Rise to the Sun: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

Olivia is trying to make her way through yet another heartbreak with help from her best friend and trying to figure out how she can ever face going back to school after her latest romantic disaster.

Toni is grieving the death of her roadie father and trying to figure out what happens next when pursuing her dreams feels a lot like making the same mistakes her father seems to have made.

Two different roads lead to the same destination and Olivia and Toni end up at the Farmland Music and Arts Festival. The festival is a chance to enjoy live music and for both girls a chance to have one last really good time before everything changes.

What neither of them counted on is meeting each other. With chemistry that feels inevitable, Olivia and Toni are immediately drawn to each other. But after spending so long making bad choices, will either of them be ready to make the right one this time?

When the festival goes from a safe haven to anything but, both Olivia and Toni will have to dig deep to find their way back to each other and to the music they both love in Rise to the Sun (2021) by Leah Johnson.

Find it on Bookshop.

Rise to the Sun is Johnson’s sophomore novel. This standalone contemporary can be read alone but readers familiar with Johnson’s previous novel You Should See Me in a Crown will recognize secondary character Mack and everyone’s favorite band. Olivia, Toni, and Olivia’s best friend are Black. Toni’s best friend Peter is presumed Indian (last name Menon). The story alternates between Olivia and Toni’s first person narrations.

This story is an ode to music–both performing and listening–as well as live performance. Farmland is such a well described setting that it quickly becomes a character in the story as the novel builds to a final act where the fate of the long-running music festival is called into question.

At the start of the novel, Toni is still grieving her father’s death and still unsure how to reconcile her love of music with her father’s seeming lack of success in the same profession before his premature death. Scared to be hurt again, she instead closes herself off with self-destructive choices to deny what (and who) she really wants.

Olivia, meanwhile, is a self-described nightmare person. Constantly surrounded by drama from her endless search for love, Olivia is used to having her hand held by best friend Imani through any and every stumbling block. The tension between long-suffering Imani and oblivious Olivia adds another layer to this story as Johnson explores what makes a healthy friendship alongside the specific pain of unrequited love.

Rise to the Sun is a story of first love, second chances, friendship, and one epic music festival. Recommended for readers who enjoy books with festivals or road trips, music, and characters with chemistry.

Possible Pairings: Happily Ever Afters by Elise Bryant, Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender; Blackout by by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon; I Wanna Be Where You Are by Kristina Forest, Who Put This Song On? by Morgan Parker, Truly Madly Royally by Debbie Rigaud, The Summer of Jordi Perez and the Best Burgers in Los Angeles by Amy Spalding

Loveboat, Taipei: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

The last thing Ever Wong wants to do is spend her summer in an educational program in Taiwan learning Chinese and preparing to start at Northwestern’s pre-med program in the fall.

But Ever is used to not having a say in her own life and isn’t surprised when her parents ship her off and ruin her plans to spend one last summer dancing before she gives up (like always) and does what her parents want (like always).

But the program isn’t what ever expects. Instead of rigorous study with Chien Tan Ever finds herself in a program with minimal supervision and her exuberant roommate Sophie Ha egging her on, Ever is ready to break every one of her parents rules–especially when it comes to no dating.

With its reputation as a party program to meet up (and hook up), there’s no shortage of cute guys–most notably including Xavier Yeh the sexy heir to a fortune who’s already caught Sophie’s eye and has a secret he’s reluctant to admit. Then there’s Rick Woo who, as the bane of Ever’s existence and object lesson of how she’ll never be good enough for her parents, is totally not dating material. No matter how much he gets under Ever’s skin.

But the more time Ever spends doing all of the things her parents would hate, the less sure she is what she wants for herself in Loveboat, Taipei (2020) by Abigail Hing Wen.

Find it on Bookshop.

Loveboat, Taipei is Wen’s debut novel. Although Ever’s narration sometimes skews towards hyperbolic metaphors (“But why did you let me dance when I was little? I want to cry. Why give me honey when you knew my future was diabetic?”) her struggle to reconcile her own desires with honoring the sacrifices her parents have made to give Ever so many opportunities.

