#bookish delights

[thehatofthehatter]

Book review: The Man Without Shelter by Indrajit Garai

The Man Without Shelter by Indrajit Garai is an emotive and powerful novel. It speaks strongly against discrimination and prejudice, and lays bare the damage that can eo easily be unintentionally wrought by a society that has grown accustomed to and comfortable with the ease of looking the other way instead of extending the hand of friendship, or offering support without the guarantee of reciprocation...

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[just-a-girl-who-likes-sharks]

January 2024 books 💜

[shakespearesdaughters]

These violent delights have violent ends And in their triumph die, like fire and powder, Which as they kiss consume. The sweetest honey Is loathsome in his own deliciousness And in the taste confounds the appetite. Therefore love moderately; long love doth so; Too swift arrives as tardy as too slow.

William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

[fishbone-art]

Juliette x Roma @ these violent delights by Chloe Gong

[the-forest-library]

I Am Books - Boston, MA

[slaughter-books]

Day 21: JOMPBPC: Hello, Winter Summer

It's Summer here in Australia right know, so I took a photo of a few beautiful, summery coloured books! 💕

[reedreadsbooks]

glad day is literally the coolest bookstore ever btw.

it’s the oldest surviving queer bookstore in the world and they always have art and zines by independent artists and they do drag brunches every Sunday and they have a bar/cafe so you can get a little drink while you’re there (and they have lots of non-alcoholic cocktail options, all of which are just as fun as the alcoholic version)

and ik they’re struggling to stay open right now so if you’re near Toronto you should check them out because they are so cool and the staff are so nice and it’s been the highlight of my visit the last few times i’ve been in Toronto

[lexreadsdiversely]

Asian Readathon 2024

[ID: A black cat laying on purple patterned sheets in front of a stack of four books: Bliss Montage by Ling Ma, This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone, Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki, and The Night Parade: A Speculative Memoir by Jami Nakamura Lin. End ID.]

Even if I wanted to be an aesthetic blogger I couldn't. Not with my baby boy, Lito, taking every opportunity to lay on me.

It's AAPI month and I'm participating in the Asian Readathon! (See withcindy on YouTube for more details). I wanted to share some of the books I'm reading and talk briefly about my thoughts so far.

Sidenote: You should be reading Asian authors year round. If you aren't already, I recommend checking out Cindy's blog, looking at the kickass spreadsheet of books, and expanding your horizons.

Bliss Montage, Ling Ma

Features eight reality-bending stories about relationships with oneself and other people. Character-driven. Less than 250 pages. Check trigger warnings.

I chose this one to fit the prompt of a book that feels timeless based on the vibes of Ling Ma's first book, Severance (a personal favorite). She goes back and forth between past and present often, at times seamlessly between mere paragraphs, and it gives the feeling of time being stretched and almost uncertain. I greatly enjoyed it in Severance and suspected similar vibes in this book, and I'm not disappointed! I'm wondering if this is autobiographical fiction (it isn't advertised as such, but I can spot some of the shared events of Ma's actual life and the MC). This book is deeply intimate and, at times, very heavy. I'm only halfway through, and I already know it's going to be another favorite.

This is How You Lose the Time War, Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Adult Sapphic science fantasy about two rival agents on opposing sides of a war. Less than 200 pages (can you tell I like novellas?)

I've started this twice now, once on audiobook and once on ebook, before realizing neither format worked for me and buying a physical copy. I'm only two chapters in, but wow, if you enjoy competitive flirting, these two are incredible at it! I'll say more when I'm further along, but this is some quality writing.

Light from Uncommon Stars, Ryka Aoki

Sapphic science fantasy. A woman makes a deal with a demon to sell her soul for fame in the violin world and must convince seven other violin prodigies to sell theirs in order to get hers back. She finds number seven in a trans girl who runs away from home, and unexpected love with an alien woman who comes to Earth to escape a galactic Endplague. Check the trigger warnings!

