“But my heart isn't simple or straightforward. It's a complicated mess of wants and needs, boys and girls: soft, rough, and everything in between,
“But my heart isn't simple or straightforward. It's a complicated mess of wants and needs, boys and girls: soft, rough, and everything in between, an ever-shifting precipice from which to fall.”
As soon as I started this book I knew it was the book for me. Far From You immediately places you into a setting thats a little gritty, with characters who are a little rough around the edges and honestly? thats what is great about this. I immediately draw comparisons with this book and Netflix' Riverdale - not all of it, but in the kind of gritty aesthetic, but most of all the way the murder is framed.
Far From You follows recovering drug addict Sophie - who's best friend and also girl she was in love with Mina was murdered four months ago. Sophie, determined to uncover the truth about Mina's murder launches an investigation of her own, leading her to uncover some of her towns deep dark secrets.
I really liked Far From You as a mystery. It definitely drove me to keep reading and to start questioning every character. but what I really liked about it was the characters. Especially Sophie, the main character. She's the kind of badass woman I absolutely dig in YA - not afraid to throw a punch, not here for anyone's shit. I loved her friendships with the women around her, and I loved the representation of her as a bisexual woman. I thought this aspect of identity was well written. Sophie also dealing with being in recovery for her drug addiction, as well as her disability, but I liked how these aspects of her identity were presented. Sophie fights everyday, and her strength and perseverance was, to me, a highlight. Sophie is also a disabled character with chronic pain and this review talks a little about that rep from a more personal perspective.
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Far From You felt needed to me. Yes, the mystery element has been done before - but the centring of such a strong, queer woman really made me so happy.
However, there are some elements I did not think were perfect. I do think the middle slumped a little, just before the investigation really starts to pick up. I also found the timeline confusing at times, and the flashbacks jarring. I don't like when flashbacks take me out of the action, I critique this in soo many books so I think it's just me, but it does mess me up. I also think the representation ethnicity wise was lacking - I would have liked to see more people of colour. Finally, while I loved the process of the investigation, I personally wasn't satisfied with the reveal. (view spoiler)[I felt that the character was kind of thrown in and so I didn't feel shock it was them because I had no reason to question their motives prior to the reveal (hide spoiler)]
“We walk into the rest of our lives together, not knowing it'll end before it's truly started.”
Overall, Far From You is gritty, compelling and centres a nuanced protagonist. The focus on diverse representation paired with the investigation and mystery plots was the perfect blend for me, and I loved that this book was so dark and there was an imminent sense of danger throughout....more
red is the colour of blood, of apples, of the T-shirt I bought on our last, worst all-Moreno family vacation .. red is flame and fury. red is thin
red is the colour of blood, of apples, of the T-shirt I bought on our last, worst all-Moreno family vacation .. red is flame and fury. red is thin and shallow and covers everything. red loves you back
things I have learnt about myself at age 19: I need to read whimsical books via audio instead of physical because this whimsical writing style never sticks with me (in audio form it does?)
Anyway, I guess I wanted to be more engaged with this then I was. I was so excited to read this book, and listen the writing is SO PRETTY, but it doesn't work for me. It kind of reminds me of Laini Taylor and Anna Marie McLemore, and I have trouble with both those authors too. But if you love them, you'd most definitely love this
The Gallery of Unfinished Girls follows Mercedes Moreno - a puerto rican bisexual girl. She's an artist who hasn't been able to paint anything since her award winning piece Food Poisoning #1, she's also in love with her best friend Victoria and her Abuela is in a coma, meaning she's looking after her little sister Angela while her mum is in Puerto Rico.
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First of all this is one of those books where I LOVED the concept and the aesthetic. The magical elements woven into the story and the kinda dreamlike way that things happen was so nice, even if I sometimes found myself disconnected from it. But what I did LOVE LOVE LOVE above all else in this book was the exploration of relationships. I love Mercedes and Victoria! And I could totally relate to the "being in love with a friend" thing, rip. Anyway, I think the way that relationship was done was so nice, I loved them and I loved the way their friendship worked. I also think the relationship between Mercedes and her sister and her mum was so interesting. The dynamics between the characters was my favourite part of this book and my heart hurts at that ending.
Lauren Karcz also managed to bring her themes together so well. This book tackles so many issues, from sexuality to family, to art, to friendships, and to growing into yourself and ties it all together so neatly. The careful and nuanced way in which each of these issues is brought together and linked was really nice, and I loved the use of the Red Mangrove Estate to explore that.