Ever is a complex, fully realized heroine with her own strengths and flaws. What starts as a summer of rebellion becomes a chance for her to learn how to articulate and pursue her dream to become a dancer and choreographer instead of the doctor her parents always wanted her to become.

Loveboat, Taipei shines when the focus is on ever and her own journey. The other characters, in comparison, often feel one-dimensional. A tertiary character’s struggle with depression becomes a plot device in the final act and does not receive as thorough a treatment as it should have. In contrast another character’s dyslexia is addressed much more conscientiously.

Over the course of the summer, Ever travels through Taipei’s glittering nightlife and tourist destinations while negotiating her identity as an American visitor in Taiwan compared to her life as the only Asian American in her small Ohio town. With clubbing, loads of drama, and a messy love triangle, Ever’s summer is more than she bargained for and forces her to confront her best and worst qualities before she can figure out what comes next.

Loveboat, Taipei is as thoughtful as it is sensational. Recommended for readers looking for a splashy romance with soul searching in equal measure.

Possible Pairings: Practically Ever After by Isabel Bandeira, Our Wayward Fate by Gloria Chao, The Revolution of Birdie Randolph by Brandy Colbert, Anna K.: A Love Story by Jenny Lee, Tweet Cute by Emma Lord, This Time Will Be Different by Misa Sugiura, Gossip Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar

Anna K.: A Love Story: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

“Sometimes people can’t help but make poor choices and hurt the ones they love, I guess.”

Anna K. is an It Girl–maybe even the It Girl–in both Manhattan and Greenwich’s upper echelons. She is popular and always in demand despite preferring the company of horses and her show-winning Newfoundland dogs to people. She has impeccable style, effortless beauty, and the perfect boyfriend.

She also can’t stop thinking about Alexia Vronsky–the sexy AF playboy she meets during a chance encounter at Grand Central. Anna and Alexia seem to be proof that opposites attract. But is lust at first sight enough to form a lasting relationship? More importantly, is it enough for Anna to throw away the reputation she’s spent years building? in Anna K.: A Love Story (2020) by Jenny Lee.

Find it on Bookshop.

Anna K.: A Love Story is a sexy, modern retelling of Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina. The story centers half-Korean-American, half-white Anna and her totally scandalous attraction to Alexia alongside simultaneous plots following Anna’s brother Steven and his longtime girlfriend Lolly as well as Steven’s tutor and childhood friend, Dustin, who is smart, not rich, and hopelessly infatuated with Lolly’s younger sister Kimmie. If that list of characters seems overwhelming, don’t worry. There’s a handy list of characters at the beginning of the book to help you keep track.

Lee infuses her spin on Tolstoy’s classic with obvious affection for the source material as illustrated in her author’s note at the end of the book. Instead of a straight retelling Lee uses the original framework of Anna Karenina to reinterpret a familiar story and add a unique spin especially with the agency Anna has to shape her own path here.

Lolly–a surprisingly self-aware social climber who knows she is “money pretty” and works hard for every scrap of praise she receives–and Kimmie–another effortless beauty like Anna who struggles as she realizes being pretty and rich isn’t always enough to make things easy–provide interesting counterpoints and contrasts to Anna’s story.

This book does a lot of things well–especially with Anna, Lolly, and Kimmie’s characters. But I also want to talk about something that wasn’t handled well: There is some racially insensitive language in the story coming from both characters and the third person narrator without any interrogation (or teachable moment) in the text. These issues appear on page197 in the hardcover where one characters describes herself as a stepsister “which is even lower on the totem pole than a half sibling” and on page 227 where Anna’s friends surround her at a party “like a wagon circle in the early frontier days.” In both instances the book leans into Native American stereotypes and cultural appropriation. I have spoken with the editor about this and can confirm that these issues will be addressed and corrected in future printings of the book.

