Month: February 2026

In Waves is a beautiful graphic novel where AJ Dungo remembers his partner who died and he recalls their shared love of surfing. He explores their relationship and the difficulties of their relationship because of her cancer.

I loved the illustrations in this graphic novel, and I think they were so powerful. The emotions of the characters are so important to the plot, and I thought emotions would be harder to show in a graphic novel, but I think Dungo did a great job of this through the illustrations and specifically the colors. Surfing is an important motif of the book because for Kristen, the character battling cancer, it offers an escape away from the limitations her cancer gives her. There is a whole different part of the book that I did not like very much, though. There are historical sequences about surfing, and it really has nothing to do with the main plot. It takes the reader out of the moment of Kristen’s suffering and their complex relationship. It would be better if it was strictly the one plot about Kristen. The two plots are never really tied together, even in the end which I sort of expected. I am definitely not used to reading graphic novels, but I do feel as though there needed to be more of a connection between the two plots. 

I would recommend this novel to anyone who likes surfing and is looking for an emotional read. The artwork is beautiful, so anyone who likes graphic novels would definitely enjoy this. 

As their friendship deepens, and their true feelings for each other become more and more apparent, they end up confronting each other, via a drunken kiss hidden away from prying eyes. As their romance blossoms, the weight of their shared secret grows as well. The implications of their relationship were not lost on the two, Alex—whose mother was up for reelection soon—was terrified of their relationship being revealed before he was ready to tell the world, and risking a scandal that would impact his mother’s image and subsequently her campaign for her second term. Henry was scared of his family finding out, and facing the ire of his heavily traditional Grandmother, and the seemingly inevitable backlash from the public.

I really loved this book, it had the perfect balance of campiness and humor, while still managing to cover more serious subject matter like homophobia, forced-outings, coercion, and family issues. It was everything I’ve been wanting, it made me laugh out loud a lot, and I found myself genuinely enjoying the chemistry between the characters—not just between Alex and Henry, but between Alex, his sister June, and his best friend Nora. Their little trio was so endearing, and their banter and conversations were wonderfully written and entertaining to read.

I really enjoyed the exploration of the individual character’s queerness, and that it was able to be a core part of the characters’ identities. I really liked the way Alex’s bisexuality was explored and discussed, I feel like it is unusual to have a bisexual protagonist and it made me happy to see. I loved that enjoying and dissecting queer media was one of Henry’s interests. I feel like engaging with queer media is so important and dear to me that it makes me happy to see that represented in Henry’s character.

Another part of this book that I really enjoyed way how there were several sections of the book that were just Henry and Alex conversing through emails, their dialogues to each other felt very raw and honest, as they were able to talk about things that they normally wouldn’t be able to due to being in the public eye all the time. They were little intimate moments between the two characters, and the details shared between them made me feel more connected to them as characters.

Despite the story revolving mainly around Henry and Alex’s romance, it didn’t feel like the other characters were heavily neglected, I felt like the other people in Alex and Henry’s lives felt like their own individual people, who weren’t there just to serve the two main protagonists. They had their own lives, aspirations, and relationships, and I was glad I was able to connect with them as well.

I also thought that the book was paced very well. I was worried at first since it was 400 pages that it might drag in places, but it kept me genuinely interested throughout the whole thing, and I was so engaged I read huge chunks of it in one sitting multiple times. There was a good balance of action and down time where the characters were simply interacting and having fun together.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys fluffy queer romance stories, that still has a plot and tension, and that manages to handle tough topics with grace and respect.

Bright Red Fruit by Safia Elhillo is about a Sudanese-American teenager named Samira who writes slam poetry in DC. She thinks that her summer will be filled with parties and romance, but her plans change when her mother grounds her for the summer. She does find romance and a way to sneak out every now and then. The only problem is that the guy she is interested in is much older than her. The relationship progresses, but not in a good way. Samira learns to find her own voice, and she does through her poetry.

I really enjoyed this book, but it took me a little bit to get into. The plot does not to progress until a bit later in the book because the major conflict does not happen until later in the novel. The characters were realistic and relatable, and Elhillo does a beautiful job of showing the toxicity of the relationship, and she shows how it is difficult to leave. But the beautiful part is she shows how you can still find your voice even after it is taken away from you. Since I have been reading a lot of novels in verse, I would say that this was not my favorite in the way it was written. Most novels in verse make me think about how little words the author used to paint a story, but I did not feel this way when I read this one. This book also showed how consuming and toxic relationships can be detrimental to friendships. Elhillo does a wonderful job showing realistic issues for teenagers and the ways you can rise above them. I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys poetry and is looking for a relatively short read.

This book explains daily life during the Shang Dynasty. Most people were farmers and grew crops like millet. The king was the most powerful person, and society was organized under his rule.People believed in gods and respected their ancestors. They used oracle bones to ask questions about the future. The Shang are also known for making beautiful bronze tools, weapons, and art.In short, the book shows how people lived, worked, and what they believed in during the Shang Dynasty.

I didn’t like the book much because I found it too simplistic, but it’s readable. However, those interested in daily life in China might enjoy it. The book is good but simple.This book would be much better in terms of readability if it contained a bit more action and Chinese history.

People who are curious about chına, daily life in China, and other things can read this book.

I absolutely loved this book. Maureen Johnson’s writing keeps the reader constantly guessing, and the plot twists are completely unexpected. Just when I thought I understood what was happening, the story took another surprising turn. The suspense builds slowly but intensely, which made it impossible for me to stop reading. I especially appreciated how the mystery becomes more complex instead of predictable. Nothing felt obvious, and every clue seemed meaningful.

