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Queerly Beloved
A people-pleasing baker tries to find her place as a bridesmaid-for-hire . Will she finally find her happily ever after—and her own voice?
Amy, a semicloseted queer baker and bartender in mid-2010s Oklahoma, has spent a lifetime putting other people’s needs before her own. Until, that is, she’s fired from her job at a Christian bakery and turns her a one-off gig subbing in for a bridesmaid into a full-time business—thanks to her baking talents, crafting skills, and years watching rom-coms and Say Yes to the Dress. Between her new gig and meeting Charley, the attractive engineer who’s just moved to Tulsa, suddenly Amy’s found something— and someone—she actually wants.
Her tight-knit group of chosen family is thrilled that Amy is becoming her authentic self. But when her deep desire to please kicks into overdrive, Amy’s precarious balancing act strains her relationships to the breaking point, and she must decide what it looks like to be true to herself—and if she has the courage to try.
Amy, a semicloseted queer baker and bartender in mid-2010s Oklahoma, has spent a lifetime putting other people’s needs before her own. Until, that is, she’s fired from her job at a Christian bakery and turns her a one-off gig subbing in for a bridesmaid into a full-time business—thanks to her baking talents, crafting skills, and years watching rom-coms and Say Yes to the Dress. Between her new gig and meeting Charley, the attractive engineer who’s just moved to Tulsa, suddenly Amy’s found something— and someone—she actually wants.
Her tight-knit group of chosen family is thrilled that Amy is becoming her authentic self. But when her deep desire to please kicks into overdrive, Amy’s precarious balancing act strains her relationships to the breaking point, and she must decide what it looks like to be true to herself—and if she has the courage to try.
386 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 3, 2022
197 people are currently reading
12641 people want to read
About the author
Susie Dumond
3 books264 followersSusie Dumond is a queer writer originally from Little Rock, Arkansas. She is the author of Queerly Beloved, Looking for a Sign, and Bed and Breakup. Susie is also a senior contributor at Book Riot and a bookseller at Loyalty Bookstores. Susie lives in Washington, D.C., with her spouse, Mickey, and her cat, Maple. When she’s not writing or reading, you can find her baking cupcakes or belting karaoke at the nearest gay bar.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 886 reviews
May 1, 2022
Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing an arc of this book in change of an honest review.
This has to be one of the most disappointing books I have ever read, there wasn’t a single thing I liked about it. And I’ll explain.
The characters
Amy (the MC), her personality was all over the place and her character was really inconsistent throughout the whole book. She is described as this people-pleasing person, but she shows the complete opposite. She comes off as selfish and self-centered. Also, why is she giving speeches in every chapter? It just came off as highly unrealistic and unauthentic to me. She always seems to know exactly what to say at every single situation. Which brings me to, did she have magic powers? Because she can fix everything that could go wrong during a wedding.
Charley (the love interest). So you have your typical sexy short-haired lesbian who is smart and charming. And that’s it. She had no personality beyond that.
Joel and Damien. Yes I’m bundling these two together because that’s what the author did. So you all remember when the only gay representation in media was gay men portrayed as gay best friends whose only purpose was to support the main character? Well, I just summed up these two. Both characters are one dimensional and highly lack personality. They even had a scene where they helped Amy pick clothes and it had such ‘gay best friend’ vibes. And for a book that tries too hard to be diverse and inclusive. This just didn’t make sense at all. Greg and Max were the old versions of Joel and Damien. Gay best friends 2.0. That’s all I’m going to say.
The romance
I’ll just say it, there was no chemistry between these two characters. Their first encounter was so cringey and the dialogue was horrific to read. It seemed that the only thing Charley liked about Amy was her food but that was it. I specially remember that during their second date, the moment after they were done doing the dishes was SO AWKWARD. The author literally says there’s “sexual tension”, but if you have to mention it, it’s probably because there was in fact none at all. Their brief sex scenes are not good, they’re stiff and it seems like both are uncomfortable. Charley’s quick solution to everything was showing up at Amy’s door and wanting to talk after disappearing for days. Because she doesn’t how to communicate. And from the start Amy lied to Charley and continued to do it throughout the rest of the book. And if this is the way they behave at the beginning of the relationship, I don’t even want to know what it will look like a few years down the road.
The setting of the book
If the author hadn’t mentioned it was 2013 I wouldn’t have known until they talk about gay marriage not being legal. There was some language that was used and references made that did not make sense for this year. This whole book SCREAMED 2019 at least. One particular thing that bothered me was people using their pronouns to introduce themselves. As someone who is part of the queer community I appreciate this. But 2013 was not the year for this. You can hardly hear some people irl do it nowadays, it was most definitely not a thing back then.
Overall remarks about the plot
- The author seems to do a lot of telling but not showing.
- The whole ex-girlfriend situation was extremely unnecessary as it was not essential to the plot and was only there for drama (and it wasn’t even good).
- There was a lot of stereotyping.
This has to be one of the most disappointing books I have ever read, there wasn’t a single thing I liked about it. And I’ll explain.
The characters
Amy (the MC), her personality was all over the place and her character was really inconsistent throughout the whole book. She is described as this people-pleasing person, but she shows the complete opposite. She comes off as selfish and self-centered. Also, why is she giving speeches in every chapter? It just came off as highly unrealistic and unauthentic to me. She always seems to know exactly what to say at every single situation. Which brings me to, did she have magic powers? Because she can fix everything that could go wrong during a wedding.
Charley (the love interest). So you have your typical sexy short-haired lesbian who is smart and charming. And that’s it. She had no personality beyond that.
Joel and Damien. Yes I’m bundling these two together because that’s what the author did. So you all remember when the only gay representation in media was gay men portrayed as gay best friends whose only purpose was to support the main character? Well, I just summed up these two. Both characters are one dimensional and highly lack personality. They even had a scene where they helped Amy pick clothes and it had such ‘gay best friend’ vibes. And for a book that tries too hard to be diverse and inclusive. This just didn’t make sense at all. Greg and Max were the old versions of Joel and Damien. Gay best friends 2.0. That’s all I’m going to say.