One thing I couldn't engage with as much was the heavy emphasis on art knowledge. I don't know ANYTHING about art and art history so the references to artists and art techniques and things absolutely flew over my head. I felt like I was missing a bit of meaning beside all the things mentioned because I just didn't understand. I also wish the romance had been more heavily focussed on, because it was the bit that most interested me, and also the bit I felt was thrown most on the wayside.
Ultimately I think my issues with this book are more of a "its me, not you" kinda thing, because I think this book is well executed and I love it in theory. But I just couldn't get into it while I was actually READING it. Does that make sense? This book dragged so much for me, but it was just because the writing style wasn't working, not because it was actually boring.
But I ABSOLUTELY THINK YOU COULD LOVE THIS !! Yes, you !! It's got such nice writing and oh my goddd that romance actually makes me wanna cry I LOVE THEM. And it's just such a good book except that it didn't work for me? I don't even know how to explain myself what a mess.
something inside me is cracking open, the light coming through so bright it hurts, and the rest of me is still here, wounded, even though i know it
something inside me is cracking open, the light coming through so bright it hurts, and the rest of me is still here, wounded, even though i know it’s all for the best.
Set in an isolated dorm room during a snow storm - We Are Okay is a beautiful, emotionally charged little book that uses its short page count to pack a big punch. It examines the importance of humans connections to eachother and everything can change in little moments. Nina LaCour has such gorgeous writing and that was my favourite part of this book. The book is a really melancholy, but ultimately hopeful, exploration of grief, childhood nostalgia, and how it feels to drift away from loved ones over time.
A BIG THANKYOU to @AusYABloggers for sending me a review copy of this book as part of their blog tour to celebrate the Australian paperback release of We Are Okay. My full review of this book is coming on March 25th - when the tour stops on my blog. ...more
“I hate when assholes have talent. I want to live in a world where good people rule at everything and shitty people suck at everything.”
I really,
“I hate when assholes have talent. I want to live in a world where good people rule at everything and shitty people suck at everything.”
I really, really wanted to love this book. It was one of my most anticipated 2018 releases, and I was so excited to get this story from Becky Albertalli. For me personally, seeing a bisexual girl in a mainstream book I knew people would read really means a lot. Unfortunately this fell very very flat to me, and I’m going to be straight up here and acknowledge this may not be my most unbiased, objective review. I brought a lot of my ideas and hopes of what this book, and what Becky Albertalli would write, into this book and I think that played a part in my disappointment.
I’m going to start with the positives. I LOVED LEAH AS A MAIN CHARACTER SO MUCH. Her voice absolutely shone in this book and it dragged me into the story. Leah is a bit straight up and brash but I totally loved it, and it’s nice to see girls in YA getting more diverse, complex personalities that transcend archetypes. She, and this book in general, was also hilarious which is of course a massive plus. I seriously don't get why everyone's hating on her so much?? Like she's cool as fuck! (TEA. if she was a boy y'all would love her but people just HATE FEMALE CHARACTERS)
As with all Becky Albtertalli books, this was very readable. Once you started with this one, it was very hard to put it down. Albteralli infuses her works with such life and fun that you can’t help fall deep into the story. Her books are un-putdown-able.
But here’s where I get to my first issue. Compared to other Albtertalli books, I found so many parts of this book a slog. A lot of this book revolved around drama and fights and other friendship group messiness I just really could have done without. And here’s the thing: from any other author I probably wouldn’t have minded. But I expected something fluffy and fun and I just feel like instead I kinda got misery and it was annoying. I found the drama really upsetting at times.
On that, I also felt like a lot of Leah on the Offbeat felt clunky and out of character. I often felt like aspects of Leah, including Leah’s and Abby’s backstory and how some of the characters interacted, was super out of line with Simon Vs. I want to put a note here that I saw Love, Simon before reading this and that could have influenced by perceptions. But I still felt like, overall, some of the events and drama felt really, really out of place.
“Imagine going about your day knowing someone’s carrying you in their mind. That has to be the best part of being in love- the feeling of having a home in some else’s brain.”
One big aspect of this book for me was the bisexual rep. I was curious to see what it would be like and how the main f/f ship would be handled.
