Title: Mooncakes
Author: Suzanne Walker
Artist: Wendy Xu
Publication Date: October 22, 2019
Publisher: Lion Forge
Pages: 256
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//I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review//
A story of love and demons, family and witchcraft.
Nova Huang knows more about magic than your average teen witch. She works at her grandmothers’ bookshop, where she helps them loan out spell books and investigate any supernatural occurrences in their New England town.
One fateful night, she follows reports of a white wolf into the woods, and she comes across the unexpected: her childhood crush, Tam Lang, battling a horse demon in the woods. As a werewolf, Tam has been wandering from place to place for years, unable to call any town home.
Pursued by dark forces eager to claim the magic of wolves and out of options, Tam turns to Nova for help. Their latent feelings are rekindled against the backdrop of witchcraft, untested magic, occult rituals, and family ties both new and old in this enchanting tale of self-discovery.
I spotted Mooncakes for the first time at ALA where my friend Erin told me that I absolutely HAD to read it! I missed out on grabbing an ARC of it there but thankfully received one from Netgalley later. The art style was what really made me want to pick this one up and I couldn’t wait to dive in! Unfortunately, once I started reading it took me way too long to get through this relatively short graphic novel.
Mooncakes is a story about a witch named Nova and her friend Tam, who happens to be a werewolf and may also be more than a friend. First let me say there is so much amazing rep in this book! Nova wears hearing aids, Tam is non-binary, both are Chinese American, and they’re in a relationship with each other.
I adored watching Nova and Tam learn about their magical sides and the friendship between these two was so cute, although their romance was a bit instalovey. I know that there was already history between them before the start of the book, but I wish there had been a bit more lead up to their romance.
While I did enjoy the art style and the story was fun, I did wish there had been a bit more depth to it. The plot was a bit generic and surface level and the villain was underwhelming. It definitely felt like younger YA than I expected. I did find myself a bit bored at times, but it was still a cute read. I’d definitely give it a try if you’re in the mood for a cute, witchy, and diverse graphic novel!
