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471 reviews by:
starrysteph
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Grimmer is an eerie & earnest supernatural book for young readers, filled to the brim with coming-of-age strength & grappling with challenging family and friends & body horror.
Teenage Vish has just returned to his hometown after two years away, thanks to a betrayal from his closest friends and his dad’s addiction treatment. Everyone in his small town seems to know everything - and it doesn’t help that he’s one of the only brown kids around, either.
When Vish stumbles into a strange altercation in his favorite bookstore, he dives head first into a world of magic and terror. He has to work with the grouchy bookstore owner Agastya and his clever & witchy fellow employee Gisela to stop an interdimensional invasion from a powerful evil spirit.
This book feels like it was written with so much care - for Vish especially. There’s such a love for whimsy and cats that are your family and all the beings in your life that protect you. And while these characters struggle with grief and racism and addiction, the writing has a hopeful tone. That things can get better - or that you’ll find a community that will help you survive them.
This isn’t an action-packed read, but it does move fast and there are some good scares. I really enjoyed the bits of terror; the body horror was so shiver-inducing, and I think this would be a great introduction to the horror genre for younger readers.
I liked the mathematical magic, but I needed way more exposition for it all. It was frustrating that so much lore and world-building were skipped over (and never returned to) because “we don’t have time to explain it to you, Vish”. It felt like a shortcut, and because of these half-explanations some things were resolved way too quickly or felt unearned (the history of the villain, of the lake, Isla, the final confrontation, etc.).
But overall - I really enjoyed this story, I want to meet all these cats, and I’d love to check out more from Ruthnum.
CW: drug use & addiction, grief, alcoholism, death, body horror, medical content, racism, eating disorder, car accident, vomit
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(I received a free copy of this book; this is my honest review.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Racism, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A curious little suspense piece with a wholly unreliable narrator.
Leah has akinetopsia, a rare disability that makes her unable to perceive movement. Though she walks around with a white stick, she sees a lot more (both visually and through her excellent senses of smell and hearing) than people realize.
Her life is relatively simple and peaceful, with no living parents and a community of older friends in her apartment building … or at least, it is until Alice moves next door. Alice is tormented, and Leah hears fights with her abusive husband through the wall. The women become fast friends, but Leah soon discovers she has a mysterious stalker, someone who leaves strange notes and has left his scent behind after breaking into her apartment.
Leah has to parse reality from fiction, and figure out how to save her friends and herself.
The Silence In Her Eyes was very digestible – I liked the short chapters, almost like little blinks throughout Leah’s day – but didn’t always bring the suspense for me. There were so many swirling doubts that it was hard to keep up the tension. Leah can be a tough narrator because she is so detached and mostly takes every new devastation in stride.
I thought Leah’s akinetopsia was quite interesting, and loved the segments that explored how she viewed the world (especially through photography). However, there was a strange amount of repetitive info-dumping. This was a very short book; we didn’t need to hear the dictionary definition of akinetopsia again and again. (Also, I was so creeped out by the doctor - and I’m not sure if that was intentional because there wasn’t any followup there!)
There were some fun twists & turns at the very end, but I wished the action was more sprinkled throughout. It felt like we didn’t even reach the conflict described in the blurb until 70% through the story.
Overall, it was an interesting psychological thriller, but not one I would rave about and rush to recommend.
CW: murder, suicide, overdose, ableism, sexual assault, domestic abuse, death of parent, dementia, grief, infidelity, mental illness, panic attacks, stalking
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(I received a free copy of this book; this is my honest review.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? is a brilliant collection of short stories from a brilliant author.
So many different ways of tackling resistance, love, human messiness, and speculative futures.
This collection includes: a strikingly beautiful story on food & memory, a chilling tale of Masters who take over bodies (and trade them in a little too frequently), a horror story of an interaction with an alien species told through computer logs & transcripts, spies & inventors who fall in love in a steampunk New Orleans, a world where everyone is stuck in a separate 10-hour loop, the first form of The Great Cities Duology & a dip back into the world of The Broken Earth Trilogy, and so much more.
