![luce [is reading]](https://wishfullyreading.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/9429655-1.jpeg){kind=small}
-
Self-Portrait with Ghost: Short Stories by Meng Jin
Sly and surreal Self-Portrait with Ghost makes for a playfully weird and refreshingly inventive collection of short stories. Like most collections, not all of its stories are created equal, as there are a couple, especially the shorter ones last, that are rather forgettable. The most effective stories were the ones that, although characterized by a…
3.25 stars, Adult, ambivalent mood, ART/CREATIVITY, ARTISTS, asian american, asian diaspora, belonging, CHILDHOOD, chinese american author, collection of short stories, Contemporary, cultural dissonance, dark humor, DEATH, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), dreamlike quality, female authors, feverish, first love, ghosts/spirits, girlhood, HIGH SCHOOL, jealousy, lgbtq+, LITERARY FICTION, loneliness, MAGICAL REALISM, MARRIAGE, Meng Jin, migration/immigration, mothers & daughters, navel gazing, opera/choruses/classical music, playful style, published in 2022, queer, read in 2022, SEXUALITY, short stories, surreal, toxic relationships, unrequited love, weird, womanhood/femininity -
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
This makes for a very wholesome read that will definitely appeal to fans of T.J. Klune’s The House in the Cerulean Sea. Set in Britain, we follow Mika Moon, a witch who has learnt to live an isolated life in order to successfully hide her magic from others. Like other witches, she is an orphan…
3 STARS, 3rd pov, Adult, british indian author, cheesy, Contemporary, cozy mystery, england, FANTASY, female authors, found family, gay side characters, grumpy/sunshine dynamic, HUMOR, lgbtq+ side, light reads, m/m side, MAGIC, NORFOLK, orphans, playful style, published in 2022, queer side characters, read in 2022, ROMANCE, Sangu Mandanna, sitter/au pair/governess, teachers, The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, WITCHES -
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 -
My Heart Is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones
“Horror’s not a symptom, it’s a love affair.” My Heart Is a Chainsaw is a magnificently chaotic ode to slasher, one that demonstrates an unparalleled knowledge of the genre, its logic & tropes. I saw quite a lot of reviews describing this as a slow burner, and sì, in some ways Stephen Graham Jones withholds…
3rd pov, 4 STARS, addiction, adrenaline fuelled reads, Adult, ALIENATION, America, AMERICAN AUTHOR, atmospheric, Blackfoot, blackfoot author, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, creepy setting, dark, dark humor, female friendships, films, friendships, gore, graphic content, HIGH SCHOOL, Idaho, incest, indigenous, indigenous author, loneliness, male authors, meta, MURDER, My Heart Is a Chainsaw, MYSTERY, native american & first nation, Native American & First Nation authors, obsession, playful style, Poverty, psychological, published in 2021, queer undercurrents, read in 2022, reading, revenge, sexual assault/abuse/rape, she is dangerous, slasher, Stephen Graham Jones, strong sense of place, SUPERNATURAL, SUSPENSE, terrific prose, the female malaise, THRILLER, trauma, violence -
Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor by Xiran Jay Zhao
Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor is an engaging start to an action-driven fantasy series that is written in a winsome prose that is guaranteed to appeal to fans of Rick Riordan. Like Riordan’s books, Zhao combines an action-driven quest with a coming of age tale exploring the highs and lows of being a 12yr…
3.5 STARS, 3rd pov, action, adventure, asian american, battles, belonging, BOOK REVIEW, Booklr, bullying, China, chinese canadian author, coming of age, Contemporary, FANTASY, gaming, history, HUMOR, identity, KIDS WITH POWERS, lgbtq+, LGBTQ+ Author, middle grade, middle school, Muslim rep, myths, near future/alternate reality, playful style, published in 2022, queer, quests, read in 2022, reading, social issues, technology, travel, URBAN FANTASY, Xiran Jay Zhao, Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor -
The Swimmers by Julie Otsuka
The first two chapters of The Swimmers, ‘The Underground Pool’ and ‘The Crack’ are highly reminiscent of the author’s acclaimed The Buddha in the Attic. Like that novel The Swimmers at first seems to implement a playful choral ‘we’ as our perspective. The ‘we’ in question are the people who regularly swim at a local…