The romance
I’ll just say it, there was no chemistry between these two characters. Their first encounter was so cringey and the dialogue was horrific to read. It seemed that the only thing Charley liked about Amy was her food but that was it. I specially remember that during their second date, the moment after they were done doing the dishes was SO AWKWARD. The author literally says there’s “sexual tension”, but if you have to mention it, it’s probably because there was in fact none at all. Their brief sex scenes are not good, they’re stiff and it seems like both are uncomfortable. Charley’s quick solution to everything was showing up at Amy’s door and wanting to talk after disappearing for days. Because she doesn’t how to communicate. And from the start Amy lied to Charley and continued to do it throughout the rest of the book. And if this is the way they behave at the beginning of the relationship, I don’t even want to know what it will look like a few years down the road.
The setting of the book
If the author hadn’t mentioned it was 2013 I wouldn’t have known until they talk about gay marriage not being legal. There was some language that was used and references made that did not make sense for this year. This whole book SCREAMED 2019 at least. One particular thing that bothered me was people using their pronouns to introduce themselves. As someone who is part of the queer community I appreciate this. But 2013 was not the year for this. You can hardly hear some people irl do it nowadays, it was most definitely not a thing back then.
Overall remarks about the plot
- The author seems to do a lot of telling but not showing.
- The whole ex-girlfriend situation was extremely unnecessary as it was not essential to the plot and was only there for drama (and it wasn’t even good).
- There was a lot of stereotyping.
February 4, 2022
This one didn’t work for me. I was drawn to the premise of a closeted queer woman working in a Christian bakery in mid-2010s Tulsa, but I wouldn’t consider “Queerly Beloved” a romcom, since the primary focus is on Amy’s personal growth, rather than on her budding romance with Charley. In fact, there’s practically no romantic build up; the characters seem to fall for each other immediately, and then their romance takes a backseat as both characters focus on their jobs and occasionally go on short dates every few chapters. We also know almost nothing about Charley beyond the fact that she’s an engineer working for an oil company, which is a fact that characters bring up *a lot.* There’s even a scene where Amy, a white woman, seemingly gets turned on while listening to Charley, another white woman, tell her that she’s trying to convince her company not to expand into Indigenous territory. It’s uncomfortable to read, and I’m not sure why this was included.
Structurally, this book is too long and poorly edited. Very little happens within the first 200 pages; the pace lags and stumbles. The writing is also tedious––readers are told what happens to Amy, but it hardly ever feels like we’re experiencing it with her. The dialogue is clumsy and rarely believable, which makes banter between the MCs unachievable. It’s difficult to root for a couple that lacks any chemistry.
“Queerly Beloved” also tries to have a conversation about gay marriage and what it means to queer folks, but that discussion is underdeveloped. There’s a scene wherein a character challenges the importance of marriage as an institution, suggesting that it’s a homonormative construct. I appreciate that the author brings that idea in, but I’m disappointed that it’s later cast aside when another character is like, “Well I’m gay, and marriage is important to me!” I guess you’re unlikely to find a nuanced discussion of marriage rights in a novel about a lesbian who loves weddings.
Basically: Super interesting premise, but poor execution.
Thank you to NetGalley for access to this electronic ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Structurally, this book is too long and poorly edited. Very little happens within the first 200 pages; the pace lags and stumbles. The writing is also tedious––readers are told what happens to Amy, but it hardly ever feels like we’re experiencing it with her. The dialogue is clumsy and rarely believable, which makes banter between the MCs unachievable. It’s difficult to root for a couple that lacks any chemistry.
“Queerly Beloved” also tries to have a conversation about gay marriage and what it means to queer folks, but that discussion is underdeveloped. There’s a scene wherein a character challenges the importance of marriage as an institution, suggesting that it’s a homonormative construct. I appreciate that the author brings that idea in, but I’m disappointed that it’s later cast aside when another character is like, “Well I’m gay, and marriage is important to me!” I guess you’re unlikely to find a nuanced discussion of marriage rights in a novel about a lesbian who loves weddings.
Basically: Super interesting premise, but poor execution.
Thank you to NetGalley for access to this electronic ARC in exchange for my honest review.
June 14, 2022
I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Queerly Beloved was honestly a really cute book to dive into. In this, you will meet Amelia - aka Amy. Her and I have something in common. She loves to bake, likes weddings, and adores flowers. Whereas I just like to bake (lol). She's also surrounded by this huge queen found family and I really adored that too. I definitely saw myself in her mom, who is completely supportive of her, because that's how I am with my own family and friends.
Even though I liked Amy, it did honesty take me a while to feel that way. She definitely had some ups and downs with me. Though, if I'm being truly honest, the only character that I really didn't like was Donna. She was a real piece of work and I hope she realizes what she did was completely horrible.
Other than that, I sort of liked the romance. That too also had its ups and downs. At first, they were really cute, and I couldn't help myself from shipping them. Then it started to seem like they were moving at different paces. So, I totally saw some of the drama coming before it did.
In the end, I'm glad that everything worked out between everyone. The epilogue was so freaking cute and put a smile on my face. I'm honestly really happy that I got the chance to jump into this book and can't wait for everyone else to do so.
Queerly Beloved was honestly a really cute book to dive into. In this, you will meet Amelia - aka Amy. Her and I have something in common. She loves to bake, likes weddings, and adores flowers. Whereas I just like to bake (lol). She's also surrounded by this huge queen found family and I really adored that too. I definitely saw myself in her mom, who is completely supportive of her, because that's how I am with my own family and friends.
Even though I liked Amy, it did honesty take me a while to feel that way. She definitely had some ups and downs with me. Though, if I'm being truly honest, the only character that I really didn't like was Donna. She was a real piece of work and I hope she realizes what she did was completely horrible.
Other than that, I sort of liked the romance. That too also had its ups and downs. At first, they were really cute, and I couldn't help myself from shipping them. Then it started to seem like they were moving at different paces. So, I totally saw some of the drama coming before it did.
In the end, I'm glad that everything worked out between everyone. The epilogue was so freaking cute and put a smile on my face. I'm honestly really happy that I got the chance to jump into this book and can't wait for everyone else to do so.
December 22, 2024
This was too much tell not show and very very preachy. That being said if you make it to epilogue it is very satisfying- four point five stars- what lost a star was the main character was all over the place and awful. It was authentic to Midwest though.
June 24, 2022
Loved this!!