It’s seriously a whirlwind – you may need to take breaks between each story, because they will jolt you in so many different directions and open windows into so many new universes, and each one deserves to be fully digested.
While not every story struck me the same way, Jemisin is seriously a SFF genius. And all of these stories left a mark. She takes risks, unfurls fully-developed worlds in a small number of pages, and has the power to make you completely forget reality.
CW: death (child) & murder, rape, grief, animal cruelty & death, racism, misogyny, homophobia, mass death, natural disaster, cannibalism, references to slavery & lynching, implied nonconsensual pregnancy, miscarriage
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adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Oleander Sword stumbled a bit - the pacing was sometimes strange and the plot mostly felt like a bridge to the third book - but Suri’s writing is as lovely as ever, and I am still craving more of this story.
Priya and Malini have been pulled apart. Priya is struggling to fully claim her role as a Temple Elder and protect her family and people, and Malini is starting a long and dangerous journey to overthrow her brother and become Empress. Priya’s magic is ever-changing and Malini doesn’t know who she can trust … and the two of them are once again brought together to fight for their kingdom.
Bhumika’s arc has been one of my favorites since the first book, and I think her POV and character development really shone. I also loved getting to see more of Sima and Rao. I was hungry for more Priya – I felt as though she was a bit sidelined for Malini here, but I found her chapters so compelling and a bit disjointed.
I had mixed feelings about Malini’s arc. There were a handful of scenes where I really believed in her and her intentions and cleverness, but other moments felt rushed or inauthentic. We’re told again and again about her eye for strategy, but we don’t often see it. And it wasn’t clear if her inner thoughts were sometimes unreliable, or if it was a writing stumble.
The romance between Priya and Malini is a smaller subplot, but it’s fun. Lots of longing and flowery language and even though I didn’t always quite believe the passion, I was rooting for them.
The yaksa were brilliantly terrifying. Unknowable, otherworldly, and almost nauseating. Magic in general is used in a fascinating way here – and both the magic system and the complicated overlapping religions of the world were what compelled me the most.
CW: death, murder, war, fire, misogyny, suicide, religious bigotry, body horror, colonization, grief, animal death, xenophobia, racism, confinement, epidemic, torture, sexual content
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adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Squire is a beautifully crafted graphic novel for young readers – with a sharp look at imperialism & colonialism, and resisting propaganda and biased history.
“When you listen to a story, think about who is telling it. When you listen to a history, think about who it serves.”
We follow Aiza, a young girl who dreams of becoming a Knight for the Bayt-Sajji Empire (and therefore getting full citizenship as a subjugated Ornu person). She is determined & fierce, and as war comes creeping ever closer, the Squire training program opens up.
But once she’s accepted - and has to hide her Ornu background to be treated as an equal - Aiza realizes that Bayt-Sajji may not truly be fighting for the “greater good”, or ever accept her. She must navigate new friendships, her gut, and her expected loyalty to the Empire. And both her people and her new companions are in grave danger.
The art style was beautiful – and the characters really leapt off the page. I could almost hear the words and feel the energy. And I love Aiza’s scrappiness and sweet relationship with her older mentor.
Squire tackles some pretty big themes, and not every arc is as clear as I think it perhaps should be for a young audience. But overall – I thought this was an engaging and poignant read.
CW: war, racism, xenophobia, violence, colonization, fire, blood, death, classism, gaslighting, genocide, grief
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challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Friday Black is a dark and witty short story collection. It's satirical & dystopian, exploring what it means to exist as a Black person in America while also interrogating capitalism and consumerism.
It begins incredibly strong, with the bone-chilling tale of the “The Finkelstein 5”, following the aftermath of a man acquitted after he gruesomely murdered 5 Black children. After that it’s a bit more of a mixed bag - some stories will stick with me for life, but others were more forgettable.
The stories include a Westworld-esque amusement park where Black and Brown suffering is sold as justice entertainment, a time loop tale that imagines the consequences of a neighborhood fully aware that they are living the same day over and over, 3 interconnected retail stories that bring consumerism to a terrifying new high, and more.
