Wicked As You Wish (A Hundred Names for Magic, 1)

Content Warnings: Child Abuse with varying degrees of graphic details; Underaged drinking; HomophobiaRep: Loki is Non-Binary with 2 fathers; Alex is Gay; Loki uses They/Them Pronouns; Loki *could* be Autistic (it’s not written on the pages but Im autistic and I see myself in Them);There will be no spoilers in this review. I’m a part of the Street team for this series.Would I rec this book? 100%! It’s so hard to find myself in books. Yes, Loki isn’t stated as Autistic on the pages. I’m Agender and use They/Them pronouns. I can’t find myself in books unless its to fix them type books.It would have been so easy to have Loki be the butt of the jokes, being the lone Non-Cis person in the group but Rin doesn’t bother with that troop and I could hug Them for it.Each gift is outside the norm that we see in terms of “Teens with special gifts have to defeat evil king/queen to save the world”. Which is always nice.If you couldn’t tell, Loki is my favorite. It would be interesting to see in later books weather Loki has on page romantic or sexual perf. I would die a happy enby if They are also aro/ace like me but sadly, romance and sex sells. So, not gonna get my hopes up for that.I’m still reading The Never Tilting world, and have never read The Girl In the well, so i can’t say if this is the best book from the author. I really loved Likh in The Bone Witch. Who is cooler, Loki or Lihk? I think each have their own warmth and I love them both equally at the moment.

It’s no secret that Rin Chupeco is one of my very favorites with her Bone Witch trilogy being among my top 5 series, but had I not already been a fan, this book would have made certain I was.Wicked as you wish was like a fairytale on steroids. Not only did the story incorporate so many different fairytales and their characters (albeit in *much* different capacities), Chupeco managed to breathe new life into all the old classics all while keeping true to the familiar aspects. What followed was such a unique and super interesting mashup of the fairytale places we know and love — Neverland, Wonderland, Avalon — and a little something called the Royal States of America. Because not only is this spectacular book a fairytale lovers’ dream, but it’s also a tale of alternate history. And as if that wasn’t good enough for you, it’s also a book that takes aspects of our current state of unrest concerning immigration and shines light on the injustice towards anyone with brown skin. Whew. That’s a lot of goodness.“Just because you’ve never been to the Philippines doesn’t mean their rivers don’t course through your blood. It doesn’t mean you don’t have their mountains in your eyes. It’s not where we are, it’s who we are. You’ll always be both a Makiling and a Warnock, and always a Filipina. Never forget that.”If you haven’t already guessed, I loved everything about this book. I loved the super interesting world that Chupeco created, I loved how she incorporated current issues into the story, but most of all I loved the characters and the diversity among them, especially Tala and her Filipino family. Tala is one of my new favorite characters and I Ioved the strong bond she shared with not only her parents, but her titas and titos. Wicked as You Wish is definitely one of my top books of 2020 and I can’t wait to see what Chupeco brings in the next book.*eARC received courtesy of NetGalley.

"No," the old woman said, "cease the deception. People who don't look and act like you is what you hate. Every other excuse is only a pretense."Wicked As You Wish was a delightful book showcasing the necessity of perseverance and overcoming obstacles, in order to try and shape the world for the better (well, depending on who you ask). Rin Chupeco had my love from the first page of The Bone Witch and she has successfully kept it throughout each and every book of hers that I have read, WAYW is no different.Urban fantasy is something that I typically struggle to connect with, current day technology mixed in with fantastical elements tends to take me away from the escapism elements that I love from fantasy. Luckily in this book, the addition of fairytale references and folklore interspersed within the story keeps my escapism intact and I can generally overlook real-life elements.Diversity has always been one of Rin's greatest strengths and this is continued with WAYW, there is an enby character who is correctly referenced throughout the entire book which is beautiful, there is a lead gay character with relevant concerns and worries that is handled well, there is so much beautiful filipino representation that even though I wasn't able to fully understand everything, I felt the authenticity and the ease of which it was written.The current day issues (ICE, detention, asylum, racism, etc) that are written about in this book added an extra level of impact and emotion that I wasn't expecting. Ryker's "in this essay, i will ..." speech was so incredibly powerful and probably one of my favourite parts of the whole book. I had a suspicion about a certain character, of which I am really looking forward to seeing how this is going to turn out and how some characters are going to work through something, or if they are going to work through it at all (sidenote: I hope they will).The epilogue left me incredibly intrigued and I am really looking forward to seeing where the story goes.

