The Neurospicy Bean

  I am OBSESSED give me all of the trans romance and joy. Thank you so much to Katy Nishimoto from Dial Press for the advance copy of this beautiful book. I really loved so many different aspects of this book, so it’s going to be a bit tricky to parse through them all, but I shall try. First, and this is probably one of the things that has stuck most in my head about it, it was really amazing to see such a sex-positive trans romance. I do think this trend is changing, in the last couple of years in particular, but so often it seems like the reality of sex as a trans person gets completely glossed over. By that I don’t mean that sex is some kind of horrible ordeal, or that all trans people are uncomfortable with it; in fact, anyone who has read this book will know that’s not how it’s treated here at all. It’s more that a lot of authors – cis authors in particular – have seemed deeply uncomfortable committing to the reality of their trans characters’ bodies, whatever that may be. So ...

  Yeah, this was one of those books I put off reading for the longest time thinking it surely wasn’t as good as everyone seemed to think and YES IT REALLY IS. It has absolutely everything going for it: sweet romance, intricate subplots, compelling secondary characters…honestly, the whole end of the book made me tear up. My absolute favorite scene was when they came across a mural of the two main characters dressed as Han and Leia because I am a simple nerd at heart. I know I just mentioned the side characters, but they deserve mentioning again. There’s so much range and depth to every single character, each one has their story going on that ties into the plot in ways both obvious and unexpected. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: a strong ensemble is a sign of a truly well-written romance. I think McQuiston also does a really lovely job of writing about homophobia here: it’s very much present, because the book is dealing with some serious cultural forces, and you can’t set ...

  Y’all I am absolutely obsessed with this series, and this book wraps everything up perfectly (although please?? More in this world?? Because there are hints that there’s more to come???). We get lovely flashes from Robin and Edwin and Violet and Maud, including a really heartwrenching sublot with Robin and Edwin. It also benefits hugely from Jack and Alan having been introduced in the last book and having an established relationship to build on. We get thrown straight into a house full of all these delightful characters (there’s a great line from Jack’s POV describing the dynamic between Edwin and Violet as two cats with terrible personalities who have been adopted by two people determined for them to coexist and like if that doesn’t sum up this whole series I don’t know what does. Just a bunch of golden retrievers adopting grumpy cats. Anyway), and then get to watch them trying to solve a mystery when all they want to do is make out with their respective partners. So yeah, the c...

  OH MY GOD THIS WAS SO AMAZING. This book (and series) is absolutely my new obsession. The perfect blend of intriguing plot, creative world-building, sweet romance, and incredible character development. I could not stop thinking about it for weeks. The way tiny details in seemingly unrelated scenes build up to create an intricately woven plot is just so incredible. I adored Edwin and Robin, but all the side characters were really excellent as well. In fact, the scene that made me laugh out loud was actually one centering Adelaide and Kitty, Robin and Edwin’s coworkers. Honestly I could keep talking about all the things I love, and I have zero complaints, but really everyone should just go read it immediately because it has absolutely everything. My one note of caution is that there is a LOT of quite explicit sex and a lot of the crucial character moments happen during those scenes, so if that’s something that makes you uncomfortable you might not love it the way I do.

  This is absolutely everything I want in a book: romance, drama, political intrigue, revolution, and deep emotional healing. It stars Kiem and Jainan, who have been forced into a rushed arranged marriage after the death of Jainan’s first husband. They are expected to put forward a united front to symbolize the relationship between Iskat, the imperial state run by Kiem’s family, and Thea, Jainan’s home planet which has begun to resist Iskat’s rule. They must navigate not only their personal challenges but also a dangerous plot that begins to appear amid increased unrest and exploitation. So, again – just absolutely the ideal blend of romance and external plot for me. I absolutely adored both of these characters. Kiem in particular was so unreservedly sweet and compassionate. Also there was one of my favorite tropes ever, also known as “oh no we’re stranded in the freezing wilderness, we’d better huddle together in a tiny tent for warmth.” Plus a big dramatic confession of love at t...

  It sometimes takes me a little while to figure out exactly how I feel about a book. Not so with this one. By halfway in, I knew I absolutely loved it and the second half did not disappoint. The one thing I will say is that calling it horror isn’t quite right; it’s a ghost story but that’s really secondary, and there’s nothing I found more than mildly spooky. But it was still a phenomenal ghost story. I loved the way Taylor’s story tied in and I loved Jaime and Theo’s relationship as well as the friendship between all three characters. Basically the book opens with Theo finding Jaime mysteriously trapped in a house in the woods, and Taylor is off doing her own thing. But soon they get brought together to solve not just Jaime’s imprisonment, but the story behind the house. Like I said, the friendship between the three of them was so fun to read. The book also did a great job of addressing racism and homophobia and how they impact the characters’ lives without feeling heavy-handed o...

  I had forgotten how much I loved this series. It absolutely nailed the balance of elaborate worldbuilding and careful, nuanced, beautiful character development in a way that told a broad, sweeping story but still felt incredibly personal. It is everything I look for in a series, and this collection of short stories reminded me of that. It was so wonderful to reconnect with these characters, especially the side characters who didn’t get as much attention in the main trilogy. And these stories aren’t just fluff, either – they genuinely added to my perception of the characters and context of the overall story. Especially in the stories focused on Muntadhir and Jamshid – it was really valuable to see how their relationship started and evolved, and to get a clearer picture of why Muntadhir behaved the way that he did. The trilogy was very focused on intergenerational trauma and violence, and these stories also did an incredible job of adding to that narrative. Obviously in a short sto...

  Y’all, I can’t even express how beautiful this book was. It absolutely absorbed me, and I was reading it on my phone which I usually really struggle with, so that’s a big thing. I’m not a huge memoir or essay reader and I don’t know exactly what I was expecting but it was just phenomenal. The essays are simultaneously cohesive and unique; they utilize different rhetorical devices, comparisons, and approaches but are all written with the same clear, distinctive voice and feel like they belong as part of a whole. Reading them felt like a meditation; it took me out of whatever setting I was in (waiting in a spinal clinic and watching a basketball game, to name two) into not another setting but a kind of contemplative state. There were also a lot of themes that happened to really resonate with me, in particular her musings about anger, forgiveness, and justice. I don’t want to try to go too much into it here because honestly you’re just better off reading the book, but suffice it to ...