initially, i didn’t expect to read beyond the first volume, because i wasn’t feeling the characters. the rivalry between seiji and nicholas was very over the top, like, nicholas came in hot and for what lmao but as the story went on, the rivalry got less angry and more playful, with seiji being that character who is exasperated and disgruntled and nicholas being that character who is a little shit golden retriever determined to be friends. i’m kind of more invested in harvard/aiden, though. and bobby is a delight. by the third volume, it started getting me in my feelings a little bit. but i do wish things would move along a little quicker, both plot wise and relationship dynamics. i’m not a slowburn girlie.
i see people praise the queer rep, and while i can appreciate the appeal of queer normative worlds where almost everyone is queer and no one bats an eye at it, these stories tend to not address queerness directly. and i like to know what specific labels characters use and i like to see them exploring, realizing, or just talking about their queerness in some way. so i honestly don’t get much from the queer rep. i saw a reviewer mention that they interpret seiji and nicholas as aroace, due to their mutual obliviousness to romance/sex making it seem like it’s not even a thought on their mind like it is for the others. and honestly, i kind of see it. i wouldn’t mind if their relationship were queerplatonic, but the author has stated it’s a slowburn romance, so.
rep; seiji (mc) is japanese and queer. nicholas (mc) is queer. aiden (sc) is queer. harvard (sc) is black and mspec. bobby (sc) is genderqueer. coach williams (sc) is black. coach lewis (sc) is neurodivergent. other queer side characters. other side characters of color. basically everyone is queer, but as far as i have found, no specific labels have been used (other than the author saying bobby is genderqueer).
the first issue jumps right into things without explanation and it’s a bit jarring. i thought i accidentally read an issue from the middle of the series instead, because the synopsis of the first issue is entirely about willow and giles doing a spell on buffy, who is having a hard time due to trauma, which leads to willow becoming the slayer, but none of that is in the first issue. and while i knew, obviously, that this is an au story, i thought it was more along the lines of canon divergence au, but it’s a complete au.
it’s also a very queer au, with queer xander and hints of a willow/faith romance. and the way that spike is introduced through xander, i got the vibe that maybe a romance is gonna develop there? idk though. while i’m not a fan of either of those ships, but i’m here for queering nonqueer characters!
my biggest gripe is the art. each issue has a different artist and style and i did not like any of them. what i look for in the art for buffy comics is some resemblance to the actors and this series is not giving that. buffy and willow go out to eat with another person and i didn’t even know it was faith until her name was mentioned, that’s how completely unrecognizable she was to the character. giles often looks like a college student. and in general, the only thing in common the characters have visually with the actors from the show are their hair color (with the exception of faith in that one issue where her hair was jet black) and clothing.
i also saw someone say willow and giles doing a spell on buffy to remove her trauma without her knowledge isn’t believable and i partly agree. it’s 100% believable that willow would do that, but it’s beyond out of character for giles to condone it, let alone participate in it.
i like the dexter meets criminal minds aspect and i’m interested enough to read at least the next novella, but mostly i was bored and underwhelmed. definitely one of those “did i read the same book as y’all?” moments.
content/trigger warnings; torture, murder, gore, blood, ableism, homophobia, f slur, kissing, explicit sexual content, misogyny, slut shaming, victim blaming, rape discussed, death of parents discussed, gun violence, knife violence,
rep; jake (sc) is bisexual. hadley (sc) is bisexual (named in the final book)....more
nina “it’s not natural for someone to be as stupid as he is tall, and yet here you stand” and “i can tell you’ve never given enough thought to your hanina “it’s not natural for someone to be as stupid as he is tall, and yet here you stand” and “i can tell you’ve never given enough thought to your haircut” zenik, i have no choice but to stan. and i, too, would follow kaz brekker on a suicide mission.
this is another book that i went back and forth on reading for a long time and saw nothing but love and praise for that actually lived up to the hype!!! but let me just say, i’m not here for the worldbuilding or plot, i’m here for the characters. and boy, do they deliver!!!!! i would 1000% die for these characters. god bless.
