Darius the great deserves better – Review

Thank you to the publishers for sending me a E-Galley in exchange for review

Review below

oh I loved this one so much!!!

the first book in this series is and always will be one of my fav books ever.!!! this sequel did not disappoint one bit
this is set a few months after our first novel and we follow Darius when he is back from Iran and we see how life has changed for him since his visit.

we see Darius grow even more in this second novel and while we have this few months time jump you can definitely see the confidence that oozes more Darius and how he handles himself in situations with himself and with others. he’s definitely changed but he still as all the same characteristics he had from the first novel with his love for tea being the biggest one and now as he works in the teashop (what a perfect job for him) this is also where he met his boyfriend Landon. plus always being the kind and protective brother and son to his family.

as with any mental illness you can have a good days and bad days and that for sure happens for Darius with his depression and the further exploration and talk of depression that happens in this second novel continues between Darius and his father. (their bond in this second novel is so beautiful to see and read about, and how accepted Darius’s family make him).

there are so manyyyy things I loved about this book that it would be like writing a book in itself but here is 2-3 out of about 50 that I loved.
the protectiveness Darius has over his sister and how he helps with the bullying she is facing in school .

Darius’s queer Grandma’s who come to stay with the family throughout this book and the slow growth that happens in the relationship between the three of them and all the little stories that they tell Darius about them being a couple growing up (one is transgender)

and finally how so supportive all of his friends are especially His soccer friends who will always be their for him and make sure he is okay and doing well, and actually not giving a damn that he is Gay. (which is very rare to see in a group of sports related mens teams/circles and we need this more)

like I said I could go on and on about this book but don’t want to bore you, when this releases please please pick this one up or if you haven’t read the first yet go… read the first then buy the second because you will not be disappointed.

🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟

Blog tour review post – In the Role of Brie Hutchens by Nicole Melleby

Thank you to the publishers for an early copy of this book in exchange for review

Review below

I really enjoyed this one very much!!! A very cute coming of age story mixed in with some hard topics such as coming out to parents who are religious. F/F romance

This was a great read about Brie a theatre loving, soap star watching 13 year old girl who goes to a catholic school and is hiding that she is a lesbian… until she starts falling for the Always top of the class Girl called Kennedy, they start to bond and become closer and closer but one thing is stopping them from being their true selves and that is Brie’s parents and family who are very religious and are set in their ways. We see what unfolds as the book continues on.

One other part I loved if the book was the supportiveness of two of Brie’s teachers at school and also her best friend who always comforted her and made sure she was the best person she can be

Really enjoyed this one and I read this book In two sitting in one morning it was so easy to fly through and recommend very much.

4 Stars 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟

Blog Tour: Ordinary girls by Jaquira Diaz

thank you to the publishers for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for a review

Ordinary girls By Jaquira Diaz is a powerfully tragic memoir that follows the life and tough upbringing of Jaquira through living in Puerto Rico and trying to make a life in Miami.

this memoir is a very sad and upsetting book with Jaquira finding herself in some very harmful situations with family and friends and some of the bad choices that the author had made growing up. but one day Jaquira decided it was time to make a life for herself outside of Puerto Rico and move to Miami Beach and move away from the violence, drugs and crime.

this book definitely deals with an had a lot of trigger warnings involved with sexual assault, a mother with schizophrenia, and depression. I would say if you want to read this memoir definitely make sure you know you will be okay and feel fine reading this one.

Once upon an Eid anthology – review

Thank you to Netgalley/publishers for a early copy

Once upon an Eid synopsis

Once Upon an Eid is a collection of short stories that showcases the most brilliant Muslim voices writing today, all about the most joyful holiday of the year: Eid! 

Eid: The short, single-syllable word conjures up a variety of feelings and memories for Muslims. Maybe it’s waking up to the sound of frying samosas or the comfort of bean pie, maybe it’s the pleasure of putting on a new outfit for Eid prayers, or maybe it’s the gift-giving and holiday parties to come that day. Whatever it may be, for those who cherish this day of celebration, the emotional responses may be summed up in another short and sweet word: joy. The anthology will also include a poem, graphic-novel chapter, and spot illustrations.

