Sometimes a book comes along that is like a hug, a laugh, and a gut punch all at once. You read it because you see yourself in it, as flawed as you are, and because it gives you hope that maybe your flaws are okay—that you’re just human, not broken.

We Could Be Magic encapsulates those precise feelings for me in a wonderful, rainbow-infused book. I honestly should probably leave a more critical review, but by the end, I was happy crying, so y’all just get this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group | Feiwel & Friends for the ebook ARC. All opinions are mine alone.

Read for the 2025 PopSugar reading challenge Prompt #33. A book featuring an activity on your bucket list

4.5

Omg this was so freaking sweet. I am a Disney Adult, I know I know, we get bad reps but honestly I was born and raised to be this way and I’m not obnoxious about it…hopefully. My dad went to the opening of Disneyland (I know, he old) and my mom went to the opening of Disneyworld. Every other year we went for vacation growing up and I have been to 8 different Disney parks (including global). My highest bucket list action item is to go to ALL the parks. Suffice to say this book was built for my ilk. As soon as I saw this on NetGalley, I immediately clicked to request an arc not knowing how it really would vibe with me and fit my pop sugar prompt.

Sumerland is clearly Disney, down to the specifics of the summer intern program and behind the scenes nods. If I had to guess I would say Marissa Meyer was a cast member at some point but at a minimum is a Disney adult. (That much is clear with her other books as well.)

This book had so many feels.

Tabi our MC grew up knowing her dream was to play a specific princess at Summerland, but weight wise just doesn’t fit the mold. It doesn’t stop the that from being her dream though. What I really liked most about this was that Tabi is just is not given what she wants. She shows up to the audition and didn’t really prepare. She didn’t prepare the dance moves etc. so.. you can guess what would happen in reality and that kind of fits with what happens. Is this early on in her story so I don’t really consider it a spoiler because the rest of her journey is the brunt of the story and really the “lesson” the books about. I loved it, and highly recommend giving it a go if you like fairytales or love the Disney park’s because it really has the feels.

There is a very mild romance here and it’s super cute along with the art. It reminded me of Pumpkinheads overall, which I also quite enjoyed.

Tabitha always loved a story with a happily ever after even tho her parents story did not. So when she lands her dream job at Summerland she is excited. But sometimes when you get a peak behind the curtain it isn't what you expected. Tabitha makes the best of it and keeps working no matter what. I cute, heart felt story about the most magical place on earth, where dreams can come true if you don't give up.

The artwork is wonderful. The colors used make's the story that much more magical.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a digital ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

Releasing on June 3rd, 2025!

Marissa Meyer is an auto-buy author for me ever since I read and fell in love with her series The Lunar Chronicles. I was so excited to see that she was releasing a graphic novel this year, even though I knew nothing about it.

In this graphic novel we are following Tabi as she navigates her new summer job at the theme park Sommerland. Her dream is to be a character actor as a princess, but no matter how much magic and passion Tabi has, she doesn’t fit the park's idea of a princess. With the support of new friends, a new crush, and her own magic, she is going to devise her own happily ever after.

I had such a fun time with this graphic novel. I love that Sommerland is essentially a fictional version of Disney World. I’m not sure how accurate the “behind the scenes making the park magic happen” are, but I love seeing things like that.

I love that Tabi works so hard for what she wants. She’s determined to practice and get it right and I love seeing that motivation. I love how much James believed in her, even though we didn’t see him much in the first half of the graphic novel. The budding friendship to lovers trope in this YA was done so well. I really liked James as a character and how much he believed in the power of Sommerland magic, even when he saw the things he didn’t like. Even Kyra came around to me by the end of this.

Overall, I loved this one. I am so excited for this graphic novel to be out in the world. Five stars! I will definitely be preordering!

4.5

Thank you to Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group for an arc in exchange for a review.

This story is cute and wholesome. We follow Tabi whose dream is to play a princess at Sommerland, but she doesn’t look like your typical princess. This story is really sweet and shows that you can and should keep working for your dreams, because you never know if they might come true.

This is a wholesome, body-positive graphic novel. The romance was sweet and I liked the characters. As expected, it has a happily ever after. If I was a big Disney person, I bet I would like it even more. The art is lively and magical. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Very good reading for young people. It is an easy to read graphic novel, with a cute and romantic story suitable for young people. I really liked the development of the story, and it is a short read, good to read between a denser book, if you are an adult that also reads books for a younger audience. I liked it a lot and it was very nice to read it, I felt like I was watching a Disney movie from the 2000s. Definitely suitable for all ages.