Queerly Beloved follows semi-closeted lesbian Amy. She's a baker at a Christian bakery (where she pretends to be straight) and works nights at her local queer bar. When she's fired for being a lesbian from the bakery, Amy isn't sure what to do. She turns her one-time paid bridesmaid opportunity into a full time gig and finds out that she enjoys it. As Amy gets further into the professional bridesmaid business and navigating a new relationship with Charley, she finds her need to please people is driving her to the breaking point.
This was so fun. I really loved this story. Amy was such a relatable character. I am also a people pleaser. I also loved this whole professional bridesmaid thing. It was such an interesting job, but the chaos planning of last minute things made my ADHD very happy. I also love that Amy is constantly rescuing cakes.
It's important to note that this starts off taking place in 2010 before gay marriage was legalized in the US. It's important to a particular part of the conflict that's brought up later. There is a fight that made me so mad. But I liked how it was handled and that both of the characters apologized and agreed to continue to work on it. Because even full adults aren't perfect.
Then there was the romance between Amy and Charley. I loved them SO MUCH. They were so cute together and I had complete heart eyes when they were together. Then there was the ending. It was so happy I cried. I need more books like this one.
Rep: white cis female lesbian MC, white cis female lesbian side character, Muscogee-Choctaw lesbian cis female side character, white gay cis male side characters, BIPOC gay cis male side character, BIPOC genderqueer side character, various other queer side characters.
CWs: Lesbophobia/lesbomisia, religious bigotry, general queerphobia/queermisia, alcohol consumption, outing, cursing, vomit. Moderate: Toxic relationship (past romantic past MC and side character), infidelity, cancer. Minor: Fatphobia.
Queerly Beloved follows semi-closeted lesbian Amy. She's a baker at a Christian bakery (where she pretends to be straight) and works nights at her local queer bar. When she's fired for being a lesbian from the bakery, Amy isn't sure what to do. She turns her one-time paid bridesmaid opportunity into a full time gig and finds out that she enjoys it. As Amy gets further into the professional bridesmaid business and navigating a new relationship with Charley, she finds her need to please people is driving her to the breaking point.
This was so fun. I really loved this story. Amy was such a relatable character. I am also a people pleaser. I also loved this whole professional bridesmaid thing. It was such an interesting job, but the chaos planning of last minute things made my ADHD very happy. I also love that Amy is constantly rescuing cakes.
It's important to note that this starts off taking place in 2010 before gay marriage was legalized in the US. It's important to a particular part of the conflict that's brought up later. There is a fight that made me so mad. But I liked how it was handled and that both of the characters apologized and agreed to continue to work on it. Because even full adults aren't perfect.
Then there was the romance between Amy and Charley. I loved them SO MUCH. They were so cute together and I had complete heart eyes when they were together. Then there was the ending. It was so happy I cried. I need more books like this one.
Rep: white cis female lesbian MC, white cis female lesbian side character, Muscogee-Choctaw lesbian cis female side character, white gay cis male side characters, BIPOC gay cis male side character, BIPOC genderqueer side character, various other queer side characters.
CWs: Lesbophobia/lesbomisia, religious bigotry, general queerphobia/queermisia, alcohol consumption, outing, cursing, vomit. Moderate: Toxic relationship (past romantic past MC and side character), infidelity, cancer. Minor: Fatphobia.
May 27, 2022
I had a really hard time reading this book because there was so much more “telling” than showing. The concept was clever but it was preachy at times and the story dragged. I also felt the romance was an afterthought. There wasn’t much chemistry between the characters and they weren’t together much. The scene with Gracie was sweet though and I liked the baking ideas. Overall it missed the mark for me.
Short summary: Amy’s fired from a Christian bakery for being gay and falls into a job as a (straight) bridesmaid-for-hire. Her people pleasing nature clashes with her desire to be authentic and she must decide what’s more important.
Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing. ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
Short summary: Amy’s fired from a Christian bakery for being gay and falls into a job as a (straight) bridesmaid-for-hire. Her people pleasing nature clashes with her desire to be authentic and she must decide what’s more important.
Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing. ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
August 25, 2023
4.5 stars
Queerly Beloved is such a cute, yet thoughtful story. I absolutely loved the characters, premise, and romance, but by far the strongest moments were the discussions surrounding LGBTQIA rights. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a cute romance, but I would also recommend it to anyone looking for a book with well written discussions about queer identity.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Queerly Beloved is such a cute, yet thoughtful story. I absolutely loved the characters, premise, and romance, but by far the strongest moments were the discussions surrounding LGBTQIA rights. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a cute romance, but I would also recommend it to anyone looking for a book with well written discussions about queer identity.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
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March 23, 2023DNF at 25%
This is not my lucky day, second book I dnf today... however, this one is on me, I'm too ace for it. Mc and love interest have barely known each other and already banged on the second date, 22% in. I can't believe allosexuals just do that.
but yeah, I'm just not feeling it, so I returned it on Libby.
This is not my lucky day, second book I dnf today... however, this one is on me, I'm too ace for it. Mc and love interest have barely known each other and already banged on the second date, 22% in. I can't believe allosexuals just do that.
but yeah, I'm just not feeling it, so I returned it on Libby.
March 21, 2022
OMG I GOT AN ARC I GOT AN ARC.
SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP FOREVER!!!!!
Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for the ARC & opportunity to read this book.
It didn't work for me. DNF at 40%. This really needed to be advertised as fiction. Hardly any romance...the love interest is not mentioned/forgotten for chapters upon chapters. I hate to say it but it was also quite boring. I do very much appreciate the message the author was trying to convey, but I just feel like the way the book was marketed (as a romcom) was detrimental. Had I gone into this book knowing what to expect (NOT a romcom), I probably would have enjoyed it more.
SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP FOREVER!!!!!
Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for the ARC & opportunity to read this book.
It didn't work for me. DNF at 40%. This really needed to be advertised as fiction. Hardly any romance...the love interest is not mentioned/forgotten for chapters upon chapters. I hate to say it but it was also quite boring. I do very much appreciate the message the author was trying to convey, but I just feel like the way the book was marketed (as a romcom) was detrimental. Had I gone into this book knowing what to expect (NOT a romcom), I probably would have enjoyed it more.
January 1, 2022
3.5 stars! sweet and gay, exactly how i love a book!
Definitely for you if you enjoy:
- Gay love! wooooo!
