As I’m sure the name “The Charmed Librarian” suggests, I love anything witchy! So when I saw the cover for Mooncakes I just couldn’t resist.

Werewolf Tam has returned to their hometown to deal with a mysterious demon in the woods. Teen witch Nova is still around, doing her magic apprenticeship with her grandmas at their magic bookshop. When the pair of childhood friends reunite in their effort to stop an evil force much bigger than they imagined, sparks fly in an adorable romance full of magic and whimsy. 🙂

This graphic novel is the perfect Halloween read! I was so excited to see that its release date will give readers the time to enjoy it and get in the Halloween spirit. I love a little magic in my books all year long, so I enjoyed it in mid-August all the same!

I have to share this little tidbit from the letter to the readers: Mooncakes was written by best friends. As Xu and Walker moved far apart, they used a creative partnership in creating Mooncakes to keep their friendship alive, and I could see it on every page. The connection between characters, the way they felt about one another and interacted, was really sweet and earnest and I was glad I began the read knowing this about them and their story!

I particularly loved the cast of characters in this book: Tam and Nova were lovely, but they were supported by friends and family with a lot of heart. I loved Nova’s grandmas sweet and supportive demeanors, and her friend Tat played the perfect friend role, without jealousy or confrontation for Nova’s new romantic relationship and rekindled childhood friendship. It was a feel-good book, if only for the sweet way these characters took care of each other.

There is also something wonderful to be said about the diversity of these characters! All but Tat are part of Chinese-American culture, giving shape to the name of the story. Tam is non-binary, both characters are queer, and Nova is hearing-impaired. I loved it – it was really authentic, and gave the story some awesome representation.

My biggest complaint, and the reason I didn’t give this book five stars, is because I felt like those characters lacked a certain depth. You don’t see it often with graphic novels, but I think there’s a level of character development required to really get absorbed into any book. I need to feel connected and attached to them. I didn’t get enough background to Nova and Tam’s story, didn’t get thrown straight into the witch and werewolf world like I wanted to, and my feelings about the book reflect that. The story is clearly coming-of-age set on a magical stage, and I think it sets the scene for more. There’s a lot of room for growth in a sequel story, or a whole series of adventures, and I would certainly read them!

Mooncakes will be available on October 15, 2019! An advance copy of the book was provided to me by the publisher through NetGalley for review.