sophieissapphhic's reviews
395 reviews

Dead Women Don't Tell Tales by Adrian J. Smith

1.0

Content Warnings: sexual harassment, attempted sexual assault, pandemic, gun violence, forced institutionalization (past, off-page), alcohol consumption, sexual content (descriptive), racism, racial fetishization, racist microaggresions, corpses/dead bodies

The most concerning part of Dead Women Don’t Tell Tales is the way race is handled. I am referencing one scene in particular (pages 77-81). The scene starts with the main character, Jerry, going with her crew member, Yafe, to meet a powerful man in hopes of getting a job. Yafe is a woman of color, and it becomes evident through body language and dialogue that the man is fetishizing her based on race. (Quote: “‘I met this beautifully exotic woman a few years ago. How did you two meet?’ Jerry cringed at this wording, but it was impossible sometimes to separate out the sexism and racism from the society.”)

Throughout Jerry’s narration, it’s clear that she’s willing to put Yafe in a position where she is fetishised to try to secure a job: “Mortimer eyed Yafe, his gaze dropping to her breasts then moving up to her face. Jerry hated using her like this, but it was a necessary evil for now, until she could build her own reputation and perhaps even purchase a second ship to start her fleet.”

Although Yafe is being sexualized against her will and this is acknowledged in narration, Jerry uses the side character of color to further her own objectives. After the encounter with the man and they are left alone, they have a brief conversation about the event that further proves Jerry’s willingness to exploit Yafe for her own gain: “Yafe shuddered. ‘He’s a perverted old man.’ ‘Then why did you take me to him?’ ‘We needed a job.’ Though Yafe didn’t sound too happy about it. Jerry hated it, but it was a fact of life for them in the world they lived in. Shrugging it off, because she didn’t know what else to do…”

Jerry views racism as a systematic issue that she has no part in changing. When encountered with the racial fetishisation of her friend and crew member, she doesn’t intervene because she believes these issues are inherent to society and therefore can’t be dismantled. Furthermore, Jerry doesn’t intervene because she has benefits to reap from these systems. Jerry, the white protagonist, is able to shrug off this situation because it doesn’t directly affect her.

I find it disgusting that the author would use the fetishisation of a woman of color to further Jerry’s characterization and goals.

I also have criticisms of the writing. This book strongly suffers from telling instead of showing, which is annoying. More notably, though, some sentences and details are said multiple times, often with identical or almost-identical wording. There was also a lot of incorrect grammar, which I’m more willing to overlook, but overall, I came out with very negative feelings about the writing in this book.

Similarly, I didn’t like the way the characters were written- they were shallow and unlikeable as a result. I particularly wanted more from Jerry and her backstory. It felt like the idea for this book was alright, but the execution was sloppy. Often, prequels are a chance to set up character development, and this book didn’t take advantage of that at all.

This novella is just shy of 120 pages, and there is a fair amount of spice. I don’t necessarily avoid spice, but I typically don’t feel comfortable marketing books as “spicy” on my platform (because I’m seventeen). However, the spice in this book was its only strong point in my opinion, so I’ve decided to mention it here.

1 star. Thanks to the author for reaching out and sending me a copy.

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Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfield

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dark

4.25

"To know the ocean, I have always felt, is to recognise the teeth it keeps half-hidden."

This was unsettling and I loved it. This book will be lurking in my thoughts long after I've finished.

Content Warnings Below!
Graphic: body horror (including teeth horror, eye horror, nail horror, gore), confinement, vomiting, blood, grief,
Moderate: disordered eating, psychosis, parental death (cancer), hypochondria
Minor: fatphobia

Content Warnings

The Search by Bryan Konietzko, Michael Dante DiMartino, Gene Luen Yang

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4.25

4.25 stars.

- I loved the easter eggs that tie back to ATLA and TLOK! I really enjoy how the Avatar Universe's worldbuilding continues to expand.
- I enjoyed this installment of the comics a lot more than The Promise. The Search was wonderfully constructed, especially storyline-wise.

Content Warnings: child abuse, bullying, violence, abandonment, death

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The Promise by Bryan Konietzko, Michael Dante DiMartino, Gene Luen Yang

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3.0

3 stars.

- I think some of the character development that was in the show was lost in this comic. I still love the characters, I just wanted more from them.
- The art is great! I prefer the show over the comic books, but the art style works really well for Avatar: The Last Airbender in my opinion.
- The humor still comes across in comic format, which I really appreciate.
- I think The Promise was meant to set the rest of the comic books, so I didn't love this first installment in the series. (I liked The Search a lot more.)

Content Warnings:
Graphic: colonization, racism
Moderate: fire violence, insomnia, cultural appropriation
Minor: forced insitution/imprsonment, fainting, confinement

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The Shadow of Kyoshi by F.C. Yee

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adventurous

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.75

3.75 stars.

- The Shadow of Kyoshi was more evenly paced than Book 1.
- Rangi and Kyoshi <3
- This book emphasizes that the Avatars are still human & make mistakes. I can't wait to start The Dawn of Yangchen!

Content Warnings:
Graphic: death, violence, fire/fire injury, grief
Moderate: blood, alcoholism, body horror (including eye horror)
Minor: skipping meals

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Avatar: The Last Airbender - Suki, Alone by Faith Erin Hicks

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3.5

I enjoyed this short comic about Suki! I love Suki as a character and Suki, Alone expands on her story up until her time at the Boiling Rock.

Content Warnings: confinement, violence, toxic friendship

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The Rise of Kyoshi by F.C. Yee

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adventurous medium-paced

3.5

3.5 stars

- This book expanded on the Avatar Universe so well!! This was worth the read for the worldbuilding alone.
- I liked the character relationships! They were developed well.
- Be gay, do crime.
- I disliked the inconsistent pacing. In the beginning, it dragged, and the other two thirds of the book felt all over the place pace-wise.

