I read mostly queer books and within that I have a preference for Literary Fiction, Mystery & Thrillers, Romance, Sci Fi & Fantasy, Poetry.
I tend to avoid books that are Young Adult since i rarely like them.
As a non-practicing literature and language teacher, I have my roots in reading classics and from time to time I return to it.
Reading masterlist ⭐
ARCs and ALCs read and reviewed:
🫐 Rottenheart by Kat Dunn 🏳️🌈
🫐 We Burned So Bright by TJ Klune 🏳️🌈
🫐 The House of Now and Then by Edward Underhill 🏳️🌈
🫐 How Queer Bookshops Changed the World by A.J. West 🏳️🌈
🫐 Give Me Everything You've Got by Imogen Crimp 🏳️🌈
My 5⭐ books:
🍓 My Friends by Fredrik Backman
🍓 How Queer Bookshops Changed the World by A.J. West
Give Me Everything You've Got by Imogen Crimp | 4,5⭐
Pub Date Jul 21 2026
Give Me Everything You've Got brings us Ruby, a filmmaker desperate for a breakthrough in the film industry, who has just arrived at the stunning country estate of her idol, the legendary feminist director Ellen. Outside, a ruthless summer heatwave. Inside, Ellen and her daughter, Lara, are warmly helping Ruby to settle in, and beginning to play a game whose rules Ruby isn't privy to.
Imogen Crimp prose made me feel completely lightheaded and out of breath. It just kept going and going under the oppressive insecure and anxious way with which Ruby navigated life, but especially life around Ellen and Lara.
What made me love it so much is how unapologetically suffocating it is and how well Mei Mei MacLeod's, the audiobook narrator, voice worked with making Ruby sound as winded as we felt. I'm usually not a fan of first person point of view, but it was one of the best things Crimp could've done with this story. Because Ruby is entirely consumed by her need for Ellen's validation, everything passes through the filter of her obsession, she can't see outside of her need to be seen by Ellen so se misses all the obvious red flags. We as the reader get no respite, we are trapped inside Ruby’s spiralling thoughts, experiencing everything like she is at the same time as she does.
There's an obvious power dynamic between them, they're mentor and mentee, and Crimp handles it with amazing precision. I'd even go as far as to say the obsession is mutual, it's just there is a power dynamic and you can't escape that. While Ruby wants to be consumed by Ellen, Ellen wants to consume Ruby and by doing so she exploits Ruby's desperation, mining her already waning confidence under the guise of getting her to the next level.
I couldn't look away even when when it felt too much, just as stuck in Ellen and Lara's enticing ways as Ruby was. Ellen's presence was almost overbearing, every time she was in the scene it felt like she consumed all the air in the room and that worked wonders to install this predatory energy about her.
The pacing is agonizing as the author stretches the tension so taut that it had me wondering if this wasn't a psychological horror. It wasn't, but it certainly felt like one at times. Again, at the risk of sounding repetitive, there is absolutely NO emotional relief, even the brief moments of apparent warmth between Ruby and Lara are tainted by the dread that everything is being staged, and honestly I'm not completely convinced it wasn't.
The unrelenting heatwave serves as the perfect sensory metaphor for the story itself. The air is thick, the constant building pressure between the characters is as exhausting as a night after an afternoon under the summer sun, it feels like you're trapped in the same fever dream that is slowly swallowing Ruby whole.
Give Me Everything You've Got is a beautifully dark exploration of corrupted mentorship and a mesmerizing masterclass in tension that demands you give it every ounce of attentions you can muster.
Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for sending me this ALC in exchange for an honest review.
There's Only One Sin in Hollywood by Rasheed Newson | 4,5⭐
Pub Date: Jun 02 2026
There's Only One Sin in Hollywood is how you do historical fiction and an unapologetic portrayal of Black queer life in classic Hollywood. From beginning to end you will be engaged and completely sold on the humanity of these characters and that alone will give you an outstanding experience.
This is my first work by Rasheed Newson and I'm wholly enchanted by his writing. What a poignant and beautiful way to give the stage to our otherwise hidden black and queer stars. The narrator, Jelani Alladin, was the cherry on top of it. His take on Aaron was beautiful, I truly could feel what he was feeling as he confessed to us the secrets so deeply rooted in his heart.
