Posted by 
The title led me to believe this was going to be a comedy — and although there are a few funnier moments, this was definitely more of an adventure/coming of age/chosen one kind of story rather than a comedy.
Our two MCS are Tom and Emily — Tom grew up in his uncle’s tavern, and the whole situation gave me Harry Potter vibes. His aunt and uncle are terrible people; they treat him like shit, and they keep him hidden away in the basement and try to deny his existence when anyone asks about him. However, the neighbors definitely know he’s there; they’re not doing a very good job of hiding him because he also collects all the used glasses at the tavern. That part doesn’t make a ton of sense to me, but I digress.
This is one of those books where the ‘farmer boy’ finds out he’s special, except this time is a tavern boy. Turns out, there’s something called The Goodness Potion, and in theory, it creates someone who is entirely good — except, for every action there’s an equal and opposite reaction — and this potion also creates someone who is entirely evil. In theory. All Tom knows is that he was given the potion, he bleeds black, and black lightning comes down sporadically when he bleeds.
Tom then goes on a wandering adventure looking for his “other half,” who was also created when they drank the potion about 14 years ago as a baby. He believes that if he can find his twin, he will be able to find answers about his powers. Why does he summon black lightning? Why does he bleed black? However, of course, this doesn’t turn into an easy journey. He gets kidnapped by pirates, encounters mermaids, is chased by all sorts of magical creatures, encounters deer-people, fairies, and all sorts of fantasy creatures.
As far as the pacing, there were plot points that could have been really interesting, but they were settled very quickly. I wanted to learn more about the mermaids, for example, but we were only there for about a chapter or two until the character moved on. I found myself struggling to emotionally invest in the events because as soon as I started to get interested, we moved on to a different area with different fantasy creatures and problems to solve, they’d get solved quickly, and then we’re off again to a new adventure. I feel like this book could have been expanded into a trilogy, and if each book had focused on 2-3 of the events and used the page time to expand on each idea, it would have built more depth, and it could have been a bit more engaging.
There was a huge amount of world-building, but unfortunately, a lot of it was delivered via info dumping. We’ve got fairies, giants, pirates, mermaids, deer people, etc. I really did like the world-building ideas, like shells that have compass-like effects that helped the mer-folk navigate the sea — but the way it was delivered and how quickly we were moving from one thing to the next left it feeling hectic.
The target audience is somewhat difficult to pin down. With 14-year-old protagonists and a lack of gore or profanity, it initially feels like Middle Grade or Young Adult. However, the introduction of heavier themes like suicidal ideation and a chaotic, dark conclusion filled with betrayals suggests it is better suited for high-school-aged readers.
Towards the end, things get SUPER crazy, there are big reveals that characters aren’t who you thought they were, there’s a lot of betrayals, a lot of drama, and it becomes super chaotic in the last few chapters. I think perhaps this would appeal to high school-aged kids, given that it gets a little darker and more mature about halfway through the book.
Overall, this was a creative “chosen one” adventure that succeeds in its ideas, even if the execution feels a bit rushed. I finished this book and so it is marked as safe for now!