Surrender Your Sons, by Adam Sass ~ 4.5 Stars

Tags

Conversion Therapy, Homophobia, Humor, LGBTQ, Physical & Emotional Abuse, Religious Fanaticism, Romance, Suicide, Violence, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Flux for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: September 15th, 2020

392 Pages

Synopsis: Connor Major’s summer break is turning into a nightmare.

His SAT scores bombed, the old man he delivers meals to died, and when he came out to his religious zealot mother, she had him kidnapped and shipped off to a secluded island. His final destination: Nightlight Ministries, a conversion therapy camp that will be his new home until he “changes.”

But Connor’s troubles are only beginning. At Nightlight everyone has something to hide from the campers to the “converted” staff and the cagey camp director, and it quickly becomes clear that no one is safe. Connor plans to escape and bring the other kidnapped teens with him. But first he’s exposing the camp’s horrible truths for what they are—and taking this place down.

Before I review Adam Sass’s excellent Surrender Your Sons, I have first share my complete and utter revulsion that conversion/reparative therapy is still allowed in the majority of states in this country. As of July 1, 2020, there will be only 20 states banning this reprehensible and THOROUGHLY DEBUNKED practice. The majority (including my state of Alabama), still allow parents to approve this “treatment” for their minor children. The Human Rights Campaign has a lot of information if you want to check it out here:

https://hrc.org/resources/the-lies-and-dangers-of-reparative-therapy

And there’s more at The Trevor Project at:

https://thetrevorproject.org/get-involved/trevor-advocacy/50-bills-50-states/about-conversion-therapy/ and https://thetrevorproject.org/category/advocacy/conversion-therapy/

Surrender Your Sons is a story you should go into as blind as possible so I’m going to go even out of my way not to include any spoilers than I usually do. Adam Sass states in his Author’s Note (which you should definitely read), “I want to acknowledge that you’ll find queer pain in this book. However, it’s not about queer pain. It’s about what queers do with pain. This is what drives the entire novel. The plot itself is dark, issue-driven, yet has moments of levity to lighten things up. There are a few themes that could pose a problem for some readers so here are my trigger warnings: Severe homophobia, physical & emotional abuse, graphic violence, sexual content, and suicide. The characters, beginning with Connor are so well written they seem to jump off the pages, and I feel as though I know them all personally, both the ones I liked and the ones I wanted to strangle with my bare hands. The mystery was interesting and kept me guessing right up until the end, but to be honest, I really kept reading because I became so emotionally invested in Connor and his friends. There are a couple of sections around the middle of the book where things slowed down a bit, and I think this could have been trimmed. Otherwise, Surrender Your Sons is a noteworthy addition to LGBTQ+ fiction that I unhesitatingly recommend for anyone 15 and up. It’s dark and brutal at times and will elicit some strong emotions, but it also leaves you with hope at the end. 

 

Angel of the Crows, by Katherine Addison ~ 3.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, LGBTQ, Mystery, Steampunk, Supernatural

Thanks to NetGalley and Tor Books for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: June 23rd, 2020

432 Pages

Synopsis: Katherine Addison, author of The Goblin Emperor, returns with The Angel of the Crows, a fantasy novel of alternate 1880s London, where killers stalk the night and the ultimate power is naming.

This is not the story you think it is. These are not the characters you think they are. This is not the book you are expecting.

In an alternate 1880s London, angels inhabit every public building, and vampires and werewolves walk the streets with human beings in a well-regulated truce. A fantastic utopia, except for a few things: Angels can Fall and that Fall is like a nuclear bomb in both the physical and metaphysical world. And human beings remain human with all their kindness and greed and passions and murderous intent.

Jack the Ripper stalks the streets of this London too. But this London has an Angel. The Angel of the Crows.

Being a Sherlock Holmes fan, I was immediately intrigued by Angel of the Crows which began as fanfic. It’s not bad, but it could have used some more originality.

