I have just finished reading “Twisted Love” by Ana Huang, it is the second of her books that I have read, the first being “King of Wrath”.
“Twisted Love” came across as a typical forbidden love story, falling in love with the brother’s best friend, however there was a lovely and refreshing twist when it came to the climax of the story.
Ava is your bubbly FMC, determined to hate her brother’s best friend, especially when said brother assigns said best friend to essentially baby sit here while he goes on an overseas volunteer program. The MMC, the best friend and love interest, Alex is a stern, no nonsense tough guy in a tailored suit. While he would rather do anything but watch over his best friend’s sister, he does so with gusto! Often upsetting our FMC numerous times in the process.
Eventually, a relationship blossoms and the big ‘L’ word begins to make its appearance when the big twist comes along! Ava and Alex’s relationship gets absolutely annihilated by this revelation, even his best friend cuts off all ties. This is where I discover my favourite character in the story, even though Bridget is only a side character, she comes in and successfully gets Alex to pull his head in and I love her for it! Her character has some mad sass and power in the ‘Twisted’ universe, I cannot wait to find out more about her and her broody body guard Rhys in Ana Huang’s second instalment “Twisted Games”.
All in all, a nice easy read. Simple story with some interesting characters, and definitely keen to read “Twisted Games” with my girl Bridget.
“Darkly” by Marisha Pessl I started reading as a change of pace after taking in manga after manga. As the cover suggests, it’s a darker YA novel revolving around a young female protagonist and a secretive internship that she gains for two weeks in London. It’s dark, it’s mysterious and it does keep you thinking about the story afterwards.
Arcadia “Dia” Gannon is our main protagonist, portrayed as a young woman out of her time, dressing differently to other young women her age and practically running her mother’s antique shop along with the store’s only other two employees who live in the local assisted living centre. Dia is relied on by everyone involved, her life taken over by her mother’s shop full of all sorts of things from the victorian age, her mother’s overwhleming desire to be in a relationship and spending money on more antiques that they cannot afford. Dia is presented with the opportunity to apply for an internship with a foundation in London who focuses on preserving the memory of legendary Game Board Creator Louisiana Vede, whose games known as “Darkly’s” are well sought after due to their eccentric and dark natures that at times led to psychological damage of the players and on occasion their deaths. Dia’s application is submitted by one of the store’s various cats and much to her surprise she is one of seven interns from around the world accepted into the internship as long as they signed a dense contract that spanned hundreds of pages which would result in their silence at the end of the internship.
Dia goes on the internship much to the shock and hysteria of her mother, and quickly realises that the internship is not what she and the other interns were told it would be. They get isolated at the very island where the Darkley’s were created by Louisiana Vede herself, and have been tasked to locate, play and win the missing Darkly “Valkyrie” , the theft of which led to the untimely death of Louisiana Vede. Dia is faced with a mystery decades old, a Darkly boardgame that has somehow been brought to life and led to the disappearance of it’s first winner. She is faced with lies told by the foundation itself, her fellow interns and even Louisiana herself, as well as the possibility that this internship could very well result in her death.
This novel had it all in the story: theft, death, the mysterious childhood of a mysterious gamemaker, playing to win and a missing child (more than one). While I enjoyed the story, I admittedly felt that the characters of the interns could of have been explored more, as well as the potential love interests – there was so much more I wanted to know about them! Also, despite the adrenaline pumping resolution to the Darkly Game “Valkyrie” (which was very well written by the way), I also felt the overall ending of the novel was a little anti-climatic, but then perhaps that was the point? I am still thinking about the ending now, and how it had to have been referred to throughout the story. Were there some easter eggs that I had missed? Surely there’s more to it than that? It can’t just end there! Thinking about it, I can see why I would think so things considering the “gag-order” put on the interns by the foundation, that is perhaps why I feel the way I do about the end of the novel.
*FAIR WARNING: Only foundational information is provided, no major plot spoilers are in this*
“Attack on Titan Omnibus: Vol. 1, 2 & 3” by Hajime Isayama is the first manga I’ve read without seeing the anime first. Not gonna lie, it did take me a little more time to work through the drawings because this is the first time I have experienced the story, but overall I have really enjoyed it.
Set in an Apocolyptic world where earth has been over run by giant humanoid figures known as “Titans” that seem to have only one goal: eating up the human race. Focused on a particular settlement of human society, they had spent 100 years in a relatively peaceful situation behind a set of fifty foot walls (three walls: an outer one, a secondary one, and the interior wall) to keep the titans out, which is all well and good until a colossus titan who completely stands over the walls just suddenly pops up out of nowhere and starts making openings in the outer wall for other titans to start charging in and acting on 100 years of starvation.
