nerdinthelibrary's Reviews (926)

content warnings: past loss of a loved one, consensual drunken sex, potential problems during pregnancy, homophobic slur, off-screen infidelity
representation: korean protagonist and side characters


“She’s breathless, hair wild and face flushed and how has nobody seen how crazy and fucking amazing she is?

I decide right there to make sure somebody does.”


Everything that you've heard about this is true: it's an extremely fun, fluffy and sexy romcom, and then a ~~plot twist~~ at the end fucks it all up. But I'll talk about that later.

The title is fairly self-explanatory with this one: Josh and Hazel, acquaintances from college who have recently reconnected because of Josh's sister/Hazel's best friend, become friends and decide to go on double-blind-dates with one another. However, none of the dates end well - varying from 'just okay' to 'scarred for life' - and Josh and Hazel always end up going home together. ROMANCE ENSUES.

This certainly isn't a new take, but Christina Lauren are really good at writing romance. Specifically, the dynamics and chemistry between their characters are always great. Josh and Hazel hit it off almost immediately upon reintroduction and are such fun characters to be around; even when it's awkward (and a decent amount of the time, it is) you still enjoy spending time with them.

For a second I want to zero in on Hazel, because everything to do with her character makes it so obvious that two women created her. She's quirky, to say the least, and could have been an extremely one-note characters who had no substance and came off very Manic Pixie Dream Girl. But Hazel is a fully fleshed out character, one who is extremely eccentric, but who is never boiled down to her eccentricities. I also loved that she openly tells everyone who thinks she's "being weird" or is "embarrassing them" to fuck right off.

Just because I'm going on about Hazel, doesn't mean I didn't love Josh too. Of the two characters he did feel a little less developed - he's a physical therapist who opened a business with his supposed best friend Zach, a character that we either never met or was so inconsequential that even though I finished the book ten minutes ago I don't remember meeting. But Josh was still a really fun character who was a complete sweetie, and I loved how he and Hazel balanced one another out without ever changing the other, indirectly or otherwise.

NOW, the plot twist. I actually thought I had gotten to it and went "huh, this isn't so bad", and I thought I was going to be the one (1) person who didn't hate it. But then I got to the actual plot twist. I had to physically put the book down and scream in anger. To Christina Lauren's credit, it didn't go exactly like I thought it would, but it was still a frustrating and unnecessary plot device thrown in at the end. Yes, the epilogue was adorable and I swooned a little, but the dumb plot twist wasn't needed in order to get there.

In saying that, I would still definitely recommend this. The plot twist at the end doesn't ruin the book by any means (I rated it four stars for a reason). Everything leading up to said plot twist is so cute and fun that it's definitely worth checking out if you're looking for a new romcom to read.

Review also posted to my blog.


Feminist Lit Feb: an #ownvoices book about an experience other than your own, a book by a female/non-binary/genderfluid black author


content warnings: violence, loss of a loved one, cancer, past domestic abuse and lack of consent in sexual situations, gaslighting, ableism, racism, misogyny, slut-shaming
representation: fat black autistic protagonist, interracial main relationship, black main characters


“Feelings weren’t as straight forward and binary as he’d once assumed; around Ruth, he could feel fifty things at once.”


Wow, can y’all believe that Talia Hibbert invented writing romance. This is my second book of hers that I’ve read and honestly, I think this might be some of the best romance I’ve ever read. God bless whoever decided to put Merry Inkmas on Amazon for free last year because it’s introduced me to a writer I have now sold my soul to.

(Quick side note, Talia Hibbert is also just an adorable human being who I love. I’m on her VIP list which means that I get regular e-mails from her about new stuff she’s working on and she’s so lovely, 10/10 would recommend.)

Now that my gushing over Talia Hibbert is over, here’s my actual review! This is the first in a trilogy and follows Ruth and Evan. Ruth is a recluse who is known as the “town Jezebel” for reasons unknown at the beginning of the novel and Evan is her new next-door neighbour who for some reason finds her prickly exterior endearing. Romance ensues.

