a pinch, but she is also vulnerable, and has very valid fears. She is a well rounded, believable character. 

I enjoyed the Iron Duke's character. He is resourceful, and intelligent. I was not overly fond of his (in my opinion) slightly possessive nature. (His constant referral to Mina as 'his' and when he literally calls her his possession), however, this is just something that irritates me personally. 

I enjoyed the romance. It developed realistically, at a good pace. No insta-love, only insta-lust, which I don't mind as long as it develops into something deeper. The romance was balanced well with the action and drama of the book. It was not the only focus.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and would recommend it to any steampunk fan.

Ah, Neko Kanda, how do you always manage to deliver such cute stories ?!

Monster Petite Panic is set in a world in which people have powers, known as Kago. The power is derived from angels, demons, beasts, ghost, monsters and so forth. It follows Kojirou Suzuki, who is in a high school for those with very powerful Kago, and Lauri Asagiri, the Public Morals Committee president.

The story itself flows nicely, and the characters are really loveable. The art is, as always amazing, with the colour pages looking stunning. I really enjoyed the progression of the story, and the progression of the relationship. It was really natural.

The story is quite short, only four chapters long, with a bonus at the end. I would be really happy if a sequel was produced, but am content.

In terms of 'heat' it was quite low. Only a kiss in the main story. There was a blow-job in the bonus at the end, but nothing further. I personally did not mind this, as I don't think that sex makes the story. I'm more interested in the emotional connections between characters. (Not that I don't appreciate some nice smut.) We do know who the uke and who the seme is, as it says in the book's description. Kojirou is the uke, and Lauri the seme.

The world that Neko Kanda has created is really interesting. Is is solid, and believable. I would love to see her continue with this universe, either through continuing Kojirou and Lauri's story, or following other characters from the school. (I wouldn't mind seeing a story about Hiraoka and the other committee member.)

I recommend this manga to anyone looking for a light, cute romance, with great characters.

What to say about this manga ?

Well, to begin with, it's Yoneda Kou, which in my biased opinion makes it already a good manga. This manga is a collection of stories, so I will review them individually, then the book as a whole.

The title story, NightS, is fairly standard Yoneda Kou. The story is about a Yakuza who hires a 'transporter'. While I personally didn't find it particularly captivating, it was presented nicely. The pages of colour were very beautiful.

The second story, Emotion Spectrum, was the best story of the book in my opinion. Kugo notices Usui always staring at Nakama, his friend. Kugo offers to help Usui confess. The mood of this story is really chill, and the progression is natural. The confession scene is adorable. It is quite chaste, only a kiss, but I don't feel like its lacking.

The third, and final, story is called Reply. It is about a shy mechanic, Seki, who falls in love with a salesman, Tamaki.  The set-up of this story is very interesting. It is told from alternating perspectives, chapters one and three from Seki, and chapter two from Tamaki. I think that this style is very effective for this story, and is a great way of seeing both characters motivations.

At the end of the book has a short bonus related to the first story. 

Overall I liked the book. It was not the most memorable, nor the best BL i've read, but the story telling and pacing of all the stories were good. There was no insta-love, which I am not overly fond of. I have re-read it a few times. I recommend it, particularly to Yoneeda Kou fans, and BL fans.