The other chunk of reading through my trade paperbacks. I only own a few now, the ones I liked enough to keep from this period and then a few very long ones I chose to not read. Those are mainly letters and biographies. Gotta say, it’s nice to have cleaned through this shelf. Even if I have already filled it again.
Lore Olympus: Volume Four and Five by Rachel Smythe
Rereading through these was a substantial part of the first part, and it continued here too. I’m combining 4 and 5 together, because I reread them in the same evening and it saves me from writing two quite similar paragraphs. I really did not remember what happened here, it’s a good thing that I have now re-read them and actually taken the plot in better. It honestly was like I was reading it for the first time at parts like I really did not retain it. I love these books, very excited for the 6th one coming out in a couple months.
Paulina & Fran by Rachel B. Glaser
Paulina and Fran are two very different teenagers that are drawn together and become extremely close. The novel follows their friendship in art school and then beyond as they grow apart. I thought I was going to really love this, I had extremely high expectations for some reason. It was a good novel, just not as good as I thought it would be.
Truevine: Two Brothers, a Kidnapping, and a Mother’s Quest: A True Story of the Jim Crow South by Beth Macy
A very long title but it really says all it has to and saves me part of a job. This novel follows two albino brothers as they grow up, are kidnapped into a circus and then grow up in and out of that environment. It was a heavy one, but super important and a way of living that I had never thought about for so many reasons. It was a fascinating read.
A Country Road, A Tree by Jo Baker
“When war breaks out in Europe in 1939, a young, unknown writer journeys from his home in neutral Ireland to conflict-ridden Paris and is drawn into the maelstrom. With him we experience the hardships yet stubborn vibrancy at the heart of Europe during the Nazis’ rise to power; his friendships with James Joyce and other luminaries; his quietly passionate devotion to the Frenchwoman who will become his lifelong companion; his secret work for the French Resistance and narrow escapes from the Gestapo; his flight from occupied Paris to the countryside; and the rubble of his life after liberation. And through it all we are witness to workings of a uniquely brilliant mind struggling to create a language that will express his experience of this shattered world. Here is a remarkable story of survival and determination, and a portrait of the extremes of human experience alchemized into timeless art.”
Effie in Venice: Mrs. John Ruskin’s Letters Home, 1849-52 by Effie Gray, edited by Mary Lutyens
“In 1849, and again in 1852, the celebrated art critic John Ruskin took his young wife Effie to Venice. While he was busy writing books that were to define the Victorian ideal, Effie explored Venice with growing freedom and independence of thought. Her letters home, discovered and edited by biographer Mary Lutyens, are an enchanting evocation of a special moment in the history of Venice as well as the history of art.” A great example of life for women at the time, in art and across Europe.
The Rapture by Claire McGlasson
A novel about a woman who grows up in a religious cult, her relationship with the women in the cult (wink wink), and how she got out of it. I knew I would like this novel, it was one I was so excited to read and one of the few here that I have kept. It was really well paced and each aspect of it was explored the perfect amount. Truly a very well done novel. The cover here is not the one I have because the trade one has a different one and I cannot find it anywhere, but I do want to buy a proper paperback version if it ever crosses my path.
The Last Post by Renee Carlino
A novel about a woman whose husband dies in an unfortunate snowboarding (?) accident, her life just before and after the accident and how starts to get her life back together, with the help of those around her. There is a prominent romantic plot here that feels a little too soon to me, but that is resolved by the end luckily. I did read a lot of this with a slight sour taste in my mouth for that reason but the more I think about that, all the characters seemed aware of that fact and it may not have been that bad. I liked this a lot, I was not expecting to like it this much but it was really good. And I really like the main character. Her actions were super real for the most part and I feel a lot for her.
Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict
A novel about a mixed race woman who is hired to cultivate a rich white man’s personal library, her family, time at work and relationships because of it, and how she hides being a woman of colour in a world where a woman in a prestigious position was an anomaly, let alone a woman of colour. The premise of this one was super intriguing for me, and really had me hooked. I would have liked more about her work and family and less of a romantic thing, but the romance brings the drama and so the plot so I get it. Still a good book. I am being far more positive here than I thought I was going to be.
The Gallery of Vanished Husbands by Natasha Solomons
“London, 1958. It’s the eve of the sexual revolution, but in Juliet Montague’s conservative Jewish community where only men can divorce women, she finds herself a living widow, invisible. Ever since her husband disappeared seven years ago, Juliet has been a hardworking single mother of two and unnaturally practical. But on her thirtieth birthday, that’s all about to change. A wealthy young artist asks to paint her portrait, and Juliet, moved by the powerful desire to be seen, enters into the burgeoning art world of 1960s London, which will bring her fame, fortune, and a life-long love affair.“
The Vintner’s Luck by Elizabeth Knox
“One summer night in 1808, Sobran Jodeau sets out to drown his love sorrows in his family’s vineyard when he stumbles on an angel. Once he gets over his shock, Sobran decides that Xas, the male angel, is his guardian sent to counsel him on everything from marriage to wine production. But Xas turns out to be a far more mysterious character. Compelling and erotic, The Vintner’s Luck explores a decidedly unorthodox love story as Sobran eventually comes to love and be loved by both Xas and the young Countess de Valday, his friend and employer at the neighboring chateau.” I did not pay enough attention to this to realise that it was gay, and that was my mistake.
“From a powerful new voice in international fiction, this prize-winning collection of stories crosses the world—from Africa, London, the West Indies, and Australia—and expresses the global experience.
