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[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

Books With Morally Grey Gay People for Pride Month (Except, I'm Late)

Happy Late Pride, everyone! I’m sure many of you, like me, are tired of reading about perfect gay people doing everything right – you want some chaos in your stories! You want some problematic gays! So, even though I missed the end of Pride Month by about two days  – and as a reminder that every month is Pride Month! –I’ve compiled a list of 5 books that have something super cool about them: their gays are bananas, complex as fuck and ready to wreck hell. 

Keep reading

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

I haven’t read any of these, but The Jasmine Throne and Some Desperate Glory are on my TBR!

Book recommendations: queer adult SFF

It's been a while since I did one of these posts but I'm thinking of doing more regularly. I have read a lot more new books that I hope some of you will pick up and I've made another selection. I'm reading more and more adult SFF lately because lots of YA is getting a little too young for me. But I also find that transitioning to reading more adult can be difficult, and it's not always easy to find what you're looking for. I found YA a far easier market to navigate, so I figured I'd make a post featuring some of my favorite adult SFF books.

The Unbroken & the Faithless I read recently.

This is a trilogy, with book 3 coming out most likely in 2025? Not sure actually. The series focuses on Touraine and Luca. Touraine is a conscript in the Balladaire army, stolen from her homeland and trained to fight from a young age. She is originally from Qazal, a country colonized by Balladaire, but doesn't speak their language or understand their customs. In the first book, she returns home for the first time since she was taken, to stop a Qazali rebellion.

Luca is the princess of Balladaire. Her parents both died when she was young, and her uncle is ruling as regent, refusing to allow her to be crowned Queen until she proves herself. She too is sent to deal with the Qazali rebellion. What makes Luca interesting is that she often means well and is definitely more benevolent towards the Qazali, but she's also very power hungry and wants her throne, and no matter how much she does to help the Qazali she is still the princess of the empire that colonized them, and the author continues to hold her accountable for her role in the empire and some of the choices she makes.

Luca is also disabled, she injured her leg when she was young and uses a cane.

There is a sapphic romance between Luca and Touraine. It is not really the focus on the series but at the same time it is what shapes much of the negotiating between them since Luca has a very obvious soft spot for Touraine and Touraine has to use that to improve things for Qazal.

The world is inspired by North Africa and French colonialism (in Balladaire they speak French so I'm pretty sure they're supposed to be France), and the author themself is Black and North African. The series as a whole is very political.

Next is Notorious Sorcerer by Davinia Evans

This is the first in a duology (I think?) with book 2 coming out this November.

This is set in a world where there are four different planes, and Siyon is a poor man who can delve into the different planes to get ingredients for wealthier alchemists. He wants to be an alchemist himself but can't afford the education. There's also the problem of magic being technically illegal, which means rich people can do alchemy but poor people can't.

Then one day Siyon accidently unleashes wild magic and is thrust into the world of alchemists where he wants to belong but doesn't. And there's also the matter of the four planes being instable and at risk of collapsing, and Siyon might be the only one capable of stopping it.

Siyon is bi/pan and his main love interest is a man, though this is not the main focus of the series.

Then Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh

I think I had this one last time too, but not enough people are reading it so I'm going to discuss it again.

Check out the summary, but honestly not sure if that does it justice. Some Desperate Glory is the story of a girl who grew up in a fascist cult and was raised to believe in everything this cult stands for.

The earth was destroyed before she was born, and the Majo, aliens, were responsible. Kyr has been training her entire life for revenge. She wants nothing more than to be the perfect soldier for earth. As a result, she is a terrible person and everyone hates her.

Kyr first starts questioning Gaea station when she is assigned nursery to have babies even though she is the best fighter in her mess. When her brother disappears, she teams up with his friend Avi, a queer genius who works with the station's systems and was always aware of how fucked up Gaea station is. They discover Magnus has been sent on a suicide mission and go after him, and Kyr is confronted with the outside world, including a Majo she grows close to, and has to unlearn everything Gaea station taught her.

