I really enjoyed this graphic novel, and finished it up quickly in an afternoon. I thought the art was beautiful, though not as clean as the art on the cover, which I was more surprised about when I got to the back and saw the character sketches. Those were more like the cover, and the art in the book felt more like sketching, but I do like that rougher style, so I didn't mind! I really enjoyed the sapphic romance plot. I thought the two women seemed drawn to each other, got closer over the book and ended up as a cute couple. Though, I agree with other reviewers that the romance could have been more developed, this graphic novel is pretty short, so I see why it wasn't. I still thought it was political marriage done right. We didn't have violence against the Amelia as the new wife. We didn't have the "petty maid bullies" or a cruel royal family. I can forgive so much else just for that! I'm here for women being nice to each other, loving each other and supporting each other. The plot was admittedly a little lackluster, a little generic. But, I didn't mind in this case. I felt that I was able to enjoy the sapphic romance enough to look over it. I do think Amelia and Salira needed to talk about their anxieties a little more, earlier on in the novel, and I admit I was curious about the magic. That could have been developed more. And without spoilers, heads up for a rather suddenly violent ending. Overall, I think the Marble Queen was fun to read and worth a try if you like sapphic romance and fantasy. It's not perfect, but I don't think it has to be to enjoy it.

This book had everything I could have asked for: queer pirates, mermaids, magic, adventure, but it was much darker than I expected it to be, and I'm still not sure how I feel about it. The writing was okay, pretty average but not unreadable despite a lot of telling and uneven, but mostly slow, pacing. It's told mostly in a dual POV until the last third maybe? where we start to get side character POVs that didn't add much in my opinion. But worse than that, there wasn't a single enjoyable character for me. Everyone was corrupt, terrible and amoral without any redeeming qualities to garner even sympathy. They weren't even fun to watch be horrible. I thought the concepts and characters from the title (the mermaid, witch and sea) were by far the most interesting in this book--how the Supreme had a relationship with the sea to protect it, and how the mermaids were the sea's daughters. It's a shame that these "characters" largely functioned to guide our main characters forward as an arch. I think their development would have been more interesting than most of the pirate/ship & forced marriage plots. Even the queer romance that I picked up the book for was weak. The love develops through shallow lessons that take place off-page and that's nearly it...? I'm sorry...what? At least show them to us 😭 But what really bothered me about this book looking back was the violence, cruelty and patriarchy. I guess I expected a little violence in a book about pirates, but it sometimes felt like cruelty against women for show, for shock value, for entertainment. It didn't really seem to add value to the characters or the plot. I also am the first to caveat that with the fact that violent patriarchal themes in fantasy books have really bothered me recently. It's pretty fair to expect some violence in the genre. I just didn't see the justification here but to make the story dark, and I didn't find any trigger warnings, so here are some if you use them: Violence, Colonialism, Slavery, Torture (on page), Amputation, Murder, Misogyny, Homophobia, Reference to and threat of SA, Child Abuse, Alcoholism, Imprisonment I did finish the book, and it wasn't really hard to get through. I just felt unsure of myself after it was over...like...did I enjoy that? Did I hate that? It was a weird feeling.

I'm a big fan of ND Stevenson's work, and Nimona is a great character! I must say my expectations were a little skewed when I started the graphic novel because I watched the netflix movie a few years ago which is less violent (probably for a younger audience). But after my initial confusion, it wasn't hard to enjoy the art and story. The writing is good; it's heavy on the dialogue. It's also an interaction and comedy driven story as well with fast pacing. Nimona has a strong character voice and thrives with a witty, "break stuff now, worry later" attitude. The art is unique and vibrant. The world is beautiful and creative. Overall, it was a fun read, but I'm not sure I'd re-read it. I'm glad I got it from the library.

