We Could Be So Good is one of my all time favorite books, and I was therefore a bit nervous that You Should Be So Lucky wouldn’t live up to my high expectations. But luckily it did! This was another marvelous gem by Cat Sebastian! Such a sweet and tender queer historical romance that tugged at my heartstrings. YSBSL is set in the same universe as WCBSG, but with the reporter Mark Bailey in focus (but there were also some adorable glimpses of Andy and Nick, with Andy being Mark’s boss) who is grieving the loss of his longtime partner. To help Mark get his bearings, Andy assigns him a weekly diary project about Eddie O’Leary, the newest and most hated baseball player in New York.
This is a story about grief and the loneliness when you can’t even talk about your loss, and how to find meaning in that new, hollow, life. It’s also a story about finding yourself and finding hope, of friendship, love and maybe, maybe, daring to find happiness again. I rooted so for Mark and his struggles to come to terms with his new life, his grumpiness and his unexpected tender feelings for Eddy. “It’s foolish, but Marks is making peace with the fact that everything he feels about Eddy is a little foolish.” Sweet Eddy stole my heart right away with the way he just kept messing things up, his big mouth and even bigger heart, his naivety and positivity, and how unapologetically he installed himself into Mark’s life. And the respect he showed for Mark’s grief and how he acknowledged Mark’s memories of and relationship with his deceased partner was so wholesome. This story is a beautiful journey from grief and heartbreak to finding love again, from hiding to accepting who you are, and from fear to hope. It’s also a story with some amazing, heartwarming, supportive characters: Eddy’s mother, Mark’s found family of protective queer friends, the supportive coach, the reporter colleague who lost his wife and gently lets Mark know that the grief is the same. Even though this book deals with some pretty heavy things, like homophobia, loss of a loved one and grief, mental health issues and so on, it’s nevertheless a fun, sweet and adorable story, full of snarky banter, flippant jokes and hilarious situations. Cat Sebastian has a marvelous way of writing sad stories in a joyful way, and always ending them on positive note, full of hope and with an homage to the brave queer community paving way for the acceptance today (even though there is still a long journey ahead). All in all, I loved, loved, LOVED this book! Rating: 5 stars Get your own copy: Author links Author info: Cat Sebastian
1 Comment
This was such an adorable, heart wrenching M/M hockey romance that added extra depths to the friends to lovers and second chance tropes. It dealt with difficult topics like trauma, homophobia (internalized as well) and horrible parents, but it was nevertheless a truly beautiful and sweet story with main characters that stole my heart! The Understatement of the Year is the third book in The Ivy Years series, but it’s no problem at all to read it as a standalone. It follows two college hockey players, who were once best friends and first loves, but who after a traumatic incident went their separate ways. Graham stayed firmly in the closet, letting himself be persuaded by the catholic school upbringing that being gay was a sickness and something to fear. Rikker was thrown out by his parents and sent to his Gran, who gave him a sanctuary where he could be himself and explore his sexuality without condemnation. Being a hockey player, he didn’t broadcast it though, not until he got outed to his coach and transferred to Graham’s team, making Graham’s secret harder and harder to keep…
“When he was around, nothing worked right. My eyes went where they weren’t supposed to go, and I felt the thrum of expectation just from breathing the same air that he did.” I rooted so for both Graham and Rikker. At the beginning I got a bit frustrated with Graham for not being as brave as I wanted him to be, but as I learned more about how the trauma in his past had shaped him, I just wanted to hug him and tell him that everything would be okay. That he was okay. That he didn’t have to be terrified of everything that was could even remotely come across as gay (from cappuccinos to bright colors), especially not of himself. “I was the most homophobic person alive. Because ‘homophobic’ means ‘afraid of homosexuals.’ And I was pants-shitting terrified of myself.” With Rikker it was instant love for me. He’s such an amazing, lovable character! Even though being openly gay meant so much struggle and hardship for him – getting kicked out of his home at sixteen, getting kicked off his team, getting mean comments from team mates – he was always true to himself, kind and gentle, and honorable. He truly personified the notion of “when they go low, we go high”. I rooted so much for them both and wanted them to get their well-deserved happily ever after. Graham and Rikker are now some of my favorite couples, next to Shane and Ilya in Heated Rivalry and Wesmie in HIM. This book had a lot of the same vibes as Cait Nary’s Season’s Change, with the angst and fear, the internal struggles and hidden emotions. Even though it was a YA/NA story with a lot of cuteness, it was very raw and real. It’s not so much a hockey romance as a story about finding yourself and accepting who you are, of letting yourself be loved even though you’ve been told you’re not worth it and that your love is shameful. “Getting along together was never the problem with you and me,” he said. “We’re both easy. It’s just the rest of the world that’s hard.” All in all, this was a heartfelt and beautiful slow burn romance with lots of depths and emotions, the perfect amount of steam and sweetness, and amazing characters to root for! Rating: 5 stars Get your own copy: Author links Author info: Sarina Bowen 5/14/2024 0 Comments Here We Go Again by Alison CochrunI absolutely adored this ‘sapphic road trip rom-com about death’ (as Alison Cochrun pitched this book to her agent)! It was such a cute best friends-to-enemies-to-maybe lovers romance, with messy, relatable characters who went on a journey both literally, across the country, and internally, learning a lot about themselves. The story follows the two small town high school teachers Logan and Rosemary, who used to be best friends growing up, but now hate each other. The one thing they still have in common is their love for their former high school teacher and mentor (father figure), Joe. To fulfil his dying wish, they end up on a road trip across the country together. In a gay van. With a fake emotional support dog.
This book had so many of the tropes I love the most – enemies-to-lovers, slow-burn romance, second chances, forced proximity and found family. I loved the extravagant Joe and his love and support for Logan and Rosemary (and all his pupils over the years) and his scheming to make them forgive each other for past wrongs. Rosemary was the sweetest, and I ached for her struggles to cope with and hide her anxiety from others. Logan was a loud, messy, dumbass fuckboy, but I loved her anyway. Especially as we got to see more of her abandon fears after being left by her mother at a young age. “Hurt first, so she’ll never be hurt at all. Leave first, so no one ever leaves her. Careful, not careless.” This book was the perfect mix of pain and humor, grief and joy, miscommunication and finding love when you need it the most! I adored Joe and his old love story was the sweetest. I loved the dignity that Alison Cochrun gave it and that it wasn’t made into something too cheesy. My only minor complaints are that the lack of communication and the old conflict became a bit repetitive in the middle, and that the overuse of pop culture references and the f-word in the middle of famous persons names as an exclamation (like ‘Kristin fucking Stewart’) was somewhat annoying. But all in all, this was such an adorable, sweet, tender, witty and heartfelt story with the right amount of depth and emotions. It’s a story that deals with difficult topics, like death, mental health, and commitment issues in a both honest and fun way at the same time. Highly recommended! Rating: 4.5 stars rounding up to 5 Get your own copy: Author links Author info: Alison Cochrun 4/16/2024 0 Comments The Prospects by K.T. HoffmanThis was such an adorable rivals-to-friends-to-lovers sports romance that warmed my heart! I loved the pining and the awesome banter, and the hope and positivity despite the struggles, but most of all I loved the unique, real and delightfully queer characters! The Prospects follows Gene, the first openly trans player in professional baseball, who is focusing on staying positive and hopeful for the things he’s achieved and not on wanting things he can’t have. But when his former team mate, rival and former (still) crush Luis is unexpectedly drafted to Gene’s minor league team, it gets a little harder for Gene to stay focused and keep himself from wanting things…
