honestly had no idea what to expect going into this one but the premise was exciting! I def wasn't disappointed as far as premise goes - messy queer (honestly had no idea what to expect going into this one but the premise was exciting! I def wasn't disappointed as far as premise goes - messy queer (esp sapphic) novels are my bread n butter and this one had a good character arc that also made it more enjoyable than if she was just being a self destructive & chaotic mess the entire time. also liked the ending.
the protagonist Astrid is insufferable (and even 'cancellable') at times but you can't help but root for her all the same. loved the lesbian pulp references + the pop culture references, interesting combo that worked really well, but may not age gracefully (but maybe it will idk). loved the LA setting (felt like it was captured perfectly), the toxic dynamics, the perfume fixation, the idea of outgrowing ones own coping mechanisms.
I will say that Astrid can be a bit judgmental, even (almost even especially) towards other queer people, which rubbed me wrong at times. it definitely got it's point across though and I felt like she was a fully fleshed out character - problematic and hilarious and unapologetically messy.
if any of the above sounds like your cup of tea, I definitely recommend! this was compulsively readable and I had a v fun time....more
this is one of the most inventive and beautiful books I've ever read!!! I just finished it an hour ago and already know I'll be thinking about it for this is one of the most inventive and beautiful books I've ever read!!! I just finished it an hour ago and already know I'll be thinking about it for a long long time. stories about the multiverse are intimidating, and I often worry that a writer won't know how to make it make sense to a tiny lil brain like mine. but emet north absolutely nailed it and I'm just genuinely taken aback by what a beautiful and complex book they've written.
I loved the way this book dived deep into trauma, mental health, queerness, identity and the sacred uniqueness of our realities as we know them. I loved the way it felt almost like a collection of short stories - each chapter so creative and fully capable of standing as it's own story - all with overlapping characters and details and themes that are constantly tying and tangling beautifully. north has an incredibly gorgeous writing style and there were so many gutting lines I wanted to underline but to do so I would've to underline the whole page before and the whole page after just to catch the full beauty of what they were saying.
so! consider me a fan!!! I could go on but I'll just say that this book really rocked my world and I can't wait to recommend it to everyone
thanks netgalley and harper for the e-arc! <3...more
I love billy-ray belcourt 4ever so I was incredibly stoked for this new collection of interwoven short stories. unfortunately, i3.5 stars rounded up~
I love billy-ray belcourt 4ever so I was incredibly stoked for this new collection of interwoven short stories. unfortunately, it did fall a little flat for me. a lot of the stories didn't really go anywhere and all felt more or less the same? I also got especially confused with the digital arc as there was no distinction between stories/chapters and they all just rolled into each other - not sure if the book is actually intended to be read that way but it was confusing and a little frustrating to not realize when one story was ending and the other beginning.
that said!!! I could probably read belcourt write about anything and still be glad I did. his prose is unlike anything else, and I love the way he explores his identity & indigenous background. always compelling, brutal and beautiful in a way so completely his own.
thank you netgalley and ww norton for the arc!...more
I really wanted to love this one & it started out so strong for me - there was a lot I genuinely enjoyed and I was very immedi3.5 stars rounded down~
I really wanted to love this one & it started out so strong for me - there was a lot I genuinely enjoyed and I was very immediately hooked, but it just felt like a lot of it eventually went over my head, and the writing style also started bothering me a little, even as I knew it was a clear stylistic choice!!!
otherwise, I thought this was a fun read & I know a lot of readers who will certainly eat it up. I loved the layered creepy elements especially - the body horror, the creepy deer, the stories within stories. it did a good job of making my skin crawl (no pun intended, iykyk). I also loved that it offered a unique exploration of grief & mental health. I feel like I'll prob need to re-read it to understand some of the symbolism as it relates (or doesn't) to that.
eee, I absolutely adored the stories in 'ghostroots'!! this collection had a big focus on family, parenthood & identity. loved all the magic & mytholoeee, I absolutely adored the stories in 'ghostroots'!! this collection had a big focus on family, parenthood & identity. loved all the magic & mythology sprinkled throughout and the writing style kept me hooked on stories that might've otherwise bored me. so many of these stories had me so impressed that I assumed they'd be my fav and then I'd read another that amazed me just as much!
it was also really cool learning more about lagos - nigeria is a setting i love in books in general but these stories felt like being transported there, v immersive. highly recommend this one and looking forward to telling all my friends about it!!
oof, I absolutely adored this one!! such a fun creative read, I was fully invested from start to finish. I love books that have a dystopian but realisoof, I absolutely adored this one!! such a fun creative read, I was fully invested from start to finish. I love books that have a dystopian but realistic feeling to them, where things are just barely worse than they are now. in 'state of paradise', our unnamed protagonist (come to think of it, I think every character in this book is unnamed) lives in a post-pandemic, slightly apocalyptic Florida and reckons with her own past, present & inner-world. this book deals with family, self, escapism & disaster - all things I am v into so suffice it to say, I ate this right up.
