Tag: contemporary

Book Review: Paint Me Yours (2021)

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Paint Me Yours by Rachel Bowdler

It hadn’t occurred to her that somebody might find beauty in her wobbly lines and accidental splatters. She didn’t know why. It wasn’t as though every painting, every artist, she had studied had been perfect. Perfect didn’t exist in the art world – and yet she expected it, had been taught to expect it, of herself. Why?

This is my first book by Rachel Bowdler and oooooh, it’s been too long since I read a good contemporary romance, this was just what I needed! ♡♡♡ This novella is short and sweet – a perfect summer read!

Benny was definitely my favourite character. My heart ached for him and I could not understand why everyone believed he was so awful. Like helloooooo, he’s fab. 🥰

I liked Eliza, but it frustrated me that she took so long to tell him the truth. I would have spilled that story from the get go. But despite my frustrations with Eliza’s hesitations, Bowdler had me rooting for them from minute one and I wish the book had been longer because now I want more :(((

Can’t wait to read another by this author! ♡

[Audiobook Rec] Caught Inside (2016)

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I came across a great audiobook yesterday for anyone who is looking for recommendations. It’s by one of my favourite narrators, Joe Jameson, and is a contemporary lgbt+ romance.

Caught Inside by Jamie Deacon

Luke believes he has his life figured out…and then he meets Theo.

It should have been simple—a summer spent with his girlfriend Zara at her family’s holiday cottage in Cornwall. Seventeen-year-old Luke Savage jumps at the chance, envisioning endless hours of sunbathing on the private beach and riding the waves on his beloved surfboard. He isn’t interested in love. Though his rugged good looks and lazy charm mean he can have his pick of girls, he has no intention of falling for anyone.

Nothing prepares Luke for his reaction to Theo, the sensitive Oxford undergraduate who is Zara’s cousin and closest friend. All at once, he is plunged along a path of desire and discovery that has him questioning everything he thought he knew about himself. No one, especially Zara, must find out; what he and Theo have is too new, too fragile. But as the deceit spirals beyond their control, people are bound to get hurt, Luke most of all.

Film Review: His House (2020)

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Heart-punching horror is a hard one to watch. Especially when so much of it is grounded in real events. And so begins His House, a horror film set in modern England that follows a couple from South Sudan, Bol (Ṣọpẹ Dìrísù) and Rial (Wunmi Mosaku), who have just gained a house and some small amount of freedom outside of the detention centre for refugees. They’re to get less than £80 a week (total), are not allowed to work to supplement this income, are not allowed to have parties or even have candles in their home. And the home they are given, even before you realise that it’s haunted, is filled with bugs, rubbish and the door is not even hanging in there.

The treatment of refugees is front and centre in this film and is utterly depressing and haunting. One of the rare nice moments happens when a local member of a church gives Bol a box of food and supplies, but few of their neighbours are kind and welcoming. And, very quickly, the problems with the house multiply and the unexplained horrors add to the couple’s already tough predicament.

This is a very important commentary about the hurdles and discrimination refugees face wrapped up in a horror story that focuses as much on the reality of immigration as on the paranormal.

Book Review: Release (2017)

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Release by Patrick Ness

As I was reading this, my mind kept likening it to The Wicker King and The Monsters We Deserve, although neither of those is really similar. Maybe just along the same vibe? Release takes place over the course of the day and tells two stories: one is Adam’s, a gay teenager in an Evangelical home with a family he doesn’t feel loved by; the other is the story of a Queen and her faun. I quite liked both stories, for different reasons. I adored Adam and my heart ached for all he went through (and in the course of a freakin’ day, poor lad!). I really enjoyed the Queen’s tale, too, although I think more of a connection between the two stories would have been nice. Maybe just a bit longer, perhaps?

I really liked Angela, Adam’s bestie, and Marty, his brother. Marty was definitely a complicated character with some frustrating moments, but by the end I really liked his character. I wanted a few more scenes with him and Adam, though!

All in all, a very good story and my first one by Patrick Ness. Can’t wait to read more by him!

Review cross-posted to Goodreads.

Book Review: In Other News (2020)

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Hi, I’m Marlon, and I’m sure you’ve seen my face all over the news. Nice to meet you, and yes, the rumors are true. No, he couldn’t talk about it, let alone acknowledge its existence.