The full list of Once Upon an Eid contributors include: G. Willow Wilson (Alif the Unseen, Ms. Marvel), Hena Khan (Amina’s Voice, Under My Hijab), N. H. Senzai (Shooting Kabul, Escape from Aleppo), Hanna Alkaf (The Weight of Our Sky), Rukhsana Khan (Big Red Lollipop), Randa Abdel-Fattah (Does My Head Look Big in This?), Ashley Franklin (Not Quite Snow White), Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow (Mommy’s Khimar), Candice Montgomery (Home and Away, By Any Means Necessary), Huda Al-Marashi (First Comes Marriage), Ayesha Mattu, Asmaa Hussein, and Sara Alfageeh.

My review below

This was such a beautiful collection of short stories entering around Ramadan and eid mubarak. very diverse full of very different meanings/ experiences of Eid/Ramadan written by all the others and really enjoyed that all the characters were all so unique in all their own ways and I didnt fell that there were one of the same in other characters. 

some books were very happy and cheerful and some very sad but with hope swell which I loved the variations very much. learning more about the culture was so interesting and all the dishes that get made throughout this anthology sounded so amazing and I needed to eat them right away.

Even though im not the target audience for this book, it was just so amazing and if your muslim or not I very recommend you to read this book and to get a insight into the culture and you definitely learn quite a lot.

4/5 stars

Felix ever after by kacen callender!!! Review

Thank you to the publisher and edelweiss for the eArc in exchange for review.

Synopsis below

From Stonewall and Lambda Award–winning author Kacen Callender comes a revelatory YA novel about a transgender teen grappling with identity and self-discovery while falling in love for the first time.

Felix Love has never been in love—and, yes, he’s painfully aware of the irony. He desperately wants to know what it’s like and why it seems so easy for everyone but him to find someone. What’s worse is that, even though he is proud of his identity, Felix also secretly fears that he’s one marginalization too many—Black, queer, and transgender—to ever get his own happily-ever-after.

When an anonymous student begins sending him transphobic messages—after publicly posting Felix’s deadname alongside images of him before he transitioned—Felix comes up with a plan for revenge. What he didn’t count on: his catfish scenario landing him in a quasi–love triangle….

But as he navigates his complicated feelings, Felix begins a journey of questioning and self-discovery that helps redefine his most important relationship: how he feels about himself.

Felix Ever After is an honest and layered story about identity, falling in love, and recognizing the love you deserve.

My review below

5/5 stars 

before I get into the review thank you so much to the publishers for approving me of this eARC.

The trigger warning for this book are outing, transphobia, homophobia

WOW…This book was so powerful and so poignant and everyone and also to people who feel like they don’t belong. wether that’s coming to terms with your own sexuality and/or becoming the person you were truly meant to be in this world need to read this book. as as its released. 

this book is definitely a new favourite of mine, and I loved The character of Felix very much. Reading about a trans male/ Demi boy plus being black and queer it was just so emotional, and it really brings to light even more so in this day and age plus with Felix in this book how Felix gets treated differently to a white queer boy . seeing Felix navigate everyday life just thinking he didn’t belong was such so heart wrenching to see and I just wanted to give Felix a hug and tell him he is Lovable and he belongs anywhere he wants to be. 

Such a beautiful story that tackles so many issues throughout the novel, Which Kacen always does well in all their books. 

just having a Demi boy main character represented i loved learning more about and this cover with the top surgery scars is so beautiful to see being represented.

Witches of ash and ruin by E. Latimer – review

Thank you to Little brown publishing for this Ebook copy of this book in exchange for review

Synopsis

Modern witchcraft blends with ancient Celtic mythology in an epic clash of witches and gods, perfect for fans of V.E. Schwab’s Shades of Magic trilogy and A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES.

Seventeen-year-old Dayna Walsh is struggling to cope with her somatic OCD; the aftermath of being outed as bisexual in her conservative Irish town; and the return of her long-absent mother, who barely seems like a parent. But all that really matters to her is ascending and finally, finally becoming a full witch-plans that are complicated when another coven, rumored to have a sordid history with black magic, arrives in town with premonitions of death. Dayna immediately finds herself at odds with the bewitchingly frustrating Meiner King, the granddaughter of their coven leader.

