It took me a long long time to read this, because I started it at the wrong moment, but when I *was* reading it (rather than looking at it untouched oIt took me a long long time to read this, because I started it at the wrong moment, but when I *was* reading it (rather than looking at it untouched on the coffee table) I adored it. I find that it is painfully rare to read a story this intense, where the romantic thread between two women is stretched as taut as it would be between any other gendered pairing. Malini and Priya are both such dangerous, ruthless, vulnerable, lonely people - and the personal and political deals they make only exacerbate those qualities. I really enjoyed Tasha Suri’s first duology, but this promises to be even bigger and bolder. ...more
I really enjoyed this to begin with. Stressed out CEO asks his coffee shop crush to spend two weeks of vacation time teaching him to relax and enjoy tI really enjoyed this to begin with. Stressed out CEO asks his coffee shop crush to spend two weeks of vacation time teaching him to relax and enjoy the small pleasures of life? Delightful. I would have happily read 250 pages of montages of Julian and Courtney eating ice cream and watching clouds in the park. However, I didn’t love the endless cishet normative pressure from both their families to settle down and have babies. And I didn’t like the way Courtney constantly belittles herself with ableist talk about her depression and the way it constrains her life. In the end both of these things put me off and, when combined with Jackie Lau’s show-not-tell style, started to grate on me. By the 70% mark I was losing patience and starting to skim. ...more
I enjoyed the heck out of this story about PA Kierra and the married spies who love her. The plot is wild wild wild - ‘quick we need to have a threesoI enjoyed the heck out of this story about PA Kierra and the married spies who love her. The plot is wild wild wild - ‘quick we need to have a threesome for the sake of national security’ - but it’s delightfully commitment to its premise. I loved the dynamic between Lane, Monica and Kierra, and once the secondary spy characters were introduced in the second half I was entranced by them too. I’m looking forward to reading more of the series very soon.
Read this if: you liked Alias but wish it had more threesomes. ...more
I adore this series with all my heart: it makes me laugh, it deals in real, big feelings and it has fascinating world building. Galen and Piper workedI adore this series with all my heart: it makes me laugh, it deals in real, big feelings and it has fascinating world building. Galen and Piper worked especially well for me, with their mutual awkwardness and self-doubt. ...more
Reread - November 2022: Holds up as one of the loveliest novellas of my acquaintance; culminating in one of the best hand holding moments in all of roReread - November 2022: Holds up as one of the loveliest novellas of my acquaintance; culminating in one of the best hand holding moments in all of romance. The ‘I love you’ from Martin is perfection.
Original thoughts - December 2021:
I read this quiet restrained novella in a single sitting and it packs a lot of emotion into a small space. Two men, one demisexual, one asexual, find a wonderful space of understanding through acts of care, service, and mutual respect. It’s set in a secret government agency so there is also some suspense towards the end but the book is languid and gentle, even if the feelings contained are sometimes overwhelming.
CWs: death of father (off-page but extensive portrayal of immediate aftermath, funeral etc); assault, possible torture and injury....more
3.5* rounded up. This is a far more expansively queer novel than Red, White and Royal Blue, and it’s clear mission is to - as McQuiston says in the ac3.5* rounded up. This is a far more expansively queer novel than Red, White and Royal Blue, and it’s clear mission is to - as McQuiston says in the acknowledgements - ‘unbury your gays’. In pursuit of that it rolls out a diverse cast of LGBTQ+ characters for our delectation and, by and large, they’re a lot of fun to read. I got a kick out of their irrepressible joy and how much energy they have. As in RWRB, some of my favourite scenes in the book were the parties which all sounded legendary. It was propulsive to read and I was carried along by the trademark third person present narration.
The plot is bold and wild: August, a restless student, falls in love with Jane, a woman who has been trapped on the subway since 1977. It leads to some believable conflict and a quite ridiculous but delightful heist ending. But it has lots of practical problems (eg how can your characters build intimacy when they can never be in private) and McQuiston solves a lot of them with Plot Reasons hand waving. The same is true, perhaps even more so, for the secondary plot about August’s uncle, who went missing in 1973. The way things are resolved is incredibly neat and convenient - you get the sense that McQuiston wrote themselves into corners and then took all the easiest ways out. As a result the pacing is off, with the first 2/3 languid af and the final 1/3 an adrenaline fuelled race to the finish. Some choices feel like dodging the issues. For me, one of the most interesting things about the conceit is the way it brings 1970s and 2020s queer culture into conversation. But there wasn’t enough of this - the queer history was used more as flavouring than as a central driver and that seemed like a huge missed opportunity.
So, I enjoyed it a lot while I was reading. CM’s style works for me. But it’s got baked-in plot and character problems that I hope a stronger editorial hand can iron out in future books....more
