Paperback of the book lying on a pillow. The cover is black with an illustration of a woman sketched in black with hues of yellows and oranges on her skin and in the background

#CaitTacklesTBRPile: Segovia Stories, by Bernadette Gabay Dyer

On 15 Mar 202315 Mar 2023 By Cait (like Kat) GordonIn Books I've read, reviews, This blog's postsLeave a comment

Full disclosure: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher, but I had already told the author that I really wanted to review it!

Segovia Stories is a collection of short fiction whose style spans from slice-of-life tellings to speculative fiction. These tales are also woven with many cultural nuances and characters who are engaging, complex, and realistically imperfect. Gabay Dyer’s storytelling just makes one feel, and the echo of many stories reverberated for me long after reading them.

There are perspectives in these stories based on traditions and beliefs from where characters were raised, and it was fascinating for me to watch them come into contact with slushy, maple-leafy Canadian life. (This is where I point out that one of the titles is brilliantly called “Ackee Night in Canada.”) Themes throughout this collection can be mystical, moral, pragmatic, and touching. I also happen to be really fond of food in fiction and loved how Gabay Dyer turns dishes and drinks into essential elements of the storytelling.

In “Soup Morning,” a reclusive woman braves the winter elements only to discover the local shop is closed. Fortunately, a West Indian neighbour invites her inside, and our protagonist is drawn into memories simply by the aroma and taste of the soup in the kitchen. I mean, I love soup and think it’s magical and comforting, so I saw the appeal. But it was interesting how it played such a role to unlock feelings. Gabay Dyer does this a lot in Segovia Stories—provokes one to realize the importance of the little details that shape people’s lives.

Like how in “Intervention,” a futurism story that takes place in 3089, the major concern is about a drug released into the atmosphere, supposedly to create racial harmony, but instead, it nullifies culture and identity. And in the midst of it, the protagonist seeks to rescue an ackee plant that is essential to certain traditional recipes. Food and culture are intertwined.

But of course, this collection is not all about food. In “Close the Blue Door” we find two tellings of the same story—one is based on legendary myths and the other with stark reality. And I found myself deeply moved by the end of it because I wanted to remain in the myth.

One of the biggest surprises for me, though, was after reading much shorter pieces, I suddenly was met with what seemed like a novelette. In “Long Night Until Morning,” a wealthy father in San Miguel loses his son and his own father within days, only to discover a former servant is pregnant with his late son’s child. Upon discovering that she plans to leave Ecuador for Canada, he disguises himself for the potentially dangerous journey to cross borders in order to watch over her. I didn’t expect to find a longer work, but I immediately cared about the characters.

Another longer work, Roberta on the Beach, was my favourite. It’s told in parts, featuring siblings of a Jamaican-Scottish family who grew up in poverty and how this affected their lives as they navigated into adulthood. (I couldn’t wait to get to the next sibling’s story and got grumpy when I realized I needed to go to sleep.) By the end, I had grown so attached to the characters that I hoped this piece would turn into an entire novel. I wanted to learn even more about this family, going back and forward through the generations!

As I finished the collection, I felt that while I enjoyed the shorter pieces in their vignette, almost episodic style, I found the longer works were where Gabay Dyer’s storytelling really took flight. Or maybe I had just become greedy for longer tales by this author.

Last year, I had the pleasure, along with co-editor Talia C. Johnson, to include a story by Bernadette Gabay Dyer (“Fishing in Martian Waters”) in the Nothing Without Us Too anthology. It was my first introduction to her work. And now after reading Segovia Stories, I concur with the high praise it received. If you enjoy story collections, do consider adding it to your TBR pile.

Segovia Stories by Bernadette Gabay Dyer is now available from Mosaic Press.

A greyscale close-up of me, standing in front of a blank background. I am a white woman with short silver hair cropped closely on the sides. I am wearing dark metallic rimmed glasses with rhinestones on the side. I’m wearing silver hook earrings with flat beads and a plaid shirt.