content/trigger warnings; ableism, chronic pain, persecution for witchcraft, kidnapping/captivity, gun violence, knife violence, physical violence, blood, gore, death, animal attack, animal death, death of a loved one, grief, illness, torture, eyeball trauma, murder, bombs, explosions, drowning, substance addiction, withdrawal, gambling addiction, human trafficking, sex trafficking, forced underaged sex work recounted, child abuse recounted, child abandonment, disownment, trauma, indentured servitude/slavery, ptsd, touch repulsion, panic attack, nightmares, alcohol consumption, recreational drug use, drugging, forced & coerced drug dependency, vomiting, medical experimentation, plague, consensual body modifications, strangulation, incarceration, poverty,
rep; kaz (mc) has a leg injury, chronic pain, uses a cane, ptsd, and touch repulsion. jesper (mc) is a moc and bisexual/pansexual (both labels used out of text). nina (mc) is fat and bisexual (label used out of text). inej (mc) is a woc. wylan (sc) is dyslexic and queer (label not confirmed).
i’ve seen several reviews that say the characters don’t read like teenagers or that this should’ve been adult and i have Thoughts. in the beginning, if i hadn’t known this is ya and the characters didn’t often mention being teenagers, i would have guessed they were in their twenties. but the further into the book i got, the more i got from their povs, the less i thought that. sure, the more shit the characters have been through, the more hardened and less prone to showing child-like qualities they are, but to me, they all do still read as teenagers. it’s there. and i feel like this angry criticism of the book being young adult is a bit questionable. i wouldn’t be surprised if most of these people are adults who just feel robbed, who think this story could’ve been a great adult novel but is instead a mediocre young adult novel. which i think is bullshit. why can’t teenagers be badass? why can’t teenagers who been through horrible things and left to fend for themselves become what these teenagers have? i truly don’t see the issue and people who complain about wanting these characters to be aged up are just fucking weirdos and need to stop picking up young adult novels if they want the characters to be adults. *shrug*...more
rep;rep; nita (mc) is half-chilean and aroace. kivot (sc) is thai, asexual, and questioning aromantic. they’re in a queerplatonic relationship.
i don’t really know what to say about this book. i dnfed it a few chapters in because i read some things about it that i didn’t think i’d be into it, but i couldn’t stop thinking about it (and how the main relationship is not a romance) and i just said fuck it and went back to it the next day. and i’m glad i did. because i’m kind of here for it. it’s engaging, full of action, it doesn’t shy away from the gore and murder and blood, centers villains who get to be bad and unapologetic, again the main relationship is not a romance (and apparently becomes an implied aroace queerplatonic situation!?) and i love the development of their bond, seriously if you (like me) ever think “why don’t they just kill the bad guys???” when watching/reading something then this is for you because these characters do that and then some, the characters are intriguing and charming and fun to read about, i definitely get the sort of dexter vibes, there’s some nice social commentary throughout the book, and there’s plenty of mystery left (especially with that cliffhanger ending).
i will say though, this book unsurprisingly features the backbone of villain stories: the scapegoating of psychopathy and lack of empathy. nita and kovit are referred to as psychopaths because of the bad things they do, and nita says having empathy makes you human rather than a monster. both of which are ableist and not true. “psychopathy” is an outdated term that refers to antisocial personality disorder, which does not make a person evil or a killer. people with personality disorders (and mental illness in general) are more likely to be victims of violence than perpetrators. and plenty of people (such as some neurodivergent people, for example) don’t experience empathy or struggle with it and that does not make them evil or killers, either. empathy is literally just feeling, understanding, and/or responding “appropriately” to other people’s emotions, so it’s silly to think not being able to do those things (well or at all) makes someone bad or do bad things....more
(review for the whole series) kinda super into this. the art style is fucking gorgeous (which always makes me like a comic/graphic novel more), the plot is interesting, the themes and how they’re explored are too, and there’s a lot of humor and personality in the writing.
content/trigger warnings; drug use, alcohol consumption, physical violence, ableism, foster care, death of mother mentioned, stabbing, death, blood, gore, suicide, vomiting, kidnapping, grief, police brutality, trauma,...more
being reminded of these books was like unlocking childhood memories. especially the comics! such distinct memories of owning these. anyways, lizzie mcguire was a fav of mine, and even though it’s been agessss since i watched it, i could still picture the episode playing out in my head as i read. it’s a very short book with two episodes novelized, one of which is probably one of my (and everyone else’s) more remembered ones (the bra episode), and it’s just fun, silly, very tween, and most of all, nostalgic.
