Tag: 2023

Book Haul March 2023

fantasticfictionsblog

About

Most of the books in this haul are the first volumes to series of which I already have some other books. Obviously I can’t exactly start reading a series without the first volume. All of these are pre-owned purchases through Amazon.

And I Darken by Kiersten White

This is volume one of a trilogy. I already have books two and three, because the series was on my list and I found them cheap at the discount store. Obviously I couldn’t start the series without this first book, though.

What is it?

A fantasy romance of some sort? I’m not sure. I just know it’s on my list, because it interested me at some point.

East by Edith Pattou

I’ve heard good things about this book. The bargain overstock store had the sequel for cheap, so I grabbed that a while ago just in case I end up liking it. I still needed a copy of this one before I could read it.

What is it?

Supposedly a retelling of something called East of the Sun and West of the Moon, and involves a girl leaving home with a polar bear to go to a castle.

Ever the Hunted by Erin Summerill

This is volume one of the trilogy Clash of Kingdoms. I already have volume two, so I can’t exactly read that without this one first. Volume two was something I found randomly at a discount store. The series was already on my to-read list, and if I ended up liking it, it was cheaper to just grab the second book there than to have to order it online later.

What is it?

A fantasy romance of some sort where the main character’s father has been murdered and she must go on an adventure to find the murderer. At least, that’s what the description implies.

Omens by Kelley Armstrong

I’ve been trying to get my hands on this for a while. I tried being patient. The local library has a digital copy, but only ONE copy. It’s been seemingly eternally checked out. So, I resorted to buying a copy for myself.

I love Kelley Armstrong’s Otherworld series, so I want to try her other works. There’s a book on my shelf that contains Otherworld short stories as well as short stories for this series, so I figure why not start with this? It’s volume one of the Cainsville series.

What is it?

A mystery of some sort, maybe? A girl finds out she is adopted, and that her real parents are serial killers. She then runs away from home and ends up in Cainsville, Illinois. From the sounds of it, things get weird from there.

The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot

This is volume one of the series The Princess Diaries. I already have volumes two and three, because I found them cheap at a bargain overstock store. Now that I have this one, I can start reading the series whenever I feel like it.

This book was kind of gross when it came in. It looked like it had blood stains and some gunk on it, but I managed to get most of it off with a cotton ball and some rubbing alcohol. What do people do with their books to get them covered in blood (or blood-like substance)?

What is it?

Seems like a coming of age series regarding a teen princess, possibly with romance?

Manga Haul March 2023

fantasticfictionsblog

About

This haul also contains some comics, because I figure they are similar enough to share the same post. Any time I get comics, they will be in the manga hauls. They will be in the manga section of the index as well whenever I review any.

All of these are Amazon purchases, except for Noragami and Detective Conan.

Comics

Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Lost Adventures & Team Avatar Tales

This is the first comic omnibus recommended to read for this series. The Lost Adventures are stories that take place during the events of the TV show. Team Avatar Tales takes place later. A reading list I looked at implied that section should be read way way later, but I doubt it matters. My guess is they were both put in this book because they can be read close together.

This is the hardcover library edition. It looks like the library editions might be the best ones to get. Some of the comics only have the library editions as hardcovers. They seem to have more content than the paperback versions, too. At least, that’s what the descriptions seem to imply.

What is it?

A comic omnibus of The Lost Adventures & Team Avatar Tales building more onto the story from the TV show Avatar: The Last Airbender.

Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Search

From what I gather, this is the third omnibus in the reading order. I got the third before the second because it was cheaper at the time. I think this one is the library edition. There’s another version of the omnibus, but it looked like it was paperback only. This one is hardcover, and the description implied it had more content than the other version.

What is it?

A comic omnibus of The Search that continues the story from the TV show Avatar: The Last Airbender.

Manga

Black Cat, Vol. 14

I only need four more volumes for this series: 15, 16, 18, and 20. They’re out of print, so my collection for these advances slowly with pre-owned copies.

What is it?

An action adventure starring an ex-assassin gunman turned bounty hunter, and supernatural powers.

Detective Conan, Vol. 2 (Japanese Edition)

This book is a late birthday gift. With this volume, I now have one through three of this series in Japanese. I like to look through them every so often to see which words and phrases I can pick out. It’ll be a while before I can actually read them, but they are good motivation to keep me learning the language.

What is it?

A mystery series in which a secret organization turns the protagonist into a child via medicine.

Flame of Recca, Vol. 14 & 15

I think there are about eighteen more volumes in this series. Slowly, but surely, I’m working my way to getting them all.

These are out of print, so I buy all of them pre-owned.

What is it?

An action adventure featuring supernatural powers and magic items with a similar vibe to Yu Yu Hakusho.

