The Color of Always: An LGBTQIA+ Love Anthology

by Brent Fisher (Editor), Michele Abounader (Editor), Mario Candelaria

“Wherever you are, there is home.” The flutter of first dates, the thrill of a text-back, the heart-stopping seconds before coming out, and the rush when finally discovering who you truly are – all of these life-changing moments across the full spectrum of LGBTQIA+ experience are ready to explore in this bright and inspiring comics anthology! The Color of Always is a collection of personal stories, testimonies, heirlooms, evocations, and evangelisms for queer creators and readers that celebrates feeling good about who you are, and coming into your own at last. Featuring stories and art from BRENT FISHER, MARIO CANDELARIA, PRIYA SAXENA, MICHELE ABOUNADER, JAZZLYN STONE, ELISA ROMBOLI, LAURA HELSBY, RACHEL DISTLER, KATIE HICKS, LIANA KANGAS, and many more!

Genres: Graphic Novels, LGBT, Romance, Queer, Comics, Short Stories, Young Adult

138 pages, Paperback

First published June 6, 2023

Reviews

[Raven Vezina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love being gay

[Jay Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wish the stories were longer! Left me wanting more

[Emily✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A strong anthology of short comics celebrating LGBTQ+ identity and living as our authentic selves! I loved seeing so much trans and nonbinary representation, in the characters and contributors. Although my average rating came to bang-on 3.0 stars, I've rounded my overall rating up to 4 stars. While there weren't many stand-out pieces for me, there also weren't any total duds, and I do think that overall The Color of Always is a great showcase of consistent quality. My favorite was "Sea Change" by Lillian Hochwender and Gabe Martini.


💗 Intro: The Color of Always by Brent Fisher, Elisa Romboli, and Ariana Maher ★★★☆☆
🌈 Rep: wlw, Black
❌ TW: religious homophobia
A two-page introduction to the anthology, depicting an interracial wlw couple attending Pride and shrugging off the homophobic protestors.
Love the warm tones in the artwork.

💗 Claddagh by Julia Paiewonsky and Alex Putprush ★★★★☆
🌈 Rep: wlw, Irish
❌ TW:
A woman reflects on the first time she realized that she loved Anne.
Lovely musing on the feeling of falling in love. It's unclear to me if this is a lost love, perhaps due to break-up or death, because of the line: "I wish I could send you this letter."

💗 Tethered by Mario Candelaria, Laura Helsby, Jão Canola, and Scott Ewen ★★★☆☆
🌈 Rep: nonbinary (they/them), nblm
❌ TW:
Modern anxieties about a relationship via phone give way to joyful connection.
Cute! Love all the British slang from the supportive friends.

💗 Sea Change by Lillian Hochwender and Gabe Martini ★★★★★
🌈 Rep: nonbinary questioning
❌ TW: drowning, Lovecraftian creature horror
When Morgan falls into the sea during a storm, they meet a monster who confronts them with all the deepest questions about themself they've been afraid to explore.
Gorgeous and deep.

💗 Letting It Fall by Priya Saxena and Jenny Fleming ★★★☆☆
🌈 Rep: wlw, Indian
❌ TW: nudity
The Tower tarot card symbolizes destruction of the old that makes way for something better. Padma has spent so long pushing away her real feelings, that facing them feels dangerous, but necessary.
Nice mood in the art style.

💗 Long Away by Tilly Bridges, Susan Bridges, and Richard Fairgray ★★★☆☆
🌈 Rep: trans woman, wlw
❌ TW: past parent death and grief
A trans woman journeys back through time to see the father she lost at a young age, searching for some clue that he would accept her for who she is.
Very sweet. Goes a little too smoothly, with some of the dad's dialogue not sounding realistic, but I understand the cathartic nature.

💗 All That Glitters by Michele Abounader and Tench [Aleksandra Orekhova] ★★★☆☆
🌈 Rep: transgender, drag
❌ TW: dysphoria, transphobia
Dane struggles to look the way they want--binding their chest and wearing makeup--and idolizes the drag queen performing at the club.
Beautiful, though I found myself wanting a little more context.

