gsher002's reviews
56 reviews

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

fast-paced

5.0

a good life, paid forward

Festival Days by Jo Ann Beard
Did not finish book. Stopped at 41%.

some very strong visceral shorts but just lost me and began to drag. I can feel myself coming back to this at some point but for now i’m just not there 

Bitterthorn by Kat Dunn

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

teenage me would lose her mind over this book. overall it’s a lovely story of slow burn romance though sometimes it was so slow it felt very repetitive and it started to lose me 3/4 of the way through. 
I enjoyed the historical fantasy fiction aspect and the descriptions were gorgeous if a little overused.
the navigations of grief/loneliness were very astute and felt very personal which did effect the structure/narratives in a way that was engaging and added another layer and kept me going as a reader. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Self harm

Swallowing Mercury by Wioletta Greg

dark informative reflective fast-paced

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

4.5

Black Skin, White Masks by Frantz Fanon

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

To a God Unknown by John Steinbeck

adventurous reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

Orlando by Virginia Woolf

adventurous funny informative reflective slow-paced

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

3.25

Gay Bar: Why We Went Out by Jeremy Atherton Lin

medium-paced

5.0

Just Kids by Patti Smith

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters

challenging emotional funny hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

there’s so much to say and conflicting thoughts which feels like the whole point of the novel. delving into the hypocrisy of the human psyche is not a pretty, palatable sight, it’s uncomfortable and polarising. yes theres misogyny in the book but… there is everywhere in everything, to severely berate the author for discussing implicit misogyny openly sort of proves her point further. structurally this book was odd with the ending feeling rushed but i’m just glad it exists. 
cis authors write whatever they want however they want, whether it’s ‘good’ or ‘bad’. why can’t everyone else?