Let’s start by saying the obvious: I don’t read many romance books. It’s not that I don’t like a love story, I just hate it when they are full of cliches and predictable since page one.

However, I was seeking something light to read, happy and with no major traumas portrayed, because ever since I’ve started reading books from around the world I noticed this tendency in my readings: everything I read is quite depressing and full of traumas.

So, back to “sweethand”: it is a simple love story about ennemies turning lovers. And that’s it, nothing else to say about the plot, besides the fact that it is SO predictable, full of cliches, and it seems it was written by 15 yo me, when I still believed that love was like in the movies my mom made me watch.

Bottom line: it was not not enjoyable, but it made me roll my eyes quite hard at various moments. It’s a no for me. However, I don’t like being 100% negative, so a good point: sex scene are extremely well written!

In this autobiographical book, Putsata Reang brings us in the intimate journey of her family fleeing Cambodian war and starting anew in the USA, and her struggles as a child of an immigrant family and as a member of the LGBTQ community.

There is a lot to unpack, and various interesting themes. Besides the historical facts about Cambodian war, Putstata Reang paints a notable picture of the “complex” children of immigrants often face, that is to say the feeling of owning perfection to their parents to repay their sacrifice they made in the quest of a better for their children. Additionally, the author details her difficulty in coming out to her parents, and how this was in complete opposition to her felt obligation of being the perfect child.

While the books is well written, it still misses something. First of all, the author being a journalist, the book takes a “journalistic” tone: personally I could not stop thinking about how it would have made such a good fiction novel. Yet, this is very subjective, and does not take away anything from the story.

Secondly, the story is very much centered on the author’s mother, and while she relates some of her father’s the wrongdoings (violence and abuse), it does not analyze this relation at all: I can’t say whether it was voluntary, if it shows that the author still has to unpack all of her traumas and experiences, or if she did but not felt ready to expose it - while it is impossible for us to say, it does take away something from it.

Finally, something that my cisgender eye did not catch it at first, but that @independent_wombat pointed out is how the author replicates some quite problematic patriarchal structures in her relationship, which is also a pity: once again, this is HER story, how SHE acted being who she is and having grown up in the society she has. So, no blame nor hate on her, just something to take into account

In this personal journal, we dive into the life of Jmiaa, a woman who lives in Casablanca and is a prostitute, even if I would not say this is the defining part of her life nor of the book. 

Little by little, and maybe a bit too slowly at the beginning of the book, Jmiaa tell us about her life, her ex-husband, her colleagues, her daughter and her mother, in a simple yet very captivating way, without falling in the cliché of a powerless victim, quite the opposite.

Starting reading this, I was afraid the story was going in the direction of a narrative focused yet again on violence and the « oppressed woman » in a muslim country that is so widely sold and appreciated in Europe (🙄). However, as the story kept going on, it became clear that it was not the case. 

I enjoyed the reading, and while there are some moments of violence, they did not end up dominating the story, which I appreciated. However, I would not say I loved it to the moon. I think a faster pace might have benefitted the story. In addition to that, I feel like we were introduced to some interesting second characters who then kind of disappear, which makes sense in a way it being the personal journal of the protagonist, but I felt a bit left hanging. 

This has been such an explosive, fresh and different fantasy from what my western ass has been used to.

 Jess finds herself back in her home country without a job, far away from her girlfriend and stuck with her living and not so living family. When she starts hearing voices, she thinks she might be going crazy, but it turns out she was definitely not. She will, however, have to deal with the spirit of her dead grandmother, a bunch of violent and powerful gods, and gangs.

 I loved everything about this, the story, the characters, the settings, but most of all I loved the witty dialogues, especially between Jess and her spirit-grandmother, finding myself laughing multiple times. However, be aware there are some triggers, notably about sexual aggression and rape.

Welcome to the « paradise » island of Barbados, where women are destined to suffer by the visible hand of men and the less visible yet heavy one of patriarchy and interiorized misogyny.

⚠️ This book will bring great suffering upon you, and it’s full of triggers (like, all of the triggers you can think of, it got ‘em) ⚠️

The author brings us in the life of Lala, a young women around her twenties, living with her husband and newborn baby. Since the very beginning, it’s made clear that Lala’s life has never been and never will be easy. In addition to Lala’s history, you’ll also be brought in the life of her mother and grandmother, going through three generation of abuse, violence and injustice.

This debut novel by Cherie Jones is difficult to read, and while I rarely crying while reading books, this one brought me on the verge of tears since page one. At some points, it felt like too much: too much suffering, too much abuse for just one family. Yet, it does highlight how abusive and misogynistic schemes of thinking and behaving endure generations, and how violence is passed onto new generations as if it was a genetic disease.

