Weyward by Emilia Hart

August 4, 2025

Weyward by Emilia Hart

Kate flees from her abusive partner to a cottage she inherited from her great aunt Violet, who lived there from the 1940s until her death. While living there, Kate finds writings from a woman named Altha, an earlier ancestor who was tried as a witch in the 17th century.

This book should come with a warning, several actually. Plenty of sensitive subjects and triggers including domestic abuse, animal abuse, violence against women, rape and sexual assault, obsession, humiliation, pregnancy termination, and violence in general, so reader, be warned. Three interconnected stories set in different times. I was much more interested in Altha and Violet's stories that in Kate. I've read enough variations of Kate's story to be over it. Yeah, men suck and they've been treating women like shit since time began. It was hard to read a whole book where there is one good male characters (Graham, Violet's brother) and only two women characters who haven't been abused by men (Kate's mother and her friend Emily). Also, magical realism is just not my thing. It does have a beautiful cover.

Weyward was the original form of weird, as in the Weird Sisters or witches in Macbeth. The first editions of Macbeth used weyward instead of weird.

Julie Tudor is Not a Psychopath by Jennifer Holdich

July 27, 2025

Julie Tudor is Not a Psychopath by Jennifer Holdich

Julie Tudor is 49 years old and has found the love of her life in Sean, her 25 year old coworker at the large financial services company where they both work. But he doesn't know that. All he knows is that she makes him uncomfortable. Julie knows that she and Sean are star-crossed, meant to be together until a young woman named Xanthe starts work at the company and throws a wrench into Julie's plans. But Julie isn't about to settle for anyone coming between her and Sean, so she decides it's time to take decisive action.

Oh, Julie, you are definitely a psychopath. Julie has a flirtatious relationship with reality at the best of times. Her unique world view and interior monologue kept me turning the pages - I felt like my mouth was hanging open in disbelief half the time. I admit I felt sorry for Julie when her coworkers were making fun of her and she didn't realize it, while at the same time cringing at some of the things she did. It's a fast read that is perfect for vacation or beach reading, dark, disturbing, creepy and funny all at the same time. If there is a more unreliable narrator out there, I don't know who it is. There are hints of animal cruelty, so sensitive readers should be warned. I could see this becoming a miniseries on Netflix. Love the cover art!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

The Enchanted Greenhouse by Sarah Beth Durst

July 22, 2025

The Enchanted Greenhouse by Sarah Beth Durst

After using an illegal spell to create a sentient spider plant, librarian Terlu Pena was punished by being turned into a wooden statue, on display in the magical library as a warning to the rest of the staff not to dabble in the spells that they curated. But she hadn't meant any harm - she was just lonely. Nevertheless, the magic court decided to make an example of her. She stood on a pedestal in the library, frozen in place until one day, she wakes up to find herself in a winter forest on an island with no idea how she got there. Not only that, there is an enchanted greenhouse that is slowly dying, and a handsome gardener who expects Terlu to fix the greenhouse.

Charming cozy fantasy, not exactly a sequel to The Spellshop, more like a companion piece that provides the backstory of the librarian who made Caz the sentient spider plant. Terlu was the only character in the first book whose story was not resolved, so I'm glad the author decided to focus on her in this book. The greenhouses are marvelous creations, as are the green winged cat and the tiny dragons that act as pollinators. Themes are loneliness, forgiveness, and healing. The author has planned two or three more books set in this world. Another beautiful cover, too.

Many thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

A magical greenhouse

Disappoint Me by Nicola Dinan

June 26, 2025

Disappoint Me by Nicola Dinan

Max is a lawyer, part-time poet, and a mixed race trans woman. At 30 years old, after a break up with her longtime boyfriend, she falls down a flight of stairs at a New Year’s Eve party (and she wasn’t even drunk). Upon waking up in the hospital, she thinks it’s time to stop partying, settle down and be an adult. But she isn’t sure how to go about it. After she meets a man named Vincent, a British-Chinese man, she thinks she may be on the right track, but Vincent has his own set of baggage.

Someone described this as sad girl lit, which is pretty accurate. The main character, Max, is a mixed race transgender woman in a new relationship with a British-Chinese man. Both have their share of baggage (there are several scenes in the story of people packing suitcases), causing Max to wonder if we should judge people by who they are today or who they were in the past. Adulthood should come with a warning label. Complex themes include love, loss, identity, trans people, race, millennial angst. Love the cover. 

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Pile of baggage, just like the people in this book

Catalina by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio

June 19, 2025

Catalina by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio

Catalina is a senior at Harvard, an aspiring writer who has worked a variety of unpaid internships, trying to figure out where she belongs. Born in Ecuador, she was sent to the United States to live with her grandparents following the death of her parents. Searching for love and romance, Catalina harbors a secret that can impact her future.