I loved, loved Aaron. The confessional tone he had throughout the whole story made my heart ache at times, he carried so much inside him, so much love and so much pain and an enormous desire to just be. When Xavier and Horace could no longer tell their stories, Aaron walked that path and in a kind of heartbreaking way, at least he carried the truth until that too could be shared, until he could make it be seen on way or another.
I love a well researched book and you can really feel the care that went into this one. I'm not very familiar with the film industry, but with the exception of the beginning that it read a little too fast-paced for me, I really enjoyed the dive in we got into this world.
The feeling with which I part ways after this story is gratitude. It was to me yet another way of touching queer, Black joy, struggle, and brilliance through such layered characters. May our elders, that I'm sure share similar lives of those in the book, walk among us with their head held high for their fight, struggles and happiness will not go unnoticed. May we all carry a little bit of Aaron and tell our stories when our comrades no longer can.
Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for sending me this ALC in exchange for an honest review.
What's a delight! Last First Kiss is a great pick with a good pacing, a fairly diverse characters and a main couple that have amazing chemistry!
My absolute favorite part is definitely Jordan's journey as he's on the asexual spectrum. It's hard to find books with ace individuals that aren't malicious towards that slice of the community, Last First Kiss did it so honestly I just have to praise the author for being so genuine with it.
I think the book would've benefited from a dual pov, I missed to know more about Jamie's own experience. On that note I also felt like the resolution with his parents was.. lukewarm, at best? Yes, we can see it's a work in progress, but I wish we got more of it on page.
James Cavenaugh's narration brought the story to another level, entirely. I'm very familiar with him and I love how he can bring the characters' emotions to life so well, because this is a romcom it was delightful to hear the smile in his voice. Beautiful experience, 10/10.
The story was super engaging, I was so in it that when I realized it was over.
It's a great choice of a weekend read where you want to just relax with a sweet book filled with great characters.
Thank you to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for sending me this ALC in exchange for an honest review.
Fantasy is a complicated genre for me. More often than not, the writing is unnecessarily dense, and the author tries to bite off more than they can chew. Shen Tao chooses to go the opposite way; her writing isn't overly dense at all, in fact, for the first 25% it's even too simplistic. But once the story gets going, you can't stop reading it.
(there are major spoilers marked IN RED ahead)
At first, Wei Yin wasn't to my liking; there was too much "what am I, a village girl, compared to these city girls?" for my taste, and it was irritating. The narrative, when it came to setting the stage for important plot points, became repetitive at times. The final events are clearly displayed; if you pay attention, you can predict all the plot twists, which ends up being a little too on the nose for me. Nothing that happened to the characters and to the story happened outside of what I was expecting to happen. And yet, there's no way the rating could be less than what it is now.
The worldbuilding is, by far, the second most interesting thing about this book. Every corner was brimming with culture and a wonderful, magical system that left me giddy at times while I thought about the possibilities. Shen Tao brought to this world beautiful and curious aspects from Chinese culture and it's so well executed you can't help but want to get to know more and more about it.
The most interesting thing for me, and my weak point when it comes to stories of this caliber, was obviously the relationship between the brothers and how Wei Yin's story unfolded alongside theirs. Her growth was palpable; some things demand sacrifices that we carry forever, and an inner change is expected, and we see Wei transform before our very eyes. It's her very own tenacity and kindness that dictates the end of this story. Her desire to make the people heard, the plead for education and the strength of women that are so often ignored.. For more reasons than just one. Wei represents every woman who changed history and was overshadowed by men while doing so. You never see a woman's power until she makes change by force., you only see it when the kind and warm hands that cradle are the same ones to wield the knife.
Terren is officially my roman empire. There's so much nuance to his character, I'm so heartbroken I can get past my small grievances towards some of the author's choice narrative wise. Yes, he was cruel on numerous occasions, so ruthless and vile that you might think there's no redemption for him. You can acknowledge all of that and still recognize that his cruelty is on par with his former kindness. He was just a child who didn't survive unscathed the evils of the palace and his own father's schemes. He was destined to the Crown and that destined him to misery and to cause just as much pain to those around him. Terren was painfully human and Wei loved him as such, as one human loves the other.
