![luce [is reading]](https://wishfullyreading.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/9429655-1.jpeg){kind=small}
-
Soledad by Angie Cruz
“Could it be that that’s just the way things go between people? Irreconcilable differences, which can’t really be explained or solved.” What could have been a polyphonic tragicomedy exploring trauma, abusive and dysfunctional relationships, generational and cultural divides, sex, love, and desire, is let down by a cast of cartoonish characters, repetitive dialogues and interactions,…
1990s, 2000s, 20th century, abuse, ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS, adolescence, Adult, America, Angie Cruz, Contemporary, DEATH, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), Dominican American author, dominican republic, drama, Dreams, family, female authors, girlhood, grandmothers, illness, intergenerational, jealousy, latin america, latin american, latin american diaspora, latinx author, lesbian side characters, lgbtq+ side, MAGICAL REALISM, MELODRAMA, men who are sleazy, migration/immigration, motherhood, mothers & daughters, navel gazing, NEW YORK, no quotations marks, published in 2001, read in 2023, sex, sex scenes that are yikes, sexual assault/abuse/rape, SEXUALITY, Soledad, style over character, trauma, trying and failing @ feminism, unrequited love, womanhood/femininity -
Bliss Montage by Ling Ma
“It is in the most surreal situations that a person feels the most present, the closest to reality.” An ingenious and effervescent collection of surreal stories that will definitely appeal to fans of Kevin Wilson, Helen Oyeyemi, and Hiroko Oyamada. Ling Ma has a knack for blending realistic dynamics and issues with absurdist ones, and,…
4 STARS, ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS, Adult, America, asian american, asian diaspora, belonging, Bliss Montage, books about writers, California, China, chinese american author, collection of short stories, Contemporary, creative writing seminars, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), dreamlike quality, existentialism, female authors, heartbreak/breakups, interconnected stories, Ling Ma, LITERARY FICTION, loneliness, los angeles, MAGICAL REALISM, motherhood, NEW YORK, office, parenting, playful style, portal fantasy, pregnancy, published in 2022, read in 2022, short stories, surreal, toxic relationships, unnamed country, weird -
I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
If you are boo-booing this book just because of its title…kindly fck off. It is intentionally provocative and I am here for it. To place ‘the mother’ figure on a pedestal is ultimately detrimental to mothers since by idealizing them we cease to see them as real flawed human beings. I’m Glad My Mom Died…
1st pov, 4 STARS, abuse, ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS, actors, Adult, America, AMERICAN AUTHOR, anxiety, biography, body dysmorphia, California, cancer, celebrities, child abuse, CHILDHOOD, coming of age, Contemporary, dark humor, DEATH, DEPRESSION, eating disorders, female authors, film industry, gay side characters, GRIEF, growing up, I'm Glad My Mom Died, illness, Jennette McCurdy, lgbtq+ side, MEMOIR, mental health, mothers & daughters, Nonfiction, OCD, PSYCHIATRISTS & THERAPISTS, published in 2022, read in 2022, Religion, the female malaise, toxic relationships, trauma -
These Impossible Things by Salma El-Wardany
“Their laughter split the air and, in a heartbeat, lightness was back. It’s always easier to laugh about things than to cry about them.” These Impossible Things an engrossing novel that would make for a great summer read & book club pick. Salma El-Wardany’s prose, which is by turns lively and poignant, is utterly absorbing.…
2010s, 3 STARS, 3rd pov, abortion/miscarriage/bodily autonomy, ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS, Adult, adulthood, bad love, belonging, Contemporary, cultural dissonance, drama, egypt, Egyptian Irish Desi author, england, female authors, female friendships, friendships, gay side characters, heartbreak/breakups, lgbtq+ side, LONDON, Muslim rep, published in 2022, read in 2022, Religion, ROMANCE, Salma El-Wardany, sexual assault/abuse/rape, social issues, These Impossible Things, toxic relationships, UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE, womanhood/femininity -
If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English by Noor Naga
…a big fat nope from me. DISCLAIMER: Like with any other negative review that I write I feel the need to remind ppl that my opinions/thoughts/impressions of a book are entirely subjective (mind-blowing i know) and that if you are interested/curious about said book you should definitely check out more positive reviews. If an Egyptian…