In terms of characters, I loved following multiple points of view (I always do), even if in this case I was NOT looking forward to read Adan segments as I have hated him with all of my heart and strongly wishing for his death. 

 ”Azares del cuerpo” (published in English as “Variations on the body” by @coffeehousepress ) is a collection of 6 short stories by María Ospina Pizano, following the lives of 6 different women in Bogotá. 
 I have to say, this collection left me wildly underwhelmed. The only exception would be the first short story following an ex member of a guerrilla reintegrating society and struggling with PTSD while also trying to tell her story and make amends with her family and herself. This first short story gives a great insight into the character state of mind, and it does so through such a smart narrative technique, opposing the main character nuanced views to her editor more white and black views about the armed conflict and guerrillas. I would have LOVED to read an entire book about this short story.
Maybe we’ll be gifted a stand-alone novel ? 

 For the rest of it, some of the short stories where pleasant readings, while others just left me wondering what was the point of them.

”Azares del cuerpo” (published in English as “Variations on the body” by @coffeehousepress ) is a collection of 6 short stories by María Ospina Pizano, following the lives of 6 different women in Bogotá. 

I have to say, this collection left me wildly underwhelmed. The only exception would be the first short story following an ex member of a guerrilla reintegrating society and struggling with PTSD while also trying to tell her story and make amends with her family and herself. This first short story gives a great insight into the character state of mind, and it does so through such a smart narrative technique, opposing the main character nuanced views to her editor more white and black views about the armed conflict and guerrillas. I would have LOVED to read an entire book about this short story.
Maybe we’ll be gifted a stand-alone novel ? 

For the rest of it, some of the short stories where pleasant readings, while others just left me wondering what was the point of them.

This book is a clear example of why one should not choose a book based on its cover, or title. 

While the author titles her book “They have always spoken for ourselves”, she then proceeds to speak for other people, especially for muslim feminists- who, based on this book, one should not even consider “real” feminists.

Since page one, this book reeks of islamophobia, and while the author claims not to be Islamophobic, well: if you feel obliged to specify in your books that your purposes are not Islamophobic there’s a high chance they in fact are. Or at least, you should base your statement on something more solid than your own conviction.

Because not only the book is blatantly Islamophobic, it also lacks sources: except a thin one page at the end of the book with some sources listed, throughout the book sources are never mentioned, not even example: who are these muslim feminist who are all repressed, and repress other women? Do they exist? Or do they only exist in your scared mind?

Then, cherry on top, she whines about how feminism is now obsessed with decolonization, claiming white woman can’t say anything anymore: if this is what you think decolonization means than either you understood nothing about it, or you are just pretending you don’t to serve your extremist stance. Also, we need to stop pretending we need more than one feminism, feminism is a common cause, where everybody wants the same thing for every woman in the world, there is no place for discrimination in this perfect movement that is feminism (sarcasm intended). 

Let me say: I get some of the arguments, and that they come from a traumatic experience with religion. HOWEVER, the way these arguments are presented is just lazy.

I think it’s safe to say I HATED this book: it doesn’t develop any interesting ideas, no path for solution, and seeks excluding muslim women from the feminist movement while also framing them as either clueless naive victims or as oppressors, and it just provide absolutely no proof or research about the theme it wants to deal with. Just one word to describe it I guess: tragic

This was exactly what the description of it promised : a God punk urban fantasy.

Set in Lagos, Nigeria, after “The Falling”, an event that saw the gods fall on earth and more specifically in Lagos, trying to make it their new home, causing humans to fleed Lagos Island and live in constant fear of them.

In this god-infested city, David Mogo is a godhunter, half human and half god himself, he makes a living by capturating godlings for humans who want to get rid of them. However, he will find himself fighting against higher gods, those gods who want to rule the city, and to do so he will have to accept and embrace his own god essence.

This novel is everything I was expecting it to be, and it was so refreshing reading a fantasy novel by a BIPOC and African author, it obviously gives the fantasy genre a very different turn from what we are mostly used to: magic is not old men with white beards, monsters are not ogres neither dragons. Also big point in favour of the novel: the women are proactive, they exist and act with or without the male protagonist (saving his ass numerous times by the way!)

I would highly suggest it to those of you who like fantasy novels, it will bring you in a completely unique fantasy world 🌍 

Well, what a beautifully written and captivating story!

Amal is a young Pakistani girl, dreaming of becoming a teacher. However, a series of events shatter her dream into a million pieces and she finds herself obliged to work for a powerful man and her mother, segregated in their house of power and secrets...will she able to escape this golden prison one day?

I loved the note by the author at the end of the book about how this story is a story of hope, and that while Malala (who was the inspiration for this book) and the protagonist of this story were relatively lucky, not every girl in the world is, and while all of them are brave, not all of them receive credit for it and many of their stories remain unknown.