Cait Gordon is an autistic, disabled, and queer Canadian writer of speculative fiction that celebrates diversity. She is the author of Life in the ’Cosm, The Stealth Lovers, and the forthcoming Iris and the Crew Tear Through Space (2023). Cait also founded the Spoonie Authors Network and joined Talia C. Johnson to co-edit the multi-genre disability fiction anthologies Nothing Without Us and Nothing Without Us Too.

Featured photo is of the paperback of Segovia Stories, taken by Cait Gordon

For All Time book cover: A background that is night sky on the left and daylight on the right. Two Black teenagers, a tall boy with short hair wearing dark blue clothes and a shorter girl with curly black hair wearing aqua clothes, embrace and look into each other’s eyes. There are pink flowers all along the bottom of the image.

#CaitTacklesTBRPile—For All Time, by Shanna Miles

On 26 Jan 2023 By Cait (like Kat) GordonIn Books I've read, This blog's postsLeave a comment

Sometimes Twitter can be wonderful. (How many times do we say that, eh?) However, it is possible to come across really awesome people. This happened to me when I saw a tweet from author Shanna Miles about her debut novel that was so witty and confident, I had to reply with, “That does it. I’m buying your book.” And I did.

Am I ever glad too. Miles’ novel, For All Time, drew me in with the first few lines. I hadn’t heard of the book before, which was great because I love going into books cold. I typically want to experience the story without any preconceived ideas about it. And the storytelling in For All Time is fantastic.

Miles reveals her skill with weaving her lead characters into fully-formed backdrops where you are immersed in these settings, even the speculative futuristic ones.

We meet protagonists Tamar and Fayard, two teens in Columbia, South Carolina (present day) who are finishing high school and thinking about next steps. Except for Fayard, it’s probably more about college and their relationship, and for Tamar, who is terminally ill, it’s something else entirely. The chapters read like mini-episodes, some by Tamar’s point of view, others by Fayard’s. I was hooked and wanted to know where this was going.

Then suddenly I’m whisked to Gao, Mali. But it’s the 1300s and it’s still Tamar speaking? Okay, I’m taken back to present day. Wait, what? We’re now in Maryland in 1924?

And this is when it hit me how cool this book is. Throughout these episodes, the reader follows Tamar and Fayard throughout different points of history, in other moments in time. No matter where they pop up, even within a space-opera future, these teens always find each other, and their stories draw one in. Miles reveals her skill with weaving her lead characters into fully-formed backdrops where you are immersed in these settings, even the speculative futuristic ones.

These time cycles keep happening for Tamar and Fayard, sometimes with only a faint awareness that they might have known each other before. Until one moment when they discover it’s not just dreams they have of each other—they’re remembering.

And the ending is *chef’s kiss*. I won’t spoil it here.

Without a doubt, Miles understands how to pace a story. During these pandemic years, I have had difficulty concentrating on reading, so I truly appreciated the short chapters. They were enough for me to take in, feeling I accomplished reading for the evening, and they left me excited to continue on. I know there are many folks out there who would gobble up this novel in a weekend, though. The rhythm is fantastic. No lulls.

For All Time is classified as young adult (YA), but I recommend it for anyone who used to be a young adult too!

I will keep my eye on other books from this author. So highly recommend this work.

For All Time is published by Simon & Schuster. You can find where to buy it on their website and in Canada, at Chapters-Indigo.

#CaitTacklesTBRPile—Sad, Black, and Fat: Musings from the Intersection by Tangela Williams-Spann

On 10 Jul 202111 Aug 2021 By Cait (like Kat) GordonIn Books I've read, This blog's posts3 Comments

I love discovering new authors through Twitter writing chats. That’s how I met Tangela Williams-Spann. When she had put a call out to podcasters a few weeks ago, I let her know I was interested in interviewing her! I was so happy when she accepted, and the plan is to have Tangela Williams-Spann as a guest for S2 of In the ’Cosm, coming this fall!