Terren and Maro stole the story for me, the more we went to the past to understand them more I wanted to stay with them and to understand how they got to this point. As a witness to these tragedies, Wei Yin was as devastated as we, the readers, were. I think it's pretty clear that my favorite chapter was the ending; I won't hide the fact that I cried when their ghost hugged. This perspective, how consistent Wei's character was throughout the whole book, and how Shen Tao conducted it in the end, solidified this rating for me.
Don't expect out of the pocket twists from The Poet Empress, it's all there from the very beginning, but do expect a beautiful and sweet tragedy and a girl pursuing a better future for her people even at high costs.
Who doesn't love a Hamlet retelling with queer characters (trans representation!) that makes you question what's actually happening at every turn? Love you some dark academia, magical society and ambiguous characters? Thoughts Be Bloody will delivery you that and possibly more.
The experimental and pretty much disassociating narrative choice was so risky but I personally think it worked so well! At some points it came off as confusing but I could pick up the line of thought soon after and I think that works really well with the aspects of the story.
The first 20% were a bit hard to get into, I think it could use a bit of cleaning up and that's the reason why I can't give it a stellar 5⭐, but after you're familiar with the setting, the author's writing and the characters you just get lost, in a good way, in it. The last 40% makes you devour it without a second thought, you just have to get the prose inside your skin and inhale this story into your lungs.
Humans and their obsessions as a moving force of the story is one of my favorite devices in a book and we have it here in two instances that make this story the banger it is. I think the author utilizes Hamlet's themes pretty way here, it was way adapted into the retelling.
I loved the ending, the building up to that was my favorite part of this whole book. It was suffocating and constraining and low-key maddening. There is no straight to the point here, you have to go with them and enjoy the ride. Trust the narrative will get you where you have to be because it will and it did. The characters remain true to themselves until the end, their development is solid, and the story's ending is truthful to what Auden Patrick ambitiously intended it to be.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
First, what a clever title, it goes perfectly with the subject.
This book, as well as the Korean 4B movement, are completely didactic ways of explaining that the more you pressure and oppress a group, the more radical it can become.
I found the writing particularly engaging and the subject well explored and well-rounded as we got insight not only in the country the narrative takes places but of another countries, the politics and statics that such scenario would evoke. It's very compelling.
Just like the criminalization of abortion, which incidentally does not reduce the numbers but only increases the number of deaths of women, mostly poor and of color, countries that didn't support female bodily autonomy didn't eradicate parthenogenetic birth, but are the ones without a stable male population.
It is also in a way, an extrapolation of the phase "We should be thankful that women want equality and not revenge" when female characters are multiple time arguing that men are now inferior, obsolete and will soon disappear with their gender motivated violence. It's a very interesting perspective to have against the women in the book that want to lead with more kindness and actually push for equity in the eminent matriarchy than what patriarchy has given them, their perspective is also a good reminder that to remove rights from a group IS a slippery slope. The tactics of fear used to oppress a group can always be used against you, they're always the same, especially when they stem from looking at a group as inherently bad. You remove it from one, you find a reason to remove it from another and I really liked how the author approached this.
One of my favorite things, however, was how real the consequence of men becoming virtually obsolete for women is: the increase in violence. It's clear that the statistics would still be against women fona good while because now, in addition to the anger stemming from the superiority complex that misogyny brings, men are also scared in this scenario. And we are familiar with the results of that combination, it is very much fatal.
This book stands for a fast and really interesting read, it's definitely worth your time if you like the idea of an alternate but realistic realty of our own.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
If Till Forever Falls Apart by Ashe; Ready Now by dodie; and Anne Carson's 'Theseus: Stop. Give me your hand. I am your friend. Herakles: I fear to stain your clothes with blood. Theseus: Stain them, I don't care.' had a baby and that baby was this book.