This book is a very mixed bag for me. In terms of the plot, I felt like the beginning was weak. It was slow and I struggled to get into the book. It took until I was about 100+ pages before I felt invested in the book. The start was slow paced as we were starting to get to know the characters and the world, and it was the set up to the journey to Avalon. Also the summary of the book makes it seems like you are following Alex's story when you're really following Tala's. I didn't mind that however, as I preferred Tala as a character. She was my favourite character whilst I really disliked Alex. Alex was annoying and irritating. He considers Tala to be his best friend but he does not tell Tala his secrets or really communicate with her. You don't really see them act as best friends, you are just told that they are but reading this book doesn't make it feel like they actually are best friends. Alex doesn't talk to Tala multiple times in this book. There was a scene where there was a battle and Alex and Tala gets separated and not for one second was he worried about her health. He told others not to worry about her because she can hold her own, but just because she can hold her own doesn't mean that she is uninjured. Also when it suits Alex, he treats Tala like she is his subject (which to be fair she is), and then other times his best friend. It's not a consistent treatment or a balanced friendship. The middle did pick up and I did end up reading the last like 200 pages in one sitting, and I am intrigued to see what will happen in the next book but I don't think I would recommend this book to people.My favourite characters outside of Tala were definitely the ensemble of secondary characters that we met. They all felt well developed and I am more excited to see what will happen to them in the upcoming book than Alex.In regards to romance, there isn't much in this book, and the little that was in here I didn't particularly like, enjoy, felt invested, or believed in the romance. That sounds more condemning then it actually is. It's a star-crossed, forbidden romance that will most like play a part in other books, but I couldn't see the romance actually being important to the characters as they didn't actually spend that much time together in the book. It felt more like a crush that went wrong. I will be disappointed if in the future books more attentions will be placed on the main romance. In terms of the side plots, I really hope that there is romance on the cards for the side characters. I would be so on board for that and I think some romance will happen in book 2 for some of the characters.In terms of the word building, it was unique but I didn't particularly like it. This was the first time that I read a book that was set up in our real world but there are fictional countries and a different timeline of historical events and leaders. I wished the world was either completely in our world, or our world with an alternate dimension, or a fictional fantasy world because then it would have been easier to picture the world. This is because the mixture of real past people and fictional myths/legends/people made it hard to understand the world and it's history because you don't know what has changed until it is mentioned in the book. However, I did like the significance of ICE in the story. I liked how they were the bad guys as it is significant today.One of the things that I really loved about this book is the representation. It's completely full of it. It was also my second ever book that I read which featured a conversation where characters talk about pronouns and what to call each other. The other book I also read for Asianreadathon and I loved it. I loved seeing these Asian authors putting these conversations in their work and normalising these conversations.Overall, I did enjoy this book. I will read the next ones in the series. I wouldn't recommend this book though. However, I would recommend Rin's other works The Bone Witch series, and Rin as an author to follow.

I was lucky enough to be invited to join The Order ofThis is a world where all our fairytales are real, where magic is normal (though governed) and where things aren't ever quite what you expect.Tala Warnock and the Avalonian crown prince in hiding, Alex, become friends in a magic negating town in the Royal States of America. After the Snow Queen devastated his country, leaving it under a layer of ice, the only hope to return it to a liveable land, is for the famed firebird (so far, so cute, and so sassy!) to turn up on Alex's 18th birthday.So, full disclosure, the first 15/20% of this book I enjoyed, but I struggled with, just a little.There seemed to be a lot, but also not a lot happening (you gotta lay the groundwork, I get that), and at times - with extended family and neighbours, trying to fully figure out the alternate world, it's history and its magic system - I felt a little lost. I am really hoping that the final version has a map. It needs a map, and maybe a glossary of the spelltech, that would be awesome :)*Side note - Also, if I could get recipes for all the food I would be very grateful because it sounds amazing and I need to make it all, even peanut butter burgers!*But, and it's an important but, despite feeling a little lost, I was enjoying it. A lot!Tala and Alex were regular kids, magic, curses, and royal blood aside, and it was a refreshing change. They were going to school, blushing when their crush asked them out, and bargaining with parents so they could attend the party of the year.But then the proverbial @#*& hit the fan, and this awesome story went from 0 to 60 in a single bound.The firebird (one sassy, sassy, firebird!) turns up, we make new friends at school, and after an unexpected betrayal, an exposed secret, a battle with ogres and a daring escape, our Banders find themselves in the last place they expected, the frozen land of Avalon.Now here, they are put to the test, Alex becomes a massive jerk (and there is still something I don't fully trust about him)Tala, still reeling from discovering the truth about *bleep*, realises that she should have asked more questions about her own history and our new friends, Zoe, Ken, West, Loki, and Cole, are going to have their work cut out getting Alex to Maidenkeep to break the Snow Queens curse.I loved the natural development of the friendships once they got there and had to rely on each other, and the introduction of more characters to love was seamless. I really like that certain people have a lot more to them than it initially appears, and I am actually really excited for the continuing story with Tala and *bleep bleep* and the *bleep bleep* and the *bleep bleep* throwing a huge twist in right at the end.I am very much looking forward to seeing the finished version of this, and to the next part, which honestly, cannot come fast enough.The final thing I would like to say about this book is that it covers some really, very relevant, issues, and I, for one, am glad they've been said.Things that should be as simple as they are depicted, like accepting a persons preference in pronouns and it not being an issue.The way that history if often taught in such a one sided manner, so as to favour the victors, and that you can't always believe what you are told simply because it's seeminly come from a position of power.And I think the most telling thing, is the fact that despite the Ice Wolves, Shades, Ogres, Ice Maidens, Deathless, and even the Snow Queen herself, the most feared 'enemy' are ICE.This book has a dedication of sorts at the front."Felipe Gómez Alonzo,Jakelin Caal,Claudia Patricia Gómez González.Remember their names."And if you don't already know who they are, go and google them.

This is a wonderful modern day fairy tale with a cast of characters who are both flawed and loveable. The fact that the magic and action is so interwoven with Phillipino cultural references makes it a different take from the standard tales. The book is peppered with humour that had me laughing aloud and showcases Chupeco's sarcastic and dry wit perfectly. This is a fantastic action romp that has you gripped from start to finish!

I will admit, I read this book slowly because the world building was a lot to wrap my head around. Also, I had to read this one book format which my eyes are not thanking me for. I attest this slow reading to the fact that my overall enjoyment of this book is higher than most peoples.This book dumps a lot of information on you and it is a bunch of fairy tales wrapped up / layered together and that can be confusing at time. I read a lot of retellings and this was still a lot for me to wrap my mind around.A lot of what others didn’t like, I did not mind. I was okay with the character development only because I know we will get to know more about them in coming books. I will admit there was a lot of narratives to follow and that became confusing at times.Overall, I really enjoyed this book and look forward to what the rest of this series will do in the future.