Reviews with content warning for Suicidal thoughts - Transmogrify!

Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

Transmogrify! by g. haron davis

5 reviews

heidipretzel's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

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betweentheshelves's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

In all honesty, most short story collections are just hit or miss for me, mostly because there are usually just a few standouts. For fantasy, it's especially hard if there is a lot of world building. There's a lot to fit into a smaller amount of pages.

I think my favorite stories in this one were the ones that Vico Ortiz narrated. Do I remember which ones those were? Nope, but I liked the vibes of them. A good narrator always makes or breaks it for me.

If you like short story collections, check this one out! There are still some gems in here.

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auteaandtales's review against another edition

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hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

As with all anthologies, there were some that I loved and some that were just okay. It was a fun time, and I loved the message that magic is for everyone! Magic means something different to each of the characters in this story, from chosen families to using that power to help other people.

A thing I love about anthologies is how it introduces me to new authors. The only author I’ve read from this book (so far) is Mason Deaver, which I loved. It was great to see a collective of trans joy expressed in this way, and the representation and diversity was awesome.

A thing I struggled with was that a lot of these stories didn’t have the room to expand or develop, and I feel didn’t work as short stories, although enjoyable. Many of them felt like an excerpt of a full length story, rather than stories that hold on their own. I’d love to read some of these as full books.

I’d recommend this to anyone, but especially teenagers who are struggling to cope with things.

Origin Story by Saundra Mitchell

“That’s the problem with a binary for me: too easy to hang qualities under category one or category two”

This follows Daisy Rae Collins, a trans child recently kicked out of school for magical students. I thought this was a great story for the anthology to start with, it helps set the tone for the rest of the book. Overall, I enjoyed it, it was fun and whimsical. It felt like a condescended first part of a YA novel, before the action and the meat of the story begins. I don’t think the writing style was for me in a short story format, at least (and they also called the pandemic “the pando”, funny but). A story about how if people don’t want to accept you, you can create your own community who will.

Halloween Love by Sonora Reyes

This anthology is a T4T love story set on Valentine’s Day by an author I’ve wanted to read for a long time but haven’t gotten around to yet, with witches of course. It’s very wholesome and sweet and has the message for trans kids that love is for them, too, even if it looks different for you than it does for everyone else.

Verity by Renée Reynolds

“Broken things can be mended, and magic can be found even in the darkest of places”

This was about seeing your truth and always being yourself, regardless of the hostility and fear of others. This one especially feels like a direct response to HP. It speaks on how other peoples’ ignorance and fear is what propels them to hurt others, and maybe they’re denying their own truth as well.

Dragons Name Themselves by A.R.Capetta and Cory McCarthy

This story was told from the perspective of a school and was about raising baby dragons, so it would have been quite difficult for this story to fail. This one was really fun with a cute, wholesome romance thrown in as well and has the message that it’s okay to be a slow bloomer and we’ll become who we become in our own time.

High Tide by Francesca Tacchi

“are you invested in tradition only when it doesn’t challenge your own worldview?”

About challenging tradition and paving way for the future generation of trans people, this is a inspiring story about demanding you get what you want and obtaining respect. I really liked it, and I especially enjoyed the way it ended. The friendship group was so cute and I loved the energy you got from them, even in such a short amount of space.

In a Name by Ayìda Shonìbar

“Not all sinister things bear the faces of beasts”

A story about the power of a name and being true to yourself, another story about how there is no time limit in finding out and discovering who you really are. It also sheds light on how some monsters are within your own community, not outsiders. I enjoyed this, this was more fantasy-esque than the other stories which isn’t normally my cup of tea, but I had fun.

Bite the Hand by Nik Traxler

This one is about wanting to grow old as the person that you are and not the person you ‘should’ be, and not to be afraid of going after what you want either. I loved the use of monsters in this story, it was fun and creative, it hard a darker tone to it than the rest of the stories so far.