My Friends will tell you the story of four teenagers who carved a bond so special the ripples of their friendship will be felt years in the future. The story unfolds for Louise as much as it unfolds for us as the narrative links her (Louise) present-day life with the teenage years of four friends who were loyal to a fault as they try to beat the odds of desiring a big life and an even bigger love against the molds of a small town and even smaller, cruel minds.
Sometimes, when you lack faith in yourself, you only need a couple people that will look at you and see everything you are and everything you can be. People that will look at you and say “I love you and I believe in you.”
If you loved Anxious People and how kind people can be and how those actions can change someone's life..you will love this book for similar reasons. In My Friend Frederick will prove to you that such 1+1=2, you can find people that will love and be loyal to you no matter what.
Content Warning: depictions of bullying, homophobia, self-harm, child abuse, suicidal ideation, sexual violence, mental illness, addiction, illness, death, and physical and emotional abuse.
Edge of Mercy (Book 3 of Sugar & Vice) by Allie Therin | 4⭐
Pub Date Jun 23 2026
I love everything queer and Sugar & Vice had all the best things, paranormal romance, action, a gripping slow burn and amazing characters that you can't help but love. The Edge of Mercy was the cherry on top of this spectacular trilogy.
Allie Therin couldn't have given Evan and Reece, and us readers, a better ending after so much sweet slow burn. Just like with the first two books, I devoured the third. Her writing continues to be captivating as she presents to us complex issues mixed with fun sass and passion from all the characters; her character development and her worldbuilding are equally incredible.
The only reason I'm giving this a 4⭐ even though I loved it so much is precisely because I loved it so much and her world building was amazing. I was intrigued with everything until the very last moment of conclusion and because of that I feel like there are still answers we didn't get. Evan and Reece did get their very much deserved happy ending and even with some things left up in the air I'm totally fine with that but maybe one single book isn't enough to tie all the ends and close all the door the author opened after introducing the new possibilities.
Putting that small detail aside, I loved, loved it. I'm so happy I got to meet Evan and Reece again after a year and read the whole book in one sitting and I can say it was totally worth the wait.
Thank you to NetGalley and Carina Adores for sending this ARC in exchange for an honest review
I am an extremely curious person and an avid reader, completely passionate about books and queer history, if you are like that too, this book will be perfect for you, just as it was for me.
What a lovely, strong and informative narrative about the resistance and persistence of our queer community. I personally think everyone should read this book but especially if you're queer. Get to know our elders, get to know the path they had to walk so we could have the chance to run today. It is important that we connect with the deep roots that permeate this soil, whether they are about reclaiming offensive words or commenting on how capitalism disproportionately affects minorities.
An informative book like this can be tricky, you have to be careful that the flow of information does not turn the reading tedious and A.J. West did it perfectly in my opinion. He masterfully covers historical details, never forgetting, in his sharp and fluid narrative, the people behind that story. And as this is a review of the audiobook as well and the author is also the narrator behind it, the listening experience was also marvelous.
Although focused on the western world, as a queer woman of color I still would like to give special props to West for writing so carefully about about queer people of color, Glad Day and The Oscar Wilde Memorial Bookshop being two of them, and also the Stonewall rebellion and of course, Marsha Johnson and Sylvia Rivera. It's always important to remember intersectionality when recounting historic facts and I felt like West did it well.
Learning about the past, especially the past of a community you belong to, is an act of resistance, and this book is part of that as it recounts often obscure events like the AIDS crisis and the Nazi take over in an very honest, thoughtful and inspiring way.
Definitely a must read.
Thank you to NetGalley and Oneworld Publications for providing me with this ALC in exchange for an honest review.
The House of Now and Then by Edward Underhill | 4 ⭐
Pub Date May 19 2026
For the magical realism genre lovers (Before the Coffee Gets Cold; Remarkably Bright Creatures), The House of Now and Then makes for a cozy, super positively queer read that will hold you by the hand and explore grief beyond only death and how to move forward to closure.
After breaking up with his long-term boyfriend and ending up in a different place in life from where he thought he would be, Harlowe could use a break. So he leaves everything behind for a seaside cottage in Cape Cod and very quickly learns that the universe will find a way, magic or not, to teach you that you can't outrun a past you didn't have closure on.