(novelizations of 1x03 “when moms attack” and 1x12 “between a rock and a bra place”)...more
rep; greta (mc) is a queer woc. minette (li) is queer and has amnesia. erik (sc) is a queer wheelchair user. hesekiel (sc) is queer. (no labels are used)...more
content/trigger warnings; ableism, blood, social anxiety, anxiety attack, sexual harass#1 blade of secrets ★★★★★ #2 master of iron ★★☆☆☆
wow i love this
content/trigger warnings; ableism, blood, social anxiety, anxiety attack, sexual harassment, bullying, alcohol consumption, violence, animal death, claustrophobia, grief, death of parents, murder,
rep; ziva (mc) has social anxiety.
magical bladesmithing, seriously the swords and knives are basically their own characters, charming unique characters, two really sweet and entertaining blossoming romances, rag tag team of unlikely friends going on the run, heartwarming sister relationship, nonstop chaos and action, super fast paced, god tier social anxiety rep, saying fuck you to heteronormativity and amatonormativity
i’m gonna talk about the social anxiety rep for a minute. this is book is definitely up there in my top books for social anxiety rep. the way ziva talks about her anxiety is just so fucking on the nose every time. feeling the “extra presence” in the room as if it were a “weight pressing down” on her, being unable to think of anything but the discomfort, feeling like she doesn’t “fit right in her own skin,” replaying conversations and interactions in her head on loop after they happen, feeling like people are staring at her and hating the sensation, wondering how people “effortlessly know what to say and how to say it,” wanting to just enjoy a moment without fixating and worrying about what she said, having to mentally prepare herself for social interactions, hating when people assume she can’t talk just because she doesn’t want to or finds it difficult, having to explain that her anxiety isn’t a rational fear she can control or talk herself out of, wishing she didn’t feel this way but knowing it’s just something she has to live with. it’s all just so. wow. and i love that her anxiety doesn’t just go away around kellyn just because she likes him. she’s stuck in this internal battle of wanting to be near him and talk to him and touch him, but also being terrified of those things. it’s super realistic, unlike many depictions of anxiety where the person meets their love interest and they’re just ~different with them. the author has social anxiety and you can just feel that this rep came from experience, not reading a list of symptoms.
(and to the “anxiety is her whole personality! it’s all she monologues about!” crowd, not only is that just not true, but what do you think it’s like to have really bad social anxiety and constantly and suddenly be thrown in unfamiliar social situations for the first time? of course she’s going to be anxious a lot! of course she’s monologuing about it! you can’t just shut it off or think about sometimes! it’s kind of fucking constant! especially in the circumstances ziva is in! if you don’t like anxiety rep where the anxiety is consistently front and center, that’s fine, move on and find different rep, but don’t trash this rep for being bad or poorly written. you not liking or relating to it doesn’t mean it’s bad.)...more
i read the first issue just to see what it was like, and since i liked it and needed more after how it ended, i decided to read the first volume. and i gotta say, i’m kind of living for it??? stunning art, women being messy, and some weird mysterious murderousness, what more could you want???
content/trigger warnings; ableism, grief, murder, threats, catfishing, racism, sexism, misogyny, non-consensual kiss, alcohol consumption, drug use, pet kidnapping, pet murder, drugging, violence, attempted murder. mentions of suicide, rape, bullying, non-consensual distribution of naked photos of a minor, self-harm, disordered eating, emotional abuse, cheating, blackmail, hit and run, kidnapping, captivity, statutory rape, coercion,
rep; victor (sc) is nigerian. cara (sc) is a lesbian. ravi (sc) is indian.