And god, it was great romance. Talia Hibbert is so good at writing characters that aren’t perfect but are still so goddamn likeable, not to mention the fantastic chemistry that her characters always have. Ruth and Evan’s dynamic is great and I love how they balance each other out in different ways (also the fact that they first bond over reading comics and eating food is amazing).

Also, the fact that this is a sexy romance #ownvoices novel about a fat black autistic woman?? ICONIC.

The steamy scenes were amazing, which is good because those scenes can make or break a romance book. I loved that it wasn’t that the thing didn’t happen where characters’ personalities disappear during sex; Ruth and Evan’s characters are still very present, even when they’re in the throes of passion. The sex scenes were also extremely… comfortable? I can’t think of a better way to explain it. The characters always felt like they were having a genuinely enjoyable time, which sounds weird because you would assume that would be the norm but it’s not really. I don’t know if I’m explaining this well, but I really liked the sexy scenes, they were great!

Aside from the romantic aspects of this book, the sister relationship in this was also amazing. Ruth and her sister, Hannah, are very different people in most regards, but are far too similar when it comes to stubbornness and ferocity. They love each other to the ends of the earth but are oftentimes exasperated with the other, and seeing their relationship grow and develop over the course of the novel was fantastic. (And finding out what Hannah did for Ruth towards the end of the novel… wow, that added at least five years to my lifespan).

Moving onto a heavier topic, I really liked how domestic violence was portrayed in this book. It’s all in the past and there are no physical descriptions of it but it is a very heavy presence in the book. I loved that it portrayed abuse as not necessarily a noticeable, physical thing; sometimes it’s so subtle that the person being abused doesn’t realise the impact of what their partner is doing until much later. I also loved that the abuser is in no way redeemable in this book, but it still shows how he has charmed the rest of the town. Talia Hibbert has also confirmed that there’s not a chance in hell that piece of shit is ever going to be shown in a positive light, and nothing makes me happier.

This is an amazing steamy adult romance novel that is both extremely fun and deals with more serious topics, which is my favourite super specific sub-genre of adult romance. If you haven’t read any Talia Hibbert, I would highly recommend picking this up because it was fantastic!

content warnings: racism, mentions of cheating, bullying
representation: Black protagonist, main and side characters, Black mlm main characters, m/m main relationship, Latino side character

“I get that same tight feeling in my stomach, like when she was counting names on her fingers. I want to say that yes, I am Alberta, but part of being Alberta is being black. And I don’t blend in here in Ewing Beach.”

I haven't seen anyone talk about this book which is absolutely ridiculous because I think it might be my favourite Brandy Colbert. Or maybe I just love her more with every book I read. Either way, you all need to stop what you're doing and find a way to read this because it's incredible.

The Only Black Girls in Town is Brandy Colbert's first middle grade, and I hope she keeps writing it as well as her usual YA. This follows Alberta, a twelve year-old surfing enthusiast who is the only black girl in her grade; that is, until the B&B next door is bought by a black family with a twelve year-old daughter, Edie. Alberta and Edie begin to bond after finding a collection of journals in Edie's new bedroom from a young woman named Constance starting from the 1950s. The girls quickly become obsessed with the mystery of who Constance is and why her journals are in the B&B.

I adore middle grade and wish that more adults would get over themselves for long enough to pick up a book like this and appreciate it for what it is. Brandy Colbert, whose YA has always leaned on the older side as she explores darker topics and follows older teens, has transitioned perfectly into writing from the perspective of a twelve year-old girl, something which many authors who regularly write for this age group can't even manage. She hasn't tried to dumb down her writing or themes, just tailored them for her new age group, which is exactly the right way to do it.

