Book Review! Girls I've Run Away With

I LOVED this book. I was totally hooked from the beginning and couldn't put it down. I read it in two short sittings.

I can relate to Lo because she went through a period of such deep denial that she had meaningless sex with boys, even though it was only the touch of a girl that could light her soul on fire. Been there, done that.

I also loved the grungy 90s world because that's the era I grew up in, too, albeit I was slightly younger.

Girls I've Run Away With gives me Kerouac-esque vibes and Lo is kind of a female Holden Caulfield.

Cannot recommend highly enough.

August Wrap-Up!

Hey bookbugs!

I know I missed out on July, but honestly the only thing I have accomplished lately in terms of reading is The Goblet of Fire and The Order of the Phoenix, so there was really nothing to report. Anyway, this is my wrap-up for August:

• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by JK Rowling ★★★★★
• My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness by Nagata Kabi ★★★★
• My Sister Rosa by Justine Larbalestier ★★★
• Marxism and Sociology: Views from Eastern Europe ★★1/2
• Political Choice and Social Structure ★★
• Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by JK Rowling ★★★★★
• Valencia by Michelle Tea ★★★★★

August was a much better reading month than July, I managed to read seven books. Two of which I skim-read for uni (have a guess which two those might be!) but I still count them. There were a lot of assignments to do in August so I did not read as much as perhaps I could have. Still, I am pleased with how much I read. The two Harry Potter books are 600+ pages each, so all up I read quite a lot.

What have you guys been reading? Let's chat about it. :)

Rhi

VERY BELATED June Reading Wrap-Up!

• The Babysitters Club Super Special #2: Babysitters' Summer Vacation by Ann M Martin ★★1/2 (2.5)
• Lily Love manga ★★★ (3)
• The Babysitters Club #1: Kristy's Great Idea by Ann M Martin ★★1/2 (2.5)
• School Rumble manga, Volume 1 ★★★ (3)
• School Rumble manga, Volume 2 ★★★ (3)
• Far From You by Tess Sharpe ★★★★★ (5)
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone- illustrated edition by JK Rowling ★★★★★(5)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets- illustrated edition by JK Rowling ★★★★★(5)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by JK Rowling ★★★★★(5)

Book Review! Far From You

Hi bookbugs!

Today I'm bringing you a review of the book Far From You by Tess Sharpe.

This book is absolutely amazing. I give it 5/5 stars.

Far From You is about Sophie, whose best friend Mina was shot by a man in a ski mask four months prior to the opening of the novel and everyone thinks it's her fault. Sophie is a recovering drug addict and the man who killed Mina left a bag of pills in Sophie's jacket, to frame her. When the story opens, Sophie is on her last day of a three-month stint in rehab for a drug addiction she has already beaten. She is ten months clean, but nobody believes her. The story follows Sophie as she tries to catch Mina's killer.

First of all, without giving too much away, there is some interesting sexuality diversity in this book. It is handled beautifully and poetically; and I loved it. The way Tess Sharpe handles addiction is equally as heartbreakingly beautiful. She has an incredible writing style and I devoured the book within 24 hours. I absolutely could not put it down.

At no point did the story seem slow or boring; and while the twist was not the most concealed, it was still a very enjoyable read. I particularly liked the fact that Sophie's hobby is gardening, which is not a hobby that YA protagonists often have. In fact, most YA protagonists have hobbies which are almost exclusively sedentary, so I appreciated this diversity very much.

Another thing to note about Sophie is that she identifies as having a physical impairment, the result of a car crash with Mina's older brother Trev when the girls were fourteen (Sophie is seventeen in the present telling of the story). This is also the reason she started taking oxycodone in the first place and was the catalyst for her developing her addiction. Obvious trigger warnings are disability, trauma, addiction, drugs and homicide. Approach with caution. 

I really felt for Sophie. At no point did I want to shake her or smack her, as I so often do with YA protagonists. She knows who and what she is; and she owns it. She doesn't relapse, she doesn't fuck up. She pushes away her parents which made me sad, but she does it not cruelly or with malice, she does it out of need for her own space- which I get.

All in all, I felt that this story was told beautifully and I wish there were more than 330 pages because I was not ready for the book to be over. I highly recommend this book- 10/10!