likes: genuinely entertaining, charming characters, lots of twists and turns, so much fucking baggage and so many secrets uncovered, i like that everything is wrapped up, there's veronica mars vibes in the teen sleuthing and all the shit the mc does and lengths she goes to find out the truth and even some bits of her thoughts and some dialogue, and there's pretty little liars vibes in how so many terrible things happened linked to one terrible teen girl and how there are so many different pieces and players
dislikes: why the dog????, the big reveal moment was a little lackluster, i would've liked to see more of pip/ravi, i hate that the girl kept captive was a disabled 20 something year old who was "mentally a child" to explain away the circumstances as if someone held captive and isolated and told the same thing for years couldn't end up truly believing it unless she was mentally disabled,
all in all, this is just really enjoyable and wild as fuck and kept me hooked
read this for the newts readathon for the "ends on an uneven number" prompt....more
a quick little novella. sibling bonding, family angst, mental health, cute relation#0.5 this winter ★★★★☆ #1 solitaire ★★★★☆ #1.5 nick and charlie ★★★☆☆
a quick little novella. sibling bonding, family angst, mental health, cute relationship, smol dog. it was nice to read about these characters again. makes me want to reread solitaire. i still adore tori.
content/trigger warnings; ableism, internalized ableism, eating disorder, discussions of psychiatric hospital, discussions of biphobia, mention of past suicide attempt,
rep; tori (mc) has depression. charlie (mc) is gay and has anxiety/depression and an eating disorder. nick (li) is bisexual.
notes; -charlie snaps at his mom that she's trying to make him feel disabled, and it's said in a way that implies there's something bad about being disabled. -pretty uncomfy to read nick's brother going on about how sad and "crazy" schizophrenia is and the only reason he's called out is because nick says charlie doesn't want to talk about his eating disorder and stay at a hospital on christmas. not because it's fucking ableist, period.
my reading experience for this book is pretty much identical to that of city of bones; i watched the show first so i’m already familiar with the plot and attached to the characters, so i was able to just enjoy myself and have an almost mindless read.
even knowing what happens in this book beforehand, i was still kind of blown away by how fucking wild it is. pretty much anything that could happen, happens. wild is honestly the only word i can think of to describe it.
content/trigger warnings; fatphobia, bullying, estranged friendships, disappearance, ableism, slut shaming, marijuana use, misogyny, queerphobia, underage drinking, bulimia (on-page disordered thinking and behavior about food and body image and on-page binging and purging), shoplifting, grown men being inappropriate with underage girls, stalking, blackmail, cheating, kissing, gendered slurs, racism, mentions of self-harm, lesbophobic slur, nudity, student-teacher relationship, mentions of divorce, grand theft auto, driving under the influence, car crash, parental neglect/emotional abuse, arophobic language, using sex to get out of arrests (i don’t know what to call that), murder,
rep; hanna (mc) has an eating disorder. emily (mc) is queer, questioning/trying to figure her sexuality out. wren (sc) is korean. maya (sc) is black and bisexual.
random thoughts for your pleasure; • the last time i read a book that used “queer” to mean odd/strange was an old as fuck classic.....wyd sara • describing lolita as “deliciously dirty”......let’s not • “wasn’t sex the best way to express love?” uh not really, no • hey let’s not assume a guy is gay because he has nice clothes and rejected sex from his girlfriend • think it’s been a while since i’ve read a book that used mental illnesses as everyday adjectives • big ole yikes at emily’s racist mom • hanna pushes sean for sex she knows he doesn’t want and gets so mad at his rejection that she steals his car and crashes it.....not a good look • we love a boy who supports his girlfriend realizing she likes girls.....just kidding ben is trash for throwing drinks on emily and maya and calling them the d slur! • what’s with the gross men in this book? ian at 17 made out with spencer who was 12 (the grossest of all these tbfh). a random 40-something year old man ogled 16 year old hanna and mona. ezra in his early 20s started a relationship with aria who was 16 and his student. wren in his early 20s made out with spencer who was 16 and his girlfriend’s sister. and i don’t know how old byron was when he had an affair with meredith, but he was married with kids and she was his student. what the fuck is in the water these rosewood men seem to be drinking? • the treatment of spencer by her parents and melissa after they find out about spencer and wren is fucking awful. the neglect turns into verbal abuse. • ezra scares the shit out of aria by slamming his hand against a wall, screaming at her, and throwing things at her.......and they made this endgame on the show?...more
rep; milo (mc) is gay. liam (mc) is bisexual. noel (sc) is black. kat (sc) and penny (sc) are queer (unlabeled) and dating.