If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power by G. Haron Davis

“When you grow up poor, you build up equal amounts of rage and daydreams, and when they collide the explosion can be as beautiful as it is dangerous”

I love that this follows someone who is poor. I feel like we don’t get enough stories from those who are poor, it follows mostly people who are lower middle class or above. This is a story about not being afraid to admit you want power and going for it. Not a power to hurt others, but to help them. It’s also a story about, I think, on how love follows different roads and it’s not always romantic. I can always get behind messages like that.

The Hallow King by Jonathan Lenore Kastin

This one was a really fun one and had the same vibes as a family Halloween movie. The

message for this one was how we have all wanted the people who have harmed and oppressed us to suffer, but ultimately that’s not going to help anyone, and that’s isn’t even what we want, we just want them to change. As much as the world will try its best to turn you into the monster, you are not the monster, and I think that’s an especially great message for struggling trans teenagers. Also, if you love Halloween, I think this story will especially be for you.

Genderella by Mason Deaver

A trans retelling of Cinderella! I had another great time with this one, the message being that trans people deserve happy endings, too, and deserve stories like this where they feel seen. The only thing I didn’t enjoy was the pop culture references, I really don’t like when books do that.

Seagulls and Other Birds of Prey by Ash Nouveau

This was a cute story about friendship, community and changing the rules to make things better for you and the generations to come. It was very wholesome, and even though they aren’t really similar at all, the magical society this one had felt like the same vibes of ‘Halloweentown, and that’s my favourite Halloween movie!

Bend the Truth, Break it Too by Cam Montgomery

“There is still time for things to be wonderful”

This is a sweet, although eiry, little story about overcoming heartbreak and accepting who you are, for the morally grey person you might be. Going from a villain to just a regular person who has made mistakes, and that great things await you in the future, even if you can’t see it now. This one is, I think, a very hopeful message for trans teenagers and one I’m glad they get to hear. It was a little confusing though, maybe I was just tired when I read this but I wasn’t sure what was going on, largely because I didn’t know what kind of world they were in, so I wish we knew more about that.

Espejísmos by Dove Salvatìerra

I liked this, although I was a little bored. It was a bit darker than the general tone of the anthology, and I liked the mythology and the friendships and the journey of acceptance the MC was taken on, and how they decided to be who they are by the end. It was cute, I just think it was (oddly) too long for what it was. The pacing was definitely off, for me.

The Door to the Other Side by Emery Lee

This was a great one to wrap everything up, about the MC travelling in a world beyond to find where they really belong, because there is a space for all of us and, if there isn’t, we must make the space because we deserve to be here as much as anyone else does. The message was sweet, and especially with the weight of what’s going on in the world right now, this hit extra hard.

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catpanda1's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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fanboyriot's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Overall, I really enjoyed these stories. Reading about all the trans and queer rep with the sprinkle of magic was so comforting even when some of the stories dealt with some heavier topics. Most of the stories were pretty lighthearted and angst with a happy ending. While I didn’t love all of the stories they were still nice to read. Thank you to the authors and to NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Origin Story by Saundra Michell (she/they)
⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5, (First Person POV)
I liked the vibes of this story and like something that could be made into a book on its own. However, leaving it as a short story it just kinda fell flat in a few places. It was good, just not anything overly great.
Rep: Non-Binary MC, Bisexual SC, Aro-Ace SC
Content Warnings: Fantasy Violence

Halloween Love by Sonora Reyes (they/them)
⭐⭐⭐ 3/5, (First Person POV)
I really liked how this one started out, the magic was really cute. However, I just couldn't really get interested in it all that much. It was just kinda meh to me.
Rep: Queer Non-Binary MC, Transfem SC, POC MC
Content Warnings: Harassment, Bullying

Verity by Renée Reynolds (they/them)

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5, (Third Person POV)

This was such a cute idea. I loved the setting and for a fast-paced story it didn’t feel like it, in the best way. A magic academy that was done so well. I would definitely read a full book on this story.

Rep: Non-Binary MC, Genderfluid SC

Content Warnings: None

Dragons Name Themselves by A.R. Capetta (they/them) and Cory McCathy (he/they)

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.5/5, (First Person POV)

I really liked this one too. The main character and their love interest are brought together by the dragon egg they were taking care of. It was adorable.

