Reviews with content warning for Lesbophobia - Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues

Reviews tagging 'Lesbophobia'

Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues by H.S. Valley

6 reviews

lyraparledor's review against another edition

Extremely weirdly fanfiction-coded for a book that isn't marketed as fanfiction-adjacent. The Harry Potter references and/or allusions are numerous and after a while the character cast starts to feel like a generic stand-in for specific Harry Potter characters.
I'm pretty sure I read an undercover drarry fic masquerading as a queer book, targeted at queer folks, and knowing the joke that is Rowling's opinion on trans people, this felt particularly callous.

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carleesi's review against another edition

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3.0

Very cute, always love the baby gays. I loved the world and the magical concepts were very cool. I loved the geographic/racial links to magic. Didn’t love the protagonist wanting to be a cop…

I get uncomfy reading about teenagers having sex and being super horny, especially when they talk about it in super adult ways (like being shocked that they’ve gone three whole weeks without sex). I think I would have enjoyed it more getting to experience more of the characters friendships rather than the huge focus on romantic and sexual relationships. Sometimes this made it read a bit like fan fiction.

This is also a huuuugely tropey romance which I guess is perfect for YA but hoo boy I was hoping that being YA would keep me safe from marriage and baby tropes…

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betweentheshelves's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

4.0

Studying at Fox Glacier High School for the Magically Adept, Tim Te Maro and Elliott Parker have never gotten along. Not that their paths have crossed all that much. But when Tim's girlfriend dumps him for Elliott's boyfriend, Elliott devises a plan to get revenge. They'll partner up for the baby egg project, and do it better than their exes.

What starts as an innocent project shows Tim and Elliott that they might be more compatible than they thought. What starts as a friendship evolves into no-strings-attached hookups. But when feelings start to spark between them, they realize that emotions can start to get messy. Especially when they don't know if the other person also feels them, too.

Thanks to NetGalley and Independent Publisher's Group for an advanced copy of Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues by HS Valley to review! I heard a pitch for this as a mini book conference I went to last fall, and it sounded right up my alley. And I was right! Plus, one of the comp titles was Red, White, & Royal Blue, so you know I had to read it.

Outside of having a really long title, I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Tim and Elliott have excellent chemistry, right from the beginning. The way their relationship evolves throughout the book feels realistic, and you'll come to love these two goofballs by the end. And the magical baby egg assignment is such a fun concept! I don't know why someone hasn't included that in a book before. It made their whole relationship even more fun.

While the comp titles are Red, White, & Royal Blue and The Magicians, I think a more fitting comparison is Carry On. You've got magic, rivals to lovers, and a magical school. Sure, neither of them is a vampire, but the overall tone and story felt similar to me. So, if you love Carry On, you'll probably enjoy this!

My only qualm is that I wish the world building had been made a bit clearer. The whole magical school thing was cool, but I still wasn't quite clear on the magical system and how it worked. A few more details in that regard would have been helpful.

Outside of that, this is a super fun, light read, and it'll be a great one to add to your romance TBR!

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dododenise's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

4.5

Magical boarding school, gay enemies-to-lovers who do a revenge plan on their exes by taking care of a fake baby. And a lot of sharing the same bed.

This sounded like the perfect list of tropes to me and it did not disappoint! I loved this book! It was everything I hoped it would be. It was cozy and super character focused, which I enjoyed immensely.

The characters were really fun, although I wished the other characters would have gotten more personality. There are a lot of others next to the main pairing and I don’t really got to know them, which was a shame.

Tim and Elliot, however, were brilliant and I was rooting for them. There were bits in their relationship which I didn’t like as much, for example when Tim tried to initiate a conversation on their boundaries and Elliot made him feel made fun of for it. There was generally more communication in this relationship than in most using these tropes, especially in YA with stupid teens as their characters, yet sometimes I hoped they would be more clear on what they wanted. Nonetheless, their relationship was fun to read and watching it grow and develop was glorious.

The whole book at a very fanficy vibe, and I mean that in the best way possible. There’s a reason why I enjoy reading fanfiction and this book captures those elements.

I’m very surprised I haven’t seen anyone else talk about this book, because it’s amazing!

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lady_moon's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

This almost made me cry happy tears in the end, not gonna lie.

And btw it's nice to read a fantasy book where the world isn't in great danger that should be stopped by some random teenagers. I honestly loved how this felt like a normal teen romance drama but they just happen to be in a magical school with a silly magical problem.

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emily_mh's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book had everything! An underground magical boarding school! Two queer boys who are perfect for each other and have found-family with an enchanted egg! A lot of pining and being heartsick!! Sex positivity!! And something that made my heart sing - IT IS SET IN AOTEAROA. It was weirdly thrilling to experience reading a book and having BEEN to the places it talked about, and understanding and relating to the society it was set in. Even mention of The Warehouse made me smile. More importantly, the main character, and author, are Māori. This kind of rep is so important not just in Kiwi lit, but in literature in general, and we need a whole lot more of it.

The only tiny criticism I had was that I felt like Tim's relationship with his father needed more space at the end. But this wasn't the focus of the book so it wasn't enough to dock the overall 5 star rating I've given it!

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