But not only did I want to do the interview because this author is a lovely human, Williams-Spann also wrote a book with a title I could not ignore—Sad, Black, and Fat: Musings from the Intersection. As I began to read the eARC, I was immediately taken in:

I know mental health is taboo in the Black community.
I’m hoping that my honesty helps to normalize talking about mental health with Black folks.
Tangela Williams-Spann, Introduction chapter

Sad, Black, and Fat is a collection of short personal essays and poems about Williams-Spann’s lived experiences with managing mental health, being a Black woman, and balancing weight for health reasons while staying body positive. As the full title implies, Williams-Spann also shows the intersections between these lived experiences.

As a reader, I felt the way you do when a friend trusts you with their diary. Williams-Spann lets us partake in her strengths and vulnerabilities throughout her non-fiction storytelling, even giving us an idea what going through the preparation and aftermath of bariatric surgery was like for her. (Btw, William-Spann’s spouse seems like a really nice guy, but when I read that he ate a bacon cheeseburger in front of her as she was prepping with a liquid diet, I shouted aloud, “DUDE!”)

Even though the author doesn’t ignore ugly truths, Williams-Spann somehow always bring us to a place of hope, in how she presses on while self-checking when to pause.

Not allowing your feelings the space to exist is a form of self-harm in my mind.
Tangela Williams-Spann, The Floor Isn’t Lava

I always tend to cheer when fellow authors who manage mental illness aren’t afraid to “go there.” The candour throughout this work is so refreshing.

I highly recommend this book and admire the author even more than I did before I read it. You can learn more about Tangela Williams-Spann by following her author website and connecting with her on Twitter!

Book cover description: A cartoon of a Black woman with her hair up in an orange band is wearing a teal sweater with an aqua collar, aqua tights, and a burgundy skirt with orange shoes. She is fat and appears to be sad. She is standing in the middle of an empty 4-way intersection. There are people on sidewalks on each side of the street behind her. — This book is available for preorder and will be released on August 5, 2021! Look for it on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other online booksellers!

Cait Gordon is a disability advocate for the written word who is trying to tackle her TBR pile during a pandemic!

Cait is also the author of humorous space opera novels Life in the ’Cosm and The Stealth Lovers, and she is the co-editor of the Prix Aurora Award nominated anthology Nothing Without Us. When Cait’s not writing, she’s editing manuscripts and running The Spoonie Authors Network, a blog whose contributors manage disabilities and/or chronic conditions. Her latest new adventure is hosting the In the ’Cosm podcast, which is really an excuse to gush over creative humans she admires.

#CaitTacklesTBRPile features the covers of Rear Admiral by ’Nathan Burgoine and The Final Decree by Jeffrey Ricker

#CaitTacklesTBRPile: Rear Admiral, by ’Nathan Burgoine and The Final Decree, by Jeffrey Ricker

On 21 May 2021 By Cait (like Kat) GordonIn Books I've read, This blog's posts2 Comments

I’m so grateful for authors who write shorter works of fiction. I must have said this dozens of times in the past 14 months. With my brain having concentration issues, it so lovely to get a full meal in a smaller package.

And smaller package might not be the correct term for the first of these novellas. *cough*

Rear Admiral, by ’Nathan Burgoine

Cover image for Rear Admiral. Black background with grey centre. A man in grey clothes swats at the top of the cover. On the bottom of the cover is a man in a beige shirt and blue jeans, lying down. Red words from the top man to the bottom man are: REAR ADMIRAL. White text around the words in an arc read: Ten Days. Eleven inches. One chance. An Erotic Short by ’Nathan Burgoine. — *Burgoine merges the sweet and funny with in this erotic story.*

Erotica is not my go-to choice as a reader, but I cannot resist a plot-line that tickles my funny bone. Russ is a charming, delightfully awkward soul with a mission: he has ten days to acclimatize himself to the Rear Admiral sex toy, which is based on an adult film star’s actual package. Why ten days? Because Russ will be meeting Matteo Rossi at a wine-tasting party then. Hey, you never know, right? Is it so bad to be prepared for possibilities?

