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aether's Reviews (111)
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-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:
No
A classic from my childhood, revisited since I enjoyed the premise. No wonder I identified with all the girl protagonists!
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Alyson does it again with this exceptional book. I read this while having the worst period of my life, cramping up a storm and totally bedridden, and I'm so glad it was my companion. It's such an interesting dissection of the problems of violently toxic masculinity, dysphoria, and it has a truly unique solution to the former and an interesting perspective on the latter. The characters all grow so much in this book, it's hard not to be rooting for each and every single one of them. Dorley made me realize how badly I was waiting on certain pieces of my transition, which I've now started on. I have it to thank for that. Dorley made me realize how much I yearned for sisterly affection, which I'm now receiving. I have it to thank for that too. It's hard to express how much this book means to me and how much of a breadth of the trans experience it showcases. And the goddamn mugs!! They are just a hoot! I'll just say that my perspective on forced feminization as a rehabilitation tactic has changed dramatically as a result of this series :) I also LOVE that this book has the trope of 7 plotlines going on simultaneously that all converge and flash through each other rapidly right at the climax of the book.
The one reason this isn't 5 stars for me: I don't feel like the books in the series end well. I totally get that this is to play into the next book in the series, but it feels like there is so much trauma that's backloaded right at the end. It's hard to get through and a really sour note to end the book on.
The one reason this isn't 5 stars for me: I don't feel like the books in the series end well. I totally get that this is to play into the next book in the series, but it feels like there is so much trauma that's backloaded right at the end. It's hard to get through and a really sour note to end the book on.
emotional
hopeful
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
This was a really wonderful series of short stories, each using a different lens to ask the question "what if someone transformed into a girl and actually liked it?". While the underlying conflict for each was the same, the premises differed drastically. So too did the relationships in each story, and how the characters dealt with their predicament. It was truly a lovely trans read that warmed my heart. My favorite had to be the enemies-to-girls-to-lovers story smack in the middle!
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I tore through this book in a single day - there were so many facets of transitioning and trying to make it out in the world as a fresh woman in your 20s that I related with so heavily. This book has made me reflect at both my early transition and the stage of my transition I'm currently at. I find I'm jealous of the community described in the book - the proximity and the desire to change and be changed, love and be loved. A pressure cooker for trans women. I had a similar experience with my transition occurring through COVID, but I was so isolated in it. In this book, I was sucked into the world within the halls of Dorley and rooting for everyone one of the women to grow. Plus, some of the internet humor in this book is just too spot on!
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
slow-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
A lovely fun fantasy read with a brush of trans overtones and a lot of cute polyamorous lesbians! The story was straightforward but still a pleasing read with a wonderful, happy ending.
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Julian has an incredible way of writing these pointed, biting stories about what it means to be trans in a cis-centered world. Their perspective is so unique and their prose is fantastic. So much of the book resonated with me. I struggled to get through the eponymous short story, but even still it had much to say. "The Android That Designed Itself", "The Heavy Things", and "I Am a Beautiful Bug!" were particularly some of my favorites. While I couldn't relate to the trans-masc perspective, there are always pieces of the trans tapestry that resonate deeply and Julian weaves these tales well!
Sermon for my fabricated body
Why does God create grapes and wheat, but not wine and bread?
God does this because God wants us to share in the act of creation.
To be how you made me, to become how God made me, through
you, I can remake myself. You and I: we are already only whole, and
shi1ing towards the divine.
Sermon for my fabricated body
Why does God create grapes and wheat, but not wine and bread?
God does this because God wants us to share in the act of creation.
To be how you made me, to become how God made me, through
you, I can remake myself. You and I: we are already only whole, and
shi1ing towards the divine.
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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:
Yes
This story is so lovely, I tore through it in two days. The spicy scenes were fantastic, I love how Alexandria writes about women, women's bodies, women's feelings. Her characters care about each other, even when it hurts. This second-chance-romance took me by total surprise, these lesbians were so useless and so real! I wish that we could have had more at the end, it felt like the book ended so abruptly when Olivia and Margot finally made up. I really wanted to sit in their love a little bit longer and see them be happy and cute together. We didn't get much of them being in a relationship, which I would have loved to see. I'll have to check out Bellefleur's other books in the series! At least those featuring queer MCs lol.
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
fast-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
A fun telling of a queer fantasy story of a magical woman trying to forge her place in the world. I love that queerness is just a part of the tapestry of the story here, not something aberrant but merely something different. The way that magic is spoken about is highly descriptive, more about feelings and innate perception than about weaving spells or casting.
One thing that surprised me is thatthe climax of the books, the final battle, is one paragraph! The description of slaying the BBEG is one line, and it's practically inconsequential! That doesn't take away from the novel at all, but it surprised the hell out of me. Truly the relationships in the book are the centerpiece, rather than the conflict.
One thing that surprised me is that