💗 The Hollow Wolf by Nathan Long ★★★☆☆
🌈 Rep: mlm
❌ TW: sexual assault (analogy), police, mention of stalking, PTSD
Shepherd's life changed the night the wolf attacked him, but with his loving boyfriend and fellow survivors by his side, he's still living.
Gotta admit, I wasn't expecting this darker turn, and I'm not sure it really fits the theme of the anthology? ("A collection... that celebrates feeling good about who you are, and coming into your own at last.") But it is hopeful in the end, and I do think that stories about male survivors of sexual assault are too rare and thus important.

💗 Extra Pages by Brent Fisher and Rachel Distler ★★☆☆☆
🌈 Rep: mlm
❌ TW: groping, family estrangement
Two strangers--a straight man and a gay man--meet in a gay bar in 1970 Amsterdam and become lifelong friends.
A little scattered, and I had some difficulty parsing what was happening in the beginning due to some poorly placed speech bubbles. Love the "chosen family" aspect, though.

💗 Leaves by Christa Harader and Katie Hicks ★★★☆☆
🌈 Rep: nonbinary?
❌ TW: bullying
A look at one person's life from childhood to adulthood, as they struggle and stumble their way to discovering themselves.
I liked the fun, bright art style!

💗 Ever More Myself by Kaj E Kunstmann ★★★☆☆
🌈 Rep: nonbinary, bisexual, nblm
❌ TW: misgendering, dysphoria, panic attack
Kaj knows they aren't a woman or a man, and every misgendering comment sets them on edge, which isn't a great place to be in on a first date. To Kaj's surprise, their date is supportive, and might just be a keeper.
Seems autobiographical, and the couple are very sweet together.

💗 Both Sides by Brittany "Briggsy" Gonzalez and Elizabeth Malette ★★☆☆☆
🌈 Rep: wlw, Black
❌ TW: reference to child sexual assault, intimate partner violence, infidelity
Zara is not handling her breakup with Melissa well, and reaches out to explain her side of the story and her hopes that they'll be together again.
Not gonna lie, this was kind of uncomfortable to read. It really seemed like Zara needed to back off and leave Melissa alone. But it also seemed like I was supposed to be rooting for them to get back together? Idk.

💗 Drawing Lines||Posting Signs by Christie Porter and Alina Wahab ★★★☆☆
🌈 Rep: wlw, Mormon
❌ TW: religious homophobia, Prop 22
After growing surrounded by rhetoric that labeled her 'the enemy,' she leaves that environment and finds freedom and love elsewhere.
Gorgeous artwork.

💗 An Open Love Letter by Jazzlyn Stone, Liana Kangas, Gab Contreras, and Joamette Gil ★★★☆☆
🌈 Rep: Black, wlw
❌ TW:
A letter of gratitude to a loved one.
A two-page conclusion to book-end the anthology, mirroring the two-page introduction. Sweet sentiment, narratively sparse.


Thank you so much to the publisher for providing this eARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review!

🌈 I read this title for the Queer Lit Readathon, Round 11! 🌈

[Christina Close · Rating 4 out of 5]

14 stories
all with something different
all parts of the LGBTQIA+ community represented

Each of these stories were touching in their own ways. There was maybe one story I didn't really like and it was the one about the wolf, but the rest of the stories were touching and I could relate to a few of them.

This book is interesting because some of the characters you can't tell if they are female, male or nonbinary until you read the full story and then it just clicks. I would recommend this book to anyone who is questioning who they are.

[Larakaa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bless my queer heart, this was beautiful!

[Elisabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Any anthology is gonna be hit or miss. My favorite stories in this were: Claddagh and All That Glitters.