liam is a little annoying, he seems to always take issue with something. him punching milo after milo kisses him really bothered me. there’s a bit of emphasis put on sex/kissing in relationships, like it’s inherent or universally important. and it bugs me that noel got mad at liam for stepping in when her boyfriend was being pretty aggressive to her....more
i read this for the 2019 newts readathon "friend’s fav" prompt.
content/trigger warnings; ableism, sexism, blood, violence, gendered slurs, m slur, mentions of death of parents, mentions of suicide, mentions of parental suicide, sexual assault, fatphobia, homophobia, transphobia, romantic feelings between characters who believe they’re related,
listen...my rating is highkey due to the fact that i already know and love (most of) these characters and know the plot and twists (hello incest fake out that literally no one wants ever) from watching the show. if i hadn’t watched the show, there’s a very good chance i wouldn’t have read this.
but as it is, i enjoyed this. a lot. i had a fun time reading it. i like the humor and banter. i like characters (except jace, he can get fucked) and was eagerly waiting for certain characters to show up and interact with each other. i think that’s what i like the most about this book, the characters. if i didn’t like or care for any of them, i would’ve had a miserable time reading this. and if i hadn’t already had an understanding of the fantasy world. fantasy can get very info dump-y and i usually lose track of and interest in all the explanations. but thankfully that wasn’t the case here.
rep; alec (sc) is gay. magnus (sc) is bisexual and asian. simon (sc) is jewish. raphael (sc) is aroace and mexican. lily (sc) is pansexual and asian. not all rep is addressed in this book, and some is stated out of text anyways.
notes: asian characters with colored hair trope. clary’s girl hate. body/looks/fat shaming. clary compares having her memories blocked to rape, which.........rubs me the wrong way because every type of violation does not need to be compared to rape, especially when rape is about power/control and what happened to clary, while she has every right to feel violated, was about protection. a male villain is outed as having done what he did because he has feelings for another male villain. i don’t care for how simon, alec, and izzy just disappear while the big fight happens, their absence was glaring.
all in all, i did really enjoy this and i’m going to continue with the series....more
smiled the whole time reading this!!!!! so fucking cute!!!!! genuinely funny!!! ’50s aesthetic!!! cute art!!! queerness all around!!!! adorable characters and relationships!!!! rebellion!!!! gang shenanigans!!! there's a whole non-binary gang!!!! queer characters!! characters of color!!! fat characters!!! all relationships are f/f, m/m, nb/f, and nb/nb; aka not a single m/f relationship!! (not that they're inherently bad or non-queer, just the norm as far as paired genders go). not all sexualities and genders and pronouns are talked about or labeled on page, but they are explicitly stated here on the comic’s website, where you can also read the entire comic for free!
rep:
• connie is a black lesbian • carla is fat, panromantic, and asexual • debby is fat and bisexual • triss is bisexual woc • rolly is a panromantic, demisexual trans girl • frankie is gay • clyde is bisexual • gene is fat, homoromantic gray-sexual • edd is an asexual, aromantic moc • ace is latinx, asexual, demiromantic, and agender (they/them) • dett is fat, black, asexual, aromantic, and genderfluid (she/her, they/them, he/him) • sonny is a pansexual demiboy (they/them, he/him) • skip is a bigender (she/her, he/him), demi-pansexual poc • sasha is panromantic demisexual...more
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