I’ll say first of all I generally enjoyed the rep, up until about 3/4 through. Leah was bisexual on page, which was nice. Leah spoke about her crushes and ships and the way she mentioned both men and women was really cute. I loved that she shipped both Ninej and also Percabeth. I also liked the discussion around coming out, and how it was uncomfortable, maybe even more so since her friends were out. I also think her being bi made so much sense with Simon Vs (idk how yall missed it but like,,, she literally is the person who introduced simon to queer fanfiction and you all actually thought she was straight??)
The f/f ship was cute, and I liked how it developed. The way that Leah spoke about the girl she was into was so soft and sweet, and it was really nice following how their relationship developed. Plus, the epilogue gave me LIFE. But again, I felt like so much of the potential aww’nesss of the relationship was ruined by the drama. The angst and mess wasn’t balanced enough for me so it was just annoying. I also HATED the first kiss and how it played out. I also think it was disappointing how many interactions with the main couple were fraught with misunderstandings and miscommunication.
And as mentioned earlier, 3/4 through something happened which I really didn’t like. This was the discussion between Leah and her LI about being bi. I’m going to link Marianne’s review, because she goes into it more depth and echoes what I think about this scene.
This scene was very unsettling to me. I understand what it was trying to do – point out that bisexual girls aren’t just in it for LAUGHS but that we’re actually genuinely queer, not straight girls messing around. But this scene really missed the mark. It upset me a bit, and I think it’d definitely hurt questioning people. I also think it’s just kind of wrong. Being “lowkey bi” is valid. The implication is that she’s a bit into girls, and you know what, if you’re a girl who likes girls only a little bit, that is VALID. I think this scene really, really missed the mark. And I’m actually really surprised and shocked it passed so many sensitivity readers.
“I'm basically your resident fat Slytherin Rory Gilmore.”
Okay, so yeah I didn't love this book, but I don't think it's bad either. It just isn't what I wanted from this book. I feel like if I reread it I might like it more upon rereading. But for me this had too many elements I didn't want and not enough I did. (OKAY FORGOT TO NOTE BUT, SIMON AND BLUE ARE CUTE)
I don't think people should be deterred from picking this up. Becky Albertalli writes good books, this one just wasn't for me and not everything came together in a satisfying way for me.
(on a salty side note, some of y'alls reviews for this book are disgraceful and y'all don't deserve gay girls bc you don't treat them right.) ...more
“From the ground, we stand. From our ships, we live. By the stars, we hope.”
Hey Becky Chambers .... if you're listening ..... *slides across a $5
“From the ground, we stand. From our ships, we live. By the stars, we hope.”
Hey Becky Chambers .... if you're listening ..... *slides across a $5 note* .... write more of these
This entire series has been such a pleasure to read and I am so sad it is over. Although this is probably my least favourite of the three I still enjoyed reading it and even felt a bit emotional at the end with the thought of this series ending. Everything about this series is so wholesome. I love the simple message of hope and a future where people are just better to eachother, and coming out of reading these books I always feel so warm and good. I LOVE that about them. These books are just such a bright sweet spot in my heart.
In Record of a Spaceborn Few we dive into life on the Fleet, examining how Exodan humans have lived and adapted to life in space. Told partly through a documentary being conducted on the humans by an alien from the outside, the worldbuilding is admittedly fascinating. I loved the focus on humans as space refugees, and how the narrative reinforced the inherent value and worth of people. Using a podcast to tell a part of the story was one of my favourite concepts here, I loved the formatting and the alien perspective on human activities was funny and endearing. Of all the books, this probably has the best worldbuilding, or it is at least equal with book one. And I've always loved this books soft take on science fiction, as well as the careful detail and bountiful creativity Chambers put into constructing her vision of space. It absolutely shone in this book.
“The guilt lingered, even so. Ghosts were imaginary, but hauntings were real.”
that all being said I didn't quite connect to this one as much as previous books in the series. I was hoping old characters would reappear but they did not. On top of that, there is literally no plot until 70% through. And while these books aren't exactly plot driven, I get annoyed when an entire books feels like the first 100 pages - setting up the characters and world of an event that will supposedly eventually happen.
I also just didn't connect to the characters as much. I found them a bit confusing and sometimes got them mixed up. There was a lot of POV's and I felt like some of them weren't adding a lot to the story some of the time.
🚀 Tessa: Tessa's brother is Ashby from the first book. I loved this connection between book one and three. I enjoyed Tessa's character most of the time but I found her arc quite predictable. I also felt that the character growth wasn't really there until the last kinda 10%.