[Alexa Patsalis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Y’all, when I say I cried during every single story, I mean EVERY SINGLE story. I kept waiting for the shoe to drop and something awful to happen during, “Tethered”, but it was literally just the anticipation of a new relationship and so much queer joy at the end! I saw so much of myself and experiences in “Ever More Myself”. I checked this out from my public library, but I think I need to buy a copy to keep on hand when I need some queer hope and joy 💜

[Giuli Leyendoentremontanias · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5⭐ Beautiful work! There's one story in particular that made me cry like the end of days —for personal reasons. Anyway. Everyone should read this! Totally recommended. The art, the stories, the diversity, the raw and real feelings and situations. Some everyday-like, some extraordinary, some earthquake-like. I'm 110% certain that anyone who reads this will find themselves represented somehow among these pages.

Thank you to Edelweiss and everyone else involved for the advanced digital copy.

[Gabriele | QueerBookdom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Representation: lesbian white protagonists, lesbian Black protagonists, queer white protagonists, non-binary white protagonists, lesbian protagonist of colour, lesbian trans white protagonist, gay white protagonist, gay Dutch protagonist, bisexual white protagonist, gay secondary character of colour, queer tertiary characters, gay white tertiary characters,

Content Warning: queerphobia, sexual assault, trauma, transphobia, religious trauma.

[Drew · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The Color of Always: An LGBTQIA+ Love Anthology” co-created & edited by Brent Fisher & Michele Abounader w/ cover & intro art by Elisa Romboli is a collection of 13 original short comics about Queer love, journeys, & self-acceptance. The art is beautiful & a variety of styles. No “bad” endings, per se. There are some emotions & things are rough at times, but the anthology is more or less optimistic, vibrant, & cheerful. It is a collection featuring people all over the gender & sexuality spectrum, with many POC characters & voices too. The art popped off! Also, loved the two moments of tarot, with one story focusing on tarot & The Tower. (“Letting It Fall”).

“Long Away” by Tilly Bridges & Susan Bridges with art by Richard Fairgay is my favorite & made me get misty eyed. “The Hollow Wolf” (story & art) by Nathan Long will probably haunt me a bit. Many of the other stories were cute & sweet.

So glad I contributed to this comic’s Kickstarter. The collection is queer joy. Will read again & definitely recommend. 💜🏳️‍🌈💜

[Carolina · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars 🌟
Anthologies are wonderful and also difficult because before you get used to someone's voice and style, it changes again.

Graphic novels are something I dip into and out of because I like them, but I still love the novel.

It was beautiful to see so many queer stories in one place and to see LGBTQ+ protagonists given so much space in a book.

I would recommend this to everyone, but I have to take a half star off because I wished the stories were more fleshed out and just a few more pages longer.

[Daryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

An overall nice anthology! I liked the variety in subject matter and art styles. There were definitely some I liked/identified with more than others, but I did wish that the stories were longer across the board.

Top 3:

1. “Sea Change” by Lillian Hochwender, illustrated by Gabe Martini

2. “All that Glitters” by Michelle abounader, illustrated by Tench

3. “Ever More Myself” by Kai E Kunstmann

[suvi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not crying, you are crying.

Truly a stunning collection of 14 little comics representing the lgbtq+ community. My only wish really is that they would have been longer, I was left craving for more.

[Monica Garcia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the idea of a variety of short stories that captures different individuals and their own unique queer experience. The artwork was all different and all incredible! I did struggle understanding a lot of the stories. Perhaps they were a bit too vague or maybe it's just because my own experience has been so different.

[eddie]

Would love for these to be longer!

[Sam S · Rating 4 out of 5]

The artwork is great, the stories are touching. You get exactly what you'd expect, and you'll like it.

[Lisa ♥♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a lovely collection! Each story was short but had a powerful meaning <3.

[☁︎ ☾ ｡⋆ morgan ⋆｡☽ ☁︎ · Rating 5 out of 5]

"glorious. yes. that's us, learning the words, how to speak, sucking deep on something sweet... ...with a sunset; the color of always."