Until next time, happy reading!

Rhi

Book Review! A Court of Wings and Ruin (Spoilers)

Hello bookbugs!

So, let's talk about Sarah J Maas...

Why, Sarah? Just why?

What, you ask, is my problem? Let me tell you a thing.

Last year, I picked up A Court of Thorns and Roses and A Court of Mist and Fury; and I binge-read them. I devoured them. I loved them. And then I waited a year for the final book in the trilogy. I waited. I waited some more. I pre-ordered it the minute it went up on Book Depository. I waited by the letter box every day until my copy arrived.

And then, I read it. And I have a lot of feelings.

I have nicknamed A Court of Wings and Ruin, "A Court of Pointless and Disappointed." I feel like it's justified.

Where do I even begin with this book?

Well, for starters, let's talk about the prologue. Was there a point to it? I was getting all prepared to read half of the book from Rhys' perspective, but all I got was confused. I don't understand the point of the prologue. What was it? Somebody, please, tell me.

Then let's talk about Feyre. Feyre has become this arrogant High Lady who needs to have several seats.

Feyre. Shut the fuck up. Please.

Then, can we just take a moment for the ridiculousness of both Nesta and Elain? First of all, why are we acting like Feyre is the reason Nesta and Elain have become Fae? Like she really had so much to do with it that we both need to NOT SPEAK AT ALL until halfway through the book. Okay.

I wanted to rip off Elain's head and keep it on a spike. Fucking move. Speak. Do something other than sit and stare into space. And then, at the end? Let's not spoil this for people who have yet to read this monstrosity, but come on. AS IF THAT WOULD EVER HAPPEN.

Lucien.... Ah, my son. I enjoyed his redemption. He is one of the only characters I can even deal with. But can we talk about how NOTHING TO DO WITH LUCIEN WAS EVER WRAPPED UP. Why?! Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy?! The first bombshell, which Feyre discovers? NEVER SPOKEN OF AGAIN. And the mating bond between him and Elain? NO FUCKING RESOLUTION. None!

And then, we come to Morrigan. Mor. My sweet angel face. Are you a lesbian? Are you bisexual? Are you human, or are you dancer? (Clue: She's not) I did not understand why, at the very end of the book, this bombshell is suddenly dropped but NOTHING COMES OF IT and it is NEVER SPOKEN OF AGAIN. Why are we cramming in tiny drops of diversity but never continuing it throughout the story? Sarah J Maas, plz respond.

I waited a long time for this book, only to find that it didn't get good until page 550.

And then it wasn't even that good. 

I will never get back the days of my life that I spent reading this 700+ page book of lies and broken dreams. I hope you guys enjoyed it more than I did!

Until next time, happy reading!

Rhi xo

May Reading Wrap-Up!

Hey bookbugs!

It's that time again, time to share all the books I read in May!

• Ash by Malinda Lo ★★★★ (4)
• Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit by Jaye Brown ★★★★★ (5)
• White Girl Problems by Babe Walker ★★★★ 1/2 (4.5)
• A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J Maas ★★★ 1/2 (3.5)
• The Infinite Moment of Us by Lauren Myracle ★★ 1/2 (2.5)

First off, I read Ash. This is a Cinderella re-telling with a lesbian romance instead of a prince charming. I really enjoyed this book, it was easy to read and I loved the plot twist and how naturally it came off. There was no freaking out, no "oh my gosh am I gay?" It was just natural and easy and wonderful to read.

Then I read Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit. This was my favourite book that I read in May. It was funny, raw, powerful and lovely. I loved it.

White Girl Problems takes the prize for funniest book I have read in 2017 so far. It had me in stitches, cracking up laughing on almost every page. Definitely recommended!

A Court of Wings and Ruin... Or, as I call it, A Court of Pointless and Disappointment. I waited over a year for this book. I pre-ordered it from The Book Depository. I waited by the letter box every day until it arrived... And then I read it. Sigh. Stay tuned for the review.

The final book I read in May was The Infinite Moment of Us. It was okay... Kind of cheesy, a bit far-fetched... But it was okay. I read it in one day, but that was more because I had a whole free day and the text was huge and there were only 315 or so pages. Not the greatest.

