im re-reading all of alex nonymous's books in order of when they were published and 1.5 books into that i have decided im also going to annotate them. Yayyyyy
A Tale of Seashells & Shenanigans by Alex Nonymous
Working retail's hard enough even when there aren't lives on the line.
Nico's been working at Interthrifter the realm's biggest and only chain thrift store catering to all species simultaneously--since they were sixteen. After three years on the job, they've seen every kind of magical shopping disaster imaginable. Until a selkie accidentally leaves her sealskin in their donation pile and gets them caught up in a quest to get it back.
As a series of mishaps turn what should have been a slight inconvenience into over a month long expedition, Nico's forced to get close to the girl who ruined their life. But, the closer they get to getting her sealskin back, the more Nico starts to hope that she won't leave.
A Tale of Seashells and Shenanigans is a cozy fantasy love story following two queer, disabled teenagers learning how to navigate themselves, their trauma, and their ways back home.
actually so sad to me that Alex Nonymous doesn’t have more of a fandom on here. or really on anywhere. i need to talk about these gay little books with people
BOOK REVIEW: A TALE OF SEASHELLS & SHENANIGANS BY ALEX NONYMOUS
⭐⭐⭐⭐
TROPES
Found Family
This is a cozy fantasy that has such a fun premise. From the first page, I was hooked. The main character works at a thrift store and then gets challenged to a duel that ends up taking them across seas and into unknown places, and the reader gets to be along for the ride.
Nico is a great character to follow. At times, you really question who they are as a person and why they are acting out at times, but as time goes along and we get more insight, Nico’s reactions to situations make sense. You can’t help but empathize with them and what they’ve been through. And while you initially might agree with their reactions to Tillie, their traveling partner, that changes too.
While a cozy fantasy, there are times when things get incredibly real for the pair and you wonder if they’ll complete their quest or even make it back home. Watching Nico and Tillie try to work through their differences while achieving the same end goal is wonderful to watch, mostly because of how much they both change and open up to each other by the end. Even when their plans fail, they somehow manage to find the better side of the coin, and it’s nice to see how they do it.
No, but I have consumed other media for it (movie, show, etc.)
I haven't even heard of this book
Partly/did not finish
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Voting ended onDec 12, 2023
note: If you did not finish but feel you read enough to form an opinion, you may choose a ‘Yes’ option instead of 'Partly' (e.g., Yes, I didn’t like it). Interpret "neutral or complicated" however you like, I intended this category to be a broad option between like and dislike.
There is something in the forests of After. Something powerful. Something dark. Something out for blood.
After was supposed to be a safe haven for those who understood the dangers of magic. When Ever’s father first founded it, it was. But recently, something’s changed. Children are disappearing. Creatures are crossing the forest boundary. And Ever’s going to put a stop to it.
After has never been free of magic and Alisa knows that more than most. As the daughter of a practicing witch, she's grown up with magic just a short walk away. But recently, something’s changed. Someone is playing with something dark. The forest is becoming angry.
As Ever and Alisa race against time to save their loved ones, their paths become irrevocably intertwined. Both carry hatred. Both carry secrets. And both can’t seem to resist the forest’s call.
Rep: asexual lesbian main character, autistic sapphic main character, f/f relationship, trans girl side character
CW: negative self talk, implied autistic meltdown from pov of autistic character, accidental outing (not of a main character and only to one other person)
Review:
This book follows two girls, Skye and Sadie, childhood pen pals who despite falling for each other have solely communicated through email their entire lives. Now in their last year of high school, Skye manages to convince Sadie to come outside and meet her face to face for the first time, upon which Skye finds out that there was a very good reason why Sadie had until then spent most of her life indoors.
This book can be described as a love letter to stimming and other ways that autistic people authentically express themselves. Sadie is autistic. It isn't her autism that leads her to stay hidden away from the world, it's what comes of her being made to feel like she absolutely has to mask and keep all her autistic traits hidden. Throughout the book she grows in confidence and comfort in being herself, and the final line of the book had me smiling really really hard. Also there's a certain line that Sadie says near the end that upon reading it I had to stop and stare at my ceiling for a bit because I felt it so hard.
Skye was also a really great character! She's driven, curious, academically successful due largely to the hard work she puts in towards achieving her goals, and she's rather unpopular with her teachers due to her unwillingness to be talked down to or treated like she's inferior. I had a lot of fun reading from her perspective!
One of the most significant side characters is Skye's best friend Isaac. Isaac is a trans girl and the only person she's come out to at all is Skye. Nobody else knows that Isaac is trans, and she evidently hasn't chosen a new name yet and is at the point of the book is uncertain as to whether or not she's even going to. This is my first time seeing a character like Isaac and I really hope it's not the last. Trans people are under no obligation to tell everyone immediately, or change our names, or do anything if we don't want to or aren't ready to. At any given moment there are loads of real trans people out there who are in the same kind of in-between stage that Isaac is in, and they deserve to be acknowledged as well as the trans people who have everything figured out including a new publicly usable gender-matching name. There's room for all of us.
Aside from her gender, Isaac is just a great character. She's the go-to leader of her and Skye's friendship group for very good reason.
Also, Isaac being in this in-between stage in her transition is thematically resonant with the rest of the book. The group are in their last year of high school, they're about to start applying to universities, their friendship group may or may not survive graduation, and the relationship between Skye and Sadie is developing and changing rapidly. The whole book feels like a snapshot in the lives of the characters as they're just starting to become the people they're going to be, and I really loved that!
I would highly recommend this book for anyone looking for queer contemporary with fantasy elements or who are looking for more autistic rep in the books they pick up
I received an early copy of this book prior to its publication in return for some feedback. Details may be different in the published version.