Gene was such an amazing, unique and wonderful character! He was just so much himself all the time. So at home in his own body and with his queerness. So optimistic and full of hope despite the daily homophobia, misgendering and mean comments. But also so complex in his combination of positivity and shyness, how hopeful he was but still not allowing himself to fully dream, his confidence in being his own queer self and his insecurity in trusting his and Luis’s feelings for one another. Luis on the other hand was a bit more difficult to fully get to know. So sweet, anxious, beautiful and kind, but also closeted and withdrawn. I still feel like the reason for his lack of contact with Gene for all those years wasn’t fully explained. But together Gene and Luis made perfect sense and they truly stole my heart with their rivals-to-lovers romance, their banter, tenderness and mutual pining. Pure gold! And Gene’s family and the supportive team mates made me so happy too! Perhaps the baseball part was a bit too detailed. I don’t really know that much about baseball, so a lot of it went over my head and made the story feel a bit on the long side. But apart from that it was absolutely amazing and definitely worth the hype! All in all, a heartwarming, delightful, emotional read with unique and lovable characters and a positive message to never stop dreaming! Rating: 4.5 stars rounding up to 5 Get your own copy: Author links Add on Goodreads Author info: K T Hoffman This was such a cute, heartwarming and fun add-on to the Hockey Ever After series, telling the story how Grady and Max from the third book got engaged. I absolutely adore the Hockey Ever After series! The stories are kind of independent, but the characters from the previous books make appearances and I truly recommend you to read all of the books in the series, simply because they’re absolutely worth it! They are all such wonderful and sweet mm hockey rivals to lovers romances, with the perfect amount of steam and lovable characters with an absolutely sizzling chemistry!
One of my favorite books in the series is the third one, Unrivaled, so I was so happy when I learned there was a short extra story to the romance between Grady and Max. They started off as archenemies who hooked up by accident and who then found out that they had a surprisingly good time together. Soon they kept meeting up for more, with the fighting on the ice as foreplay… After a big hiccup in the third book, and the extra strain with Max’s team beating Grady’s team to the Stanley Cup, they are back on track and ready for summer vacation in this lovely extra novella. Grady and Max are such an amazing couple! I rooted for them both already from the start in the third book and I really appreciated the slow burn from loathing each other to slowly beginning to open up and getting to know each other with all their vulnerability and insecurities, and from there on letting the attraction take them even further. I loved this lite cute novella, with them both having the same idea about proposing and all the missed opportunities and hilarious situations. I also adored the way the Lockhart family took Grady to their heart and let him have a family again after losing his parents at a young age. And it was so wholesome getting more of Dante “Baller” gossiping and meddling into everyone else’s business. All in all, this was such a sweet and adorable bonus story that gave me the pleasure of spending more time with Max and Grady, and made me smile throughout it all, and warmed my heart! Thank you to Gay Book Promotions for the free review copy and blog tour invitation! All opinions are my own and I am leaving my honest review voluntarily. Rating: 5 stars Get your own copy: Author links Amazon Author info: Ashlyn Kane Morgan James 2/29/2024 0 Comments American Love Songs by Ashlyn KaneThis was such a sweet, fun and charming feelgood romance with characters learning a thing or two about life and themselves! The story follows Jake and his best friends’ alt-rock band, The Wayward Sons, as they find a new lead guitarist in the sexy nerdy Parker. It has a completely clueless MC, so much fun banter and quirkiness, a super slow burn friends to lovers romance and the perfect amount of heartbreak and emotions! It’s a sweet YA story, focusing on feelings rather than smut, which I appreciated. And I loved the writing style with the interspersing of blogs, texting, and media releases to tell the story (even though the blogging part felt a bit outdated and made you realize that the book was released in 2010).
All in all, a sweet, lovely, goofey, fun and heartwarming m/m band romance story that I’ve already reread twice now and know I will keep coming back to as a comfort-read! Rating: 5 stars Get your own copy: Author links Add on Goodreads Author info: Ashlyn Kane This wonderful novella is set in The Cabots universe, even though there’s no real connection to the Cabot family, and it’s just as amazing as the other books in the series! In just about 100 pages, Cat Sebastian manages to write a completely addictive story with fleshed out characters to root for. Set in the 1950s it tells the story of Billy and Luke, who are baseball players and teammates. Recently Luke has been injured and gone into hiding, leaving Billy sick of worry. Billy, who has been able to keep his feelings hidden for more than five years, suddenly don’t know what to do when Luke turns up on his porch.