💫 representation: wlw, mlm, nblm, and many other queer relationships; Black and Indian characters; trans and nonbinary characters; bisexual and sapphic characters; a drag performer character

💫 content warnings for: homophobia (+religious), drowning, parental death, grief, dysphoria, transphobia, misgendering, sexual assault, mention of stalking, PTSD, panic attack, police, groping, bullying, intimate partner violence, trauma

i love when gay people <3333

The Color of Always was nothing less than excellent. the diversity everywhere (race, body type, sexuality, gender, etc) was phenomenal and it covered a huge range of the LGBTQ+ spectrum and topics nestled within those experiences. rather than only showcasing queer joy, there were many stories about queer pain, frustrations, and tragedy. i related to a lot of these, but especially the sapphic and bi4bi content as an asexual panromantic sapphic myself. empowering, bright, and true, this collection will be finding its way onto my shelf soon. bonus: two characters in this had my name so i feel like that is convincing me to buy it more.

i physically gasped and teared up and grinned when i flipped to the comic about Claddagh rings. i'm Irish. Claddagh rings have been in my family for decades and they're a BIG THING. at least...to me. i inherited my grandparents' old Claddagh ring, which they didn't know existed until long after they gave it to me, and it's one of the most precious objects that i own. i guard it with my life. Claddagh rings mean everything to me. they symbolize friendship, love, and loyalty -- three of my highest values in a person. they're magical and witchy and beautiful. i very much want my girlfriend to give me one when we someday get married, and i also want to gift her one too.

ANYWAY the sapphic comic about Claddagh rings put me through the 5 stages of grief but in a positive way and it's probably one of my favorite comics that i've ever read? stars. the art style too. gh. Letting it Fall also gets five stars because women confronting that they're sapphic through Tarot? just another Tuesday for me. this one was my second favorite, my first being Claddagh, and my third being Leaves (GORGEOUS, fun, and such a good mini-comic).

overall a lovely, touching collection full of every aspect of queerness and queer love!!

~ Morgan Shadow 🐺👑🏹🌊💫

[Eva B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could've sworn I reviewed this already but I guess not....oh well. It was cute but I don't remember much else--leaving the 5 stars though bc clearly I felt something in the moment.

[Echo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a lovely book. Overall, the art is gorgeous, the stories are meaningful, and there are many good messages of being who you are and existing how you want to exist. Because this is a collection of short comics, I'll review each story separately.

Intro: The Color of Always ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Two pages long, this is a short but sweet introduction to the book. Two girls holding hands walk past a crowd of anti-gay protestors. One of the girls is wearing a rainbow necklace, and she takes it off and places it around one of the protestors' necks. Then they walk past. This shows that queer people don't have to respond to hate with hate or let the haters affect them. They can stand up to the haters and still be strong and love themselves.

Claddagh ⭐⭐⭐⭐
I like how this is in a letter form. The boxes with text drift kind of whimsically through the story, which gives it and aura of love and magic. Claddagh shows what it feels like to be in love for the first time, and also to have a crush. This story is relatable to me as a sapphic queer person, but I think it could be relatable to anyone who has ever been in love. I love how the ring symbolizes love, and now it's something the main character got from her Irish family. Her heritage helps her with how she shows love for someone. The art in this one wasn't my favorite.

Tethered ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This story gets an easy five stars! The two main characters have never heard each other's voices; their communication has always just been through text. One character is an artist: they make clothing for their friend while "hiding" in their basement room. The other is working at pub, serving people. The second character's friends and coworkers tease him about falling for the other person, but they also encourage him tonight to call the other person. The two get on the phone, and it's a beautiful moment of Wow. I can hear you. It brings a kind of closeness.

Sea Change ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The main character, someone who is neither a boy nor a girl, falls into the sea on a stormy night. When they are rescued by the other sailors, they don't look male or female. Instead, they look relatively androgynous. My favorite line is this:
Other character: "You look… different."
Main character: "I feel different. More alive than I've been in years."

Letting It Fall ⭐⭐
The only thing I really liked about this was the message of giving up what you don't need anymore. For the main character, that's boys. She would chase boys because she needed their approval. I didn't really care for the art or plot.