For the most part, what Katherine Addison has done, is taken some of Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories (A Study in Scarlet, The Adventure of the Copper Beeches, The Hound of the Baskervilles, and The Speckled Band), thrown in the Whitechapel murders by Jack the Ripper in the background, and added fantasy, dystopian, and steampunk elements. The problem is, despite these different themes the characters and stories don’t really divert much from the original source material. Some of the dialogue is even remarkably similar to BBCs Sherlock Holmes series.

For the first half of the book I was also a bit confused much of the time in regards to this alternate London. It took me a while to understand the difference between angels and their roles. I felt as though I had just been dropped and left to make my own way through this murky world.

Despite these issues, I did find much to enjoy in this rather curious tale. I did like Crow (Sherlock), and Doyle (Watson), and as much as I love ACD’s original stories, it must be admitted that some had racist and sexist connotations. Addison deftly removed these without taking anything away from the story. I also liked the addition of Dr. Doyle’s secrets that he’s hiding. They’re creatively done yet perfectly fit in with his personality. The story is also quite fast-paced and I never found myself bored.

Overall, while not perfect, Angel of the Crows is an entertaining journey back to Victorian London with English literature’s most endearing odd couple. I can easily see this being turned into a tv series like Showtime’s Penny Dreadful. For fans of the original Sherlock series, think of this as a nice reread with some interesting fantastical additions. If you’re not familiar with the four stories I mentioned, you may actually enjoy this even more.

 

Prelude For Lost Souls (Prelude For Lost Souls #1), by Helene Dunbar ~ 3.5 Stars

Tags

LGBTQ, Mystery, Romance, Supernatural, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: August 4th, 2020

384 Pages

Synopsis: For readers of Nova Ren Suma, Maggie Steifvater, and Maureen Johnson comes a spellbinding tale of choosing your own path, the families we create for ourselves, and facing the ghosts of our pasts.

In the town of St. Hilaire, most make their living by talking to the dead. In the summer the town gates open to tourists seeking answers while all activity is controlled by The Guild, a sinister ruling body that sees everything.

Dec Hampton has lived there his entire life, but ever since his parents died, he’s been done with it. He knows he has to leave before anyone has a chance to stop him.

His best friend Russ won’t be surprised when Dec leaves—but he will be heartbroken. Russ is a good medium, maybe even a great one. He’s made sacrifices for his gift and will do whatever he can to gain entry to The Guild, even embracing dark forces and contacting the most elusive ghost in town.

But when the train of Annie Krylova, the piano prodigy whose music has been Dec’s main source of solace, breaks down outside of town, it sets of an unexpected chain of events. And in St. Hilaire there are no such thing as coincidences.

I was so excited when I saw the gorgeous cover and read the premise of Prelude For Lost Souls. And you know what? It wasn’t bad. However, I wasn’t blown away by it like I thought I would be.

This is a unique, and quite imaginative plot driven story, which I really appreciated. I swear it’s getting more and more difficult to find a book out there that doesn’t contain at least some elements that remind you of a previous one. Rest assured, that’s definitely not the case here. For those of you familiar with Lily Dale, the real hamlet made up of mediums and spiritualists in south western New York, it served as the author’s inspiration. St. Hilaire however is quite a bit darker and has some strong fascist overtones. There is definitely something underhanded going on in terms of The Guild, and there’s not a lot revealed in this first book, so I’m looking forward to what comes next.

The weakest part of the book lies in its characters. Anna and Dec both have what should have been fascinating backstories, but they and the dialogue between them come across as rather flat, which makes it difficult to connect with them. The saving grace though is Dec’s best friend Russ, who also gets his own chapters. I absolutely LOVED him! All the emotions and passion I was looking for in Dec and Anna poured out of Russ’s pages.

The middle of the book slows down a bit before picking up toward the end, which perfectly sets things up for the sequel. All in all, while not perfect, Prelude For Lost Souls, has me hooked, and I’m eagerly looking forward to revisiting St. Hilaire and its secrets.