So, those are the books I read in May. What did you read this month? Have you read any of these books? Let's start a chat in the comments!

Rhi xo

Booktube Made Me Do It

Hey bookbugs!

Today, I'm going to do something a little bit different. I'm going to talk about the books that I bought because of Booktube. For better or for worse, I have bought many books as a result of watching Booktube videos, so here goes!


To All the Boys I've Loved Before

God, I hate this book. I actually do. It is awful. So many people rave about this book and I just don't know why.


Heartless

This one was a huge win for me. I adored Heartless! Ironically, not as many people rave about this book, which is surprising and really reminds me that popularity does not equal quality.

The Lux Series

Yet another gag-worthy book. I don't even have words for it. Just, blegh.


TigerLily

I really enjoyed TigerLily. I've only heard it mentioned once or twice but I'm really glad that I found this book via Booktube. Win!



These are some of the books I bought because of Booktube, what are some of yours? I'd love to know so leave me a comment and I'll see you next time!

Rhi xo

Book Review: Heartless by Marissa Meyer

Hey bookbugs!

As I mentioned in my April wrap-up, I am doing a review of Heartless by Marissa Meyer. I adored this book, as I adore just about anything to do with Alice in Wonderland. I gave this book 5/5 stars.

Where should I start? I suppose I ought to start at the beginning; and stop when I come to the end.

Heartless follows Cath Pinkerton, a high society girl in the land of Hearts. It is an Alice in Wonderland re-telling, focused on the story of how the Queen of Hearts came to be. Cath is a passionate baker and her dream is to open a bakery with her best friend Mary Ann. Unfortunately for Cath, society does not support her dream and, unbeknownst to her, the King of Hearts has his heart set on marrying her.

Before the bumbling King can propose to her, however, Cath runs away and bumps quite literally into the new court jester, Jest. Without giving too much away, Cath and Jest fall in love but their union is not exactly blessed by the world in which they live.

I will stop the synopsis there, because I don't want to post lots of spoilers. I literally could not put this book down. I took it everywhere with me and read it obsessively. It's been a long time since I have been unable to put down a book, but this book had me totally hooked. It was funny, beautifully written and heartbreaking. I laughed out loud, took pictures of funny quotes to share with friends; and after I was finished reading I found myself with a huge book hangover.

I actually stopped reading when I had fifty pages to go, because I wasn't ready for the story to be over. I held the book to my chest and had serious anxiety about it ending. The very last line of the book, OH MY GOSH. No, I'm not going to tell you what it was, you will have to look and find out for yourself.

On that note, I highly recommend this book to absolutely everybody. Everybody should read this book, especially if you are obsessed with Wonderland like I am.

★★★★★

April Reading Wrap-Up

Hey bookbugs!

Today I'm coming to you with my April wrap-up, all the books I read in April.

I actually had a great reading month, not in terms of how much I read, but in the quality of what I read. I read five books this month and I gave four of them 4 or 5 star ratings.
These are the books I read:

The Lesbian Love Companion by Marny Hall ★★★★★
South of Sunshine by Dana Elmendorf ★★★★
Keeping Her Secret (Endless Summer) by Sarah Nicolas ★★
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo ★★★★
Heartless by Marissa Meyer ★★★★★

Let's talk about South of Sunshine. I don't know anybody else who has read this; and I actually picked it up on a whim whilst I was looking for some lesbian YA fiction. As it turns out, the book is amazing and I loved it. There was very little of the typical YA sexuality angst and even better, the book opens with a character who KNOWS she is a lesbian- No questions asked. It was a great read and even though I wished the MC had been less afraid to come out, I understand why she was afraid and it didn't tar my image of her.

I have already posted a review of The Lesbian Love Companion, so if you are interested, you can find that on my blog.



Keeping Her Secret (Endless Summer) was the only book this month that I didn't like. I bought this as an eBook and was pretty disappointed, to be honest.

Six of Crows... Oh, Six of Crows. I started reading this book ages ago and really dragged out my reading of it. I liked it, but not as much as I expected to. I'm not really sure why, I actually can't put my finger on it. But, it was still a great adventure to read and I'm looking forward to picking up Crooked Kingdom.





