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What a fun, murder-filled week! After some strangely cozy weather here (SoCal loves its May Gray) the sun is out and I’m beginning to think of summer reading—including what books we should read for our Read Herring Book Club. 👀
(Hint: I’m thinking we should armchair travel to 1950s Italy, where we might just cross paths with a con man . . .)
Psst, this was also a Cluesletter week! ICYMI, here’s a link.
This week’s reads:
The Poisoned Chocolates Case by Anthony Berkeley (finished): What a joy to read something so classically perplexing. The round robin-style format of analyzing a murder case worked very well, and I appreciated how the stakes and tension ramped up with each new person presenting their theory. I didn’t realize that the newer edition (published by the British Library Crime Classics) tacks on a new ending, written by Martin Edwards. I appreciate the creativity but I much prefer the original. This is for our Read Herring Book Club.
Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann (currently reading): Still working away at this one! I love these sheep, but I do find it occasionally difficult to parse through the clues, because we are seeing them from a sheep’s point of view (and they happen to see a lot of things as food). But I do enjoy the audio and I hope to see the film this weekend.
It Happened One Murder by Liz Lawson (currently reading): Murder mystery romance is having a moment, and I’m not complaining. This one is light and fun, and both plots (mystery + romance) are moving along nicely. The characterization feels a little all over the place, but it’s still a cute read. Keep an eye out for the next Cluesletter for more. 😉
This week’s book mail:
The Heirs by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé (out June 2): Technically this is a NetGalley audiobook approval but I’m popping it in here because I’m so excited about this one! A Knives Out-style YA mystery about teen prodigies and their adoptive father? Say less.
Yours mysteriously,
Manon
Happy Friday! Here are my faves of the week - I hope you'll join my Discord server and share yours as well!
My favorite book I read this week was The Bloody and the Damned by Becca Coffindaffer.
This book reminded me a lot of one of my all time favorites, The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson. A young person fighting to keep themself and their loved ones alive in a hostile environment run by the ultra rich above and the brutal gangs below - sign me up.
I loved the way Val's world slowly expanded outward over the course of the book, bringing in more people and more history as we went along. Val is an excellent morally gray protagonist (who thankfully never becomes too broody about it). It's also casually but deeply queer on multiple fronts.
The writing is blunt and fast. You'll find yourself turning the pages as fast as you can. It's categorized as YA, and while the romantic elements stay firmly in that range, it's very dark and violent, as promised by the title.
A non-bookish fave this week is that I started watching Jujutsu Kaisen and I'm obsessed. I've never been a big anime person but this is so fun (and also a little creepy, ngl). I'd love to get your recommendations for what to watch next after I blow through this series!
Hey folks,
It's time for us to vote on what we'll read as a community throughout June.
I've curated what I feel is a great selection of fiction and nonfiction works that are accessible and fun for readers at almost any level.
Take a look at the descriptions to get an idea of the available options, then cast your vote using the button below!
The Books
Elevator in Sài Gòn by Thuân - A Vietnamese woman flies to Paris after her mother dies in a freak elevator accident, then starts uncovering a secret history that stretches back to wartime Saigon. Slim, strange, and quietly devastating.
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck - The Joad family loads up the truck and heads west. You know this one, or think you do. Worth finding out which.
Hell's Angels by Hunter S. Thompson A year embedded with the Oakland chapter of the Hell's Angels, written before Thompson became a brand. The reporting is sharp, the prose is feral, the ending is famously bad for him.
The Eye of the Monkey by Krisztina Tóth A Hungarian novel about a woman piecing together a fractured family history across decades of upheaval. Tóth is one of the most interesting voices working in Hungarian literature right now.
As always, we will be using ranked choice voting for our monthly read choice. If you're not familiar with ranked choice voting, simply rank the books from what you'd like to read the most to what you'd least like to read and submit your answer!
You can vote here: https://strawpoll.com/e2naXV7V0yB
Voting closes Tuesday, June 3. The read kicks off Sunday, June 8.
June's Book Club pick is Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke. I am so excited to read this polarizing book about a modern day social media trad wife that is sent back in time to live in a more grueling pioneer-era.
You can join the conversation on Rootbound's discord! Just be sure to mute the chapter channels, as there will be spoilers through the last listed chapter in the channel title. The channels are now live! If you want to have a chance to vote for next month's book club pick, consider upgrading to the Moss tier. 🪨
Happy reading!!
Now that I've finally finished reading The Perfect Neighbors, let's go ahead and dive into the discussion questions!
Olivia spends much of the novel observing the Berkley family while hiding secrets of her own. How did your opinion of Olivia change throughout the story, and did you ultimately find her trustworthy or sympathetic?
The novel explores the contrast between public appearances and private realities. Which character do you think was best at maintaining a façade, and what does the book suggest about “perfect” suburban communities?
Tess, Ethan, and Gracie each reveal different signs that something is wrong inside the Berkley household. Which relationship or family dynamic stood out to you most, and why?
The story slowly builds tension before delivering several dark twists near the end. Did the pacing work for you? Were there clues you picked up on early, or did the ending completely surprise you?
A major theme in the book is isolation—many characters seem lonely even while surrounded by neighbors and community. How does loneliness influence the choices characters make throughout the novel?