Anna K.: A Love Story is a splashy, often sensational story that plays out against lavish and luxurious settings in New York City and beyond. The characters, much like the plot itself, are sometimes messy and oddly endearing as they muddle through first love, breakups, and a fair bit of sex and casual drug use.

Possible Pairings: Foul is Fair by Hannah Capin; Permanent Record by Mary H.K. Choi; City Love by Susane Colasanti; Together We Caught Fire by Eva V. Gibson; Picture Us In the Light by Kelly Loy Gilbert; The Infinite Moment of Us by Lauren Myracle; Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy; Loveboat, Taipei by Abigail Hing Wen; Gossip Girl by Cecily Von Ziegesar

*An advance copy of this title was provided by the publisher for review consideration*

Strange Grace: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

A long time ago a witch fell in love with a devil.

The witch gave the devil her heart and a pact was made in the town of Three Graces. Now, nothing is bad and nothing changes. The crops never fail and no one dies before their time. Everything is good.

Every seven year the town’s best boy is anointed as a saint to run through the forest. On the Slaughter Moon he is sent into the forest from sundown to sunrise with nothing but his wits to protect him. His sacrifice renews the bargain every seven years.

That’s the story Three Graces has always known and always told. But can the story be trusted at all? When the bargain needs to be renewed early, Arthur, Mairwen, and Rhun aren’t so sure.

An angry boy, a witch, and a saint run into the forest together. They’ll need each other if they hope to change the shape of the bargain and Three Graces before the next Slaughter Moon in Strange Grace (2018) by Tessa Gratton.

Find it on Bookshop.

Gratton’s latest standalone novel is a thoughtful commentary on fear, sacrifice, and toxic masculinity wrapped in a page-turning story set in an eerie world where magic has the power to change everything and the forest has teeth.

As the daughter of the current witch Mairwen’s implicit trust in the bargain, in the devil, and in the forest itself is sorely tested as she realizes all is not as it seems in Three Graces.

Rhun has always known he would be the next saint. There is no denying he is the town’s best boy and he is willing to make the sacrifice. But as he prepares to lose everything, Rhun wonders if anyone in town truly knows him.

Arthur has grown up in the shadow of the Slaughter Moon and his mother’s fear of it. Raised as a girl for his first seven years, Arthur is desperate now to prove himself as strong, as good, and as masculine as the other candidates. But even Arthur knows that he is more angry than anything else.

As they prepare for the premature Slaughter Moon, Mairwen, Arthur, and Rhun are haunted by the decisions that have left their lives hopelessly intertwined. Drawn together as much as they are driven apart, none of them know how they can find an ending together when it it is unlikely they’ll all survive the night of the saint’s run.

Strange Grace is a tense blend of fantasy and suspense. Recommended for readers who enjoy their fantasy tinged with horror and old secrets and anyone seeking a polyamorous romance when the chemistry between the characters is undeniable.

Possible Pairings: Damsel by Elana K. Arnold, The Wicked Deep by Shea Earnshaw, Spellbook of the Lost and Found by Moïra Fowley-Doyle, Eventide by Sarah Goodman, A Dark and Starless Forest by Sarah Hollowell, Fire and Hemlock by Diana Wynne Jones, Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand, The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones, The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab, Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood, The Price Guide to the Occult by Leslye Walton, The Wren Hunt by Mary Watson, Last Things by Jacqueline West

Odd One Out: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

Courtney “Coop” Cooper knows exactly what he wants. He also knows he can’t have it. That’s what happens when you’re in love with your lesbian best friend.

Rae Evelyn Chin doesn’t know what she wants. She’s new in town and thrilled to immediately befriend Coop and Jupiter. She just hopes wanting to kiss Coop doesn’t ruin their friendship. Not to mention wanting to maybe kiss Jupiter too.

Jupiter Charity-Sanchez has always known what she wants. But when she finds herself caught between Coop and Rae, she starts to wonder if that’s a good thing.

One story. Three sides. Nothing simple in Odd One Out (2018) by Nic Stone.