- Supportive chosen family
- Reflective gay journey
Set in 2013, Amy is a wedding lover and closeted lesbian working at a conservative bakery in Tulsa, Oklahoma when she meets Charly, a new in town engineer. When Amy is outed and fired, she’s torn on what else to do besides continue working at her other part time bartending job at the local gay bar.
Her love for baking, event coordinating and weddings comes in use when she’s asked to be a stand-in bridesmaid at a strangers wedding where they’ll pay her for it. Her one-time bridesmaid gig turns into a full service and soon all the offers roll in but between that, her friends getting engaged and her love life spirling, Amy has to chose what’s worth fighting for and how she can be who she is openly and proudly.
📚
This one was cute but wasn’t as romance novel-y as I hoped. I would say it’s more fiction than romance but all the romance bits that were in there did make me warm in fuzzy inside. The side characters were so sweet and Amy’s chosen family really were so supportive and fun to read about.
It was also interesting (and understandable) the time it was set in and though many books nowadays are just placed in the present with so many smart phone/social media moments and viral things, it was nice to step back a little in time and include that political topic of gay marriage too.
I did like this one, it just didn’t spark anything very brightly in me but I can think of a few people in my life who will really enjoy it and I can’t wait to gift them this one!
Definitely for you if you enjoy:
- Gay love! wooooo!
- Supportive chosen family
- Reflective gay journey
Set in 2013, Amy is a wedding lover and closeted lesbian working at a conservative bakery in Tulsa, Oklahoma when she meets Charly, a new in town engineer. When Amy is outed and fired, she’s torn on what else to do besides continue working at her other part time bartending job at the local gay bar.
Her love for baking, event coordinating and weddings comes in use when she’s asked to be a stand-in bridesmaid at a strangers wedding where they’ll pay her for it. Her one-time bridesmaid gig turns into a full service and soon all the offers roll in but between that, her friends getting engaged and her love life spirling, Amy has to chose what’s worth fighting for and how she can be who she is openly and proudly.
📚
This one was cute but wasn’t as romance novel-y as I hoped. I would say it’s more fiction than romance but all the romance bits that were in there did make me warm in fuzzy inside. The side characters were so sweet and Amy’s chosen family really were so supportive and fun to read about.
It was also interesting (and understandable) the time it was set in and though many books nowadays are just placed in the present with so many smart phone/social media moments and viral things, it was nice to step back a little in time and include that political topic of gay marriage too.
I did like this one, it just didn’t spark anything very brightly in me but I can think of a few people in my life who will really enjoy it and I can’t wait to gift them this one!
June 5, 2022
I feel a rant in my future but for now I’ll describe why this was not an enjoyable experience:
- problematic representation of the singular indigenous character in a very indigenous state (OK)
- an unconvincing love story with a love interest who was so hot and cold and deserved to be dumped
- too many two dimensional side characters
- so much time spent on boring shit, not enough time on the romance
This is marketed as a romance but it REALLY isn’t.
- problematic representation of the singular indigenous character in a very indigenous state (OK)
- an unconvincing love story with a love interest who was so hot and cold and deserved to be dumped
- too many two dimensional side characters
- so much time spent on boring shit, not enough time on the romance
This is marketed as a romance but it REALLY isn’t.
did-not-finish
April 21, 2022DNF unfortunately for me. This was what I wanted to read. Fake bridesmaid. A queer woman living in a city that may not be so inclusive.
But at 40% I have nothing. I feel no chemistry between the main character and her love interest. They go on a date less than 48 hours after meeting, but then from there it's such a slow buildup.
But at 40% I have nothing. I feel no chemistry between the main character and her love interest. They go on a date less than 48 hours after meeting, but then from there it's such a slow buildup.
dnf
September 8, 2022I went into this book thinking it was a romance, but found the actual romantic plotline to be forced, awkward, and secondary to our main character's internal monologue. I tried to push past that but the rest of the story, aside from Amy's found family, held no substance for me.
March 28, 2022
When I heard about a book set in Oklahoma in the early 2010s I was looking forward to this book, as I got my undergraduate degree in a plains state in that exact time period. So I knew the culture that would have surrounded this book well. But when I finally got to read this book, there were things I did enjoy about the book, but overall I feel like it was trying to do too much and got lost in the shuffle.
Queerly Beloved follows Amy, a baker in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Amy can't be fully expressive about her being a lesbian as she works in a Christian themed bakery- but she has still managed to create a community around herself. But when everything seems to fall apart for her, she finds a new path career wise as a bridesmaid for hire. And along the way meets Charley- the cute soft butch engineer who just moved to Tulsa for work and throws Amy's routine off even more.
There were things to like about this book- particularly the character of Amy. Seeing her grow and develop over the course of the book was probably the best part and it's honestly what kept me reading.
Unfortunately other than Amy, I feel like a lot of the characters in this book were underdeveloped. We really don't find out much about Charley as the love interest very much at all. And for me to really buy into the romance of the book I need to be much more invested in the characters- and I just wasn't here. Her best friends really weren't super developed either besides some basic character traits.
This book also tries to have a discussion about gay marriage and heteronormative practices as it takes place when and where it does, but it doesn't fully commit. It mentions discourse and discussion on important topics then doesn't go into detail to have real conversations about the issues.
I feel like this book could use some solid editing. It has potential with Amy as a really interesting character and I enjoyed reading about her personal progression, but a lot of this book just also didn't work as well for me- particularly the romance. 2.5/5
Thank you to Dial Press and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Queerly Beloved follows Amy, a baker in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Amy can't be fully expressive about her being a lesbian as she works in a Christian themed bakery- but she has still managed to create a community around herself. But when everything seems to fall apart for her, she finds a new path career wise as a bridesmaid for hire. And along the way meets Charley- the cute soft butch engineer who just moved to Tulsa for work and throws Amy's routine off even more.
There were things to like about this book- particularly the character of Amy. Seeing her grow and develop over the course of the book was probably the best part and it's honestly what kept me reading.
Unfortunately other than Amy, I feel like a lot of the characters in this book were underdeveloped. We really don't find out much about Charley as the love interest very much at all. And for me to really buy into the romance of the book I need to be much more invested in the characters- and I just wasn't here. Her best friends really weren't super developed either besides some basic character traits.