*I have received a copy by NetGalley for my honest opinion of the book. Thank you NetGalley for sending me this ARC.*
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Spanish review:
Muy buena lectura para jóvenes. Es una novela gráfica sencilla de leer, con una historia linda y romántica apta para jóvenes. Me gusto mucho el desarrollo de la historia, y es una lectura corta, buena para leer entre un libros más densos, si te gusta leer libros de todas las edades. Me gusto mucho y fue muy bonito leerla, me sentí que estaba viendo una película de Disney de los 2000s. Definitivamente apto para todas las edades.

"There aren't any princesses who look like me."
"No, there aren't. But maybe there should be."

My Thoughts

This was such a cute story! As a theme park fan, I enjoyed all of the nods to Walt Disney World and their many secret (and not-so-secret) rules to preserve the magic for guests. It was also refreshing to see plus-sized representation and have the characters acknowledge the need for it. The romance was super sweet, and I had a fun time watching them grow closer in the most wholesome way. The art style and vivid colors truly helped capture the magic of the story and setting. I would recommend this book to anyone who appreciates the magic that not just the parks themselves, but the employees can bring to guests.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Feiwel & Friends for a free digital copy. All opinions are my own.

We Could Be Magic is a charming and heartwarming story with a message that resonates across all ages. The romance is sweet and wholesome, with a definite Disney-esque vibe. The vibrant colors and whimsical art style perfectly complement the story. It’s left me excited to explore more of Marissa Meyer’s work!

Super cute! I've read a few books by Marissa and I have enjoyed them all. This love story just gave cute and cozy vibes.

This book was magical in all the best ways!

After visiting Sommerland (a stand-in for Disneyland in this story) with her dad as a little girl Tabi wants nothing more than to work there & to be one of the costume princesses but as a curvy girl she's not exactly the type of person they're looking to play a princess.

I loved that this titled explored lots of different themes, from body positivity to dealing with the mean kids and working towards achieving your dreams. The romance was sweet & wholesome.
The art by Joelle Murray fit the story perfectly from the color palate to the imaginings of a magical theme park.

Thanks to Net-Galley & Macmillan Publishing for an advance copy of this title.

We Could Be Magic by Marissa Meyer was absolutely adorable! The story had such an important message for young girls with big dreams and who may feel like they can’t fit in to society’s beauty standards. I loved seeing Tabitha’s confidence throughout her journey with trying to achieve her goals. The art by Joelle Murray for the story so well and a made it fell so magical.

This story is for anyone who has ever dream for working at a Disney-like park. The art work is nice, the characters are fun and the story is grounded but very wish fulfillment. It is an enchanting tale that will remind you what theme park magic was like and why we all wanted to be princes and princess.

This was a sweet graphic novel with a cute love interest story and a good dosage of body positivity.

I've had a really hard time articulating my thoughts on the novel. The artwork is good, but the story is where the problems lie. I'm just not entirely sure if this story should've been told the way it was.

Such a delightful story! The illustration was fantastic and there was a ton of character diversity. This is such a fun lighthearted graphic novel

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc!

This graphic novel was so sweet. While it of course had a happily-ever-after, it had so many great themes and plot lines along the way. Growing up, I loved Raina Telgemeier and this was easily comparable. I really liked that the story was centered around someone who works at a place similar to Disneyworld who realizes that at first, it isn’t as glamorous as she’d expected. I think this is a reality that many people face when doing something like the Disney College Program so it was really nice seeing this represented. I also liked how persistent the main character was. She didn’t give up on her dreams after the few curveballs she was thrown. There are so many things in this book that young people can relate to. It was a quick and cute read that I really enjoyed and think many people will too come publication day.

All opinions are my own.

4.5 stars

I loved this so much! The art was stunning - beautiful, bright, vibrant colors and the style choices were breathtaking. I loved the diversity of the characters, and how it felt natural and organic - as opposed to diversity for the sake of tokenism. I’ve never worked at the real life Summerland, but have many friends that have and it felt authentic to the real experience as well. The story was cute, lighthearted, and fun. I teared up a little at the end. Overall I really enjoyed this.

*3 Stars*
Summary: A super cute amusement park romance that wears too thick rose-tinted glasses without enough substance.

Overall, I’m bummed I didn’t enjoy this one more. I’m not the biggest fan of the art style (more so of the desaturated and pastel/cool-toned color palettes) so that didn’t help, but my real gripes were with the content and story arcs themselves. More about what I did and didn’t like below.

