This was a really fun book! I loved the different cultures and fairytales all given equal importance instead of focusing on Western tales, which doesn't surprise me in a Chupeco book. I love the casual queerness that nobody is villainized for as well. The ending was a blast, and I'm a sucker for prophecy riddles. I'll definitely be picking up the next book.

The book was a little slow for me. But once it picked up pace and the world building grew on me, I liked it. The characters are adorable, and it was a cute Filipino inspired fantasy.

Prince Alexei has spent every waking moment since he was five years old on the run. When the Kingdom of Avalon was left frozen after the Snow Queen waged war on the magical country. The people who did survive are now stuck in places where magic is nothing and feared. Tala lives in a small Arizona town where magic doesn't even work, and her home is now the prince's newest hiding spot. But not for long. The legendary firebird appears for the first time in years, and Alex and Tala must find their way back to Avalon to reclaim Alex's throne.

Like the series name, magic has hundred of names, the meaning changed depending on the culture it is rooted in. Many memorable tales live on in different ways. From King Arthur to Robin Hood, magic is affected by fairytales. Tala is a descendant of Maria Makiling, a figure in Philippine mythology, a being associated with guardianship of Mount Makiling. Tala's power negates magic which makes her presence the most important when it comes to protecting Alex, as the Snow Queen catches up to their team, sending hoards of her most lethal companions. I really loved the references to different fairy tales

The world-building is where the story lost me. I couldn't keep up as the story developed because there wasn't a strong foundational start, to begin with. As the group make their way to Avalon, we're introduced to so much more, and it got a little overwhelming. I read this book over a couple of months, restarting a few times, I still couldn't pay attention. There was also some banter between the group of character that just didn't work out of me. The jokes weren't funny, and they fell mostly flat in their execution. And they also didn't blend together as a group very well. Alex is downright rude to a lot of them, and when we discover why, it just didn't seem like an okay excuse for him to be so mean. Especially, since he doesn't do anything remotely important during their entire journey and the rest of them do most of the heavy lifting.

*Wicked As You Wish* is SO good, but it was not the book for me. If some things were done differently, maybe I could overlook some of the difficulties I had with this book, but it wasn't. And I don't know if I'll continue this series.

That ending was fantastic and mind-bending and please tell me there will be more!!!
It's been a while since I've read a book in print rather than using audio but this book was worth it. Initially I found the story a little slow and it took a few chapters to grab my attention (hence the fact that I started reading it a while ago but only now finished) but I think a lot of that was me getting out of the reading funk I've been in for months now. Because the story itself was so intriguing and the world-building was exactly my kind of weird and wonderful, but for some reason I just found myself sliding through the first bit if the book. Them the action got going and whoo boy did that end my reading slump in a big way. There wetter many nights I'd start reading in bed and tell myself I'd only read one chapter but before long I'd find I'd read several and it was past midnight and I was gonna be tired and cranky in the morning but damn if the book wasn't that gripping. By the last third of the book I was barrelling through it and bargaining with myself to keep reading.
I absolutely loved Tala. She was such a strong, interesting character with relatable flaws and worries even in this strange fantasy world so different from our own. I also loved all the Filipino culture throughout the book; one of my best friends is half Filipina and all of Tala's family reminded me so much of her and her mom who are some of my favorite people. All of the Banders were such fun and interesting characters in their own right--I especially want more of Cole's story and history. I'm sure there will be more to this story and I just can't wait till then.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me early access to this book in exchange for an honest review. I've always enjoyed Rin Chupeco's books and was so excited when I saw this one available on NetGalley. If you like interesting and different fantasy plus a rollicking adventure and twists you never saw coming, give this book a read.

Rin Chupeco is a great story teller and this one was no different. I was so happy to be able to read an early copy and I really can't wait to see what happened along the way and can't wait for the sequel.

I was super excited to read “Wicked As You Wish” but sadly, I was left disappointed. Overall, it fell flat, and I ultimately had to DNF. The writing style and the worldbuilding in general just did not hold my attention. It just was not for me unfortunately.