I just love how Burgoine always manages these, “Awww,” moments in his erotic scenes/stories. There’s a sweetness, a vulnerability that makes his stories seem real, and the characters like friends you’d actually know.

And I like how Matteo was a fully-flushed person. Not just some empty physical manifestation of that toy. I think it’s really important for authors to humanize characters who have been or are currently in sex work, such as adult film stars. That was a delight to read as well.

Also, pizza. I really wanted pizza after this. In my opinion, no romantic pursuit should ever be written without the inclusion of good food.

If you like charming characters and the sweet and the sexy, I highly recommend Rear Admiral. You can find it at these online booksellers.

The Final Decree, by Jeffrey Ricker

The Final Decree cover image: A man in a red space suit with brown boots and who has fiery red hair holds a black blaster. Vertical stripes in gold to teal gradient surround him. IN white text over a gold circle: The Final Decree. Bottom text in white: Jeffrey Ricker. — *Marriage, divorce, and PEW PEW PEW!*

Again, I was seduced by the plot-line:

Bill Templeton needs a divorce. To get it, he may have to save the galaxy first.
From The Final Decree blurb

I mean, I know divorce can be difficult, but this seems to take the cake. So, I dived into Bill’s world. Seems like he and not-quite-ex Travis got into a lot of trouble in the past. That tends to happen when you fall for a smuggler. (Right, Leia?) But now, Bill is ready to get married again and lead a safer, more posh life with the man he now loves. All he needs is Travis to sign the divorce decree. How hard can that be? It’s the future. I bet their WIFI is awesome.

Well, Travis won’t sign remotely. He will only sign in person. Did I mention he lives hundreds of light-years away from Bill?

Oh dear.

But Bill is determined, and packs a kit to fly through space to the dangerous backwater planet where Travis resides. A planet that has untapped energy resources. And Bill’s family’s company has a rival corp who wants that energy source. Planetary blockade anyone?

I really enjoyed this story. Great characters and world-building. Loved the pace of the action, too. In fact, I enjoyed the story so much, I felt I wanted to know much more. I kind of hope there is a prequel and sequel to The Final Decree, because Ricker has created a galaxy and a cast that I feel is way worth exploring!

(If you’re reading this, Jeffrey, and there are more stories, please link to them in the comments!)

You can find The Final Decree at these online booksellers.

Cait Gordon is a disability advocate for the written word who is trying to tackle her TBR pile during a pandemic!

ID: Pale purple background, purple script font that says #CaitTacklesTBRPile, and a copy of Entanglements by Christina Robins

#CaitTacklesTBRPile: Entanglements, by Christina Robins

On 14 May 2021 By Cait (like Kat) GordonIn Books I've read, This blog's postsLeave a comment

Earlier this year (because I’m on Jeremy Bearimy time and can’t tell two weeks from two months these days), I read an eARC of Entanglements by Canadian romance author Christina Robins. This is her first published work.

Entanglements is a novella that pays tribute to the style of Jackie Collins but with a distinctly Canadian feel. When I interviewed Christina Robins for my podcast, she talked about how Collins was the author who inspired her to become a writer. Robins’ love for this particular style is obvious, and it took me back to how much I enjoyed Collins’ works.

This story features Serena, a sex worker who is no victim and doesn’t need rescuing. I found this aspect alone refreshing, as we’re often subjected to the trope of “Save me, Rich Man, and make my life better!” Serena is in control of her life and where she wants it to go, but she’s also protective of young sex workers who are subject to abuse by traffickers.

When she has a meet-cute with über-famous actor Simon, she doesn’t even know who he is. I loved how that throws off his game since he’s used to practically being worshipped by women.

The backstories of both Serena and Simon really hooked me in, showing that these two are not so different as one would presume.

With lived experience, Robins crafts a work of fiction that gives us a glimpse of the good, the bad, and the ugly about sex work, underscoring the contrasting worlds of someone working in a safe environment and someone prey to sex-traffickers.