This book also tries to have a discussion about gay marriage and heteronormative practices as it takes place when and where it does, but it doesn't fully commit. It mentions discourse and discussion on important topics then doesn't go into detail to have real conversations about the issues.
I feel like this book could use some solid editing. It has potential with Amy as a really interesting character and I enjoyed reading about her personal progression, but a lot of this book just also didn't work as well for me- particularly the romance. 2.5/5
Thank you to Dial Press and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
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December 30, 2023
Hmmm. Less a romance and more a mid-twenties coming of self novel.
Amy is a chronic people pleaser, and I definitely felt how she created a new persona for each person she meets, until she loses track of who she really is.
The romance aspect of the story was honestly a complete meh. Charlie and Amy have zero chemistry, and the majority of their relationship is taken 0-60 in Amy's head as she manufactures an entire relationship after one date. I'd love to say it gets better than that, but while they do reconcile their differences and reunite in the end, it just felt like I needed more than what I got.
The rest of it was really good, though. From living in Tulsa, OK, as a queer person to the heteronormativity of the wedding business, particularly in 2013. Yes, this book is set in 2013, and while it seems dated I really liked that it exists in this time period, just before DOMA was overturned and gay marriage was legal in all 50 states.
Amy is a chronic people pleaser, and I definitely felt how she created a new persona for each person she meets, until she loses track of who she really is.
The romance aspect of the story was honestly a complete meh. Charlie and Amy have zero chemistry, and the majority of their relationship is taken 0-60 in Amy's head as she manufactures an entire relationship after one date. I'd love to say it gets better than that, but while they do reconcile their differences and reunite in the end, it just felt like I needed more than what I got.
The rest of it was really good, though. From living in Tulsa, OK, as a queer person to the heteronormativity of the wedding business, particularly in 2013. Yes, this book is set in 2013, and while it seems dated I really liked that it exists in this time period, just before DOMA was overturned and gay marriage was legal in all 50 states.
March 15, 2022
⭐️.25 stars (rounded down to 1)
The cover was so cute and super interesting premise, but that’s where my liking ended. This book was a HUGE let down. I would categorize it more as women’s fiction than romance. The book did not give 2013 until the author said it, so that says a lot. The romance was unbelievable, Lacked chemistry and was insta-lovey. Chock full of stereotypes and thrown in identities, and just way too long. The author attempted to tackle some important convos surrounding being queer in Tulsa and the institution of marriage as a queer person but the discussion was poorly executed.
Thanks to NetGalley and RandomHouse for sharing this book with me in exchange for my honest review!
The cover was so cute and super interesting premise, but that’s where my liking ended. This book was a HUGE let down. I would categorize it more as women’s fiction than romance. The book did not give 2013 until the author said it, so that says a lot. The romance was unbelievable, Lacked chemistry and was insta-lovey. Chock full of stereotypes and thrown in identities, and just way too long. The author attempted to tackle some important convos surrounding being queer in Tulsa and the institution of marriage as a queer person but the discussion was poorly executed.
Thanks to NetGalley and RandomHouse for sharing this book with me in exchange for my honest review!
December 25, 2021
Well written story of twenty somethings coming to terms with being gay in a conservative political state before LGBTQ marriage equality.
You come out more than once - each time you start a new job, you meet a new friend.
Amy is a people pleaser - who mistakenly places her energy in self sabotaging relationships and situations. Queerly Beloved follows her growth to self awareness.
You come out more than once - each time you start a new job, you meet a new friend.
Amy is a people pleaser - who mistakenly places her energy in self sabotaging relationships and situations. Queerly Beloved follows her growth to self awareness.
Read
August 8, 2022Okay that was cute! It was. It didn’t hit as a romance for me though. I need significantly more yearning. Like significantly. It felt like it was more about the personal journey of the main character than the romance, which was cool but wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. Seriously, more yearning! A slower burn please !
June 16, 2023
Semi-closeted lesbian Amy has to hide who she is at her day job where she is a baker at a Christian bakery but is able to be her true self at nights at her local queer bar. When she's fired for being a lesbian from the bakery, Amy isn't sure what to do. She turns her one-time paid bridesmaid opportunity into a full time gig and finds out that she enjoys it. As Amy gets further into the professional bridesmaid business and navigating a new relationship with Charley, she finds her need to please people is driving her to the breaking point.
I really loved that Amy found her own family and created a community where she was loved and accepted. I did not really believe the connection between Amy and Charley. Charley seemed so disconnected and the reasoning behind it didn't really make sense to me. The book also felt very long and I think there were a lot of minor plots that weren't necessary and could have been cut. Loved the storyline just think it needed a bit of fine tuning.
I really loved that Amy found her own family and created a community where she was loved and accepted. I did not really believe the connection between Amy and Charley. Charley seemed so disconnected and the reasoning behind it didn't really make sense to me. The book also felt very long and I think there were a lot of minor plots that weren't necessary and could have been cut. Loved the storyline just think it needed a bit of fine tuning.
May 11, 2022
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for letting me read an e-ARC of Queerly Beloved by Susie Dumond.
I was incredibly excited to read this book, I love to use romance novels as a palate cleanser to all the incredibly long fantasy and sci-fi books I usually read and a queer romance set in the bible belt felt wonderfully close to my experiences living in Missouri. Having said that, this book has been one of my biggest disappointments of the year.
There are so many problems with it that I’m going to have to split this review up into different parts to make sure I cover everything properly.
Genre
First off, this is not a romance. It might be advertised as one but there is no relationship development between Amy and her love interest Charley. They meet in the first chapter and proceed to go on dates every few chapters, instantly fall in love, and that’s it. Charley gets no character development and isn’t actually a very big part of Amy’s character development. I honestly think it would be more accurate to shelve this in historical fiction. For those of you that are still considering picking this up in hopes of some steamy scenes, look elsewhere, this is a fade to black book. Normally that wouldn’t be an issue for me but I was hoping to be distracted from the plot for a while.
Characters
We are essentially told who each of the characters are but never really get to see their individuality or personality shine through and those that do stay static throughout the entire book. Amy is introduced as a people-pleasing social chameleon but the main character that we actually get is very anxious and self-absorbed. When one of Amy’s friends calls her out for being selfish, she storms off and that friend eventually apologizes and says they were wrong. They weren’t. Amy spends so much time focused on herself that she comes close to even ruining some of the weddings she’s been hired for.
