Lunar New Year Love Story

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Average customer rating 4 (3 comments)

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The art in this book was very pretty; the style was cute and fit the YA-romance genre well. There was a lot of fluidity to the art and creative page layouts that brought life to the story. The striking use of colors added a lot to the expressiveness and mood of the art too. The magical elements were incorporated well. They provided a push to get the story going and a time limit that upped the stakes without taking too much focus away from the core of the story which was Valentina's relationships (both romantic and with her family and friends) and her concept of love. "Saint V", the main supernatural element and antagonist started out as a good mix of creepy and sad. I had wondered if there was going to be more to him as the story progressed, but he mostly faded into the background. This did lower the tension a bit, but there was a lot to show with all Valentina's relationships and he did not need to be at the forefront. The romance was simple and fairly predictable from the start, but I liked that there was time for it to develop and for Valentina to explore her feelings and her options, even looking for other ways to escape her deal with Saint V that still felt in line with the themes of the story.

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I was amazed by how touching I found this story. I thought it was just going to be a cute love story set around Lunar New Year. I was wrong. There was so much more than just romantic love, there was familial love, platonic love between friends. It was all woven together in a beautiful story, rich with culture, that also touches on grief and strained family relationships. It was all well balanced, though. There was definitely enough comic relief (aka Grandma) that nothing ever got too heavy. I laughed out loud, teared up a little, smiled a lot. All of which are signs of a great story. I was thoroughly immersed in the book and was sad to see it end. The author did a great job with the story and the illustrator really brought the story to life. I honestly think it was the best graphic novel I have ever had the pleasure of reading. Beautifully done, this is such a good way to start the year.

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A totally original love story, this magical tale combines elements of the supernatural and the mundane. We witness Valentina’s inner turmoil as other people grow up and leave behind childish things such as schoolhouse valentine cards. Even her father no longer indulges her when she gives him yet another sweet card. She struggles to avoid heartbreak while chasing after love…all the while a spectral figure, uncertain and grim, haunts her. Is Valentina Tran seeing ghosts or suffering from visions brought on by a motherless life? Is she in a state of arrested development? How does she know when it’s love or when it’s just a passing fancy? Advice given to her by her love-em-and-leave-em girlfriend Bernice Lee doesn’t help nor can she get decent help from her unhappy father. The illustrations are superb, especially the Cupid/Saint V/Valentine of Rome figures. When chubby, cheery Cupid transforms to a ghastly specter, it’s the stuff of nightmares. Valentine wonders why he can’t turn back. We wonder if this is a romance or a ghost story. The ending isn’t necessarily happy but that’s because it’s better. It acknowledges that love isn’t all sunshine, roses and handmade cards. The best kind of love is one that includes everything that the emotion brings with it, even if that happens to be pain and heartache. It’s a thrilling tale of passion, amorous flings, secrets, lies and deception…all the good stuff you’d expect in a romance.