#LOVE & OTHER DISASTERS BY ANITA KELLY

[lgbtqreads]

Fave Five: Adult F/NB Romances

Love & Other Disasters by Anita Kelly Chef’s Kiss by TJ Alexander Just Might Work by Katia Rose The Santa Pageant by Lillian Barry Harmony by London Price Bonus: Coming in 2025, My Best Friend’s Honeymoon by Meryl Wilsner 

[mccoppinscrapyard]

Read in 2023 (6/?)

Love & Other Disasters by Anita Kelly

❝ That each person could choose what brought them closest to belonging, the power in that. Knowing that one day, people might discover even better words for it. That there was only ever freedom in continuing to find new names for who we were, who we could be. ❞

[haveyoureadthistransbook]

Love & Other Disaster by Anita Kelly

goodreads

Recently divorced and on the verge of bankruptcy, Dahlia Woodson is ready to reinvent herself on the popular reality competition show Chef’s Special. Too bad the first memorable move she makes is falling flat on her face, sending fish tacos flying—not quite the fresh start she was hoping for. Still, she's focused on winning, until she meets someone she might want a future with more than she needs the prize money.  After announcing their pronouns on national television, London Parker has enough on their mind without worrying about the klutzy competitor stationed in front of them. They’re there to prove the trolls—including a fellow contestant and their dad—wrong, and falling in love was never part of the plan. As London and Dahlia get closer, reality starts to fall away. Goodbye, guilt about divorce, anxiety about uncertain futures, and stress from transphobia. Hello, hilarious shenanigans on set, wedding crashing, and spontaneous dips into the Pacific. But as the finale draws near, Dahlia and London’s steamy relationship starts to feel the heat both in and outside the kitchen—and they must figure out if they have the right ingredients for a happily ever after.

Mod opinion: I haven't heard of this book before, but this sounds like a cute romance.

[whilereadingandwalking]

Love & Other Disasters by Anita Kelly is a fun queer romance novel featuring two contestants in a MasterChief-like reality show. Dahlia is recently divorced, feels everything, and worried that she ruins things. London is privileged but struggles under the pressure of coming out as nonbinary on national television, especially given that their father won't use their pronouns. The two of them find themselves being pulled together by chemistry...but what will happen when one of them is eliminated?

The best part of this book is 100% the food competition and reality show background, which adds so much fun and drama to the story. The story also has a really excellent nonbinary story, great pansexuality rep, and I really identified with Dahlia on a couple of levels, including being a queer woman who (up to the beginning of the novel) has only ever dated a cis man. It takes a minute to get really chugging along, and like in many rom coms, it asks the reader to suspend their disbelief just a little extra. But all around it's a really fun Pride Month read, and a sexy, fun romance, and fans of MasterChief especially will love it!

Content warnings for misgendering, homophobia, classism.

[transbookoftheday]

Love & Other Disasters by Anita Kelly

The first openly nonbinary contestant on America’s favorite cooking show falls for their clumsy competitor in this delicious romantic comedy debut that USA Today hailed as “an essential read.” Recently divorced and on the verge of bankruptcy, Dahlia Woodson is ready to reinvent herself on the popular reality competition show Chef’s Special. Too bad the first memorable move she makes is falling flat on her face, sending fish tacos flying—not quite the fresh start she was hoping for. Still, she's focused on winning, until she meets someone she might want a future with more than she needs the prize money.  After announcing their pronouns on national television, London Parker has enough on their mind without worrying about the klutzy competitor stationed in front of them. They’re there to prove the trolls—including a fellow contestant and their dad—wrong, and falling in love was never part of the plan. As London and Dahlia get closer, reality starts to fall away. Goodbye, guilt about divorce, anxiety about uncertain futures, and stress from transphobia. Hello, hilarious shenanigans on set, wedding crashing, and spontaneous dips into the Pacific. But as the finale draws near, Dahlia and London’s steamy relationship starts to feel the heat both in and outside the kitchen—and they must figure out if they have the right ingredients for a happily ever after.

