2.5 stars. All Stirred Up by Brianne Moore is a fun, easy read. A loose retelling of Persuasion by Jane Austen, this book is well written and is a nice escapist food-centered story. This book isn't as steamy as other romances I've read, and the plot is more centered on the main character, Susan, her restaurant journey, and her family. If you're into light romance with just PG-level kissing, this is for you. Susan's love interest, Chris, really doesn't come in hot as a pivotal character until maybe halfway through the story. I wish more time was spent having them reacquaint themselves. I did enjoy how much of the book was focused on food and Susan's development of her restaurant. I love a good food description, and this book is full of them. Yum.

I did have some misgivings about the plot and characters. First off, every single person in Susan's family is a horrible snob. Ugh. I wasn't sure if the multitude of classist remarks were supposed to be funny and endearing, but I was not a fan. If Julia was my sister I would continuously gag. Is an unlikeable family an element of Persuasion that I'm not remembering? Also, this book is rife with reinforcement of basic heteronormative stereotypes regarding relationships that just made me roll my eyes. There's also a moment of drama towards the end of the book that I think blames the victim, and then makes light of it by quickly "solving" the "problem."

*I received a free digital ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.*

3.5 stars. This is a solid collection of essays. Jerkins seamlessly transitions back and forth from personal experience to larger cultural and political analysis, which I found to be extremely well done. I am grateful to have the opportunity to listen and learn from Jerkins’ insight and analysis. I did find the concluding essay to be a bit underwhelming/not the strongest in the collection. Also, the essay that discusses Jerkins’ time in Japan was a bit...Othering? But again, Jerkins is a terrific writer, an insightful critic, and I look forward to reading her future work.

V cute, v romance

What a wonderful, wonderful book. There really wasn’t anything I disliked about this story, so this is a 5-star rating! I loved Callender’s layered story telling and nuance of character development. Felix, Ezra, Declan and so many other characters were so well written. I keep wondering what every character in this book is doing now, because they feel like such real, true people. Felix is a wonderfully flawed teenager; he messes up (like we all did when we were teenagers),but you keep rooting for him to succeed in his exploration of gender identity, love, relationships, and resilience against transphobia. I am very grateful that Callender has written this story.

Wow. This is a truly incredible memoir. Please be warned that Chanel’s story and experience is (obviously) very triggering. But her story is so many of our stories, and she deserves to be heard. I listened to it on audio, and it took me a while to get through. Her ability to weave in memories from her childhood, reflect on her family’s experience, and find a larger meaning within her harrowing trial is a true testament to her masterful writing. We are all Emily Doe.

4.5 stars. That ending. Jesmyn Ward is an incredible writer. Her ability to encapsulate so many layers and moments into a singular sentence is breathtaking. I feel like the character of Leonie was not as developed as other characters, but maybe that’s just saying more about me than about the book.

Wowow. It’s been a while since a book has made me stay up super late reading because I NEED to know what’s going to happen next. SO entertaining and wonderful.

*I received a free digital ARC from Oni Press and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.*

I really enjoyed this graphic novel! This post-apocalyptic adventure follows Ginny and her two younger brothers as they head south into a socially and environmentally ravaged California with the goal of finding their mom.

More than half of the reason I personally love reading graphic novels is to appreciate the art, and Hill did not disappoint. The artwork is very well-done. I loved the two-toned illustration. There were some frames that I had to look at very closely to get what was going on, but overall I enjoyed the visual journey.

I did find some of the plot to be confusing, and I had to re-read some parts to understand where the story was going. For example, the Four Dollars identity reveal was kind of "huh?" and anti-climactic. Overall, this is a fast-paced story full of action and adventure. I am looking forward to the sequel(s)!

Crosshairs is a startling, riveting dystopian novel that exposes just how closely our world aligns with the fascist regime depicted in this story. I was thoroughly riveted by this book, and the story is heart-pounding and compelling throughout. Some parts of the book/dialogue was a bit heavy-handed, but they were extremely informative and I learned from them. I also found the ending to be a bit abrupt, but still inspiring. Overall, this is a thrilling dystopian novel that carries an important message that must be heard.

CW for: transphobia, racial & lgbtq+ slurs, systemic violence and oppression, hate crimes, genocide, deadnaming, sterilization, pedophilia, torture, loss of loved ones, depictions of grief. Crosshairs is a worthwhile read, but tread lightly if you have similar experiences to the characters and their stories.

*I received a digital ARC from Atria Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

*I received a free digital ARC from Atria Books and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.*