Eve is perfect in a way that men cannot understand. Just the way she writes about Mary in the last short story, is a way to think of her. She writes with a brilliant nonchalance that astounds the reader every other sentence. Style is everything in Slow Days in more ways than just one.

Stone Butch Blues by Leslie Feinberg

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emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense 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

5.0

Much like Jess finding proof

of the existence of people like her in New York City

, Stone Butch Blues has functioned as proof to me that I have always existed. This is a seminal piece of media that is unwavering in showing the truth of queer life in the 1950s-1980s. From the gut-wrenching pain to the unbridled joy, Jess is a phenomenal character who now forever has a place in my heart.

Content Warnings

The Incendiaries by R.O. Kwon

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dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.75

While the last fourth of this novel is tense, dark, and twisting, everything I expected it to be, the majority of The Incendiaries is slow and banal. The change of pace and rise of tension was too abrupt and too late into the novel.

Content Warnings

Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler

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dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.75

Sweetbitter is consuming. While the characters and plot could use a bit more development, the story was refreshing and perfect for pulling me out of a reading slump.

A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson

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dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

A Dowry of Blood was a delightful surprise for me. I devoured this book in a day, how it feels the author intends it to be read. A consuming look into abusive relationships.

The Queen's Gambit by Walter Tevis

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dark inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

I desperately wish I had read this book before watching the series. It is one of those cases where the series used the book as a blueprint to write an even stronger narrative. Beth remains a complicated, traumatized character, but her goals and passion are much less present in the book than they are in the series. The grandness of the series is lost in the book which takes a much more subtle approach to the antagonist and the dangers Beth faces throughout the novel. All this said, Tevis finds a way to consistently entertain the reader during the chess games, a difficult task when faced with a reader who usually doesn't know much about the intricacies of the game he so obviously endears.

Milk Fed by Melissa Broder

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dark emotional funny reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.25

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mayadelaine's reviews 19 reviews

mayadelaine's reviews
19 reviews