[alienslikedmyfantasy]

Some of my favorite passages from ‘Love and Other Disasters’ by Anita Kelly

[lilibetbombshell]

[eleftherian]

the best thing anita kelly did was accurately point out the “Queer Nod of Approval” you get from the other lgbts in public in LAOD like yeah man

[theartofangirling]

part 3 of the 2023 version of this post: adult books!

part 1: middle grade books | part 2: young adult books

this is a very incomplete list, as these are only books I've read and enjoyed. not all books are going to be for all readers, so I'd recommend looking up synopses and content warnings. feel free to message me with any questions about specific representation!

list of books under the cut ⬇️

yerba buena by nina lacour

if we were villains by m.l. rio

everyone in this room will someday be dead by emily r. austin

i want to be a wall by honami shirono

portrait of a thief by grace d. li

the thirty names of night by zeyn joukhadar

on earth we're briefly gorgeous by ocean vuong

love & other disasters by anita kelly

take a hint, dani brown by talia hibbert

boyfriend material by alexis hall

almost like being in love by steve kluger

the charm offensive by alison cochrun

something wild & wonderful by anita kelly

red, white & royal blue by casey mcquiston

something to talk about by meryl wilsner

honey girl by morgan rogers

one last stop by casey mcquiston

once ghosted, twice shy by alyssa cole

kiss her once for me by alison cochrun

a spindle splintered by alix e. harrow

finna by nino cipri

every heart a dooryway by seanan mcguire

the starless sea by erin morgenstern

under the whispering door by tj klune

space opera by catherynne m. valente

light from uncommon stars by ryka aoki

dead collections by isaac fellman

the city we became by n.k. jemisin

light carries on by ray nadine

an absolutely remarkable thing by hank green

feed them silence by lee mandelo

summer sons by lee mandelo

upright women wanted by sarah gailey

lavender house by lev a.c. rosen

fried green tomatoes at the whistle stop cafe by fannie flagg

the seven husbands of evelyn hugo by taylor jenkins reid

a master of djinn by p. djeli clark

witchmark by c.l. polk

a marvellous light by freya marske

a restless truth by freya marske

when women were dragons by kelly barnhill

plain bad heroines by emily m. danforth

a lady for a duke by alexis hall

infamous by lex croucher

passing strange by ellen klages

even though i knew the end by c.l. polk

the chosen and the beautiful by nghi vo

whiskey when we're dry by john larison

wake of vultures by lila bowen

silver in the wood by emily tesh

the once and future witches by alix e. harrow

the kingdoms by natasha pulley

a tip for the hangman by allison epstein

she who became the sun by shelley parker-chan

the song of achilles by madeline miller

spear by nicola griffith

this is how you lose the time war by amal el-mohtar and max gladstone

gideon the ninth by tamsyn muir

some desperate glory by emily tesh

all systems red by martha wells

a psalm for the wild built by becky chambers

the mimicking of known successes by malka older

winter's orbit by everina maxwell

fireheart tiger by aliette de bodard

empress of salt and fortune by nghi vo

legends and lattes by travis baldree

the house in the cerulean sea by tj klune

other ever afters by melanie gillman

the priory of the orange tree by samantha shannon

a day of fallen night by samantha shannon

a strange and stubborn endurance by foz meadows

the unbroken by c.l. clark

real queer america by samantha allen

fun home by alison bechdel

in the dream house by carmen maria machado

better living through birding by christian cooper

why fish don't exist by lulu miller

[prosy-days]

August 3, 2022 - Day 45

Such good fun.

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

💙💜🩷 Books for Bisexuality Visibility Month 🩷💜💙

please support this blog

💜 How incredible is it that I made a list of 99 books for bisexual visibility month, KNOWING there are so many NOT featured on this list? I'm so proud to be bi. Having these characters and stories intertwine with mine warms my heart.

💜 What's your favorite book featuring bisexual characters?