DNF at 51% - this was all over the place. It was like the author had a bunch of different stories that she just lumped together into one long stream of consciousness piece with no real plot or storyline, just a "year in the life." Did not care for the main character - extremely self-focused with no character growth, immature and pretentious at the same time. Actually, I didn't care for any of the characters. FYI, this is NOT dark academia - dark academia is Donna Tartt's The Secret History and others like it. The subject matter is important (the experiences of the undocumented living in the U.S., South American history and culture) so it's unfortunate that I found it so unreadable. Fans of the style of Sally Rooney or Dolly Alderton will probably enjoy it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Ecuador

The Default World by Naomi Kanakia

June 1, 2025

The Default World by Naomi Kanakia

Jhanvi is a trans woman living in San Francisco. Unfortunately she is very masculine looking: over six feet tall, broad shouldered, muscular, swarthy, with a prominent jaw and brow bone. Jhanvi knows she is going to need some serious surgery and drug therapy in order to successfully present as a woman. She learns that some major tech companies have insurance that will cover gender correction surgery, so she starts hatching a scheme to find someone to marry her. Some of her San Francisco acquaintances live in a communal house known as the Fun Haus and earn a lot of money, so her backup plan is to figure out a way to con them out of some of it.

The main character is a transgendered woman who wants to complete her transition who is unfortunately morally bankrupt. That doesn't have anything to do with her gender or her sexuality - she's just a shady person who will use anyone. She doesn't have a job (because even though she graduated from Stanford, working is boring), so she decides to try to scam one of her acquaintances (who graduated from Stanford with her, have good well-paying jobs, and work long hours) into marrying her for their medical insurance - she doesn't care if it's a man or a woman. The people she's living with aren't much better. Unnecessarily complicated, with unsympathetic characters. I did feel sorry for Jhanvi at a few points, like when she catches sight of herself in a mirror and thinks, I'm a man in a dress, I look like a man in a dress. BTW, the default world is what the rest of us call the real world. It's the people and place where, if you need help, people actually help you, stand by you, and support you. They are your real family and community - but there are rules, values, morals, principles, and goals attached to them.. Not sure who if anyone I would recommend this to.

Many thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Bruce Jenner who became Caitlyn Jenner, one of the best known trans women in the world

Oye by Melissa Mogollon

May 31. 2025

Oye by Melissa Mogollon

With Hurricane Irma bearing down on Miami, Luciana's family is in a panic: Luciana's grandmother, her Abue, refuses to evacuate. Normally Luciana is relegated to the sidelines and everyone ignores her, but now that her sister Mari is away at college, Luciana is pulled into the family drama. Luciana is just trying to graduate from high school and figure out her sexuality. Meanwhile, Luciana's mother is treating their evacuation like a family road trip. But then Abue receives a devastating medical diagnosis and comes to live with them, taking over Luciana's bedroom.

This was like eavesdropping on a really long phone conversation. The story is told through a series of mostly one-sided phone calls between Luciana and her older sister. While I enjoyed it, I can see where some readers would be put off by the format. There are some parts that are hilarious - the family saga is like a telenovella, entertaining if somewhat confusing at times. Luciana's grandmother is great - even though she has been diagnosed with cancer, her main concern is getting her roots touched up and keeping in contact with her boyfriends while she is in the hospital, while at the same time keeping her nosy sister out of her life. The audiobook is excellent. Recommended for readers who like quirky contemporary novels.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Dirtbag Queen by Andy Corren

February 17, 2025

Dirtbag Queen by Andy Corren

Corren's irreverant memoir of Renay, his outrageous Jewish redneck mother who raised six kids (sort of) by herself after she split from her husband, isn't like any other memoir you've read. Everyone in their town near Fort Bragg knew Renay, manager of the local bowling alley, gambler and party girl, collector of strippers, card players, bowlers, and other strays who needed a place to sleep for the night. While Renay may not have excelled at cooking, keeping house, or hanging onto money, she lived life to the fullest.

Trust by Hernan Diaz

February 3, 2025

Trust by Hernan Diaz

A novel comprised of four shorter books: a novel called Bonds, about the life of a New York financier; the outline of a memoir/family history by a Wall Street investor who believes Bonds is a fictionalized account of him and his wife; a memoir by a woman hired to write the financier's autobiography but later decides to discover the truth about the couple; and a journal by the financier's wife. But what is true, and what isn't?

A complex novel that explores themes of family, wealth, ambition and deception in a non-traditional format. I really enjoyed the first three sections of the book, but I found the last section to be disappointing. Since that section was in the wife's voice, I was hoping for answers to the questions posed in the earlier sections, and while there were some revelations, I mostly found it unsatisfying. Love the cover art, a skyscraper under a bell jar. Five stars for the first 3/4 of the book, 2 stars for the final section. For readers of literary fiction, especially if you enjoyed books like Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell.

