Welcome to Litsy!

Life is tough for Ben, returning to Salt Lake City, after a divorce & leaving his teaching position, to help his father run their board game shop. Things only get trickier when a shady game collector ends up dead on their doorstep.

This was cute, but what I liked most about it was my love for all the real locations, (also the BYU shade😅). The pace felt too slow, & Ben was not an engaging narrator. I did like the 2ndary characters!🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑

Mary Oliver interweaves her love of nature with her love of people.

Such a sweet and hopeful little collection. And such unapologetic joy. Oliver is always a delight to read. 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑

Backstage of a 1950s drag show, there‘s banter, romance, jealousy, and community. And the lives of a veteran, an artist, and a performer intersect in ways no one anticipated.

This was such an unexpected delight. I loved the banter between all the queens, & their support even as they heckled each other. There‘s a lot of POV hopping that works for the most part. & a twist on all of my expectations, with a satisfying resolution. 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑

When Henry learns that the plague that killed his mother & drove his father away was man made by those in power, what else is he to do but team up w/ a ragtag group of rebels & dismantle the government?

A very interesting story of rebellion & hope in a vast solarpunk world. Lots of diversity & engaging characters. But very, very slow, until everything rushed to a head in the last little bit. Felt overly long, & pacing really lagged. 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑

Darius feels like he doesn‘t belong anywhere. Maybe a trip to Iran to meet his mother‘s family for the first time will allow him the space to find himself.

Oof. I related to Darius a lot. Depression from a young age combined with complicated relationships with his parents & younger siblings that feel like they‘re replacing you? I felt that deep in my chest. It‘s a slow book, & not a lot happens, but once we were in Iran, I was hooked. 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑

A collection of short stories interpreting generational trauma, self discovery, & queerness.

This was such a fascinating read! Change‘s use of fabulism & body horror felt almost ephemeral. I felt like I was trying to catch smoke in my fingers. “Dykes” and “Resident Aliens” were probably my favorite stories.

Definitely going to seek out more of Chang‘s work! 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑

A queer, polyamorous retelling of Orpheus and Eurydice set in modern day Miami.

Good god, but I loved this. This is a novella told in verse, written beautifully, and examining who our parents try to make us be. A sweet romance, which could have been developed a bit more, and I definitely want to read this again as an audiobook.

I was a little thrown by the lack of dialogue related punctuation, but I did eventually get used to that. 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗

The waters of the bayou are rising. People from town are disappearing. & Eugene finds himself entranced by the Bonnie & Clyde pair that‘s swept into town.

Wow can Powell set a scene! I could feel the heaviness of a Louisiana summer against my skin. & the insidious creeping horror as we don‘t know really know anything that‘s going on. Really reminds me of Alma Katsu‘s historical horror. & I‘m definitely going to look up more by Powell. 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑

When Ellie dreams of her recently dead cousin, her ghost speaking abilities help her realize that her cousin was murdered, & there is a much darker mystery at the heart of his Texan hometown.

Wow! This blew me away! The characters were all delightful. Absolutely loved the urban fantasy feels, in such a unique way. Excellent pacing & I was kept guessing on the bigger mystery right up until the end! Definitely an author to follow! 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗

An anthology of science fiction stories by queer voices and with queer representation.

Anthologies are pretty hit & miss for me, & this one didn‘t really hit. The stories were mostly fine, the narrators were great, but I want sci fi that I‘m still thinking about.

Although I will be searching out E Saxey, because the story Amelioration has me thinking about language & hateful rhetoric. I listened to that story twice before moving on. 🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