From that point we meet the main three protagonists: Erin Yeager, Mikasa Ackerman and Armin Arlert. They grow up together and manage to survive the attack from the colossus titan, not without some major trauma, and come five years later they are newly graduated trainees in the defence corps, each with their own motivations to be defending and fighting against titans. The characters and their fellow trainees are deciding on their futures when, out of nowhere for a second time, the colossus titan appears again to do the exact same thing as last time: bust up the secondary wall for the other titans to get in and eat some more humans.
I was totally not prepared for the amount of deaths and blood and queasy eating of humans that the manga showed so early on in the story, but it did not take away from the story. There’s deaths, both minor and significant, lost loves, grief and a whole lot of fear and of course, revenge. While it sounds like the story is mainly about fighting the titans, and humanity trying to pull together to survive, that is so not true. You’ve got the underlining stories of the three main protagonists including the actions of one of their parents that nearly ruined everything for them in these first three volumes, so much mystery to uncover! Naturally I have some theories… but can’t really air them without some major spoilers and I would hate to ruin this journey for you all.
Defintely an enjoyable read and I cannot wait to find out more about what’s caused all of this mayhem!
After watching the Anime of the Year (2025) series “Solo Leveling” on Crunchyroll, which was beyond amazing, I naturally decided that I wanted to read the manga series. First of all, the publication is set up like a western comic rather than a traditional manga, reading it left to right as opposed to right to left. It is also printed in colour, which looks fantastic and matches up wonderfully to the anime series.
I was more than excited to see that the anime series matches up to Vol. 1 perfectly, why ruin a good thing? Set in modern day South Korea, we have our main protagonist, Jinwoo Sung, who is your classic underdog, weakest of the lot but a heart and soul of a warrior, who experiences the most traumatic “near death” experience only to come out on the otherside. However, he is certainly not the same person who entered that otherworldly dungeon at the start of the volume. Set in a universe where doorways to other worlds open up randomly on earth, filled with differedt ranked monsters and gems that provide a different kind of energy to the human world, humans who “awaken” as hunters raid these dungeons, kill the monsters, gain treasures and close the portals to stop the monsters from raiding the human world. Jinwoo Sung is one such hunter, and as I said before, the weakest of the lot. However, his background story cries for empathy, working as a hunter to pay for his sister’s education and to care for his comatose mother, he repeatedly endures severe injuries and near death experiences to care for his family. Until this last experience changes everything.
The story is set up like a quest game, defeating monsters of different levels until you defeat the boss monster of the dungeon, taking the treasures left behind by the monster you kill. While the story follows Jinwoo Sung, there are a whole range of complex characters that he interacts with who have their own stories that tug at the heart strings. Whether you’re a fan of manga, or anime or both! I highly recommend both series, bearing in mind that the manga series is completed (as far as I know) and Crunchyroll has only released seasons one and two, the third season not expected out until 2027 (argh!).
This defintely a story of strength, growth, dedication and relationships. I personally cannot wait to keep watching Jinwoo Sung grow as a character and see where his Solo Leveling journey takes him.
Music has become a significant aspect of everyday life, it is no longer a commodity that members of the upper class used to be the only ones to enjoy. People have access to music 24/7 through various apps and platforms to listen to at point: driving the car, travelling on public transport, studying, drawing, painting, cleaning, working, writing…
I am not stranger to using music to fill the neverending void of silence when completing tasks, cleaning, writing and when I was student, studying. Even now I am listening to music as I am typing this (Dark Aria (Solo Levelling) – Instrumental by David Eman and Pandora Journey). I personally feel like different types of music result in different end products, especially when it comes to my writing. Upbeat music tend to lean more towards happier moments in my writing, intense instrumentals help fill out fighting scenes, heartfelt songs provides more emotion and character analysis within scenes. Writer Sophie Lark, in her book Grimstone (which I read this year, and very much enjoyed) she states that music plays a significant role in her creative writing process:
“Music is a big part of my writing process. If you start a song when you see a [music note] while reading, the song matches the scene like a movie score.”
– Sophie Lark, Grimstone
Lark even goes the next step and assigns a song to a specific chapter, which I had taken to running through spotify as I read the chapter and it just opens your mind completely to what’s happening in the story. There have been some published literature exploring the impact of music on the brain’s cognitive processes, linking it to the individual’s ability to process trauma, to becoming a more effective leader and improving one’s ability to being more productive by enhancing their creative ability. Aidan Kang and Aliso Viejo stated that music has the potential to enhance our ability to think freely and explore possibilities, suggesting that listening to music opens our minds to thoughts and ideas that wouldn’t always present themelves in zones of silence or everyday noise.