This was the first Chupeco book I read, and I'm not sure if I should have done that. The first half of the book was messy, everything was just all over the place, but I wanted to keep reading as I knew a lot of people liked Chupeco's books and I was sure that I would like them too if given the chance.

And it got better! I really love worldbuilding and I think that could have done better, but it was much easier to keep track of the characters in the book, which really helped the story. I'm glad I kept reading, and I'm definitely going to try to read more of Chupeco's books!

This book was a big surprise for me. I enjoyed reading, especially because the writing was easy and well developed by the author. Since the beginning, the characters managed to captivate me and I loved the way how author show us the world she created, such as the references to fairy tales. However, at some point in the book, the lecture got tiring, but I was curious to know the ending. I think that author wanted to give a short introduction to what she created, so that in the second book everything was developed, which for me was something that bothered. Nevertheless, it’s still a good read. It’s dynamic and very interesting! Really worth reading this book.

What a beautiful, whimsical narrative. I loved all of the fairy tale references and the intrigue behind the lost kingdoms. The blend of urban magic with fantasy really gives this story a kick. Plus, I loved Prince Alexei.

I wanted very badly to love this as The Bone Witch holds a special place in my heart. The magic system and world building felt very confusing and not very strong. I never felt drawn into the story or wanted to root for any of the characters. Then pacing also felt off, at times too fast and at others too slow. This one just wasn’t for me. I still look forward to read whatever else Rin Chupeco publishes.

This was a middle-of-the-road read for me. While I liked a lot of aspects, there were some things I disliked, and overall, I just didn't feel strongly enough about the book to really warrant adding an in-depth review to the blog.

Title: Wicked as you wish
Author: Rin Chupeco (@rinchupeco)
Rating: 4 stars

Talla has a special power. She is a spell breaker. She has always hated her ability. After she meets Alex the prince of Avalon, her life becomes very interesting. She sets off into a adventure of a lifetime.

I found this book very entertaining. I love the idea of all the fairytales I know about being brought to a modern world. The characters are relatable, and the book have relatable stories. Loss, discrimination, love, friendship, and family found.
I know this is YA but I would totally label it middle grade as well.

I received this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

#netgalley #netgalleyreview #rinchupeco #avalon #wonderland #sherwood #magic #ya #middlegrade #yabutcouldbemiddlegrade #fantasy #queer #lgtbqia #filipino #wickedasyouwish #bookstagram #familyfound #mythology

I love a good YA fantasy and this book looked like it was going to tick all of the boxes. Interesting plot (Check), Collection of Interesting Characters to develop (Check), Different and Varied settings (Check) but the big miss for me was the execution. I kept waiting to be engaged, to make a friend in one of the characters and I just couldn't with this book. I kept picking it up to continue reading and then kept finding other things to do that were slightly more interesting than getting through this book. It was a little bit of a chore to finish.

Wicked as You Wish is a Young Adult Fantasy story focusing on a combination of other literary figures and worlds. From well-known fairytales and legends from the western world, and lesser known tales and folklore from other regions, this blends everything together to form a unique world and experience.


When I picked this up to read, I had very little idea of what it was going to be about. Beginning in the 'Royal States of America' and evolving into the world of Avalon, this book was packed full of references and magic, which I enjoyed, but struggled to understand.
With the sheer number of stories being interwoven, the plot felt crowded and over-worked at times, as my brain tried to understand what was going on. References to places such as Neverland, Tintagel, Wonderland, and various others, flew over my head and I had to completely overlook the references at times just to focus on the plot.

The same thing occurred with the characters. With each character, a new family history was revealed, and keeping track of each took more effort than I was necessarily comfortable with. Alongside the complicated magic system (with artifacts being the main source of each persons 'powers') I found it nearly impossible to find any personality or even purpose in the characters as the plot progressed. This could simply be because they will become more of a focus in the sequel, but after reading this first book, I genuinely couldn't tell you much about any of them as individuals.


Truth be told, although I loved the references, and enjoyed the main concept, this entire book just felt like plot building. I don't feel like much happened, and the world and the characters were kept pretty bland, with minimal exploration into their purpose. Despite the riddles and prophecies, there was very little to each person that really aided the story. The 'king' was grumpy and secluded, the 'right-hand woman' was more concerned with her fathers past, and the young Bandersnatchers just felt like background noise, with the odd humour-fuelled plot, to add that little bit of comedic relief.

