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Nothing Burns as Bright as You by Ashley Woodfolk
If you like lyrical love stories such as Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson, or books that give serious A24 coming-of-age film vibes such as All the Water I’ve Seen Is Running by Elias Rodriques, don’t sleep on Nothing Burns as Bright as You. The author captures how all-consuming first love can be through the […]
1st pov, America, AMERICAN AUTHOR, ANGST, Ashley Woodfolk, atmospheric, bi side characters, Black & Black heritage authors, BOOK REVIEWS, Contemporary, f/f, female authors, FRIENDS TO LOVERS, LESBIAN, lgbtq+, LGBTQ+ Author, lyrical prose, My reviews, Nothing Burns as Bright as You, queer, reading, ROMANCE, sapphic, style over character, stylised prose, Summer, toxic relationships, unnamed characters, unnamed narrator, vignettes, YOUNG ADULT -
Right Where I Left You by Julian Winters
This is yet another one of my most anticipated 2022 releases that ended up missing the mark. Having read and enjoyed Julian Winters’ The Summer of Everything I went into this expecting something cute & wholesome only to be confronted with a generic coming of age ya about characters who are just out of high […]
1st pov, 2 STARS, America, ANGST, bi side characters, Black & Black heritage authors, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, coming of age, Contemporary, drama, FRIENDS TO LOVERS, gay, HIGH SCHOOL, Julian Winters, lgbtq+, LGBTQ+ Author, m/m, My reviews, non-binary side characters, published in 2022, queer, read in 2022, reading, Right Where I Left You, ROMANCE, Summer, summer reads, teen angst, YOUNG ADULT -
Either/Or by Elif Batuman
This sequel needs a sequel. “Was this the decisive moment of my life? It felt as if the gap that had dogged me all my days was knitting together before my eyes—so that, from this point on, my life would be as coherent and meaningful as my favorite books. At the same time, I had […]
1990s, 1st pov, 5 STARS, ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE, academia, Adult, adulthood, America, American, arc, ART/CREATIVITY, autumn, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, books about books, books about writers, cambridge (us), campus, coming of age, Contemporary, contemporary malaise, cultural dissonance, Either/Or, Elif Batuman, existentialism, favourite authors, female authors, first love, friendships, Harvard, identity, introspective, language, LGBTQ+ Author, LITERARY FICTION, loneliness, Longing, Massachusetts, mumblecore, My reviews, netgalley, nostalgic reads, philosophical, psychological, published in 2022, re-reads, read in 2022, reading, RUSSIA, sex, SEXUALITY, SLICE OF LIFE, spring, strong sense of place, Summer, the female malaise, The Idiot, toxic relationships, travel, Turkey, turkish american author, UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE, unrequited love, WINTER, womanhood/femininity -
The Four Humors by Mina Seckin
“THE FOUR HUMORS THAT PUMP THROUGH MY BODY DETERMINE my character, temperament, mood. Blood, phlegm, black bile, and choler. The excess or lack of these bodily fluids designates how a person should be.” The Four Humors is a rather milquetoast addition to the young-alienated-women subgenre that has become all the vogue in the last few […]
3 STARS, Adult, ALIENATION, ambiguous protagonist, America, American, anxiety, atmospheric, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, break-ups, chronic pain, cold tone, Contemporary, contemporary malaise, DEATH, DEPRESSION, eating disorders, ennui, family, female authors, GRIEF, illness, introspective, LITERARY FICTION, loneliness, Longing, medical, mental health, midlife crisis, Mina Seckin, mumblecore, My reviews, navel gazing, obsession, published in 2021, read in 2022, reading, sardonic humor, self-destructive, SISTERS, slow pacing, strong sense of place, Summer, summer reads, The Four Humors, Turkey, turkish american author -
This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki
