Reviews by Tag: lgbtq

Written by Shelley Parker-Chan, She Who Became the Sun is an exhilarating and emotional

read, especially if you like queer historical fiction and fantasy. It follows the growth of a young

woman who takes her brother’s name, a name destined for greatness. In Mongol China, peasants are

starving, famine is commonplace, and bandit attacks are frequent. When a bandit attack leaves both

children without a father and eventually takes the life of the brother, Zhu--the name the young

Andrew and Jamie are two boys that meet at the end of the world. A pathogen has

swept through the earth destroying everything the boys had ever loved. Family,

homes, and much more has been taken from them. But one day they meet after

Andrew comes stumbling into Jamie’s cabin, foot fresh snapped in a bear trap.

From then on, they go on a journey to escape, and to meet a relative of someone

who once helped them. But along the way things start to develop between the two.

Girls of Paper and Fire, by Natasha Ngan, is set in a world brimming with

demons, living alongside humans. As our story begins, Lei is taken from her home to

become one of the king’s concubines, a Paper Girl; girls from the lowest caste, fully

human. When Lei arrives at the palace, she discovers that she has no hope, not of

escaping, not of ever seeing her family again, and not of ever having a choice again.

Kiss & Tell by Adib Khorram is about Hunter Drake going on tour with his bandmates and

having to experience all of the pros and cons of being a star. It doesn’t help that everyone is

involved in Hunter Drakes’ love life because he is Gay. My favorite part about this book was

how all of the bandmates helped each other out even tho sometimes they fought with each

other. I loved reading this book during LGBTQA month. I recommend this book to everyone! I

give it a 5/5!

The Princess and the Fangirl was written by Ashley Poston. The genre is YA romance, set at a science fiction convention. The main characters are Jessica Stone and Imogen Lovelace, who look creepily alike. Jessica is a famous actress who started acting when she was 14, and now is working on a beloved series called Starfield as Princess Amara, but it’s well known that she hates being Princess Amara.

The main characters of The Drowning Summer are Mina and Evelyn. Mina’s family can speak to spirits and they later find out that Evelyn can too. Mina wants to break her curse so that she can learn to do magic herself. She can’t do this yet, because she has to make a deal with the spirit that is cursing her. So, Mina and Evelyn banish the spirit altogether so that Mina can start practicing her magic. Then, they both go back to living their normal lives and Mina gets to do magic.

Achilles, "the best of all the Greeks," is the son of sea goddess Thetis and king Peleus. He is strong, fast, agile, beautiful, and charming to all who meet him. Patroclus is an awkward young prince who has been exiled from his homeland after a violent accident. They were brought together by chance but they forge an inseparable bond and incredible friendship. When the word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, all the Greek heroes are sent for to attack Troy and get Helen of Sparta back.

The Henna Wars is a LGBTQ+ romance novel by Adiba Jaigirdar.  Nishat is surprised by the lack of response that she receives when she comes out as a lesbian to her parents. She soon realizes, however, that her parents think that it's a phase which will pass if they simply don't mention it. Nishat tries to go along with the plan, with hopes of proving to her parents that being a lesbian is okay, when a childhood friend, Flávia, walks back into her life.

Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating, by Adiba Jaigirdar, is a LGBTQ+ romance novel.When Hani comes out as bisexual to her school friends, they tell her that she can't be bi if she's only ever dated guys. To defend herself, Hani lies that she's actually dating a girl at school - Ishu. Ishu and Hani are opposites, but make a pact to pretend to date each other because it benefits them.

This book took me a total of 2 days to complete. I was delightfully surprised when I learned that this was the first published book of Madeline Miller, as I’ve read some of her other astonishing and addicting works. This story revolves around the famous Greek hero Achilles and his companion he held for most of his life- Patroclus. Rather than retelling the classic and widespread stories of Achilles’s heel, Miller took an alternative approach to the myths and lifted from the dusty covers the factor of love and friendship, in addition to the hardships and glory the hero faces.