Long Away ⭐⭐⭐
The art was okay, but I liked the idea of the main character going back in time, seeing their father who died when she was young. The character wants to see him and know him a bit because she feels like she doesn't know him and she's never had a chance to. I love when she realizes that he recognized her as his child, even after she has transitioned and is not a boy anymore.

All That Glitters ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This was unquestionably my favorite story in the whole book. The main character, Dane, is a trans boy who wants to be femme, but he hides that part of himself because his male friends, with whom he wants to fit in, make fun of him if he ever lets it out. Dane brings lipstick to the place where he went with his friends, but when he puts it on, his friends laugh at him and accuse him of not being a real boy. He wipes it off furiously. He ends up encountering a drag queen in the bathroom when he goes in to wash the makeup off. The queen puts glitter on his cheeks. I have some favorite lines from this story:

Queen: "Don't let anyone tell you who you are. You can be anyone you wanna be."

And also…
Queen: "Now. Tell Mama she looks pretty."
Dane: "You… look perfect."
Queen: "I know. So do you."

Hollow Wolf ⭐
Sadly, I didn't care for this one. It was too nonlinear and the art wasn't as good as I would have hoped. This story just wasn't for me.

Extra Pages ⭐⭐⭐⭐
This story shows two characters who have a rather bad first meeting ending up friends and then falling in love. Roel hasn't been in pictures with his family for a long time, and I love how these two boys end up in love and Roel gets to have pictures with his new happily queer family.

Leaves ⭐⭐
I couldn't really follow this story, so I didn't care for it much. The art was only okay.

Ever More Myself ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Absolutely beautiful story. The main character, Kaj, wants to be androgynous and they're uncomfortable being perceived as female. As a trans person myself, I appreciate how the only dysphoria Kaj feels is social dysphoria. I also feel only or mainly social dysphoria. I like how Kaj also said that they don't hate the female parts of their body. They just want more. How their partner, John, is immediately so supportive makes my heart happy. I also like how this story shows a bi person, which isn't super common. So, yay! This is an amazing story!

Both Sides ⭐⭐⭐⭐
This story shows people learning to live apart after the end of the relationship and also learning to open up to each other about the pain. It's about learning to cope with the trauma.

Drawing Lines // Posting Signs ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The story shows a queer person who grew up in the Mormon community learning to accept themself and be openly queer. They're learning not to hide the LGBTQ part of themself, instead letting themself fall in love. I appreciate this story for that. Nothing can hold them back now from falling in love. And the art is also absolutely beautiful, so that makes it even better.

An Open Love Letter ⭐⭐⭐⭐
I like this. It's not so much a story, but a love letter, as the title says. This doesn't have to be a linear love story to show that love. This is a letter to a supportive loving amazing partner, and the letter shows how much these people love each other. The art behind the words just makes it better, too, as it's lovely art.

I 100% recommend this book to high schoolers and older, but also possibly middle schoolers. Note that there are sexual scenes in the following stories: "Letting It Fall", "Hollow Wolf" (I think), and "Ever More Myself". "An Open Love Letter" also has mention of sex, but nothing shown. Highly recommended!

- Echo (they/xe) ⚧️

[COQUI · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful stories. Simple in a way but strong enough that makes you feel like you are a part of it.

[Amanda [Novel Addiction] · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely beautiful.

[Ronielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the different styles of art but felt the stories were really underdeveloped.

[Doreen · Rating 3 out of 5]

While all anthologies can be hit and miss, comics collections tend to be more so, I feel, as it's a more complicated medium to synthesize into one cohesive collection. This is, ofc, due in large part to the visual aspect making it immediately obvious if things aren't meshing.

Thematically, this book works, even if the overall beats of the collection tend to land a little strangely. The title opener by Brent Fisher, Elisa Romboli and Ariana Maher is an upbeat tale of courage and love, and is the most polished, art-wise. This is immediately followed by the sweet Claddagh by Julia Paiewonsky and Alex Putprush, an affecting slice-of-life comic about falling in love.

