B- Reviews / Book Reviews / C+ ReviewsChinese American heroine / coming-of-age / Dark Fantasy / diversity / First-Person / Historical / Hollywood Golden Age / lesbian heroine / LGBTQIA characters / Magical Realism / monsters / POC / POC authorNo Comments
From award-winning author Nghi Vo comes a dazzling new novel where immortality is just a casting call away It was magic. In every world, it was a kind of magic. “No maids, no funny talking, no fainting flowers.” Luli Wei is beautiful, talented, and desperate to be a star. Coming ... more >
B Reviews / B+ Reviews / Book Reviews / C Reviews / Reading Listsbisexual hero / Black heroine / diversity / gay hero / LGBTQIA+ / m/m / POC / POC author / political intrigue / rock band / romantic-elements / singer / Supreme Court / thriller / YA2 Comments
If This Gets Out by Sophie Gonzales and Cale Dietrich After enjoying Sophie Gonzales’s 2021 YA novel, Perfect on Paper, I decided to try this one, also YA, since it had been recommended by Dear Author commenter Susan S. Like Perfect on Paper, If This Gets Out has queer characters, ... more >
A Reviews / Book Reviews / Recommended Reads#ownvoices / captain / corporation / disability / diversity / epistolary / found family / LGBTQIA+ / loss / mother and son / music / Mysterious powers / POC / queer characters / single mother / spaceship5 Comments
Dear Simon Jimenez, This beautiful standalone science fiction novel was one of the novels on my “Best of 2020” list. I read it in December of 2020 and have put off reviewing for over a year because I felt hard put to do it justice. I’m finally taking the plunge ... more >
B Reviews / Book Reviews#ownvoices / anxiety / Bangladeshi-American / being true to oneself / Contemporary / diversity / epistolary novel / expectations / fake relationship / high-school / immigrants / multicultural romance / music / Muslim / parents / POC / POC author / poetry / South-Asian / star-crossed lovers / YA5 Comments
Dear Tashie Bhuiyan, I picked up your romantic contemporary YA novel, Counting Down with You, after it was nominated for the Goodreads Awards in the Young Adult Fiction category. It didn’t win but I am glad it was nominated because I wouldn’t have found it otherwise. Karina Ahmed is a ... more >
Conversationsauthor discovery / Best of 2021 / comfort reading / Covid / diversity / DNF / enemies to lovers / genre critique / grumpy / sunshine / LGBTQIA+ / low-angst / statistics / tropes / year in review59 Comments
Janine: I’ve noticed that my reading habits change a little from year to year. Some years I read more or fewer books than usual. Some years I discover new favorite authors. At times a genre shifts in a direction that isn’t as likely to engage me while another becomes more ... more >
A- Reviews / B+ Reviews / Book Reviews / Recommended Readsboarding school / British Indian main character / class differences / competition / diversity / Fantasy / friendship / high school sweethearts / joint review / magical powers / magical school / Naomi-Novik / POC / prickly heroine / prophecy / Scholomance series / students / survival / YA / YA fantasy34 Comments
Jennie: Janine, Sirius, and I reviewed the first book in the Scholomance series (originally slated as two books; now a trilogy). Sirius gave it a C- and said she wouldn’t be reading this sequel, but Janine and I, though we had some reservations, ended up liking A Deadly Education quite ... more >