March Reviews

This month was. A time. I did a lot of things; babysitting, working, fracturing my tailbone while skiing. All of which are equally important things that happening in my life. ANYWAYS I also read some books, so let's talk about those:

I'll Be The One by Lyla Lee

This was one of those books that I've had on my list forever and finally just found somewhere as an old library copy, which was delightful.

Skye Shin is a fat girl and proud of it. She's also a great dancer and singer, and has aspirations of joining the world of K-Pop, and with the help of a reality TV show meant to find the next big K-Pop star in LA, she has the chance to do just that. But first, she has to prove all the fatphobic folks in the public and the rigid K-Pop culture (including her own mother) that fat girls can do anything, including be a star. Along the way she meets new friends, including minor celebrity Henry Cho, and sparks fly both on and off stage as Skye fights to win the competition while staying true to herself.

This was a fun and charming book. Skye is all about body positivity in a world that wants to shame and change her, especially in the face of strict Korean beauty standards. This is a review written by a white girl with not much knowledge of Korea or K-Pop in general (I've listened to Butter and it slaps, but that's all I've heard), so I have to say the straight up disregard for Skye's feelings and absolute fatphobic bullshit that went on was both surprising and infuriating. I know the entertainment industry is ridiculous when it comes to beauty standards and toxic nonsense, but this felt like a whole new level. Skye weathered it all though, and she was honest with herself and her family and friends about how the scrutiny from the media, which felt extra harsh coming from her mom.

Skye's relationship with her mother is a complex one, and I wanted more than anything for her to finally get the apology and acceptance she deserved, but the progression of their relationship and the end of the book were hopeful, at least. I did appreciate love interest Henry for being a somewhat shy teenage boy who drinks his respect women juice and thinks Skye is super hot. We love Henry!! I really liked that he and Skye's relationship developed as a friendship at first, and they took the time to get to know each other and spend time with one another, experiencing the pitfalls of teenage dating and existing in the public eye all at once. The other characters were fun too, and I especially liked Lana and Tiffany.

I also really liked the queer aspect of this book--not only were Lana and Tiffany a lovely sapphic couple, but both the main character Skye and her love interest Henry were bisexual. I feel like there's not a lot of "straight presenting" queer relationships in books, so getting a bi female main character AND a bi male love interest was so fun. They were charming and funny and flirty and I just really liked getting to watch them succeed in their TV show goals and in their relationship.

The portrayal of the media is a big part of this book, and we got to see the good and bad parts of it, sort of fluctuating between the harsh criticisms one of the judges perpetuated and the body positivity and support for Skye from the audience made for a very accurate feeling look at how fame is handled. The premise of the show and the vocal and dance aspects of it was fun too, and I really enjoyed it. Overall this was a cute and positive read.

Similar to: Permanent Record by Mary HK Choi and Going Off Script by Jen Wilde

Icebreaker by A.L. Graziadei

Another day another queer sports book. I'm kidding, I love queer sports book, mostly because they're queer, and this one was also a great look at mental health in sports!

Mickey James III was born to play hockey. His grandfather and father were drafted to immediate and lifelong success, and Mickey is meant to follow in their footsteps, even if he's significantly shorter than them. The only thing standing in his way from a number one draft spot is Jaysen Caulfield, his rival, NHL prospect, and Mickey's teammate on his new college team. They have to get along, at least on the ice, or neither of them stand a chance at the draft. But when sparks fly off the ice, Mickey will have to decide what's really important to him.

I LOVED the rivalry Mickey and Jaysen had going on, enemies to lovers is such a fun trope to use, especially when it's tied into sports. I also loved the inclusivity of the characters, many of which were characters of color and/or queer. I liked Mickey's best friend Nova and his sisters especially, really all the women in this book were top notch. The other hockey players were fun too, I do love hockey.

Mickey's relationship with his family was complicated and interesting. He had an incredible relationship with sisters, while the one with his parents, especially his father, was really strained. There was growth there though, especially as Mickey worked through his mental health issues (and how they were connected to his family). Mickey as a narrator with depression and anxiety was really interesting, especially as he got worse and better at certain times. His coping mechanisms weren't always healthy, but part of college and growing up and learning about healthy coping mechanisms and dealing with your shit.

The romance was pretty good, and I liked the change Mickey and Jaysen made in each other, becoming better players and better people. Mickey grew a lot with the support of his team, which was boosted by his sisters and Jaysen.