This book has a difficult to stomach mc at first, though it is very obvious what she believes is not what you as the reader are supposed to think. But there is some wonderful character development going on in here. It's hard for her to change, and she's thrown into lots of difficult situations before she gets there, but in the end you can see she's nothing like the person she was before.

There's an amazing cast of side characters, though not a very big cast. There's her twin brother Magnus who never wanted to be a soldier and is actually very depressed, which Kyr never noticed. Yiso, the cute non binary alien Kyr develops a weak spot for even before she comes to realize Majo are people. And my personal favorite, Avi, who is an unhinged little guy who is way too smart for his own good. He's a great example of how a cult can affect different people in different ways. He doesn't believe in Gaea station like Kyr does and is aware of how fucked up he is, he experienced that first hand as the only visible queer person on the station. But he did internalize their messages of revenge and violence which plays out in interesting ways.

This edition is the Illumicrate edition of the book from April's box, which has the UK cover.

Witch King by Martha Wells is next

This is a confusing book for people who do not have a lot of experience reading adult fantasy. It has a lot of world building that is explained gradually, the book doesn't really hold your hand, so be prepared for that.

Kai is a body hopping demon. He has been betrayed, killed and entombed under water. When he is freed by a lesser mage hoping to hone his power, he kills them and frees himself and his friend, the witch Ziede.

Together, they have to uncover what happened to them, who betrayed them and what is going on with the Rising World coalition. He's not going to like the answers.

Alternating is a past timeline in which Kai and his band of allies rebel against the tyrannical rule of the Hierophants, which happened decades before the present timeline.

The strenght of this book is really in the characters and how they grow and the bonds they have with each other. I loved the relationship between Kai and Bashasa, who is the rebel leader in the past timeline in particular. It's not quite clear what the nature of their relationship was, though it is implied to be romantic and I do think Kai is supposed to be queer. He is a body hopping demon after all, and spends his early life in the body of a girl. There's also a sapphic side pairing between Zieden and her wife Tahren, who they spent much of the present timeline looking for.

The Dawnhounds by Sascha Stronach

This is a science fantasy set in a world inspired by New Zealand and Maori (I think? The author is Maori and a trans woman herself)

The main character is a police officer from a poor background who believes she's making the world better for people like her. She's already been demoted for being queer but believes she can make the police force better from the inside.

Then she's murdered by fellow officers and thrown into the harbor. Unfortunately for them, she comes back from the dead with new magic powers.

She teams up with a pirate crew with similar powers and has to stop a plague from being unleashed on her city.

This book focuses on how police functions in many modern societies to protect the wealthy and harm and restrict poorer, non white communities. The main character doesn't believe this at first but it's obvious to the reader that they're not helping anyone doing their job. Next book is coming out next year.

Last is the Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri

Two books are out and book 3 is coming sometime in 2024.

This series is set in a world inspired by India. Priya is a maidservant with a secret. She is one of the few surviving temple children and still has some powers from being once born.

Malini is the princess of Parijatdvipa, the empire that conquered Priya's land. Her religious zealot brother has taken the throne and imprisons Malini because she refuses to be burned alive.

Priya is one of the maidservants sent to take care of Malini in her prison, which is the old temple where Priya grew up. Together, they can change the fate of an empire, but they can never quite trust each other.

This is a sapphic fantasy with magic but also lots of politics and I think if you like this series you'd also like the Unbroken and vice versa. I've talked about this one before but it should definitely be included on a list for adult fantasy.

I hope you can find something you like on here. All these books are not super well known and deserve a bigger audience

@alastaircarstairsdefenselawyer @life-through-the-eyes-of @astriefer @justanormaldemon @ipromiseiwillwrite @a-dream-dirty-and-bruised @amchara @all-for-the-fanfiction @imsoftforthomastair @ddepressedbookworm @queenlilith43 @wagner-fell @cant-think-of-anything @laylax13s @tessherongraystairs @boredfangirl16 @artist-in-soul @aliandtommy @ikissedsmithparker

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

I read and adored A Marvellous Light and A Restless Truth! I also read and enjoyed Something Fabulous and The Charm Offensive.