Things I Liked:

- The Setting: I don’t think I’ve ever read anything from the perspective of/set in the behind-the-scenes of an amusement park like Disneyland. It was super unique and made for interesting scenarios and a setting for the story.

- The Romance: For the most part, I enjoyed both characters in the romance and thought their development was believable and super sweet. That’s not to say it didn’t have its faults, but I was never rooting against them! I’m sure I would’ve loved them even more in novel format. What bothered me the most was that they never once spoke about their lives outside of the park. I don’t feel like I know who the love interest is at all outside of his job. (Also, what’s his age? He’s one year out of HS, so 18/19, right? And she’s a junior, so 16/17….???).

Things I Didn’t Like:

- Let me start with the main thing, because it’s what really took me out of the story. The amusement park in this is very blatantly meant to be a version of Disneyland, even down to the creator/owner living in the park. Now that’s totally fine, because, you know, copyright reasons. But the fact is that this fictional park is based in reality.

On Tabi’s first day, she’s bombarded by people complaining about what it’s actually like to work there (terrible conditions; boiling weather; rotten children; disrespectful adults, etc). Tabi is confused because she thinks the park is the literal happiest place on earth, so why should they complain? And then her views are backed up when the love interest enters and complains that the employees complaining are full of themselves and ungrateful that they get to work in such a magical place. Um, hello? Now, maybe it’s because I know a lot of the hidden stories behind the glitz and glam, from social media and from classes on the history of Disneyland, but I think employees are allowed to complain about terrible working conditions. I thought maybe that’s where Tabi’s general arc was going, that she would learn that her dreams (more about them later) weren’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s good to learn that. And her resolving to make the magic where she can despite the lack of perfection behind the scenes would have made a much more interesting arc. The way this story came across, we should all be praising these parks and getting annoyed when the employees don’t uphold the same beliefs. Glorifying the parks was just uncomfortable to read imo. And it never felt like Tabi was proven wrong.

- In the same vein as the above ^ — Maybe this is because the blurb spoiled the inner conflict, but how in the world does it take Tabi nearly the whole story to realize why everyone’s being so backhanded when they insist she can’t be cast as a character princess? She claims that this is her childhood, life-long dream, yet she is woefully unprepared for the auditions and doesn’t realize that in a park where “the authenticity of our characters is something [they] highly value,” none of the princesses are curvy or plus sized? How did this never dawn on her? And why wasn’t anyone being straight up with her about it at all? It’s like they were all dancing around the topic.

- The Deus Ex Machina Ending: No spoilers, but yeah. They were very convenient and unrealistic circumstances to get Tabi where she was for the finale. Also, when asked her name in a situation where she believes she’s getting fired, she has the nerve to stay in character as a princess instead of giving her real name lolllll

- Small Details: The blurb talked about how she’d be doing this with friends and a new crush, but she only ever had the new crush and one catty roommate who’s suddenly nice in the end. Also, the love interest plays a prince at one point who was drawn to be Asian throughout the rest of the book. They care so much about character authenticity, then let the non-Asian, lighter haired love interest be the prince with no talk of how that might appear? Also, they definitely pressured him into doing something he could’ve seriously gotten fired over.

- Another Small Detail: LI gives Tabi a penny for a wishing well. She says, “I can afford my own wishes,” before handing the penny back. Lol what

That being said, the overall summer and amusement park vibe was fun to read, but the story just didn’t take its own concepts and themes far enough.

Thank you to NetGalley and Feiwel & Friends for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

Tabitha LOVES Sommerland. She loves the princesses more specifically. When she was young, she was obsessed with the entire Sommerland universe. She loved love, happiness, and happily ever afters. When Tabi grew up, she got an opportunity to work at Sommerland! All she wanted was to be cast as a princess. The only problem? Tabi doesn’t FIT in with the princess idea. All princesses are thin in Sommerland. So she ends up at the nacho stand instead. Tabi is determined to get a coveted princess role and she will rely on a cast of characters to help her along the way.

This is VERY Disney coded! From the characters to the cast, it screams summer job at a Disney park. I LOVED IT! I’m a Disney lover (I wouldn’t say I’m a Disney adult but maybe?) and this was such an inside look on what potentially happens at Disney. The art is FANTASTIC! The characters are great and it is a well done graphic novel. I enjoyed the pacing and the well thought out plot of the overarching story. If you have a young teenager who loves Disney who may not fit the “ideal” Disney princess mold, this may be for them! Overall, it’s a 5/5 for me.