librar_bee's reviews
608 reviews

Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne

adventurous hopeful lighthearted mysterious relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

4 stars. Cozy, medium stakes, and a fantasy realm with just enough worldbuilding for me to stay engaged with the plot. Reyna and Kianthe's love for one another whisks them away to a small town straddling politics and geographies. Together, they open a bookshop/teashop to pursue their idyllic dreams.

In the process, Reyna, a former Queensguard, and Kianthe, the Arcandor, Mage of Ages, use magic, sword skills, and their general good humor to build a community and engage in some of their new home's mysteries.

While the plotline that trickled through the sequence of events didn't truly seem to resolve itself in a way that felt satisfying, I enjoyed the characters, the worldbuilding, and the overall vibe of this book.

The Heartbreak Bakery by A.R. Capetta

adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

5 stars. A treasure of a book! Interspersed with recipes for life, love, and sweet treats, The Heartbreak Bakery is the perfect comfort read.

Syd, a 17-year-old baker at The Proud Muffin in Austin, Texas, is an 'agender cupcake' reeling from a breakup. In an effort to cope, Syd bakes a batch of brownies. But everyone who eats Syd's brownies breaks up - and Syd teams up with the cute delivery biker, Harley, to bring everyone back together, and maybe find love along the way.

Though the stakes are low, they are all too real - navigating the messiness of coming-of-age relationships, the unfortunate challenges faced by queer businesses, figuring out what gender is, anyway. Baking metaphors are sprinkled throughout the book in a tender depiction of a queer community that feels incredibly real. Capetta's love letter to a fictional community in the very real city of Austin is not to be missed.

Rainbow Black by Maggie Thrash

dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

4.25 stars. Hear me out - roll with this one. This novel, which opens in the Satanic Panic era, is dark, tense, and incredibly stressful, and Thrash's writing makes it a page-turner. Eccentric characters, a snowballing plot with almost unbelievable twists and turns, and a glimpse into a strange part of American history make for an enthralling read. Though completely unrealistic in some ways, I advise you to suspend your judgment in order to truly enjoy this book.

Towards the end, the sociopolitical commentary became a little heavy-handed, but all in all, I found Rainbow Black to be incredibly entertaining and just the kind of high-stakes thrill I love in a novel.

Please be mindful of the content warnings before going into this novel! Mentions of child sexual abuse, child emotional abuse, drug abuse, transphobia, homophobia, murder, and descriptions of gore are very prominent in the novel's plot and make it quite heavy. Take care reading.

Wild Geese by Soula Emmanuel

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

4 stars. Two Irish women of very different experiences come together. As exes with seven years between them, they learn one another over the course of a weekend in Copenhagen.

Emmanuel's writing is gorgeous. Thoughtful and intentional with every word, her musings on being perceived and truly seen as a trans woman and a woman in general speak to the importance of a feminism that wholeheartedly embraces trans women. Phoebe, our narrator, and Grace, her ex-girlfriend, are equally frustrated and enchanted by one another, and their conversations over the course of the weekend take us on an intimate journey of their growth into womanhood on the cusp of age 30.

Much of the book is self-reflection and introspection on Phoebe's part, which often slowed the pacing significantly in places. Nonetheless, the shared experience of womanhood and the love inherent in their relationship is deeply felt on every page.

A Place of Our Own: Six Spaces That Shaped Queer Women's Culture by June Thomas

informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

5 stars. Thomas's sweeping history of queer women in the United States transcends borders and boundaries and becomes spaces - from bars to bookstores to softball fields. In documenting the challenges and successes of queer women's efforts to build community in a capitalist economy, Thomas introduces us to the individuals who shaped the spaces which queer women can more freely enjoy today.

This book honors the legacy of queer women whose efforts can be seen today, in sex toy shops and on the main streets of queer vacation towns. The continued potential for queer women to build the communities they dreamed of despite the financial and sociopolitical challenges of late-twentieth century America is deeply inspirational and moving. Thomas's writing weaves together her own experience, the words of the women who cultivated these important spaces, and engaging historical narrative.