Midyear queer book rec 2023: even more gay, even more slaps!

Another wide selection of achillian, sapphic, and bisexual (is there a term for that?) relationships, basically all adult fiction and lots of romance, historical, and fantasy with happy endings because of who I am as a person. But these are all books I gave at least 3/5 stars that offer a fun range of relationships and writing styles!

If you want even more queer book recs, check out my many previous posts! Now go enjoy some queer reading and support authors writing queer fiction!

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

Albertine, NYC

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

I finished My Policeman and Brokeback Mountain and am already halfway through Arrête avec tes mensonges. Arrête avec tes mensonges evokes memories of my own first love, which was also queer, obsessive, and all-consuming.

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

Currently reading My Policeman by Bethan Roberts, On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong, Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx, and Arrête avec tes mensonges (Lie with me) by Philippe Besson.

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

Read recently 📚

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

I haven’t read any of these, but the Echo Wife is on my TBR! I’m also eyeing A Memory Called Empire. 👀

Thank you for the tag @yourneighborhoodbibliophile! <3

Rules: In a text post, list ten books that have stayed with you in some way. Don’t take but a few minutes, and don’t think too hard — they don’t have to be the “right” or “great” works, just the ones that have touched you.

The Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow

Who Could That Be At This Hour by Lemony Snicket

The Flinkwater Factor by Pete Hautman

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

Radiance by Catherynne M. Valente

Etiquette and Espionage by Gail Carriger

The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

That Inevitable Victorian Think by E.K. Johnston

Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

Tagging (no pressure!): @maddiesbookshelves

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

At this point, I’ve given up on prioritizing my TBR. I pick up whichever book is within reach and read it. 😂 And thank you! <3

Mid Year Book Tag!

Nabbed from @theinquisitxor, who said I should tag myself if I was interested. (And then I got tagged by @readingbooksinisrael.)

1.Best book you’ve read so far: Diary of a Misfit by Casey Parks

2.Best sequel you’ve read so far: The House with the Golden Door by Elodie Harper

3.New Release you haven’t read yet but want to: The Remarkable Retirement of Edna Fisher by E.M. Anderson

4.Most anticipated release for the second half of the year? I have a few! But The Frugal Wizard’s Guide to Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson sounds like a tonne of fun.

5.Biggest Disappointment: British Columbiana by Josie Teed

6.Biggest Surprise: When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb

7. Favorite new author: Janie Chang

8.Newest Fictional Crush: I don’t crush, but Sir Kay from Perilous Times is the exact kind of guy I’d want in my corner.

9.Newest Favorite Character: Amina al-Sirafi

10.Book that made you cry: Diary of a Misfit or, not to repeat myself, The Magician’s Daughter by H.G. Parry

11.A Book that made you happy: The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi or, not to repeat myself, Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

12. Favorite Adaptation: Bold of you to assume I remember things i watch! 😜 Um, finally watched the Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell miniseries? Twas very good.

13. Prettiest Cover: the UK edition of The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison, which I reread a few months ago

14. A book you need to read before the end of the year: Gonna go with a deep cut and say The Great Cat Massacre by Robert Darnton

Tag yourself if you’re interested too!

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

Thank you so much for the recommendations! <3 I’m particularly intrigued by Spear, Hench, and An Assassin’s Guide to Love and Treason (based solely on the comparison to TGGTVAV). 👀

📚🗓 Mid-Year Freakout Tag 2023 🗓📚

jumping on the hype train because it’s fun

How many books have you read so far?

69 including comics & graphic novels (nice)

What genres have you read?

Mostly fantasy and sci fi, but also a bit of historical fiction.

Best book you’ve read so far in 2023?

The Tyrant Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson! The first two books in the series were dubious, but things really came together for me in this one and I'm so excited for the conclusion. Also Baru is the character ever.

Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2023?

Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir; it really recontextualizes the first two books and is therefore the best at being a sequel.

New release you haven’t read yet, but want to

Titanium Noir by Nick Harkaway (saw it at a festival), Translation State by Ann Leckie (I really liked her other books), and also New Suns 2 (I read New Suns last year and it had some really good stories!)

