queer_bookwyrm's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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? No

4.5

 4.5 ⭐ CW: violence, war/implied tactics of war such as rape and murder, racism, homophobia, children being disowned, child executions, emotional/physical abuse, alcoholic parent, descriptions of blood, PTSD

The short of it:

All Out: The No Longer Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages was an incredible collection of stories written by an array of queer authors. I loved it! These are the most LGBTQ+ stories I've read and I loved all the diversity.

I stopped short of giving this 5 stars, because there were two or three stories that I just didn't like or weren't well done, other than that all the stories were wonderful.

Of the authors I've read before, their stories were very reminiscent of their novels. For example, the Anna-Marie McLemore story felt like the beginnings of their idea for Blanca & Roja, and the Natalie C. Parker story felt much the same to her Seafire novels. Definitely worth picking up if like queer stories. These are quick and easy reads.

The long of it:

"Roja" by Anna-Marie McLemore is a Red Riding Hood retelling mixed with the historical events in Mexico about La Carambada. We have a French trans soldier, who is a traitor to his country for defecting. He is known as "the Wolf", because there are rumors he calls the wolves from the forest and sets them upon the French Legion. Roja is a girl descended from a line of indigenous women with fiery red hair and are said to carry poison in their veins. Roja uses this power to free the Wolf, and bares her breasts to the soldier in an incredible display of power. Magical realism at it's finest.

"The Sweet Trade" by Natalie C. Parker is about two girls escaping from the confines of marriage and decide to become pirates. They are badass, bold girls and there is a bit of cross dressing involved. Ver reminiscent of Seafire.

"And They Don't Kiss at the End" by Nilah Magruder is about a Black asexual girl at a roller disco. The story is about her dealing with amanormativity and the assumption that she is dating her skate partner, when they are just friends. It was a sweet look at how it's okay to just have platonic relationships with people.

"Burnt Umber" by Mackenzie Lee is about a gay boy in a life drawing class. He is praised as best in the class, simply for not getting aroused by the female models. This changes when they switch to the male form, using the boy's crush. I wasn't a fan of this one, honestly. The story didn't really seem to have a point other than boys get erections when they are aroused by naked bodies. It didn't do it for me.

"The Dresser and the Chambermaid" by Robin Talley is about the Chambermaid and dresser of the Princess falling in love. The dresser is a country girl with no experience dressing ladies for court and must learn from the Chambermaid. They fall for each other and as they are making out in the servant's hallway, they are caught by the King, but he only tells them to carry on.

"New Year" by Malinda Lo is about a Chinese-American girl in Chinatown who notices a man in the restaurant she is helping out in. She discovers the man is actually a male impersonator that performs at clubs after dark. She is intrigued by this and chases the man and his companion down to give them the handkerchief they dropped. This was also reminiscent of Talley's novel, Pulp.

"Molly's Lips" by Dahlia Adler is about two girls who discover their love for each other when they find out about Kurt Cobain's death. This was fine, but it didn't grip me. The plot was lacking.

"The Coven" by Kate Scelsa is about 1920s witches in Paris. The MC is encouraged by her friend to join a coven run by Gertrude Stein. I found this story to be lacking and a bit confusing.

"Every Shade of Red" by Elliot Wake is a Robin Hood retelling where Robin is a trans man and Will Scarlett his lover. The "Merry Men" in this consist of the misfits of society and make up a found family. I loved this one, but I wanted it to be longer! We also got bi rep, disabled rep, and deaf/signing rep.

"Willows" by Scott Tracy is about a town where children are cursed by witches that used to live in the wood they call The Withers. Any child seen as cursed are thrown off a cliff. The MC is cursed with having access to his past lives' memories. His lover fears for him, so they run away into The Withers to seek the witches for help. They end up living in the The Withers together and are charged with keeping the town in line. This was an interesting premise that I feel would be better served if it could have been fleshed out a little more.

"The Girl With the Blue Lantern" by Tess Sharp is about a girl during the gold rush in Northern California. He father is a drink who spends any gold he gets, which isn't much, and they are in danger of starving. The MC take it into her own hands and goes into the forest where she find a stream where a fae girl with a blue lantern plays. If she goes into the water or crosses the stream, she will belong to the Fae forever. She keeps coming back for the Fae girl and eventually decides it's worth crossing the stream to be with her love forever. Very sweet love story.

"The Secret Life of A Teenage Boy" by Alex Sanchez is about what it's like coming out in 1960s America. The boy encounters a drifter looking for help with his car, when he realizes he likes this boy. His sister encourages him to run away with the boy, she's the only one who knows he's gay. Before he leaves, he decides not to go, but first kisses the boy to let his watching parents know. I was he didn't run away and his family see him as he truly was.

"Walking After Midnight" by Kody Keplinger is about washed child actress in the 1950s getting stranded at midnight in a small town in her way to Manhatten. We find out that she is most likely ace, but when she meets a kind waitress, they have a small adventure, where the MC feels like she could give the other girl a kiss, knowing how intimate that would be for her. Very wholesome and cute.

"The End of the World as We Know It" by Sara Farizan we have Turkish-American lesbian rep. I wasn't a fan of this one, since the author practically beat me over the head with 90s references. I get it, it's the 90s. Maybe if they had spent more time on plot and less on references, it could have been a decent story.

"Three Witches" by Tessa Gratton was about a lesbian who is locked in cell in convent to "pray the gay away." They send a young nun to convince her to eat and be her company. We get both girls perspectives, and we learn the young nun is struggling with her feelings for the girl, knowing they are unholy. There was a weird bit about a third woman who turns out to be the future old woman of the imprisoned girl? Idk this one was weird.

"The Inferno and the Butterfly" by Shaun David Hutchinson is about a Magician's assistant who's job it is to spy on another magician a d expose his secrets, but he learns the secret isn't a trick at all, but the boy he uses. He finds the boy in a cage and learns he is there, because he can transport himself from place to place and can also transport others. This is a slow burn romance and they get to runaway together. Very sweet love story. Ask me why I hate magicians lol.

"Healing Rosa" by Tehlor Kay Mejia is about a bruja who's grandmother has died. In her grief, she tries convince her lover to let her heal her of her sickness, but Rosa's father won't let it happen. Until he come to her to save his daughter. Tragic love story with a happy ending.

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