I still cannot tell Joel and Damian apart, it’s like the author was told that having a gay best friend is too cliche so her fix was to give Amy two gay best friends that are interchangeable. The characters of color exist to be woke in the background so that Amy doesn’t have to, she never confronts her privilege as a straight passing white lesbian while complaining about how hard it is to live in a red state. Charley, the love interest, gets zero character development; we know the same about her at the beginning of the book as we do at the end. She is completely absent for the majority of the book and the relationship between them is incredibly instalovey.
Plot
This plot wasn’t terrible. I think the main issue stems from the genre confusion. Romance follows a specific plotline with common beats, the meet-cute, the third-act break-up, the happily ever after, but this book can’t decide whether it’s a romance or not. So instead, it hits some of the right beats at the wrong time and skips others entirely. Amy’s journey from being a baker to being a bridesmaid is a bit of an odd one and at times it’s very clear that something happened because the author needed it to and not because it made any sense. Things between Charley and Amy were so lowkey that I feel like the third act break up happened more between her and the idea of marriage equality than between the two women.
Time Period
Queerly Beloved is set somewhere around 2013-2014 which can be extrapolated from the fact that it is described as mid-2010’s but same-sex marriage has not been federally legalized in the United States (something that is unnecessarily fixated on by almost all characters). I was baffled by the author’s decision to set the book during this period, especially when it is clear that this is a time that the author does not remember fondly. It never really makes sense and gives the book overall a very dated feeling. At times it literally felt like going backward in terms of representation, it so accurately achieved the feel of 2014 bible belt that I was waiting to get queerbaited the whole time.
The Bible belt is still difficult to navigate as a queer person in 2022, attitudes don’t automatically change because the Supreme Court said we could get married. The focus on marriage really reminded me of people that think same-sex marriage is the be-all and end-all of queer rights. Amy and her friends spend so much of this book complaining about the lack of marriage equality while doing absolutely nothing to change it which leaves me feeling oddly preached at despite the fact that this is not a major issue anymore. We as a community face so many more issues on the daily than whether or not we can get married that this book ends up feeling tone-deaf and ignorant. Not to say that marriage equality isn’t incredibly important, had this book been written in 2015 it would have made sense to focus on this groundbreaking ruling but it’s not 2015 and we are facing different issues.
Amy’s change of heart about marriage equality doesn’t seem to be her realizing that it is just another step in the right direction but her being upset that she isn’t immediately getting married and being fully accepted by everyone. Her expectations for everything feel unrealistic. The book seems to condemn the idea of staying closeted to work, Amy blames herself and feels ashamed about how she has to be closeted to work, even other characters tell her that she should come out when she isn’t sure how her bosses will react. She compares her situation in a very stereotypically feminine job to that of her butch girlfriend’s in a stereotypically masc job and then feels like a coward for not coming out. It is possible that the author is trying to make a comment to the opposite effect but it didn’t come across that way.
I was incredibly excited to read this book, I love to use romance novels as a palate cleanser to all the incredibly long fantasy and sci-fi books I usually read and a queer romance set in the bible belt felt wonderfully close to my experiences living in Missouri. Having said that, this book has been one of my biggest disappointments of the year.
There are so many problems with it that I’m going to have to split this review up into different parts to make sure I cover everything properly.
Genre
First off, this is not a romance. It might be advertised as one but there is no relationship development between Amy and her love interest Charley. They meet in the first chapter and proceed to go on dates every few chapters, instantly fall in love, and that’s it. Charley gets no character development and isn’t actually a very big part of Amy’s character development. I honestly think it would be more accurate to shelve this in historical fiction. For those of you that are still considering picking this up in hopes of some steamy scenes, look elsewhere, this is a fade to black book. Normally that wouldn’t be an issue for me but I was hoping to be distracted from the plot for a while.
Characters
We are essentially told who each of the characters are but never really get to see their individuality or personality shine through and those that do stay static throughout the entire book. Amy is introduced as a people-pleasing social chameleon but the main character that we actually get is very anxious and self-absorbed. When one of Amy’s friends calls her out for being selfish, she storms off and that friend eventually apologizes and says they were wrong. They weren’t. Amy spends so much time focused on herself that she comes close to even ruining some of the weddings she’s been hired for.
I still cannot tell Joel and Damian apart, it’s like the author was told that having a gay best friend is too cliche so her fix was to give Amy two gay best friends that are interchangeable. The characters of color exist to be woke in the background so that Amy doesn’t have to, she never confronts her privilege as a straight passing white lesbian while complaining about how hard it is to live in a red state. Charley, the love interest, gets zero character development; we know the same about her at the beginning of the book as we do at the end. She is completely absent for the majority of the book and the relationship between them is incredibly instalovey.
Plot
This plot wasn’t terrible. I think the main issue stems from the genre confusion. Romance follows a specific plotline with common beats, the meet-cute, the third-act break-up, the happily ever after, but this book can’t decide whether it’s a romance or not. So instead, it hits some of the right beats at the wrong time and skips others entirely. Amy’s journey from being a baker to being a bridesmaid is a bit of an odd one and at times it’s very clear that something happened because the author needed it to and not because it made any sense. Things between Charley and Amy were so lowkey that I feel like the third act break up happened more between her and the idea of marriage equality than between the two women.
Time Period
Queerly Beloved is set somewhere around 2013-2014 which can be extrapolated from the fact that it is described as mid-2010’s but same-sex marriage has not been federally legalized in the United States (something that is unnecessarily fixated on by almost all characters). I was baffled by the author’s decision to set the book during this period, especially when it is clear that this is a time that the author does not remember fondly. It never really makes sense and gives the book overall a very dated feeling. At times it literally felt like going backward in terms of representation, it so accurately achieved the feel of 2014 bible belt that I was waiting to get queerbaited the whole time.
The Bible belt is still difficult to navigate as a queer person in 2022, attitudes don’t automatically change because the Supreme Court said we could get married. The focus on marriage really reminded me of people that think same-sex marriage is the be-all and end-all of queer rights. Amy and her friends spend so much of this book complaining about the lack of marriage equality while doing absolutely nothing to change it which leaves me feeling oddly preached at despite the fact that this is not a major issue anymore. We as a community face so many more issues on the daily than whether or not we can get married that this book ends up feeling tone-deaf and ignorant. Not to say that marriage equality isn’t incredibly important, had this book been written in 2015 it would have made sense to focus on this groundbreaking ruling but it’s not 2015 and we are facing different issues.
