Content warning for this review: the book being reviewed is pretty gross, it’s a horror book. Discussing the content of the book may be a little gross too. If you like being grossed out, you may enjoy this book! If not, you may want to check out something else. A novella written in pieces, a…
Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir is the dark space fantasy I didn’t know I needed. In a galaxy with nine ancient houses with nine rulers and heirs adept in different forms of necromancy, the Emperor needs necromancers. Each necromancer has their swordsman, their loyal cavalier primary, except the ninth. Gideon, an orphan raised by…
Filled with suspense and social commentary, Jackal filled me with dread and outrage throughout the book. This debut novel by Erin E. Adams takes place in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, the author’s hometown, which is largely white and racially segregated. Jackal follows 32 year old Liz Rocher as she travels back to the town for her best…
Eight hours. Six friends. Five survive. That’s the tagline for Holly Jackson’s Five Survive, a teen thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat the whole read. What starts off as a road trip from Philadelphia to a warm spring break destination turns into a tense hostage situation, with a sniper keeping six…
Hijab Butch Blues chronicles the life of Lamya H, a queer Muslim writer and activist, through a series of salient and beautifully written prose essays. The essays range in topic and span much of Lamya’s life. In it, Lamya covers topics ranging from xenophobia, islamophobia, coming to terms with their own queerness, her experiences as…
At the start of every decade, ten teenage semidioses are selected by Sol to compete in a series of challenges, known as The Sunbearer Trials. The winner of these challenges will become the Sunbearer, carrying light and life to all temples of Reino del Sol to replenish the Sun’s power. The loser of the trials…
What happens when an act of violence done to you turns you into a monster? Rachel Harrison’s Such Sharp Teeth tries to answer that question with a authentic story of unresolved childhood trauma and post-traumatic stress told through a horrific and fantastical werewolf horror story, with a touch of humor and dash of romance. As…
All Kinds of Lives (April 2023) by Shilpa Jacobie and Max McConnell
When it comes to lesbian romance novels, I’m pretty easy to please, all I want is a happy ending and some interesting characters. Shamim Sarif’s 2008 novel I Can’t Think Straight far exceeded these expectations. At the start of the novel, Tala, a lively London-based Palestinian with family ties to Jordan, is preparing for her…
National Poetry Month was launched by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996 to celebrate the integral role of poets and poetry in our culture. One of the ways we are celebrating National Poetry Month at the Peabody Institute Library of Danvers is through this discovery list of our favorite poetry collections and poems.…
The Essential Dykes to Watch Out For by Alison Bechdel In honor of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the ground-breaking comic strip series, Dykes to Watch Out For brings together a new collection of cartoons recounting the lives and loves of a diverse group of lesbian friends, in a volume that features selections from eleven previous…
Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers by Kendrick Lamar Regarded as Lamar’s most confessional body of work, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers is a concept album that analyzes and reflects on his life experiences during his therapy journey. Its lyrics touches on a variety of personal themes, including childhood and generational trauma, infidelity, and…
The Heart Principle is Helen Hoang’s third entry into The Kiss Quotient Series, which gained popularity thanks to TikTok. Personally, I was not a huge fan of The Kiss Quotient and completely skipped The Bride Test, but a friend of mine insisted I try The Heart Principle, and I’m so happy I gave Hoang’s writing…
I was excited when The Great Gatsby entered the public domain last year, and Anna-Marie McLemore’s Self-Made Boys did not disappoint! This young adult remix of The Great Gatsby provides layers of complexity and nuance to the familiar characters and story. This reimagining of the American classic tells the story through the queer and Latinx…
All Kinds of Lives (November 2022) by Shilpa Jacobie and Max McConnell
If you’re not already a fan of Open Mike Eagle, be prepared for his newest album Component System with the Auto Reverse to be an experience. If you’re already a fan, then you know to expect an experience, I’m here to say it’s an incredible experience! In the second track of the album “TDK Scribbled…
All Kinds of Lives (October 2022) by Shilpa Jacobie and Max McConnell
All Kinds of Lives (September 2022) by Shilpa Jacobie and Max McConnell
Growing up, I was a huge fan of the pseudo-punk bands that ruled the Warped Tour circuit. I was also a closetted nonbinary person. Naturally, Laura Jane Grace, frontwoman of Against Me!, was an inspiration to my high-school aged self when she came out as transgender in 2012. In 2016, she released a tell-all memoir…
Rivers Solomon’s short novel The Deep is a riveting folkloric, afrofuturist novel that imagines a society of water-dwelling beings who descended from pregnant African women who were thrown overboard slave ships. This is by far the most interesting mermaid narrative I have ever read. The novella was inspired by a song of the same name…
All Kinds of Lives (July 2022) by Shilpa Jacobie and Max McConnell
Cash Blackbear is back again in the second entry of Marcie R. Rendon’s Cash Blackbear Mystery Series, Girl Gone Missing. Just like its predecessor, the strength of Girl Gone Missing does not lie in the process of mystery-solving, but more so on how that process affects the titular character, Cash. Girl Gone Missing picks up…
River Solomon’s An Unkindness of Ghosts is an imaginative, violent science fiction novel that explores the brutality of plantation slavery in a generation ship setting, which holds the descendents of those who fled a dying Earth hundreds of years ago. The world of Matilda (the spaceship) is very well built, exploring a very diverse population…
Reviewing Emery Lee’s Meet Cute Diary is a challenge because it is the most overt celebration of trans joy, trans culture, and trans love that I have ever had the privilege of reading, which makes it so hard to think about with a critical eye. The young adult novel follows main character Noah, a transgender…
When I saw the new CD audiobook of Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown hit our shelves, I figured that was my sign to revisit the ageless classic. And I was right! Our shelves are lined with her cozy mysteries, but this 1970s coming of age novel has a special place in my heart. Being…
Alice Oseman’s Heartstopper series is the most comforting read I’ve picked up in a while. The young adult graphic novel romance series currently has four volumes with a fifth on the way (although if you’re too impatient to wait for the fifth to be published, author Alice Oseman releases updates three times a month on…
A friend of mine recommended Honey Girl by Morgan Rogers to me after I ranted about a different romance novel I disliked, and it was the perfect palate cleanser! At its most basic core, this is a lesbian spin on the classic “waking up married to a stranger in Vegas” trope, but it is so…