“The Hospital Where” absolutely delighted me, though I sometimes felt a bit lost amidst twelve-tongued gods and powerful bargains.
The stories were very male-centered, and the female characters sometimes felt stereotypical. That was a loss.
“Lark Street” - which I believe was intended to be a satirical and hyperbolic spin on anti-abortion advocates, though it could also just be a general tale of suffering and hauntings - missed the mark for me. The execution felt clumsy to the extent that it might have the opposite impact. I was also not thrilled by “The Era” because the tortuous present felt almost like a mocking of autism. I can see the intention, but the execution didn’t hit the mark for me.
CW: racism, gun violence, murder, abortion, school shooting, death, gore, torture, hate crime, suicide, child death, police brutality, body horror, cannibalism, self harm, ableism, animal cruelty & death, sexism
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challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It’s hard to find the words to describe this reading experience. Against the Loveless World was exquisitely written, heart-wrenching, and captivating while moving fluidly through time.
We follow Nahr, a woman imprisoned alone in a modern cell she calls The Cube. When she is one day granted a pencil and journal, she begins reflecting and writing about her life and the events that led up to her imprisonment. Nahr was born in Kuwait to Palestinian refugees, and is relatively content there, dreaming of a happy life with a family and career. However, as life shifts, she becomes a refugee herself and slowly becomes radicalized while dreaming of a better life for herself and her family. Her journey takes her back to Palestine, where the Israeli occupation threatens everything she loves.
I was completely immersed in Nahr’s story. It read almost like a memoir, and it was tricky to pull back and remember this is fiction. Nahr is funny, sharp, and relatable. Her narrative voice felt so authentic and honest and confessional … I was leaning in more with each page.
You know where Nahr ends up, and yet the tension and stakes were incredibly high throughout the entire journey. I never quite knew what would happen next.
“But I know now that going from place to place is just something exiles have to do. Whatever the reason, the earth is never steady beneath our feet.”
As the daughter and granddaughter of refugees, Nahr knows a lot about holding onto home and creating home wherever you go. Her identity constantly shifts both out of survival and rapid displacement. Nahr has many names and adapts to a great number of situations, though her suffering is fresh each time a tie to a place or person is severed.
This is an emotional read, and that has a lot to do with the resilience of these characters. Nahr shows so much strength and love in the face of indescribable grief and loss and suffering. Her relationship with Bilal was so beautiful; and also broke me in two.
“No one had ever kissed me with such love, and it occurred to me that happiness can reach such depths that it becomes something akin to grief.”
It’s an incredible read. Embrace it as it radicalizes you (or engages you further).
CW: death, murder, rape, sexual assault, colonization, confinement, war, torture, police brutality, abortion, racism, genocide, islamophobia, gun violence, xenophobia, grief, sexism, homophobia, religious bigotry, miscarriage, death of parent, death of child, infidelity, infertility, excrement, mental illness, terminal illness, cancer, deportation, fire, adult/minor relationship
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dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Forged by Blood is a fantasy book inspired by Nigerian mythology. We follow Demi, a young woman who must hide her magic from the violent occupiers of her land. When her mother is murdered, she seeks revenge and stumbles into a mysterious opportunity from a Lord, and she sets out on a deadly mission alongside her childhood best friend and a figure from her past that she never thought she’d see again.
Unfortunately, I was quite disappointed by this one. I was ready for a fresh epic fantasy, but it was recycled tropes & scenes that I’ve read a hundred times before. I swear there were moments that felt like they were copied from other books almost word for word. I had a strange sense of deja vu while reading.
The characters and storytelling both felt young and immature. I believe this was originally intended to be young adult, but was aged up? The world-building didn’t quite make sense (too many holes in logic & the magic system was not developed well) and the choices and flatness of the characters baffled me a bit.
Both young men who were the love-triangle-interests were disappointing & toxic in different ways (and don’t get me started on the fated mate trope, especially when a young Black girl is paired with the white oppressor).
I was also disappointed by some of the framing around the oppressed group rising up against their genocidal rulers.