🚀 Kip: Probably my favourite character in the book. Kip is a teenager sick of living on the fleet and eager to escape into wider space and discover his true meaning. I think Kip was fun to follow, he's angsty and moody but I found him funny and endearing and I loved his character growth. His arc had the perfect ending, and I was getting totally teary eyed over it. Also, he is gay, so we love a queer icon.
🚀 Eyas: My second favourite character. Her role in society is to turn the remains of people into soil to be used in the colony. I loved Eyas and her relationship with Sunny. It was cool to see a positive and empowering representation of a sex worker here. Eyas role was extremely interesting and I enjoyed the pondering introspective tone of her chapters.
🚀 Isabelle: I appreciated her chapters because her wife was often present and that good sapphic content made me happy. But I also felt like her chapters didn't add a whole lot to the story until the ending? I did enjoy her interactions with Kip though.
🚀 Sawyer: Potentially where this novel falls down the most is in the characterisation and role of Sawyer. The main conflict relies on the reader feeling sorry for Sawyer but I was never that invested. Failing to make me really care about him or his plight, which is what the entire novels hinges on, definitely contributed to why I felt so disconnected to the story at times.
We are the Exodus Fleet. We are those that wandered, that wander still. We are the homesteaders that shelter our families. We are the miners and foragers in the open. We are the ships that ferry between. We are the explorers who carry our names. We are the parents who lead the way. We are the children who continue on.
If you're into space operas, and space stories that focus heavily on people and worldbuilding rather than space battles and action DEFINITELY pick up this series. It's quite and introspective and focusses a lot on working out what makes humans, human. I really appreciated that philosophical thread throughout this series, but particularly in Record of a Spaceborn Few. Although it is not my favourite of the three, it was still very beautiful and gave me that warm, wholesome feeling I love about this series. I am definitely sad I don't have any more books in this series to look forward to. ...more
pros: hot mermaids, cool human/mermaid f/f romance with lots of angst and slowburn, actual fantasy series with an f/f romance, killer mermaids, ship spros: hot mermaids, cool human/mermaid f/f romance with lots of angst and slowburn, actual fantasy series with an f/f romance, killer mermaids, ship setting and mermaid/human politics
cons: annoying fights between girls that weren't really justified, didn't go as into depth with the politics of the world as I hoped, skimmed the surface of some relationships when I wanted more. Basically left me wanting more and like it didn't /go there/ for a lot of it
“Besides, there's no one way to be a girl, Tay. You don't need to fit yourself into what society tells us a girl should be. Girls can be whoever th
“Besides, there's no one way to be a girl, Tay. You don't need to fit yourself into what society tells us a girl should be. Girls can be whoever they want. Whether that's an ass-kicking, sarcastic, crime-solving FBI Agent or a funny, gorgeous, witty beauty queen--or both at the same time."
I honestly hate myself because I put off reading this book for so long for no real reason and I have so much regret. Because this was everything I was expecting and so much more. And I wish I had read it sooner so I felt all this happiness sooner because honestly? This is the kind of book everyone needs in their life.
Queens of Geek is about a trio of friends who attend Supacon (basically Comic Con) in Los Angeles. There's Charlie - a Chinese-Australian girl who's a youtuber and recent movie star, her best friend Taylor who's a fandom blogger and their friend Jamie who's just moved to Australia and loves Marvel comics.
There is plenty of drama going down at this con though! Charlie is trying to escape her ex-boyfriend and is growing closer to her crush Alyssa Huntington. Taylor is dealing with her severe anxiety and desperately wants to meet her favourite author. Jamie has a crush on Taylor and is dealing with homesickness and not feeling like he fits in in Australia.
This is such a happy, light feel good book. It has so many cute moments, and the romance is soo cute. As in, "I physically need to throw my face into a pillow to deal with the cute" type of fluff.
My absolute favourite thing in this book, and one of the major reasons I picked it up, is the representation. For me, representation for marginalised groups in books means SO MUCH and I loved loved loved the representation. Charlie as a bisexual woman stood out to me especially, I'm bi myself and I thought the representation was just SO WELL DONE.
Charlie’s bisexuality comes under-fire from other characters, who make problematic and untrue assumptions about her and bisexuality but she counters them with grace and I loved that it allowed people reading who may not know about bisexuality to also learn with the ignorant character. However, I also liked that Charlie’s bisexuality was not the sum of her being - there were so many elements that made up her characterisation before that - and this made her a complete and rounded character.