Of the middle grade I've read this definitely skews towards older kids, kids who are probably the same age as Alberta. This book has a heavy focus on racism as seen through the eyes of a twelve year-old who has been raised in a town with almost no one who looks like her, certainly no one she's close to with the exception of her dads (also this book features same-sex parents and that was done really beautifully, especially the discussions of Alberta's relationship with her biological mother). The book also spends time contrasting Alberta's experiences in the small seaside town of Ewing Beach with Edie's experiences of growing up in Brooklyn, and how their perceptions of racism have been shaped because of that.

I do wish some things were explored deeper - in particular Alberta's relationship with her white best friend Laramie, and Laramie's lack of understanding of the way that Alberta's treatment by people like bully Nicolette is impacted by her race - but the book asides from that was so good I couldn't be too disappointed by things not explored. The mystery aspect as the two girls try to discover who Constance is was also so fun, and the reveal is both obvious and satisfying in a way I didn't expect.

If you've enjoyed any of Brandy Colbert's previous books then I would definitely recommend you check this out because the odds of you enjoying it is incredibly high. And if you've never read a Brandy Colbert book before, what are you doing? Go read one! This one specifically!

content warnings: war-related PTSD, fatphobia, online harassment, devastating cyclone, mentions of death
representation: fat main character, mlm main character with PTSD, depression & anxiety, mlm main character, f/m/m relationship

“I think about that for a moment. Think about how electric it felt last night to be between the two of them, because it was electric and somehow also comforting―like nothing I’ve ever felt before in bed. As if between the three of us we could handle anything, we could explore everywhere, our shared strength and energy creating a web of safety and affection all around us.”

Y'all mind if I just go scream for a minute??

This! Was! So! Good! I somehow have never read anything from Sierra Simone before but I'm definitely going to be reading everything else she writes now because this was so unbelievably fantastic.

Ireland is a fat woman who has decided to start wearing the clothes she wants to wear, stop going on useless diets, and just generally be happy with her body. She's also a photographer who has been sent on assignment to a country town where she meets two hunky farm boys, Caleb and Ben, and they want to jump each others' bones almost immediately. So they do. Many times.

I don't expect much from erotica, if I'm being honest. All I really want is basic entertainment, to read something steamy that would make me feel ashamed for reading it in public. I certainly don't expect characters that I care about or to nearly cry over how hard something hit me, but Sierra Simone is a goddess among erotica writers and she really delivered on all fronts.

But let's get it out of the way, I know you're waiting for it: the sex is incredible. There are many sex scenes throughout the book and they're all fantastic. The main characters are perpetually horny and rarely restrain themselves, something which I appreciated. There are some scenes that are just Ireland with one of the boys (this is usually just oral), but most of them are her with both of them and they are some of the hottest shit I've ever read. I did read some of this in public and I turned my phone brightness all the way down while angling myself away from everyone because things were getting hot.

Aside from how steamy the scenes were, I also did fall head over heels in love with Ireland, Caleb and Ben. We get the book from all three of their perspectives, and while all of them easily fall into some familiar archetypes Simone makes them just unique and endearing enough that by the time the book ended I was left wishing it was double the length. If she ever writes more with these characters I will be first in line.

Whenever the book isn't just about sex, it's mostly about the characters working through their issues, specially Ireland with her body and Ben with his PTSD. Ben is a veteran who has been seeing a therapist and psychiatrist for five years which helps but he still has difficulty sleeping through the night, and every time they have sex he leaves once Ireland and Caleb are asleep to sleep in his bedroom so he doesn't disturb them. In the grand scheme of this book it's obviously a pretty minor thing, but I thought it was handled really realistically, and I liked how it was shown to effect his relationship with Ireland and Caleb but was never presented as a negative thing they needed to get over in order to be happy.

