In Impostor Syndrome, the excitement continues as a stark division is raised between both of the Fey courts as well as the London versus Los Angeles Arcadia Project offices. Millie is set to protect those she cares for, as well as the Arcadia Project as a whole, against all of the upheaval caused by the warring factions. I continue to really enjoy this series. I love Millie and her personality. She’s not perfect, she has some extra challenges in life, and I just love her attitude and sense of humor that she exhibits whenever she has struggles. It helps to keep things from getting too grim or dark. Another thing I like seeing is that the relationships just feel real. The Arcadia Project seems to be full of slightly dysfunctional characters, and as they each face their own challenges, they don’t always get along with one another. (which is completely natural and understandable), but despite this, when it comes down to it, they do all care for each other. So while Millie and her partner Tjuan may not always seem to mesh well personality wise, they have each others backs completely. So when Tjuan has been framed for murder, Millie…

Phantom Pains continue’s Baker’s wonderfully fresh style of keeping Urban Fantasy a bit more “real” and grounded without compromising on the fantastical. Millie’s life might be full of the extra ordinary, she might be a person that a reader can admire, may be able to deal with fae and break their magic with a touch, but there’s no denying her life is trying. I don’t envy her harsh reality of being a double amputee, but at the same time, her story and challenges are just part of her life, they don’t prevent her from being able to liver her life and do what needs doing. The author does not gloss over her disability, nor does she dwell on it, but rather incorporates all of the extra challenges Millie faces as just a part of how she lives and copes. And while Millie is not always upbeat, she does an amazing job handling both her disability from losing both legs as well as her borderline personality. I find it interesting how the author can explain some of the Borderline personality traits and behaviors that Millie struggles with in a way that helps us understand her, gives us better insight when she…

I’ve been salivating over this amazing cover for months now, and I was so excited to be able to read Mishell Baker’s debut. I thought I was going to get one type of story, but ultimately Borderline blew me away with its odd—but somehow workable—combination of elements. First, the setting is Los Angeles, Baker’s hometown, and sunny Tinseltown turns out to be the perfect setting. The story revolves around a famous film director whose “muse” has gone missing. It turns out that every creative person on Earth has a muse from a parallel world called Arcadia, where the Seelie and Unseelie Courts are real, and the fey are not just the stuff of movies. And then there is Millie. Millie is definitely a new favorite character, and despite her rough edges I dare you not to fall in love with her. Baker has given her a double whammy of disabilities. First, she has borderline personality disorder (which I didn’t know anything about before I read this book) and she’s been institutionalized for the past six months after a suicide attempt, during which she lost both her legs. So not only is she mentally ill, but she’s a double amputee as…