On top of that, her romance with Alyssa was cute, well written and didn't sexualise them as wlw like soo many books tend to do. They were so solid together and I absolutely adored them.
I've also heard that the representation of the other characters is accurate as well as honestly and respectfully portrayed. Taylor is fat, and has severe anxiety - and many people who also experience this have said the portrayal is respectful and good. Jamie is latinx and while there has been less discourse on him, I've seen nothing bad. So to have a book which takes so many issues and writes them correctly and respectfully is so nice.
I really liked Jamie's character ! People don't talk about him much but he was such a good character? Super supportive, and a male character who doesn't fit into the "Nice Boy" or "Best Friend" kind of tropes we see all the time in ya.
“But how could you possibly know you’re bi? Have you ever been with a girl?” “How did you know you were straight before you were with a girl, Reese?”
I also liked that this book was such a warm homage to fandom, pop culture and all things geek. These sorts of books are becoming more and more widespread, but I really like that because I very much feel a little like "these are my people" when I read them. This is one of those sweet books which makes you feel all warm and nice inside and I think we can all relate to the excitement Taylor feels at meeting her favourite author, or Charlie meeting her favourite youtubers.
On a kind of personal note, I really liked that the characters were Australian because I am too and we are so rarely in books! Australian's neverr get represented so it was nice to see some for a change.
I also really liked lots of the themes and messages set up in this book - self acceptance and validating your own experiences, putting your needs on top, the way that abusive relationships can function and effect people, a little critique of the bad sides of fandom, self love, doing things at your own pace, and being kind.
“That's what we do. We walk a tightrope every day. Getting out the door is a tightrope. Going grocery shopping is a tightrope. Socializing is a tightrope. Things that most people consider to be normal, daily parts of life are the very things we fear and struggle with the most, and yet here we are, moving forward anyway. That's not weak.”
My criticism of this book, and the reason it doesn't get five stars, is that the characters weren't well written in my opinion. What I mean is, all of them were caricatures. Every main character is basically the perfect representation of what a non-problematic person would be but it's unrealistic. All people have elements to them which make them problematic, it's a by-product of growing uo in a racist/sexist/homophobic/ableist society. Making perfect characters who never do wrong isn't realistic. I think I'm making it sound worse then it is, all of them had personality and things that made them interesting - but often their dialogue felt forced and like it was coming from the author and not the character which really irked me. It felt condescending and preachy. In some scenes it worked - like the bisexuality talk with Reese because he was an ignorant character, but in other places it felt forced and a little cringey.
But there are other things about these characters that make them great. I've already mentioned the representation - but I also wanted to mention the other good stuff. I loved the female friendships, and the way the women supported eachother. I also loved the friendship between the main trio in general and how they cared for eachother and had eachothers back. Charlie and Taylor were strong character who stood up for their beliefs and acted with agency and individuality. They also are constantly dealing with their own issues and struggled but continue at working and overcoming them.
“To the girl who hid in the shadows and tried to body-shame me, I’m sorry you thought that was a good use of your time and energy. I hope you find happiness within yourself. You deserve that. We all do.”
But genuinely I don't want my criticisms to put you off this book because it is GREAT. The story is so cute and fluffy, the relationships are well developed and written and the representation is SO GOOD. It is so, so rare to find a good bisexual character in a fairly mainstream book so this was so nice to read.
Queens of Geek was everything it promised to be and more - it’s such a fun and light book, with solid friendships and plenty of fandom, both imagined and real. But it’s also about learning to believe in yourself, being brave. It's about and for all the Geeks out there, and if you want your nerdiness to be validated READ THIS.
To the weirdo's, the geeks and the fandom queens. To the outcasts, the misfits and everything in between. The days of playing the sidekick are over. You are the superheroes now. You are my people, and this is for you
“We love films because they make us feel something. They speak to our desires, which are never small. They allow us to escape and to dream and to g
“We love films because they make us feel something. They speak to our desires, which are never small. They allow us to escape and to dream and to gaze into the eyes that are impossibly beautiful and huge. They fill us with longing. But also. They tell us to remember; they remind us of life. Remember, they say, how much it hurts to have your heartbroken.”
This is such a Classic in the lgbtq+ fiction scene, especially for wow & YA LGBT lit. I thought this was really sweet, and I actually liked it more than I thought I would. I guess I had it in my head it would be kind of stereotypical, but it actually had some really unique aspects. The main character, Emi, is a set designer, and I thought the descriptions of her job and how set design and what she's making acted as a metaphor for her emotions was nice.
