A solid queer graphic novel! It read at a fast pace, but I didn’t mind too much. The alternating styles of the two different authors/illustrators between chapters was interesting, and I didn’t really know what to make of it. But you could still see the same core personalities and characters, so it wasn’t drastically different. 

A ghost whisperer and a werewolf origin love story? Sign me up. 

This was like The Bachelor meets Hunger Games. It was trash and I loved it. Still one star. 

This was such an interesting book! I loved learning the history of the female butt and thinking about all PF Changs these juxtaposing ideas of the butt. Is it gross? Is it sexy? Is it funny? 

My own personal butt has felt like a label or identity of mine that I didn’t really consent to. Two separate people I have dated coined the term of endearment “sexybutt” for me - without having known the other did so. While I don’t personally hate my butt, the reactions other males have to it makes me feel like I’m a sexual object and not much more, especially when that’s all you hear. 

Because of this, I found enlightening stories within this book, and my interest for understanding why we as a society hold the female butt with such high regard was high. This was so fascinating and written well with a great balance of comedic wit and serious matters. 

I think out of all the books in the Truly Devious series, this one was my favorite? I'm not exactly sure why, but I'll say I enjoyed it most. It's been a while since I've read the original "trilogy" as well as the fourth book, so I had kind of forgotten some details and characters, but it was easy to get a quick grasp on what was happening in this one. It was nice that it could have been a stand-a-lone and if someone hadn't read the previous books, they could still read this one.

I was definitely invested in the murder mystery. I will say this about Maureen Johnson - she's a pro at the slow-burn mystery. You get all these seemingly random clues that may or may not relate, and you don't really understand the full picture until the very end. I will say that I did catch on to some of the clues Stevie used, but I couldn't put them together as to how they fit. I liked that I was also searching for answers and could guess along with the story.

The B-storyline was a bit to "teen drama" for me. But this is a YA book, geared towards teens, and I get that there needs to be some kind of storyline that attempts to make the characters grow as people. And even though it's a bit to much "dating drama," I will say I'm a bit invested now - especially THAT ENDING!?!?

Also, bonus points for more queer rep coming through. <3 

I decided to check this out because it was part of the Big Library Read, and I didn’t really know what to expect. But I’m so happy I picked it up. 

I had no idea or any inkling who Grace Cho was nor any interest or relationship to schizophrenia, but this really opened my mind to learning new things. 

Food was such a large part of this memoir, and it brought me back to my one college class that was basically all about food - how our society perceives it, the history of how we treat food, it’s place in our world, and more. I saw a lot of connections to that class, and, for that reason, I was able to form a better, meaningful connection to what Grace Cho was telling us readers. How food is so powerful as to form a basis for connection, memory, relationships, and so much more - specifically to Grace Cho, a way to bring her mother back to before her schizophrenic days. 

This was so well done and this will certainly be a book I think about for a while. I loved so many things about it - the honesty, the complex and real relationships, the juxtaposition of both personal struggles (her mother’s schizophrenia) and societal issues (homophobia, racism, misogyny, etc) and how they affected one another. This was really a beautiful and sad and haunting book in the most lovely way. 

I don’t have any other choice but to give it 5 stars. Wow, I’m still processing everything that happened in this book, and it’s going to take me a while to entirely do so. This book will stay with me for a while. 

Rory Power is an absolute master at the slow-burn thriller/horror/mystery. I never wanted to stop listening (GREAT narration from Lauren Ezzo!). There was a great balance between the actual action of the mystery and the inner turmoil Margo was feeling about her identity and family. 

I highly recommend for anyone who enjoys slow-burn horror, or has liked anything else by Rory Power. 

Oh wow this was so powerful. This was so well-written and Ellie was such a complex and full-fledged character. I found myself cheering for her when she started standing up for herself. 

This was a great middle grade read that shows tremendous growth in the main character. Not only does she gradually gain confidence in standing up for herself - but she stands up for herself TO HER MOM! Which is impressive and amazing and something I’m still learning to do. 

I don't really know what to think of this book. The main character, Voya, was fun but also annoying? I understand her whole thing was that she can't make a decision for herself at all and overthinks them, but there were times it got to a point where I just wanted to smack her. When her Calling comes and she has to make a decision as to whether or not to complete it, I was so annoyed because I didn't understand how she felt like there was a choice at all. Of course you should accept it and try. You either have "don't accept it and have a bad outcome" or "accept and you'll have a bad outcome if you fail or a good one if you pass." Like...there's the option for passing, so do it? This caused the pacing for me to go on reaaaalllly slowly. 

Also

the fact her Calling said to destroy her first love and Voya and the family immediately thought romantic love annoyed me so much. Like...the whole twist at the end of it being her choice of how to interpret it, meaning "first love" could be either her first romantic love or platonic/familial, was something I guessed/knew from the beginning? It wasn't that hard a jump to think that. And wasn't there even a point at the beginning that a family member is like "maybe first love could mean something else?" and everyone dismisses it and decides to accept that everything sucks and wallows in it.

Other than that, I enjoyed the magical aspect of this world and how it works. It being set in the future was really interesting and added a lot of really cool elements. This gave me Encanto-vibes of big family with magic powers and a girl who doesn't have one (yet) and just wants to be there for the family. I also dig the lgbtqiap+ acceptance and representation.

So overall, a 3.5 because it wasn't awful, but there were things I think could have been tidied up.

This was definitely a book I had a hard time putting down. I wanted to stay in this world and get answers to the mysterious death and disappearance of two different girls. I loved the feminist lens and the intricate ways the different suspects were tied together. 

I will say that there were times I was confused because I listened to the audiobook and the different narrators for each girl sometimes sounded similar. So there were times I thought someone was talking and it was actually the other person. If I had read the physical book, things would have probably made way more chronological sense. 

Wow, this was so interesting! I don't normally read a lot of non-fiction, but this was so entertaining and funny as well as informative. As someone with a degree in English (literature), I loved breaking down cultish behavior based on language and how that affects us. This really made me look back at all the pyramid schemes Facebook acquaintances would try to get me to join, and me rejecting them and feeling bad for it. This book helped me heal in that I no longer feel bad about it.