Leigh’s Novel Hour

I’m going to try my hand at book blogging! My reading interests are all over the place but I’m mostly into adult fantasy, historical fiction, and romance. Add me on Goodread's at Leigh N.  www.goodreads.com/leigh_n  

[leighsnovelhour]

#nowreading

[leighsnovelhour]

This book is nice but I didn’t really feel the stakes. There were some points made that I could identify with, but I just didn’t feel enough tension from the plot. Also, I feel like the magical realism wasn’t grounded in anything, so it felt like something was missing when reading the alternate universe part of the book.

3 stars

[leighsnovelhour]

#nowreading

[leighsnovelhour]

I wrote a review of The Summer of Everything. Long story short I didn’t enjoy it. I was bored reading this book which is disappointing because I was anticipating it. I finished it and felt nothing except looking forward to reading another book. I wanted to like it more but it just didn’t do it for me. Let's start with the corniness. Wes is written as one of those characters who constantly reminds us how nerdy they are. Everything is “nerdtastic” and “amazeballs”, imagine New Girl (the show) but with teenagers. It's just corny and I don’t think teenagers act like this. Wes is the stereotypical nerd who's obsessed with comic books and superhero characters, and that's pretty much the only defining thing about him. I’m not into comic books and stuff personally, but I would like to think that even comic book nerds don’t make liking comic books the crux of their personality. Pretty much all that I took away from Wes’s character is that he’s a comic book nerd, has a massive crush on his friend, and is committed to his favorite bookstore. I didn’t find his character engaging and frankly none of the other characters were engaging either. They all had a very rigid character type that felt stale and lacked dimension.

Check out the full review here:

https://www.leighsnovelhour.com/2021/08/18/its-corny-i-fear-the-summer-of-everything-review/

[leighsnovelhour]

I wrote a review of Caul Baby by Morgan Jerkins! Click the link above to check it out and here’s an excerpt:

A key theme in Caul Baby is Black motherhood. In the past year we’ve been having more open conversations about Black maternal mortality and Black motherhood so this novel comes at the perfect time. Jerkins describes a variety of ways in which Black motherhood exists as women in the novel have a different relationship to childbearing and rearing. Laila is representative of the women who have pregnancy and birth complications, which many Black women experience. Amara represents the people who choose not to keep their children for reasons that are all valid. Amara’s mother, Denise, is supportive and no-nonsense whereas Josephine Melancon’s mother is abusive and dismissive. Helena Melancon’s mother, Iris Melancon, is somewhat negligent, but she claims her intentions are out of love.

[leighsnovelhour]

Grown explores how patriarchy is embedded in the entertainment industry and how powerful men exploit (young) women, and especially Black women and girls. I was thoroughly engaged in this novel. It sucks you into the story and keeps you in suspense. There are moments in the novel that are tense and I was eager to know what happened next. It's a page-turner for sure. Tiffany D Jackson really beautifully expressed a tenuous part of Black girlhood. My only issue with Grown is the ending. The ending was rushed and it was trying to tie together a lot of loose ends within the last 20 pages.

4.25 stars

check out my full review here: here: https://www.leighsnovelhour.com/2021/07/22/grown-a-novel-about-the-difficult-parts-of-black-girlhood/

[leighsnovelhour]

Redemptor has me in shambles, please help!

I just have to gush about Redemptor! I love the Raybearer series so much and I’m absolutely obsessed with this book! Jordan Ifueko just does such a wonderful job creating charismatic, fun characters who you become deeply invested in and she writes plot arcs that are so engaging and suspenseful. I love all the elements of her books. Everything just works! This is definitely one of my favorite books of the year!

Check out my full review here:

https://www.leighsnovelhour.com/2021/07/06/redemptor-has-me-in-shambles-please-help-redemptor-book-review/

[leighsnovelhour]

I wrote a review of You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson!

Crown is just a really cute, lighthearted, comforting novel. There were moments when the writing was a little corny and a little unrealistic at times, but I can overlook that because it's an engaging novel with a sweet message. The novel has this sweet sort of comfort like eating a piece of warm pound cake with honey butter; light and airy and endearing. I appreciate that Leah Johnson wrote this book with so much care to depict complex, multi-dimensional Black girls, who experience both stress and elation and sadness and joy and so many other emotions. I really look forward to Leah Johnson’s next book that I think comes out this summer!

Check out the full review here: 

https://www.leighsnovelhour.com/2021/06/12/alexa-play-go-gina-by-sza-you-should-see-me-in-a-crown-review/

[leighsnovelhour]

I wrote a review of The Unbroken by C.L. Clark!