I also thought the representation was solid. It was nice to have a story about a lesbian who was secure in her identity. It was definitely not a coming out story and the romance actually takes more of a backseat then I thought in this book. But I thought Emi and Ava were sweet and I enjoyed them.
I really liked the Hollywood mystery/unsolved aspects too.
The reason for the lower rating is just that it didn't GRIP me. It didn't really capture my whole attention and I felt the characters could have had more depth. I do think it's a book I probably won't think about often now that I've finished it and I don't have a huge emotional attachment. That said, this is a 3.5 rating for me which is quite high for a YA contemporary romance.
If you like books about Hollywood, Hollywood mysteries, lesbian main characters & wlw fiction definitely you'd enjoy this
this truly WAS the infinity war of the shadowhunter chronicles, it was so wild to see so many characters from across this universe play a role here anthis truly WAS the infinity war of the shadowhunter chronicles, it was so wild to see so many characters from across this universe play a role here and I LOVED IT.
I've had like a month to process this book and okay like I don't think my brain and heart will EVER be able to process what this book just did to me but I'm going to try. So, yes below you can read my FULL REVIEW OF QUEEN OF AIR AND DARKNESS
(also, I'm saying now I CANNOT PROMISE THIS REVIEW WILL BE SPOILER FREE OK YOU WERE WARNED)
“The sky was a road and the stars made pathways; the moon was a watchtower, a lighthouse that led you home.”
This book was easily my most anticipated book of the year. I had made a big claim that if Queen lived up to Clockwork Princess, then The Dark Artifices would become my new favourite series of Cassandra Clare's. I don't know how I feel about that now. This ending wasn't as good as the Clockwork Princess ending for me, but there was SO many things I loved about it. I loved the characters, (most) of the plot, the angst, the romance, and seeing all the different series come together (most of the time). But there was some things (the lst 100 pages) that annoyed me so I just couldn't give it a five star even though it SHOULD HAVE BEEN ..... it COULD HAVE BEEN ....... im furious ! Anyways, lets break this bad bitch down:
“I whisper your name, Ty. I whisper the most important thing: I love you. I love you. I love you. Livvy”
CHARACTERS
Lets start with characters because it's my favourite part of this series
Emma remains my favourite character, what an iconic queen. I honestly ADORE Emma and she's one of my favourite CC characters ever. She's changed and developed so much between book one and three, but I love what a strong badass she is whilst also being caring and compassionate and maintaining important relationships. It's nice to have a female character who'd badass and blunt but not necessarily cold. I literally love her, and I really want her to punch me in the face because it'd be an HONOUR.
Julian for some reason a lot of people don't like Julian but I LOVE JULIAN. He's such an interesting and unusual main male character, especially from Cassandra Clare. So I think he adds a really great dimension to this series and is such a contrast to characters like Will or Jace. AND ANTI-HERO JULIAN FINALLY KINDA ROSE AND I WAS SCARED. All in all I loved his arc in this book .. the dark julian contrasted with actual julian was painful to read but I loved it. YOU ARE IN THE CAGE? I cried. Also, I just love Dad! Julian and how he treats his entire family dfjghdfkj. ALSO WE LOVE A DEMISEXUAL !! KING!!!!!
Mark, Cristina and Kieran SO I have always felt meh about Mark. I don't dislike him .. I actually like him quite a bit. I just don't like him as much as some people seem to. I felt pretty much the same about him in this as I always have. I love Cristina and I loved her in this too. But I felt she didn't get as good an arc as the other characters? Her entire plot was pretty much romance which was kind of annoying though I DID LOVE HER TEAM UP IN FAERIE. ICONIC!! Kieran I still feel mixed on. I've never liked him much but he did grow on me a bit in this. I actually kinda ended up liking him even though I still don't care about him on the same level as the other characters. But his character arc was great.
Kit and Ty THEY WERE NOT IN THIS ENOUGH?? Okay yes they literally had a major plot arc BUT STILL. Ty should of have a POV but he never did! I also hated the conclusion of their arc ... obviously it's going to be the main focus of The Wicked Powers but it was SO unsatisfying here. I also though Ty's literally had no growth in the 700 pages of this book which was annoying. But I LOVED KIT SO MUCH. Thats my son !!!! I really liked his role in this book and his POVs were some of my favourite. He is fucking iconic and hilarious .. "you are so forked", bitch you better BET i laughed
Dru My unexpected fave of this book. In Lord of Shadows I liked Dru but felt I didn't really know her. She had SO much development and growth in this and I loved her role. I didn't expect to love her so much but I seriously do, and I think of all the characters I am MOST excited to see more of DRU in The Wicked Powers! She stole my heart, I love her.