Find it on Bookshop.

The novel is split between Coop, Rae, and Jupiter’s first person narrations (each is a “book” in the story instead of the alternating chapter structure typically seen with multiple points of view).

Stone describes her sophomore contemporary novel as a bit of wish fulfillment–a story she wished she’d been able to read as a teen herself. The story features carousels, crossword puzzles, and Freddie Mercury–three passions that inform the characters’ perspective parts.

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this one but by the end of the novel Coop, Rae, and Jupiter had utterly won me over. In a world where labels are everywhere and nothing is ever as simple as it should be, I loved seeing these characters try to figure things out.

The three main characters have distinct voices (and perspectives, of course) with narratives that overlap just enough to allow readers to watch the plot play out from multiple angles. Coop and Jupiter’s parents (Coop’s mom is widowed and Jupiter has two dads) are great additions to the cast often stealing scenes and adding a nice layer of support for all of the characters as they try to make sense of things.

Odd One Out is the sexy, funny, and surprisingly sweet love triangle book you’ve been waiting for. Highly recommended.

Possible Pairings: Down and Across by Arvin Ahmadi, The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli, Little & Lion by Brandy Colbert, Cut Both Ways by Carrie Mesrobian, Ramona Blue by Julie Murphy, The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson, Three Sides of a Heart: Stories About Love Triangles edited by Natalie C. Parker, Follow Your Arrow by Jessica Verdi, Cloudwish by Fiona Wood, Pride by Ibi Zoboi

Three Sides of a Heart: Stories about Love Triangles: A Review

Every reader has an opinion on love triangles. Some avoid them at all costs. Others, including myself, are happy to read them provided they are done well. (You can also check out the defense of love triangles and instalove that I put together on Veronica’s blog for Contemporary Conversations: “Bad” Romance: In Defense of Love Triangles and Insta-Love.)

As a fan of love triangles in a variety of genres, I was excited to check out Three Sides of a Heart: Stories about Love Triangles (2017) a short story collection edited by Natalie C. Parker. This collection features a variety of authors and offers a fairly inclusive group of voices among the authors and characters. The stories cover a variety of love triangle configurations with male, female, and gender fluid characters of varied sexual orientations. The stories also exhibit a diversity of incomes and lifestyles and cover themes of mental illness as well. (It’s worth noting that physical disabilities are not featured in this collection.) Most importantly, these stories cover a variety of genres spanning the spectrum from straight contemporary to hard sci-fi and high fantasy.

Read more for my short reviews of the individual stories:

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Riddles in Mathematics by Katie Cotugno
: Rowena is newly out to her family and friends and still figuring out if she fits into her family the way she did before. She’s also still dealing with a painful and all-encompassing on her brother Steve’s best friend Taylor–the girl everyone is pretty sure Steve is going to marry one day. This story is cute but I never connect with Cotugno’s writing and this story was no exception. Ro’s relationships with Steve and Taylor were sweetly handled and the story resolves neatly if abruptly.

Dread South by Justina Ireland
: This story is set in the same world as Ireland’s forthcoming novel Dread Nation. The story follows white, southern teen Louisa as all hell breaks loose and she is saved repeatedly from zombie hoards by Juliet–a Negro girl trained in combat to protect useless girls like Louisa. The triangle here is interesting and, of course, being from Justina Ireland it offers a smart and incisive look at race relations as well as Louisa’s white privilege. How you feel about this one may depend a lot on how you feel about zombie stories.

Omega Ship by Rae Carson
: A lot of reviewers are citing this story as a standout in the collection and I’m still not sure why. Carson is a very hit or miss author for me. I love her Gold Seer trilogy but The Girl of Fire and Thorns left me cold. I liked this story even less. Eva, Dirk, and Jesse are the last three survivors from Earth. Meant to travel to a new planet on the Omega Ship these three teens were part of a mission to colonize and save humanity. Then the ship crashes and everyone else dies leaving Eva as the only woman capable of saving humanity–provided she wants to spend the rest of her life in an endless cycle of childbirth. It turns out Eva doesn’t want that but you’ll have to read the story to see what she does about it. My biggest issue with the story: the ship’s mission timeline has to be sped up and everything is too heavy. Rather than lose arts and culture the colonists decide to give up clothes.