“One participant vividly described, “The presence of music while I was engrossed in writing my book served as a powerful muse, helping me conjure vivid imagery and craft intricate narratives.””
– A. Kang & A. Viejo, Creative Problem-Solving and Music: Analyzing the Correlation between Music and Divergent Thinking Abilities (2023)
Their study indicated that music also plays a role in the creative imagination of an individual, allowing individuals to imagine scenes in their minds with specific details such as the climate of a landscape, or the sensations of knitted wool against skin or the sounds of a train carriage during peak hour. Not saying that the creative and imaginative power of music is suited only to writing, it is employed by many different creative styles such as painting, drawing, sculpture, web design and photography. As well as people who simply play to fill the empty silence while they are occupying themselves. I have also noticed some books are even providing playlists to accompany their reader’s journey through their novels, examples include Veronica Eden’s Hell Gate (which was my first discovery of playlists in novels) and H.D. Carlton’s Haunting Adeline, which definitely enhanced the reading of Carlton’s novel with very dark gothic vibes that suited the narrative beyond words.
The few articles I have read so far in the interest of this post have suggested the same thing: music is a catalyst for imagination, creativity and productivity as well as informing the healing process for traumatic experiences. Music is a powerful thing and I am very grateful for the artists who provide these amazing pieces, both classical and contemporary.
Kang, A. (2023). Creative Problem-Solving and Music: Analyzing the Correlation between Music and Divergent Thinking Abilities. Journal of Behavioral and Brain Science, 13(11), 199-205.
This year I have recently discovered a love for manga, it originally started with “Alice in Borderland” by Haro Aso after watching the Netflix TV Series of the same name, both of which I absolutely loved!
As a child, my brother and I used watch the anime series of “One Piece: East Blue” and then I watched the recently released live action version on Netflix, I don’t remember much of the original anime but I remember enjoying it and I also very much enjoyed the live action version. Naturally, I wanted to read the manga as a follow up, along side the original anime series now available on Crunchy Roll.
First of all, some pretty obvious differences between the original anime, the live action and the manga, but once you get past particular scenes in the first episode of the anime the rest of it pretty much aligns with the manga. Monkey D. Luffy as the main protagonist is as goofy and carefree as ever, however you do get way more to his backstory in the manga than in either show in the beginning. His need to follow his dream but still fight for the dreams and wellbeing of others is such a core part of Luffy’s character, it’s evident in every comment and action made by him. Koby is one of the first characters we see Luffy fight for, especially for Koby’s dream to be a naval officer, even if it puts them on opposite sides of the law, which Luffy does not seem to mind. We come to realise very quickly that Luffy is no ordinary pirate in this story, he follows his own code that quickly pitts him against every pirate he comes across.
Our introduction to Roanora Zolo (not Zoro as is pronounced in both shows – much to my surprise) is one that aligns with Luffy’s code, despite Zolo being the famed pirate hunter. His agreement to join Luffy’s pirate crew comes after Luffy saves his life (naturally) and Luffy’s support of Zolo’s dream to become the best swrodsman in the world (again, naturally). We then get Nami’s introduction, a fame thief who only steals from pirates due to her apparent deep seated hate of pirates, we don’t have details on that yet only that she lost someone important to pirates. We know that she wants the map to the Grand Line but not why she wants it, there are hints about gaining enough money to buy a village but nothing will be revealed for a while!
This leads us to Volume 2, we get even more information about Luffy and his strong love for his straw hat which he got from his pirate friend Shanks as a child after promising to return it after he became the world’s greatest pirate. It’s obvious that he cherishes the hat, but how deep that goes is not revealed until later, especially when he finds out that Captain Buggy the Clown knew Shanks and hates him! Did I forget to mention that both Captain Buggy and Luffy are consumers of the Devil Tree Fruit? This makes the up coming battle between the two a very interesting one since niether of them seem to sustain serious injury! Thus comes the end of Volume 2.
What I also love about this particular manga is that the story broken up not just by chapters but random pages of information about pirates, how to draw a pirate flag and rough draft sketches of the manga before it was published. It’s a very intriguing aspect of the story that you don’t expect but it seems to draw you into it more. While the story itself is more of a comdeic and carefree one, it has a deeper narrative about working towards your dreams and overcoming the obstacles that arise to stop you, as well as supporting the dreams of others. It’s a great read so far, and one I look froward to continuing.
“The Man Who Died Twice” by Richard Osman is the second instalment of the Osman’s series “The Thursday Murder Club”, the first of which I read some months ago. The first novel had caught my attention as it was written in the style of a class British murder mystery, it reminded me very much of Midsommer Murders. The key difference being that the murders are solved by a unique gang of four pensioners who had led very colourful lives in their younger days but are now residing in a carers village called Coopers Chase.