The next story, Tethered, is a lot of people and a lot of pages to tell not very much at all. Fortunately, the volume picks up again with Lilian Hochwender and Gabe Martini's Sea Change, telling the story of a young sailor who falls overboard during a storm and finds terror and transformation within the ocean depths. Letting It Fall by Priya Saxena and Jenny Fleming is really great until the awkwardly underwhelming art of the last full-page panel, which does a disservice to the rest of the story and its delightfully retro illustrations.

Long Away by Tillie Bridges, Susan Bridges and Richard Fairgray was one of my favorite stories here, as a young woman travels back in time to meet the father who died way too soon. All That Glitters by Michele Abounader and Tench uses very few words to elegantly describe how a struggling nonbinary person gets some great advice from a drag queen.

Things get darker with the next story, Hollow Wolf by Nathan Long. It's a really well-designed comic about sexual assault and healing. Extra Pages by Brent Fisher and Rachel Distler is a surprisingly, almost jarringly, upbeat follow-up. I really enjoyed the depiction of a lifelong friendship between a gay man and a straight dude tho.

Leaves by Christa Harader and Katie Hicks was an oddly generic comic about self-esteem. I feel bad saying that Ever More Myself by Kaj E Kunstmann was unnecessarily whiny, but I just didn't understand why it was so difficult to stop presenting as femme when they clearly hated people thinking they were female. It felt like too many details were omitted, sacrificing sense for space, especially compared to All That Glitters. And the next story, Both Sides by Brittany "Briggsy" Gonzalez and Elizabeth Malette, was just exasperating, a messy breakup told messily, with a grammatically nonsensical closing sentence.

Things get better with Drawing Lines || Posting Signs by Christie Porter and Alina Wahab, which talks about deprogramming from a childhood of religious hatred. An Open Letter attempts to bookend The Color Of Always and doesn't quite succeed. The concept art at the end is a nice extra, but feels a bit like padding, especially given the preponderance of filler pages stating Always in rainbow letters throughout the volume.

Overall, this is a quick, affirming read whose priority seems to be variety over cohesion. And that's understandable given the spectrum of LGBTQIA+ experiences. I do think that a better sequencing would have made the stories more impactful, either alternating light with dark or following an emotional arc. But it's great to see a collection affirming LGBTQIA+ love, in all its grime and glory.

The Color Of Always edited by Brent Fisher & Michele Abounader was published June 6 2023 by Wave Blue World and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!

[Charessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to A Wave Blue World for the eGalley to review!

This was an excellent collection of stories created by different artists and writers. I love the different issues or depictions of queer life each one provides. No two stories are the same, but they are all inspiring and personal, thought-provoking looks into different sections of the queer community. While not all had happy endings, all had something to give for readers to take away and see the world (and maybe even themselves) in different perspectives.

I think those new to the community would get the most out of this collection, as so many of the stories provide windows and mirrors into the possibilities that are out there for them--they're coming out stories, self-discoveries, and reflections on the mistakes made and self-acceptance earned through the queer journey. I also think those outside of the community would benefit from reading these stories, as they offer a humanizing look into the lives of everyday queer folks. Yes, a couple of the stories are science fiction, but 1. who says we can't have fun with our stories, and 2. they're used for metaphors and what-ifs, like much of sci-fi is. Symbolism is strong in our community and it's on full display here--it's worth it to get to know them through the stories we tell.

Really, I truly enjoyed this collection and I loved getting to see how individual art and writing styles vary from story to story. It proves just how diverse we are as people and gives a platform to independent artists and writers who otherwise may not have been picked up for a project. So I appreciate that this collection not only gets to tell queer stories, but elevates the people behind them.

Keep in mind, however, that many of the stories tackle dark and difficult subjects (religious homophobia, sexual assault, and one involves the main character essentially stalking their ex (I did not like this one)). For every inspirational and uplifting story, there is one that grapples with the harsher realities of our lives.

