MADreads

I tried it, and I liked it! I’m not usually into angsty teen romance novels, but Sugiura provides plenty of layers to this one. Sana is discovering her sexual identity (lesbian), she is discovering her father’s infidelity (he is having an affair of sorts), and at the same time she is struggling with her peers’ racism (she is of Japanese descent), and her own racism (she falls for a Latina girl at her high school and stumbles with her own preconceived beliefs).

Freelance writer Cassie Bowman's specialty is true crime and she is used to murder cases involving husbands who kill their wives, or even wives who killed their husbands. Having done this kind of investigative writing for a few years, it takes a bit to surprise her. When she comes across a news article about a woman who was not only a bigamist but a widow after one of the husbands killed the other in 1985. Cassie knows if she can get Delores "Lore" Rivera to agree to talk with her for an article, it could make her career.

This realistic fairy tale follows Beatryce, a young girl with no memory of who she is and being hunted by the king because of a prophecy that she will unseat him, as she threads together a small band of allies with the strength of her love and courage. These friends include a very disagreeable goat, Answelica, a timid and kind monk, Brother Edik, an adventurous errand boy, Jack Dory, and a mysterious sage, Cannoc.

It’s spring(ish) time, and time to turn thoughts to new beginnings. Publishers relish this time of year, as April marks the start of the big push to for new titles. This year is no different, and along with a lot of familiar names, there are plenty of new authors who have been waiting, after the ups and downs of the pandemic years, to see readers back in bookstores and libraries to discover their new works.