Books

Book 1,035: Bloom – Kevin Panetta & Savanna Ganucheau

I forgot how beautiful the graphics are and how sparse and yet well written the story is in this graphic novel. I read Bloom back in 2019 and adored it, but re-reading it this time and knowing the gist of the story allowed me to truly luxuriate in the graphics and the relationship of Ari and Hector.

As part of my graphic novel/manga binge I was always going to revisit this, but when Panetta and Ganucheau announced there was going to be a follow up, I 100% knew I was going to reread this at least once—if not multiple times—in the lead up to its release, which was originally projected for Fall 2023 but is still TBD.

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Books

Book 1,032: Something Like Summer (Something Like . . . #1) – Jay Bell

I have had this book on my radar for as long as I can remember. Definitely long before the 2017 adaptation (which I still need to watch), but I’m not sure when or how I heard of it. I’m sure it was back in the early 2010s not long after it was originally written, and I was desperate to find LGBT love stories. What a world we’re in now where there’s a plethora of all genres and all tastes!

Something Like Summer is the tale of the tumultuous relationship between openly gay Ben who is a total nerd and artsy and the new kid Tim who’s moved to town and immediately falls in with the popular kids. What starts out as an unrequited crush quickly turns into a DL friends with benefits and Bell takes it from there through a lifetime.

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Books

Book 1,027: Heartstopper, Vol. 5 (Hearstopper #5) – Alice Oseman

Where do I even start with this series. I’ve read the first four volumes multiple times. With each new release I hold my breath and cross my fingers that Oseman doesn’t somehow pull the rug out from under us. She definitely didn’t this time, it’s just more unadulterated queer joy and I am here for it.

In Volume 5, Nick and Charlie have to come to terms with the fact that Nick is wrapping up secondary school and has to start thinking about his future. And that future includes university options all over the country. What that means for their relationship has yet to be seen.

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Books

Book 1,023: Catered All the Way – Annabeth Albert

Annabeth Albert can write a MM Romance novel. Seriously, y’all I say it every time and re-reading the few notes I took as I type this up months later ALL THE FEELS come back so fast and then when you add in the two cameos from her Out of Uniform series and The Geek Who Saved Christmas, it just gets even better!

This one of those close proximity, long pining younger brother of a friend romances and I am here for it. There was minimal angst and the story moved along pretty quickly. Atlas, a marine who seems to know a few people from the Out of Uniforms series, has come home for Christmas. He was going to stay with Zeb’s brother, but the house is chaotic with twins on the way and in-laws in town. So, Zeb, a professional gamer, sees this as his opportunity to invite Atlas to stay with him and maybe something will happen in the close proximity—and it sure does.

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Books

Book 1,022: Kiss and Cry (Love on the Ice #2) – Keira Andrews

I’m pretty sure I stumbled across this one before I realized it was part of a “series” with Only One Bed and apparently a couple other books seem to have been retconned into the series (pretty sure those protagonists are definitely mentioned in this one. At the time I was looking for more diverse protagonists on the covers of the MM Romance novels and this one popped up and here we are months and months later.

Kiss and Tell is the story of the top two men’s figure skating competitors, Canadian Henry (Sam’s older brother from Only One Bed), who is technically proficient and seemingly standoffish and rigid, and American Theo, the party boy of skating who makes up for what he lacks in proficiency with emotions and crowd engagement. So of course this is an opposites attract, grumpy/sunshine, enemies to lovers romance and yup, still here for it.

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