How they managed to fill 400 pages with such a basic plot, and minimal character building, I will never know.

Ultimately, I would be happy to read the sequel, simply because I loved the blend of folklore, and hope to see more character development. If things weren't improved upon, I would feel a little let down, but maybe the plot just wasn't for me? I guess we'll see what happens.

I felt lost shortly into this book. I looked at a few reviews and realized I wasn’t alone. Most of us found the world building quite confusing. I think it is magical realism and fantasy. Maybe alternate realities? I don’t understand how the Kingdom of Avalon connects to Earth. This story makes me think of a toddler who took a bunch of jigsaw puzzles and dumped them into a pile and now you have to put multiple puzzles together at the same time when you have no idea what piece belongs where. I loved the Filipino culture and LGBTQ rep. There is some homophobia but the culprit gets called out on it. The firebird shows up at the 13% mark so I gave up trying to understand the world and just focused on the characters. There were times where I understood how the magic worked and times where I just went ‘huh?’
This is my first introduction to this author and I’m a bit nervous. I have a few of her books on the TBR but I’m worried they will be as convoluted as this one.
2.5 stars. I think this would have been better book if it had been cleaned up a bit and the world, magic, and story streamlined.
ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was really fun! I enjoyed the strange magical version of our world and kinda wish I could've spent more time reading about the daily life in a world like that. The adventure in Avalon was also really cool though and it felt a bit more similar to what I'm used to reading from Rin which was nice because it was familiar. The huge cast of characters was the only thing I struggled with a little bit because I felt like I didn't really get the chance to properly get to know more than a few of them, and it felt like some of them were there just to give information about the lore of the world. I still enjoyed Wicked As You Wish as a whole though and I look forward to the sequel! The hilarious chapter titles were icing on the cake.

As a Filipino reader who has always been reading fantasy books by white authors, this was definitely a wonderful reading experience. I never thought that it was possible that your culture can be represented in a fantastical setting! Rin Chupeco delivers with this book and I am looking forward on the upcoming release of the sequels!

an interestingly diverse cast and an interesting world and plot.

i liked it.. but.. it just didn't do much for me beyond that. it sort of dragged on a bit? and the payoff wasn't even worth it for me because i was pretty disappointed by the ending.

❝ “What I mean is, you’ve got magic in your blood, love. You can’t take it out of you any more than you can will yourself to stop breathing.“ ❞

I was first introduced to Rin Chupeco’s work when I read The Bone Witch. I really loved this book and was super excited to read more from her, so I jumped on the chance to request Wicked As You Wish. Despite my high expectations, I ultimately felt a bit let down by this book although there were definitely parts I enjoyed. It was because of my mixed feelings that I ended up DNF’ing this book at 38%.

One of the strongest aspects of this book–and what appealed the most to me initially–was the close family relationship. I liked the cultural aspects woven into not only the characters but the overall story. Filipino culture was so integrated into the story that it was practically seamless.

We also saw diversity in the cast of characters as well. One of the main characters, Alex, was gay and there was another character introduced a little later in the series that was non-binary (I think that’s the right term, but correct me if I’m wrong!) and identified as they/them. Between the two LGBTQ characters and the cultural representation, I think this book did a great job of creating a diverse story.

However, the world building and plot of the story felt weak to me and were the reasons I decided not to continue on. Right off the bat I think there was just so much info-dumping about the wars and past rulers. It was a lot to take in, but even then the worst part of it was the magic system. It just felt like the way magic and technology was made to blend didn’t end up working that well together. It was confusing and it felt like so much time was spent on making the magical aspects seem interesting that the focus on the actual plot was dragging behind and suffered.

Overall, I think Wicked As You Wish just wasn’t well put together. It needed more work on the actual part and less detail/complexity in the magic area, but it still had some positive elements in terms of diversity and cultural representation that I think people could enjoy.

This was a typical fantasy novel. I wasn’t overly impressed by it but not disappointed either. As a person who doesn’t read fantasy a majority of the time I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this one. There are others with more intrigue and action.