Take a photo of a barcode or cover
amandasbrews's Reviews (454)
Sweet, fun, funny, lovely, emotional, beautiful, validating, soft
Lunar New Love is a book that I feel like I’ve been waiting for my whole life. It’s a wonderful Christmas-style romantic comedy but instead of bringing their partner home for the holidays, Minh is bringing their partner home for Tết, Vietnamese Lunar New Year. I have a deep soft spot for mixed representation in literature, but Minh is mixed Viet, just like me, which made Lunar New Love so special to me. This story is full of heart, healing, and joy, and I’m so happy I got a chance to read an early copy.
Quick Summary: Minh hasn’t come home for Tết in three years, ever since their catastrophic coming out, but this year will be different. But when Minh accidentally tells their family that they are bringing home a partner for Tết, they have to scramble to find someone, anyone, who will pretend to be their partner. Unexpectedly, the perfect fake partner turns out to be Cass, the one person in their friend group who they just can’t get along with. Cass needs the same favor returned to her the very next day for a double date with her cheating ex. It seems like the perfect deal is a fake dating trade-off.
The personality clashing between Minh and Cass was a delight for so many reasons. Minh is soft and sweet, quiet and reserved with a big heart, Cass on the other hand has a rough exterior and comes off rather brash. The characterization here allowed their clashing to be both hilarious, painful, and joyous, much like it always is when we come together with people who are different from us. It is also a wonderful parallel for how each of them face the world. Each of them has their identities to work out and discover about themselves which clashes with the world around them. But the way that their relationship mends in those brilliant and difficult ways is exactly how they work on their respective relationships with the world too.
Full review on my blog Bookish Brews
Bookish Brews | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Facebook
Lunar New Love is a book that I feel like I’ve been waiting for my whole life. It’s a wonderful Christmas-style romantic comedy but instead of bringing their partner home for the holidays, Minh is bringing their partner home for Tết, Vietnamese Lunar New Year. I have a deep soft spot for mixed representation in literature, but Minh is mixed Viet, just like me, which made Lunar New Love so special to me. This story is full of heart, healing, and joy, and I’m so happy I got a chance to read an early copy.
Quick Summary: Minh hasn’t come home for Tết in three years, ever since their catastrophic coming out, but this year will be different. But when Minh accidentally tells their family that they are bringing home a partner for Tết, they have to scramble to find someone, anyone, who will pretend to be their partner. Unexpectedly, the perfect fake partner turns out to be Cass, the one person in their friend group who they just can’t get along with. Cass needs the same favor returned to her the very next day for a double date with her cheating ex. It seems like the perfect deal is a fake dating trade-off.
The personality clashing between Minh and Cass was a delight for so many reasons. Minh is soft and sweet, quiet and reserved with a big heart, Cass on the other hand has a rough exterior and comes off rather brash. The characterization here allowed their clashing to be both hilarious, painful, and joyous, much like it always is when we come together with people who are different from us. It is also a wonderful parallel for how each of them face the world. Each of them has their identities to work out and discover about themselves which clashes with the world around them. But the way that their relationship mends in those brilliant and difficult ways is exactly how they work on their respective relationships with the world too.
Full review on my blog Bookish Brews
Bookish Brews | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Facebook
Dreamer comes out next week so I'm doing a giveaway over on Twitter from March 12-19!! Check it out here!
Imaginative, dark, sharp, enthralling, magical, exciting, dangerous
Dreamer is a wonderfully imaginative novella for those who love light magic and rock music. Dream Traveling is such a captivating magic that it had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. My dreams are heavily influenced by real-life (especially horror movies) and so seeing Vera be tormented by her dreams like this poured right into my subconscious. Highly imaginative and smart, this novella is sure to pull you in.
Quick Summary: Vera’s family has a secret power that is passed down through the generations. They call it Dream Traveling, anything they dream comes to life. Since Vera has been doing it her whole life, she knows the rules to keep herself safe but after discovering something that she couldn’t handle, she finds herself plagued by violent and dangerous dreams and her injuries follow her into the real world. Now, Vera must find a way to get this out of her head so she can rest safely before she ends up not waking up ever again.
Dreamer is a delight for music lovers and people who love when stories make them believe in magic. Vera’s ability is imaginative and hidden from the world, it is also something that sparks an innate wonder (and fear!) in us. Could this be real? Is it just hidden from us? Dreams becoming a reality is both an immense joy, an overwhelming terror, a useful escape, and a generational gift and MultiMind manages to capture it all in Dreamer. Continue reading...
Bookish Brews | Ko-Fi | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Facebook
Imaginative, dark, sharp, enthralling, magical, exciting, dangerous
Dreamer is a wonderfully imaginative novella for those who love light magic and rock music. Dream Traveling is such a captivating magic that it had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. My dreams are heavily influenced by real-life (especially horror movies) and so seeing Vera be tormented by her dreams like this poured right into my subconscious. Highly imaginative and smart, this novella is sure to pull you in.
Quick Summary: Vera’s family has a secret power that is passed down through the generations. They call it Dream Traveling, anything they dream comes to life. Since Vera has been doing it her whole life, she knows the rules to keep herself safe but after discovering something that she couldn’t handle, she finds herself plagued by violent and dangerous dreams and her injuries follow her into the real world. Now, Vera must find a way to get this out of her head so she can rest safely before she ends up not waking up ever again.
Dreamer is a delight for music lovers and people who love when stories make them believe in magic. Vera’s ability is imaginative and hidden from the world, it is also something that sparks an innate wonder (and fear!) in us. Could this be real? Is it just hidden from us? Dreams becoming a reality is both an immense joy, an overwhelming terror, a useful escape, and a generational gift and MultiMind manages to capture it all in Dreamer. Continue reading...
