eloise_bradbooks's reviews
780 reviews

 Eden Jones is an ace, bi and non binary teen with social anxiety, who has told their mother they have many friends at their new school. The problem is... they don't. So when Eden's mom throws a party and invites what she thinks is Eden's friends, Eden has to try to befriend them for real.

Asking For A Friend is a middle grade story about queerness, friendship, finding the people who you finally feel free to be yourself with, and being honest with yourself and people around you.
It's queer joy at its best.
There are so many forms of queerness in this book, through Eden's identities and their new friends (trans, lesbian, genderqueer, mental health issues, foster care rep...). None of these kids are perfect and that feels so real and honest and true and even more important when they accept each other as they are and form the best friendgroup you could imagine.

I can imagine this book being so important in the hands (and in the hearts) of young readers, wether they're queer or questioning or simply wanting to learn more about queerness.

As an ace, bi, non binary person with social anxiety and who has struggled to develop new friendships, this book felt like a soothing hug for my inner child and my current adult mind who knows it took so long to accept all of this about me and who would have loved to have stories who represented me like this one does. 

 Well, this book is an impressive mix of funny, romantic and emotional moments all in one book.
I definitely felt the great queer romcom movie potential and I need *someone* to pick it up NOW.*

Here We Go Again follows Rosemary and Logan, two lesbian English teachers with ADHD who used to be best friends but who haven't spoken in years, forced to spend time together in a "queer-mobile" to take their mentor (and his enormous dog) on a death-roadtrip...

On a personal note I would have taken away a few things from books (Logan's "[first name] fucking[last name]!" sayings were so annoying) and I just felt like there could have been even more emotion and connexion between the two girls (this is a romcom after all)...
But altogether it remained a great book I really enjoyed reading. 

Icarus is a wonderful heartbreaking but hopeful and romantic tale of two teenage boys finding each other and finding the strength to break away from neglect, abuse and generational trauma.
As well as a deep heartfelt romance, there's also a brilliant tale of friendship and it just shows what it means to be surrounded by people who actually care about you... 

3.5/5 ~ I'm a little torn with this book because on the one hand I know I had a good time and enjoyed it. But that's mostly because I cared so much about about these characters in the first book that seeing them again and seeing them interact just gave me so much joy and feels.
BUT I also know that this book does not live up to the previous one.
I kind of read it sporadically and was always happy to pick it back up, but didn't really feel the need to turn every page and loose sleep over it, which is what I got from reading Silver Under Nightfall.
There was less action, less anticipation, more sex but less actual development within the different characters, and the ending felt a little anticlimactic...

Absolutely gorgeous novel written in verse, about two trans boys in love, growing together and coming into their own at their own pace but always supporting each other through it all. It was beautiful.
The only reason I'm not giving in 5 stars is because being obsessed with war is not something I really like reading about...

Awakenings was such a nice read.
In one small book (180 pages) you get a mix of cosy fantasy AND epic fantasy! With very likeable characters who get to play boardgames together, sometimes try to get away from villains, and find their happy place with each other.
I love that we're getting a second novella very soon, which will hopefully develop the characters even more.

I've been meaning to read Claudie Arsenault books for a while and this one definitely encouraged me to move her author books up my TBR. 

In Walked Trouble is a rivals-to-lovers sapphic romance about two women who have been through some tough times, now fighting for a cash bonus in their bartending job. But if course as they get closer, they fall for each other...

I thought this was a good story overall. It's easy to read and never drops into uninteresting.

For me though, the women go from "enemies" or rivals to lovers quite fast. They fall in love veeery fast, which I always struggle with.

I need them to spend more time together, go through more shit together for me to really get behind the "you're family" / "I love you" aspect of the story which is central in feeling the strong emotions the author wanted to make us feel with this story.

On another note, the chapter titles being fun drink names was a really cool idea! We need more fun chapter titles like these ones!!

I'd like to thank Dana Hawkins for sending me an digital copy of this book.

Jenna Miller writes some great contemporary YA books about fat lesbians and is now definitely on my "look out for everything she publishes" list.

This was a pretty addictive read you fly through. The story flows really well.
I did appreciate the story and the characters but there were times where I found myself quite critical towards our MC, mostly in her way of not understanding her crush's potential difficulties (with coming out for instance) which I found too hurtful.
But it does also feel like a book where the characters feel pretty real, make mistakes, and own up to them. It's a good growth story.