eloise_bradbooks's reviews
801 reviews

Everyone seems to be loving this book right now, and although it took me a while to feel truly invested, I can absolutely see why.

🧜‍♂️ At its heart is a tender, slow-burn romance between a blacksmith and a merman held in captivity, raising complex questions about love, freedom, and moral responsibility.

🎪 Alongside that is a beautiful story of friendship and found family among the performers at Luna Park. Despite the 1910s setting, the community is surprisingly warm and accepting, especially as they come to understand that Benny is a gay man—and that he’s fallen for a merman??

💕 The overall tone was heartfelt and comforting.

That said, I personally struggled with some elements of the romance. It’s hard for me to fully embrace a love story where one party is held captive, even if the captor isn’t cruel. I wasn’t convinced by how quickly and deeply the connection developed under those circumstances, especially given the limitations on how they could spend time together.

It was nice but not memorable in any way

 Too one-dimensional to be really good.

Birdie is a rich influencer who has to spend the summer in her father's beach house, without social media, can you imagine!? In this beach town, Cass says she's poor but she is actually working class and works at the beach to be able to afford going to university. Cass has to look after Birdie for the summer, in exchange for loads of money from Birdie's father.

They start off hating each other but since they're both hot, they quickly remember they used to have crushes on each other as kids (kids!?) so yeah now they're dating...

The drama comes from the same things over and over and over: Cass and Birdie's differences in wealth. It was their main conflict and it came up so often without ever really getting into real talk. Cass just always says Birdie doesn't understand then storms off. Great communication skills!

Anyways... I'm sure Summer Girls will be enjoyed by some as it's a fast read, sapphic romance that's enjoyable for summer and beach reads.
For me, the characters, the romance and the plot lacked dimension.

thank you to the author and publisher for sending me an e-ARC through NetGalley. 

This book knocked me out of the park, it was absolutely fantastic.
Someone You Can Build A Nest In is a deliciously dark, tender, and unforgettable blend of body horror, parental trauma, and the sweetest sapphic (and asexual!) romance I’ve read in ages.

Shesheshen has made a mistake fatal to a monster: she's fallen in love. With Homily, the woman who helped Shesheshen after her family tried to kill the monster. Hiding her monstrous identity, Shesheshen helps Homily understand why her family thinks the monster has cursed them...

This book is so many things: horrifying and wholesome, brutal and beautiful. It’s about discovering what love means for the first time. About choosing to build a life with someone, rather than inside them (yes, literally).
The found family theme cracked my heart open and stitched it back together with a warm, gory hug.

I was hooked from the very first page and genuinely sad when it ended... not because the story lacked anything, but because I didn’t want to leave these characters behind. I could live in this world forever.

Daybreak Volume One is a really cute beginning to a high school love story between one grumpy non binary teen and a sunshine trans boy who slowly grow closer as Sunshine boy wants to cook meals for grumpy teen every now and then...
It was sweet, fluffy, slice-of-life low angst, perfect prescription for a grumpy day. 

Godly Heathens by H.E. Edgmon follows Gem, a demiromantic, nonbinary Native teen who begins to remember they're a reincarnated god when their soulmate appears, along with a whole pantheon of other queer gods searching for a deadly knife.

What really stood out to me was Gem’s arc into becoming darker and more morally grey. It added real weight to their character and sets up an exciting premise for the sequel, which I’m definitely looking forward to. For a YA fantasy, this had some genuinely impressive moments.

The romance had potential -possibly a trans/trans/trans poly love triangle- but right now it didn’t land for me. I don't care much for soulmates: we didn’t really get to see them fall in love, so it lacked emotional payoff. And the love interest I was rooting for completely changed personalities halfway through, which left me a bit disconnected.

Still, it’s a very promising start, and I’m curious to see where it goes next.

This was such a cute graphic novel, perfect for fans of The Tea Dragon Society. Cozy fantasy setting, adorable characters going on an adventure and helping magical creatures.

One small thing to be picky: the character art was really nice but I felt like the rest of the art, especially the town, could have had more attention brought to it. 

 A Gentleman's Gentleman is regency romance focusing on Christopher, a trans man who has to find a wife in order to inherit his domain, so he welcomes a butler for the first time, to help him seem more "normal".
This story was a really sweet and could easily be a trans person's comfort read. Despite the time period, it is so heartwarming to see a trans person becoming more confident in his identity, and finding people who understand and love him for who he is.
That aside, I was a little disappointed by weakness of the plot and romance, which feels under developed and a little rushed. 

 When I read this story as a webcomic 10 years ago, I absolutely loved it. It's perfect for that kind of story that gradually comes out every week/month. These characters' daily life are part of your daily life and you grow with them.
As a published graphic novel that you probably read in one sitting, it doesn't quite work. It misses plot to keep it interesting. The boys story is sweet but you really get to see the cuteness of it as they grow and in this first volume we don't quite get there.
I hope we'll still get to see the next volumes being published though!