Jaimie and Diego They were in this more than I expected and I didn't .. love it. Honestly I did Not like Diego's chapters much, I just don't care about them that much so their chapters were always the ones that made me want to put this book down. But I did like their characters in relation to their character arc with Cristina.
Diana I LOVE DIANA and I honestly don't have heaps more to say about her?? I liked how she became a more important role in the Clave in this book and I also liked how there was more focus on her being an older sister to Emma and Julian in this.
Helen and Aline MY SAPPHIC QUEEEENS ! I love both of them so much. Aline was such a fun character because she was so different to Helen and even to Jules and Emma in terms of how she handled the kids. Helen was sweet and I LOVED her relationship with Mark in this. Seeing those two interact were some of my favourite parts of this book. Aline and Helen are also so fucking cute jghfkgj it's unfair of Ms Clare to show us gays a pair of gfs that cute when she KNOWS none of us can achieve that irl because all gays are too useless to actually date other gays.
“Grief can be so bad you can’t breathe, but that’s what it means to be human. We lose, we suffer, but we have to keep breathing.”
PLOT
Queen of Air and Darkness picks up right where Lord of Shadows ends. I loved this choice but also I WAS IN SO MUCH PAIN. The scenes of Julian crying and Ty passing out were hard to read and seriously I was emotionally wrecked by page 25 I literally had to take a break.
I pretty thoroughly enjoyed the first third of this book. The chapters in faerie were exciting and I liked seeing so many different characters play a role. Simon, Isabelle, Jace, Clary and more appearing was so fun and I loved the cameos. The plot in faerie reminded me a lot of Lord of Shadows but I decided I didn't mind it. That fight in the throne room also reminded me of that fight scene in The Last Jedi with Kylo/Rey and bitch I was HOLLERING.
The only plot in the first third I wasn't a fan of was Julian's emotions things - I didn't think it was bad but it just came out of nowhere? In no previous books, even when Emma and Julian discuss their "options" did him removing his emotions come up so it felt out of nowhere and kind of lazy?
The second part in Thule was literally my favourite part of the book which seems to be an unpopular opinion, but I thought it was SO MUCH FUN. It was like a canon AU and I was loving it. Seeing the world as it would have been was interesting, and I loved Emma and Julian's arc in this. The focus on their romance and Julian's choices was great and Thule really allowed a lot of emotional catharsis and tangible contrast between what is and what could have been. ALSO JULIAN AND EMMA FUCKING WHILST SAYING THEIR PARABATAI VOWS WAS HOT AND LITERALLY IS MY KINK
The final section was my least favourite and where everything seemed to fall apart. I felt Cassandra Clare had so many thread and plots and character things to work with and they ended up not coming together great. It definitely felt like she lost control of the story a bit. The climax was .. incredibly disappointing and so cliche. Again, the whole "Nephilim Parabatai" thing just came literally out of nowhere. The ending of Julian and Emma's complications with being Parabatai was so lazy and wasn't even foreshadowed as a legitimate option until it randomly happened. Using heavenly fire again also felt lazy and the whole "family talks you down" thing was SO cliche. I felt so unsatisfied with the ending here, and I really just can't get over Emma and Julian randomly going giant, throwing around the evil elf army like what the FUCK even was that. It was just messy and weird.
“Be good, my archer boy. Come back to me.”
ROMANCE & ANGST
So where the plot let me down, the angst came THROUGH. Honestly I was going into this wanting some sweet, sweet, painful angst and phew, once again the good sis Cassandra delivered.
JULIAN AND EMMA .... *kisses fingers* oh yeah thats the STUFF. Like I've said multiple times, I adore them. ADORE THEM. I honestly love their friendship/relationship so much and the whole set up of them being best friend, literally Being Eachother's People, like no one loves them as much as they love eachother ... oh fuck YES thats the shit. I THRIVE off of that. And she delivered in spades .. she really did. AND OH THE ANGST OF DARK! JULIAN. And Dark! Julian being like lowkey hot ... yeah I'm into that. Anyway, truly excellence once again.