Seeing a fat girl being worshiped really unlocked some floodgates tbh. Caleb is very unapologetic in admitting that he likes fat girls, and this is shown to us several times throughout the book from both him and Ben in ways that never felt gross or leery like these things often can. There's also some really great discussions in here about how body positivity isn't something you can just decide to do; even though Ireland has been learning to love her body, there are still times when she hates it and wishes she was thin. Your insecurities, especially ones drilled into you by society from birth, don't just disappear because you've decided to love yourself; they tend to linger, and the second someone says something that confirms that insecurity it becomes all-consuming. Even when you have people telling you that it's not true, there's a part of you that thinks they're lying.

Woof, this got very serious all of a sudden. In conclusion, this is fantastic steamy romance that every erotica reader should pick up, it's a blast!

Review also posted to my blog.


1) Saga, Vol. 1 ★★★★
2) Saga, Vol. 2 ★★★★
3) Saga, Vol. 3 ★★★★★
4) Saga, Vol. 4 ★★★★


content warnings: violence, gore, murder, references to domestic violence, graphic sexual content, drug usage, overdose, use of the r-word
representation: main and side characters of colour, main interracial relationship, side bisexual character of colour


“Parents give up so much: time, sleep, freedom, money, intimacy… pretty much everything but complaining about how much they sacrifice.”


I don't know why this surprised me, but I'm really enjoying the volumes that are slower and more character-focused. This one in particular was fantastic.

This volume has a lot of focus on parents; the love that they have for their children, the sacrifices they'll make, the lengths they'll go to in order to keep them safe. I don't know, something about that thread connecting all the different storylines just really hit me in a way I didn't expect. Hell, it even made me care about the robot-people, something which I never really have (I'm sure they have an actual name but I don't remember what it is).

The end of this was like a gut punch. There's lots of tragedy in this volume to go along with the general grotesqueness of this series with a few deaths from significant characters and suffering for all the other characters.

Honestly, the only thing about this volume that I didn't like is that there was no Izabel. The rest was fantastic and I'm even more pissed at my library for screwing up my holds so I can't continue to volume 6 yet.

We all know my immense love for The Authority, as well as my immense disappointment with it being taken away from Warren Ellis, so of course I was excited to read a new take on many of the same characters from the original creator. And thankfully it fully lived up to my expectations!

There are several overlapping storylines in this comic, something which really shouldn't work in a regular six-issue comic but Ellis manages to make it work here. Like with The Authority, there is a clear-cut villain but none of the characters you're rooting for are clear-cut heroes, something which has become far more common since The Authority was originally published but still something that I think Ellis does better than most. There are very few characters whose motivations aren't selfish and who aren't risking lives in whatever they're doing, and it means that it takes a while before you can figure out who to root for.

But enough about Ellis' impeccable characterisation, let's talk about the art because holy shit I think I have a new favourite comic illustrator. Jon Davis-Hunt's illustrations are fucking glorious in every sense of the word. He excels at everything, from the big action scenes to the intimate character moments. I'm so happy to see that he stays on for most of the rest of the series because his versions of all these characters are now the only ones I care about.

Guys, I'm just so happy to see a comic that has all these fucked up, morally grey people and isn't written by an edge lord, but is instead written by someone who actually understands the complexities of morally grey characters and way their messy morals can impact a story. I might go and read the rest of this run in one go because I am loving it so much!

*) Solitaire ★★★½
1) Heartstopper: Volume One ★★★★★
2) Heartstopper: Volume Two ★★★★★


content warnings: homophobia, biphobia, eating disorder, mention of self-harm, teenage characters being drunk
representation: main m/m relationship, main gay character with an eating disorder, main bisexual character, main asian character, main lesbian black character, main sapphic character, main interracial f/f relationship main demisexual character, main transgender character, side sapphic indian character, side black gay character, side gay character, side interracial m/m relationship


Alice Oseman just keeps fucking delivering. This may be my favourite volume thusfar, mostly because I'm a sucker for a good romance and this has not one, not two, but FOUR great romances. So let's just run them down.

