@vivavaleria@eldritch.cafe on the mammooth site. Reading mostly wlw rom-coms, with the occasional exceptions. I try to rotate languages, but it isn't really easy to find queer romance books in other languages than English. Reviews and comments usually in the same language as the book.
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Success! Enum & Valerie has read 34 of 30 books.
No logré engancharme. Tal vez es que la realidad de la guerra es demasiado punzante …
Wanna be an inconvenience with me?
— Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta (Page 195)
Is this their sick equivalent of a wedding proposal?
No logré engancharme. Tal vez es que la realidad de la guerra es demasiado punzante …
Content warning death
Luckily, I've built up enough of a reputation that all of them know there's no point in dying anyway, since, if they did so without my permission, I'd march down to the twin hells and drag them back through the gates myself.
— Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta (Page 40)
And that's how you become immortal.
No logré engancharme. Tal vez es que la realidad de la guerra es demasiado punzante …
Dust in their hair, fire in their cheeks, draped over our common room's worn, moth-eaten furniture like they were kicked into place, at too-fucking-early o'clock, every single kid of my crew is a sight for sore eyes. And - unfortunately - I wouldn't be doing my job right if I weren't constantly sore. Nova, our driver, is settled on the splintering table, her tiny form balanced on her toes, legs tucked in her usual precarious perch. She's having popcorn for breakfast again, chucking the burnt pieces into the mousy fluff of Theo's hair. Neck lolled over the side of the fraying love seat, legs kicked over its puckering back, our marksman grumbles obscenities as he hunts for the wayward kernels. On the couch, Arsen lies either dead or asleep, limp and facedown in Juniper's lap. June's face is turned, cheek to the back cushion, a faraway look in her brown eyes as she twists the demolitionist's curls around scarred, hazel fingertips. Behind them, Xander hovers near the single window that allows entrance to only a sorry amount of light, face pressed far too close to the filthy glass, breath spreading clouds that match the ones outside.
— Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta (Page 27 - 28)
Average fedi polycule
No logré engancharme. Tal vez es que la realidad de la guerra es demasiado punzante …
To the reckless, lovestruck kids. (The former may be lethal, but the latter makes it worth it.)
— Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta (Page 0)
Totally normal advice for kids
The good part: This entire scenario is incredibly sick (yes, hahaha, YES). Fucking your best friend's mom? Fucking your daughter's best friend? Oh boy, this could be a riot.
The bad part: It's a very very slow burn. You'd expect a buildup, then drama when the daughter/friend finds out, then reconciliation. Instead, it's 300 pages of sex, secret dates and a good old relationship escalator (of course, marriage is just what this story needs 🥴). At some point it really got boring. If you really wanted this story, make it shorter. And scrap the epilogue.
The good part: This entire scenario is incredibly sick (yes, hahaha, YES). Fucking your best friend's mom? Fucking your daughter's best friend? Oh boy, this could be a riot.
The bad part: It's a very very slow burn. You'd expect a buildup, then drama when the daughter/friend finds out, then reconciliation. Instead, it's 300 pages of sex, secret dates and a good old relationship escalator (of course, marriage is just what this story needs 🥴). At some point it really got boring. If you really wanted this story, make it shorter. And scrap the epilogue.
"She fucked your boyfriend so you get to fuck her mom?"
— Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner (Page 61)
Sickos: "Yes, hahaha, ... YES!"
Sickos: "Yes, hahaha, ... YES!"
"God," Erin whispered, and Cassie couldn't resist. "You can just call me Cassie."
[...]
"Christ," Cassie said, falling back. "You can just call me Erin."
— Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner (Page 7 - 9)
of One of Us is Lying. In case you're wondering, this has nothing to do with the second season of the TV series, it's a completely different story.
of One of Us is Lying. In case you're wondering, this has nothing to do with the second season of the TV series, it's a completely different story.