I loved the way the two of them slowly opened up to each other and letting themselves be vulnerable, despite the potential consequences. Cat Sebastian always has such an authentic way in describing the current time period and the fear and homophobia that queer people had to live with. Adorable first time experience, witty banter and pretend dislike to (unsuccessfully) disguise the true feelings. And Billy’s mother was pure gold! All in all, this was yet another highly enjoyable, adorable and heartwarming queer historical story by Cat Sebastian! Rating: 5 stars Get your own copy: Author links Author info: Cat Sebastian I absolutely adored this cute and heartwarming YA RomCom! It had so many things I love, like secret romance, friends to lovers, finding your path to live an authentic life and music nerdery. The story follows the two 17-year-olds Emmett and Luke. Emmett dares to dream and to follow his dreams; he’s already taking his first small steps towards becoming the country music’s biggest gay superstar. Luke is the opposite, his dreams are much less grand, but even so he doesn’t dare to follow them, too focused on finding a realistic plan to help his struggling family out. Due to his religious mother, being openly gay is not an option either. And as for country music, it’s a forbidden topic, being the grandson of the disgraced country singer Verna Rose, who had a famous falling out with the big star Wanda Jean.
But when Luke gets a job at Wanda World and runs into Emmett sparks start to fly and maybe, just maybe, Luke can finally let his guard down a bit and allow himself to dream and discover his true queer self. This was such a sweet story, but also with more depth than the cute cover might hint at. My heart ached for Luke and how he put his family before his own happiness and how he struggled to keep his true self hidden, while not being able to stay away from Emmett. It was so raw and authentic in the way Luke’s fear for and the consequences of being outed in the wrong circumstances was described. In a small town there’s no going back once the truth is out there. But I also ached for Emmett’s struggles to keep his principles and his dreams about being an openly gay country musician when the record labels tried to persuade him otherwise. It really takes a lot of courage and integrity to stay true to yourself when your whole career is at stake before it has even started! I had some problems with how Luke treated Emmett at times, and how Emmett let himself accept getting less respects than he deserved, but at the same time I fully understand why and where they were both coming from. In the end, it made the story more authentic and the characters more relatable. I haven’t listened much to country music, to be honest, but this book definitely made me want to try! I loved the music references and how important music was to Emmett. The music was almost like a character in itself that played a big part of the story. All in all, this was such a wonderful queer coming-of-age story about small town life and big dreams, about finding out what you really need and want in your life and being brave enough to chase it, and about the love of music. Highly recommended! Rating: 5 stars Get your own copy: Author links Author info: Brian D. Kennedy A girl who wants nothing but to leave her home town behind to be her openly bisexual self, a boy who gave up a scholarship for a life staying in the town, a quest and a mystery to solve, a past love story to unfold, but more importantly a story about finding yourself and live authentically. Ready Player One meets Daisy Jones & The Six in this hunt for a country musician’s legacy. This queer coming-of-age story is told in split-POVs and timelines of nowadays Darren Purchase and the 1960s rising country star Decklee Cassel, slowly revealing their queerness, their ambitions and struggle to live an authentic life, during the hunt for Decklee’s heritage via the unfolding of scavenger hunt clues.
