The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling (★★★★☆)
E-Book • Libby • Contemporary Romance • 2021
Short synopsis: Nine years ago, Vivienne placed a curse on the boy who broke her heart, Rhys. She doesn’t actually think it worked, until Rhys returns and calamity follows him everywhere he goes.
I wasn’t expecting much from this romance. While I had heard a lot about it, the plot never appealed to me and it has a very low Goodreads rating (3.51 stars) so I figured it wasn’t for me. But I needed a book to fulfill the X category of my reading challenge, so I downloaded this romance and hoped for the best. And I loved it! It was so much fun and I loved all of the witchy elements that the author incorporated. I loved Rhys’s character so very much and really enjoyed Rhys and Vivienne together. They had great banter and a fun rapport. It’s not the kind of romance that will knock your socks off, but for me, it was quite enjoyable.
The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School by Sonora Reyes (★★★☆☆)
Print • Library • YA Lit • 2022
Short synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Yamilet is starting over at a new school, and a Catholic school at that. After being outed by her best friend at her old school to devastating results, she decides she’ll pretend to be straight while she just tries to make it through high school. Only there’s Bo, an extremely cute girl who is openly queer and may ruin all of Yamilet’s plans.
I really wanted so much more from this book. It read very much like a debut novel with some clunky wording and uneven pacing. It was way too long and needed a tighter edit. However, I appreciated the representation in this book. I think one of the most impactful side plots in this novel was Yamilet realizing she needs to get a job ASAP because she needs to start saving for a down payment on an apartment, just in case her mom finds out about her sexual identity and kicks her out. It broke my heart but it’s also something I desperately understand. Coming out is such a hard thing to do when you don’t know how your family is going to respond—I know this firsthand. This is a book that could be so helpful for queer kids and help them feel less alone.
Our American Friend by Anna Pitoniak (★★☆☆☆)
Audiobook • Libby • Fiction/Political Thriller • 2022
Short synopsis: When political journalist Sophie gets a call from the White House that the First Lady is ready to open up about her life and wants Sophie to write her biography, she accepts. What she doesn’t know is that the First Lady is about to reveal damning secrets about her life and the KGB.
I finished this book yesterday and when I realized the audiobook was finished, I said out loud, “What the fuck was that?” Honestly, what was the point of this book? It felt like not-so-thinly-veiled Melania Trump fanfiction and is posited as this spy thriller, but it was, frankly, really boring. There were no exciting twists and turns, and one of the driving forces in the novel (which I won’t spoil) turned out to be all about a woman doing something for a guy she loved, which just felt absurd. Maybe I missed the point of the novel (entirely possible!) but it’s not one I’ll be recommending.
What are you reading?
Thanks for the recs! I liked The Ex Hex, but I have not read the rest 🙂
I’m reading Late Bloomers – someone recommended it to me and I can’t remember who! Was it you?
Not me! I haven’t read Late Bloomers.
I have heard great things about The Ex Hex! And good to know that I can skip Our American Friend.
The Ex Hex does actually sound pretty fun. I’m reading Happiness Falls right now- I’m not very far into it but I’m enjoying it so far.
What you said about Our American Friend, only I said it much sooner and DNF’d it. Sooooo boring and soooo hyped by the Sarah’s Bookshelves podcast.
Happiness Falls was a DNF at 30% for me. I just couldn’t get into the characters and found myself not caring one way or the other what happened to the dad. I started The Art of Scandal and so far so good.
Dang. I’m sorry you didn’t like Happiness Falls. Angie Kim just might not be an author for you, which is good intel to have!
Sarah’s Book Shelves is such a valuable podcast, but I do have to be careful with her recs. She often raves about books that I don’t like!
I gave the Ex Hex 4 stars, too! Based on the Goodreads reviews, I was expecting it to be really bad and it wasn’t GREAT, but it was a fun read.
Exactly – it was fun and enjoyable for what it was meant to be!
The Ex Hex seems to be a favorite here. Maybe I should have a look at it.
I love that books can help handle our life and that we can learn how to navigate difficult decisions and phases in life. If a book only helps one person I believe it has value.
I liked Our American Friend more than you did but I don’t remember much about it so that means it wasn’t that awesome. I just finished The Many Lives of Mama Love which I loved and now I am reading Yellowface. I wasn’t sure if I would read it but it was raved about by so many so I decided to check it out!
Ooh, interested in your thoughts on Yellowface, since our reading tastes usually align!
The Ex Hex has been on my list for a while! And I too wanted to like The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School, but it was DNF for me.