I went into Is That an Aura of Wild Magic Engulfing You, or Are You Just Pleased to See Me? expecting a whimsical, offbeat adventure, and while it’s undeniably clever and bursting with chaotic energy, I struggled to stay engaged. The rapid-fire humour and playful writing, though entertaining in moments, made it hard to connect with the characters or fully immerse myself in the story. It’s the kind of book that will shine for readers who love absurd, fourth-wall-breaking antics, but unfortunately, it wasn’t the right fit for me. DNF for now, but I can see this being a favourite for the right audience!

Please note the 1 star review is only there because I'm not able to say I didn't finish the book.

Unfortunately there were lots of technological errors and when I went to resend this to myself it was no longer available. But it sounds like a book that would be up my alley so I'll be purchasing it from bookshop.org (not amazon!).

I absolutely loved this book. It is somewhat cosy fantasy as there is no major peril at any time, but that doesn't affect the pace or enjoyment as there is still a strong plot with good characters and worldbuilding.
In a post-apocalyptic setting, a young man called Laceco has run away from his travelling circus as he thinks he is giving people magical manifestations (where they change form or place or strange things happen around them) and he wants to stop that. He builds himself a home on a mountain, only to wake up one morning on the floor because a young woman has pushed him out of his bed. He soon finds himself taken into the warm embrace of another travelling company, one in which most people have a disability of some sort. The people around him start to have manifestations of their own and he has to help them to resolve them and get back to normality.
The world this book takes place in is strange but the reader can still picture it and understand it enough without long passages of background or clumsy exposition through dialogue, and you gradually get to piece enough together to close off unusual concepts.
The characters we meet are all well shaped and unique and their interactions are both funny and charming, with quite open discussions about or awkwardness about talking about disabilities.
I really enjoyed this book and how it looks to resolve the conflicts within some characters, which are usually not connected to their disabilities, the author exploring their feelings not directly connected to their physical restrictions.
The book was thoroughly enjoyable and a treat to pick up and read by the pool or on the balcony on holiday.
I received a free copy of this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 rounded to 4 stars

This was an overall good read. The world was interesting, although the introduction to it felt a bit clunky. The disability rep was handled really well, and there were a lot of relevant topics touched on that had to do with different disabilities. I felt like the story would have been more coherent with less allegory and more concrete examples, but since the magic of the world works more allegorically, it worked. Some of the topics covered really hit home - time being different when disabled, the constant struggle of chronic illnesses, trying to find one's place in a community - and were poignantly portrayed.

I would recommend this for fans of fantasy with a queer-normative world and disability rep.

I picked this story up for two reasons: The first line in the summary promising queer disabled joy and the fact that it was tagged as fantasy on netgalley, which is a genre where disabled people often do not really feature. If you want more disabled fantasy like I did, this book absolutely delivers on that wonderfully and I adored it so much for that.
I am incredibly excited to see that Me/Cfs is slowly gaining representation in media and I found the way it was portrayed here great. In general, one of my favorite parts of this book was its nuanced examination of dis_ability, crip4crip solidarity, crip wisdom etc. I also liked the way the disabled society had formed here, found new ways of living together and exist in solidarity and care for each other, while still examining the negative aspects of disabled people being pushed in segregated spaces like these, even if they can be the best place for survival for some. And I also really enjoyed that a few aspects of disability studies were featured in the story (such as disabled time). I also liked the way polyamory was handled and the very low-key trans rep (mentioned in one sentence, but concerning important characters, which I found lovely).
The story itself is a bit of a cozy mystery as we follow Laceco, as he tries to figure out what is causing these manifestations and how to stop them, but also the way he forms connections and finds community with others, as well as unlearn internalized ableism, but also deal with what he termed “the Oro Virus”, a fictional way of dealing with the prejudiced stereotypes and negative ideas we can absorb if we grow up in a prejudiced society. I also really enjoyed getting to follow the other characters as they dealt with their problems, some related to their disabilities, others caused through other issues. It was both interesting and comforting for me to read this and I really found a lot of joy in it.
My only problems with the story were some worldbuilding issues that are rather minor in the big picture, but include some things I would have liked examined a bit more. Why are the terms masc and femme used in this story, while the terms woman and man also exists? What exactly do they refer to here in this fantasy world? What about people who fall outside of that binary? Are they just a replacement for man and woman or are they about gender presentation? Laceco always seems to know whether somebody is a masc or a femme, but how? As you can see, that was something that was bothering me a bit. I also would have liked a definition of the term “Q.A.P.I.T. people”, as that is a term that is unfamiliar even to me, somebody raised on tumblr. And finally, I need to know what the ties stand for. I kept a list for every meaning mentioned and while I have guesses for the purple tie (severe disability?), I have no clue what the yellow, the black and the brown tie stand for. They are mentioned, but we never find out what they signify, and I would have liked to know.
But if my only problems with this story are these minor questions of worldbuilding and what these terms signify, I think you can tell that I otherwise had a really great time with the story. It was refreshing to read a story with that many disabled people, disabled community and kinship and care, disabled joy and disabled love. This is certainly something I need to recommend to some friends of mine.