And then a witch turns up murdered at a local sacred site, along with the blood symbol of the Butcher of Manchester-an infamous serial killer whose trail has long gone cold. The killer’s motives are enmeshed in a complex web of witches and gods, and Dayna and Meiner soon find themselves at the center of it all. If they don’t stop the Butcher, one of them will be next.

With razor-sharp prose and achingly real characters, E. Latimer crafts a sweeping, mesmerizing story of dark magic and brutal mythology set against a backdrop of contemporary Ireland that’s impossible to put down.

Review below

AMAZING wow this was so gooooood one of the best witch books if not the best witchy book I have read!!!

This was amazing and included so many representations included from OCD to F/F romance and lgbt plus diversity in colours and race!! This book I though I would enjoy but not love it as much as I did… i couldn’t stop reading as soon as I started it was go go go with some atmospheric and eerie writing and setting 🙂 it had so many different POVS and they were all so good and loved all the stories intertwining together.

Will definitely recommend this book to everyone!!!

5/5 stars

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender – review

Synopsis

Twelve-year-old Kingston James is sure his brother Khalid has turned into a dragonfly. When Khalid unexpectedly passed away, he shed what was his first skin for another to live down by the bayou in their small Louisiana town. Khalid still visits in dreams, and King must keep these secrets to himself as he watches grief transform his family.

It would be easier if King could talk with his best friend, Sandy Sanders. But just days before he died, Khalid told King to end their friendship, after overhearing a secret about Sandy-that he thinks he might be gay. “You don’t want anyone to think you’re gay too, do you?”

But when Sandy goes missing, sparking a town-wide search, and King finds his former best friend hiding in a tent in his backyard, he agrees to help Sandy escape from his abusive father, and the two begin an adventure as they build their own private paradise down by the bayou and among the dragonflies. As King’s friendship with Sandy is reignited, he’s forced to confront questions about himself and the reality of his brother’s death.

Review

4.5/5 stars

TW – child abuse and talks of physical abuse and racism

another middle grade that was just so beautifully written and just ripped your heart out but in the end it picked up the pieces and put it back together again. this novel is about trying to live to fullest and coping with grief in the best possible way and trying to move forward even when it feels impossible to do and also about finding the strength and courage to figuring out yourself and only being able to do that by believing in yourself and having the support system to make you feel comfortable to do/be who you want to be.

the poetic and beautiful writing throughout by Kacen Callender was just stunning and as this is my first book by this author I’m really excited to dive into Kacen’s other novels including his upcoming release Felix, ever after!!!

🌟🌟🌟🌟 💫

The only black girls in town by Brandy Colbert – review

Thank you for the publishers for sending me a E-Galley of this book in exchange for review!

Book synopsis

Award-winning YA author Brandy Colbert’s debut middle-grade novel about the only two black girls in town who discover a collection of hidden journals revealing shocking secrets of the past. 

Beach-loving surfer Alberta has been the only black girl in town for years. Alberta’s best friend, Laramie, is the closest thing she has to a sister, but there are some things even Laramie can’t understand. When the bed and breakfast across the street finds new owners, Alberta is ecstatic to learn the family is black-and they have a 12-year-old daughter just like her.

Alberta is positive she and the new girl, Edie, will be fast friends. But while Alberta loves being a California girl, Edie misses her native Brooklyn and finds it hard to adapt to small-town living.

When the girls discover a box of old journals in Edie’s attic, they team up to figure out exactly who’s behind them and why they got left behind. Soon they discover shocking and painful secrets of the past and learn that nothing is quite what it seems.

Review below

WOW!!! Brandy Colbert has done it once again, this was absolutely beautiful, stunning, important, amazing and so on!!!

This was brandy Colbert’s debut into the realm of middle grade and wow was a rollercoaster of a ride this read was, it packed a hell of a lot of punch, with so many important topics and trying to find Your place in the world.

Alberta the main character was such a delight to read about, as we see her grow throughout this book from feeling like she doesn’t fit in, to growing up and dealing with the changes that are happening in her life with her school plus friends and family.

The friendship with the new girl in town Edie was just so beautiful to read about and Nothing could come between this dynamic duo!!! From the moment they met to where we left them at the end of the novel. Can we just get novels of them growing up through the years after because I would read it 🙂

Brandy Colbert never disappoints when it comes to her writing and the inclusivity she adds to her novels all the time and it’s just so wonderful to read about, Alberta’s two fathers are So wonderful aswell and how they always support Alberta in the best way they can and the family dynamic is just the best.