I'm 300 pages in (out of almost 400) and this book makes me fucking feral. Apart from the main three characters stories, there are so many side characters with their own stories, and every single one weaves together in some way and packs a punch. I was sold on this book the moment I heard Queen of Hell, and it's just sucked me deeper and deeper. There are so many unexpected events in this book, so many moments that make me go "holy fucking shit?" You think you know what kind of book it is, then some off the wall shit happens and you have to reassess. This is such a deeply trans narrative (written by a trans woman), and as soon as I finish it I'm never going to shut up about it. Probably one of the best books I've ever read and I'm not done yet.

Once more, check the trigger warnings! Aoki is very good at making it super clear what's happening, while also not doing too much on-page (usually by either going light with the details, or fading the scene). But of all the talk about this book I've encountered, no one ever mentioned triggers and I foolishly assumed that meant that there weren't any major ones. There very much are. I'll start you off: transphobia, internalized transphobia, racism, sexual assault, self-harm, parental abuse (the book opens with this one, so mentally prepare yourself).

The Night Parade: A Speculative Memoir, Jami Nakamura Lin

A memoir that users the yōkai and various other figures from Japanese, Taiwanese, and Okinawan folktales to talk about grief in the face of the author's father's cancer and her struggles with Bipolar Disorder. Features amazing illustrations by her sister, Cori Nakamura Lin.

This sentence from the blurb took me out at the knees: "...Jami Nakamura Lin shines a light into dark corners, driven by a question: How do we learn to live with the things that haunt us?"

This is just fucking cool. It's a memoir that basically ripped up the rule book and does it so well. You're never certain if what you're reading really happened (and this is intentional). Stories that show the complexity and humanity of people with Bipolar Disorder are few and far between, so this book has a special place in my heart. It challenges the current narrative of mental health recovery in a way I've yet to see.

Other things I'll be reading:

The Garden of Delights by Amal Singh - Doesn't come out until mid-May, so I'll be waiting impatiently to enjoy it.

Let me know if you have any questions or thoughts. If you've read any of these books, come scream at me!

~ Lex

[darkphilosopherbarbarian]

"It was a relief and a horror to be known so perfectly."

📖These Violent Delights

Micah Nemerever

[annelisreadingroom]

Are you currently reading any ebooks? I'm reading The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton and when I finish it I will start The Storm Sister by Lucinda Riley on my Kindle.

[cheshirelibrary]

[fictionalfawning]

ROMA AND JULIETTE ARE ALIVE!!!!

this is not a drill, I repeat this is not a drill!!! A Foul thing will give us the return of our star crossed lovers

Do I regret spending a whole day crying over their deaths after reading our violent ends? No

Am I currently screaming sobbing rolling on the floor? YES

I had a theory when I checked out Chloe’s mystery playlist and the these violent delights one and they had the same song which I took as a clue that r&j would eventually return and when Chloe announced the novellas through a video she used this love by Taylor swift which had the line “ this love is back from the dead” and when I read Foul lady fortune the clues the JM and the place solidified my belief in the theory. Also do u guys remember how Alisa mentioned how Celia buys the buns she gives to her from Zhouzhuang which is where Roma always wanted to live. It was also mentioned that her eyes scanned the darkness roughly minutes before Alisa see the ghost like silhouettes, possibly aware that they were not dead and is expecting them to pass by the canal. Alisa's apartment is being paid by Roma and Juliette. And all the married couple mentions and the fact that they were able to secure connections with the black market despite being just recently around is because of their former glory as gang

heirs

I HAVE NEVER BEEN SOO PROUD OF MY TENDENCY TO ACCEPT ENDINGS THAT I DO NOT LIKE

[the-forest-library]

@marrogerson you can’t just have Nathaniel say things like this with no warning

[slaughter-books]

Day 5: JOMPBPC: Hardcover Or Paperback?

I absolutley love paperbacks! 💕

[elliepassmore]

Foul Heart Huntsman review

5/5 stars Recommended if you like: fantasy, spies, multiple POVs, historical fiction, morally gray characters

Foul Lady Fortune review

Last Violent Call review

Shanghai is a city once again on the precipice. Tensions between the Nationalists and Communists have risen, driven only higher by the encroaching Japanese army. The chemical killings have at least been stopped, but with that out of the way, the city's populace isn't afraid to be out and about around the city, and so protesting starts up again as well.