Compared to Skim, This One Summer makes for a rather milquetoast affair. That is not to say that is bad but I did find the story and characters to be bland and very much been-there-done-that. This could have worked if the narrative had presented us with a more compelling protagonist than Rosie who is a […]
2.5 STARS, ANGST, beautiful artwork, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, canada, coming of age, female authors, Graphic Novels, growing up, japanese canadian author, lgbtq+ side, mothers & daughters, My reviews, published in 2014, read in 2021, reading, Sequential Art, Summer, summer reads, teen angst, YOUNG ADULT -
Five Tuesdays in Winter by Lily King
“You become a creature I can’t understand, my mother sometimes said to me.” Having loved Lily King’s Writers & Lovers I was looking forward to reading more of her work and I can happily say (or write) that her first-ever collection of short stories did not disappoint. More often than not I find short story […]
4 STARS, Adult, age gap, America, American, AMERICAN AUTHOR, books about writers, collection of short stories, Contemporary, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), family, favourite authors, female authors, holidays, introspective, lgbtq+ side, LITERARY FICTION, m/m side, rich people, short stories, sitter/au pair/governess, Summer, summer reads, unrequited love -
The Summer of You by Nagisa Furuya
“to me…you will always be part of my summer.” The Summer of You will definitely appeal to fans of shounen-ai like Seven Says. I, however, found it rather generic and clichéd.As the title itself suggests The Summer of You is very much a light summer romance. The manga follows Chiharu and Wataru, two boys who […]
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The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould
“Ghosts are death, but maybe death can mean different things.” Spooky, sapphic, summery, The Dead and the Dark delivers on all of these. Fans of YA paranormal YA novels like Beware the Wild or Stiefvater’s TRC or even graphic-novels such as The Low, Low Woods, should definitely consider giving Courtney Gould’s debut a shot. The […]
3.5 STARS, 3rd pov, America, American, atmospheric, BISEXUAL/PANSEXUAL, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, creepy setting, f/f, family, FANTASY, female authors, gay side characters, ghosts/spirits, HORROR, LESBIAN, lgbtq+, LGBTQ+ Author, m/m side, missing boys, MURDER, My reviews, MYSTERY, Oregon, PARANORMAL, published in 2021, queer, read in 2021, reading, sapphic, secretiveness, SMALL TOWN, Summer, summer reads, The Dead and the Dark, THRILLER, YOUNG ADULT -
Sunset by Jessie Cave
“When I next love someone, they will die suddenly, unfairly, quickly, oddly, suspiciously, horrifyingly, traumatically; they’ll die in the worst way that someone could, and I will have to stand by and watch, take a photo.” Funny, raw, heartbreaking, Sunset is an exceptional debut novel. Jessie Cave’s unsparing portrayal of grief in all of its […]
1st pov, 4.5 STARS, Adult, ALIENATION, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, Contemporary, contemporary malaise, dark humor, DEATH, DEPRESSION, england, female authors, GRIEF, introspective, Italy, Jessie Cave, LITERARY FICTION, LONDON, loneliness, MEMORY, millennial, My reviews, netgalley, no quotations marks, published in 2021, read in 2021, SISTERS, Summer, summer reads, Sunset, trauma, travel, work culture -
Rise to the Sun by Leah Johnson
I lived for that Mack cameo! Sadly, Olivia & Toni didn’t steal my heart away like Liz & Mack did… “Loving someone is being big enough to admit when you mess up, and then doing everything in your power not to do it again.” Rise to the Sun is a summery sapphic romance that reads […]
1st pov, 3 STARS, America, American, AMERICAN AUTHOR, anxiety, BISEXUAL/PANSEXUAL, Black & Black heritage authors, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, Contemporary, f/f, female authors, georgia, Indiana, insta love, Leah Johnson, lgbtq+, LGBTQ+ Author, light reads, music, musicians, My reviews, published in 2021, queer, read in 2021, reading, ROMANCE, sapphic, social issues, Summer, summer reads, YOUNG ADULT
luce [is reading] 