But woven through this all is a romance that left me with a warm fuzzy feeling, and a strong desire to add future works of Christina Robins to my “curl up and dive in” reads.

Entanglements is now available on Amazon. You can also follow Christina Robins on Twitter and her website, christinarobins.com.

[Cover image is an outline of a Toronto skyline within a smoke of purples and oranges. In the foreground is Serena, a white woman with long wavy hair swept to one side. She’s wearing a dark strapless dress and beige heels.]

Cait Gordon is a disability advocate for the written word who is trying to tackle her TBR pile during a pandemic!

My review: To Pluck a Crow, The Hands Behind Shakespeare’s Pen is so pluckin’ intriguing!

On 3 May 2020 By Cait (like Kat) GordonIn Books I've read, This blog's posts3 Comments

ID: Book cover of To Pluck a Crow. Magenta sky over green grass. Two crows flying, one far away, another up close.

I’m a massive Shakespeare nerd, or at least I used to be as a teenager, always with my trusty tome of his complete works close by. (I still have it, too!) Over the years, I had heard rumours questioning the authorship of those works, so I was really intrigued to read about Sue Taylor-Davidson’s take on them in her novel, To Pluck a Crow, Book One: The Hands Behind Shakespeare’s Pen.

In To Pluck a Crow, Taylor-Davison takes us on a journey of two narratives. The first is about siblings Mary and Philip Sidney, whose close bond and love for the written word has them collaborating on pieces even after Mary is married to the kind and doting Henry Herbert, second Earl of Pembroke. Intrigues of Elizabethan court also play a strong role in their family’s life.

The second storyline is in present time, where Canadian Sarah Churchill arrives in England to gather research for her thesis about the authorship of Shakespeare’s work. She is soon assisted by the shy, handsome Janek Wieczorek, who shares an equal enthusiasm for the subject, much to the chagrin of his glamorous girlfriend, Syb. But not everyone is apathetic, because after Sarah is physically attacked and robbed of her research laptop, she and Janek soon discover they are being followed. Someone does not want the truth about Shakespeare to be revealed.

I’ve always had a fascination for Elizabethan times, so that was one draw for me. But Taylor-Davidson masterfully brings us right there. I feel like I am in every room, eavesdropping on the conversations and taking in the atmosphere. It’s also obvious that Taylor-Davison knows her subject matter, too, which gives the story an authenticity all of its own. The interactions between Sarah and Janek are charming, and their own verve for their investigation is contagious. I want to be searching old castles with them!

I am very glad I read this book now when I know the second book, To Pluck a Crow: Death Stalks the House of Herbert, will be released by Renaissance in a few weeks. The mystery-crafting is like a slow-burn, and it kept making me turn the pages until I read the last one and was like, “WHAT? GIMME SECOND BOOK!”

If you’re looking for a historical-and-current mystery with delightful characters to whisk you away, I highly recommend this series. I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book.

You can buy To Pluck a Crow: The Hands Behind Shakespeare’s Pen and pre-order To Pluck a Crow: Death Stalks the House of Herbert from Renaissance’s bookshop!

Cait Gordon, in a black and white digital sketch

Cait Gordon is a disability advocate who wants everyone to pummel that curve!

She’s also the author of Life in the ’Cosm and The Stealth Lovers. When Cait’s not writing, she’s editing manuscripts and running The Spoonie Authors Network, a blog whose contributors manage disabilities and/or chronic conditions. She also teamed up with Kohenet Talia C. Johnson to co-edit the Nothing Without Us anthology in an attempt to take over the world.

My review: In the Shadow of the Spire is a much-needed Star Wars story

On 9 Feb 202027 Feb 2020 By Cait (like Kat) GordonIn Books I've readLeave a comment

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: author February Grace is probably one of the kindest people ever to be found on Twitter. She’s really a delight, so consider following her! Aside from being a lovely human, she’s also a brilliant writer with over 30K followers on Wattpad alone. This month, I found out why, after reading her Star Wars fan fiction story, In the Shadow of the Spire.

She had me at the first chapter.