Bookish Brews | Ko-Fi | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Facebook
Realistic, modern, nostalgic, relevant, relatable, tough, engaging
Frogman’s Response was a book that I didn’t think I would relate to quite as much as I did. I found myself identifying with Matthew constantly in a way that made me uncomfortable in a way that books don’t often elicit in me. I could see how my high school self would have made similar mistakes and reactions as Matthew and it made me confront where those feelings might have come from. Hoarding disorder is so common in the Midwest (which is actually where I grew up!) it’s almost hard to find a family that doesn’t have too many boxes somewhere. Though I never saw it on the same scale as Matthew, the emotions that Matthew feels are all too familiar to so many kids. This book is uncomfortably relatable in the best way that will make you nostalgic for high school and so glad you will never have to go back all at the same time.
Quick Summary: Matthew gets anonymously famous at his school after posting advice under the pseudonym Frogman on his school’s counseling website until the school bans him. Addicted to anonymously helping his classmates, he and his friends make a school blog and run it the way that they think it should be run. Little did they know that the well-intentioned advice would start to wreak havoc on the student body, but Frogman becomes the only way that Matthew feels in control of his life when living in his mom’s hoarding house. When Matthew’s private notebook gets stolen, Matthew worries that everything in his life will begin falling apart…
This book is engaging, realistic, and right on point. Regardless of if these teenager struggles are similar experiences to yours, you can’t help but see yourself somewhere in this high school. The energy, the aesthetic and the situations feel like the most realistic depiction of high school that I’ve read in so long. You can’t help but sympathize with Matthew and his friends. Frogman’s Response is a firm reminder that high school is hard and growing up is hard, which is something that we often forget as we get older and stop sympathizing with teens quite as much. Voss will put you right back in the shoes of these teenagers.
Bookish Brews | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Facebook
Frogman’s Response was a book that I didn’t think I would relate to quite as much as I did. I found myself identifying with Matthew constantly in a way that made me uncomfortable in a way that books don’t often elicit in me. I could see how my high school self would have made similar mistakes and reactions as Matthew and it made me confront where those feelings might have come from. Hoarding disorder is so common in the Midwest (which is actually where I grew up!) it’s almost hard to find a family that doesn’t have too many boxes somewhere. Though I never saw it on the same scale as Matthew, the emotions that Matthew feels are all too familiar to so many kids. This book is uncomfortably relatable in the best way that will make you nostalgic for high school and so glad you will never have to go back all at the same time.
Quick Summary: Matthew gets anonymously famous at his school after posting advice under the pseudonym Frogman on his school’s counseling website until the school bans him. Addicted to anonymously helping his classmates, he and his friends make a school blog and run it the way that they think it should be run. Little did they know that the well-intentioned advice would start to wreak havoc on the student body, but Frogman becomes the only way that Matthew feels in control of his life when living in his mom’s hoarding house. When Matthew’s private notebook gets stolen, Matthew worries that everything in his life will begin falling apart…
This book is engaging, realistic, and right on point. Regardless of if these teenager struggles are similar experiences to yours, you can’t help but see yourself somewhere in this high school. The energy, the aesthetic and the situations feel like the most realistic depiction of high school that I’ve read in so long. You can’t help but sympathize with Matthew and his friends. Frogman’s Response is a firm reminder that high school is hard and growing up is hard, which is something that we often forget as we get older and stop sympathizing with teens quite as much. Voss will put you right back in the shoes of these teenagers.
Bookish Brews | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Facebook
For non-book records, review text and ratings are hidden. Only mood, pace, and content warnings are visible.
Wow this book is so fun!!! Ball gowns, magic, and feminism, I mean how could it go wrong?
Bookish Brews | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Facebook
Bookish Brews | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Facebook
viet ya contemp - TN
viet ya contemp reread - TN
viet heist - G
viet alien invasion - V
filipino diaspora myth - CO
viet literary spec - HN
mushroom lesbians - MT
trans monster hunter - CM
queer feminist revenge - LL
jewish werewolves - DM
filipino diaspora myth - CO
viet ya contemp reread - TN
viet heist - G
viet alien invasion - V
filipino diaspora myth - CO
viet literary spec - HN
mushroom lesbians - MT
trans monster hunter - CM
queer feminist revenge - LL
jewish werewolves - DM
filipino diaspora myth - CO
Scouts Honor is a lot of fun! It feels like one of those paranormal tv shows that I used to watch back in the late 2000s and early 2010s. Putting monster hunters in scouts is delightful and I loved the training and legacy that was here. Being able to see monsters that other people can't is such a fun element, you're sure to have a blast!
Unfortunately for me, there were way too many pop culture references in this. I am completely oblivious to pop culture when it doesn't surround literature and so I didn't get a lot of it or it made it feel too out of place. It just made it read too much like this book wasn't for me. I know SO many people love that, though, so it's completely personal and I didn't rate it down because of that. It just wasn't the best fit for me personally. If you love the concept and pop culture, you'll be obsessed!
Bookish Brews | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Facebook
Unfortunately for me, there were way too many pop culture references in this. I am completely oblivious to pop culture when it doesn't surround literature and so I didn't get a lot of it or it made it feel too out of place. It just made it read too much like this book wasn't for me. I know SO many people love that, though, so it's completely personal and I didn't rate it down because of that. It just wasn't the best fit for me personally. If you love the concept and pop culture, you'll be obsessed!
Bookish Brews | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Facebook