La Revancha del Tango by Renee Ahdieh
: This story was a bit of a surprise since I know Ahdieh more for her fantasy novels and expected more of the same here. Instead we get a contemporary story about a girl traveling on her own to Buenos Aires the summer before college. Nothing is quite as she expects including the snobby English boy with the terrible beard that she meets at her youth hostel.

Cass, An, and Dra by Natalie C. Parker
: Cass can see into the future whenever she makes a decision. And for as long as she can remember her present and her future have always included An. When Cass looks ahead and sees a future with Dra it shakes everything Cass thought she knew about who she is and who she wants to be with. In addition to have a f/f relationship in the triangle Dra is genderfluid too making this a really nice addition to an already inclusive collection.

Lessons for Beginners by Julie Murphy: Ruby isn’t just a great kisser, she’s a great kissing teacher–something that has led to plenty of business for her and her friend/manager Paul. When Ruby gives lessons to her childhood friend Annie and her boyfriend it sparks new chemistry between the girls. The premise, for me, was totally bizarre here but Murphy’s writing is super cute. I liked the way everything was handled here, so much so that I might be picking up Ramona Blue soon.

Triangle Solo by Garth Nix
: I will read anything that Garth Nix writes and am happy to report that I loved this one just as much as I expected too. Connor and Anwar are both percussionists in the school orchestra. Anwar hates playing the triangle beyond all reason but Connor refuses to play the triangle for Anwar because he wants attractive and charming Anwar to have some things that don’t go his way. When Connor’s childhood friend Kylie shows up back on Mars, Connor is pretty sure she’ll end up dating Anwar. Why wouldn’t she? Which makes Connor even more determined that Anwar will play this next triangle solo–that is until he realizes who is behind this new composition. This was really cute sci-fi that felt like contemporary. I’d expect nothing less from Nix.

Vim and Vigor by Veronica Roth: I can’t confirm but I have a sneaking suspicion that this story is set in the same world that Roth created for her short story in the Summer Days and Summer Nights anthology. Edie is horrified when two boys ask her to prom. After an unexpected reunion with her estranged friend, Kate, Edie uses Kate’s father’s decision making machine to see who she should choose. The answer isn’t entirely what Edie expects. This was a pretty charming story that reminds readers that sometimes the right choice can be no one.

Work in Progress by E.K. Johnston
: I loved this story and honestly, I feel like I could write an entire blog post just about this one story. It’s really nine stories in one about storyteller Alex, quick thinking Tab, and street smart CJ. This is written in second person so the characters are all genderless. In version 1.0 readers get a sci-fi story following three friends trying to survive as mutineers overtake the crew of their space ship. Will they stay together? Will they survive? Choose. 2.0 is contemporary. Three friends at a lake house every summer. Again the same questions. Will they stay together? Should they? Choose. 3.0 is high fantasy. Alex is a knight embarking on a quest with Mage Tab who is chronicling the venture and thief CJ who is there to keep them alive. The three are stronger together. But only if they continue to choose each other. The format and structure here are so clever and inventive. I also appreciated the idea of a love triangle that might be more of a friend triangle. i’d love to hear more about Johnston’s thought process and inspiration and intent for this story. This is the first story in the collection where I said to myself “Wow this should really be a full novel.”

Hurdles by Brandy Colbert
: My main takeaway from this story is that I really need to read some Brandy Colbert novels because this (like every short story I’ve read by her) was excellent. What happens when the thing that makes you YOU stops being the thing you love? A young track star isn’t sure and struggles to balance pressures from her coach father with her own needs and maintaining her relationship with her boyfriend. That all goes out the window when the love of her life comes back from rehab and asks her to run away with him.

