Hello bookish friends!
Carrying on from my last post, here is a quick roundup of the 10 books I read in April, May, and June this year. My reading slowed down a bit after the first week of working from home in lockdown (English schools closed on March 20th) but has started to pick up a bit since.
Like last time, I’ve ordered the books by rating (highest to lowest) within each month, and I’ve done my best to include content warnings (CW) where I remember them. If I’ve forgotten anything please do comment or send me a message to let me know!
April: 2 books
Another positive month! I didn’t read much, but I enjoyed what I read.
Tread Lightly by Catherine Lane (⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5 | Goodreads)
I won an ebook copy of this in a giveaway (along with a copy of Heartwood, also by Catherine Lane)
I actually posted a review for this one on Goodreads & Amazon! Despite receiving it directly from the author, all opinions are honest and my own. Here’s a link to my review.
This is a lighthearted #ownvoices sapphic romcom with a big dash of magical realism and I genuinely enjoyed it a lot!
Like I mentioned in my last post, I’ve listened to all five of the Lady Trent audiobooks in the last couple of months, so I won’t go into too many details on these mini-reviews!
One of the characters is very heavily implied to be asexual and/or aromantic in this one, but (as is generally the case in historical fiction, fantastical or not) specific labels aren’t used.
May: 3 books
Chasing a Ghost by D. A. Ravenscroft (⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5 | Goodreads)
A “sequel” to Les Misérables, in which some of Les Amis had survived the barricades. This book is set 8 years later, and is told from the point of view of Combeferre, who finally finds Enjolras alive but in circumstances he couldn’t have imagined.
#ownvoices: gay trans characters by a gay trans author!
I had read Chasing a Ghost back when it was first published on AO3 – this version is much more polished and I feel the plot works better.
You may have been able to tell from my last post that I’m a fan of Les Mis. I’m a big fan of retellings of the story which make it more diverse. I liked how Dorian considered the different effects trauma can have when depicting each of the characters.
CW: character death, period-typical drug use.
Chasing a Legacy by D. A. Ravenscroft (⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5 | Goodreads)
This is a sequel to Chasing a Ghost, so it’s technically still linked to the world and characters of Les Mis. However, the story focuses mostly on original characters.
Chasing a Legacy more diverse than Chasing a Ghost (in terms of race, gender, and sexuality).
Again, many of the identities and experiences in this book are #ownvoices.
CW: the author lists content warnings for this book on his Tumblr page.
I didn’t review this at the time I read it apparently, but off the top of my head I would give it around 3-4 stars so I’ve gone with 3.5. It wasn’t my favourite of the series, but definitely still enjoyable enough that I got through the audiobook quickly and started the sequel the next day.
There is some exploration of another (fictional) culture’s concepts of gender and sexuality in this book, and from this point on the series’ main characters start to become more ethnically diverse too, which I did appreciate!
June: 5 books
Who Do You Serve, Who Do You Protect? Police Violence and Resistance in the United States edited by Joe Macaré, Maya Schenwar, and Alana Yu-lan Price (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 | Goodreads)
This is a powerful collection of essays about police violence against Black and Indigenous people in the US. It was published in 2016 but is unfortunately still very relevant in 2020.
As an English reader who has never been to the USA, I still found these essays informative and many of the issues can be applied to other countries (including the UK). Police violence and white supremacy is not limited to any one country, after all.
The ebook is free from the publisher, Haymarket Books, at the moment! The ebook is DRM free and can be read on any device. I read it with Overdrive on my phone and tablet.
Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 | Goodreads)
This book deserves all of the praise it has received in my opinion.
I listened to the audiobook, which I got with my free trial of audiobooks.com. It is narrated by Anna-Maria Nabirye.
#ownvoices – the author, Bernadine Evaristo, is a Black British woman (as are most of the characters)
This book is told from a diverse collection of intersecting perspectives. All of the characters are complex and well-rounded. Many of the characters are in some way LGBT (including trans & nonbinary characters, lesbian characters, bisexual characters) and some are in polyamorous relationships.
CW: rape (including of a minor), domestic violence, recreational drug use
In the Labyrinth of Drakes (Memoirs of Lady Trent #4) by Marie Brennan (⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.5/5 | Goodreads) and Within the Sanctuary of Wings (Memoirs of Lady Trent #5) by Marie Brennan (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 | Goodreads)
I did warn you that I got through this series quickly, right?
Anyway – overall I enjoyed every book in the series and would recommend it to anyone who likes dragons, science (particularly naturalism), archaeology, and historical fantasy.
My main criticism is that the books could have definitely had a more diverse cast of characters.
Kings, Queens, and In-Betweens by Tanya Boteju (⭐⭐⭐ 3.5/5 | Goodreads)
I bought this audiobook when it was reduced on Libro.fm (yes, I do have far too many audiobook apps and struggle to keep track of them all!)
#ownvoices – the author is a queer Sri Lankan woman from Canada who performed drag when she was younger. She had sensitivity readers to check her depictions of e.g. a character who is half-Japanese.
I found that this book was mostly lighthearted and enjoyable. Some of the main character’s decisions were definitely frustrating but I think given that she is a teenager trying to explore her identity, that’s understandable!
CW: physical abuse of a minor, alcohol use
Have you read any of these books? Are they on your TBR? Please let me know what you think of them in the comments!
My next post will be a more in-depth review of the books I’ve finished reading in July. I’m taking part in the Transathon this month so expect to see lots of trans & nonbinary authors and characters!
Happy reading,
Maisie Rose x