Rep: Non-Binary MC

Content Warnings: None

High Tide by Francesca Tacchi (xe/xir)

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5, (First Person POV)

I would read a full book about this story as well. While it was much too fast-paced for my liking, I loved the idea and overall vibe of it. Proving elders wrong and breaking gender norms is always a good vibe to me. The world-building in this story was really nice too.

Rep: Non-Binary MC

Content Warnings: Transphobia, Near Drowning Experience

In a Name by Ayida Shonibar (she/they)

⭐⭐ 2/5, (First Person POV)

I honestly just couldn’t get into this one very well. I think it had some good ideas but I just didn’t really care about the characters all that much.

Rep: Non-Binary MC and SC

Content Warnings: Transphobia, Sexism, Fantasy Violence

Bite the Hand by Nik Traxler (they/them) and Pinar Ateş Sinopoulos-Lloys (they/them + he/him)

⭐ 1/5, (Third Person POV)

I was kinda annoyed by this one. I just didn’t care for the writing style all that much and just didn’t really care for it in general.

Rep: Non-Binary MC

Content Warnings: Blood, Violence

If I can’t have love, I want power. by g.haron-davis (they/them)

⭐⭐⭐ 3/5, (First Person POV)

I feel like this could have been better if it wasn’t a short story. The characters were okay but it was too fast-paced to really care enough about them. The overall idea of this story seemed entertaining enough but again it felt too much like a summary and would have been better if there was more background and just overall less rushed.

Rep: Non-Binary MC and SCs

Content Warnings: Depression, Cancer

The Hallow King by Jonathan Lenore Kastin (he/they)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5, (Third Person POV)

Probably one of my favorites. I loved how this started out and the writing style of it. The pacing in this story was done very nicely and just the overall theme was so nice to read. Summoning the Hallow King for revenge on Halloween? Yes, love it.

Rep: Transmac MC

Content Warnings: Blood, Violence, Transphobia

Genderella by Mason Deaver (they/them)

⭐⭐⭐ 3/5, (First Person POV)

I just could not get into this one. I really like this author and their work but I just didn’t care for the writing style of this story. It was an interesting idea and maybe I would like it better as a book and not just a short story but I could not get interested in it or the characters, unfortunately.

Rep: Transfem MC

Content Warnings: Parental Abuse, Deadmaning Mentioned

Seagulls and Other Birds of Prey by Ash Nouveau (they/them)

⭐⭐⭐ 3.5/5, (First Person POV)

Broomstick derby teams sounds like an awesome story idea. This story was enjoyable even if it was a little meh at times. I liked the characters and I enjoyed the overall vibe, I just think it lacked plot. This would make a better book than a short story.

Rep: Non-Binary MC and SCs, SC in a Wheelchair

Content Warnings: Violence, Transphobia

Bend the Truth, Break It Too by Cam Montgomery (non-binary, she/they)

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5, (First Person POV)

I liked the length of this story, I don’t think I would read a full book on it but as a short story it was good. The setting and overall vibe was nicely done and I liked the characters. It was cute.

Rep: Non-Binary MC

Content Warnings: Angst

Espejismos by Dove Salvaierra (they/them)

⭐⭐ 2/5, (Third Person POV)

I loved the idea of this. Angus was doing their best just to survive when a shape shifter pays them a visit. It was cute. I just didn’t like all the internalized transphobia and all the other things the father drilled into Angus’ mind. It was annoying to read about them saying something rude because that's how their dad raised them. It ending happily so that helped.

Rep: T4T, Non-Binary MC and SC

Content Warnings: Death, Death of Parents, Death of Sibling, Monsters, Transphobia, Misogyny, Sexisum, Suicidal Thoughts

The Door to the Other Side by Emery Lee (e/em)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5, (Third Person POV)

I need a full book on this story. It was depressing and angsty but in a lighthearted way almost. Aryn finding out who they were with the help of a stranger D.J. and I just loved them both. The setting and plot of this was so good.

Rep: Non-Binary MC and SC

Content Warnings: Transphobia, Suicide (Mentioned)

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