 

The Sullivan Sisters, by Kathryn Ormsbee ~ 4.0 Stars

Tags

Diversity, Dysfunctional Families, LGBTQ, Mystery, Substance Abuse, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: May 26th, 2020

384 Pages

Synopsis: Time changes things.

That painful fact of life couldn’t be truer for the Sullivan sisters. Once, they used to be close, sharing secrets inside homemade blanket castles. Now, life inside the Sullivan house means closed doors and secrets left untold.

Fourteen-year-old Murphy, an aspiring magician, is shocked by the death of Siegfried, her pet turtle. Seventeen-year-old Claire, is bound for better things than her Oregonian hometown—until she receives a crushing rejection from her dream college. And eighteen-year-old Eileen is nursing a growing addiction in the wake of life-altering news.

Then, days before Christmas, a letter arrives, informing the sisters of a dead uncle and an inheritance they knew nothing about. The news forces them to band together in the face of a sinister family mystery…and, possibly, murder.

Coming from a dysfunctional family, I love reading about other’s family woes, and The Sullivan Sisters is a well written combination of one such family and a mystery that will bring them together, or tear them apart.

Each sister’s narrative helps bring them to life and instill a certain amount of sympathy for what each of them has gone through. I do have to say that I thought the story itself was slightly predictable and could have used some more twists and action, but I kept reading because I connected with the sisters.

Overall, I quite enjoyed The Sullivan Sisters. Kathryn Ormsbee, did a wonderful job capturing the voices of each sister, and while I wasn’t surprised by the outcome at the end, it was still an interesting journey getting there. This is the first book I’ve read by the author, but I’ll definitely be looking for future books by her.

 

You’re Next, by Kylie Schachte ~ 4.0 Stars

Tags

Contemporary Fiction, LGBTQ, Mental Health, Mystery, Suspense, Violence, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Jimmy Patterson for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: June 23rd, 2020

480 Pages

Synopsis: Flora Calhoun has a reputation for sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong. After stumbling across a classmate’s body years ago, the trauma of that discovery and the police’s failure to find the killer has haunted her ever since. One night she gets a midnight text from Ava McQueen, the beautiful girl who had ignited Flora’s heart last summer, then never spoke to her again.

Just in time to witness Ava’s death from a gunshot wound, Flora is set on a path of rage and vengeance for all the dead girls whose killer is never found. Her tunnel-visioned sleuthing leads to valuable clues about a shocking conspiracy involving her school and beyond, but earns her sinister threats from the murderer. She has a choice—to give up the hunt for answers, or keep digging and risk her loved ones’ lives. Either way, Flora will regret the consequences. Who’s next on the killer’s list?

If you pick up You’re Next, be prepared to leave a healthy dose of scepticism at the door. It’s a combination of Veronica Mars, Nancy Drew and Riverdale, and while it’s a little rough at times, overall it’s a fun read.

The beginning is a little awkward because of the previous murder. The way it’s written kind of leaves the impression that there was another book, but there’s not. At the same time though, it gives you more insight into Flora’s troubled mind. She’s never gotten over that trauma and the combination of that, this new murder of her ex-girlfriend, and her tumultuous relationship with her absentee mother makes her careen out of control. I loved her relationship with her grandfather who has become parent to both Flora and her younger sister Olive, but I was also frustrated at times because I felt he gave her far too much latitude in regards to her detective work. I also found it unbelievable that psychological counseling was never even considered.

I loved Flora’s relationship with the enigmatic Valentine and found myself rooting for these two emotionally scarred human beings. While their romance is rocky in the beginning due to miscommunication and lack of trust, it slowly evolves during the story into something more meaningful.

The two other characters I loved the most were Olive and Flora’s best friend, Cass. They’re both supportive yet unafraid to call Flora out when she says or does something unacceptable. While she tends to take them for granted, toward the end of the book she realizes how much she depends upon them.