Most anticipated release for the second half of the year

Alecto the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir! After reading Nona I need to know.

Biggest disappointment

It's a tie between The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson (boring and somehow shallow-feeling worldbuilding, and managed not to get me very invested in the characters even with over 1000 pages?), Dune by Frank Herbert (all the worst parts of 60s sci fi), La passeuse de mots by Jennifer and Alric Twice (all the worst parts of 2000s YA fantasy), or Der Dunkle Schwarm by Marie Grasshoff (somehow uninteresting despite what could be a very compelling world). I can't choose between any of these because none of them really got under my skin, they were just meh in ways I wasn't expecting them to be.

Biggest surprise

The Well by Jake Wyatt; I convinced myself it was going to be mediocre despite the awesome cover, but it's actually my favourite graphic novel of the year so far! The art is gorgeous and the story is a fun spin on traditional quest narratives.

Book that made you cry

Small Game Hunting at the Local Coward Gun Club by Megan Gail Coles. This book reminded me why I don't read sad literary fiction, even though it was really good (highly recommend if you can tolerate it!)

Book that made you happy

A Pho Love Story by Loan Le; I really appreciated how the characters learned to live with their immigrant parents and also the romance was really sweet!

Most beautiful book cover of a book you’ve read so far this year

Either Even Though I Knew The End by C.L. Polk (I am a sucker for vintage anything) or Squire by Sara Alfageeh and Nadia Shammas (I am also a sucker for clouds)

How are you doing with your year’s goal?

Don’t have one!

What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

De Profundis, The Secret History, Lord of the Flies, The Origins of Political Order, and After the Victorians (I think I've given up on reading War and Peace, at least for the moment). Oh, and Alecto, when it comes out. (There are, as always, Too Many Books)

(and since they haven't done it yet I tag @maddiesbookshelves and @yourneighborhoodbibliophile (but only if they feel like it))

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

You were right — I absolutely adored it! I cannot wait for the sequel, but luckily, I only have to wait another month! *cue calendar countdown to the release of He Who Drowned the World*

Reading She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan.

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

Maurice, my beloved. <3 I haven’t read any of the others, but I’m curious to check them out. 👀

@yourneighborhoodbibliophile thank you so much for the tag ❣️❣️ i havent done one of these in forever !!

Rules: In a text post, list ten books that have stayed with you in some way. Don’t take but a few minutes, and don’t think too hard — they don’t have to be the “right” or “great” works, just the ones that have touched you.

maurice by e m forster

the alchemist by paulo coelho

convenience store woman by sayaka murata

the left hand of darkness by ursula k le guin

tschick by wolfgang herrndorf

reeling by lola lafon

tender is the flesh by agustina bazterrica

stone butch blues by leslie feinberg

nach uns die pinguine by hans stein

der pfau by isabel bogdan which got adapted into a movie last year and i have Not been able to watch it yet ...

heres who i'm tagging, but dont feel pressured to do it. :3 @obvusly @childofthetreetops @endlessfurore @llovelymoonn

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

@thecasualbookreviewer Thank you! <3 Sending them right back at you! *showers you in reading beans*

🌻 Mid-Year Freakout Tag 2023🌻

I’ve been on a brief hiatus, but I’m back with my favorite tag of the year!

1.  How many books have you read so far?

I’ve read 15 books (so far!).

2. What genres have you read?

Fantasy, historical fantasy, historical fiction, historical romance, romance, and LGBTQ+ fiction.

3. Best book you’ve read so far in 2023

A Marvellous Light and A Restless Truth by Freya Marske, In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan, and Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett (all of which I rated 5/5 stars).

4. Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2023

A Restless Truth by Freya Marske. It exceeded all of my (already admittedly high) expectations.

5. New release you haven’t read, but want to

Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues by H.S. Valley. I preordered it, but my pre-order was delayed due to Indigo’s cyber security incident and I have yet to receive it.

6. Most anticipated release of the second half of the year

You can find my most anticipated releases here.

