Melissa > Recent Status Updates

Kiran Millwood Hargrave’s story is super creepy, and alludes to “The Yellow Wallpaper” briefly. I’m not surprised at all that it’s based on a historical woman from the Victorian period and her own experience with postpartum psychosis based on my previous experience reading her adult novels. I hope I can read the other books in this series of short story collections because of Hargrave’s inclusion.

Jess Kidd’s story speaks to the horror in the 19th century of hosting the wake in the family home, photos of the deceased, body snatchers, and the horror of Frankenstein bringing a collection of body parts to life. Laura Purcell’s story speaks to what 19th century women faced when they were forced to attach themselves to a husband or be destitute, esp one who had secret vices they didn’t learn of until later.

Woah…that story by Natasha Pulley was super creepy! I may have felt the hairs on my arms rising at several points. I haven’t read anything by this author before, but now The Watchmaker of Filigree Street and its sequel, which feature Thaniel and Mori in it are definitely on my radar.

I’m loving what I perceive as the diverse representation in the story by Natasha Pulley. Six appears to be neurodivergent. Mori is of Japanese descent. And Thaniel is, for sure, queer. I think I may need to add Natasha Pulley’s novels to my TBR.

The Rivas: Nina, Jay, Hud, and Kit are great. I love how Nina finally decides to live for herself and how Kit finally comes to terms with who she is and somehow was able to tell someone who accepted her right away. Brandon is a total jerk, and honestly, he reminds me of what my sociology professors said about men not wanting to be alone. He just seems a little pathetic. Mick is also an ass.

There is so much to love about this book. Super diverse cast with two main characters having different kinds of synesthesia, a queer main character, and a main character who is so charismatic that she attracts the attention and notice of all three of the others. And the stories she tells. Just wow.

Heartbreaking. I feel for 8-year-old and 19-year-old Cassidy. The 8 year old who experienced this betrayal from the only person who she was supposed to be able to count on, and the 19 year old who realizes, as does the reader, that parental love isn’t always unconditional, even though it always should be.

I’m liking this story so far. I can imagine a few aspects of what the 2SLGBTQIA+ content will turn out to be by now, but I’ll have to wait and see if my beliefs are accurate.

I was familiar with this cover, but even though I didn’t know much about it, I had always been drawn to it. I picked it up today when it came up as an audiobook that was available immediately with queer content. Since I hadn’t read the description, I felt goosebumps when Stevie said she was hoping to die by ED on the anniversary of her brother’s death and that she killed him.

Brighton and Charlotte have a history that they’ve been denying to almost everyone around them, but a few too many Mistletoe Margaritas, and Charlotte can’t keep back what’s been in her heart all this time.

I love these characters and this story that is so full of tension it’s palpable. I can’t imagine hurting someone as deeply as Brighton did, but I also understand why she didn’t want to be a sidekick when Lola had been giving main character energy in NYC. It’s a delicate balance and so many people have such a fear of conflict that they go along and go along until it becomes entirely impossible.

What was the hardest chapter for George to write was also the hardest for me to read. Not one about homophobia or racism, but rather about caring for someone you love who is dying and who likely died before this book came out. I’ve had significant loses, but I was never old enough or required to do the bodily tasks for someone too sick to do them themselves, and it’s hard to imagine.

I can’t imagine the torture of being in this forced proximity situation with someone you’d known for 10 years, been in a relationship, which had ended in a devastating way. Knowing everything about the other person, and for reasons of self protection, pretending not to know them. The tension is going to be high with this one.

Carl and Pansey suck, which isn’t surprising since this is the Wayward Children series. They went to Russia to get a child from an orphanage, and decided on Nadia who was born and abandoned because she had an arm and a half. They want her to speak perfect English with no accent even though she was 9+ when she started learning it, and now they insist on giving her a prosthetic arm despite her wishes. Grr.

It’s telling that Sabaa Tahir has created a villain who is able and willing to justify the means of her immoral actions if it benefits herself and her people.

It’s telling that Sabaa Tahir has created a villain who is able and willing to justify the means of her immoral actions if it benefits herself and her people.

“My boy. My heir. My blood. You are the best parts of me. I know you will not fail.”

“[H]is old life had been a castle made of sand and sticks on a shoreline, and the explosion was a wave crashing it with unfeeling finality.”

This is an example of why I love Sabaa Tahir’s writing so much. Quil’s POV speaks of the events happening in an image that everyone will understand, but also speaks of a larger truth about what happens when some event or epiphany changes everything we once knew.

OMG! I need to know what just happened, but it’s 12 pages until I get back to Sirsha’s POV.

I didn’t realize that Heir was going to be the start of a duology set in the world from An Ember in the Ashes before I picked it up. I only knew it was a new fantasy series by Sabaa Tahir whose writing I love, and therefore, I knew I had to pick it up. What a happy surprise to see some of the characters I know and love with three new MCs.

“‘How do you know?’
There was a surprised, proud father laugh. Dad was the one who’d taught me that the most effective response to any argument is the question ‘How do you know?’ Shift the burden of proof to your opponent and force them to back up their position with mountains of evidence.”

I’m hooked on this story, and I’m so glad that Melinda from one of my book clubs recommended it. Pamela’s story had sucked me in from the beginning, but now I’m also really interested in learning more about Th e story through Ruth’s POV even though I know, somewhat, what happens to her. Also, how did the police not tell Pamela what had happened to Denise?! The underwear was a clue, but she had no idea why.

“There were men who cracked their knuckles while divulging to me what they would do to The Decendent if they got the chance, thinking this was somehow reassuring for me to hear. But all it did was make me realize that there wasn’t so big a difference between the man who’d brutalized Denise and half the men I passed every day on the street.”

“Time. It was such a simple word, but it swirled through Ella’s mind. The way it made people hurry or wait. How small it could be, like sand falling in an hourglass. How vast it could be, like all the seconds of her life led up to this one.”

“Sometimes a moment is more than a moment. Sometimes, a moment holds so much meaning it’s difficult to make sense of it all. In order to understand it, Ella knew, she would need to let her thoughts travel back in time.”