This novel was everything and more!!! From the first page to the last, here’s to hopefully many more middle grade novels by Brandy Colbert and for sure this will be a contender to be on my top ten of the year!!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5 stars

Foul is fair by Hannah Capin review – blog tour

Synopsis

Elle and her friends Mads, Jenny, and Summer rule their glittering LA circle. Untouchable, they have the kind of power other girls only dream of. Every party is theirs and the world is at their feet. Until the night of Elle’s sweet sixteen, when they crash a St. Andrew’s Prep party. The night the golden boys choose Elle as their next target. 

They picked the wrong girl. 

Sworn to vengeance, Elle transfers to St. Andrew’s. She plots to destroy each boy, one by one. She’ll take their power, their lives, and their control of the prep school’s hierarchy. And she and her coven have the perfect way in: a boy named Mack, whose ambition could turn deadly. 

Foul is Fair is a bloody, thrilling revenge fantasy for the girls who have had enough. Golden boys beware: something wicked this way comes.

Review below

Ooo this book was something else haha, this was a retelling of Macbeth but for the new generation giving me full on vibes of heathers, mean girls, riverdale and a few other shows. This was a revenge filled and violent book.

Very dark retelling with characters that lots of people may dislike and some people may like, but for me this book was an okay book, in the middle ground as it was enjoyable but I wasn’t blown away by.

Going back onto my earlier point the characters for me I just couldn’t connect with unfortunately and I felt some of the characters were a little over the top/cheesy but that’s just my own opinion.

It’s a very unique book though I will say that 🙂

Thank you to Netgalley and publishers for sending me a copy of this book and I’m on the blog tour for this too

3 stars

Eileen Zimmerman – smacked review

Synopsis

A journalist pieces together the mysteries surrounding her ex-husband’s descent into drug addiction while trying to rebuild a life for her family, taking readers on an intimate journey into the world of white-collar drug abuse.

“A rare combination of journalistic rigor, personal courage, and writerly grace.”—Bill Clegg, author of Portrait of an Addict as a Young Man

Something was wrong with Peter. Eilene Zimmerman noticed that her ex-husband looked thin, seemed distracted, and was frequently absent from activities with their children. She thought he looked sick and needed to see a doctor, and indeed, he told her he had been diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder. Yet in many ways, Peter seemed to have it all: a beautiful house by the beach, expensive cars, and other luxuries that came with an affluent life. Eilene assumed his odd behavior was due to stress and overwork—he was a senior partner at a prominent law firm and had been working more than sixty hours a week for the last twenty years.

Although they were divorced, Eilene and Peter had been partners and friends for decades, so when she and her children were unable to reach Peter for several days, Eilene went to his house to see if he was OK.

So begins Smacked, a brilliant and moving memoir of Eilene’s shocking discovery, one that sets her on a journey to find out how a man she knew for nearly thirty years became a drug addict, hiding it so well that neither she nor anyone else in his life suspected what was happening. Eilene discovers that Peter led a secret life, one that started with pills and ended with opioids, cocaine, and methamphetamine. He was also addicted to work; the last call Peter ever made was to dial in to a conference call.

Eilene is determined to learn all she can about Peter’s hidden life, and also about drug addiction among ambitious, high-achieving professionals like him. Through extensive research and interviews, she presents a picture of drug dependence today in that moneyed, upwardly mobile world. She also embarks on a journey to re-create her life in the wake of loss, both of the person—and the relationship—that profoundly defined the woman she had become.

Review below

Sent this book in exchange for review!!! By @randomhouse

Firstly just want to say, that with memoirs and being about someone’s life I do not rate non fiction, as I’ve said before it’s someone’s life and experience!!!. This memoir was such an heartbreaking story about Eilene, who’s husband had an drug addiction for so many years and the repercussions it put into their family’s lives following the addiction, as well as it being such a emotional memoir on drugs it’s also informative and educational on all the signs of addiction and it breaks the stereotypes of who’s using drugs too, Eileen also told us about the many years she was with her husband and the very progression of his drug addiction and how sick he became.

This is such an important memoir that needs to be read by everyone and especially for me I couldn’t put it down from start to finish.