7. Biggest disappointment

Greywaren by Maggie Stiefvater. The conclusion to the Dream Trilogy and the broader Raven Cycle universe, Greywaren was a highly anticipated release of mine, but I was ultimately underwhelmed by it.

8. Biggest surprise

I’ve largely read within my preferred genres (namely queer historical fiction/fantasy) so I have yet to be surprised by anything. Hopefully I’ll be surprised as I diversify in the coming months!

9. Book that made you cry

No tears have been shed in the reading of these books.

10. Book that made you happy

All of them! However, if I had to choose only one… In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan.

11. Most beautiful cover of a book you’ve read so far this year

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett, followed closely by A Restless Truth by Freya Marske and In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan. Evidence that we should, indeed, judge a book by its cover. ;)

12. How are you doing with your year’s goals?

I set the (admittedly ambitious) goal to read 50 books (of which I’ve read 15).

13. What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

My most anticipated releases of 2022, my new year book haul, and my most anticipated releases of the second half of 2023.

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

@moranjpg Howdy, partner. 🤠 Since I switched from reading in English to reading in French, I’ve read almost half as much as I did in the first half of the year in these last two weeks alone. Here’s to the end of our respective reading fatigue. 🥂

🌻 Mid-Year Freakout Tag 2023🌻

I’ve been on a brief hiatus, but I’m back with my favorite tag of the year!

1.  How many books have you read so far?

I’ve read 15 books (so far!).

2. What genres have you read?

Fantasy, historical fantasy, historical fiction, historical romance, romance, and LGBTQ+ fiction.

3. Best book you’ve read so far in 2023

A Marvellous Light and A Restless Truth by Freya Marske, In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan, and Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett (all of which I rated 5/5 stars).

4. Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2023

A Restless Truth by Freya Marske. It exceeded all of my (already admittedly high) expectations.

5. New release you haven’t read, but want to

Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues by H.S. Valley. I preordered it, but my pre-order was delayed due to Indigo’s cyber security incident and I have yet to receive it.

6. Most anticipated release of the second half of the year

You can find my most anticipated releases here.

7. Biggest disappointment

Greywaren by Maggie Stiefvater. The conclusion to the Dream Trilogy and the broader Raven Cycle universe, Greywaren was a highly anticipated release of mine, but I was ultimately underwhelmed by it.

8. Biggest surprise

I’ve largely read within my preferred genres (namely queer historical fiction/fantasy) so I have yet to be surprised by anything. Hopefully I’ll be surprised as I diversify in the coming months!

9. Book that made you cry

No tears have been shed in the reading of these books.

10. Book that made you happy

All of them! However, if I had to choose only one… In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan.

11. Most beautiful cover of a book you’ve read so far this year

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett, followed closely by A Restless Truth by Freya Marske and In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan. Evidence that we should, indeed, judge a book by its cover. ;)

12. How are you doing with your year’s goals?

I set the (admittedly ambitious) goal to read 50 books (of which I’ve read 15).

13. What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

My most anticipated releases of 2022, my new year book haul, and my most anticipated releases of the second half of 2023.

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

Thank you for the tag @samduqs! <3

Rules: In a text post, list ten books that have stayed with you in some way. Don’t take but a few minutes, and don’t think too hard — they don’t have to be the “right” or “great” works, just the ones that have touched you.

Anne of Green Gables, Lucy Maud Montgomery

Little Women, Louisa May Alcott

Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen

Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë

The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood

Maurice, E.M. Forster

Fangirl, Rainbow Rowell

Carry On, Rainbow Rowell

The Grishaverse, Leigh Bardugo

The Raven Cycle, Maggie Stiefvater

Tagging (no pressure!): @ben-learns-smth, @moranjpg, @maddiesbookshelves, @cleopatras-library, @profiterole-reads, and @arywizm

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

Happy July ✨

[yourneighborhoodbibliophile]

My favorites from the first half of 2023!

There weren’t a lot of standouts until the end of May/beginning of June when I read The Salt Grows Heavy, The Last Tale of the Flower Bride, and A Marvellous Light in a row. I’m hoping for a great second half to the year though.