💙 The Henna Wars - Adiba Jaigirdar 💙 Perfect on Paper - Sophie Gonzales 💙 Imogen, Obviously - Becky Albertalli 💙 Red, White & Royal Blue - Casey McQuiston 💙 Queens of Geek - Jen Wilde 💙 Just Your Local Bisexual Disaster - Andrea Mosqueda 💙 Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute - Talia Hibbert 💙 Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake - Alexis Hall 💙 A Merry Little Meet Cute - Julie Murphy & Sierra Simone

💜 Leah on the Offbeat - Becky Albertalli 💜 The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Taylor Jenkins Reid 💜 Radio Silence - Alice Oseman 💜 The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue - Mackenzi Lee 💜 You Exist Too Much - Zaina Arafat 💜 Wolfsong - T.J. Klune 💜 The Pairing - Casey McQuiston 💜 Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail - Ashley Herring Blake 💜 Heartstopper - Alice Oseman

��� Going Bicoastal - Dahlia Adler 🩷 Some Girls Do - Jennifer Dugan 🩷 Hani & Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating - Adiba Jaigirdar 🩷 Autoboyography - Christina Lauren 🩷 Written in the Stars - Alexandria Bellefleur 🩷 They Both Die at the End - Adam Silvera 🩷 Cool for the Summer - Dahlia Adler 🩷 Delilah Green Doesn't Care - Ashley Herring Blake 🩷 One Last Stop - Casey McQuiston

💙 I'll Be the One - Lyla Lee 💙 Running With Lions - Julian Winters 💙 Take a Hint, Dani Brown - Talia Hibbert 💙 Felix Ever After - Kacen Callender 💙 Not Your Sidekick - C.B. Lee 💙 Ophelia After All - Racquel Marie 💙 Iron Widow - Xiran Jay Zhao 💙 Something to Talk About - Meryl Wilsner 💙 The Girls I've Been - Tess Sharpe

💜 Iris Kelly Doesn't Date - Ashley Herring Blake 💜 Never Ever Getting Back Together - Sophie Gonzales 💜 Her Royal Highness - Rachel Hawkins 💜 Call Me By Your Name - André Aciman 💜 I Wish You All the Best - Mason Deaver 💜 Mistakes Were Made - Meryl Wilsner 💜 Hang the Moon - Alexandria Bellefleur 💜 Kiss Her Once for Me - Alison Cochrun 💜 The Brightsiders - Jen Wilde

🩷 Wild Beauty - Anna-Marie McLemore 🩷 The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue - Victoria Schwab 🩷 Payback's a Witch - Lana Harper 🩷 A Dowry of Blood - S.T. Gibson 🩷 Six of Crows - Leigh Bardugo 🩷 Dark Rise - C.S. Pacat 🩷 If This Gets Out - Sophie Gonzales & Cale Dietrich 🩷 Let's Talk About Love - Claire Kann 🩷 Carry On - Rainbow Rowell

💙 Under the Whispering Door - T.J. Klune 💙 I Kissed Shara Wheeler - Casey McQuiston 💙 Pumpkinheads - Rainbow Rowell 💙 Icebreaker - A.L. Graziadei 💙 This Poison Heart - Kalynn Bayron 💙 A Lot Like Adiós - Alexis Daria 💙 Sorry, Bro - Taleen Voskuni 💙 We Are Okay - Nina LaCour 💙 Count Your Lucky Stars - Alexandria Bellefleur

💜 Hot Dog Girl - Jennifer Dugan 💜 Verona Comics - Jennifer Dugan 💜 They Hate Each Other - Amanda Woody 💜 The Disasters - M.K. England 💜 The Raven Boys - Maggie Stiefvater 💜 You Should See Me in a Crown - Leah Johnson 💜 These Witches Don't Burn - Isabel Sterling 💜 My Dearest Darkest - Kayla Cottingham 💜 City of Shattered Light - Claire Winn

🩷 The Unbroken - C.L. Clark 🩷 Dread Nation - Justina Ireland 🩷 House of Hollow - Krystal Sutherland 🩷 Love & Other Disasters - Anita Kelly 🩷 Ace of Shades - Amanda Foody 🩷 The Lost Girls - Sonia Hartl 🩷 Of Fire and Stars - Audrey Coulthurst 🩷 This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story - Kacen Callender 🩷 Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe - Benjamin Alire Sáenz