Heartless was my favourite book of April, next to TLLC. I adored it. I adored it in ways I haven't adored a book in quite a while. I didn't want it to end; and honestly I now have a huge book hangover. I'm planning a whole blog post just for Heartless so I won't go into too much detail here. I will, however, repeat myself: I LOVE THIS BOOK. 💓💓💓💓💓




So those are all the books I read in April. If you enjoyed any of these books, feel free to start a discussion with me in the comments; and until next time, happy reading!

Rhi xo

Book Review! The Lesbian Love Companion

Hey bookbugs!

Today I would like to chat a bit about a book I recently read called "The Lesbian Love Companion" by Marny Hall (PhD).

I have so many feelings about this book! It's not often that I say a book changed my life, but this one definitely has. There are no words to explain it, it's like someone smacked me in the face with the giant stick of enlightenment. This book has undeniably CHANGED MY LIFE.

As a result of reading this quirky, hilarious, painfully truthful book, everything has changed. The way I view my relationships with other women has changed, the way I view my relationship with myself has changed, even the way I think about relationships in general has changed.

This book came out in 1998, so you could be forgiven for thinking that it would be a little outdated. The thing is though, it's still one hundred per cent relevant and true in 2017. That speaks volumes to the power of Marny's writing and perspectives.

Here is one of my favourite quotes:

"I was really lucky that Erin had found someone new. Otherwise, I might still be turning myself into a pretzel to please her."

The way that Marny describes lesbian relationship dynamics is hilarious yet complex, incredibly insightful and thoughtful but still easy to read. I devoured this book in only a couple of sittings. I couldn't get enough. And with every page I turned, the more "Aha!" moments I found myself having. When I was finished, I found myself longing for more. 'Where is the rest?' I was wondering. I simply crave more content from this incredible writer.

EVERY queer girl should read this book. 10/10 recommended, 5/5 stars (or rainbows?).

Until next time, happy reading!

Rhi xo

March Reading Wrap-Up

Hey bookbugs!

It's wrap-up time. :-) These are the books I read in March, 2017.

• Learning to Counsel- Jan Sutton & William Stewart ★
• Basic Counselling Skills- Richard Nelson-Jones ★
• Onyx- Jennifer L Armentrout ★
• She Ain't Mine- Rachel Kiss ★
• Keeping Her Secret- Sarah Nicolas ★★
• Tiger Lily- Jodi Lynn Anderson ★★★★

I didn't read very many books in full this month. I'm back at uni and I've been reading bits and pieces of lots of books from the library; and the eBooks I've been reading have been just, well... Not that great.

I am actually still reading Tiger Lily and I have started Keeping Her Secret, but I wanted to put Tiger Lily on this list because I just couldn't bring myself to post an entire wrap-up of only one star books. I just couldn't do it.

So, let's talk about the books that I read in full.

The two counselling books are probably not very exciting to anyone else, so I won't talk about them. Let's get stuck into Onyx, the second book in the Lux series by Jennifer L Armentrout.

... Here we go.

Hmm. The Lux series... Well, I posted a whole rant about why I hate this series and I won't be continuing to read it. If you're interested in reading my very passionate rant on that subject, it will be the most recent post before this one. I thought I would like these books. I bought the first book and read it in probably a day and a half. It was super problematic for me, but I gave it a chance.  I actually think I gave it a good review, despite its shortcomings. But when I bought Onyx as an eBook... Forget about it. I wish I could return it and get my money back. Why? Because it was awful. I am so mad at myself for spending money on this stupid eBook. I forced myself to read it in full, but it was a struggle. No more. I tried, I really did. But I can't bring myself to read the rest of this series. Nope.

Moving on.

I downloaded the eBook She Ain't Mine from Amazon for a dollar. I figured, a book for a dollar? Why not. It was cute at first, but it was SO repetitive. I struggled through it, because the same sentences were repeated over and over and over. And over. And over again. Sometimes up to three or four times on the same page. It was a short, girl/girl romance story, full of teenage angst and slightly cliched, but I read it in an hour and a half and at the end of the day, it was only a dollar. Not the worst mistake I've ever made.

