Welcome to Litsy!

I loved this fast-paced middle-school novel that combines Chinese history and folklore with ideas from video games. The diverse characters, including the villains, are the best part of the book!

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#paintbynumber

Book 1 of Dewey's done! I absolutely loved this book! Xiran Jay Zhao continues to bring us astounding Chinese fantasy based on Chinese myth and legend. They also continue to bring us huge cliffhangers that leave me desperate for the sequels 😱 This was the perfect way to kick off the readathon! #readathon #deweyoct

Loving Zach so far! And thoroughly enjoying the supervillain emperors trying to save China through their preteen descendents 💙 #readathon #deweyoct

#readathon is here! My favorite readathon every year! I'm ready to go with a stack of possibilities and a cup of tea. I'm gonna start out the day with Zachary Ying, for a quick, fun, action-packed beginning to the readathon!

I enjoyed a lot of the lore behind the emperors and other historical figures. I liked how Zachary changed throughout the story, and still showed his flaws. Lastly, I admire the weight and problems that build in regards to blindly trusting gods or divine entities, even when you're connected or chosen by that entity.

Now I have to wait and see when the next book will release. #middlegrade #fantasy

I hunkered down and finished POSSESSION last night, so I finally get to read something else! Hurray! I‘m excited to dig into Xiran Jay Zhao‘s first MG fantasy today.

Breakfast involved Nigella‘s pumpkin scones, which I think some of y‘all might like. The recipe isn‘t on her site anymore, but I found a version on SparkPeople: https://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=1329588 It adds melted butter; I‘d leave it out.

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I feel pretty accomplished for managing to find all three of the final letters in this one book! 😂🤣 I really really loved this one! For sure one of my favorite middle grade novels of the year!

I absolutely adored this middle grade fantasy novel full of Chinese history and mythology. After the First Emperor of China possesses his VR headset, Zach sets out on a quest that will take halfway around the world to save his mother and all of China.Almost 5 stars but the ending could've been fleshed out a bit more in my opinion. Definitely the start of a series though, and I'm excited for more!

4.5 stars / ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Zach is just trying to fit in at school when his VR device is possessed by the legend of a long dead Chinese Emperor. Then his mother‘s soul is stolen & there‘s a cute boy asking for his help to save the world.

This was charming! A must if you like the Percy Jackson books/have an interest in Chinese history and mythology. Pacing was a little uneven, 2dary characters not quite developed, & a sequel bait end. But also fun and educational!🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑

I practically devoured this book! It was very fun and educational, and since I've read Iron Widow, it felt like reading fanfiction (💕)! The magical system was a bit hard to grasp at first, esp since I was trying to figure out how it was like Yu-Gi-Oh (as it's been marketed) but found it made more sense to make a CCS connection 😅 #adventure #family

https://bookmarksthat.wordpress.com/2022/05/11/blog-tour-zachary-ying-and-the-dr...

Comparisons with Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson books are inevitable as Zhao's fantastic middle grade debut
channels the same magic as it seamlessly interweaves Chinese culture and history into an action driven
story full of adventure, danger, & magic that also touches upon identity, heritage & tradition, alienation and more. Zhao describes the book as “Chinese Percy Jackson meets YUGIOH” & it is definitely fun & entertaining. Recommended.

Love it when the design under the dust jacket is just as cool as the cover. Love the detail.

I‘m only five chapters in but so far this MG story is super fun. Definitely a great option for fans of Percy Jackson who have read those books and are looking for something new.

It's like if you combined Ready Player One and Percy Jackson, with Raya and the Last Dragon or She Who Became the Sun. It's a lot of action and adventure but it also secretly taught me a lot about Chinese history. I really love learning when I don't really know I'm learning and that's what this book does. I can't wait for the sequel, there better be one after that ending!!

Friday night MG adventure time…

One of my coworkers brought me in a homemade strawberry jam filled croissant today! 😳🥐🍓 What a great day! 🥰 I'm enjoying it now with some hot tea and Chinese mythology! 🫖📖💕

Today‘s #Bookmail is the middle grade debut for the author of Iron Widow. This one sounds like a whole lot of fun—- journey across China to seal the underworld shut? A botched possession which sees the First Emperor of China possess Zachary Ying‘s AR gaming headset instead of Zachary himself? Mom in danger? Yes to all of this!

Also, this is a very cool cover.

All the trees next to the library are finally in bloom! 💮💕 Took this one to work with me today, even though I knew I wouldn't have time to start it. Sometimes new books are just too exciting to leave home! 😄📚

Hooray for book mail! 📚👍🏻📫 These two lovely preorders arrived today! I'm especially excited for the tagged book as I love this author and it's their
middle grade debut! 💕