Reviews by betweentheshelves

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betweentheshelves

I Hear the Sunspot: Theory of Happiness

Yuki Fumino

4.5

emotional hopeful lighthearted slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

The only reason this isn't getting a full 5 stars is because it felt a little long for the story. But other than that, so many emotions! And the artwork is really well done. And don't get me started on the characters. I absolutely love them.

Content Warnings

Vampires, Hearts, & Other Dead Things

Margie Fuston

4.0

adventurous emotional fast-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

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for an advanced copy of this to review! Honestly, the cover jumped out at me and the premise sounded so unique and interesting. Plus, the cover really pulls you it because it’s so beautiful!

At the heart, this is very much a book about grief. It’s Victoria’s journey working through losing her dad, and you can feel her desperation to do anything to save him. Adding in the vampires worked as a nice foil to her journey working through her emotions. Especially her interactions with Nicholas, going out and doing things she never would have done before. Fuston does this aspect of the book so well, bring all kinds of emotions into the story and really fleshing out the characters.

Outside of Victoria, Henry and Nicholas were also really fleshed out. They all bounced off each other and worked well together, bringing even more to the story. Especially the relationship between Victoria and Henry. You can tell there is so much history between them and I loved the way the interacted. They care for each other, even if their flaws sometimes get in the way of that.

All in all, this is a unique, emotional novel that will definitely make you feel all the things. Plus, vampires! They’re making a comeback, and I’m kind of here for it.

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This is such an emotional, unique read. More to come in a full review tomorrow!

Content Warnings

A Sitting in St. James

Rita Williams-Garcia

4.0

challenging dark informative slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This book is essentially a slice-of-life kind of story set in late 1800s Lousiana. The writing is very well done, anad it's clear that Williams-Garcia did her research on the time period. Everything about it felt authentic, really pulling you into the story. It's definitely not a fast-paced, plot driven story, though. It's slow moving, giving you a clear picture of the time period. I also appreciated the inclusion of LGBTQ characters, because so often they are left out of historical fiction.

There is definitely a dark side to this book, depicting slavery, sexual violence, and rape. I'm not sure that most teens would just pick this up off the shelf, I do think it's an important side of history that many people don't get in American history classes.

Anyway, I underestand why this is getting so much buzz and I think it's definitely well placed. It's just not a book that would be for everyone.

Content Warnings

The Darkness Outside Us

Eliot Schrefer

4.5

adventurous emotional tense 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

Wow. You might think you know what to expect in this book, but I promise that your expectations will totally be turned on their head. The only reason this isn't getting 5 stars is because there were times that the pacing felt a bit weird. But other than that, I didn't want to put this down! The characters hook you and the twists make every section new and exciting.

Content Warnings

I Hear the Sunspot

Yuki Fumino

4.0

emotional hopeful slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

While there were moments that were a bit difficult to follow here, I absolutely loved the story. It's more about the connection between Kohei and Taichi and the relationship they form. Definitely a slow burn, and I can see why people wanted more! I need to know what happens next.

Content Warnings

Hurricane Summer

Asha Bromfield

3.5

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, this is a story that needs to be told. It's authentic, the voice feels real, and the incorporation of the Patois language makes it really unique. However, Tilla's story isn't the easiest to read. She goes through abuse, bullying, name calling. Your heart aches for her. There isn't much to balance out all of the negative stuff Tilla goes through, and I wish there was more showing a balanced side of Jamaica.

Content Warnings

Obie Is Man Enough

Schuyler Bailar

4.5

challenging emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Books for an advanced copy of this to review! I saw it on NetGalley and it definitely caught my eye. One of my goals is to read more middle grade LGBTQ books, and this fit that bill. And I’m happy to say I really enjoyed this one!

At the start, the writing feels a little rocky, since it’s a debut. But Bailar hits his stride about halfway through the book and Obie’s voice really shines through. In fact, Bailar nails Obie’s voice in this book. Part of this story is Obie finding his voice, gaining confidence and learning that he truly does have an amazing support system in place. It was great seeing a school that takes such swift action against bullying, becuase you don’t always see that in fiction.

While there is a lot of transphobia and bullying in this book (which is noted with a content warning in the beginning), it’s balanced well with Obie’s friends, parents, and teachers. They want to do what’s best for Obie, and I loved seeing that. His new friends on his new swim team absolutely have his back. There are so many of these great relationships in this book, and I would absolutely read this just for those. Plus, Obie learns to find his voice in writing, and this balances out the swimming really well in this book.

Obie is also part Korean, and his scenes with his grandma are so heartwarming. They make kimchi and talk about Korea, and these scenes are beautiful. There’s so much to love about this book, honestly!

The only reason this isn’t getting a full five stars is because the writing is shaky in a few places. But you can definitely see potential! I can’t wait to see what else Bailar comes out with, because this is a voice that needs to be heard in middle grade books.

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This had a bit of a rocky start, but by the end I was absolutely hooked by Obie's voice. Stay tuned for a full review tomorrow!

Content Warnings

One of the Good Ones

Maritza Moulite, Maika Moulite

4.5

emotional tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This book is masterfully composed. The catch phrase "The Hate U Give meets Get Out" is actually a really adequate description of this book, because not only does it tackle issues like police brutality and racism, it also has a bit of a thriller aspect to it. The writing was engaging and each sister had a distinct voice that brought something more to the story. Another great 2021 release for the books!

Content Warnings

Like Other Girls

Britta Lundin

4.0

emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Thanks to NetGalley and Disney Publishing for an advanced copy of this to review! This was an anticipated release for me, and I’m happy to say it lived up to my expectations! If you’re looking for queer sports books, definitely pick this one up this fall.

One of the strongest aspects of this book is Mara’s journey to unlearn the misogyny that she’s internalized her entire life. At the beginning, she’s so against being “one of the girls” because she doesn’t feel like she fits in. Throughout, she learns that being a girl isn’t always a bad thing, and the little group of friends she makes is fantastic. I loved each one of them. Their dynamic in the book, both on and off the football field, works so well.

Another thing I enjoyed was the subtle nature of the romance. While I didn’t always get the chemistry between Mara and her love interest, I did enjoy that the romance didn’t necessarily take a front seat to everything else that was going on. Also, some of the boys on the football team are awful. Parts of their interactions were hard to read, just because you know this happens in real life.

Overall, this will be a great book to pick up going into football season, even if you don’t know that much about football. Mara is a great character, and her journey is one I think a lot of girls will relate to.

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Overall, this book was really engaging and tackles the issues of internalized misogyny with grace. More to come in a review on Thursday!

Content Warnings

Aetherbound

E.K. Johnston

2.0

tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I feel like this had so much potential, but even though it was short, the pacing was off and not a lot happened until about 3/4 of the way through the book. There was a lot of focus on building the world, building these characters, but then I wasn't really sure what the point was? A lot of the exposition could have been cut down, and more of the plot points at the end expanded on more.

Content Warnings

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