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    Blog Tour: You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson

    9th November 2020
    Cover of You Should See Me In A Crown (Leah Johnson)

    You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson

    Click on the cover for my review on Goodreads.

    Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-A-Million | Bookshop.org

    Hey y’all! I am Hsinju (she/they/他), a queer Taiwanese book reviewer and blogger currently residing in Illinois. Today (November 9th, 2020) is my Hear Our Voices Book Tours blog stop for the uplifting sapphic YA with a Black teen lead You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson! Set in the Midwest (hi neighboring Indiana), we follow Liz’s journey of running for prom queen.

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  • ARCs,  Book Reviews,  Fiction

    Cute Mutants Vol 1: Mutant Pride by SJ Whitby | ARC Review

    16th October 2020
    Cover of Cute Mutants Vol 1: Mutant Pride (SJ Whitby)

    Cute Mutants Vol 1: Mutant Pride (Cute Mutants Vol 1) by SJ Whitby

    Content warnings: transphobia, homophobia, hate crime, racism, sexual assault (one off-page nonconsensual m/f kiss), bullying, violence, blood, death of… prominent object, death of minor characters, dismembering, earthquakes

    Sometimes, I try to match the tone of my review to the voice of the book so that they give off similar vibes, but I could never achieve the level of joy this story brings. Cute Mutants Vol 1: Mutant Pride is a very queer (reps: lesbian, pansexual, transgender, etc.) and very racially diverse (reps: Korean, Kiwi-Chinese, etc.) version of X-men that is incredibly funny, quirky, and ridiculously good. If you want an exciting and fun read, definitely check this out.

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  • ARCs,  Book Reviews,  Fiction

    Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust | ARC Review

    27th September 2020
    Cover of Girl, Serpent, Thorn (Melissa Bashardoust)

    Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust, read by Nikki Massoud

    AUDIOBOOK REVIEW

    Content warnings: kidnap, torture, murder

    This is a breathtaking and artful retelling of Persian mythology and fairy tales. From the beginning of story, I fell in love with Bashardoust’s writing and Massoud’s narration.

    Yeki bood, yeki nabood. There was, and there was not a cursed, poisonous girl named Soraya (18, bi+). She was the young shah’s twin sister, but kept away from everyone because of her venomous veins, deadly upon touch. When the shah captured a div—parik Parvaneh, Soraya knew she owed herself to seek answers of her own curse from the prizoner. And then there was Azad, a young man who understood her, giving Soraya the unconditional acceptance and love she craved the most, despite her poison. As she learned that the only way to undo her curse was to put her family’s lives at risk, would Soraya exchange their safety—a family who were ashamed of her monstrous quality—for her own human self, or keep herself tucked away for the rest of eternity?

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  • ARCs,  Book Reviews,  Fiction

    The Silvered Serpents by Roshani Chokshi | ARC Review

    20th September 2020
    Cover of The Silvered Serpents

    The Silvered Serpents (The Gilded Wolves #2) by Roshani Chokshi

    CW: dismemberment, torture, blood Forging, off-screen killings, emotional abuse, alcohol, (possible) panic attacks, antisemitism, racism, suicide of a very minor character, bombing, manipulation

    I love the tagline, “They are each other’s fiercest love, greatest danger, and only hope.” Upon finishing, I realized just how true it is.

    “We debase ourselves for the ones we love.”

    Laila
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  • Book Reviews,  Fiction

    The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi

    15th September 2020
    Cover of The Gilded Wolves (Roshani Chokshi)

    The Gilded Wolves (The Gilded Wolves #1) by Roshani Chokshi

    The overall atmosphere Chokshi had created was gloomy, haunting, and breathtaking. She stated that the idea for this trilogy stemmed from hearing about the “human zoo” displaying Filipinos in 1904 World’s Fair. Then she came across another “human zoo” featuring “Negro Village” in 1889 Exposition Universelle. The Gilded Wolves series was never meant to be a cheery story. Set in the 19th century, Chokshi wanted to show the “beauty and horror” of La Belle Époque, The Beautiful Era. In her words, “When we revise the horror and sanitize the grotesque, we risk erasing the paths that led us here.” And I love how she managed to achieve telling an honest story with a magical twist in this first installment.

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