Nick/Charlie: Obviously the cutest couple to have ever lived. I love that in this volume we have them talking about more serious things, like sex, Charlie's eating disorder and coming out, while still having super adorable moments.
Tara/Darcy: The fact that two Gryffindor's can make it work is so admirable tbh. But seriously, they're so cute together, every time Darcy calls Tara 'Jonesy' I feel my heart melt a little. And she does it a lot so there's currently just a pile of goo in my chest.
Tao/Elle: The MVPs of this volume. There's been some tension there for a while and to be perfectly honest they've been the couple I've been most invested in.

Spoiler

Them kissing for the first time? Chefs kiss. Them cuddling and giggling in bed together? DOUBLE chefs kiss.

Also I'm fully in love with Elle, Tao has great taste.
Mr. Ajayi/Mr. Farouk: The dark horse pairing of this entire series that I am so here for.

Spoiler

I'm gonna be honest, I was expecting it to take way longer for them to get together, so them flirting and then kissing by the end of this volume was wonderful. Can't wait to see them get little cameos in the future.

Also shout-out to Miss Singh and her wife, would love to see her cameo at some point, plus we got a mention of Daniel?? Even more chefs kisses.

There are also cameos of the literal books Radio Silence and I Was Born For This, which kind of break the logic of the universe but I don't care. This is one of my favourite series, I never want it to end. Alice Oseman is a god who we all must worship.

Review also posted to my blog.


content warnings: violence
representation: deaf side character, afro-latino side character

“I said you could be the negotiator. I didn’t put you in charge.”
“Oh, I’ve been in charge since I got here.”

Wow, I enjoyed this a lot more than I was expecting to! Most comics tend to be somewhere between a 3 and a 4 star for me because there's almost always one big element that doesn't work for me, but it was all there with this one!

This follows S.H.I.E.L.D agent Bobbi Morse as she goes on many adventures, from saving the Queen to dealing with a 12 year old girl, all while trying to figure out what's going on with her constant medical checkups.

I fell in love with Bobbi from the first panel. She's as sarcastic as they come, but that sarcasm comes along with genuine intelligence (just look at her PhD). She's also badass, as most S.H.I.E.L.D agents are. Not only did I love Bobbi, but I also loved her interactions with all the side characters; her therapist, her boyfriend, her ex (my boy Hawkeye), Howard the Duck, Miles Morales, all of them. She had great chemistry with everyone she was put on the page with.

The plot of this comic is a bit confusing at first. The first issue shows Bobbi over the course of a few checkups as you get to know her and what's going on with her medically. Then the next three issues show little adventures between appointments that we just gets hints at in the first issue. The final issue ties it all together. Even with the first issue offering pretty much no explanation for anything, I still really enjoyed it, half because I loved getting to know Bobbi and half because I loved the random cameos in the waiting room (Hercules in particular was always a delight).

Holt shit, I absolutely adored the art in this comic. Kate Niemczyk is a new fave for sure! The detail when it came to people was never so much that it was ever attempting to be realistic but also never felt like that half-assed style where there's hardly any intelligible detail. It was also immediately obvious to me that a woman was illustrating this comic because even when Bobbi's meant to be dressing sexy there are still no gratuitous shots of her boobs or butt. That's always an added bonus in my superhero comics.

The only real criticism I have of this comic is that I thought everything wrapped up a little too quickly. I think this could have benefited from another issue maybe, just so everything wouldn't feel so rushed in that final issue. Other than that, I adored this comic! If you're looking for a great (more or less) standalone comic with your new favourite protagonist, some amazing art, and pretty good social commentary, then I can't recommend this enough.

11/02/20: Second read. Still amazing. Tara and Darcy are my babies and I would die for them.


13/08/19: First read.


Review can also be found on my blog.


*) Solitaire ★★★½
1) Heartstopper: Volume One ★★★★★


content warnings: violence, homophobia
representation: main m/m relationship, main gay character, main bisexual character, main asian character, main lesbian black character, main demisexual character, side transgender character, side sapphic character, side interracial f/f relationship, side bisexual character, side indian character

“Oi oi!! Got a girl on each arm! Get in there, my son!”
“... Why are straight people like this”

Alice Oseman has my entire heart, and I have no regrets for handing it to her on a silver fucking platter. This series rejuvenates me in a way I never expect until I reread it, whether it's in physical or digital form.

This series in general is very plotless, slice of life, but this one in particular. It's basically just nearly 300 pages of boys kissing, flirty banter, the occasional dog, and a bunch of gays judging the straights. And I loved and lowkey related to every page of it.

In general, but thoughts and feelings are similar to the first volume. Some things I appreciated that are specific to this one, though:
(1) Nick discovering his bisexuality was so well done and I'm lowkey freaking out over how many queer kids/young teens are gonna probably read this and realise what bisexuality is.
(2) God bless Alice Oseman for having brain cells (unlike a lot of other writers) and realising that the out half of a queer couple doesn't usually get filled with rage at the mere idea of not being out about their relationship.
(3) We get two new characters, my son Aled (who we know from Radio Silence) and Elle, a trans girl who used to go to Truham and has a crush on Tao. I would die for these two, just as I would for all the other characters.
(4) That Tara/Darcy mini comic?? Watered my crops, cleared my skin, improved my grades, solved world peace. It was so cute and tropey, and I just love seeing these two girls smoochin' in a locked room (I said it was tropey). I will be very happy if every future volume features a comic of these two, or maybe even a whole spin-off comic.

If you loved the first volume, I can't see you not also fucking loving this. Read this series right now because it really is the purest thing in the entire world.

content warnings: stalking, sexual assault, premature birth, death of a parent, plane crashes, violence, mentions of police brutality and homophobic hate crimes
representation: Dominican main and side characters, lesbian Dominican main character, Haitian main and side characters, Black sapphic main character, Black main and side characters, main f/f relationship

“Is this what sisterhood is?
A negotiation of the things you make possible
out of impossible requests?”

Is Elizabeth Acevedo the greatest writer alive? Discuss. (spoilers: she is)

This is her third book but only the second I've read from her, and I'll be honest I was a little worried going in. Not because I thought it would be bad but because this is her first book told from dual perspectives and that's very hit or miss for me. But as evidenced by my five-star rating, that clearly wasn't an issue and this has jumped onto my favourites of the year list.

Clap When You Land follows two different teenage girls: Camino who lives in the Dominican Republic, and Yahaira who lives in New York City. Camino's father is finally coming back to visit her and her Tía, and Yahaira's father is going on his annual business trip to the Dominican Republic. But his plane crashes and there's no survivors. The book is told from both their perspectives as they separately deal with the death of their beloved father, unaware that their sister exists.

As I said, dual perspectives are tricky and can very easily go wrong. But Acevedo, being the genius she is, has expertly written this so that without any big changes both girls' voices are very distinctive, something which is especially important as the book goes on and the headers telling you which character is which disappear.

It's not just the general writing style that easily differentiates the girls, though. The worlds that surround these characters are so incredibly distinct even in their similarities that it's impossible to mistake Camino's world for Yahaira's, and vice versa. Not to mention the people Acevedo has created to populate the world the sisters live in, all feeling as though they existed before the events of the book and will continue to go on existing.

While this is a book primarily focused on grief, there is still time given to focus on the other challenges in the sisters' lives. A lot of Camino's story is about her best friend, Carline, who is pregnant, and the predatory El Cero who no longer has her father's money as incentive for him to stay away from her. Yahaira's story is more about her father's death, but specifically secrets she knew about her father and her complicated relationship with her mother. Even if all these things are not at the forefront of the narrative they never feel less important.

Like The Poet X, this book destroyed me entirely. Personally I prefer The Poet X to this, but this is in no way an inferior book. If you haven't read an Elizabeth Acevedo book then you're seriously missing out.