It started a bit slow, and I had trouble rooting for both of the main characters (both nowadays Darren and the past time Decklee). I completely sympathized with their wish to leave their home town and make something of themselves, but not with the way they walked all over people and didn’t care who they hurt on the way. But the more we got to see the reason behind their decisions and understand what they had to give up to stay true to themselves, they both completely stole my heart. And Kendall and Mickenlee were just total sweethearts who I rooted for immediately! And the closer Darren and Kendall came to finding the final clues, the more intense and addictive the story got! What started a bit slow and not fully engaging was almost nail biting at the end! And the twist… so worth waiting for is all I’ll say! I’m so satisfied with the authenticity and the way Jenna Voris kept the characters real with all their flaws. The two main characters were allowed to the strong, complex and ruthless. And the love story was kept real as well, no fairy tale, cheesy, one but very realistic while still completely satisfying. All in all, this was a heartfelt road trip story about finding your true self, finding love and not letting a small town crush your big dreams, but also not letting your dreams stand in the way for love and happiness. Disclaimer: I received a review copy for free via NetGalley, but I am leaving my honest review. Many thanks to Penguin Teen and the author for the opportunity! Rating: 4.5 stars rounding up to 5 Get your own copy: Author links Author info: Jenna Voris This was such a sweet, fast-paced and charming fake dating romance with magic, adorable characters and a mystery to solve! Luca is an ambitious witch lawyer who wants to prove himself to his scrutinizing father who’s never content no matter how successful Luca is. Now, his father is set on getting Luca to marry his way up the social ladder. To get his father off his back, Luca agrees to meet a friend of a friend, Theo, to potentially get him to act as a fake boyfriend.
Theo on the other hand is trying to stop his siblings from meddling in his love life after a bad breakup three years ago. He might therefore have told a lie about seeing someone. Said someone that he now would need to bring with him to his mother’s birthday party. When Luca offers to pretend to be his boyfriend he’s more than grateful and jumps the opportunity. I loved the way Luca and Theo got to know each other and how they slowly started to trust and open up to each other. I also loved the character development and how they both finally found ways to stand up for themselves. And Theo’s mother was the sweetest! The rest of the family members were not always great, but they mostly got their acts together in the end. I really appreciated the support from their friends and Luca’s sister throughout the family drama going on. The mystery plot was perhaps a little unnecessary though. The curse felt a bit far fetched and didn’t add that much to the story and the way it resolved was a bit hasty. It wasn’t negative for the story as such, but it didn’t really intrigue me. To be honest, the magic world wasn’t a big part of the story either, but it did add an extra layer of fairytale vibes that I truly enjoyed and which made the story more special. Everything is better with magic isn’t it?! All in all, this was a charming, feel-good and witty story showing the importance of trust and allowing yourself to be vulnerable to find the magic of love! This is my first book in the Love & Magic series but I definitely need to read all the other ones right away too! Thank you Pride Book Tours for the free copy which I have voluntarily reviewed. Rating: 4.5 stars rounding up to 5 Get your own copy: Author links Author info: Colette Rivera |
