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letsgolesbians's reviews
2163 reviews
The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia
emotional
reflective
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
3.75
wow, i did not know how much i needed to step into a queernornative world. it was a much needed comfort.
confession: i do not world build in my head when i read books. i rarely imagine the characters. which is one of the reasons i rarely read adult fantasy and i am not really the person to listen to when it comes to adult fantasy—i can’t tell you if the magic system or world or conflict made sense because it usually doesn’t make sense to me anyway. i can talk to you for hours about the magic systems in disney movies but that’s about it.
what i can tell you is that i loved the nuance in this book—the protagonist and antagonist are not hero and villain, the problem has been caused by an attempt at healing, and the problem is solved in a way that does not make the protagonist a winner.
in the author’s note, they say they didn’t initially intend to examine the question “what does it mean to be oppressed when you were once an oppressor?” but found themself writing about it as they deepened the story. i think the question, which firuz (the mc) asks themself several times throughout the book, strengthened the story and the character development. jamnia relates it to their being persian and persian history, and about unlearning things they originally never questioned about empire.
this is a quick read and i recommend it for fellow queer folks who want or need to step into a queernormative world.
photo review here: https://www.instagram.com/p/C5GmLQLr6VQ/?igsh=NzBmMjdhZWRiYQ==
confession: i do not world build in my head when i read books. i rarely imagine the characters. which is one of the reasons i rarely read adult fantasy and i am not really the person to listen to when it comes to adult fantasy—i can’t tell you if the magic system or world or conflict made sense because it usually doesn’t make sense to me anyway. i can talk to you for hours about the magic systems in disney movies but that’s about it.
what i can tell you is that i loved the nuance in this book—the protagonist and antagonist are not hero and villain, the problem has been caused by an attempt at healing, and the problem is solved in a way that does not make the protagonist a winner.
in the author’s note, they say they didn’t initially intend to examine the question “what does it mean to be oppressed when you were once an oppressor?” but found themself writing about it as they deepened the story. i think the question, which firuz (the mc) asks themself several times throughout the book, strengthened the story and the character development. jamnia relates it to their being persian and persian history, and about unlearning things they originally never questioned about empire.
this is a quick read and i recommend it for fellow queer folks who want or need to step into a queernormative world.
photo review here: https://www.instagram.com/p/C5GmLQLr6VQ/?igsh=NzBmMjdhZWRiYQ==
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Medical content, and Colonisation
Moderate: Genocide
Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology by Shane Hawk, Theodore C. Van Alst Jr.
photo review here: https://www.instagram.com/p/C5CPl5hvClS/?igsh=NzBmMjdhZWRiYQ==
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
4.5
never whistle at night is an anthology of indigenous dark fiction, containing 26 stories from writers across a variety of tribes and areas. i dont read a lot of horror, so this was branching outside of my normal fiction genres, and reading bipoc horror is different than white horror because there are additional layers of horrors and things to fear for us.the stories in this collection tell tales of monsters, nightmares, bodies, bugs, of colonization and retribution. i didn’t give it a full five stars because i was hoping for a little more queer rep.
the story i enjoyed most was uncle robert rides the lightning by kate hart, about love and grief and ghosts. my other favorite stories were kushtuka by mathilda zeller, white hills by rebecca roanhorse, hunger by phoenix boudreau, human eaters by royce k. young wolf, and the scientist’s horror story by darcie little badger.
i want to thank whoever bought me this from my bookshop wishlist, it didnt come with a note!
TWs
TWs
general TW for colonization, death, murder, residential schools, and violence.
kushtuka: unwanted touching
white hills: forced abortion
navajo don't wear elk teeth: sex on page, unwanted rough sex
wingless: animal death, child abuse
quantum: child abuse/neglect
tick talk: misogyny, bugs
snakes are born in the dark: birth, destruction of petroglyphs, pus
before i let go: suicide
behind colin's eyes: body stuff (nails falling off, teeth falling out), mention of child labor
heart-shaped clock: drug use
scariest.story.ever: animal death, drugs
human eaters: mentions youth death
the prepper: elder neglect, mental break, self-harm
uncle robert rides the lightning: grief
sundays: child rape, pedophilia, suicide
eulogy for a brother, resurrected: homophobia
limbs: physical torture
photo review here: https://www.instagram.com/p/C5CPl5hvClS/?igsh=NzBmMjdhZWRiYQ==
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicide, Blood, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Alcohol, and Colonisation
Murder at the Opera by D.M. Quincy
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
so much whorephobia
Things You May Find Hidden in My Ear: Poems from Gaza by Mosab Abu Toha
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
5.0
i’ve read a lot of powerful poetry lately, and things you may find hidden in my ear stands out as one of my favorites. the poems activated all my senses, making me feel the tastes and sounds of gaza and the occupation as much as can be conveyed on page.
from palestine a - z
y
yaffa is my daughter's name. i put my ears near her mouth when she speaks, and i hear yaffa's sea, waves lapping against the shore. i look in her eyes, and i see my grandparents' footsteps still imprinted on the sand.
i was all excited that this book fit in my pocket and then it fell out. 🫠
photo review here: https://www.instagram.com/p/C4jXnonP0OS/?igsh=NzBmMjdhZWRiYQ==
photo review here: https://www.instagram.com/p/C4jXnonP0OS/?igsh=NzBmMjdhZWRiYQ==
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Colonisation, and War
Murder in Bloomsbury by D.M. Quincy
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
i liked this better than the first one! would love less internalized misogyny from the women.
also, for someone who is supposed to be wicked smart, i found it not smart that he accepted food from
someone he knew was poisoning other people. come on dude.
also, for someone who is supposed to be wicked smart, i found it not smart that he accepted food from
someone he knew was poisoning other people. come on dude.
Murder in Mayfair by D. M. Quincy
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
lots of judgment about abortions! i thought the romance was unnecessary and the masculinity and cisheteronormativity were a little too much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Grief, and Abortion
Moderate: Infertility
Minor: Forced institutionalization and Death of parent
A Map of Home by Randa Jarrar
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
a map of home is a coming-of-age story traversing the united states, kuwait, and egypt and follows nadali through her childhood and teen years. nadali’s mother is egyptian and greek, her father palestinian, and home is a moving concept. most of the story is written in standard prose, and as nadali’s self-exploration in her teens grows the chapters move into different formats, including a list (my favorite literary device).
i used a gift card to order this and blood orange a couple of weeks ago when i could feel myself sliding into depression, because i wanted some queer palestinian reads—nadali is bisexual. i absolutely loved randa jarrar’s writing in a map of home and immediately put library holds on her other books.
“i looked up at the horizon expecting a straight line and instead found a wrap-around horizon like a semi-circle. i thought of the semi-circles beneath my eyes, how they swelled out like every other woman's in my family. i thought about all the main events of my family history and discovered that they were all wars. i imagined my family history without war. my grandmother would not have lost her father in the first war in palestine and would not have been sold to the family through whom she met my father's father. my yia yia would not have met my geddo had it not been for world war II and that dress-up orphanage. i wondered how many wars waited in my future, and if
children—if i had any—would be products of them.“
free palestine. end the occupation.
TWs
colonization, gaslighting, physical abuse, rape, war
photo review: https://www.instagram.com/p/C4JM8FfvX9f/?igsh=NzBmMjdhZWRiYQ==
photo review: https://www.instagram.com/p/C4JM8FfvX9f/?igsh=NzBmMjdhZWRiYQ==
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Colonisation, and War