💙 If You Still Recognise Me - Cynthia So 💙 Melt With You - Jennifer Dugan 💙 The Charm Offensive - Alison Cochrun 💙 That Summer Feeling - Bridget Morrissey 💙 The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School - Sonora Reyes 💙 The Luis Ortega Survival Club - Sonora Reyes 💙 The Fiancée Farce - Alexandria Bellefleur 💙 Flip the Script - Lyla Lee 💙 Role Playing - Cathy Yardley

💜 I Think I Love You - Auriane Desombre 💜 Truly, Madly, Deeply - Alexandria Bellefleur 💜 Gearbreakers - Zoe Hana Mikuta 💜 Finally Fitz - Marisa Kanter 💜 The Spirit Bares Its Teeth - Andrew Joseph White 💜 Margo Zimmerman Gets the Girl - Brianna R. Shrum & Sara Waxelbaum 💜 Late Bloomer - Mazey Eddings 💜 A Darker Shade of Magic - Victoria Schwab 💜 Love at First Set - Jennifer Dugan

[lgbtqreads]

bit of a weird request, but do you know of any queer books that have some kinda focus on food/cooking/baking? examples i can think of are things like the dos and donuts of love, cafe con lychee, the tea dragon society, and some not queer books like a cuban girl’s guide to tea and tomorrow and tweet cute. (basically just books where the main characters either like one of the above enough that it is a part of the book, or it’s integral to the plot, because mc works at a restaurant or cafe or smth. i just like really like baking and cooking lol)

i don’t really mind anything, but i’d def prefer books with main characters of colour, f/f or nonbinary romances, and/or queer books where the focus is friendship, family, or found family! tysm :)

Not weird at all; I love foodie books! You definitely want The Heartbreak Bakery by AR Capetta, Lose You to Find Me by Erik J. Brown, and with a CW for sexual assault, I'll also mention The Mirror Season by Anna-Marie McLemore. And make sure you've got A Banh Mi for Two by Trinity Nguyen bookmarked for August!

Also, because all the titles you listed are YA, I'm assuming that's what you're looking for, but if you're also open to adult, here are some more f/f and f/nb ones:

The Romance Recipe by Ruby Barrett

Queerly Beloved by Susie Dumond

The Secret Ingredient by KD Fisher (Amz)

Love at 350 Degrees by Lisa Peers

Certainly, Possibly, You by Lissa Reed (B)

Fake It by Lily Seabrooke – T

Last Chance by Lily Seabrooke (Amz)

Faux Pas by Lily Seabrooke

Chef’s Kiss by Stephanie Shea (Amz)

Perfect Pairing by Rachel Spangler

No Parking by Valentine Wheeler

Chef’s Kiss by TJ Alexander

Love & Other Disasters by Anita Kelly

[hedghost]

Pick a WOSO Player, Get a Sapphic Book Rec!

Part Two

note: please check content warnings before reading as some may have adult or triggering content - feel free to ask me about anything!

Links: Part 1 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

--------

Guro Reiten: Ophelia After All by Racquel Marie

Lotte Wubben-Moy: The Priory of The Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

Rachel Daly: Love and Other Disasters by Anita Kelly

Millie Bright: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Lauren Hemp: Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating by Adiba Jaigirdar

Chloe Kelly: The Girls I’ve Been by Tess Sharpe

Aitana Bonmati: The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School by Sonora Reyes

Beth Mead: The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar

Frida Maanum: Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree

Kim Little: The Long Way To A Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

Lauren James: She Who Became The Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

Gio Queiroz: Afterlove by Tanya Byrne

Erin Cuthbert: Late to the Party by Kelly Quindlen

Stina Blackstenius: How to Excavate a Heart by Jake Maia Arlow

Leah Galton: Her Body & Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado

as requested @russolover <3

honestly i still have more so expect a part 3 at some point

follow me here on storygraph for more recs 🤭🤭

[bookshelvesandtealeaves]

💛🤍 INTERNATIONAL NON-BINARY PEOPLES DAY 💜🖤

[instagram]

Today is International Nonbinary Peoples Day so I’ve put together a stack of some great books with nonbinary rep. As a nonbinary person myself, these varied stories mean the world to me 🥰