At almost 500 pages long, this probably could have had about 50-75 pages edited out, but it still manages to move along at a surprisingly fast pace thanks to the almost continuous action. The ending is a whopper and I’m assuming there will be a sequel. If not, I’m taking a point off my rating!

You’re Next is an enjoyable read that I think fans of YA authors like Karen McManus and Jennifer Lynn Barnes will enjoy. It provided a nice distraction from current events and I’ll be on the look out for the next book.

 

The Extraordinaries (The Extraordinaries #1), by TJ Klune ~ 4.5 Stars

Tags

ADHD, Coming-of age, Death of a parent, Diversity, Humor, LGBTQ, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Tor Teen for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: May 5th, 2020

400 Pages

Synopsis: Some people are extraordinary. Some are just extra. TJ Klune’s YA debut, The Extraordinaries, is a queer coming-of-age story about a fanboy with ADHD, and the heroes he loves.

Nick Bell? Not extraordinary. But being the most popular fanfiction writer in the Extraordinaries fandom is a super power, right?

After a chance encounter with Shadow Star, Nova City’s mightiest hero (and Nick’s biggest crush), Nick sets out to make himself extraordinary. And he’ll do it with or without the help of Seth Gray, Nick’s best friend (and maybe the love of his life).

Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl meets Marissa Meyer’s Renegades in TJ Klune’s YA debut.

With everything going on I needed something fun that would make me smile and laugh, and The Extraordinaries more than delivered!

Nick Bell is an adorably awkward gay teen who has ADHD and an obsession with superheroes. His relationship with his small group of friends and his dad provide some wonderfully moving moments as well as some humorous ones. The “Extraordinaries” of Nova City themselves, are mainly in the background, but provide context for Nick’s obsession.

The storyline itself is a little rough around the edges at times, especially in regards to Nick’s utter cluelessness about what’s going on with his best friend Seth, but to be honest, Nick’s personality is otherwise so endearing, that I was willing to overlook his shortcomings. 

In the end, The Extraordinaries is a memorable coming-of-age story filled with relatable, diverse characters and a fun messy storyline. It’s the perfect escape from what’s happening in the real world and I can’t recommend it enough, especially for fans of authors such as Becky Albertalli, Rainbow Rowell, and Adam Silvera. I’m eagerly looking forward to the next book in this trilogy.

Catherine House, by Elisabeth Thomas ~ 3.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, LGBTQ, Mystery, Substance Abuse, Suspense

Thanks to NetGalley and Custom House for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: May 12th, 2020

320 Pages

Synopsis: A gothic-infused debut of literary suspense, set within a secluded, elite university and following a dangerously curious, rebellious undergraduate who uncovers a shocking secret about an exclusive circle of students…and the dark truth beneath her school’s promise of prestige. 

Catherine House is a school of higher learning like no other. Hidden deep in the woods of rural Pennsylvania, this crucible of reformist liberal arts study with its experimental curriculum, wildly selective admissions policy, and formidable endowment, has produced some of the world’s best minds: prize-winning authors, artists, inventors, Supreme Court justices, presidents. For those lucky few selected, tuition, room, and board are free. But acceptance comes with a price. Students are required to give the House three years—summers included—completely removed from the outside world. Family, friends, television, music, even their clothing must be left behind. In return, the school promises a future of sublime power and prestige, and that its graduates can become anything or anyone they desire.

Among this year’s incoming class is Ines Murillo, who expects to trade blurry nights of parties, cruel friends, and dangerous men for rigorous intellectual discipline—only to discover an environment of sanctioned revelry. Even the school’s enigmatic director, Viktória, encourages the students to explore, to expand their minds, to find themselves in the formidable iron gates of Catherine. For Ines it is the closest thing to a home she’s ever had. But the House’s strange protocols soon make this refuge, with its worn velvet and weathered leather, feel increasingly like a gilded prison. And when tragedy strikes, Ines begins to suspect that the school—in all its shabby splendor, hallowed history, advanced theories, and controlled decadence—might be hiding a dangerous agenda within the secretive, tightly knit group of students selected to study its most promising and mysterious curriculum.