4.5 rounded down because the middle-ending area got kinda weird and hard to follow, but it came together well in the end.
thank you netgalley and FSG for the arc! <3...more
I wanted to like this a lot more than I did, but I still enjoyed it a fair amount.
loved the writing style, loved unhinged n lost lil Moddie, loved thI wanted to like this a lot more than I did, but I still enjoyed it a fair amount.
loved the writing style, loved unhinged n lost lil Moddie, loved the premise of returning to your hometown when it isn't home anymore, but around the 40-50% mark, I started getting pretty disinterested and felt like it dragged. it just got a bit meandering and the voice was always kinda the same imo, even as the perspective shifted between characters. all in all, it was sad and weird and fun (+ laugh-out-loud funny at times), but not a fav. I'm sure tons of folks will love it, just wasn't my thing as much as I thought it would be when I first started it.
thanks netgalley and random house for the arc! <3 ...more
I really enjoyed this and loved Gordon - he felt complicated and real and messy to me, in a way I liked a lot and I found myself rooting for him even I really enjoyed this and loved Gordon - he felt complicated and real and messy to me, in a way I liked a lot and I found myself rooting for him even as he behaved v recklessly and selfishly! I found this to be very absorbing despite it being more slice-of-life and I loved the way it explored wealth, power and queerness. I loved the writing style and the unique way Grattan would hop into the future and then hop back into the 'present' to explain whatever we missed in between. I also loved the early 2000's settings, and the myriad locations (and shenanigans) Gordon found himself in.
while there were some dull parts, this was such a sweet lil story overall, and the ending was incredibly touching! overall a really enjoyable coming-of-age kinda read, with layered and unique characters & dynamics. 3.5 rounded up to 4!
I wasn't sure how I felt about this one at first. our protagonist, vivian, is very shallow, pretentious and privileged (and v aware of these qualitiesI wasn't sure how I felt about this one at first. our protagonist, vivian, is very shallow, pretentious and privileged (and v aware of these qualities) - which I guess is the point, but even knowing that, it took me a sec to care about this kind of narration. that said, I did love the (often very pseudo) social criticism and the way it was almost always centered around vivian's own self-image / self-obsession - I think it was a very honest portrayal of the ugly + egotistic underbelly of the human experience. I also appreciated the exploration of her own mental health struggles in relation to her present-day observations, et al, and probably would've liked to learn more about her. I will say, the last chapter was the best part, and turned my rating around a bit.
3.5 stars, rounded down to 3 for the sake of the review.
I was utterly obsessed w/ this collection of stories. these stories were dark, weird, captivating, sapphic and surreal.hooooly moly, new fav alert!!!
I was utterly obsessed w/ this collection of stories. these stories were dark, weird, captivating, sapphic and surreal. I kept being so satisfied with each story, waiting to lose interest as the stories progressed, and I never did! I loved the topics explored, a lot of magical realism, grief, heartache, and dystopian themes. seriously devoured this and will devour anything else ghosh puts out into the world. a seriously incredible debut <3
thank you net galley and astra house! I will be thinking + talking about this one for a while....more
okay so, wowie! I loved this one! idk if I just didn't read the synopsis thoroughly but it went in a completely different direction than I expected afokay so, wowie! I loved this one! idk if I just didn't read the synopsis thoroughly but it went in a completely different direction than I expected after part one, and I looooved that! such a cool story - very meta at times, and I really appreciated the focus on social media as it relates to true crime. I think fans of 'Penance' by Eliza Clark will especially appreciate that element! it was very detective-esque without falling into many cliches or tropes of the genre, and at times I was truly on the edge of my seat !!
I was fully prepared to give this 5 stars (my first (official) 5 star read of the year!) but I didn't love the final section of this book , and I unfortunately have to drop my review to 4.5 (rounded down to 4 for the sake of the review) stars instead. Jeremy is a character I didn't particularly care about, especially by the end, and I wish the book ended on a different note, maybe circling back to Jane or something. I ultimately found myself bored by this section, which was unexpected since I was really invested in the rest of the book!
either way, this one was hard to put down and a real treat. thanks net galley and mulholland books for the arc!...more
not gonna lie, I absolutely loved this strange sapphic book!!! I really appreciated the uniqueness of all the characters - they all felt flawed and conot gonna lie, I absolutely loved this strange sapphic book!!! I really appreciated the uniqueness of all the characters - they all felt flawed and complex and ugly and honest - especially Helen, the narrator, who I loved even though she was a big ole wreck the entire book (with the strangest & darkest intrusive thoughts) . the throuple dynamic was explored really interestingly, the power dynamics, the kinks, the cat & mouse of it. as much as I loved the parts of the book that focused on the romantic elements, I feel like I especially loved the parts that focused on Helen's family and how deeply flawed & fricked up those relationships were as well. as weird as this book is, I just really don't have anything bad to say about it - except that it probably won't be for everyone. Helen is quite a freak (sexually & otherwise), but once you learn to love the unpredictable and unusual waves of her mind, the prose is just incredible.