I come away from this book with some mixed feelings. It’s not a bad book at all, it's quite engaging at times and there are really compelling side characters that I would love to know more about. However, I do think that the plot progression was kind of predictable which made it a little boring. I did like the main character’s development and I liked how it normalized the existence of queer and trans people. It reminds me of Black Sun in that regard, you know queer/trans people just existing and doing regular things, but necessarily defined by their identity.

Check out the full review here:

 https://www.leighsnovelhour.com/2021/06/08/sapphic-soldiers-colonialism-and-rebellion-the-unbroken-book-review/

[leighsnovelhour]

Good, wholesome with brujx and spirits

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas book review

I wrote a brief review of Cemetery Boys! I don’t have much to say that hasn’t already been said but its a sweet, fun, feel-good novel. It’s just a fun adventure novel that takes place over a few days. The characters are really charismatic and full of personality. Its just fun! You should definitely give it a read if you haven’t yet.

[leighsnovelhour]

I wrote a review of The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed! I enjoyed it but I definitely think this is a  book that should be discussed with people. it would amplify the experience I think.

I liked that the story featured a morally grey main character and we got to see Ashley work through her issues. I also liked that the writing was straightforward and easy to breeze through. That made it easy to get sucked in.

The novel explores the intersections of races and class with the Los Angeles race riots as the backdrop. It’s also a coming-of-age story, and I’m always here for stories that explore Black girlhood!

[leighsnovelhour]

I wrote a review of the novel, The Underground Railroad. I read it to prepare for the Barry Jenkins’ TV adaptation and honestly it was unnecessary. Reading this felt like a chore and I was bored. The story is about Cora’s journey to escape a Georgia plantation and travel north. There are other slave narratives that are far better i.e. The Prophets and Homegoing. I highly recommend those! I’m excited for Barry Jenkins’ take on this and I’m just going to pretend that its not based on this book : )

[leighsnovelhour]

Books that I really wanna see get adapted:

The Prophets (I needed a screenplay like yesterday)

Sing, Unburied, Sing

Homegoing

I can honestly see The Prophets getting adapted in the next couple of years. The other two probably won’t but I’m holding out hope, plus they’re both best-sellers.

[leighsnovelhour]

I wanna read The Underground Railroad to prepare for the Barry Jenkins adaptation but I saw some people hated it 😬

[leighsnovelhour]

I wrote a review of The Ones We’re Meant to Find by Joan He. Click the link above. Here’s an excerpt: 

The concept of this novel was very interesting. It combines discussions of climate change effects, society and technology, and artificial intelligence. It reminded me of The Vanished Birds by Simon Jimenez, a sci-fi novel about extraterrestrial human societies and escaping the impacts of climate change ( y’all should absolutely read it). It also really reminded me of Westworld, the HBO show. I’ve read some others’ reviews where people said it reminded them of Black Mirror.

Be sure to check out the novel when its released on May 4!

[leighsnovelhour]

“Good luck on the 20 somethings”: Honey Girl review

I wrote a review of Honey Girl by Morgan Rogers! Here’s an excerpt:

Honey Girl is a part of burgeoning millennial fiction subgenre. There are so many coming-age-age and young adulthood, but what happens when they transition into adulthood? Adults don’t magically have their shit together when they enter their twenties and the journey of adulthood is always changing, and the novel depicts that nicely. I definitely found this novel relatable in that regard. Reading about a twenty-something who doesn’t know what they’re doing with their life and doesn’t know what direction they want to go was comforting to me because that’s how I feel at 23. It gives me “20 Something” by SZA vibes. It was comforting that even nearing 30, Grace was still unsure about her path and who she was. It reassured me that I have time and also that adults don’t have everything figured out, so I don’t have to rush my life. Also, finding yourself and deciding the rest of your life does not have to be restricted to your twenties; it can go beyond that. Society makes us feel like our twenties are the make-or-break of our lives but we have a whole life to live beyond that.

Click the link to read the full review!

[leighsnovelhour]

I wrote a review on Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon! Here’s an excerpt:

Sorrowland follows Vern and her twins, Howling and Feral. Vern escapes her husband, Sherman, the leader of an oppressive, zealous, pro-Black cult called Cainland to live in the forest and raise her children. Vern finds liberation in the woods, but she also learns that the woods hides secrets and it transforms her in ways she didn’t imagine possible...Sorrowland is a speculative fiction novel that explores themes of power, oppression, domination, and liberation. The novel explores how religion is socialized to fit a patriarchal framework that consolidates men’s power and subjugates women and children.

Click the link to read the full review. Be sure to check out Sorrowland when its released in May 2021!

[leighsnovelhour]

I just finished Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon and yeah, it’s a hit! ☝🏾