Quick thoughts:
- Norse mythology! Valkyries!
- Sloppy world-building & messy plot
-

Quick thoughts:
- Greek myth retelling of Atalanta
- Hate-to-love f/f romance
- Dual POV w/o distinct voices
- Questionable portrayal of popular Greek figures
- Angsty & boring
- Weakly written & forgettable
- Neither impressed nor blown away
- Trigger/Content warning: implications of sexual assault

Did I root for the extremely unlikable main character? Yes.
Did I enjoy reading this book despite its narrow, white-centric portrayal of feminism? Yes.

And will I recommend this book to others? Not anymore.

Much like Izzy O'Neill, the author is an unapologetic white feminist, and as a woman of color, I can't bear to touch any of her books anymore. I am deeply disappointed by her behavior and principles (or lack thereof), and I refuse to support anyone who partakes in harming marginalized communities.

Also, The Exact Opposite of Okay is a decent read if you're into American humor, but trust me, there are better books out there and there are definitely many books out there that dive into feminism in a richer, more profound, and more meaningful way. I highly recommend that you read those books instead.

Dessa Rhodes, a meticulous perfectionist craving for normalcy, stability, and independence, was easily a protagonist I could not only relate to, but also actively root for right from the get-go. Her character was a wonderfully delightful mix of determined and frightened.

The plot itself wasn’t very complex, which is not a significant issue because this novel was heavily steered by its characters rather than by its plot. I thought it was a fitting approach because in doing so, Your Destination Is on the Left thoughtfully dealt with the fear of failure, the fear of disappointing the people who mean the most to you, and the courage it takes to choose yourself. There was a lot of internal conflict on Dessa’s part, and honestly, towards the end of the story, I was quite literally moved to tears. No exaggerations there.

Lauren Spieller’s writing style was purposive and wonderfully superb with breathtaking imagery, which definitely suited the heavy inclusion of art both in Dessa’s life and in the actual narrative. I really loved all the concepts behind the artworks!

There are really so many good things to say about this gorgeous debut. The story carefully treaded nuanced notions of identity, family and relationships, compromise, and sacrifice. In spite of the storyline’s simplicity, Your Destination Is on the Left was a much-needed refreshing read that still managed to offer tiny surprises along the way. I enjoyed picking up clues and little Easter eggs as I read. The ending was not quite what I expected, but I was stunned and in awe. I could not imagine a more perfect resolution.

In summary, this is not a novel about finding yourself; rather, Your Destination Is on the Left is a brilliantly poignant, remarkably introspective journey about finding the courage and strength to pursue who you are and who you want to become. Reading Dessa’s story left my heart brimming with hope and empowerment, and honestly speaking, we need more books that inspire readers to choose themselves.

Disclosure: I received a digital ARC of Your Destination Is on the Left as part of my participation in a blog tour. This neither affects my opinion nor the content of my review. Thank you very much to the blog tour organizers (The Fantastic Flying Book Club) and the publisher for the opportunity!

This is easily one of the most difficult book reviews I’ve ever had to write because I have plenty of mixed feelings about Not the Girls You’re Looking For that make expressing my opinion just a tad more complicated.

While I eventually learned to appreciate many aspects of this story, its beginning was rough, slow, and oftentimes confusing and this continued to drag on for a significant portion of the whole book. There was a lot of weirdly written dialogue that showed no direction and came across as unnatural, making it difficult for me to follow and to understand what was happening.

Speaking of, I don’t think anything was actually happening in the first part of the book. The opening half of Not the Girls You’re Looking For was littered with mundane, directionless scenes that collectively did not constitute an observable plot. The experience felt like watching fish swim in an aquarium; that is, I was introduced to a group of friends and had to read about them navigating through their everyday lives in their natural habitats, but nothing about their lives or their environments was engaging at all.

It was around 54% of the book that Not the Girls You’re Looking For started becoming more interesting and more bearable. The sudden one-eighty turn that the story took on definitely made up for the incredibly weak and frustrating first half. For one thing, the storyline began to move along at a faster, more compelling pace, and as events progressed, it became clearer to me what ideas the story was trying to tackle. In line with this, the unlikely female friendships were developed more dimensionally, and by the end of it all, I was actively cheering for Lulu and her friends.

Overall, I have an incredibly turbulent hate-to-love relationship with this novel. My reading experience was filled with an extensive range of strong emotions that was easily spurred on by Aminah Mae Safi’s effectively evocative writing style. There was a lot of beauty held within eloquent passages, but at the same time, the author was blatantly unafraid to show the uglier, crueler, and upsetting side of things. In doing so, socially relevant messages about existing inequalities and realities were effectively broadcast, as well as important themes of love, friendship, and learning from mistakes. Not the Girls You’re Looking For was definitely an unforgettable read: unapologetically messy, hauntingly real, brilliantly snarky, but ultimately, poignant and timeless.

Disclosure: I received a digital ARC of Not the Girls You’re Looking For (via NetGalley) as part of my participation in a blog tour. This neither affects my opinion nor the content of my review. Thank you very much to the blog tour organizer (Aimee @ Aimee, Always) as well as the publisher for the opportunity!

As a short collection of poems, Glimmerglass Girl was a quick read for me. With delightfully lyrical language, impactful images, and a sophisticated flourish under her arsenal, Holly Lyn Walrath offers a myriad of layered female experiences in a very limited number of pages. While I greatly enjoyed most of the pieces, my five favorites were Espejitos, Behind the Glass, Woman, Two Hundred Fifty-Seven, and The Art of Loneliness.

I cannot think of a better title for this book because a lot of the imagery depicted in the poems was shockingly vivid, and at times, graphically violent and fascinatingly morbid – yet, in spite of this, these images were still presented in an almost delicate, poignant manner. Additionally, no matter how dark and ominous the tone became, an underlying thoughtfulness was still palpable. As I read, I found myself constantly startled but above all else, intrigued and wanting to read numerous passages over and over again.

I was not a fan of the complementary artworks that accompanied some of the poems because they made the text more difficult to read. In addition to this, none of them made a lasting impression on me nor were they value-adding to my overall reading experience. Nonetheless, I was immensely fascinated by the text. There were more than a handful of poems I could interpret in more ways than one, which was pretty interesting. Glimmerglass Girl is definitely a haunting yet captivating collection that can easily provoke readers into speculating on the lived experiences of women as well as underlying notions of femininity.

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of Glimmerglass Girl from the publisher (via NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review.

Quick thoughts:

- Highly anticipated read!!!
- Cover took my breath away
- WHAT A DISAPPOINTMENT