TW: attempted drugging, ableism, internalized ableism, misogyny, illness

This is a very impactful book with a huge amount of heart. Reading it has shifted how I think and that is not something I expected from a fiction novel.

The story follows Laceco and his found family as they each tackle disabilities in their many forms. Some are visible and some are not. They all go through different journeys with different emotions but it is such a treat to follow along with them. It has me way more introspective than I thought would be.

As someone with an invisible disability this story hit hard. I am going to be recommending it to all my friends to read. The story and reflection is that impactful that everyone should read it.

"Is That An Aura of Wild Magic Engulfing You, Or Are You Just Pleased To See Me?" is really one of a kind. It has the unique talent to slap you in the face with a cruel truth one minute and wrap you in a hug with a consoling thought the next.

It's so full of disability representation, queer representation, self-realization, and so much love.
The way Laceco worked through the manifestations with other people, changing not only their lives but his life in the process as well, was so beautiful to see.
I went through so many emotions when reading this book, and it filled me with such a fierce need to change the world for the better, to give people who don't feel like they fit in a place to express themselves without the constant pressure to explain themselves, that in my mind this story needs a little award for giving me hope and inspiration.
The only thing I would have enjoyed seeing more of is further explanation of Oro and Akoma and some more information on Lacecos manifestation, because the explanations felt quite vague at times.

To sum up, this book is for everyone wondering about their place in the world because of the seemingly huge differences that split them up from other people and everything who wants to change the world and their mindset for the better.

Thanks to NetGalley and Victory Editing for providing me with this ARC in return for an honest review.

I received this eARC through NetGalley, and I will be the first to admit the title is why I requested it.

If you're looking for a story that treats disability in a very refreshing (that being: human) way, this might be the book for you. If you like flawed characters who learn to care for themselves like they care for others, this is definitely the book for you.

As I grasp with the shape of my own disabilities I've found this to be not just a comfort to read but also a joy. The only thing I struggled with was the slightly complex beginning, but this is definitely one of those books where you roll with it and reap the rewards plenty.

I'm grateful I got to read this book! I think you should, too!

Sadly, this was a DNF for me due to technical errors. What I was able to read seemed promising. However, there were issues with the kindle version of this book where the pages seemed scanned and didn't quite work well. A shame really, I have given it 3 stars as I believe that I would have enjoyed it if I was able to continue reading.

I wont be leaving a review on social media until I am able to purchase the book and read it properly.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This was a very interesting read. It was a bit slow for me to get into at the beginning, but it turned out to be quite an enjoyable journey.

This book had a lot of focus on people with disabilities, which made for a pleasant change of pace.

The characters, especially Laceco, were well written and have a nice depth to them.

While it wasn’t quite what I had pictured when I requested the book, it was a nice read and a great adventure.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher/author for this copy of the book.