Maxine Beneba Clarke gives voice to the disenfranchised, the lost, and the mistreated in this stunning collection of provocative and gorgeously wrought stories that will challenge you, move you, and change the way you view this complex world we inhabit.
Within these pages, a desperate asylum seeker is pacing the hallways of Sydney’s notorious Villawood detention centre; a seven-year-old Sudanese boy has found solace in a patchwork bike; an enraged black militant is on the war-path through the rebel squats of 1960s Brixton; a Mississippi housewife decides to make the ultimate sacrifice to save her son from small-town ignorance; a young woman leaves rural Jamaica in search of her destiny; and an Australian schoolgirl loses her way.”
A World Of Fallen Pieces by Sylvie Dare
“Paris 1946 Marjorie boards a plane in Paris bound for Prague with her baby daughter. Gustave is delayed by formalities at the desk. Once he’s finally on board, she relaxes into a daydream and the touching and dramatic story is how they met, became a family and enjoyed their lives by the Seine. 29th September, 1938 the Munich Agreement is signed casting a shadow over Gustave’s Czech nationality. When war is declared their lives are scattered – anti-Nazi Gustave enlists with the French Foreign Legion and is posted to Algeria. Marjorie’s home is requisitioned when the Germans march in to Paris. She and her boys are placed in several camps before being repatriated to her husband’s Sudeten homeland. This leads to internment for Gustave and conscription for Graham, their son, who mounts a daring escape from Dresden. When peace finally comes, the family’s plans for a settled future are derailed when their final tragic venture unfolds.” A local novel for me, which is always fun.
In Every Sense Like Love by Simona Vinci
“In these thirteen dark, disturbing and riveting tales of obsession, Vinci explores the relationship between love and sex in the 21st Century, where devotion to corporate values may mean our bodies are the only things over which we have power. Her sensitive portrayal of behaviour often dismissed as deviant, makes her a compellingly original writer.” Weird weird stories, I loved it. And either she writes from male POVs sometimes, or this was pretty gay. Regardless, I enjoyed it.
The Princess and the Fangirl by Ashley Poston
This book was the opposite, I was expecting a gay plot and it did not come. Unless I just did not pay attention but I think I did. It’s about an actress on a sci-fi show, and a fan of the show that is fighting for the character of the actress to not get killed of. It’s a Prince and the Pauper retelling (they pretend to be each other), mixed with fandom and it’s a pretty good time. Aside from the fact that I thought the two main girls were going to kiss each other, it did what I expected it to.
The Diary of a Teenage Girl: An Account in Words and Pictures by Phoebe Gloeckner
This is a mixed media (prose with illustrations and chunks of comics) book about a teenage girl at a super pivotal time in her life. She’s discovering sex and relationships in a messy environment. There is a film based on this, which I watched a few years ago. Bel Powley is the main character in it, and I loved her so I had to see it. To my recollection, a lot of the same things happen but there is something about reading it that made it realer. I don’t think it beat around the bush as much and was more forthcoming.
Lotus by Lijia Zhang
About a woman who is torn between Chinese tradition and modernity. The novel is largely about her life as a prostitute and her desire to fall in love and feel general comfort. It’s a pretty heavy novel but I was totally engrossed and invested. It takes a rather objective view of it all which really pays off here. It doesn’t really impose any opinions on the women, and gives a balanced approach to their lives as prostitutes, even the opinions of other characters are weighted. But it’s not like preachy or anything, there’s a good plot here.
I Laugh Me Broken by Bridget van der Zijpp
“Ginny has always had questions about her mother, who took her own life with no explanation when Ginny was young. Now, in her thirties, she learns the devastating truth: her mother may have been developing Huntington’s disease, and chose to end her life rather than wait to find out. Ginny could take the test that will reveal if she shares her mother’s fate. Instead she drops everything and bolts to Berlin, leaving her loving fiancé in the dark. Navigating the transient, hedonistic German city, she meets its inhabitants and absorbs their tangle of stories as she tries to gather the strength to face her future.” I remember the bit about her life in Berlin, but not really the start chunk.
Nobody But Us by Laure Van Rensburg
This novel follows an older man and a young woman as they stay in a cabin together for the weekend. We learn about their relationship and their lives outside of each other as the trip takes a sudden and thrilling turn. The trade version has an embarrassing cover and I did not love the optics of reading this in public but when I tell you I have never read page book this quickly. I absolutely devoured this, it was so compelling, so fun. When I say I didn’t expect to like a book I really mean it here but this is one of the best books of the bunch. The copy I have is really ugly though so I did not keep it.
Poison Ivy: Thorns by Kody Keplinger, illustrated by Sara Kipin
I am slowly making my way though all of the DC books I’ve picked up. I had a few Ivy ones unread and thought I should change that so I grabbed this YA Ivy novel. It’s about her as a teenager, living with her dad and going to school. But there is something off about her life, that is uncovered after she becomes close to classmate Alice. I haven’t read a lot of Harley or Ivy novels that lean into the gay and it was lovely to read a sapphic Ivy novel. And the romance is a really key, cute part of this. It also very much leans into the science and Ivy’s passion for plants, as you would hope it did. I am falling back into a DC mood and this book did not help but I had a whale of a time.
I’ve never written this kind of post straight through, I usually pick and choose the one I want to write about. I wonder if that shows.
Georgia
x
Yellow Rose Road 