Prom night is supposed to be the best night of your life. All Mario, Elana, …
I've read better books. But it's relatively okay.
I've read better books. But it's relatively okay.
Prom night is supposed to be the best night of your life. All Mario, Elana, …
[Detective:] Somehow, we need evidence that tells us who that was.
— A Night To Die For by Lisa Schroeder (Page 115)
NO SHIT, SHERLOCK
All the secrets of the Bayview Four will be revealed in the TV series soon …
I liked it, but I already liked the TV series, so I knew what to expect. Now I can compare!
Things I liked better in the book: There is no omnipotent, omniscient being as in the series. Everyone just knows what they see and hear about, and works with mundane methods. Also, Luis, Ashton and Eli are amazing extra characters! Also, yes, Simon is definitely a channer.
Things I liked better in the TV series: How the entire situation came to happen. Jake's role, Simon's, and most of all, Janae's! Also, the entire ending. That version is just way more satisfying.
I liked it, but I already liked the TV series, so I knew what to expect. Now I can compare!
Things I liked better in the book: There is no omnipotent, omniscient being as in the series. Everyone just knows what they see and hear about, and works with mundane methods. Also, Luis, Ashton and Eli are amazing extra characters! Also, yes, Simon is definitely a channer.
Things I liked better in the TV series: How the entire situation came to happen. Jake's role, Simon's, and most of all, Janae's! Also, the entire ending. That version is just way more satisfying.
Cara's just trying to stay on top of all her classes, excel at her extracurriculars, …
Better than I'm used to with straight romance. There are plotholes (why did the white snake comply and tell them how to undo its actions??), but the story is interesting and funny. Its nature is pretty episodic though, and many of the places in the liminal world are described very graphically - so I can't stop thinking it would make a great cartoon series! Add a few more steps and details, and voila, here's 50 episodes about the quest to find the antivenom ouroboros!
Better than I'm used to with straight romance. There are plotholes (why did the white snake comply and tell them how to undo its actions??), but the story is interesting and funny. Its nature is pretty episodic though, and many of the places in the liminal world are described very graphically - so I can't stop thinking it would make a great cartoon series! Add a few more steps and details, and voila, here's 50 episodes about the quest to find the antivenom ouroboros!
Cara's just trying to stay on top of all her classes, excel at her extracurriculars, …
Zach coughed. "Loser."
— If I Have to Be Haunted by Miranda Sun (Page 370)
I'll counter-quote from Bring It On (2000): "Was that the loser sneeze I just heard right there? Guys, come on. I mean, what is that, from like the 80s? Nobody does that anymore. I don't think anybody does. When I lived in Kentucky - Did they still do the loser sneeze in Kentucky? No. They had, uh, guns and homemade bombs. What about L. A.? There was attitude in L. A. , but no loser sneeze. I'm pretty sure the loser sneeze is officially dead."
I'll counter-quote from Bring It On (2000): "Was that the loser sneeze I just heard right there? Guys, come on. I mean, what is that, from like the 80s? Nobody does that anymore. I don't think anybody does. When I lived in Kentucky - Did they still do the loser sneeze in Kentucky? No. They had, uh, guns and homemade bombs. What about L. A.? There was attitude in L. A. , but no loser sneeze. I'm pretty sure the loser sneeze is officially dead."
Cara's just trying to stay on top of all her classes, excel at her extracurriculars, …
Thank you to my sister. You're really annoying.
— If I Have to Be Haunted by Miranda Sun (Page 363)
Guess that's a way to write acknowledgements
Guess that's a way to write acknowledgements
Cara's just trying to stay on top of all her classes, excel at her extracurriculars, …
"Your neighbours have reported strange noises at odd hours at night, thuds and moans and disembodied voice groaning about how he'll never fulfill his purpose on this Earth" "Ma'am, that's just me. I'm working on my dissertation."
— If I Have to Be Haunted by Miranda Sun (Page 218)