Combining the haunting sophistication and dusky, atmospheric of Sarah Waters, with the unsettling isolation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go, Catherine House is a devious, deliciously steamy, and suspenseful page-turner with shocking twists and sharp edges that is sure to leave readers breathless.

Catherine House is an odd little book that’s left me in a bit of a quandary as to how I feel about it. On the one hand, while it starts with the ubiquitous sinister boarding school trope, the direction it takes that in is decidedly different from anything I’ve read before. So, kudos for originality and creativity. And although I can’t say I truly liked any of the characters, I did find them very intriguing in a sort of perverse, watching a trainwreck sort of way. They reminded me a little of the ones in The Magicians, by Lev Grossman—very complex, at times annoying, with questionable motives. I also liked the creepy atmospheric world building and setting. The premise promises “shocking twists…sure to leave readers breathless,” but that isn’t the case as the pace is slow enough that I kept thinking thank goodness it’s a relatively short book. Just as the rest of the book did, the lackluster ending has also left me conflicted. After mulling things over though, I’m going to recommend this quirky read. It has its flaws, but it’s a unique read that I think is definitely worth trying out for yourself particularly if you don’t mind meandering plots and sketchy characters.

 

Belle Révolte, by Linsey Miller ~ 2.5 Stars

Tags

Diversity, Fantasy, LGBTQ, Romance, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: February 4th, 2020

384 Pages

Synopsis: Emilie des Marais is more at home holding scalpels than embroidery needles and is desperate to escape her noble roots to serve her country as a physician. But society dictates a noble lady cannot perform such gruesome work.

Annette Boucher, overlooked and overworked by her family, wants more from life than her humble beginnings and is desperate to be trained in magic. So when a strange noble girl offers Annette the chance of a lifetime, she accepts.

Emilie and Annette swap lives—Annette attends finishing school as a noble lady to be trained in the ways of divination, while Emile enrolls to be a physician’s assistant, using her natural magical talent to save lives.

But when their nation instigates a frivolous war, Emilie and Annette must work together to help the rebellion end a war that is based on lies.

Belle Révolte is another book that initially caught my attention because of the interesting cover. Unfortunately, I struggled to finish this standalone. Both Emilie and Annette are two strong-willed girls trapped in a society which doesn’t offer much to females, yet they refuse to be forced into the roles they’re expected to play. I really liked both of them and was cheering them on throughout the book. I also loved the transgender and asexual representation which I haven’t come across that often in my reading. It was naturally done and didn’t define the characters. 

Now unfortunately here’s what didn’t work for me. First, the pacing was all over the place. Some sections the book seemed to drag interminably, while others moved so quickly it left me confused. While I was very interested in the political aspects of this French-inspired world, the magic system, which is an integral part of the storyline was underdeveloped and also left me bewildered. There were times that I found myself having to go back and re-read passages to try to make sense of what was happening, and even doing that I wasn’t always successful. To be honest, if this wasn’t an eARC from NetGalley and the publisher, I most likely would have given up. 

Overall, while Belle Révolte had some shining moments, they just weren’t enough to dispel the negatives for me. This is the third book I’ve read by Linsey Miller, and I’ve had similar issues with all of them, which leads me to conclude that she’s not the author for me. However, she has numerous fans so please don’t let me discourage you from giving her a try, especially if you’re looking for YA fantasy with diverse characters and interesting politics.

 

Wicked As You Wish (A Hundred Names for Magic #1), by Rin Chupeco ~ 4.0 Stars

Tags

Alternate History, Diversity, Fantasy, LGBTQ, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: March 3rd, 2020

432 Pages

Synopsis: Tarla Warnock has little use for magic—as a descendant of Maria Makiling, the legendary Filipina, she negates spells, often by accident. But her family’s old ties to the country of Avalon (frozen, bespelled, and unreachable for almost 12 years) soon finds them guarding its last prince from those who would use his kingdom’s magic for insidious ends.