This book was the warm, loving hug that my closeted 16 year old self desperately needed in high school, and I cannot for any reason give it less than 5 stars. The writing was wonderful. It's told in the first person pov of our MC Yamilet, and while the prose is simple, direct and incredibly "talky", Yamilet has a distinct and realistic narrative voice. Something I tend to complain about in YA lit (as an adult) is that the teens don't always feel real or lack nuance. They feel like simple cut outs of what adults think kids are like, but Yamilet's voice, her friends and her family, their interactions etc. all felt real, and I loved that. The book, despite having a bright, cute cover and fun title, is actually quite serious in terms of the themes and stakes. Yamilet is a Mexican-American, lesbian teen helping her mother make money while starting a new school with mostly rich, white catholic kids and determined to stay safely in the closet. Her story touches on class, racism, homophobia, immigration, religion, money, familial relationships, suicide, friendship. Reyes did an amazing job of showings us the life of Yamilet and bringing all the characters to life. But even with heavy stakes around our MC, we still have a fun book filled with moments of queer joy and resistance, gay panic, emotional honesty and messy teenage fumbles. There is so much to love, so much to sympathize with and so much to reflect on. The one thing that surprised me was that there isn't much of a plot. The plot is "don't let anyone find out you're gay." We follow Yamilet through about a year of school as she deals with her life under the looming threat of what could happen if people discover she's a lesbian. It's more a slice of life story with things happening to and around Yamilet. So, I was thoroughly impressed how much I enjoyed it, because slice of life is hard to pull off in a novel, and Reyes did an incredible job!

Can't Spell Treason Without Tea is the gentle, sapphic story of two women leaving their responsibilities and burdens behind to open a tea shop/bookstore in a remote town where no one knows them. Or at least, that's what they want to do. I think the author wanted to share a glimpse of what happens after the leads get together, and I loved that premise along with every punchy promise this book offered: a kind sapphic relationship, dragons, fantasy, magic, tea, books etc. However, I struggled to get attached to the characters or care about the plot for some reason. This book sat on my nightstand for 6 months with 3 chapters left because I couldn't bring myself to read it, but I also didn't want to DNF it. I thought the writing was pretty good. It does lean very heavy on the telling side of the show vs tell spectrum, but it has some flare here and there and occasionally interesting descriptions. It's also very dialogue driven. There is a heavy emphasis on characters getting to know each other, and a lot of the plot is pushed forward through conversation and teamwork. So, if you’re big on conversation and not so much into block text details, you might enjoy this approach to storytelling. Kianthe and Reyna are both semi-likable and trying to reach their goals, but neither MC experiences much growth throughout the novel, and while, a lot happens plot-wise, it felt like nothing happens at all. At certain points it felt like the conflict was added for the sake of adding conflict--to make the story a story, set some stakes and leave room for sequels. However, the stakes are incredibly high: life and death. Yet...I never really felt like there was a threat of anything looming over the couple and their new home. They just sometimes talked about it. My biggest gripe was with the lack of romance. Reyna and Kianthe were already together when the book started, and there isn't much tension or chemistry there. They flirt. They joke. They support each other and their insecurities. The worst part is just that the narrator reminds us--directly tells us--how good they are together. Why they work. That they love each other. And it was here that the telling style of narration was actually disappointing for me. I want to see them in love. I want to feel the sparks and fire. Overall, this was a decent book. I am glad I tried it and did end up finishing it. I also do think it's worth picking up to see if you like it. I particularly enjoyed reading it before bed because it was calming. It wasn't going to keep me up at night stressed or thinking about it. And I don't think all fantasy needs to be dense and complicated. What surprised me the most was that the one shot at the end of the book was by far the most enjoyable chapter. We got a look into Reyna and Kianthe's first meeting. There was much more chemistry and tension in my opinion, and it was my favorite part of the book. In fact, I think I would have enjoyed the exploration of secret lovers trying not to get caught much more than their life after. But that's not what they author was intending to do, and that's okay.

Faebound was a fantasy that lived up to its promise of intrigue, magic and queerness, but something was missing for me. El-Arifi did a lot of great things with this story. The writing was great, prose somewhere between simple and flowery with a lot of showing. It's told in a dual POV from two sisters, Yeeran and Lettle, who have pretty distinct voices and remember events differently, which was fun to pick up on. The magic system and world was really really interesting. The queer normative and nearly patriarchy free world full of queer, bipoc and disability rep was incredible. The world just felt real in a full way. No character felt added to check a box for the publisher. Overall, the book is good and I'm happy to recommend it to anyone looking for a queer fantasy and I think most readers will like it a little more than I did. I picked this up in part for the sapphic romance plot, and unfortunately, the romance is where I was the most disappointed. The sapphic coupling was 100% lust and 0% romance, but the lust didn't even make sense given how they meet and how little they interact. It just made no sense to me. I'd at least like the lust to make sense...idk. Other things that readers might not love is that this book is pretty light on the politics and military aspects. The characters are in their late 20s and early 30s, which is awesome, but they sometimes felt quite immature for their age and the society. And more than anything there was just something underwhelming about the plot. There is so much going for this book...and I think it is worth a try for most people, but I didn't find myself invested in the characters or plot like I thought I would be. Maybe I was too excited for the book going in. I don't think I'll continue the series, but I do plan on trying El-Arifi's other books! 😃 content warnings: War, Human Trafficking/Slavery, Colonialism, Child Soldiers, Violence, Torture, Graphic Animal Death, Semi-Sexually Explicit, Death of a Parent (discussing, remembering)