Book cover: In the Shadow of the Spire, February Grace. A young male Jedi apprentice wears a brown cloak over a white vest. His eyes stare intensely at us. His face sports a stubbly beard. His blue lightsaber is ignited.

In the Shadow of the Spire takes place after The Last Jedi and during and after Black Spire by Delilah S. Dawson. It’s about the fate of two brothers who had been under Master Skywalker’s tutelage when Ben Solo became Kylo Ren. One brother, Rook, turned to the dark side with a mission to kill his brother Evar, who insisted on staying with the light. Evar escapes his doom by way of his Jedi student teacher, Lilia Dae. Teaming up with Savi, who fans will recognize from Star Wars Galaxy Edge, the trio split up to keep the boy safe from Rook, Ren, and the First Order.

Woven into the seamless word-building, and giving even more life to Savi’s workshop on Batuu, are the rich character arcs and a romantic element that makes this reader sigh dreamily. The romance isn’t clunky or tacked on. It doesn’t take away from the action and the rich tapestry of knowledge Grace has of this part of the outer rim. I was completely sucked into the setting, storytelling, and my Star Wars geekiness loved that Grace hit all the details dead on.

For me, In the Shadow of the Spire is a much-needed Star Wars story. After watching Episode IX, I felt hungry for a story written through the female gaze. This is not to say Grace doesn’t write male-characters extremely well, but the women in In the Shadow of the Spire are so satisfyingly portrayed with a balance of strength and vulnerability that finally feels realistic.

And the resolution of the conflict between the two brothers was just right.

If you’re a Star Wars fan, I really recommend this work. To me, it should be part of canon. Grace put every scene inside my head so vividly, I felt like I watched this book as a series. And the best part? You can read it free on Wattpad!

(Now I’m secretly hoping for more Star Wars stories from this author. In the meantime, there are many other titles for you to read in her Wattpad profile!)

Cait Gordon is a disability advocate and the author of Life in the ’Cosm and The Stealth Lovers. When she’s not writing, Cait’s editing manuscripts and running The Spoonie Authors Network, a blog whose contributors manage disabilities and/or chronic conditions. She also teamed up with Kohenet Talia C. Johnson to co-edit the Nothing Without Us anthology in an attempt to take over the world. Narf.

My review: Run J Run is a “Read Now!” Read

On 30 Jan 202019 Mar 2020 By Cait (like Kat) GordonIn Books I've read, This blog's postsLeave a comment

Book cover: Two men are running on a bridge under a red sky. Text reads: Su Sokol, Run J Run. "Marvellous, compelling, and vital." Arshad Kahn

After I finished this book, I just sat still, gobsmacked. It was incredible. And though I absolutely loved Su Sokol’s, Cycling to Asylum, Run J Run will stay with me a very long time.

What I find extremely important about this work is that it starts with a content warning:

The following material contains discussions of self-harm, suicide attempts and ideation, childhood physical and sexual abuse, racialized and police violence.
Content warning from Run J Run

And here’s the synopsis:

Jeremy, a high school English teacher coming to grips with a shattered marriage and haunted by the brother he lost, unexpectedly falls in love with his best friend, Zak. Attractive, wildly unconventional, and happy in an open relationship with his partner Annie, Zak seems to embody everything missing from Jeremy’s life, but when the arrest and death of a marginalized student at the Brooklyn high school where they both teach trigger Zak’s mental breakdown and slow descent, Jeremy and Annie are compelled to cross boundaries, both external and internal, in a desperate attempt to save him.
Back matter of Run J Run by Su Sokol (Renaissance)

So, yes, there are a lot of intense themes in Run J Run, but even though subject matter like this is often difficult for me to watch or read, I felt that Sokol crafted the lives of these characters in a way that made me actively care for their well being, and I wanted to find out everything about them. This book also has erotic scenes woven into the storyline, but in my opinion, I felt they shaped both the story and the character arcs.