Amy’s change of heart about marriage equality doesn’t seem to be her realizing that it is just another step in the right direction but her being upset that she isn’t immediately getting married and being fully accepted by everyone. Her expectations for everything feel unrealistic. The book seems to condemn the idea of staying closeted to work, Amy blames herself and feels ashamed about how she has to be closeted to work, even other characters tell her that she should come out when she isn’t sure how her bosses will react. She compares her situation in a very stereotypically feminine job to that of her butch girlfriend’s in a stereotypically masc job and then feels like a coward for not coming out. It is possible that the author is trying to make a comment to the opposite effect but it didn’t come across that way.
April 2, 2022
I have mixed feelings about this book. My rating is between 2.5 and 3. First, despite the cover and the synopsis, this doesn't really feel like a romance. It's much more about the main character, Amy, and her personal story. Part of her journey involves a new romance, but I wouldn't say it's the main focus of the book. I wanted to know more about the love interest, but her character was a lot less developed. Luckily, I was aware that this book wasn't a rom-com before I started reading it, and I think it helped somewhat save the experience for me.
This book takes place in the early 2010s, prior to the legalization of gay marriage in the US. The main character is gay and she works at a very conservative bakery. She's out to many people in her life, but not to her employer. This portion of the book was fine but kind of depressing to read about, I'd be careful if you like to avoid books about religious trauma related to queerness.
A little bit into the story, Amy starts a side business working as a bridesmaid for hire. Throughout the book, she goes to different people's weddings and helps out as a fake friend. This was kind of fun, but there were some uncomfortable moments and hurtful comments that I didn't like. There's a lot of discussion about marriage equality and heteronormativity.
In between these weddings and work events, you get to see glimpses of Amy's friend group and some scenes with her family. These had so much potential to be the best part of the book but they only partially worked for me. Some of the side characters and dialogue came across a little forced and not how people actually talk or act.
Of course, there is also the romance plotline in the background. I got really annoyed at this part of the book because they kept hiding information from each other and I just wanted them to be more open. There was also so much time between all of their interactions, so miscommunications would go unresolved for an uncomfortably long time sometimes. There were some very frustrating decisions made by both characters. There were also some moments where I was cheering for them, so it wasn't all bad.
Overall, I think this is a decently good book about the experiences of one queer woman and her challenges in a conservative environment if that's what you're looking for. I probably wouldn't recommend this one too much since it kind of bummed me out and didn't have enough of a romance to make up for the bleak parts.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!
This book takes place in the early 2010s, prior to the legalization of gay marriage in the US. The main character is gay and she works at a very conservative bakery. She's out to many people in her life, but not to her employer. This portion of the book was fine but kind of depressing to read about, I'd be careful if you like to avoid books about religious trauma related to queerness.
A little bit into the story, Amy starts a side business working as a bridesmaid for hire. Throughout the book, she goes to different people's weddings and helps out as a fake friend. This was kind of fun, but there were some uncomfortable moments and hurtful comments that I didn't like. There's a lot of discussion about marriage equality and heteronormativity.
In between these weddings and work events, you get to see glimpses of Amy's friend group and some scenes with her family. These had so much potential to be the best part of the book but they only partially worked for me. Some of the side characters and dialogue came across a little forced and not how people actually talk or act.
Of course, there is also the romance plotline in the background. I got really annoyed at this part of the book because they kept hiding information from each other and I just wanted them to be more open. There was also so much time between all of their interactions, so miscommunications would go unresolved for an uncomfortably long time sometimes. There were some very frustrating decisions made by both characters. There were also some moments where I was cheering for them, so it wasn't all bad.
Overall, I think this is a decently good book about the experiences of one queer woman and her challenges in a conservative environment if that's what you're looking for. I probably wouldn't recommend this one too much since it kind of bummed me out and didn't have enough of a romance to make up for the bleak parts.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!
January 26, 2022
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for access to this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
I really enjoyed Queerly Beloved -- while I think it falls more firmly in the genre of women's fic (as the novel more closely traced Amy's journey than the relationship of Amy and Charley), Amy was a really interesting character to see develop. Set in 2013 because of its pre-legalized gay marriage (this shift doesn't become clear until later in the novel -- I'm explaining it here so others aren't jarred or put-off by the backwards time setting), Queerly Beloved follows Amy and the different facets of her life: closeted at her bakery job due to the homophobia rampant in the Bible Belt, "out" and proud at her job at a lesbian/gay bar, her dive into an entrepreneurial business within the wedding industry, her friendship with her bestie, and her burgeoning relationship with Charley, who represents the underrepresented masc lesbian.
Amy has many queer folks in her life and the different conversations she has with them about LGBTQ+ rights, the normalization of binary marriage (and how it excludes nb and trans folks), and how to balance financially support herself within the wedding industry without further normalizing hiding one's gayness were so refreshing. I enjoyed these parts of the novel more than Amy's relationship with Charley, although I appreciated her growth post-conflict. The interview at the end of the novel with the author was also really interesting and gave nice insights into why she wrote some of the parts of the novel the way she did.
I really enjoyed Queerly Beloved -- while I think it falls more firmly in the genre of women's fic (as the novel more closely traced Amy's journey than the relationship of Amy and Charley), Amy was a really interesting character to see develop. Set in 2013 because of its pre-legalized gay marriage (this shift doesn't become clear until later in the novel -- I'm explaining it here so others aren't jarred or put-off by the backwards time setting), Queerly Beloved follows Amy and the different facets of her life: closeted at her bakery job due to the homophobia rampant in the Bible Belt, "out" and proud at her job at a lesbian/gay bar, her dive into an entrepreneurial business within the wedding industry, her friendship with her bestie, and her burgeoning relationship with Charley, who represents the underrepresented masc lesbian.
Amy has many queer folks in her life and the different conversations she has with them about LGBTQ+ rights, the normalization of binary marriage (and how it excludes nb and trans folks), and how to balance financially support herself within the wedding industry without further normalizing hiding one's gayness were so refreshing. I enjoyed these parts of the novel more than Amy's relationship with Charley, although I appreciated her growth post-conflict. The interview at the end of the novel with the author was also really interesting and gave nice insights into why she wrote some of the parts of the novel the way she did.
