Tag Archives: Bisexual Character

ARC — How to Get a Life in Ten Dates — Jenny L. Howe

“This was why (…) dating was off the table. She was too chaotic. He was too rigid. They were too different in ways that could break them, that already almost had (…).”

Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Spicy Meter: 2 fire emojis
Content Warnings: Touches on body image prejudices, unhealthy relationship dynamics, and mental health struggles. Contains some sexual content.

“How to Get a Life in Ten Dates” follows Haleigh Berkshire, a plus-sized part time dog walker and editor, who’s worn out by dating drama and family pressure. Her sister has her engagement party soon and Haleigh should have a plus one, but all she wants is a break on dating. That’s when her best friend (and unrequited crush), Jack, suggests that she lets her family and close friends sent her up on 10 blind dates. If none of them work, then her family and friends can’t go on complaining about Haleigh’s dating sabbatical.

Haleigh’s journey is messy, charming, and deeply human. While Jack isn’t your typical perfect hero, his flaws make the romance feel genuine—you definitely catch on the been-best-friends-forever vibes with these ones right away.

If you’re a fan of friends-to-lovers and second chance romances that balance humor, emotional growth, and a sprinkle of chaos, then this book belongs on your shelf.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: December 10, 2024

Chef’s Kiss — TJ Alexander — Chef’s Kiss #1

Genre: Romance, LGBTQIA
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Spicy Meter: 1 fire emojis
Content Warnings: Displays homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, and deadnaming. Describes medical care after gender-affirming surgery. Contains some sexual content and references.

“Chef’s Kiss” follows Simone Larkspur, a pastry chef working on a culinary magazine, her literal dream job, when said magazine sets to branch out to video and other platforms. Really? After years building up recipes for this magazine, Simone is forced to step into the limelight with a new coworker, Ray Lyton. As they go viral and work closer together, so does their relationship change—but Simone can’t share her feelings with Ray. They’re coworkers, after all.

This is the first TJ Alexander book I’ve read, although they’ve been highly recommended to me by both friends and the endless stream of Instagram posts praising their writing—well, in my opinion this hype is totally justified. TJ Alexander has built an amazing world, full of diversity and speaking from a place too close to reality—where cooking and recipe platforms have displayed so much discrimination and, honestly, simple gaslighting. It was truly refreshing to read this new voice and I can’t wait to see where this series is going.

Are you looking for a book centered around cooking videos and shows, in the style of Tasty’s Make It Fancy or Epicurious’s 4 Levels series, and that has a beautifully queer love story? Then “Chef’s Kiss” is for you.

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ARC — Epically Earnest — Molly Horan

“What did he say?” (…)
“He said, ‘End Act I.’” (…)
“And that means what exactly?”
“I’m not one hundred percent sure. A start? The promise of Act II?”

Genre: Young Adult, LGBTQIA+
Actual Rating: 3 stars
Spicy Meter: 1 fire emoji
Content Warnings: Abandonment of a baby and harassment.

Inspired on “The Importance of Being Earnest” by Oscar Wilde, “Epically Earnest” follows Jane Grady, a high school senior who found her fame when she was just a baby, as she was abandoned at a train station and found in a Gucci bag, becoming #bagbaby. In a coming-of-age story, Jane is stuck between trying to find her biological family or moving on with her life, as she crushes on a girl who’s out of her league.

I loved the quotes in the beginning of every chapter, I loved the relaxed narrative that didn’t try to be overzealous, but mostly I loved the characters Molly Horan portrayed. In this queer story, we get to see how complicated it can be to just be a teenager—finding young love, starting to make life-changing decision… “Epically Earnest” is a short, sweet read. Actually, too short if you ask me. That’s why I only gave it 3 stars. It’s really well written, but I felt like there was just so much unresolved or under-explained.

I would recommend “Epically Earnest” to anyone looking for a short, sapphic or queer romantic comedy that’s not only a romance book, but that goes a little more in-depth into character development and family relationships.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and Clarion Books in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: June 21, 2022

Heartstopper, Volumes 1-4 — Alice Oseman

“There’s this idea that if you’re not straight, you HAVE to tell all your family and friends immediately, like you owe it to them. But you don’t. You don’t have to do anything until you’re ready.”

Genre: Young Adult, LGBTQIA+, Graphic Novel
Actual Rating: 4 stars
Content Warnings: Deals with topics like homophobia, biphobia, outing someone, anorexia, eating disorders, anxiety, etc.

The “Heartstopper” graphic novels, volumes 1 through 4, follow two characters, Charlie Spring and Nick Nelson, and their group of friends. Charlie and Nick both attend an all-boys high school, but have had radically different high school experiences. While Charlie was outed as gay and bullied, Nick was a semi-popular rugby player with a bunch of superficial friends. After they’re assigned seats beside each other for one of their classes, they become friends. Well, Charlie develops a huge crush on Nick, but Nick’s straight, so that shouldn’t be a problem… right?

I started reading this graphic novel series because I saw a Netflix series was being produced about it and I just really wanted to get my hands on the novels before seeing the series. And so I did. And I must say I did not love it as much as I thought I would, at the start. The first two volumes are somewhat childish and superficial. Honestly, my rating for this series was very markedly bumped up to 4 stars thanks to the third and fourth volumes, where the interactions between characters started to become deeper and more realistic.

I loved the characters and I loved loved loved the art. The drawings are doodly and flowy. These books were a very fun read that was only enhanced by its Netflix series. I can’t even begin to explain how much more I appreciated that series thanks to the graphic novels. The real motion series almost goes scene by scene as compared to the graphic novel. It was truly a religious experience.

I would recommend this series to anyone trying to get into graphic novels, since these are easy, quick reads. Also, if you like queer romances, close proximity tropes, and books that face difficult topics like mental illness, bullying, and eating disorders, then grab these graphic novels. I can’t wait for Volume 5.

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“Love can’t cure a mental illness.”

ARC — Someone Else’s Dream — Janet Pywell

“You have to be a friend to have a friend.”

Genre: Romance, LGBTQIA
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Content Warnings: Covid-19, mentions suicide and death, mentions racism and homophobia

This book follows Amber, a lawyer that’s moved away from London in order to fulfill her girlfriend’s dream…only to then have her girlfriend leave her. Essentially stranded in a harbor town, she starts meeting the locals, setting up a business she did not want, and perhaps, just maybe, finding love again.

This is a true tale of friendship and new beginnings. I loved this book beyond what words can describe. Would I call this a love story? No. But I enjoyed every word of it.

I grew up in a big, busy city and then moved to a small town for uni, and I must say I fell in love with the quaintness of it all. The author has perfectly described the feeling of community and claustrophobia that can be born from small-town living. Amber’s inner voice is my inner voice, our way of thinking is very similar and I felt connected to her pretty much right away. Rarely do I ever read a bisexual/queer character that resonates so much with my own identity.

I can’t end my review without pointing out how weird it was to start reading a book and realizing it’s set in the present-day, where Covid-19 is a thing. Every time lockdowns or face masks were mentioned, it caught me off-guard, but I honestly liked it; this is the reality we’re living in and it was bound to show up in literature eventually, right?

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a light read that’s not predictable in the slightest. “Someone Else’s Dream” will transport you to a small town, with all its people and all their mosaic opinions and beliefs. It will serve you love in so many ways, maybe just not so much in a romantic way.

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ARC provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: November 30, 2021