CategoriesAll 1 Star 2 Stars 3 Stars 4 Stars 5 Stars Abbi Glines Abby Kaitz Abdi Nazemian Adam Silvera Adib Khorram Aiden Thomas Aisha Saeed Aislinn Brophy AJ Collins Alexandra Christo Alex Beltran Alexene Farol Follmuth Alexis Hall Alex Kelly Alex Sanchez Alice Dolman Alice Oseman Alice Winn Ali Hazelwood Alison Cochrun Al Riske Alwyn Hamilton Amanda Ferreira Amanda Woody A. Meredith Walters Amy Aislin Amy Harmon Amy S. Foster Amy Spalding André Aciman Andy V Roamer Angie Thomas Annabeth Albert A. Poland Ashley Poston Ashley Woodfolk Ashlyn Kane Audrey Coulthurst Ban Gilmartin Becca Fitzpatrick Becky Albertalli Benjamin Alire Saenz Beth Bolden Bill Konigsberg B.L. Maxwell Briar Prescott Bri Spicer Brooke Skipstone Cait Nary Cale Dietrich Cara Dee Casey McQuiston Cassandra Clare Cat Sebastian C.F. White C.G. Drews Charlie Adhara Charli Meadows Chasten Buttigieg Chris Bedell Christina Lauren Christina Lee Ciara Smyth Claerie Kavanaugh Clarissa Pattern C.L. Beaumont Colette Davison Colleen Hoover Courtney Kae Crystal Frasier C.S. Pacat Dallas Smith Daven McQueen David Biddle David Yoon Dean Atta Debbie McGowan Debbie Rigaud Debbie Schrack Deborah Harkness Delia Owens D.G. Carothers Dhonielle Clayton D.N. Bryn Douglas Stuart Dustin Thao Elisa A. Bonnin Elizabeth Acevedo Elizabeth Arroyo Elle Kennedy Elle Wright E.L. Massey E. Lockhart Emery Lee Emily M. Danforth Emily Mims Erin Watt Ernest Cline Evan J. Corbin Eve Morton Everina Maxwell Evie Dunmore Felice Stevens F.T. Lukens Grace Williams Gwen Martin Hannah Grace Hanya Yanagihara Hayden Stone Heather Truett H.E. Edgmon Hettie Bell Holly Black Hope Irving H.S. Valley Hudson Lin Ingrid Sterling Jacob Gelman Jacqueline Lee Jacqueline Woodson James L. Sutter Jamie Deacon Jandy Nelson Jax Calder Jay Hogan Jeanette Winterson Jeff Zentner Jen Bailey Jenna Evans Welch Jenn Burke Jennifer E. Smith Jennifer G. Edelson Jennifer Gilmore Jennifer Iacopelli Jennifer Kropf Jennifer Niven Jenny Downham Jenny Han Jeremy Ray Jesse H. Reign Joelle Lynne John Green Jonny Garza Villa Julianne Donaldson Julian Winters Kacen Callender Kami Garcia Kara Leigh Miller Kasie West Kate Larkindale Katharine McGee Kathleen Mareé Kathy Anderson K.A. Tucker KD Casey Kendall Grey Kevin Van Whye Kiley Reid Kim Fielding Kim Holden Kim Liggett Kitty Bardot Kris Ripper K.S. Marsden Laura Hall Laura Pavlov Laura Silverman Lauren James Lauren Shippen Laurie Frankel Leah Johnson Lee Matthew Goldberg Leigh Bardugo Lex Croucher Leylah Attar Lisa Henry Lisa Williamson Lisa Wingate Liv Rancourt Liz Plum Lola Noire Lynn Michaels Mackenzi Lee Madeline Miller Magdalena Di Sotru Maggie Doolin Maggie Stiefvater Malin Persson Giolito Malorie Blackman Margaret Stohl Marie Lu Mary E. Pearson Mason Deaver Matthew R. Corr M.A. Wardell Melanie Munton Melina Marchetta Meredith Russo Miel Moreland Mila Gray Miranda Kenneally Moa Backe Astot Morgan James M. Tasia Nancy Garden Natalie Haynes Nathaniel Shea Nicholas Sparks Nicola Yoon Nic Starr Nic Stone Nina Kenwood Nita Tyndall Nora Sakavic N.R. Walker Nyla K. Owen Lach Penny Aimes Phil Stamper Quinn Anderson Rachael Brownell Rachael Lippincott Rachel Hawkins Rachel Reid Racquel Marie Rainbow Rowell Ray Stoeve Renée Dahlia Rhiannon Wilde Riley Hart River Braun Roan Parrish Robin Gow Roseanne A. Brown Rowan MacKemsley Ruby Moone Ruta Sepetys Ryan La Sala Sally Green Sally Rooney Sarah J. Maas Sarah Waters Sarina Bowen Sasha Laurens Saundra Mitchell Saxon James Serena Bell Shannon O’Connor Sidney Bell Simone Elkeles Siryn Sueng Sophia DeRise Sophia Soames Sophie Gonzales S.R. Lane Stephen Chbosky Stephenie Meyer Steven Salvatore Susan Mac Nicol Suzanne Collins Tahereh Mafi Tal Bauer Tamara Girardi Taylor Jenkins Reid Teagan Hunter Terry J. Benton-Walker Tiffany D. Jackson Timothy Janovsky T.J. Klune T.L. Bradford Tobly McSmith Tomasz Jedrowski Tomi Adeyemi Tracy Deonn Tucker Shaw Val Wise Veronica Rossi Veronica Roth V.E. Schwab Wesley Chu Victor Dixen Victoria Aveyard V.L. Stuart Xan Van Rooyen Yamile Saied Méndez Archives
September 2023
|