Road to Ruin – The Bookish Mutant

Read the Rainbow Book Tag 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

Posted on June 17, 2024 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Monday, bibliophiles!

I’m always up for a pride-themed book tag, so when I saw The Corner of Laura’s take on this one, I knew I had to give it a try! The tag was originally created by Isabelle @ Nine Tale Vixen.

RULES:

Link back to the person who tagged you
Credit & link back to the creator: Isabelle @ Nine Tale Vixen
Each book you pick should have an LGBTQIA+ main character and/or an LGBTQIA+ author. Try to include diverse books: different romantic/sexual/gender orientations, different ethnicities, etc.

Let’s begin, shall we?

🌈READ THE RAINBOW BOOK TAG🌈

RED: A book that gives you courage or is about courage

An Unkindness of Ghosts is a story of courage and resistance in circumstances that have all but walled you in—a generation ship that oppresses its lower-class passengers of color much like the antebellum South. Rivers Solomon never misses!

ORANGE: A book with a passionate/fierce protagonist

Jin-Lu from Road to Ruin is as tough as they come, but will do anything to protect the ones she loves. This novel was the perfect blend of post-apocalyptic sci-fi and fantasy!

YELLOW: A book that celebrates friendship

All of Alechia Dow’s books sparkle with themes of connection, but A Song of Salvation centers around the friendship (and eventual romance) between its three unlikely leads! Not her best, but still a sweet book.

GREEN: A Middle Grade book and/or a book featuring kids

It’s been ages since I’ve read (or even thought about) Star-Crossed, but I’m glad I remembered it—such a sweet coming-of-age story about a bisexual girl playing a genderbent Romeo in her class production of Romeo & Juliet!

BLUE: A book which includes a wedding or an already-established LGBTQIA+ couple

I seriously think that The Heartbreak Bakery has the most LGBTQ+ rep I’ve ever seen in a single book—several established queer couples, and characters spanning tons of sexualities, gender identities, and ethnicities!

PURPLE: A book featuring love at first sight

The Cybernetic Tea Shop is a sweet, cozy sci-fi novella about a robot who runs a tea shop and the romance that blooms between her and a technician!

BLACK: A book centered on an antihero or villain

Off With Their Heads centers around two cunning, bloodthirsty, and vengeful characters, in an equally bloodthirsty and vengeful world loosely based on Alice in Wonderland.

BROWN: A book that celebrates family, chosen or given

Don’t let the gritty-looking title and cover fool you—Activation Degradation is one of the most emotional celebrations of found family that I’ve read all year! Highly recommend it.

LIGHT BLUE: A book about star-crossed lovers

Across a Field of Starlight features a nonbinary romance that stretches across solar systems, war, and ideology.

PINK: A book as sweet as cotton candy

Just Your Local Bisexual Disaster is a lighthearted, sweet romance about a bisexual girl scrambling to find a date for her sister’s quinceañera—and sort out her messy romantic history.

WHITE: A book that isn’t focused on romance

Another piece of lovely cozy sci-fi (from the cozy sci-fi queen herself), A Psalm for the Wild-Built has no romance, and focuses on self-discovery and friendship!

PURPLE CIRCLE: A standalone book that is perfect and complete on its own

Only This Beautiful Moment is the story of three generations of men in an Iranian family, and the interwoven threads of sexuality, trauma, and love.

RAINBOW: Free choice! Recommend any LGBTQIA+ book that you love

A Half-Built Garden was one of the best pieces of sci-fi that I read last year—a wonderfully nuanced and human vision of first contact, featuring a whole host of cleverly designed aliens!

I TAG ANYONE WHO WANTS TO PARTICIPATE!

Today’s song:

:,,,,,,,,,,)

That’s it for this book tag! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Books

🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️The Bookish Mutant’s Books for Pride Month (2024 Edition) 🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈

Posted on June 12, 2024 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Wednesday, bibliophiles!

Here in the U.S., June is Pride Month! And every month, I find myself having a downer of an introduction, just because the world only gets kinder to queer people in the smallest increments, it seems. The vocal minority in this country are still bent on erasing all evidence that queer people exist in the first place, like an offending stain on a white tablecloth. (A note to homophobes: has it ever occurred to you that you don’t have to look at pride flags or queer couples? You can just look away and not make it anybody else’s problem…life is so short, man.) But our community is one characterized by resilience: no amount of book bans, culture wars, or bigotry will wipe us off the map. We are are here, we have always been here, and we will always be here. Nothing you do will make us disappear. Don’t let the vocal minority distract you from the beauty created and progress made by our community.

So once again, here’s a list of YA and Adult books with queer characters and themes, curated by your local bisexual. I also added the specific representation of each book.

Just a refresher on my key:

MC: Main character

LI: Love interest

SC: Side character(s)

For my previous lists, see below:

Enjoy these book recs!