[寿理 宮本 · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short but powerful anthology of stories about love, including self-love ("Sea Change", "All That Glitters") and the... wrong kind of love ("The Hollow Wolf"). My favourite is probably "Long Away"—an unexpected time-travel story with a heartwarming ending. It's also interesting there are two stories involving tarot ("Letting It Fall", "Ever More Myself"), completely by chance, since—unlike in more autobiographical stories—these stories are not limited to reality, so you can HAVE the time-travel, the metaphorical yet predatory wolf, the sea serpent who muses on the true nature of gender and identity.

What I love about these queer anthologies, besides the high quality (I choose well, apparently, since I've yet to hate a single one!), is how even the typical "how we met" stories are still so different from each other, and all beautiful. I would love to follow any of these characters to see how their lives become richer as a result of their transformations (or, in the odd case, worse as a result of their traumas), but every story in this collection is nevertheless complete without *needing* a sequel.

Recommended for LGBTQ+ readers, of course! (I did not see the I and A represented here, but it's admittedly hard to do that without explicit scenes and/or actively spelling it out at the risk of dragging out the story.)

[Ray Flores · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an anthology of short stories which depict the diverse lives of LGBTQ+ people. All of them have their unique style and are trying to show how every single one of us is different, yet we all strive to find a place in the world, whether that means accomplishing our own expectations, working to be a better, understanding person or just genuinely living as ourselves, whatever that means.

We see a diversity of relationships represented as well as people who always held a hand in case needed. And how important and meaningful is to find our safe space as queer people. To feel like there’s someone out there who has the same questions as us, mostly if we’re young and inexperienced.

Truth be told, everybody is trying and no one has all the answers. Bottom line: you just have to do your best and keep moving forward ‘cause when you least expect it, you’re gonna find your people, your place, your own home and peace of mind. To be able to be yourself without fear should be reason enough to keep trying.

Last but not least, I could relate a lot to the story about a person who doesn’t feel comfy being a girl yet doesn’t see entirely as boy, just you know, a person.

I totally recommend this graphic novel so you may understand a little bit of what is like to be a LGBTQ+ person nowadays.

I received and e-book ARC in exchange for an honest review via Diamond Comic Distributors.

[K.C. Norton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, this anthology was just okay for me. Most of the stories were short and focused on characters coming out, which, okay... but the idea that the person you come out to is going to end up as your life partner is kind of odd to me, and the stories were so short that the relationships were mostly flat. A couple gave me the possessive ick.

HOWEVER: I would have marked this as read and moved on, but there were two standout stories. One of them is the tale of a guy who accidentally wanders into a gay bar, and panics when another guy (understandably) flirts with him. They end up becoming lifelong friends, attending each others' weddings, creating a found family... I really liked this take, that meaningful, supportive relationships don't have to be romantic. The story was undeniably queer in nature and managed to convey a lot of emotion in only a few pages. I wish more queer stories in general included nonsexual friendships, or friendships that outlast romantic relationships, etc.

Also, the number one story in here is called Long Away and had me openly weeping by the end. It's so beautiful. It's so sweet. And it had me ugly-crying in like 6 pages. *chef's kiss*

[A.C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this arc for an honest review
I loved that it was short stories for all different types of LGBTQIA+ individuals. Some of the stories felt were too short, I wanted more! Though I liked it, I think it's mainly using older voices so it's not really YA. There are a few where it's a flash back with their younger selves' but it's with characters are all older. So, I think it would be better for "new adult" like your 19+ crowd. BUT if a teen is wanting to read it because they are becoming their true self and wanted to read stories from all walks of life and how people found their place then they should totally give this a read.

[Thackery Prince · Rating 5 out of 5]

brilliant. every story in this collection hit for me. on top of the showstopping range of art styles & voice cadences, this anthology boasts a robust, diverse cast that travels all the way to one end of queer spectrum to the other & makes several stops inbetween. though i, as a trans man, connected most deeply to the trans based storylines, i had no issues naturally empathizing with any of the queer main characters. bold & bright, this collection carries itself in a way that while highlighting the joy of the queer experience - doesn't shy away from the disheartening parts of it. ie; dysphoria, family rejection, societal perceptions & expectations, etc. i loved this book.