Book Reviews / C+ Reviewsaddiction / California / Cancer / coming-of-age / Contemporary / depression / dysfunctional family / family relationships / road trip / self discovery / young adult fiction / Young-AdultNo Comments
Sometimes the best path is the unexpected one. Jack is on the verge for leaving for college, but before he does, he wants to track down his estranged brother, Alex and find some closure in the wake of their father’s death. Meanwhile, Hallie has just found out some upsetting news ... more >
Book Reviews#ownvoices / Arranged Marriages / California / Chef / coming-of-age / cops / m/m mystery / Missouri / Muslim / POC / POC author / police procedural / Reading lists / revenge porn / South-Asian / YA8 Comments
More Than Just a Pretty Face by Syed M. Masood Jayne’s review of this #ownvoices YA novel got me to pick it up and I was glad I did. Danyal Jilani is a good-looking and sweet nineteen-year-old in his senior year of high school (he was held back a year ... more >
B Reviews / Book ReviewsAsian Americans / Chinese-American MCs / coming-of-age / family relationships / First-Person / high-school / immigrant / New-Jersey / parents / POC / POC author / racism / Young-Adult8 Comments
David Tung is a Chinese American high-school student in an upscale, Asian-majority, New Jersey suburb who works every day at his family’s restaurant and strategizes every homeroom about how to improve his class rank so he can get into an Ivy League college. His only release? Hanging with his “real” ... more >
Book Reviews / C Reviews / C- Reviews#ownvoices / abuse / Black heroine / coming-of-age / high-school / POC / POC author / rock stars / singer / YANo Comments
Trigger warnings: Dear Tiffany D. Jackson, A couple of months ago I read and reviewed your YA novel, Monday’s Not Coming, and was impressed. The book had a powerful mystery at its center, a disappearance of a teenager noticed only by her best friend. Even before I read it, I ... more >
B Reviews / Book Reviews1980s / Athletes / coming-of-age / female friendship / high-school / LGBTQIA / POC / POC author / self discovery / teens / YA / young adult fiction4 Comments
Acclaimed novelist Quan Barry delivers a tour de female force in this delightful novel. Set in the coastal town of Danvers, Massachusetts, where the accusations began that led to the 1692 witch trials, We Ride Upon Sticks follows the 1989 Danvers High School Falcons field hockey team, who will do ... more >
B Reviews / Recommended Reads#ownvoices / 1970s / coming-of-age / crime novel / Deception / Mexico / noir / POC / POC author / Suspense / villageNo Comments
PLEASE NOTE: It’s almost impossible to discuss this novel’s strengths and weaknesses without giving away spoilers, so if you prefer not to be spoiled, read no further. Dear Silvia Moreno-Garcia, I don’t generally read crime novels, but the description of Untamed Shore as a “novel of suspense with an eerie ... more >