Quite often, writing characters with complex mental illnesses is done poorly, using harmful tropes. Not so with this work. It is so heavily nuanced; the characters are anything but one dimensional, and the representation of a polyamorous relationship goes so much deeper. Sokol truly underscores the reality of what it’s like for partners to want to keep their loved one from suffering while not sacrificing the untamed nature of who he really is. Annie, Zak, and J are so believable in their interactions. I just found myself empathizing with each of their points of view and hoping for all three of them when things seemed hopeless.

Every scene is so richly crafted, every emotion palatable. I felt like I was right there, drawn into in every scene. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

Run J Run is currently available in e-book and paperback from Presses Renaissance Press.

My review: Faux Ho Ho restored my faith in holiday romance stories!

On 27 Dec 201927 Feb 2020 By Cait (like Kat) GordonIn Books I've read, This blog's postsLeave a comment

Book cover for Faux Ho Ho. A winter scene on a snowy night. Two men stand in front of several tables draped in festive red cloth. On either side of them are street lamps wrapped in red and white ribbon, like a candy cane. The posts of the lamps are attached to black wrought iron gates. There are Christmas lights strung high over the tables. — *Faux Ho Ho* is available now from Book Strokes Books!

I can’t even tell you how much I’ve grown to despise holiday stories, and here’s the kicker: I’m a sappy romantic human! I’ve just found so many of them feel snoozy and overdone. Most times, I can’t get beyond a few pages.

Then I read ’Nathan Bourgoine’s Faux Ho Ho holiday novella. OH MY FREAKING WORD! This author restored my faith in holiday romance. I loved it so much. I cheered and whooped at the end, too.

Faux Ho Ho is about Silas, a gay man (and kind-hearted geek) living in Ottawa who desperately wants to avoid attending holidays with his ultra-conservative, ableist, and homophobic family in Alberta. Silas’s “tank” of a roomie, the beefy, delicious, and altruistic Dino pretends to be the boyfriend during a video-call with Silas’s mother. That brief charade gets Silas out of having to go back for Thanksgiving, but then his loving and accepting sister is having a December wedding. The invitation includes Silas and Dino! Oops.

Aside from this being an amazing take on the fake boyfriend trope, there are some solid truths about how gross ultra-conservative attitudes are towards marginalized people. It also underscores that even though you might have loving family members among the trolls, there’s nothing like chosen family.

As a disabled woman with fibromyalgia, I loved the representation in Anne, one of the side characters. LOL—she is no pathetic soul. I would have made the same choice she did. You’ll get what I mean when you read this novella. And trust me, you need to buy it!

I just cannot recommend it enough. Makes for a cozy read during the holiday season! (Actually, it’s so bleeping good, it makes for a great read any time of year.)

You can follow ’Nathan Burgoine on his website, to find out more about him and his other works. He’s one of the few authors who gets me stoked whenever a new story of his comes out!

My review: Love and Lemonade, by Jamieson Wolf

On 23 Dec 201927 Feb 2020 By Cait (like Kat) GordonIn Books I've read, This blog's postsLeave a comment

Book cover of Love and Lemonade. A pink background. An older couple dances on their wedding day as the guests smile on.

This is the third book in Jamieson Wolf’s Lemonade series, and I love these characters so much. It’s like catching up with old friends. I’m a big fan of the episodic nature of each chapter, and this series reminds me a bit of Tales of the City, with respect to the chosen family theme. I really love the way this cast of characters continually strives to seek love and redemption and forgiveness. They aren’t perfect, just like we aren’t perfect, but they know the value of friendship love, romantic love, and family love. I was very satisfied with how the series ended. I feel a little sad to say goodbye, so I might reread it again one day!

I was also really glad to see the authentic intersectionality of a character who is queer and disabled. I think it’s really important to include disabled characters who are just trying to live their lives like anyone else. It’s nice to read that realness on the page.

If you want you cuddle up with a funny, touching, and delightful series full of great characters, I highly recommend this series. The order of the books is: Lust and Lemonade, Life and Lemonade, and Love and Lemonade.

See Jamieson Wolf’s website to learn more about this author and his works.