And with the rise of dangerous spelltech in the Royal States of America; the appearance of the firebird, Avolon’s deadliest weapon, at her doorstep; and the re-emergence of the Snow Queen, powerful but long thought dead, who wants nothing more than to take the firebird’s magic for her own—Tala’s life is about to get even more complicated.

I have to be honest and say that the first 100 pages of Wicked As You Wish, is somewhat of an info dump and at one point I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to keep reading. There are numerous characters that are introduced and a LOT of world building, which had me confused and frustrated. But I persevered because I’ve enjoyed Rin Chupeco’s previous books and I really loved the premise behind this story, and as it turns out, I’m really happy I did. The cast of characters are lovable and diverse, and they left me hard-pressed to choose a favorite. The world building, while confusing at first, wound up utterly entrancing after that awkward start. The story evolves into an artistic tapestry woven from shimmering threads of diversity, alternate history, fantasy, and fairytale magic, and I dare say only Rin Chupeco could pull this off. I highly recommend this to fans of hers as well as readers who are looking for a thoroughly unique and engrossing read filled with endearing characters. Despite the rocky beginning, I encourage you to push past it, because the rest of the book is sheer perfection!

Eight Will Fall, by Sarah Harian ~ 4.5 Stars

Tags

Dark Fantasy, Horror, LGBTQ, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, YA Fiction

Thanks to Edelweiss and Henry Holt for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: Available Now

352 Pages

Synopsis: In a land where magic is outlawed, eight criminals led by seventeen-year-old Larkin, are sent on a mission to kill an ancient evil that plagues their kingdom. Descending into an underground realm filled with unspeakable horrors, Larkin and her party must use their forbidden magic to survive what lies in wait, teeth sharp and jaws deadly.

As she fights for her life, Larkin finds a light in Amias, a fellow outlaw with a notorious past. Soon Larkin and Amias realize their fates are entwined. The eight of them were chosen for a reason.

But as the dangers multiply and her band of felons are picked off one by one, Larkin must confront a terrible truth: they were never meant to return.

I need to start by saying Eight Will Fall will not be to everyone’s taste. To say that it’s dark is putting it mildly. I consider myself pretty hardened against blood and gore, but some of the scenes here had me cringing. Without giving way too many spoilers, let me just say that several instances of flaying are involved. Blech! Just thinking about it gives me the heebie jeebies! That said, the goriness isn’t gratuitous and it’s all part of the story. Which leads me to the phenomenal world building which is one of the most creative and original I’ve come across in recent memory. While the idea of “magic users” being ostracized by their society isn’t new, the entire magic system involving empaths isn’t something I’ve seen before. And, as Larkin and her team make their way deeper into the underground realm, I felt this growing sense of claustrophobia and outright dread that went beyond the monsters they encountered. Eek! Just thinking about it as I write this review is sending chills up my spine, and I read this book a week ago!

Larkin and her team are the type of flawed characters that I love. They start off perhaps not making the best decisions, but as the dangers they face increase, so does their friendship and trust among one another. Unfortunately, this makes it even more heartbreaking when some of them die. The romance between Larkin and Amias isn’t a major part of the story, but it was sweet and added to my constant state of anxiety as the author made it clear almost from the beginning that no one was safe.

The story itself grabbed me immediately and never let go. It’s action-packed and the fast pace is aided by a few surprising twists. I did think that although the bittersweet ending wrapped everything up nicely, it felt a little rushed. I read somewhere that this was originally planned as a duology before being scaled back to a standalone, so perhaps that explains why.

Overall, Eight Will Fall is a near perfect hybrid of dark fantasy and horror. Because of the more gory scenes I discussed earlier, I do not recommend this to anyone younger than sixteen. Otherwise, for those who like these two genres and have strong stomachs, I encourage you to try this. I guarantee it will be a memorable read.