June 19, 2022
I’m sorry but this is a big no, first off it’s set in the 2010s which makes sense why gay marriage isn’t legal but you don’t realize that because it wasn’t explicitly stated. Also if felt like it was set in the 2010s and not in a good way with all the pop culture references. Also it’s Insta-Love and then Charley isn’t in the book for the most party and then I started hating Amy, this book is just so bad.
August 5, 2022
The biggest problem with this book in my opinion is the author’s choice to set it in 2013 rather than 2022. Although I understand the impulse to set a queer book in a red state before gay marriage was legalized, I think it hurts the book in a lot of ways. With the ways that LGBTQ rights are being called into question now in 2022, especially increased discrimination against trans people, this book didn’t need to be set a decade ago. The legal questions of whether a Christian baker can refuse to sell to a gay couple and the extent to which religious beliefs can legally justify LGBTQ discrimination are still not settled law. Other major LGBTQ cases were decided by a bare majority and constantly questioned by conservatives.
In fact, I think setting it 9 years in the past reduces its relevance to and impact on the ongoing conversation over the struggles of being queer in a red state. The book feels dated due to the drastically different conversations happening in queer spaces between then and now. The discussions of coming out, being Christian and pro-gay, and the meaning of marriage to queer people were all elementary and old. While these conversations are accurate to the time, to a modern audience, they felt like settled topics that were unnecessary to rehash amongst more pressing issues. Amy reconciling her lesbianism with her love of weddings felt unnecessary because we in 2022 know what happened in 2015. This book is a contemporary romance, but the characters aren’t discussing contemporary LGBTQ issues. Other discussions like period stigma and introducing yourself with your pronouns were too modern to make any sense in the novel set in 2013, even though I appreciated them. Also, this book is written in the same style as any other contemporary romance but set a decade ago, making all the cultural references more jarring than fun. Setting a queer romance in 2013 means that it is not yet old enough to be historical fiction and therefore interesting but just old enough to be irrelevant and cringey.
Additionally to this major problem, I found the romance to be an afterthought and pretty boring. While I liked Amy a lot, Charley was to me an unlikeable love interest bc she was so closed off and unreliable, so I felt like I never knew her. The side characters also all blend together because their only traits were their sexual orientation and who their partner was. Other problems, such as the book being way too long, meant there was nothing to redeem this story for me.
In fact, I think setting it 9 years in the past reduces its relevance to and impact on the ongoing conversation over the struggles of being queer in a red state. The book feels dated due to the drastically different conversations happening in queer spaces between then and now. The discussions of coming out, being Christian and pro-gay, and the meaning of marriage to queer people were all elementary and old. While these conversations are accurate to the time, to a modern audience, they felt like settled topics that were unnecessary to rehash amongst more pressing issues. Amy reconciling her lesbianism with her love of weddings felt unnecessary because we in 2022 know what happened in 2015. This book is a contemporary romance, but the characters aren’t discussing contemporary LGBTQ issues. Other discussions like period stigma and introducing yourself with your pronouns were too modern to make any sense in the novel set in 2013, even though I appreciated them. Also, this book is written in the same style as any other contemporary romance but set a decade ago, making all the cultural references more jarring than fun. Setting a queer romance in 2013 means that it is not yet old enough to be historical fiction and therefore interesting but just old enough to be irrelevant and cringey.
Additionally to this major problem, I found the romance to be an afterthought and pretty boring. While I liked Amy a lot, Charley was to me an unlikeable love interest bc she was so closed off and unreliable, so I felt like I never knew her. The side characters also all blend together because their only traits were their sexual orientation and who their partner was. Other problems, such as the book being way too long, meant there was nothing to redeem this story for me.
January 4, 2023
while there was a very very sweet romance in this book, I really appreciated that the bulk of it was about the main character’s journey with her own identity and mid-twenties growing pains. I recognized a lot of my own experiences with coming out, being closeted, finding my footing with my career and activism, and friendship tensions. the romance was so heartwarming and sweet and also realistic insofar as each of them brought their own complex baggage and fears.
June 23, 2022
Super super cute!! I absolutely loved the bakery theme and the beautiful cover to go along with it. The chemistry between Amy and Charley was adorable and I loved how they fell in love at the beginning of the book. I think this was the perfect book for pride month and I can’t wait to make the recipe that is at the end of the book!
July 29, 2022
firstofall the ending was far too picture perfect, literally never would happen
secondofall i felt like i was reading a wattpad fanfic written by a 12 year old who exclusively reads fanfics written by other 12 year olds
secondofall i felt like i was reading a wattpad fanfic written by a 12 year old who exclusively reads fanfics written by other 12 year olds
Read
April 12, 2022
Trigger & Content Warnings
Homomisia
Outing
Conversion therapy mentioned
Infidelity recounted
Parent in remission from cancer
Homomisia
Outing
Conversion therapy mentioned
Infidelity recounted
Parent in remission from cancer
July 5, 2023
im a real sucker for a good romance book, but make it queer and im HOOKED! this book was the most perfect heartwarming little queer love story i couldve asked for.
February 19, 2025
3.75 stars
this was really enjoyable! i personally would have ditched charley though (the ghosting and game-playing doesn’t really do it for me). really the most enjoyable thing about this book was amy’s career trajectory, which is what i think kept me reading—i enjoyed seeing her business grow and her ability to find a career that makes her happy and fulfilled. it sounds like a lot of fun!
the whole gay marriage aspect of the book was a little heavy-handed, and it’s hard to feel the urgency when you know it eventually gets legalized. however, who knows, that right could be revoked under the current administration… okay no more thinking for today :)
this was really enjoyable! i personally would have ditched charley though (the ghosting and game-playing doesn’t really do it for me). really the most enjoyable thing about this book was amy’s career trajectory, which is what i think kept me reading—i enjoyed seeing her business grow and her ability to find a career that makes her happy and fulfilled. it sounds like a lot of fun!
the whole gay marriage aspect of the book was a little heavy-handed, and it’s hard to feel the urgency when you know it eventually gets legalized. however, who knows, that right could be revoked under the current administration… okay no more thinking for today :)
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