The Historian, the Garrison, and the Cantankerous Cat Woman by Lamar Giles: If you like Buffy the Vampire Slayer you are going to love this story. Nothing is quite as it seems here and, honestly, I can’t tell you more without ruining the story’s payoff. This wasn’t a favorite of mine but I definitely enjoyed it enough that I’ll be keeping my out for some of Giles’ novels at the library.

Waiting by Sabaa Tahir
: Another surprise contemporary story from a fantasy author. Ani is waiting to start at Stanford. Waiting to leave her small town. And waiting for her best friend Sam to get out of prison and tell her what that kiss between them meant. While Ani waits she starts an unexpected friendship with Félix–a boy she never thought she could befriend forget possibly care about. Is Félix being there when Ani needs him enough to justify a relationship? Is Sam really worth the wait? You’ll have to read this one to find out. This is the kind of story where I am having as much fun imagining possible outcomes for these characters down the line as I did reading it. Such a pleasant surprise. I don’t think the writing will be in the same style but I’m definitely considering picking up Tahir’s fantasy series now.

Vega by Brenna Yovanoff
: I love everything Yovanoff writes and this was no exception. A love triangle between a girl, a boy, and the city the girl loves—the same one that is slowly killing the boy. This story is evocative and eerie and sizzles as much as Vegas’ summer heat. It was also quite the nailbiter as I worried that Elle might let Vegas’ glitter distract her from Alex. (Don’t worry, all ends as it should. Phew!) This story is easily my favorite of the collection.

A Hundred Thousand Threads by Alaya by Dawn Johnson
: At first I thought this story was a gender-swapped futuristic Zorro. In retrospect I think it’s actually more The Scarlet Pimpernel although maybe they are ultimately the same thing. Either way this story is set in the future in Mexico City with a complicated love triangle between a somewhat clueless boy, a savvy girl, . . . and the girl’s secret identity as a vigilante/spy/hero. Johnson has been hit or miss for me in the past so I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this story. It’s a lot of fun and really pushes the limits of what short stories can do. I’ll definitely be giving Johnson’s novels a second chance.

Before She Was Bloody by Tessa Gratton: Gratton’s writing is intense and sexy as Safiya struggles with her desires for both her body double and a strange soldier as well as her duties as the Moon God’s mistress. Being a story from Tessa Gratton this story also has incredibly intricate world building to the point that I was convinced there must be some historical basis to the characters and belief system (there isn’t, the writing is just that good). I once heard author Sarah Rees Brennan talk about how love triangles rarely resolve in favor of Team Naughty Threesome. THIS IS THAT STORY.

Unus, Duo, Tres by Bethany Hagen
: Enoch is sure that he and Casimir can be happy together forever–or as happy as vampires can be. Then a new student discovers the boys together and it changes everything. I like a very specific type of vampire story. This wasn’t that kind of story although it was another interesting spin on the love triangle.

Any anthology runs the risk of being uneven–not every story or author can be for every reader, after all–but I have to say that for the most part Three Sides of a Heart is one of the most solid short story collections I’ve read. A must read for fans of love triangles and an excellent introduction to some the hottest names in YA right now. Recommended.

That Inevitable Victorian Thing: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

Years from now Victoria-Margaret will be the next Queen and continue the work her ancestor Victoria I started two centuries earlier to strengthen the British Empire for all of its people and promote genetic diversity and inter-Empire politics with an advantageous marriage. First  the crown princess will have a summer of freedom for her debut season in Toronto. Although her brown skin, epicanthal fold, and freckles make her easily recognizable as the current Queen’s daughter, Margaret is able to disguise herself with the help of her natural hair and a non-royal alias.

Helena Marcus is looking forward to a quiet debut in New London and making her unspoken understanding with August Callaghan official. August wants nothing more but hopes to delay their official engagement until he can see himself clear of the American pirates plaguing his Canadian and Hong Kong Chinese family’s lumber and shipping business.

When her mother’s position as a placement geneticist brings Helena to the far more prestigious Toronto debut scene she and Margaret strike up an immediate and easy friendship with a hint of flirtation.