Let's talk about the one book I do like from this month. Tiger Lily is my favourite character in the Disney version of Peter Pan; and I've had this book on my shelf for ages but only just picked it up this month. I'm only 62 pages in so far but I really like it. I am all about the tough, wild little oddball that is the chief's adopted daughter and I love her already. And Tinkerbell! Oh, Tink. I love them both. I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into this book after I get some more uni assignments out of the way.

Photo Taken By Me

As I mentioned, I also started an eBook called Keeping Her Secret. I'm about twenty per cent of the way through and I'm not sure how I feel about it yet. I'm on a big lesbian YA reading kick at the moment and while I actually don't remember downloading this book, I'm thinking maybe it was on Amazon for cheap or possibly even for free. So if this type of book is your thing, you might like to look it up as a Kindle book on Amazon. I'm reserving judgement on this book until the story gets into full swing, so stay tuned for my thoughts about that later on.

So, that's what I've been reading in March. Let me know in the comments what you're reading at the moment, or if you've read any of the books I talked about in this post.

Happy reading!

Rhi xo

I'm Having a Lot of (Frustrated) Feelings Right Now

Okay, look.

Admittedly, when I was younger I used to enjoy fluffy YA romance novels; and I was less bothered by this than I am today. And maybe part of my frustration is coming from my much older, somewhat jaded lesbian self. Maybe.

What I would like to talk about today, is the Lux series by Jennifer L Armentrout.

You all know the deal- Introverted, "not like the other girls" main character is seduced by the bad boy next door, who is a total jerk to her and yet somehow- surprise, surprise- she falls in love with him.

This is problematic for a number of reasons. The first and most glaringly obvious of which, is that- oh hey, he's an ASSHOLE. But she loves him anyway... Of course she does.

Is this really what we want to promote? That if someone is nasty to you, but they're like, totally good looking... That you should date them anyway? Why?

WHY?!?!?!?!

This is glorification of emotional abuse and it needs to stop.

Young girls should not be taught that this kind of relationship is okay, or even normal. It's not!

I am struggling to make my way through the second book (Onyx) right now; and man... It's hard. I hate it. I hate the protagonist's complete obsession with a guy who is literally an abusive narcissist. I hate the way this series justifies his behaviour because he's "hot." And I hate the way that this stereotype is perpetually thrown around in literature because ABUSE, IS. NOT. SEXY.

Please, PLEASE, I implore you: Be critical of these types of stories and characters. Think for yourself and recognise that these abusive assholes do not deserve praise and they should not be romanticised. Ever.

I am going to finish reading Onyx, because, well, I paid for the eBook. So I will read it. But I will not be reading the rest of the Lux series, because I don't support insta-love with abusive, narcissistic assholes and the girls who willingly fall victim to them. I don't support emotional abuse. And I will not support its glorification in books. I just won't.

If you have anything to add to this conversation, I would love to hear it in the comments. Let's start this conversation. It's important and it is worth having.

Until next time, bookbugs!

Rhi xo

Quick Life Update

Hey bookbugs!

Boy, does it feel like I haven't posted on this blog in forever!

So, why the long break? It's not that I haven't been reading, but I haven't been reading as much as I would like to. I have also enrolled in university (again!) and I've been studying like crazy.

But, I'm back! I have made a promise to myself, to read more and to start regularly posting on this blog again. So please stay with me, be patient if you can, please; and I will have some more content for you soon!

One book I would like to mention, though, is this wonderful book that I actually read on my Kindle app as an eBook; and absolutely LOVED it. It's called "Just Juliet" by Charlotte Reagan.

This book is now one of my very favourites and I really want to find a physical copy of it for my bookshelf. If you guys are interested in a review, I would be happy to post one. It's a great LGBT novel and I highly, highly, highly recommend it!

Anyway, I've mostly been reading books from the library at uni, but I will have an April TBR up soon and I'll be back to posting regularly again asap!

Happy reading!

Rhi xo

My Fictional Girlfriends

• Alice Bell from the White Rabbit Chronicles
• Daenerys Targaryen from A Song of Ice and Fire
• Alina Starkov from the Grisha trilogy
• Alice Cullen from the Twilight series
• Calla from the Raven Cycle
• Rachel from the Animorphs series
• Raven Meltzer from the Wicca/Sweep series