One of the strongest elements of the novel is Johnson’s pacing. She balances character development with suspense, giving the readers time to understand Stevie’s personality while still pushing the mystery forward. Stevie feels realistic she is intelligent and determined, but also anxious and unsure of herself at times. The dual timeline structure, switching between the 1930s case and the present-day investigation, adds depth and tension. The ending is particularly powerful and leaves readers eager to continue the series.

I would highly recommend the Vanishing Stair to anyone who enjoys mysteries that keep them on the edge of their seat. Readers who like smart female characters, plot twists, and layered storylines will especially enjoy this book. Also fans of suspenseful young adult fiction or series like A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder would likely love this novel. Even readers who are new to Maureen Johnson’s work will appreciate the gripping mystery and well-developed characters.

Overall, the Vanishing Stair is a thrilling continuation of the Truly Devious series. With its unexpected twists, strong characters, and suspense, it is a must-read for mystery lovers.

Fable for the end of the world-written by Ava Reid, follows two main characters in a SI-Fi reality were people are chosen at random to fight against cyborg women-an “angel”, Inesa-a woman who works as a taxidermist to make money (points) to keep her family safe, finds herself in a sistuation that she couldnt fight back from-being chosen for these fights. And Melinoe-a girl who had given herself up in exchange to become an “angel” fighting against people who find themselves in these fights. Both of their stories coming together in a chaotic, lesbian love story that will keep you hooked.

Honestly i loved this book so much!! the book itself is a great setting-a si-fi reality that has basically everyone looking at their screens, like a futureistic hunger games-or game of thrones, having that feeling of reality since it was written not to long ago, and so it puts what is happening in the book into a real light which i loved. The base for a story already hade me hooked, but also the plot of the main characters falling in love? that shocked me because i enjoyed it so much. I never read Romantic books because they never hook me into them, always found them cheesy-but this book didnt feel cheesy it felt nice-slowly building the bond between the two main characters so that it actually feels like they fall in love with one another, and also im a sucker for LGBTQ+ characters, so i recommend this book to everyone who loves Si-fi, romance, and a bit of a darker take on the future

Song Of A BlackBird by Maria Van Lieshout follows a teenage girl, Annick, in the present day, trying to find a bone marrow donor for her grandmother. She learns her grandmother is adopted and then tries to find her family so they can get a donor. On this journey, she discovers prints by Emma Bergsma. This story intertwines both Emma’s and Annik’s stories through the past and the present.

I loved this book; the story was amazing, following both Annilk and Emma was a good choice by the author. Not only was the plot really interesting Emmas story is based on real events! This book was so good, and I honestly finished it in about an hour and a half because I just couldn’t put it down. My favorite part of the story was Emma’s part. I think it was interesting to see what she did to help people during the Holocaust. Some crazy stuff happens in her story, and it really kept me on the edge of my seat as I didn’t know what would come next.

The art alone in this graphic novel is so interesting and different. The art itself is simple, focusing mostly on the story. however later on in the book, the author uses actual photographs from WWII and draws over them! I think it was a really cool element of the graphic novel, and it kept things really interesting! I think one of the most interesting examples of this is a real photo from the holocaust of people being loaded into trains; the people drawn in are actually real people in the original photo.

This book does deal with heavy topics such as death, and it also follows the events of the Holocaust, so if that is something you are not comfortable reading, I would not recommend this book to you.

I highly recommend this book to people who like graphic novels and history. It’s a great story, and I think anybody interested in either history or graphic novels would really enjoy it.

Seven years earlier, Soojin and Mirae lost their mother to a car accident, which ravished the whole family, and forced Mirae into the role of caregiver in the family, forced to hide her own grief from her family to keep the other two members afloat. She was only 11, but the reputation she had crafted for herself, that had been reinforced by other’s views of her kept her from being honest about her feelings. She was supposed to be “perfect,” she wasn’t supposed to show vulnerability when her father and sister were so broken.

Additionally, in their family runs the power of necromancy, each woman with the power to resurrect the dead with their two hands. Mirae and Soojin’s mother instructs them to only raise small animals back from the dead, and never ever attempt to resurrect a human. A taboo, but one growing all the more tantalizing as Soojin falls deeper into sorrow over her sister’s death.

This story is a deeply raw and harrowing exploration of grief, selfishness, and destruction. I loved this book so much, it was so vividly disturbing and eerie with the body-horror elements, yet a tender and heart-breaking exploration of sisterly-love and the things one will do when confronted with grief. I enjoyed the many parallels Yun drew between the two sisters, and how complex their relationship was throughout the story, it felt so beautifully human, displaying the ugliness, the resentment, the longing, the desperation, and the love.

I liked how the author emphasized the theme of grief and longing for a deceased loved one, and how this is a perpetual feeling that cannot be dispersed, not merely a goal to tick off your list. Yun writes how grief is a journey with no definitive ending, and that perhaps it will always be a part of you.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and was actually satisfied by the ending, which is something I feel a lot of the time falls flat once I finish a story, but this one felt like a conclusive resolution and I didn’t have a surge of unanswered questions flitting through my brain.

However, I will say that the romance in this story felt kind of lack-luster and somehow unnecessary to the theme and overall plot of the story. Notably, between Soojin and her friend Mark, I felt that their relationship throughout the story felt purely platonic, and if there was some romantic feelings going on there, that it was one-sided on Mark’s part. Soojin never thinks of him romantically until he asks her to a dance and suddenly she’s into him. I felt so sudden and jarring that it annoyed me.

I think this story would best be enjoyed by anyone whose a fan of horror, raw depictions of grief and its subsequent effects, sisterly bounds, and an exploration of selfishness and sacrifice and its relationship with loving others and yourself.