🌈THE BOOKISH MUTANT’S BOOKS FOR PRIDE MONTH (2024 EDITION)🌈

FANTASY

Off With Their Heads – Zoe Hana Mikuta | YA | lesbian MCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75, rounded up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Everfair (Everfair, #1) – Nisi Shawl | Adult | sapphic MC, LI, and SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Godkiller (Fallen Gods, #1) – Hannah Kaner | Adult | sapphic MC, sapphic SCs (queernormative world) | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The First Bright Thing – J.R. Dawson | Adult | bisexual MC, sapphic LI | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Our Wives Under the Sea – Julia Armfield | Adult | lesbian MC, sapphic LI | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
To Shape A Dragon’s Breath (Nampeshiweisit, #1) – Moniquill Blackgoose | YA | polyamorous, bisexual MC, sapphic LI | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Even Though I Knew the End – C.L. Polk | Adult | lesbian MC, sapphic LI | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Taproot: A Story About a Gardener and a Ghost – Keezy Young | YA | achillean MC and LI | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
The Unbroken (Magic of the Lost, #1) – C.L. Clark | Adult | lesbian MC, bisexual LI, nonbinary and sapphic SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

SCIENCE FICTION

Activation Degradation – Marina J. Lostetter | Adult | intersex MC, intersex LI, queer SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Junker Seven (Twin Suns duology, #1) – Olive J. Kelley | Adult | nonbinary lesbian MC, trans LI, trans, nonbinary, and queer SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
These Burning Stars (The Kindom, #1) – Bethany Jacobs | Adult | nonbinary MC, lesbian MC, lesbian LI | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75, rounded up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Salvation Gambit – Emily Skrutskie | Adult | bisexual MC, sapphic LI, nonbinary and queer SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75, rounded up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Hunger Makes the Wolf (The Ghost Wolves, #1) – Alex Wells | Adult | queer MC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
A Memory Called Empire (Teixcalaan, #1) – Arkady Martine | Adult | sapphic MC and LI, achillean SC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25
Some Desperate Glory – Emily Tesh | Adult | lesbian MC, nonbinary and gay SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
A Half-Built Garden – Ruthanna Emrys | Adult | lesbian MC and LI, queer SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25
This Is How You Lose the Time War – Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone | Adult | sapphic MCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Meru (The Alloy Era, #1) – S.B. Divya | Adult | queer MC, nonbinary (uses zie/zir pronouns) LI, queer SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Road to Ruin (Magebike Courier, #1) – Hana Lee | Adult | bisexual MC, sapphic LI | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Cybernetic Tea Shop – Meredith Katz | Adult | asexual, sapphic MC and LI | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

REALISTIC FICTION:

And Other Mistakes – Erika Turner | YA | lesbian MC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
The Luis Ortega Survival Club – Sonora Reyes | YA | unlabelled MC, bisexual LI, nonbinary SC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Imogen, Obviously – Becky Albertalli | YA | bisexual MC, lesbian LI, pansexual, questioning, demisexual, bisexual, lesbian, and nonbinary SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75, rounded up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Something Like Possible – Miel Moreland | YA | bisexual MC, queer SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Forever Is Now – Mariama J. Lockington | YA | bisexual MC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75, rounded up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Scatter of Light – Malinda Lo | YA | bisexual MC, genderqueer LI, queer and lesbian SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Margo Zimmerman Gets the Girl – Brianna R. Shrum and Sara Waxelbaum | YA | lesbian MC, bisexual LI, pansexual, polyamorous, genderqueer, and lesbian SCs | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
So Lucky – Nicola Griffith | Adult | lesbian MC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Only This Beautiful Moment – Abdi Nazemian | YA | gay MC, bisexual SC, gay SC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK! Have you read any of these books, and if so, did you enjoy them? What are some of your favorite queer books that you’ve read in the last year? Let me know in the comments!

Today’s song:

That’s it for this year’s pride recommendations! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Monthly Wrap-Ups

May 2024 Wrap-Up ⌨️

Posted on May 31, 2024May 31, 2024 by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Friday, bibliophiles!

Finally summer! Finally, more time to read…and most of what I’ve read this month has been good, I’d say.

Let’s begin, shall we?

GENERAL THOUGHTS:

Save for the first week of the month, May has been the first month where I’ve been able to relax somewhat! Finals were over and I’d moved out of my dorm before I knew it. Straight A’s and finally being free of my STEM requirements isn’t too shabby, I’d say! I’m so proud of what I’ve accomplished this year—and I’m so glad that I can have some downtime. And I’ve made good use of it so far—May has been my best month in terms of amount of books read (although the quality of…some of said books is another story), and I’ve definitely benefitted from the time spent reading! I’ve also been trying to focus more on art this summer, and consciously taking a slice out of each day to draw has been an adventure so far. I had a solid week where I had three or four blog posts all on the back burner simultaneously, so I unintentionally made a loose schedule for blogging every day as well, so I’m getting some writing in while I recover from writing two short stories and a 20,000 word novella all in one semester. I’ve also been pruning my Goodreads TBR…I’ve managed to cut it down from around 770 to around 720, so I’d say that’s been a success?

Other than that, I’ve just been cleaning things out of the dorm and bringing them back to my house, sleeping, watching Abbott Elementary (THEY FINALLY DID IT!!! THEY FINALLY LET THEM KISS!!!), Taskmaster, and Hacks (we love Jean Smart in this house), and relishing in the warm weather and the beginning of summer. I feel like every time I’m in the car with my family, I just pass the hills and feel the need to comment on how much I love that shade of green that summertime brings. But it’s so beautiful. Every single time. It never gets old. Thank you, shades of summer green.

READING AND BLOGGING:

I read 19 books this month! I’ve been oscillating between both ends of the spectrum this month, for sure—I read one of the worst books I’ve read this year, but also two of the very best. Somehow, it’s pretty evenly split as far as ratings go when I’ve lined them all up that way, but it’s been up and down all month, but on a track towards betterment midway through. I focused on AAPI books for May, and I found some fantastic books as a result from both familiar and new-to-me authors!

1 – 1.75 stars: