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The Arena of the Unwell by Liam Konemann
“At any given moment, I have no idea what’s true about any of us.” The Arena of the Unwell is a gritty and exhilarating exploration of loneliness and longing, obsession and jealousy, queerness and male intimacy. tw: self-harm & suicidal ideation Our narrator is Noah, a 22-year-old gay man who lives in London. He works…
1st pov, 4.25 stars, addiction, Adult, ALIENATION, atmospheric, AUSTRALIAN AUTHOR, bad love, bi side characters, cheating, Contemporary, contemporary malaise, DEPRESSION, england, feverish, gay, gritty realism, grunge vibes, introspective, jealousy, lgbtq+, LGBTQ+ Author, Liam Konemann, LONDON, loneliness, Longing, m/m, masculinity, mental health, music, nostalgic reads, obsession, psychological, published in 2022, queer, read in 2022, self-destructive, self-harming, sex, SEXUALITY, strong sense of place, suicide, The Arena of the Unwell, the male malaise, toxic relationships, unreliable narrators -
Anything But Fine by Tobias Madden
I had quite hopes for Anything But Fine and the first few chapters promised a ya coming-of-age in the realms of The Sky Blues, Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun, and You Should See Me in a Crown. As the story progresses however I found myself growing weary of the unnecessary miscommunication. If you are…
1st pov, 3 STARS, Anything But Fine, AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN AUTHOR, bi side characters, BOOK REVIEW, Booklr, Contemporary, dancing, drama, gay, HIGH SCHOOL, lgbtq+, LGBTQ+ Author, m/m, male authors, My reviews, published in 2021, queer, read in 2022, reading, ROMANCE, sports, teen angst, Tobias Madden, YOUNG ADULT -
Cold Enough for Snow by Jessica Au
“Maybe it’s good, I said, to stop sometimes and reflect upon the things that have happened, maybe thinking about sadness can actually end up making you happy.” Cold Enough for Snow is a slight novella narrated and characterized by a crisp prose. Despite the introspective nature of this work (there are no dialogues and the…
1st pov, 3 STARS, Adult, ART/CREATIVITY, AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN AUTHOR, Cold Enough for Snow, cold tone, Contemporary, female authors, hong kong, introspective, japan, Jessica Au, LITERARY FICTION, MEMORY, mothers & daughters, NOVELLA/SHORT STORY, published in 2022, read in 2021, restrained prose, style over character, travel, unnamed characters, unnamed narrator, WINTER, winter reads -
A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske
“I am nothing like you, and yet I feel more myself with you.” Part cute/steamy romance, part historical fantasy romp, A Marvellous Light is a delightful debut novel. A Marvellous Light is likely one of the best romances to come out in 2021. I really had a blast with this novel! While Freya Marske’s historical…
3.5 STARS, 3rd pov, Adult, adventure, arc, AUSTRALIAN AUTHOR, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, curses, england, FANTASY, FANTASY OF MANNERS, female authors, gay, HISTORICAL FICTION, lgbtq+, LONDON, m/m, MAGIC, manor/big house, My reviews, MYSTERY, netgalley, published in 2021, queer, read in 2021, reading, ROMANCE, sex, The Last Binding, The Last Binding #1 -
House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland
“Dark, dangerous things happened around the Hollow sisters.” Brimming with beauty and danger House of Hollow is a spellbinding modern fairy tale. Written in a tantalising prose that seems to echo traditional fairy tales House of Hollow presents its readers with a beguiling tale about sisters and monsters. “We were taken. We came back. None…
1st pov, 4 STARS, ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE, atmospheric, AUSTRALIAN AUTHOR, BISEXUAL/PANSEXUAL, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, Contemporary, creepy setting, dark fantasy, england, FAIRY TALES, fairytalesque prose, FANTASY, female authors, girlhood, great storytelling, HORROR, House of Hollow, it’s about the *aesthetics*, Krystal Sutherland, lesbian side characters, lgbtq+, LONDON, MAGIC, MAGICAL DOORS, missing girls, missing persons, monsters, My reviews, MYSTERY, PARANORMAL, portal fantasy, published in 2021, queer, re-reads, read in 2021, read in 2022, road trip, scotland, SISTERS, URBAN FANTASY, YOUNG ADULT -
The Survivors by Jane Harper
Alas, figuring out the murderer’s identity in the first 15% made this book kind of a drag. Having highly enjoyed Jane Harper’s The Lost Man, The Survivors felt by comparison vaguely uninspired. While the setting is just as atmospheric and vividly rendered as the ones in Harper’s other novels, the characters and mystery were very…
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The Dark Days Deceit by Alison Goodman
To say that I am incredibly disappointed by this final instalment would be pretty accurate.I enjoyed The Dark Days Club and I thought The Dark Days Pact was the perfect sequel. Goodman’s writing painstakingly depicted the Georgian era, its customs and language. Lady Helen, our main character, was both sensible and diplomatic, and…
1810s, 19TH CENTURY, 2.5 STARS, 3rd pov, ALISON GOODMAN, AUSTRALIAN AUTHOR, bath, DEMONS, england, FANTASY, FANTASY OF MANNERS, female authors, gay side characters, HISTORICAL FICTION, LADY HELEN, lgbtq+ side, MAGIC, PARANORMAL, published in 2018, read in 2018, Regency era, ROMANCE, series that went downhill, STEAMPUNK, The Dark Days Deceit, YOUNG ADULT -
Flyaway by Kathleen Jennings — book review
While Kathleen Jennings is an undeniably wonderful illustrator, I’m afraid that I wasn’t particularly impressed by her novella. What first struck me as somewhat discordant in Flyaway was the prose itself. At times the writing was clunky and there were passages that seemed as if they were trying to echo someone else’s style. The way…
1st pov, 2 STARS, arc, AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN AUTHOR, Booklr, creepy setting, FAIRY TALES, female authors, Flyaway, FOLKLORE, GOTHIC, Kathleen Jennings, MAGICAL REALISM, missing fathers, missing persons, mothers & daughters, netgalley, NOVELLA/SHORT STORY, read in 2020, SMALL TOWN, toxic relationships, unreliable narrators, YOUNG ADULT -
Only Mostly Devastated by Sophie Gonzales — book review
“It was late afternoon, on the very last Wednesday of August, when I realized Disney had been lying to me for quite some time about Happily Ever Afters.” Only Mostly Devastated tells a cute but extremely formulaic story that is as memorable as a teen coming-of-age movie (possibly of Netflix variety). I really wanted to…
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Dolores by Lauren Aimee Curtis – book review
I guess that I’m but a fickle creature: I saw and fell for the cover of this novella (the neon colours, the pose of the model, the simple font…I was a goner). Sadly the actual inside of Dolores has little in common with its fantastic cover design. Written in a prose that manages to be…
luce [is reading] 