nerdyprettythings's Reviews (515)

Ahh I loved this book! I got a chance to listen to the audiobook ARC and it is so well done, I absolutely fell in love with D'Vaughn and Kris and their families, and the narrator, Rebecca Lee, captured them so well. I loved that there was a story about coming out later to family, and everything being okay even though it wasn't perfectly okay. I *adored* Kris's family and their Spanglish, and especially as a Houstonian myself, I appreciated reading a story that takes place in the area and captures how beautifully diverse it is. I highly recommend checking this one out, and I just recently read that Chencia C. Higgins will have a new book out next summer!

This retelling of The Great Gatsby was lush in language and I enjoy the way Nghi Vo weaves in magic. Also everyone is bi and a little in love with each other, and that's my jam. However, I felt a little let down by Jordan's backstory and the lack of depth that she ended up getting into there. It felt like a peek behind an interesting curtain that was then tightly closed up again.

I really enjoyed the comics about historical LGBT figures, and having the book broken up with the short day in the life type comics was a nice change of pace and a fun way to look into a serious topic. I especially appreciated the comics by trans authors giving a peek into their lives and humor.

This book is absolutely beautiful. The writing is stunning, and the characters broke my heart while breaking each others’. The author’s note made me cry. I was just so taken with it from beginning to end. 

I’m OBSESSED with Gracewood and Viola, I would read so many books about them. I was in from the first page - the setup, a trans woman meeting again her friend who believed she died in the war, and who had blamed himself for her fate, was perfect for creating drama, emotion, ALL THE FEELS. This book quite literally made me laugh and cry. I wanted them both to be happy and oh em gee the journey was worth it for where they end up together. I also adored Lady Marleigh, every time she was around I ended up laughing, but she was also a truly great friend to Viola. 
If you like romance novels and/or historical fiction, this one is a must read. 
The narrator is perfect for the feeling of this book, she did a wonderful job of capturing the characters. 

If you like Eddie Izzard’s acting and comedy, you absolutely owe it to yourself to check out the audiobook version of this book.

If you haven't read this I highly highly recommend. So many firsthand accounts of the 1960s-70s LGBT movement, a lot of talk about misogyny in the community, recognition by folks from the time of the trans people and drag queens who were essential to the movement, and just so many feels about living the changes they dreamed about. 

Robin Miles! It was very exciting to hear the words of Audre Lorde read by one of the best audiobook narrators in the business. Mostly a combination of journal entries, this book was written during the last years of Lorde's life as she deals with liver cancer. As always, the racism and homophobia she fought are far too familiar, particularly in the beginning when she's talking about lesbians being portrayed as predators. In terms of the overarching fight with cancer, it was very sad to read that this brilliant woman was roped in by homeopathic "doctors" after dealing with dismissal, racism, and fatphobia from cancer doctors. My only concern about this republishing is that it might be intended to support "homeopathic medicine" or lead people to consider it as a good alternative to real medicine. 

Between the cover and the promise of cults, I was very drawn to this book. And I think the drawing me in was the point. If you're looking to read about a cult, you're only barelyyyyyy going to get that here. To the extent that the characters in the book are constantly saying "this is kind of a cult, huh? ish? a little?"
I was also drawn in by the anecdote at the start of the book, it's a creepy little story that got me excited for who this "cult leader" Clive character was. But the rest of this book is slow and navel-gazing. Each sentence felt overwrought, and yet important backstory is missing. We're told that the MC has been super close to some of the characters, Clive in particular, but until the events of the book, there's really no indication of what drew them to each other or why they cared about each other. The main character's relationship to the experiment didn't make sense to me, she's freaked out, she's excited, she... stops showering and almost no one mentions it? Sadly, by the end, I felt nothing, for her relationship or for the people she knew or reconnected with along the way. 
I got this book from NetGalley and the publisher (thank you!) in return for an honest review. I wish I could say I enjoyed it, but I'd skip it and try another book from MCD, whose books have always worked for me in the past!