Books pictured:

💛 Stars in Their Eyes by Jessica Walton & Aska

🤍 The Mermaid, the Witch and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

💜 What Moves the Dead by T Kingfisher

🖤 Love & Other Disasters by Anita Kelly

💛 An Unexpected Party anthology edited by Seth Malacari

🤍 Out of the Blue by Jason June

💜 Something Spectacular by Alexis Hall

🖤 A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers

💛 Mooncakes by Wendy Xu

🤍 The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester by Maya MacGregor

💜 Graceless by Ruby Landers

🖤 She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 3.5/5

Book Blurb:

To save his family's failing funeral home—and his own chance at a queer love story—a reluctant clairvoyant must embrace the gift he long ignored in this poignant and tender debut. “Part romance, part ghost story, part Jewish family epic, Rules for Ghosting is a meditation on life, death, and healing that is at turns bitingly funny and deeply moving. Shelly Jay Shore is an immense talent.”—Anita Kelly, author of Love & Other Disasters Ezra Friedman sees ghosts, which made growing up in a funeral home complicated. It might have been easier if his grandfather’s ghost didn’t give him scathing looks of disapproval as he went through a second, HRT-induced puberty, or if he didn’t have the pressure of all those relatives—living and dead—judging every choice he makes. It’s no wonder that Ezra runs as far away from the family business as humanly possible.

But when the floor of his dream job drops out from under him and his mother uses the family Passover seder to tell everyone she’s running off with the rabbi’s wife, Ezra finds himself back in the thick of it. With his parents’ marriage imploding and the Friedman Family Memorial Chapel on the brink of financial ruin, Ezra agrees to step into his mother’s shoes and help out . . . which means long days surrounded by ghosts that no one else can see.

And then there’s his unfortunate crush on Jonathan, the handsome funeral home volunteer . . . who just happens to live downstairs from Ezra’s new apartment . . . and the appearance of the ghost of Jonathan’s gone-too-soon husband, Ben, who is breaking every spectral rule that Ezra knows.

Because Ben can speak. He can move. And as Ezra tries to keep his family together and his heart from getting broken, he realizes that there’s more than one way to be haunted—and more than one way to become a ghost.

Review:

Ezra can see ghosts... and when he starts seeing the ghost of the dead husband of the guy he's currently crushing on while dealing with the financial issues, his family's funeral home business, and family drama... it's definitely going to be a complicated time. This was a really soothing story about a family drama and a trans character who can see ghosts with a touch of romance, healing, and grief. There was so much happening in this book and I did appreciate that the story dealed with love, loss, and family all while discussing Jewish culture. It's a really warm read overall and deals with a lot of heavy topics. It's nice but not exactly what I was expecting and felt a bit slow. However it was an nice read overall and one that I would recommend to others. Ezra is an interesting character and I did enjoy his friend group so much. The romance was very light and the rep was fantastic.

Release Date: August 20,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Dell for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[feistypuppythatwantstowatchball]

I am obsessed with wlw sports books and wlw books in general! I read Catch and Cradle and liked it even though I know nothing about lacrosse. Here’s some more for you to add.

-Hotshot by Claire Lydon- a football book set in the WSL. You can tell the author is a football fan (even though she admits to being a lifelong Spurs fan she goes to Arsenal women’s games with her wife so I’ll let it slide)

-On the Same Page by Haley Cass. Friends to lovers, this one is soooooo good. Everything I’ve read by this author is great, she’s written a few books.

-For Her Consideration by Amy Spaulding and its spinoff, At Her Service. Takes place in LA and is just very good.

-Endgame by Zoe Reed. Another football book! This time set in the US college system.

- kiss her once for me by Alison Cochrun (a Christmas book but still good)

-Edge of Glory by Rachel Spangler

-Love and Other Disasters by Anita Kelly

I read a lot of gay books, clearly. I could go on and on haha.

Lovely! I got some of those already loaded up but will add the rest as well. My guess was that Edge of Glory had an ice skating theme buuut I'm not too far off with it actually being snowboarding/skiing.