I admit...that I picked this book up just for the cover and title, and I was not prepared for the contents haha so, I'm a little conflicted on how to rate this book. On one hand, this book is one hundred percent shameless smut with some surprisingly wholesome developments and moments. The spice was the point I think. On the other hand, it is centered on a few pretty serious moral dilemmas (age gap with a young-young younger woman--22 and 38, relationship with a daughter's friend, lying to loved ones). So, if you pick up this book, you can either just enjoy the smut or be incredibly bothered by the dilemmas. This is only the third book I've read that was so smutty, and this book takes first place for the highest sex to plot ratio I've read by far. I'm not a big fan of smut because I'm a "yearning" girly to my core, so there were definitely many times when I was taken out of the book at just how much Cassie sexualized Erin--the way her pants fit or body looks etc.--and how crass the narrators talk in their heads and to each other. Idk...It's not exactly my cup of tea. But, at the same time, I was very much there for them catching feelings as the book developed. So, I decided to rate this book officially just based on the execution and writing, which was decent but the book was too long for what would literally be very little plot, very little conflict and a very anti-climatic ending. Surprisingly, I had no problem with the ending. I was actually glad after everything that happened, that we got a wholesome enough end. I didn't wish for chaos or anything to ensue. I would say for as much emotional weight as Acasia pulled (the MC's best friend), she wasn't fleshed out enough as a character. In a book that's 350 pages long, I think there was room to cut some smut and let Acasia be a human and not just Cassie's emotional support over and over again. We get some glimpses of them together in the past, but we don't learn much about Acasia herself. I would say that the MCs Cassie (22) and Erin (38) both grow quite a bit. Cassie is a little selfish, reckless and crass, but she does seem to mature over the story. She becomes more vulnerable, more honest and works harder for her relationships. Erin also makes progress to being herself and living her life the way she wants to. And I do feel like they grew together and made each other happier. I NEVER thought I'd be able to use the word wholesome in this kind of story, but it was a weird back and forth from crass and "oh my god, my daughter's friend" to somehow wholesome and supportive. But the smut was totally the point. Just matters if that's what you're looking to enjoy or try out 🤷‍♀️

Overall, I enjoyed this book! The writing was pretty good. There was a lot of beautiful description, interesting world-building on the island and telling over showing, but I'd say the pacing was on the uneven side with a slow first third and lightning fast, sudden ending. My favorite character by far was Althea, the MC's grandmother. She was so well-rounded and an incredible supporter of other women, no matter how they lived their lives. I loved that. After the first third of the book, I'd say I was pretty hooked and didn't want to put it down, but there were a few things I think it's fair to be critical of. I think the romance could have had a better conflict--one that felt less plot device-y. Our MCs also could have had better growth archs (they don't really change at all), and our final villain could have been less of a cartoon. But one of the most distracting things for me was a mismatch in world values. We seem to be in a vague 1800s aristocratic English countryside complete with stifling patriarchy and gendered expectations (expecting women to become wives and mothers, women cannot get tattoos, unmarried high society women need chaperones in public, etc.). However, it's also queernormative? Same sex couples are welcomed by everyone without a second thought, and there is an odd moment where a man licks the MC's fingers at a party in front of people--like how is that okay in this chaperone needing world?? It felt like we wanted to take the terrible patriarchy of the time for conflict but then still have queer relationships normalized for...less conflict? I just found that these didn't seem to co-exist that well in this world. It might be possible with the right world building, but it felt very forced and inorganic. To be clear, I LOVE the queernormativity, I just thought it could have been done better to make sense in this story particularly. I was also a bit disappointed in the marketing. This book is cozy. It is whimsical. There is longing--lusty, lusty longing that is. It delivers on the promises at some time in the book, but, it gets very very dark and pretty violent at the end, and the stakes throughout the book are very high. Make sure you read the content warnings before reading. I was still shocked at it because by the time I got to the end when the trigger warnings really come into play, I had totally forgotten about them and the sudden violence definitely caught me off guard. I just did not expect this from the cover, synopsis and blurbs on the book.