Mark, Cristina and Kieran ... FINALLY the OT3 we all love and deserve. I see you boring bitches whining about the ending of this love triangle but it is WHAT. WE. DESERVE. Turning your love triangle into a polyam ship? inspired. And it honestly was so well written? That they're all equally in love with eachother?? That Mark/Cristina or Mark/Kieran or Kieran/Cristina doesnt even work because they're all thinking about one another like .. it's mess and I adore it? And the three way ship is perfect?? BUT THE ENDIGN .... I hate that omg ! It was so unresolved which was annoying as fuck but also I stan King Kieran so idk phew that is a tough one. I feel it will also be resolved in The Wicked Powers (IM HOPING)
Ty and Kit ... they're so cute aw man. I love Kit's inner monologue around Ty, he's so enamoured with him in such a pure and cute way and there is definitely going to be an arc around him Realising He Is Queer which should be fun. He really is the bi king I deserved. And Ty always recruiting Kit and trusting Kit was so sweet, they're both sweet and even tho I'm an angst DEMON I was rooting for them and their softness.
Jace and Clary. LOOK ALL I AM GOING TO SAY IS THEM GOING BACK TO THE GREENHOUSE TO WHERE IT ALL STARTED HAD ME EMO AND ALSO THEM BOTH BUYING A RING ....... INSPIRED
“You might be in the cage, Jules, but as long as you are like this, I am in the cage with you.”
ISSUES
Alright the gush has been real now it's time to do some quick rants x
Although I loved the Thule chapters, I had one huge issue and that is MAKING SEBASTIAN THE VILLAIN. Sebastian is the one behind all this nonsense and I HATE THAT. It is SO lazy to just bring an old dead villain back, and it's fucking annoying. What is the point of TMI and killing Sebastian if random alternate universe Sebastian can just return to fuck it up? I thought that was so lazy, and completely the opposite of what I had come to expect from CC in this trilogy. In Lady Midnight, Malcolm being the villain completely subverted my expectations because she kept setting up warlock = good, and then she undermined it, which was neat. Malcolm was also such a strong villain with interesting and complex motivations. And while I love Sebastian as a villain, he doesn't fit here, and he's just pure evil, which is fun in tmi but ultimately boring to repeat over and over. I felt CC really let down the great start to the series and intricate plot she had set up.
I also was ... so sick of the cameos. Does anyone else wish she would just let TMI go?? At first they were fun, but they started to totally eclipse the other, main characters. I don't want a continuation of their plots, I want the Blackthorns story! LET THEM GOOOO. Also, the epilogue totally sets up The Wicked Powers as City of Lost Souls 2.0 and i am ... not keen.
And like I said the last 100 pages were just .. messy. I'm annoyed because I SHOULD have given this a five star .. it was going so well. Everything I came for was there. The angst was top notch, the character interactions were great, and the book was fast paced and exciting. But those last 100 pages were too much and just so cliche and weird. And the ending was complete fanservice, which usually I don't mind, but this was WAY too much. I've said this soo many times but I HATE when books with dramatic "this is going to change everything this is the end of the world" plots have literally no consequences. Like the tagline of this book was literally "everything changes" but in the end nothing happened and everyone got to be happy. LOOK I LOVE PAIN AND SUFFERING OKAY. But I just think it's a super let down and doesn't deliver on my expectations of something Big happening.
Okay, I admit the loss of Idris was big and will probably play a big role in the next book .. but again it's the same problem I have with other plot lines. Nothing was finished off in this series ! It was all left for the next one. Which is lazy and unsatisfying. I get her series run on to eachother, but the ending of each individual series should still be satisfying and contained to that series in my opinion.
“If aught but death part thee and me, Emma,” he said, and pressed his lips to the strands. Emma closed her eyes as she whispered, “Julian. Julian. If aught but death part thee and me.”
Alright .. that is IT! This is an extremely gushy and messy review I recognise and own it. You'll just have to live with it. PLEASE chime off in the comments I still need to discuss this book I am still in shock...more
“..this feeling haunts and inhabits me, like a sickness. it covers me, like skin.”
I know booklovers shouldn't say it but .... I think I liked the
“..this feeling haunts and inhabits me, like a sickness. it covers me, like skin.”
I know booklovers shouldn't say it but .... I think I liked the movie more? The Handmaiden is one of my favourite movies ever. It's based on this book and though it changes some things, like plot elements and the Victorian setting to Japanese occupied Korea, I found it overall more engaging and compelling thematically than the book? Please don't come for me with your pitchforks?
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