2 STARS, ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS, addiction, Adult, America, autofiction, BOOK REVIEW, Booklr, books about writers, Contemporary, cultural dissonance, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), egypt, Egyptian American author, female authors, identity, If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English, language, lesbian side characters, lgbtq+ side, LITERARY FICTION, My reviews, no quotations marks, Noor Naga, published in 2022, read in 2022, reading, ROMANCE, style over character, stylised prose, subject over characters/story, trauma, unnamed characters, unnamed narrator -
Mad about You by Mhairi McFarlane
2022 is proving to be an underwhelming reading year. With the exception of Either/Or by Elif Batuman and re-reads, I have only dished out 3, 2 and even a few 1 star ratings. So, when I got an arc for Mad About You I was convinced that McFarlane would be the one to break this…
1st pov, 3 STARS, ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS, Adult, BOOK REVIEWS, British author, Contemporary, drama, england, favourite authors, female authors, gay side characters, HUMOR, lgbtq+ side, light reads, Mad About You, MARRIAGE, My reviews, orphans, published in 2022, read in 2022, reading, ROMANCE, romcom, toxic relationships, wedding drama -
Fiona and Jane by Jean Chen Ho
Fiona and Jane is yet another one of my most anticipated 2022 releases that left me wanting. While the author is certainly a decent writer, I found myself dissatisfied by the friendship that was meant to be the core of her book. Their relationship did not feel complex or nuanced, in fact, it did not…
2.5 STARS, ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS, Adult, America, American, asian american, BISEXUAL/PANSEXUAL, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, California, cheating, collection of short stories, Contemporary, contemporary malaise, conversational style, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), f/f side, female authors, female friendships, fiona and jane, friendships, girlhood, growing up, GUILT, horrible friends, interconnected stories, Jean Chen Ho, lgbtq+, los angeles, My reviews, NEW YORK, published in 2022, queer, read in 2022, reading, ROMANCE, short stories, style over character, taiwan, Taiwanese American Author, toxic relationships -
The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey
Cheesy, boring, poorly executed. While there is indeed a murder and the identity behind the culprit is, supposedly, a ‘mystery’, The Widows of Malabar Hill struck me as something in the realms of a third-rate period drama. The first part of the novel introduces us to Perveen Mistry, our protagonist, and works to establish the…
1910s, 1920s, 2 STARS, 3rd pov, abuse, ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS, Adult, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, British author, cheating, cheesy, courtroom drama, CRIME, divorce/separations, drama, female authors, HISTORICAL FICTION, India, lawyers, lesbian side characters, lgbtq+ side, MARRIAGE, MURDER, murder investigation, murder mystery, My reviews, MYSTERY, Not Like Other Girls, Perveen Mistry, published in 2018, read in 2021, reading, Sujata Massey, The Widows of Malabar Hill, weak prose, widows, zoroastrianism -
Dog Flowers: A Memoir by Danielle Geller
Dog Flowers is a relentlessly unsparing and depressing account of a dysfunctional family grappling with addiction, trauma, mental illness, and abuse. This memoir opens with Danielle Geller’s mothers’ death. Geller’s mother was homeless when she died of withdrawal from alcohol, and Geller is forced to return to Florida to sift through her mother’s possessions. Using…
1990s, 1st pov, 2000s, 3.5 STARS, abuse, ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS, addiction, Adult, America, American, AMERICAN AUTHOR, AUTOBIOGRAPHY, bad love, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, child abuse, CHILDHOOD, Contemporary, conversational style, Danielle Geller, DEPRESSION, distressing reads, Dog Flowers, family, fathers & daughters, female authors, FLORIDA, forgiveness, GRIEF, growing up, identity, indigenous, indigenous author, MEMOIR, MEMORY, mental health, MENTAL ILLNESS, mothers & daughters, My reviews, native american & first nation, Native American & First Nation authors, navajo, navajo nation, Nonfiction, published in 2021, read in 2021, reading, sexual assault/abuse/rape, SISTERS, toxic relationships, tragedy, trauma -
Revival Season by Monica West
“Papa had carefully cultivated our belief in him. He never said it outright—Believe in me as you believe in God—that would have been obvious blasphemy and idolatry. But he was the all-consuming presence that had filled my entire life, taking up all the space in the house and in revival tents. In its absence was…
1st pov, 3.25 stars, abuse, ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS, Adult, America, American, AMERICAN AUTHOR, arizona, Black & Black heritage authors, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, Christianity, Contemporary, Faith, family, fathers & daughters, female authors, Louisiana, Mississippi, Monica West, mothers & daughters, My reviews, netgalley, Oklahoma, published in 2021, read in 2021, reading, Religion, Revival Season, road trip, siblings, Southern America, Summer, texas
luce [is reading] 