Noragami Omnibus, Vol. 4 (volumes 10-12)

I can probably start reading these any time now. As long as I don’t read them one after the other and work them into a rotation, it should be okay. I just don’t want to catch up to the release and have to wait. At this point, I’ll just add them into my rotation whenever I feel like getting around to them.

What is it?

An urban fantasy focused around gods and the spirit world.

Tail of the Moon, Vol. 13

This series is almost complete. There are only two more volumes left, and then I can put it on my list of things to read.

What is it?

A romance story about an incompetent ninja girl sent to woo Lord Hanzo.

Book Haul January 2023

fantasticfictionsblog

About

All of the books in this haul are from either Amazon or ThriftBooks.

Eleventh Grade Burns by Heather Brewer

This is volume four of the five volume Vladimir Tod series. I ordered it through ThriftBooks.

What is it?

A teen half-vampire series.

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

I received this book as a gift through Amazon. The cover is absolutely gorgeous. This is volume one of the Graceling Realm series. I’m not sure when I’ll get to reading it, but it’s been on my list for a while.

What is it?

A fantasy romance, from the sounds of it.

Kender, Gully Dwarves, and Gnomes by Margaret Weis and Tracey Hickman

This is volume two if the Dragonlance Tales trilogy, and completes my set. I got it from ThriftBooks, and it’s in better condition than I was expecting. I have a long way to go before my entire Dragonlance collection is complete. There are A LOT of Dragonlance novels.

What is it?

A Dungeons and Dragons-esque fantasy.

Return of the Dragon Slayers by Brandon Mull

This is the fifth and final volume of the Dragonwatch series. Dragonwatch is the sequel series to Fablehaven, and supposedly stars several of the same characters. I haven’t started reading it, yet, so I can’t personally say for sure. This completes my Fablehaven/Dragonwatch collection, unless something else is released later. I ordered this from Amazon to help ensure a manga did not get lost in the mail as a small package a second time.

What is it?

A fantasy adventure sequel to Fablehaven, probably revolving around the previously mentioned dragon lore.

Twelfth Grade Kills by Heather Brewer

This is the fifth and final volume of The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, and it completes my set. I still need to get The Slayer Chronicles that goes with it. This book was a ThriftBooks order.

What is it?

A teen half-vampire series.

Light Novel and Manga Haul January 2023

fantasticfictionsblog

About

I’ve been ordering too many books. My wallet is crying. I’ll have to try to slow down.

All books in this haul are orders from Amazon and ThriftBooks. Yu Yu Hakusho volume two is the only one not pre-owned.

Light Novels

Spice & Wolf, Vol. 8 & 9

I am steadily working my way through this series. It’s pretty great. Reviews for volumes one through five are already up.

What is it?

A commerce slow burn romance between a human and a snarky wolf girl.

Manga

Black Cat, Vol. 17 & 19

This series is out of print, and most volumes are expensive. I found these two, by chance, for about $20 total. I wasn’t going to pass on that. There are only five more volumes remaining until I have them all. Due to the prices, this may take some time.

What is it?

An action adventure starring an ex-assassin gunman turned bounty hunter, and supernatural powers.

Detective Conan (Japanese), Vol. 1 & 3

I love Case Closed/Detective Conan. Mysteries are one of my favorite genres. I already have 1-10 in English, and I’ve seen a lot of the anime. Because I love this series so much, I figure getting them in Japanese is a good way to practice reading the language. My vocabulary isn’t big enough, yet, but having these around is a good motivator to stick with my lessons.

These are pretty cool, because as the Japanese editions, they actually have a book jacket. The cover underneath is in black and white.

What is it?

A mystery series in which a secret organization turns the protagonist into a child via medicine.

Flame of Recca, Vol. 12

I have a long way to go before I finish collecting this series. I’m only about one third of the way done. It’s out of print, so every volume I buy is pre-owned.

What is it?

An action adventure featuring supernatural powers and magic items with a similar vibe to Yu Yu Hakusho.

Tail of the Moon, Vol. 10-12

There are only three volumes remaining until I complete this series.

What is it?

A romance story about an incompetent ninja girl sent to woo Lord Hanzo.

Yu Yu Hakusho, Vol. 2

This series is one of my favorites from my childhood. I have never read it, but I used to watch the anime all the time. I also have the DVD collection and the PS2 fighting game. Volume one was gifted to me a couple years ago, so I’m only just now starting to get moving on collecting the manga.

I had problems getting this one in. At first, there were stock issues, so it was entirely unattainable. When it finally got a restock, I ordered it, and it got lost in the mail. I ended up resolving the issue by re-ordering it with another larger book in hopes the larger book would prevent the package from getting lost in the mail, like it did the first time. When it finally came in, the delivery person left it in the wrong place. I feel like I’m lucky I managed to get it at all. I swear if I didn’t re-order it with that larger book, it probably would have gotten lost again.

What is it?

An action adventure featuring supernatural powers, demons, and fighting tournaments.