Tag: Starfire

REVIEW: Teen Titans: Starfire by Kami Garcia and Gabriel Picolo

REVIEW: Teen Titans: Starfire by Kami Garcia and Gabriel Picolo

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

While Raven, Gar, Max, Damian, and Dick drive toward California to find the other person on the HIVE list, Kori Anders is home from college and working at a beach club for the summer with her sister Kira. Kira’s boyfriend – and his uncle – have invited Kori to be part of an experiment at a lab to learn more about her EDS (Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome type 1). While her time at Edge Pharmaceuticals brings her a new friend, Vic, Kori doesn’t feel any better about Tate and his uncle. And when they take Kira to HIVE after she starts displaying powers, Kori and Vic start looking at what HIVE is up to.

Review

The emphasis in the 5th book of Kami Garcia’s Teen Titans series is on Kori and Kira as they discover their powers and get drawn into HIVE. We get Victor for the team who is also a great partner for Kori as she tries to take her stand against HIVE. When the rest of the Teen Titans show up, she has a full team on her side. But that also sets her in conflict with her sister.

As always, this was over too soon, and I now have to wait a year for the next installment. I can’t wait. I have loved this series from the start, and it holds up each time I re-read it for a new release. I wanted more of the team in this as those group dynamics are my favorite part of the series. But the next book should deliver more team interactions.

While most of this book is about Kori and Kira, and therefore newcomers could probably start here, the earlier books are so great, I think it’s better to dive in from the start of the series.

Rating: ♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥½ = Good+

REVIEW: I Am Not Starfire by Mariko Tamaki

REVIEW: I Am Not Starfire by Mariko Tamaki

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Mandy marches to the beat of her own drum – something that can be hard to do in high school. It’s even harder to do when you live in a spotlight like she does. Mandy’s mother is Starfire, one of the Titans. A superhero. Mandy wants to get through school, maybe go out with a girl like her current crush, and get far away from her mother’s shadow. But Mandy’s peers, the press, and Starfire’s family won’t let her fade into the background.

Review

There are elements of this graphic novel that reflect typical superhero stories – secrets, powers, and battles with evil-doers.

There are also elements that are typical of a coming-of-age story. Mandy feels like the opposite of her mother – and often misunderstood. She wants to be indifferent to it – to the ways people use her for her famous connections – but she’s not. She still feels hurt.

I enjoyed the story. It wasn’t all I was hoping for, though. There were no real surprises. I thought Mandy’s angst was well-conveyed. The budding romance feels more like another arena for conflict rather than a substantial plot thread on its own.

DC fans and Titans fans might enjoy this take on the Titans and the daughter of Starfire. YA fans may enjoy this for the identity and coming-of-age pieces and the exploration of the mother-daughter relationship. I’m not convinced the story does any of those things especially well, and maybe that’s the issue. Maybe it was trying to be too many things, and they all were too shallow for a truly great story. (Language, LGBTQ+)

Rating: ♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥ = Good/Solid/Fine

BONUS REVIEW: Teen Titans Go!: Roll With It

BONUS REVIEW: Teen Titans Go!: Roll With It

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and DC Comics in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Robin convinces the rest of the Teen Titans to play his favorite role playing game, Basements & Basilisks. Yes, they need a tutorial on the rules and some LARP practice, but they are 100% in it to win it.

But in typical fashion, Robin goes to extremes. He takes everything seriously and makes the game impossibly hard. His friends threaten to quit if Robin doesn’t find them a different game master. For the sake of the game, he agrees. He asks his crush, Becky, to help them.

But “Becky” isn’t who anyone thinks she is. And she has her own special game planned for the Teen Titans.

Review

I was eager to read this one because of the D&D-like game play but I forgot to remind myself that Teen Titans Go is often more over-the-top than I enjoy. It took some time to get into this one. Robin is controlling – as usual. And just as he made the game less fun for the Titans, he made it less fun to read about. But once the external villain was revealed, I enjoyed this a lot more.

Raven continues to be my favorite of the Titans, but the ensemble was in good form, too. Cyborg’s issues with the villain were a fun wrinkle to their adventure.

This is a long, meaty campaign for the Titans. Fans will enjoy spending this time with the characters.

Rating: ♥♥♥½ – Good+