CW: death of parent, murder, colonization, genocide, slavery, racism, grief, sexual harassment, child abuse, child death, confinement, sexism, torture, xenophobia, war, pregnancy
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(I received an advance reader copy of this book; this is my honest review.)
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
The Night Parade is a truly beautiful book - both in its art (the collection of illustrations by the author’s sister are hauntingly gorgeous) and in its language.
This is Jami Nakamura Lin’s story, and it’s not framed like many other memoirs or fictional books centered around mental illness. This isn’t a narrative of hitting rock bottom and forging your way towards a triumphant future. It’s as messy as life is, and Lin navigates the reality of living with mental illness and grief: it’s a never ending rollercoaster. You learn to coexist with your ghosts.
She finds new ways to explore her experience with mental illness, grief & loss, and motherhood. A big part of the storytelling involves the Japanese myth of the Hyakki Yagyo. Sections begin with a yokai, and the narration often uses different elements of folklore and myth. The memoir is also written in a four act structure, which I thought was pretty neat.
I don’t think all the segments are equally successful - and sometimes the connections to the yokai felt a bit forced - but when it worked, boy did it work. Some moments broke me, and others were so relatable. I love memoirs that push boundaries, and this one was a fascinating experiment.
(Also as someone who has experienced several pyogenic granulomas I was pretty excited to read about Lin’s experience - I mean, they’re a bummer, but this is the first time I’ve seen them mentioned in a book.)
CW: mental illness, death of parent, suicide attempt, miscarriage, pregnancy, forced institutionalization, cancer, terminal illness
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(I received a free copy of this book; this is my honest review.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Chain-Gang All-Stars is an intoxicating dystopian piece that offers a bone-chilling response to incarceration, systemic racism, and so much more - but through the eyes and voices of characters that continue to love and fight back against their dehumanization.
Gladiator-style death matches between prisoners have reshaped sports entertainment and made CAPE (Criminal Action Penal Entertainment) immensely successful. People across the country tune in to watch the stars of Chain-Gang All-Stars, rooting for their favorite fighters and witnessing every moment of their lives. Of course there’s some protesting of the brutal games - especially from the abolitionist crowd - but mostly, the money keeps coming.
Loretta Thurwar and Hamar “Hurricane Staxx” Stacker are two of the biggest stars of the BattleGround, with Thurwar only a handful of fights away from freedom. As Thurwar thinks of her legacy and tries to protect her fellow Links, the GameMasters prepare to milk Thurwar’s popularity until the last moment and create an unforgettable season. We travel from the prisons to the games to corporate boardrooms to protest planning and beyond, getting an unflinching look at a world that doesn’t seem terribly different from our own.
It’s a story that is darkly clever and not at all subtle - and Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah’s footnotes hammer everything home, with references to current prison statistics and real people & cases. There’s a lot of commentary here. It is mostly centered around the American prison system and how it intertwines with systemic racism and capitalism, but there is also criticism of entertainment and sports media - and the abuse of Black bodies in those spaces.
The web of POVs was brilliantly executed. The worldbuilding was both captivating and devastatingly believable. Some chapters felt like their own short stories, and each mini arc outside of the main narratives added more color and more horror to this world. We see civilians who get wrapped up in the reality tv show aspect of the games, and people with a platform terrified to speak up, and doctors watching their discoveries and inventions get warped beyond imagination.
This is a world with fancy tech and elevated forms of punishment. But we still look at the simple yet incomprehensible torture that is solitary confinement and how that could lead someone to choose a death match over continuing to live in prison.
This is a gory, violent book. But I don’t want to neglect the shining moments of compassion. These characters loved each other fiercely. They hang on to their humanity and force the world to see it. There are conversations with abolitionists who believe that a better future is possible, even if they don’t have all the answers yet.
CW: death, murder, psychological & physical torture, police brutality, violence, gore, incarceration & confinement, racism, homophobia, trauma, self harm, suicide, slavery, grief, sexual violence
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(I received a free copy of this book; this is my honest review.)