This book is a wonderful idea. It feels like there is a huge opportunity to thrive, however I don’t feel it was executed well. I had to force myself to finish it and I just could not connect to the characters or the plot. It feels like it is lacking some description on both the worlds as well as the characters and there just wasn’t any emotion that I felt for the overall story itself.

-Stone

I enjoyed the book and it was the first I have read involving goblins. It was a quick and easy read with enough twists and surprises to keep me turning the page. The characters particularly Pudge grew as the story evolved and initially I thought there was going to be a love triangle but given the plot twist that wasn’t to be.

*Review will be posted on 5/16/20
Thank you to Entangled Teen and NetGalley for giving me a chance to read this eARC.

My Reactions:

Had My Attention: for the most part

World Building: fairly solid on the goblin world, but some holes with the human being fairy tales bit 🤔

Writing Style: Easy to follow, quick read 🙂, more young teen than young adult

Bringing the Heat: a sweet kiss 🔥

Crazy in LOVE: 💚💚 (mild, best-friend crush)

Creativity: Goblins 👍🏼

Mood: adventurous

Triggers: mild violence

My Takeaway: half goblin girl shows her goblin family and friends that she’s better than the boys and worthy

What I Liked:
*Goblin stories always entertain me because not a lot of books are written about them. They are not as gorgeous as their fae or elf counterparts so I like how we have a handsome goblin prince with razor sharp teeth and green skin in this book.

*Ivy can hold her own against the bullies and she trains with the guys so that’s always fun to see a girl who can fight.

*I thought her crush on her best friend Pudge is cute and sweet. Their relationship is solid, not much challenges there except how they both don’t know how the other feels.
Love the book cover!

Things That Made Me Go Hmm:
*The twist with Ivy and Dorian (goblin prince) – ha! Didn’t see that coming and it was a bit awkward but it worked out in the end.

*It’s a quick read and though Ivy encounters some challenges, she meets them pretty easily. Personally I wanted more, even the betrayal felt a bit weak, it felt like a light fantasy – which is fine for some. For me, I just wanted more.

Final Thoughts:
I like stories about goblins because they have a rich culture even though they don’t seem the most glamorous of creatures. This story held my attention for the most part with a goblin kingdom, adventure, a girl trying to prove herself and a happy ending.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Where There Be Humans felt like reading a book. Which I suppose shouldn't be a complaint because technically I was reading a book, but I'd argue that a book's main job is to make you forget that. For whatever reason, I just couldn't buy into the narrative.

MC Ivy has been raised a Goblin but has always suspected she was half human, despite humans being widely regarded as 'fairy tales'. The premise sounds interesting, but I was frustrated that there was never any real reason provided as to why everyone was convinced humans were just a fairy tale. Ivy and her world felt very human-esque and when she does enter the human world any differences between the two realms felt more like a cultural change then a species based one. I was really excited to read about Humans as a fantastical species with their own mythos and that just never happened.

Everything also happens way too easily for Ivy. The plot doesn't necessarily move to quickly, but each event feels like it's happening because it's next in the book, not because it's something organically happening to Ivy.

A cool concept, but I had too much trouble getting into the world to become invested in the story.