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Me: I could use something light and funny, I'll check out the Avatar comic.

Gene Luen Yang: Let's dig into the legacies of colonialism!

Not what I was expecting, but definitely a smart, accessible book that picks up important threads from the show. And, yes, with plenty of light, funny moments along the way.

I picked this up because Tamsyn Muir described it as having many of the same cool elements that she put into Gideon the Ninth.

So I started this expecting something Gideon-like. But for the first third of the book or so, it made me think of nothing so much as a (way darker) Goblin Emperor. (And also, for obvious reasons, Tombs of Atuan).

As the narrative goes on, I think the Gideon comparison becomes more and more apt--queer longing, sass, wizards rolling their eyes at each other. I had a great time with this book all the way through.

I picked this up for two reasons: 1) I'm always looking for books that engage the drama of economic and political life, and 2) with the next Locked Tomb book still months away, I needed a messy necromancer fix.

This book delivered on both, with a solid murder mystery and some fun action sequences to boot.