**spoiler alert** This is the Ali Hazelwood I needed and was missing! The perfect amount of yearning, horniness, and STEM - with two rival video game **spoiler alert** This is the Ali Hazelwood I needed and was missing! The perfect amount of yearning, horniness, and STEM - with two rival video game designers who are forced to go on a winter retreat with their teams in order to facilitate a contract deal. Look, Ali’s heroes are all the same, but why mess with a perfect formula? Jesse is brooding but kind, misunderstood and brilliant. He’s the perfect foil for Viola’s snarkiness. I loved the forced proximity, the goofy team, and the side characters. I really loved the parallel story of Limerence and how it was worked into the design of both the story and the video game. Honestly, I could have used an epilogue to show what happened with the game later on…but I very much enjoyed what I got. Excellent audio narration. ...more
Today in the mail, G and I got this graphic novel, UPROOTED by @ohtruth from one of my dearest friends, @kathfitz. It’s a memoir about a girl from TorToday in the mail, G and I got this graphic novel, UPROOTED by @ohtruth from one of my dearest friends, @kathfitz. It’s a memoir about a girl from Toronto who moves to Hong Kong as a teen in the 90s, and how she overcomes culture shock and learns to adapt to her wildly different surroundings. It’s also about her father’s family fleeing China during the Second Sino-Japanese War. The art is wonderful and so recognizable. It’s funny and moving and tender and sweet.
Like Ruth, I moved from Toronto to Hong Kong when I was a teen in the 90s. I had also never lived anywhere but Canada and left behind a group of friends who I loved. Like Ruth, my parents spoke Cantonese to me often and I would speak English back. Like Ruth, I had to overcome a lot of shyness to begin speaking Cantonese in Hong Kong again, with both my extended family and in the streets. Like Ruth, I attended an international high school in Hong Kong, and felt overwhelmed by a lot of the classes at first. Like Ruth, I hung out at Pacific Place with friends on the weekends, and listened to both Western and Cantopop stars. And like Ruth, when we first moved, my brother and I were often left to fend for ourselves, because my parents were working. Like Ruth, I also had family members who fled China during the same war, and remember it with sadness but also some pride. It is an absolutely surreal experience to read a memoir that so closely mirrors your own life experience. At this point, I count living in Hong Kong as a privilege. But at the time, I remember aching so much for my life in Canada and fantasizing about moving in with my best friends.
I don’t have anything really profound to say about this book, other than that it was deeply moving, eerily familiar, and that I felt understood and seen by it - maybe in a way that I never was at that time. I really really hope that other Third Culture Kids will read this and maybe see a little of themselves in it. Deeply grateful to have read this and to Ruth for sharing her experience - and to @mackidsbooks @stmartinspress @raincoastbooks for publishing it....more
Tessa Bailey has quickly become one of my fave romance authors. Not only are her sex scenes steamy as hell, but she dials up the emotional heart with Tessa Bailey has quickly become one of my fave romance authors. Not only are her sex scenes steamy as hell, but she dials up the emotional heart with her funny and well-rounded characters every time. Fangirl Down is no different. This story of one-time champion Wells Whitaker and Josephine Doyle, pro shop owner and number one fan who becomes his caddy is heart-achingly good, full of innuendo and longing and characters who really earn their happily ever after. It’s the ultimate grumpy-sunshine romance and I was here for every moment of it. Josephine is loyal, smart, sassy and unafraid to tell Wells what he needs. Wells is down and out, grumpy, but hiding his softer heart for kids who were like him, troublemakers who got lucky enough to find a passion. Their mutual inability to believe that they deserve love is central to the relationship, but also…the golf is really fun, as is the way that Josephine “motivates” Wells to play better. I loved the family moments with Josephine’s parents, and the way that Bailey writes these characters where you truly believe that there is no one for each of them but each other. And yeah, this is one dirty book - whew! These characters do not hold back on their sexual chemistry and desires. If there’s one thing I didn’t love, it was that their major conflict felt quick and easy to resolve and this, just a little unrealistic. But overall, this was a total winner for me and I may just have to read it again while I wait for book #2. ...more
**spoiler alert** 4-4.5 stars. I need to think about this one a bit more but this is definitely my favourite Rebecca Serle book yet. The premise of th**spoiler alert** 4-4.5 stars. I need to think about this one a bit more but this is definitely my favourite Rebecca Serle book yet. The premise of the slips of paper containing the name and expiration date of the relationships that Daphne goes through belie some of the beautifully explored, deeper issues of commitment, vulnerability, pain, and death that are embedded into this novel. Yes, it’s about love and romance, but like Serle’s other books, Expiration Dates is a tiny bit of magical realism that starts you on a path of questions - both of yourself and of the characters. Everything is couched in self-exploration and wonder at the world around you. This particular book celebrates people and friendships and relationships old and new, as well as Los Angeles and its many charms. It’s a delightful read threaded with Daphne’s past relationships as a foil to her current relationship with Jake, who is the first one who doesn’t have an expiration date on his paper. Does she choose to believe the paper? Is the paper a self-fulfilling prophecy or premonition? How does something that deterministic allow you to have agency over your life?