Thoughtfully researched and reflective, Thomas's work honors the legacy of queer women in America while reflecting on the shortcomings that future generations can strive to amend.

Intimacies by Katie Kitamura

challenging dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

4.25 stars. An odd blend of characters come together in the Hague, the seat of Western justice, in a story about being lost in translation. Conceptually poignant and beautifully executed, Kitamura's narrator quietly observes the ways in which words fail in interpersonal communications while translating languages remains the hinge upon which justice is supposedly dealt.

Surprisingly empathetic yet at times emotionally distant, I found the metaphors a bit heavy-handed at times. Nonetheless, an enthralling read with an incredible message that left me ruminating for days.

Whiskey Tender by Deborah Jackson Taffa

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

5 stars. Jackson Taffa's memoir draws upon her childhood as a mixed-tribe Native girl, interspersed with historical narrative of the US laws that shaped her family's history and fate. Gripping and almost tangible, the pain, grief, and prevailing love of Jackson Taffa's family is evident in each page of her writing.

In an attempt to discover from where she came and who she is becoming, Jackson Taffa's writing emphasizes the legacy of the Trail of Tears, Indian boarding schools, and the resounding trauma that echoes in generational gaps, loss of language, drug and alcohol abuse, and her fervent desire to cling to her identity. Along the way, Jackson Taffa discovers the importance of also creating her own evolving culture and identity as a Native woman who is learning to thrive in her own right, despite the efforts of the US government over time to eradicate Native prosperity. A must-read.

Looking for a Sign by Susie Dumond

adventurous emotional hopeful fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

5.0

5 stars. Susie Dumond returns with a sapphic romance novel that carries the same unique charm as Queerly Beloved. With trademark wit and tender growth, Dumond's characters leap off the page.

Gray is entering her Saturn return after the end of a long-term relationship. In the effort to find The One and start the idealized family of her dreams, she moves to New Orleans and sets out to date someone from every astrological sign.

This romance novel was a delightful insight into the trials and tribulations of queer dating. I also appreciated how Gray, as a self-identified lesbian, demonstrated how inclusive sapphic dating is. Each character, though in part inspired by the cheeky stereotypes of the Zodiac (quintessentially sapphic!), becomes a part of a broader community.

This is a romance novel about growth, exploration, and learning what matters. Equal parts sexy and sweet, Dumond's sophomore novel is a genuine and wholesome sapphic love story.

But How Are You, Really by Ella Dawson

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

5 stars. Dawson's debut is incredibly heartfelt, with the characters leaping off of the page and directly into my mind long after I turned the last page. The post-grad mental health slump chokes the motivations and actions of our protagonist, Charlotte, in a way that is all too relatable. Through reading Charlotte's story, I felt empathy for my younger self and everyone else I knew who couldn't put words to their struggles during times of difficulty.

A blend of personal growth, teeth-gnashing tension, love story, and found family, But How Are You, Really? embodies the importance of queer community and its potential to be a haven for anyone under the umbrella. I was enthralled with every page of this deeply bisexual novel and am grateful that it exists.

Everybody: A Book About Freedom by Olivia Laing

informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

5.0

5 stars. Laing is skilled at drawing new ideas and conclusions through the synthesis of historical figures and their experiences. Furthermore, they give a forecast of what is to come, and the potential for the human spirit.

In Everybody, the philosopher Wilhelm Reich, his life, and his ideas, serve as the main thread of the book. Pulling in figures from 1930s Berlin to the 1960s Civil Rights movement, Laing explores the concepts of freedom and individuality, and the body that contains the spirit. With digressions into modern struggles for the freedom of bodily autonomy, in queerness, reproductive health, and in asylum-seeking, Laing's musings and philosophical insights are equal parts accessible and inspiring.