The writing here was beautiful, you just walked side by side with it. The prose made it flow naturally, like when a great storyteller is presenting to you all the facts that make up a good story and this was one exactly that. A small seaside town romance, found family and a little bit of bittersweet healing to top it off made this book the perfect summer, weekend read.
I was delighted to find out we have a trans main character in this book! Regularly we already need more of our trans siblings under the spotlight telling us all kinds of stories but now we need them even more as we unfortunately live through these violent and uncertain times.
As queer woman myself, while I find important stories that tell our own tales of struggle and resistance against homophobia and prejudice in general, I particularly love books where queerness is simply another side of our identity. I am all for queernormative and The House of Now and Then, chooses and executes that choice with delicate flair when presenting Harlowe as trans to the reader.
There's always that risk when we find a shorter book; sometimes something is missing, and we feel its absence immediately but not here. Edward Underhill did a great job finishing all the loose ends that needed finishing. For now, Harlowe and Nathan are happy, we don't know about tomorrow and we don't have to. Let us do as they did and live in the present, doing what we want and being who we are.
Pain and grief are part of the human existence, but so are love and healing and even if we found ourselves a little lost like Harlowe, let his story remind you that there's always a way.
Thank you to NetGalley, and the publisher for providing me with an eARC.
TJ Klune does it again. This was for us, The Last Of Us S1E3 ‘Long, Long Time’ enthusiasts. If you also felt like your world was undone and rebuilt by that story, Don and Rodney will make you feel very similarly here.
Before I start, if you can, pick up the audiobook, Kirt Graves elevated the story to another level entirely. Being capable of conveying so much emotion and love and aching is a talent and I wish for all of you to be able to enjoy this, too.
TJ Klune owns my heart from his prior works and he did not disappoint with this one. Again, the narrator, Kirt Graves, also has a very special place in there, I am very familiar with his work and the way he transmits emotions is one of my favorite things about him. What a treat and a heartbrokenly beautiful pair, really.
A road trip as this older gay couple's races against time to get to this special place as the ending of the world is around the corner and the people they get to meet along the way. Humans, afraid and at their worst. Humans, doing their best, trying to make something of their last days. The gratitude for having lived and loved, and the small and big regrets you carry with you throughout life.
TJ Klune wrote humanity as he always does, brutally and so profoundly lacerating, the beautiful and sometimes unfair pain of the human existence was showed to us here. Even if we live our lives to the fullest, even if we believe we did our best, it's human nature to want more, to want to love more and for longer, to wish to have done more and tried harder.
It was truly beautiful to witness the love their had for each other and for their own, the writing flowed so well and kept me in the story the whole time, I wish it was longer, I wish I had another 6hrs of this, of these characters and their stories even if it meant I'd spill more tears.
I will carry this story with me for a long time and I hope if you read this review, that you pick this book up too. It's sad, I won't say it isn't because it deals with so much, homophobia, mental health, suicide and our own fragility, but it puts so much into perspective. We're here now, we don't know if we'll have tomorrow or if the people we love will be here tomorrow. Our existence in this beautiful earth depends on so much to keep working just perfectly, this book will rip your heart apart and put it back together in order to show you this and I promise you it's worth it.
Thank you to Tantor Media and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this ALC.
In its exhumation of Hamlet's very core, ROTTENHEART shows the reader the definition of "what is grief if not visceral love that has nowhere to go?" and what happens when there is, in fact, a place for it to find home again.
How delicious it was to get swallowed whole by this story. I was completely enchanted by Kat Dunn's prose from the very beginning and how you could feel Odette's despair at every turn.
This is indeed a love story and how love can be turned into pure and raw madness that will get you to a point where you will do anything, including to kill. And yet, at the same time, love is also salvation, it is the one thing that undid Odette but also put her back together.
Throughout the entire book, I was completely consumed by Odette's anger and pain, her uncertainties, and her overwhelming love for Cecilia. I can say with enough confidence that Kat Dunn made a good job into transferring to ROTTENHEART the spine that carried Hamlet and that you will find joy in reading this sapphic reimagining.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this eARC.