I think this book benefits so much from not knowing much else other than that, so the rest of my review will be in spoiler tags.
(view spoiler)[ I was really pleased with the way this book was plotted - I am normally a person who guesses at everything that is going to happen, and I’m usually right. This one - this one had moments that surprised even me - but they were done in a way that felt true to all of the characters.
There is definitely a will-they-won’t they thing going on with Hugo, Daphne’s best friend who she previously dated for three months. That relationship is built up quite beautifully, with glimpses of what he means to her contrasting with her current relationship. I loved this thread, and yes, it’s a love triangle but it’s one that is done in a way that feels honourable.
There are going to be people who absolutely hate the ending of this book. It’s divisive, for sure. And yet- I can’t think of a way that the author could continue the theme of uncertainty vs determinism without ending in this way. And so, from a craft standpoint, I think it’s perfectly done. Is it as emotionally satisfying as it could be? No. But does it make sense for the book? Yes. (hide spoiler)]
If you’re a fan of emotional, character driven novels that surprise and ask you to contemplate your own life, this one is for you. I found it so compelling, so effortlessly written, and thoughtful in a way that explores love and humanity without being heavy....more
4-4.5 stars. This is my favorite Emma Lord book since her first, Meet Cute. It has a lot of the same elements - mainly the love of New York, the frien4-4.5 stars. This is my favorite Emma Lord book since her first, Meet Cute. It has a lot of the same elements - mainly the love of New York, the friend circle, the app, and just SO MUCH CUTENESS and will-they-won't-they stuff. Riley and Tom are such unbelievably cute cinnamon rolls that it's hard not to love them, but as usual with Emma Lord, that fluffy exterior belies the hot messes that they actually are. Riley's issues stem from her shutdown after Tom leaves in high school, leaving her bereft without a co-conspirator. Because she got into trouble at school with him, her mother attempts to control her every move in her last years of high school, creating a "Good Kid" version of Riley where she not only feels like she's not herself, but also that her true self is not good enough for her mom. Whew. Tom's story unfolds as we see Riley and Tom traverse New York and discover just how isolated he's become - and how he combats that. I won't go into spoilers, but let's just say that Emma Lord knows how to reveal secrets at precisely the right moment, and even though I had guessed at some of the secrets Tom was keeping, I couldn't guess at everything.
I think the thing that resonated the most with me in this book is Riley's feeling that she's directionless. There's nothing more relateable at 17-18, when people tell you you're supposed to be choosing what you do for the rest of your life. Her scrappiness and her ability to find and discover more about herself is what drives this book, and makes it such a keeper. The cute scenarios, the wonderful friend circle, and the backdrop of New York are icing on the cake.
Emma Lord has been an auto-buy author for me since the beginning - she doesn't disappoint. People looking for really awesome older YA contemporary that isn't too adult will find it here....more
A solid, steady romance that feels almost too true to life. This is the book you read when you want a cozy romance that wraps you up like a blanket anA solid, steady romance that feels almost too true to life. This is the book you read when you want a cozy romance that wraps you up like a blanket and reminds you that good people exist in the world. In some ways, it’s both the strength and the downfall of this book: the people are so darn normal that it is slow at times, and (I hate to say it), a bit dull. There is nothing remarkable about Mike Martin or Aurora Evans, and their actions all make perfect sense based on what we learn from them throughout the book. There are really no surprises; their romance feels like a natural progression from friends to lovers. The flaw in this is that there is very little suspense, and the slow burn just doesn’t have a ton of momentum. The central conflict of the book is barely a conflict, imho, so I never felt that desperate pull for them to be together. Nevertheless, I liked meeting the characters and seeing their worlds mix. I liked the daughter, Olivia, and Rory’s best friend, Gertrude. I liked the way the issues Rory and Mike had between hockey and dance were paralleled. This is not a romance that is going to wow you, but it is enjoyable and a solid read. ...more
This is so friggin sexy. I am officially a Tessa Bailey convert. I liked the first book in this series, but THIS ONE. August and Natalie completely woThis is so friggin sexy. I am officially a Tessa Bailey convert. I liked the first book in this series, but THIS ONE. August and Natalie completely won my heart. ...more
Look, I already yelled about this friggin INCREDIBLE book all over my bookstagram, which I don’t even really use anymore but legit, Jessica Joyce is wLook, I already yelled about this friggin INCREDIBLE book all over my bookstagram, which I don’t even really use anymore but legit, Jessica Joyce is worth reupping my account because this book. THIS BOOK. It is sexy and funny and banter-y and emotional and omg there is a road trip, so much self-discovery, ambition and pride and passion and only one bed and FAMILY. Grief and heartbreak and healing. It’s beautifully written but Jessica Joyce does not hold back on the heat and sizzle. Is there anything better than enemies-to-lovers that works alongside theme and voice and characters who just sing? Every character in this book just vibrates off the page.
Look, there are a few moments and beats that are a bit predictable. But they are completely and utterly swept away by the emotion, the longing and the fun of discovering Noelle and Theo, and their families. The moments where Noelle interprets her grief are crystallizing, the travel and landscapes are tangible, and the HEA is out of this world. I honestly can’t even describe this book properly. Just go read it. You won’t be disappointed. ...more