Content Warnings: violence, death, child death, parental abandonment, body horror (teeth horror; brief), fire & fire-related injuries, blood, grief, alcohol consumption

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Flirting With Fate by J.C. Cervantes

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3.0

The girls in Ava’s family receive unique blessings from their matriarchs when they pass away. Unfortunately, Ava doesn’t make it to her grandmother’s deathbed in time to receive her blessing. Instead, it goes to a stranger she bumps into on the night of her Nana’s death. Her Nana and a bumbling spirit guide come back as ghosts to help Ava try to retrieve her misplaced blessing.

I loved the portrayal of family in this book, particularly Ava’s relationship with her sisters. I felt that the characters were underdeveloped (although I liked Nana and her saint), but I enjoyed the relationships they had with one another.

I thought the flashback-plot of Ava’s mother distracted from the present story. It was conducted in a way that disrupted the flow of the book.

Some plot points of the book were predictable and clique, and the secondhand embarrassment I felt was palpable. I think with stronger characters and plot, this book would’ve been more to my taste. I would recommend this book more toward younger YA readers who enjoy magical realism.

I particularly enjoyed the romance in this book. Ava is guarded and initially is not open to forming a friendship with the strange boy who received her blessing. Her love interest is sweet and allows Ava a safe place to open up. He also has a cute nickname for her- “Nine,” which is the number of teeth that show when Ava smiles.

Thank you to Penguin Teen and Netgalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Bet On It by Jodie Slaughter

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🔥 Bingo Sex Pact

🏠 Small Town

❤️ Anxiety & PTSD Portrayal

I loved the portrayal of mental health (anxiety and PTSD) in this book! I have anxiety, so I really appreciated the exploration and prioritizing of the character’s emotional health being at the forefront of the book.

I’m not a big fan of public sex scenes, so that did affect my rating (as there are two? public sex scenes). Overall, I did enjoy Aja and Walker bonding over bingo and forming an emotional, as well as physical, connection to each other.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an e-ARC!

Content Warnings: child neglect, panic attacks, PTSD, drugs and drug abuse

Content Warnings

A Song of Silver and Gold by Melissa Karibian

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adventurous dark lighthearted fast-paced

Sapphic Little Mermaid meets Pirates of the Caribbean? Bam, you’ve got A Song of Silver and Gold!

Content Warnings: magic healing trope, murder, sibling death, family death, parental abuse, death of children (on-page), vomiting (on-page), blood (on-page, graphic), alcohol consumption (on-page, graphic), alcohol-induced hangover, emotional abuse, refusing to eat, sexism, sexual assault, being drugged (the characters’ drinks were spiked), kidnapping, torture, confinement, sex scene (fade-to-black), death from childbirth (mention), broken bones, injury to eyes, mutilation (threatened), homophobia

For the past year, Princess Kaelyn of Avalon shortened her name to “Kae” and disguised herself as a man. After Kae’s brother was murdered in a siren attack, she sets out to avenge his death. Consequently, she puts together a crew and captains the Mar Daemon, a pirate vessel that hunts sirens. After a fatal siren attack on Avalon’s harbor, Kae resumes her authority as Captain Kae and sets out to destroy the sea demons once and for all.

Aqueara is a siren warrior of Meyrial, the underwater kingdom of sirens. When an attack on Avalon’s harbor goes terribly wrong and costs the life of her youngest cousin, she is exiled. However, a sea witch offers her cousin’s life in exchange for Captain Kae’s heart. Aqueara is given a human body and a month to carve out Captain Kae’s heart before her cousin can no longer be brought back.

When Aqueara joins Kae’s crew in an attempt to get close to her, her objective is complicated by her attraction to the pirate captain.

The plot of A Song of Silver and Gold doesn’t pick up until around a quarter into the book- but once it does, it was wonderful. The story feels light and fast-paced, filled with drinking, banter, and swashbuckling. While some aspects of the story feel unrealistic (perhaps intentionally so, to keep the story light), I appreciated that Aqueara and Kae had a genuine reason to hate each other.

At some points, the reader witnesses events through one character’s perspective. The next chapter, the other character would retell the same events in full. This only happened once or twice, but it was noticeable enough to disrupt the flow of the story.

Aqueara and Kae were good narrators, but Aqueara feels underdeveloped in comparison to Kae. I liked Aqueara as a character, but I wish her chapters were more fleshed out. In addition, I wish both of their character arcs were drawn out more. the characters changing their minds seemed to happen very suddenly. It makes more sense for Aqueara, who is surrounded by humans who hate sirens and is better able to put herself in their shoes, and therefore would most likely be quicker to stop hating humans. Kae’s beliefs changing, however, felt abrupt and forced.

Regardless, I loved both main characters and I’m excited to continue their story in the sequel to A Song of Silver and Gold. I also particularly enjoyed the side characters, especially Dalton.

This book provides easter eggs for fans of Pirates of the Caribbean and The Little Mermaid. They were subtle enough to not be overwhelming while still providing readers with a treat.

Finally, my biggest gripe with this book was the use of the magical healing trope. (Spoilers ahead! I don’t use character names.)

It was used to heal a character after they died from their throat being slit; then it was used to heal a character’s broken leg. The first character dying was only for shock value. They were only dead for a few pages, and in my opinion, could easily be taken out. I think the other character’s broken leg could easily be changed- it doesn’t need to be healed.

In both cases, the characters are restored to fully able and it’s like their injuries never happened.

Thank you to Hansen House Publishing, Melissa Karibian and BookFunnel for an advance review copy!

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sophieissapphhic's reviews 395 reviews

sophieissapphhic's reviews
395 reviews