4.5 stars rounded up. thanks net galley and catapult for the arc!...more
aw man. this one is tragic & touching, devastating and delicate, all about the lasting impact of young love, lost love especially. I really appreciateaw man. this one is tragic & touching, devastating and delicate, all about the lasting impact of young love, lost love especially. I really appreciated learning about what it's like to be queer in Cameroon, though it made me really really sad to think about what so many people are dealing with / have dealt with for so long, and that there are so many people (everywhere, not just Cameroon) hiding such fundamental parts of themselves in fear. I'm still formulating the rest of my opinions but I'm really glad I read this one. while it's not particularly happy, it had it's moments, and ultimately made me grateful for the human ability to love & be loved in this cruel, weird world.
thank you netgalley and catapult for the arc!!...more
uhhh. I'm obsessed (thank you netgalley & knopf for the arc!)
I've loved kimberly king parsons ever since I read her short story collection several yeuhhh. I'm obsessed (thank you netgalley & knopf for the arc!)
I've loved kimberly king parsons ever since I read her short story collection several years back, so I was incredibly stoked to hear about this one, esp when I read the premise as it sounded Very up my alley.
the book follows a new mom in TX (yeehaw) named kit. the story jumps around from her past (doing lots of psychedelic drugs & starting a band with her younger sister) to her present (being h*rny, boed, slightly unhinged, bisexual as hell (was truly living for the representation) & a couple years deep into the sudden & tragic loss of the aforementioned sister).
this book is an absolutely gorgeous exploration of grief, motherhood/sisterhood/girlhood, sexuality, desire, family, psychedelic drugs & identity. choked me up and made me cackle multiple times, often on the same exact page.
I loved the nostalgic yearning, the musings on family and death and loss and life. loved kit so much - it's rare that I meet a protagonist I really n truly wanna be friends with, but I think we'd get along great and I'd love to give her a hug.
this is definitely going down as a fav of the year, and has solidified kimberly king parsons place in my heart 4ever <3 ...more
'swanna in love' follows a precocious, angsty & intelligent 14-year-old girl named swanna in the 80s. while her parenthank you netgalley for the arc!
'swanna in love' follows a precocious, angsty & intelligent 14-year-old girl named swanna in the 80s. while her parents go thru their divorce and swanna's mom drags her thru some out-of-state shenanigans w/ her new bf, swanna meets a nearly 40-year-old married man and they begin to have an affair.
while this coming-of-age story was charming, honest & laugh-out-loud funny, I found the relationship to this adult man to be too creepy to look past. at first I was convinced the POINT was that he was a creepy loser, and that this would come to light and be acknowledged, but as I read on, it felt more like he was romanticized by young & impressionable swanna more than anything, and it was never fully (only sometimes, slightly) called out how gross and predatory he was, and how swanna was being groomed & SA'd. I usually don't have a hard time with subject matter like that but something about this just really didn't sit right with me and I was surprised to see that none of the other few reviewers touched on that, as it was a huge element of the story.
all in all, I'd give it a 3.5 rounded down to 3. it's relatable (sometimes painfully) and swanna is a lovable, confused and complicated teenage girl who I just wanted to hug and save from all the weird adults in her life....more
i really liked this at first and when i heard more negative reviews i thought people were being dramatic. turns out they wehappy pub day to this one~
i really liked this at first and when i heard more negative reviews i thought people were being dramatic. turns out they weren't! but it's okay, i still walked away with a somewhat positive opinion of it.
i've read Elle Nash's other books and what i've always appreciated is the way she doesn't shy away from writing really gross/gritty characters/dynamics/environments. it sometimes comes across a little try-hard, but i'm still kind of a sucker for it. i will say, 'Deliver Me' felt a little more... mature than her other books, which i liked. and yeah, sure, it was a little gratuitous in it's grossness at times, but i admire that Nash is never afraid to 'go there', and i feel like this will stick with me for a while - for better or worse !
3.5 rounded up. thanks net galley for the arc!!...more