On top of the political tension, Rosalind's secret is now out. Not only that she's Fortune, but also that she's Rosalind Lang, a once-beloved daughter of the Scarlet Gang. And, of course, there's the little problem of the Nationalists, and Shanghai in general, thinking Orion was behind the murders. Not that he wasn't....but still, there's more to the story than the public knows. With Orion and Rosalind both betrayed, covert operations is a bit of a mess, and completely, 100% unwilling to help either of them.

Rosalind in this book is a woman on a mission. She's determined to help Orion, even if the Nationalists have washed their hands of both of them. I liked seeing this fiercely dedicated side to her because it's one we haven't really seen yet. We've seen her vengeful in both OVE and FLF, and in FLF we saw her remorseful and more level-headed, but now we get to see how she is when someone she loves is threatened. The same care and devotion we saw in FLF comes through in this one, and it's made clear again just how far she'll go to protect those she loves. Rosalind is also quite clever, and we get to see some of her schemes come into play here.

Orion is a bit of a tricky one since he's brainwashed for a portion of the book. He is in the book though, and we do get some of his POV. I was actually kind of worried about what would happen with his character after the events of the last book, but I was pleased to see how things played out. It stayed true to the plot while also not turning him over completely. Also, we do get to see himbo!Orion, lol.

Celia gets a larger role in this book, along with Oliver. She's stuck between a rock and a hard place in this one, with her loyalties torn between her sister, everyday people, and the Communists she works for. I have to say, Celia is definitely the practical one in...all of her relationships. Sure, she gets a little bit pressed when Oliver is in trouble, but overall she really does seem to have a better handle on things than most people, including Rosalind. That being said, I loved seeing her protective side, which extends to a great many people, from Oliver to Rosalind to Alisa, and beyond.

Oliver does start the book still being cagey, but Celia is done letting him get away with that, and has no qualms about confronting him and forcing him to be more open with her. I enjoyed getting to know more about Oliver and his background (and not just from Orion's perspective). At the same time, I still feel like we don't really know Oliver that much by the end of the book. He and Celia fit together well, but I still would've liked to feel a greater emotional connection with him.

Phoebe is back, as predicted, and even has more POV chapters than before. I liked getting to see more of how she thinks and acts. I still find her and Alisa to be very similar in their own ways, and I like that they got to meet and hang out in this book. Phoebe plays a fairly prominent role in this book, and I enjoyed seeing her come out of hiding a little bit to shine. She's a brave one, and despite dreams of seeing her family reunited, she's also practical enough to pick her brothers and their safety over her dreams. Silas, whom I didn't even mention in my FLF review, also shows up in this one, though tbh I don't buy their romance.

Alisa actually didn't play as big a role as I expected in this one. Sure, she has some pretty vital information and gets her own POV, but I was hoping she'd be upped in importance re: POV chapters. Despite that, I loved getting to see Alisa again. She's the same casually optimistic badass character and I enjoyed reading about more of her antics. Her actions are important to the overarching plot, and more personally for the characters, but I still wish she'd gotten more POV prominence.

If you've read the Last Violent Call stories, it's probably not a surprise that certain characters show up in this one. I was absolutely delighted to see them, and especially to see them in a room with our main characters from this duology.

The ending of this book is closed in a way OVE's ending wasn't. There's definitely still the potential for future stories in the Secret Shanghai world (even if not necessarily in Shanghai), but overall the ending felt fairly final. Character arcs got closed and rounded off in a satisfying way, and the epilogue provided some nice insight into what the characters are doing a year post-FHH. The B&N special edition short story also provides some more information in that direction, and is a funny and sweet story centering on Orion and Rosalind but featuring everyone.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and loved being back in the Secret Shanghai world. The stakes are high, but the characters have plenty of alliances and wiles to work with. The book ended on a high note and in a way that I think is satisfactory for all the characters involved.

[rachread-books]

reading foul lady fortune is breaking my heart. dammit. miss chloe gong, why you always make me suffer?

i haven't even finished the book yet. almost tho, need to breathe.