Joaquin is out and proud, and has the support of his dad and sister. However, he’s not quite ready for them to throw him a whole party for it and call it a queerceañera. As everyone speculates about the upcoming party, the biggest question is: who will be his chambelán?

While everyone is focused on that, Joaquin is more focused on whether or not his mom will come to the party. Or if he’s finally been replaced by Felix. However, when a small lie snowballs into something bigger, Felix is now Joaquin’s chambelán and they might be fake dating. But what happens when Joaquin starts to develop real feelings for Felix? 
 

Thanks to HarperTeen and NetGalley for an advanced copy of Queerceañera by Alex Crespo to review! I loved Alex Crespo’s debut last year, so I was excited to see another book, especially a romance. One of my favorite genres!

This is a very character centric story, taking us through Joaquin’s emotional journey with his identity and his relationship with his mom. Outside of his mom, he does have a support group, and a lot of the book is about him learning to accept their help when he needs it. His journey will definitely be relatable to a large number of queer teens reading this book.

The idea of a coming out, identity acceptance party for teenagers is also so fun. There’s another book that came out last year that also features a coming out party, Friday I’m in Love by Camryn Garrett. Just the idea of teens being able to throw a party for themselves and have support for their identity just gives you the warm fuzzies inside.

If you love sweet second chance romance stories with a splash of fake dating, definitely pick this one up when it comes out in May! 

This was a delight to read! It's not perfect, but the characters and the overall heart iare both what definitely make the story. Izzy is such a well-rounded main character, and her friendship with Raven feels so genuine. And Akka! Always here for a good pet in a story (especially when that pet isn't killed for a plot device. Looking at you, Patrick Ness lol).

Anyway, the post-apocalpytic world aspect could have been a bit more developed because by the end, it did require quite a bit of suspension of disbelief. But I still enjoyed it, and I love all the rep that it includes!

This might be my favorite of the series! I definitely think there's a hint in there at the end that this series could continue, and I totally think that's something Riordan would do. Plus, getting to see characters cross series is always fun. I don't know why I didn't make the Chase connection before starting this series, but I totally get it now.

Riordan has a knack for writing great groups of characters, and in such an entertaining way. His books easily hook you in, and they are quite expansive now. And I can officially say I am caught up on all of his books!

This hooked me from the beginning! The art is stunning, the characters are engaging, and it feels like a folktale in the overall writing. Based on the Korean legend of the fox-demon woman Gumiho, Ha includes themes that still apply to a lot of women today. All of the elements work together to create such an engaging graphic novel.

However, it's not quite getting five stars because the ending felt quite abrupt. Each section of the story felt like it got room to breath, but the ending was wrapped up in just a few pages. Not sure if this was intended because of the mythology aspect, but I wish there was just a little more there are at the end. If you're looking for a great graphic novel to pick up during Women's History Month, I definitely recommend this one!

An adorable, whimsical middle grade graphic novel! Middle grade fantasy readers will definitely be drawn to the characters and the world that Zhou has created. There's magic, mythical creatures, and characters with unknown priorities. The art reflects the overall tone of the story, and I think it works really well!

The only thing I would have expanded on was Atana's need to hide from everyone. I understood there was potential for her being hunted as a mermaid, but it never really explained why. It works well as a queer metaphor, though. I can't wait to read the next one!

First of all, three years pass between this volume and the last?? What a time gap. It does make the stakes higher for the ending of the series, though. War has been raging while Dani and Dorian are separated from their friends. And yet, they're all still determined to bring an end to the war.

I love the art style for this series, and the core group of characters are still just so lovely. Tone wise, this volume is quite a bit darker than the first two, but it makes sense as the characters are bascially all 16 now. They have grown up a lot since the first volume, and I love how it comes full circle by the end.

I'm definitely glad I read this, and would certainly recommend to those who love magical graphic novels featuring witches and found family!

It's always fun when authors take one of their series and connect it to the other. Especially if you'd read the author's other books! This was another fun adventure from Rick Riordan, full of mythology, good friends, and a bunch of gods making the wrong choices. Of course, the stakes have been risen for the next book, so I can't wait to see how Magnus's adventures play out!

An emotional debut! This is definitely a character-driven story, focused on Belén's emotional journey learning to accept the fact that her father left and that her best friend is pregnant. Among a lot of other tough issues! Belén struggles with the fact that so many people tell her that she's just like her father, meaning that she thinks she also won't amount to anything. So, she searches for distraction in places that aren't always healthy. 

The characters and the emotions in this book are so well done. There are so many things that teens will be able to relate to in Belén's story. Ixta also does a great job nailing the teenage voice, as there were moments where you knew that Belén was making bad, teenage-driven decisions, but it's all a part of the story. 

Additionally, Ixta isn't afraid to tackle issues like racism, mental health, class, and just general societal and familial expectations. If you're interested in emotional, character driven stories, I'd definitely recommend picking this one up!

Linus is the new kid at school and trying to fly under the radar. After recently coming out as trans at his previous school and dealing with all of the attention that came with it, he’s looking forward to being an anonymous teenager. Etta has always been the odd one out at school, and she’s fine with being a loner ever since breaking up with her best friend. At least, that’s what she keeps telling herself.

After an encounter with Etta’s ex-best friend Marigold, Linus is now a part of a (unknown) bet to get elected as student body president. But as Etta spends more time with Linus, she realizes she genuinely likes him as a friend. And she’s afraid that friendship will disappear when she tells him the truth. 
 

Thanks to Feiwel & Friends and NetGalley for an advanced copy of Linus and Etta Could Use a Win by Caroline Huntoon! It’s my year of focusing on reading more middle grade, and this one sounded absolutely adorable. I am happy to say that the story and the writing definitely didn’t disappoint.

I believe this is Huntoon’s second book, and I think I’m definitely going to have to go back and read their first one! The writing style of this hits the tone of a middle grade book right on, and all of the emotions and interactions absolutely felt so genuine. I can see middle grade readers of all kinds relating to both Linus and Etta.

Middle school feels like such a tumultuous time for friendships, and that’s captured in this book as well. There’s that feeling of loneliness that feels unique to middle school in the fact that you don’t know where you fit in. It’s a time of so many changes, and adding extra changes on top of that? It just compounds the loneliness.

If you love middle grade books, especially queer middle grade books, definitely check this one out when it comes out this May! 

This is such a cool concept for a book, honestly. It's a poetry anthology that's connected to Black history, mythology, and just general storytelling. There are quite a few Black poets included in here, and each poem is followed by a brief explanation connecting it to history or Black community. It is a book that honestly would work really well in a classroom setting, especially if talking about history.

I listened to the audiobook, which had multiple narrators. I wasn't necessarily a fan of all of the narrators, but overall, it is a good audiobook experience.