Laugh out loud funny, psychologically horrifying, and gut-wrenchingly volatile... This is the exact kind of thing I will be thinking about for a long time. The way it handles mental illness and trauma targeted me specifically in such a deeply visceral way... The narration perfectly captures how it feels to lose your mind.

I adored the characters and their relationships. While I went into this mostly blind, I knew prior that

Amy and Dave would end up together. I'm honestly surprised at how well their relationship and their respective traumas relative to their relationship were fleshed out. It absolutely makes you feel for these two. Especially when Amy's life is on the line.

This book stressed and stresses me out. I'm afraid that if I think too hard about it I'll start spiraling... Going in, I had the feeling this book would rearrange my brain chemistry, and I believe it didn't fail. It's utterly chilling, and I don't usually spook easily when it comes to horror.

Content Warnings

The End of the Affair by Graham Greene

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

the way this book perfectly captured the rage of jealousy.... ho boy. it is probably a bad sign that i relate to maurice bendrix. (i'm a writer who lusts and lusts and longs after weird middle-aged women until i resent them.) sometimes his jaded narration grated a little too much on me, though.

the handling of religion, despite being at its core very pro-catholic, resonated deeply with me, an ex-xtian jewish convert. :) like yep! woo. the hopeful suicidal ideation that sarah experiences as she dives into religion, searching for meaning in her mundane life, sure resonates with me!! this is a great exploration of religious conversion and why people convert, even if i do not personally agree with the author's views of it.

it is also a great exploration on infidelity and why people cheat. i am a child of divorce 👍reminds me of my mom (/contemptuous but unblamingly.)

DC Pride 2022 #1 by Jessica Chen, Chris Conroy, Arianna Turturro, Michael McCalister, Andrea Shea

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced

3.5

MUSIC MEISTER SIGHTING !!! I WILL BE ANNOYING ABOUT HIM UNTIL I DIE.

some of the art here was Great (especially the harley/ivy one; that was GORGEOUS.) and while not every story was the best, i loved the heart here. every story oozes passion and love for the characters, the universe, and the subject of lgbtq+ pride.

kevin conroy's story at the end makes me tear up, especially in retrospect.

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

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dark funny inspiring reflective sad medium-paced