So funny, sexy, romantic, adorable, and so VERY gay Christmas! Having love stories for three siblings was over the top cute and sticky sweet, but if ySo funny, sexy, romantic, adorable, and so VERY gay Christmas! Having love stories for three siblings was over the top cute and sticky sweet, but if you’re doing a queer holiday romcom, you might as well just make it crazy. I loved how all three had distinctive voices and personalities, though Birdie was by far my favorite (she was just SO hilarious and irreverent and damaged). I was worried that the end would get too ridiculous, but while there was a lot of drama, it wrapped up in a way that made sense and didn’t feel forced. The holidays are a good backbone without feeling too much, and I really enjoyed this. ...more
I loved Kit’s vibe of a grown up, slightly neurodivergent, opera singing Nancy Drew, and all the opera details worked to give me great context withoutI loved Kit’s vibe of a grown up, slightly neurodivergent, opera singing Nancy Drew, and all the opera details worked to give me great context without being boring. This was just a great, classic mystery with interesting characters (also kudos to Richter for not adding any cliched gay actor best friends!!), plenty of action, and a solid wrap up. I loved to hate Yolanda and seeing her history unfold was fun. Also, I got a possible series feeling and I’m really hoping to read more Kit stories in the future. ...more
Just as wild a ride as Bartz’s amazing debut! This one has a weird cult, a 90s movie, a therapist, and some really fun surprises. Honestly just read iJust as wild a ride as Bartz’s amazing debut! This one has a weird cult, a 90s movie, a therapist, and some really fun surprises. Honestly just read it, don’t worry about descriptions. It’s more fun to dive in and let a twisty tale like this lead you where it will. ...more
Dreamy and weird and creepy, with a haunted, rotting mansion and an even more haunted garden; a contested will; and a lot of secret history that gets Dreamy and weird and creepy, with a haunted, rotting mansion and an even more haunted garden; a contested will; and a lot of secret history that gets unearthed - such a perfect family gothic story. My one issue was the randomly interspersed Chinese characters - reading on kindle allowed me to translate sometimes, and sometimes the text immediately translated, but I worried I was missing things when I couldn’t get a translation, and it did sometimes take me out if the flow of the story because it was so random (using an English term three times, then Chinese characters, then English again, then Chinese written in English characters). I bet it would have worked better if I was multilingual but sadly I am not. That’s such a minor thing, though, and otherwise I loved this and devoured it, really getting into the creepy heavy atmosphere and sitting with the flawed, grieving characters and watching the house and its ghosts slowly devour them. ...more
I loved Meryl Wilsner’ precious books so much, but this one didn’t work quite as well for me. That could be because the main characters both just seemI loved Meryl Wilsner’ precious books so much, but this one didn’t work quite as well for me. That could be because the main characters both just seemed SO young and angsty, and it could also be because the romance felt sudden and rushed (which is a me problem, I think - they both pined for years). But I think my main quibble is that I didn’t have a stake in it. I wasn’t really rooting for them, the hurdle they had to overcome felt kind of silly and forced, and the reconciliation was just… fine? I feel so bad writing this review because, again, she’s a favorite author and I even loved the soccer book, and I didn’t like sports romance much. That said, she’s still a great writer, the sense of place is great - I loved the honeymoon resort - and I did like the bumbling, sweet fiancé character quite a lot (I wish we’d had more of that relationship unraveling, honestly). ...more
I love Pomona so much, she’s like what I imagine Paris Hilton was in the early 2000s, but sweeter. The tone of this was perfect, poking a little fun aI love Pomona so much, she’s like what I imagine Paris Hilton was in the early 2000s, but sweeter. The tone of this was perfect, poking a little fun at her while giving her room to grow and start taking herself seriously, and it was just so cute at the same time as being a solid, entertaining mystery. I would love to see this become a series!...more
Absolutely delightful! Sophie Cousens is one of my auto-read authors, she never disappoints. I loved that the romance in this was between a 38 year olAbsolutely delightful! Sophie Cousens is one of my auto-read authors, she never disappoints. I loved that the romance in this was between a 38 year old divorced woman with kids and a younger man, and I loved the setup of being work colleagues. The 7 dates chosen by her kids, the cringy ex-husband and his cringier girlfriend, and the found family of Loretta and co (Loretta is AH-mazing, I wish she was real and MY friend) made it even better. So good. ...more
This was a crazy one - so creepy and paranoia-inducing and all about how people can form weird, weird groups online and become obsessed with an inventThis was a crazy one - so creepy and paranoia-inducing and all about how people can form weird, weird groups online and become obsessed with an invented version of reality. There were a few minor things that annoyed me, but I’m chalking that up to people not always acting the way I think I would act in a situation (and probably I’m wrong about how I’d react to some of the crazy stuff that happened here)....more
Super cute and fun, with just a touch of magical realism and a delightful cast of side characters. I loved Catherine’s quest to figure out her identitSuper cute and fun, with just a touch of magical realism and a delightful cast of side characters. I loved Catherine’s quest to figure out her identity - not just to find her paperwork, but also to find herself - and Luca was such a sweet, kind love interest. Just a lovely book. ...more
This is new adult, so I’m probably the wrong audience and if I was more patient with Kat and Elly’s angsty and kind of childish behavior, I’d probablyThis is new adult, so I’m probably the wrong audience and if I was more patient with Kat and Elly’s angsty and kind of childish behavior, I’d probably rate it higher. It’s very sweet, with fake dating that happens fast, some friendship issues (again young and angsty), and both Thanksgiving and Christmas, which I loved (though I would be on board for even more Xmas spirit). ...more
This book starts a bit crazy, and there are some zany antics, but honestly much happens, really, and that’s the charm of this novel - it’s about a yeaThis book starts a bit crazy, and there are some zany antics, but honestly much happens, really, and that’s the charm of this novel - it’s about a year of ordinary teachers living their lives, doing their jobs, and reflecting on their careers. I enjoyed getting to know each of them in their chapters, and being a teacher myself I got the sense that there was so much reality here about what teaching is really like. Each part reads like a vignette about that person, but it all comes together into a cohesive whole, and it’s delightful. ...more