The first novel “The Thursday Murder Club” was the coming together of these wonderfully misleading pensioners in solving a real murder mystery when it suddenly lands right in front of them, rather than a cold case file from one of their previous members. Elizabeth with a mysterious past that gives 007 vibes should James Bond live into his seventies; Ibrahim, a former psychiatrist with a few psychological wounds of his own but still loves to learn the newest technological advancements; Ron, a former boxer who still prefers to handle things the old fashioned way even if it’s not the best way; and lastly Joyce, a former nurse with a heart of gold and a sneaky side that gradually appears throughout the novels. As always, all crime fighters have their side kicks and theirs are police detectives Chris and Donna who have fantastic personalities and stories of their own. Of course, there are others who complete this team but why ruin it for you?
“The Man Who Died Twice” as the second novel provides more insight into Elizabeth’s past as well as a fresh mystery involving the Mafia, diamonds, murder and of course in true British fashion, MI5 and a kettle. More depth are given to our main character’s, especially dear Joyce who is not just some sweet old lady, as well as the side characters who begin to play a more central role in the narrative and I have to say, I really loved getting to know them more. The narrative not only explored the mystery and the art of crime solving, but also the tough reality of getting older. The reality that once you reach a certain age, your body doesn’t heal as fast and your mind can be just as easily battered.
When I was younger, I used to wonder why any of my grandparents weren’t overly keen to go to certain places, or would sometimes fight my parents or my siblings on leaving the house. After reading this book, I think I have a bit more of an understanding. You know the world is dangerous, and you know that there are people out there who are more than willing to hurt you for any number of reasons. We are taught that throughout our lives, especially if you’re a young female. When you reach a certain age, you’re not as fast, you’re not as strong and your mind changes, not always for the best. Fear begins to take root as death steps closer and closer. You try to forget and enjoy yourself like younger the people encourage you to, but it just takes one mistake, one accident, one fall, one push, one frightening experience, and that fear takes over your mind. Death is suddenly far closer than you want it to be. Sometimes this happens to someone at a much younger age, not just to our elderly.
This book, while light hearted and funny, touched on a reality that many people try to avoid, including myself, and I am grateful for it. Life is much too short to live in fear of what ifs and what ever past event had rooted that fear into you in the first place.
The chill in the air bit at the exposed skin on her fingers and face, her oversized hood barely managing to keep the chill from her ears. Her steps towards the railing of the popular lookout were stiff, her muscles protesting the movement after the two hour long drive. As she reached the railing, her fingers gently touched the cold metal, the temperature sending her fingers into a biting shock that caused her to clench them into a fist, holding them to her chest against the nylon material of her puffed black jacket.
The scene before her took her breath away, the early morning fog blanketed the valley, hiding the world beneath it from prying eyes. The mountainous landscape peaked from beneath the fog, enticing visitors to stay longer into the day until they could see what was hidden below. The rays of morning sun began to brighten the depths of the blue sky, highlighting the rocky cliffs that extended into to the sea of trees that began to show themselves as the morning fog began to retreat for the day. Revealing hints of the forest that would remain hidden until the warmth of the morning sun chased the fog away for the day.
As the couple followed the stone steps down slope, the sides encompassed by vibrant green leafy plants and trees. The names of which completely escaped them, but their vibrancy was breathtaking none the less. The young woman’s weak ankle began to ache with the impact of her foot on firm stone steps, the man who was her life taking the lead to their next sight that he had planned to show her. The sound of water impacting on a solid surface, gradually getting louder the more steps they took. As they rounded the corner, a fresh chill hit their skin as a natural waterfall revealed itself to them. A layered rock face stood before them, the clear running water had carved rough steps into the rock and streamed down them in all directions until it hit the pool below filled with irregular rough rocks and dirt.
The scene was surrounded by various trees, plants and shrubs. The green vibrant against the natural plainness of the rock face, making the clear running water stand out as the mid-morning light hit it. The very spark and flow of life could felt in this place, water nourishes all growing things, flowing life into the ever growing plants, trees and shrubs that surround the waterfall. A reminder that life continues to grow if given the opportunity to be nourished by the most basic of necessities. As they descended down into the rainforest that was previously hidden by the morning fog, their eyes took in the fantastical sights of the ever growing trees, plants, and shrubs that hid views of many different waterfalls and various species of birds that called this wondrous place home. The climb down the cliff face took a couple of hours, aching muscles invaded their bodies and minds but their eyes and souls still managed to take in the beauty that surrounded them.
The Blue Mountains National Park is most definitely a sight worth seeing, even with the extensive walking, the aches during and after were worth the views and experiences of this amazing place.
Green Mage Writings 