Spending the summer up north at the Marcus cottage near Lake Muskoka allows Margaret to see more of the Empire and to find her own place among the raucous Callaghan family. As Margaret, Helena, and August grow closer and learn more of each others’ secrets they realize they may be poised to help each other get everything they’ve long wanted in That Inevitable Victorian Thing (2017) by E. K. Johnston.

Johnston’s standalone novel blends light science fiction elements in a near-future setting with the tone and style of a Victorian novel. Chapter headers including maps, society gossip pages, and correspondence serve to expand the detailed world building and highlight how deliberately and thoughtfully inclusive the Empire is (despite realistically damaging colonialism in the Empire’s distant past).

That Inevitable Victorian Thing alternates close third person point of view between Margaret, Helena, and August as all of the characters face what it means to be an adult in charge of one’s own responsibilities and, regardless of consequences, also one’s own mistakes. The voice throughout is pitch perfect for an homage to Victorian novels and works exceedingly well with the near-future world these characters inhabit.

While Margaret faces the prospect of an arranged marriage in her future, and August struggles with how best to deal with American pirates demanding protection money, Helena faces her own surprise. At eighteen every member of the Empire is able to log into the -gnet to see their full genetic profile and seek out prospective matches. When she logs in for the first time Helena is shocked by her genetic profile and uncertain what it means for her future.

Fortunately, Helena has nothing but support from her friends and loved ones. Even as this story builds toward conflict and shocks, Johnston’s tight control of the narrative serves to suggest that regardless of the outcome, these three characters will not just make it through but thrive.

That Inevitable Victorian Thing is a self-aware novel set in a fascinating world that is filled with wit and humor. Helena’s chemistry with both Margaret and Henry crackles despite being couched in Victorian manners and conventions. A perfect introduction to speculative fiction, a sweet romance, and a delight for fans of alternate history That Inevitable Victorian Thing is a must-read for all. Highly recommended.

Possible Pairings: The Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow, Incarceron by Catherine Fisher, These Broken Stars by Aimee Kaufman and Meagan Spooner, The Diabolic by S. J. Kincaid, For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund, Illusions of Fate by Kiersten White

*A more condensed version of this review appeared as a starred review in the August 2017 issue of School Library Journal*

The Careful Undressing of Love: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

“I’ve been waiting for one thing, but love can be anything.”

—

“When there’s nothing left to salvage, we have to save ourselves.”

Everyone knows that Devonairre Street in Brooklyn is cursed. Being loved by a Devonairre Street girl ends in tragedy. Just look at the number of war widows on the street or the concentration of Affected families left without husbands and fathers after the Times Square Bombing in 2001.

Lorna Ryder and her mother have never put much stock in the curse even though they pretend to play along. Lorna celebrates a shared birthday along with Cruz, his sister Isla, Charlotte, and Delilah. She keeps her hair long and wears a key around her neck. She does everything she is supposed to just the way Angelika has advised since Lorna was a child.

But none of it seems to be enough when Delilah’s boyfriend Jack is killed in the wake of the grief and confusion surrounding another terrorist attack across the country. Lorna and her friends are shocked by Jack’s sudden death. Grieving and shaken, Lorna has to decide what this new loss means about the veracity of the curse and her own future as a part of Devonairre Street and away from it in The Careful Undressing of Love (2017) by Corey Ann Haydu.

The Careful Undressing of Love is Haydu’s latest standalone YA novel. Lorna narrates this novel with a breezy nonchalance that soon turns to fear and doubt as everything she previously believed about love and the curse on Devonairre Street is thrown into question. The style and tone work well with Haydu’s world building to create an alternate history that is simultaneously timeless and strikingly immediate.

Haydu’s characters are realistically inclusive and diverse. An argument could be made that it’s problematic that Delilah and Isla (the Devonairre Street girls who are not white) are the ones who suffer more over the course of this novel filled with loss and snap judgements by an insensitive public. But the same argument could be made that privilege makes this outcome sadly inevitable–a contradiction that Lorna notes herself when she begins to unpack her own privileges of being white contrasted with the burdens she has under the weight of the supposed curse and living as one of the Affected.