The ending was a bit abrupt, no gonna lie. The book spent so much time building up to the draft and then (spoiler) finished RIGHT before the results were announced. Which was a little bit of a let down, but not enough to stop me from enjoying the book. And I understand why the author did what she did for the ending, really emphasizing Mickey's growth as a character, but I wanted to know LOL. Overall, this was a good time, had some funny moments and had a decent romance with some good representation.

Similar to: Check! Please by Ngozi Ukazu (because gay hockey is GREAT) and Running With Lions by Julian Winters (because gay sports are gay sports)

Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

Not gonna lie, I started reading this book back in January. But it's over 500 pages and most of it is written in second person, which while brilliantly executed and absolutely beautiful, has the unfortunate effect of slowing me down. I've only read a handful of second person books, most of them in college and exceedingly boring, so this one took a bit of adjusting. But, once I hit the halfway point I could hardly put it down.

Harrowhark has answered the emperor's call and become a lyctor, but a broken one. Mourning the loss of her cavalier, Harrow isn't at full lyctorhood, instead battling it out with her own mind as well as the forces that ravage the universe, and the hands of God himself. With only letters she does not remember writing and the understanding that something is wrong, Harrow must prepare herself to face beasts beyond comprehension, including the mystery of her own past.

This book was a puzzle box, one that I felt very ill-equipped to handle in the beginning, but eventually found my footing. Muir's writing is as witty and memorable as ever, and while a big chunk of it was confusing, it was never not enticing and sharp. Muir must write with bloody fingers to craft such a strange and horrid and wonderful masterpiece, and it was so wonderfully and grotesque to visit these characters again.

It's hard to write a review without spoilers, mostly because the book itself is strange and simultaneously a big spoiler and none at all, all at Harrow's own hands. The way it's written, the story itself, all of it is strange and wonderful and almost impossible to describe. It continues to be lesbian necromancers in space, but is also wildly fanatic religious work and the weirdest anatomy lesson I've ever had. The cast is hilarious and dangerous and the game is ten steps ahead of where you think it is, and I cannot wait to read the third book.

Similar to nothing I've ever read, except for, of course, the previous book in the series, Gideon The Ninth, and even that felt like a different league. The first book was a murder mystery, this one cracked that puzzle open to reveal a universe of strange and terrible things.

Jay's Gay Agenda by Jason June

This book was not my favorite. I'd seen it recommended all over the internet, and maybe it was because I read it right after finishing Harrow, but I just wasn't really feeling it as much as I'd hoped I would.

Jay Collier is the only out gay kid in his tiny town. So when his family moves to Seattle his senior year, Jay suddenly has a big chance at crossing some things off his Gay Agenda: meeting other gay kids, finding his only queer friend group, and finally getting his first kiss (among other firsts). He's quickly swept off his feet by plenty of queer moments and finds himself torn, trying to have it all and losing it in the process. With all the options before him, Jay will have to decide what chances he's willing to take, and what he's willing to lose to do it.

Jay is an entertaining narrator. He's definitely a teenage boy, complete with dramatic internal monologues and silly phrases, but he's also just trying to navigate a world that he's always wanted and never thought he'd have the opportunity to have. Was I often frustrated by his decision making? Yes. Was I a bit endeared by his naivety at times? Maybe. (And I will absolutely point out that so much of my frustration probably stemmed from being asexual not understanding why certain actions were so important to Jay, but that's a story for another day). Certain mannerisms, like statistics and list-making, were very funny and cute, so I'll give Jay points for that.

The supporting characters were really the shining stars. Lu and Max were absolutely radiant, and Albert made for an absolutely adorable love interest. There were a lot of plot points happening, between Lu's monetary problems and Max's breakup, but it fit in the story well.

I will be completely honest, I skimmed the last third of so of this book. I got quite a bit of second-hand embarrassment from a lot of what Jay was doing, so it was either speed read to get it over with or stop reading altogether (which I hate doing). So speed read it was, so I probably missed out on some of the jokes or pivotal moments that could've made the book for me, but honestly this wasn't a book for me. This was a book for young allosexual queer teens; it was sex-positive, it was funny, it was heart-warming, and it was a legitimate look at the complexities of queer teenhood from a queer person. So I applaud this book for existing and giving queer kids out there a story like it.

Similar to How to be Remy Cameron by Julian Winters and Here The Whole Time by Vitor Martins

Not going to lie, things in my life are Literal pain in the asses right now, so I do not have it in me to write a recipe blogger story intro and outro. SO that's all folks!

Keep writing, friends!

Sam

Literary recommendation: I just bought tickets for Casey McQuiston's book tour, so I gotta go with Red, White, and Royal Blue

Media recommendation: I did just start watching The Great on Hulu, which is excellent so far