Panic on Wall Street in 1929, which figures in all sections of the novel

The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong

 November 25, 2024

The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong

Tao is a traveling fortune teller, roaming the countryside in her wagon with her mule Laohu. She tells what she refers to as small fortunes: what day will the cow have her calf, what day is the best to go fishing, who will the barmaid go to the dance with. Once she told a "large" fortune that had dire consequences, and someone she loved ended up dying. Since then, Tao has vowed to tell only small harmless fortunes. But when two mercenaries and later a baker end up joining her on her travels for their own reasons, Tao learns that family and home can be whatever you choose them to be.

A sweet and heartwarming cozy fantasy in the same vein as Legends and Lattes, or The Spellshop, although I thought both of those novels had more developed characters and stronger plotlines. Leong's novel is like a palette cleanser when you need a break from heavier fantasy fiction or genres. Recommended for readers of fantasy, cozy mysteries, or romantasy.

Tea leaf fortune telling, Tao's favorite method of fortune telling

Babylonia by Costanza Casati

November 22, 2024

Babylonia by Costanza Casati

Semiramis is an orphan from an Assyrian village when the king's half-brother plucks her from obscurity and chooses her to be his wife. She travels with him to the capitol city and is soon swept up in court intrigue and national politic, and she has to fight to stay one step ahead of her enemies.

I loved Casati's novel Clytemnestra so I was stoked to read her new book. While I found the story of Semiramis to be fascinating, I didn't love it quite as much as her previous book. Readers of historical fiction will enjoy learning about a lesser known but still powerful queen.

Many thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Statue of Semiramis

Somewhere Beyond the Sea by TJ Klune

September 27, 2024

Somewhere Beyond the Sea by TJ Klune

In the sequel to The House in the Cerulean Sea, Arthur Parnassus, magical adult and caretake of a group of magical children, petitions to adopt the children in his care, rather than just supervise the group home where they live. With his partner Linus Baker, they work to thwart the bigoted government agency that is attempting to force their beliefs on the world by gaining control of one particular magical child: Lucifer, aka Lucy, spawn of Satan, age seven.

While I loved revisiting the characters from the first book, there is a certain amount of lecturing here, with more emphasis on politics. In addition to being a fantasy, it is also a parody of the current issues on gay and transgender rights. A certain percentage of the population believes that anyone who is different from them, is a lesser life form and not entitled to the same rights as a human being. Gorgeous cover art. It's still worth reading. Recommended for fantasy readers everywhere.

A phoenix, like Arthur

Kings of Coweetsee by Dale Neal

August 20, 2024

Kings of Coweetsee by Dale Neal

Former schoolteacher and recent widow Birdie Barker Price is the docent of the rarely visited Coweetsee County Historical Society. One day, Birdie arrives home from work to find a ballot box from the contested 1982 sheriff's election on her front porch. Not only is the box on her front porch, it is full of uncounted ballots. When Birdie opens the box, she releases a flood of corruption, crime, and passion, all hidden under the guise of a quiet country town.

Dark times in small town America, with all the small-mindedness that expression conjures. The themes remind me of John Hart or Greg Iles: corruption, politics, revenge, old crimes, crimes against women, prejudice. While this was all right, you should read John Hart's Down River if you haven't already - he is a far superior writer. I'm not a big fan of politics, so this one didn't tick the boxes for me. The title comes from the idea that each town or county is a sovereign kingdom with individual rulers, that is encouraged by the isolation of small towns in Appalachia. 

Many thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Appalachia

The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst

July 17, 2024

The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst

Kiera is a librarian at the Great Library of Alyssium, and her assistant is Caz, a spider plant who suffers from anxiety (he's especially paranoid about goats and fish). When the city is taken over by rebels and the library is engulfed in flames, Kiera and Caz flee (along with a few crates of spell books) to the far north to the island of Caltrey, Kiera's birthplace. But the village has fallen on hard times, and Kiera decides that if they are here to stay, she will need to figure out how to fix what is wrong with the village. The only problem is, it's illegal for non-wizards to perform magic spells.

Charming romantasy, perfect for a summer read on the beach or on your patio at home, although it would also make a cozy winter read, wrapped up in your favorite throw. And there are merhorses! Giant irridescent seahorses! What a wonderful creation! Plus Caz the spider plant and Meep the cactus. Highly recommended for readers who enjoy a sweet fantasy or romance, or both, also for librarians and those who respect books and knowledge.

Many thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Merhorse!

Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa

June 30, 2024

Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa

Oliver Bennet knows that he was assigned the wrong gender at birth. While the world calls him Elizabeth, he knows inside that he has always been a boy named Oliver. A few close friends and family members know his secret, but as he approaches the threshold of adulthood, wearing women's clothing becomes more and more onerous. Worse yet, his mother is determined to find him a suitable husband.

A transgendered remix of the classic novel Pride and Prejudice that the follows the original plot closely. Like the original, there is a lot of traipsing around to other people's houses for tea and gossip. Making Darcy a queer man who has no interest in women, rather than a hetero man who disdains women, was a smart move and explains his actions neatly. Until the middle of the 19th century, there were no official birth certificates, so if your family and your doctor testified in court that you were a male, that was good enough for the English legal system at the time.

If you are a super Jane Austen fan (which I'm not), you will probably not care for this. If you want to read a sweet trans-romance, this is for you. Charming cover art, too. 

Illustration of a molly house, the 19th century version of a gay bar

Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne

June 28, 2024

Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne

Reyna, a Queen's guard, and Kianthe, mage and Arcandor, decide to flee their lives and travel to a border town where they plan to open a teashop that sells books, or a bookstore that serves tea. 

DNF at 40%. I expected to enjoy this, but it just didn't work for me. The storyline was really slow-moving and the characters were not interesting. I expected it to be in the same vein as Legends and Lattes (which I think was the author's inspiration for her novel) or That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon. The cover art is so charming, too. Sorry.

Many thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Beautiful teas

The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

June 26, 2024

The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

A mid-level  movie studio decides to make a film called The Seventh Veil of Salome. Every actress and starlet in Hollywood auditions for the role of Salome, but everyone is surprised when the director selects an unknown Mexican actress for the part. A struggling actress believes the part was stolen from her and is convinced that if she can get rid of the other actress, she will be able to step into the part.

This is a different direction for Moreno-Garcia, purely historical fiction with nothing mythical or supernatural. Three women, all struggling to find their identities and be heard in a male-dominated world: Salome, daughter of Herodias, niece of Herod Antipas, Princess of Idumea; Vera, a Mexican actress and newcomer to Hollywood; and Nancy, a struggling extra who has been trying to get her big break in Hollywood for ten years, convinced that she could be a major star. Two parallel storylines, one the life of Salome, the other the movie being made about her. Although there are multiple POV and narrators, I did not find it at all confusing. We are supposed to hate Nancy, the villain of the piece, but really she is her own worst enemy, sabotaging herself at every turn, so it's hard not to feel sorry for her for her dumb choices. Highly recommended for readers of historical fiction, especially about the golden age of Hollywood.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Traditional depiction of Salome

Low Hanging Fruit by Randy Rainbow

June 23, 2024

Low Hanging Fruit by Randy Rainbow

A collection of rants by comedian Randy Rainbow. Like all essay collections, some are better than others. There is an essay called "I Feel Bad About My Balls" that made me laugh until I cried. Even straight men would find it funny. Love the cover. Recommended for readers who enjoy essays and rants especially in the LGBTQ category.

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune

May 24, 2024

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune

Wallace Price is having a really bad day. When he dies suddenly and pops into his own funeral, he starts to realize what others really thought of him. Worse yet, there is a Reaper waiting to herd him to the afterlife. Wallace realizes that he was so focused on growing his law firm and being ruthless, that he never really lived life.

This title was one of my choices for Pride Month. I love TJ Klune's previous novel The House in the Cerulean Sea, and while this one isn't quite that good, it's still pretty damned good. Considering the subject is death, it balances the ultimate heavy topic with humor, kindness, and wonderful characters, including a charming dog named Apollo. In the acknowledgments, the author notes that this was a very personal book for him to write (yes, I do read the acknowledgments at the end of every book, and you should, too). Take a good look at the fantastic cover, also keep some tissues handy. Recommended for readers who enjoy fantasy with a whimsical slant.

I'm Afraid You've Got Dragons by Peter S. Beagle

May 21, 2024

I'm Afraid You've Got Dragons by Peter S. Beagle

Robert the dragon exterminator hates his job - his dream is to become valet to a prince. When he is called to the castle in Bellemontagne, he quickly discovers that they are infested with dragons. And the dragon vermin must go immediately, before Princess Cerise's prospective groom, Prince Reginald, becomes aware of them. But Reginald has his own problems: his father has sent him on a quest to slay a dragon, a BIG dragon (as one of those "it'll make a man of you" ideas) and he enlists Robert to help him.

It's the Princess Bride meets Terry Pratchett in this fairy tale, with a beautiful princess, a clueless prince, a long-winded evil wizard, and a brave but humble and practical hero who doesn't want to go on a dragon quest, but grits his teeth and gets the job done. It's Peter S. Beagle - what more do you want? Beautiful cover, too. Recommended for readers who enjoy high fantasy or fairy tales.

Many thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.