Everyone should read this book. Sonya Renee Taylor does a fantastic job writing about body positivity and how that idea relates to radical self-love. Unlike other titles with similar themes, Taylor makes sure that everyone who has a body can learn something from this book. She goes further than just addressing the body image issues of cis-gendered, heterosexual, white women and makes connections between how someone views themselves and the oppression and societal expectations they face on a daily basis. This would have been a five-star read if it had been longer. While it is an introductory writing piece, I felt like sometimes the author moved on too quickly to different topics and didn't explore every idea she presented fully. I would be interested in reading more from this author and others who present the relationship between body image and intersectionality in a more in-depth way. 

Because I loved TJR's book The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, I knew that I would read Malibu Rising as soon as I could get my hands on it. While I didn't love it as much as Evelyn Hugo (which would have been an impressive feat), I still really enjoyed reading this title. At the beginning of the book, the author writes two different stories in two different time periods (the 1950s and 1980s). I thought this was a fantastic decision by TJR because it showed how the setting, Malibu, changed in just thirty years and allowed the reader to learn the necessary background information about the Riva family. Overall, this is a great book. If you are looking for a historical fiction novel with an immersive setting, this is the book for you! 

Up All Night is a short story collection featuring some prominent YA authors. Each story takes place between sunset and sunrise, but they do not connect in any way. There were two stories that stood out to me (A Place To Start by Nina LaCour and Kiss The Boy by Amanda Joy), but I found the rest to be just okay. I have read a lot of short story collections recently so that may have played a role in my enjoyment of this title, as well. 

If you haven't read The Extradordinaries or Flash Fire yet, I highly recommend checking out the audiobook! The narrator, Michael Lesley, does a fantastic job with both titles. With that being said, the content of this story is also great. Klune does what he does best by writing a story that absolutely captivates the reader while also providing amazing queer representation through his characters. I will definitely read the final book of this trilogy when it is published and will continue to recommend the two other books to others while I wait!

After enjoying West's cultural critique, The Witches Are Coming, I bought this book at a second-hand store because I wanted to read more of her writing. Unfortunately, as many essay collections do, Shrill has just not aged well. West makes many references to the HP franchise and applauds the work of fellow comedian Louis C.K. In addition to this title being dated, I felt that Shrill was not organized well, and a few chapters needed to be edited. It felt more like I was reading a rough draft rather than a polished edited book. If you are interested in West's work, I would recommend The Witches Are Coming over this title as that book is more culturally relevant and put together. 

I can't stop reading the books in The Bromance Book Club series. Even though they are cheesy, I have created such a strong connection to the characters that I can't resist reading each new book Adams writes. Isn't It Bromantic followed the story of my favorite character, The Russian (aka Vlad), and his wife's marriage of convenience. After getting drafted to play professional hockey in the United States, Vlad marries his childhood friend so she can also leave their home country. Like the other titles in this series, I loved the brotherhood shown between the members of the book club. Healthy male relationships are at the center of each of these stories as much as romantic relationships are displayed. My one issue with this title was the ending. It was very dramatic and unrealistic and just didn't fit correctly with how the other books wrapped up. Of course, I will continue to read these books, but I just wish Vlad was given a better story! 

I was really excited to read this book, but in all honestly, Girl, 11 may be my least favorite book that I have read so far this year. It had everything that I want in a crime thriller, but I figured out the twists early on in the story. I really only finished it because I wanted to make sure I was correct. I was hoping that something would happen that I did not predict, but it all turned out exactly the way I thought it would. Instead of reading this title, I would recommend reading other (better) crime thrillers such as Sadie by Courtney Summers, Dark Places by Gillian Flynn or The Holdout by Graham Moore.

The Undocumented Americans is a powerful read. I have never picked up a book that looks at undocumented immigrants living in the United States in the way that Villavicencio portrays them. She doesn't talk about the DREAMers or the people actively coming into the country - the groups others like to focus on when talking about immigration. Villavicencio writes about the people who have lived and worked in the United States for decades despite not having citizenship status. This book is informative and necessary. If this title is not yet on your reading list, add it. It will challenge your political and social beliefs no matter what they currently are.

I almost put this book down because the beginning was so slow. Also, as you can probably infer from the title, the story has an enemies-to-lovers trope, with which I have a complicated relationship. I think this type of storyline has been overdone and I don't think Patel brought anything new and/or exciting to it. With that being said, I really appreciated the cultural representation the author included within her characters and setting. While The Trouble With Hating You was cheesy, other romance readers may enjoy this one more than I did!

Royal Holiday is a very cute romance set in England during the Christmas season. It is different from the previous books in The Wedding Date series because the relationship is between Maddie's mother, Vivian, and Malcolm, the Queen's secretary. Both of these characters are older than the previous love interests and were much more mature. I think that readers closer to their age will be able to appreciate this title more than I did. The issues that the couple deals with in this book were ones that I personally could not relate to and my rating reflects that. I did think Vivian and Malcolm were well suited together and enjoyed seeing their love story play out, but I would not go out of my way to recommend this title to other readers in my age group.