This story is complicated and filled with philosophical questions about grief and fear as well as love and feminism. While there is room for a bit more closure, the fate of Devonairre Street and its residents ultimately becomes irrelevant compared with Lorna’s need to break away to protect herself and her own future.

A quiet, wrenching story about the bonds of love and friendship and the ways in which they can break; a commentary on the stresses and pressures of being a girl in the modern world; and a story about self-preservation first. The Careful Undressing of Love is smart and strange, frank and raw, and devastating. Highly recommended.

Possible Pairings: Midnight at the Electric by Jodi Lynn Anderson, Words in Deep Blue by Cath Crowley, The Accident Season by Moïra Fowley-Doyle, The Midnight Dress by Karen Foxlee, The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow, Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman, The Truth Commission by Susan Juby, But Then I Came Back by Estelle Laure, We Were Liars by E. Lockhart, Tigers, Not Daughters by Samantha Mabry, Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu, Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore, The Disappearances by Emily Bain Murphy, I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson, Bone Gap by Laura Ruby, Saint Death by Marcus Sedgwick, Wild Swans by Jessica Spotswood, The Walls Around Us by Nova Ren Suma, The Light Between Worlds by Laura E. Weymouth, The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon, American Street by Ibi Zoboi

You can also read my interview with the author about this book!

Stealing Snow: A Review

Snow has spent most of her like behind the walls of the Whittaker Institute. The high security asylum is meant to help rehabilitate troubled patients, like Snow, let go of their delusions.

But Snow doesn’t think she’s crazy. Not really.

Being near Bale makes like at the Institute bearable. At least until Bale claims he can see what Snow really is when they kiss. And breaks her hand in two places.

When mysterious hands grab Bale and pull him through a mirror, Snow knows that she has to follow. A voice in her dreams tells Snow exactly what to do in order to escape. Following the voices directions, Snow makes it outside and finds herself in the wintry world of Algid.

Snow soon learns that Algid is her true home and her father is determined to do everything he can to hold onto the throne–and keep Snow far away from it. As magic, mayhem, and trickery collide, Snow will have to decide who she can trust if she wants to rescue Bale and make it out of Algid alive in Stealing Snow (2016) by Danielle Paige.

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Stealing Snow is the start of Paige’s new series which is a dark retelling of The Snow Queen.

Paige goes for a darker tone right from the start with Snow residing in an asylum that seems to come straight from the pages of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. While this setting offers a gripping backdrop for the opening of the story, it also often defies logic as readers realize Snow has been at the Institute since she was a child (and is, in fact, still only seventeen suggesting there should have been at least some type of schoolwork or high school equivalency studies).

The story picks up considerably when Snow actually arrives in Algid and more of the novel’s characters are introduced. Snow finds a veritable band of misfits as she makes her way through Algid trying to find her father, the Snow King, and rescue her love Bale.

Along the way Snow encounters numerous love interests, her own snow magic, and vast conspiracies that stretch between Algid and our world. While this series opener raises many questions about Snow, her family, and Algid, readers will have to wait for future installments for most of the answers.

Stealing Snow is a fast-paced adventure with a sharp-tongued narrator who isn’t afraid to be ruthless. Paige takes some of the familiar elements of The Snow Queen and shakes them up with an inventive reimagining of the this fairy tale and the frighteningly evocative world of Algid. Recommended for readers looking for a new fairytale retelling that is extra dark.

Possible Pairings: Poisoned by Jennifer Donnelly, Havenfall by Sara Holland, Splintered by A. G. Howard, Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay, Reign of Shadows by Sophie Jordan, Winterspell by Claire Legrand, Cinder by Marissa Meyer, Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch, Ruined by Amy Tintera

*An advance copy of this title was provided by the publisher for review consideration*