This is the first book I’ve read by Dale Robbins and I’m definitely going to be checking out more!

In Other News reminds me of Speak. The story follows Marlon when he returns to university after his assault is made public without his consent. He finds that not only are rumours swirling about what happened, but some people are downright hostile and blame him. Although the rapist has been kicked out of school, many people hold Marlon accountable. There’s a lot of bullying and homophobia directed towards Marlon, but he eventually finds solidarity amongst those who believe him and help him get through the ordeal and ensuing trial.

This is a very raw and realistic tale of how people explain away the actions of rapists and blame the victim. You really feel for Marlon throughout the story.

Review cross posted to Goodreads & Reedsy.

Show Review: Schitt’s Creek (2015)

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Lads. LADS. Schitt’s Creek is one of the funniest shows I’ve ever seen. If you’re looking for something to take your mind off the insanity of the world, this is a great escape. I’ve had this show on my list for ages but never got around to it — until this week, and I’ve now marathoned all six seasons. It’s just so w h o l e s o m e.

The plot revolves around the Rose family after they lose their millions and are left destitute. The only thing left to their name is the town of Schitt’s Creek, which Johnny Rose (played by Eugene Levy) bought for his son David (played by Dan Levy) as a joke years before. Along with matriarch Moira (played by Catherine O’Hara) and the sister Alexis (played Annie Murphy), the family move to Schitt’s Creek and settle into the colourful life of small town shenanigans. It’s hilarious. They meet the Schitts: Roland, Jocelyn and Mutt. (Yes, his name is Mutt Schitt.) There’s also Twyla, who runs the café, Ted, the local vet, and Patrick, a local who catches the eye of one of the mains.

Over the course of the show, the characters have to find jobs (which is a first for three of them), rearrange their dreams (all of them), learn to appreciate what really matters and open their minds to new people. The character growth is seriously good season to season. The Rose family are all quite shallow and out of touch with reality at the start of the show, but as the episodes go on, they grow into wonderful people that you’re truly rooting for.

I also really love that the show is written by Eugene Levy and his son in real life Dan, and that Sarah Levy, Eugene Levy’s daughter and Dan Levy’s sister, is another cast member (she plays Twyla). A show about family, by family. And it really shows! I’ve loved Eugene Levy since I was a kid and he’s seriously so good in this. Dan is a wonderful actor as well! I’m really excited to see the other actors in more things after this, for sure! There’s also wonderful lgbt+ rep and a couple that will steal your heart. Seriously, OTP FEELS.

If you’re looking for something light, sweet, feel-good and uplifting, this is the show for you!

Mini Reviews & Reading Roundup [23/05]

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Today I finally finished Gold Rush Manliness. It was really good, I just kept getting sidetracked. It was a great examination of how race and gender impacted the gold rushes in California and British Columbia. This line really stuck with me: In short, the notions of white manhood established in the nineteenth century persist today, and their legacies can be seen everywhere, from the least-threatening practical joking to the most menacing expressions of white male superiority. There were loads of things in this examination that really wow’d me. Definitely recommend!

I also read Warm Up, which is a prequel story to V. E. Schwab’s Villains and Vengeful. I really liked it! If you’re curious, the book is available on Tor, here. It was dark and eerie and very well done. I loved this quote: It didn’t catch fire. Nothing ever actually caught fire. No, it all simply burned.

Beyond the Dragon’s Gate by Yoon Ha Lee is a new Tor original. Read it online, here. I quite liked it! The new issue of Uncanny Magazine is also out and I’ve started with poetry this time!

Girl, you best stop setting yourself on fire,
you may be the phoenix,
but these bones aren’t kindling
to keep others warm—

Ali Trotta, ‘Athena Holds Up a Mirror to Strength’, here.

Currently reading;

Still working through Everything You Love Will Burn, Agnes Grey and A Small Revolution in Germany, all of which I’m liking, although Everything You Love Will Burn is something I have to listen to in small doses. I also started Cage of Souls. It’s my first Adrian Tchaikovsky. He’s such a big name in the science fiction genre, so I’m glad to have finally picked up one of his. I’m also about halfway through Louise O’Neill’s Almost Love. The prose is really good and the storyline sucks you in, but I’m having trouble liking the main character.

What’s everyone else reading? Have you read any of the above? What’d you think?