3 STARS, Adult, ageing, Alzheimer, America, asian american, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, books about writers, Contemporary, DEATH, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), female authors, gay side characters, greek chorus, GRIEF, HUMOR, interconnected stories, japanese american author, lgbtq+ side, MEMORY, mothers & daughters, My reviews, place as character, playful style, published in 2022, read in 2022, reading, satire, self-inserts, sports, subject over characters/story, The Swimmers -
Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan
Having recently enjoyed reading Kevin Kwan’s A Room With A View re-telling, I was seriously expecting to love Crazy Rich Asians. I went into it hoping for a light-hearted and fun read but was instead met with a snooze-inducing story, a horrid cast of poorly developed characters, and an abundance of crass humor. I grew…
2 STARS, 2010s, 3rd pov, Adult, affairs, America, American, asian american, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, bullying, cheating, China, class, Contemporary, Crazy Rich Asians, cultural dissonance, drama, girls hating girls, gossip & scandals, hong kong, HUMOR, kevin kwan, LGBTQ+ Author, male authors, MARRIAGE, MELODRAMA, My reviews, NEW YORK, Not Like Other Girls, playful style, published in 2013, read in 2022, reading, rich people, romcom, singapore, singaporean, singaporean american author, wedding drama -
Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho
“He spoke the spell under his breath, still a little uncertain after the agonies he had endured. But magic came, ever his friend—magic answered his call.” Written in a playful pastiche style Sorcerer to the Crown will certainly appeal to fans of Susanna Clarke, Neil Gaiman, and Diana Wynne Jones. Cho’s bombastic prose, characterized by…
1800s, 1810s, 19TH CENTURY, 3rd pov, 4 STARS, academia, Adult, adventure, all girls school, alternate history, bombastic style, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, curses, DRAGONS, FAERIES, FAIRYLAND, FANTASY, FANTASY OF MANNERS, favourite authors, female authors, HISTORICAL FICTION, HUMOR, MAGIC, magic school, Malaysian author, My reviews, playful style, published in 2015, re-reads, read in 2016, read in 2021, reading, Regency era, SOCIAL COMMENTARY, Sorcerer Royal, WARLOCKS/WIZARDS, WITCHES, Zen Cho -
Build Your House Around My Body by Violet Kupersmith
As per usual I was swayed by a pretty cover. I mean, just look at it! Anyway, as much as I wanted to like Build Your House Around My Body, it left me feeling rather underwhelmed. The narrative seems very much intent—hellbent even—on nauseating its readers, at times adopting a playful tone to do so.…
1940s, 1980s, 2.5 STARS, 2000s, 2010s, 3rd pov, arc, Build Your House Around My Body, confusing for the sake of being confusing, creepy setting, curses, dark humor, DEATH, f/f side, female authors, FOLKLORE, ghosts/spirits, grotesque, HISTORICAL FICTION, HORROR, interconnected stories, lgbtq+ side, loneliness, love triangle, missing persons, missing women, MYSTERY, netgalley, playful style, published in 2021, queer side characters, read in 2021, revenge, sexual assault/abuse/rape, Vietnam, vietnam war, Vietnamese American Author, Violet Kupersmith -
All’s Well by Mona Awad
“I thought tests led to something. A diagnosis led to a plan, a cure. But tests, I know now, never lead us anywhere. Tests are dark roads with no destinations, just leading to more dark.” All’s Well makes for an entertaining if somewhat flawed romp. The novel is narrated by Miranda, a theatre professor in…
1st pov, 3.25 stars, academia, actors, Adult, ALIENATION, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, canada, canadian author, chronic pain, Contemporary, dark humor, disabilities, female authors, feverish, hallucinations, HORROR, illness, MAGIC, MAGICAL REALISM, mental health, mona awad, My reviews, MYSTERY, netgalley, playful style, published in 2021, re-reads, read in 2021, read in 2022, revenge, shakespeare, she is not feeling good at all, stylised prose, teachers, the female malaise, theatre, UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE, unreliable narrators, weird, womanhood/femininity
luce [is reading] 