I have recently started rewatching a lot of my favorite shows. For some I had started the series but never finished it. I thought I had seen all of Buffy the Vampire Slayer but I definitely hadn't. I watch some new shows but watching Buffy, The X-Files, Twin Peaks, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Daria, and more are keeping me sane right now. Nostalgic posters along with DVDs and VHS tapes are helping too. So here are 31 thoughts I had while rewatching season 1 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. This show definitely is and will continue to influence my Woods Bay series including Small Town Slasher.
The first pilot is better than the one they went with. It matches the film the show is based on way more.
I will never skip this intro. It's still gold.
I wish we had The Bronze in my town.
I had the sunglasses Buffy has in The Harvest episode.
Ahhh early Buffy and Angel moments.
So that's where I got the idea of the high ponytail with a few loose strands in front of my face.
Adorkable Willow and her computer.
Love combining cheerleading with the first witch we meet on the show.
I want Giles' car.
Ahhh 1997 fashion. /chefskiss
I love the idea of putting a spirit into a trophy. So cool!
The library shots are done so well.
Cheerleader on fire!
Totally thought of Joe from You when I saw the cage in the library.
It's such a great twist that the mother was the one evil not the cheerleader.
Preying mantis sexy teacher.
Ewwww the sandwich scene totally reminded me of the similar scene in The Girl Who Cried Monster by R.L. Stine.
Even during my rewatch I was shocked by The Master.
Xander acting like a hyena is awesome. It also makes me want to go to the zoo.
One of the actresses from the Angel episode is in Dexter.
The chemistry between Buffy and Angel. Oh my.
The Willow and robot episode was just okay but fun cheesy.
A dummy and the organs it wants to harvest.
Worst nightmares coming true. That's terrifying.
Hey it's the girl from The Faculty.
Loved the dress she wore in the finale.
Even though you know Buffy is going to be okay it's still horrible to watch her die.
A short first season but still excellent.
I feel bad that I totally forgot about Ms. Carpenter I love her.
I think the white dress and leather jacket is a nod to the final showdown in the film.
Not one skip of the intro or outro. EGH so good!!
For those of you who didn't know, you can hit me up with book recommendations here and this one just came through the other day:
It immediately made me think of two titles:
PLAIN BAD HEROINES by Emily M. Danforth
This was an Inky Phoenix book club pick and I still think about it! A dual timeline sapphic, gothic horror that tells the story of a cursed girls' boarding school in 1902 and a modern day film adaptation of the school's history.
HUNGERSTONE by Kat Dunn
Another gothic novel, but a deliciously dark retelling of the classic vampire novella, Carmilla.
Happy reading Gabriela!
Hi folks,
Pride Month is around the corner, and the fantastic Bookasaurusbex invited me once again to provide book recs (below) for her annual Prideopoly challenge! Information on how to play here: https://prideopoly.carrd.co/
Playing isn't necessary of course, you can just use this as a handy list of recs for Pride Month - there's something for everyone! The full list is below in pictures, and below that I've written it all out in text.
Happy Pride!
Gay
More than one queer identity - The Prospects by KT Hoffman
Neurodivergent MC - The Lawrence Browne Affair by Cat Sebastian
Indie / Small press - 30 by Clinton W. Waters
Queer
Translated book - Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
Questioning MC - Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender
Identity not already a prompt - Drink Up Darling by Harvey Oliver Baxter (aromantic rep, also poly), Moth Dark by Kika Hatzopoulou (genderfluid rep)
Indigiqueer rep - Kapaemahu by Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu
Non-binary
Non-fiction - Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe
BIPOC MC or Writer - Twice Lived by Joma West (writer)
Romance - Bad Queer by Gayathiri Kamalakanthan
Ace
Ace book recced by a friend - Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire
MC has a hobby - The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells
Horror or SFF - The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia
Lesbian
Academia or Education - An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson
Masc MC - Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
Novella - Debate and Decadence by Sula Sullivan
Trans
Transfemme MC - The Sapling Cage by Margaret Killjoy
Found Family - Her Majesty’s Royal Coven by Juno Dawson
Disabled MC or writer - The Spirit Bares its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White
Bisexual
Bisexual man MC - So This is Ever After by FT Lukens
With a trial or contest - The Final Strife by Saara el-Arifi
Poetry or verse - 100 Queer Poems edited by Mary Jean Chan & Andrew McMillan
Much love,
Disco x
Please join me in extending a huge congrats to Kristy Park Kulski, author of our Spring 27 book, CRACKS, on all of her award nominations this season
Silk and Sinew has been nominated for:
Bram Stoker award
Shirley Jackson award
British Fantasy award
Congrats, Kristy!
I cannot wait to share more about Cracks with you all! (Hoping a little cover preview coming in for paid subscribers soon!)
✨ 4/5
✨ An expanse of Blue is a heart touching, coming of age story of young Hawaiian Catholic girl living in United States. Instead of a book, it would be more fitting to call it diary of Aouli - she writes about her fears, dreams, crushes, expectations and secrets of their family.
✨ The book successfully captures many aspects of immigrants, Catholic guilt, how the issues of parents affect the kids, friendships, betrayals. As a teen, it can be so confusing; but it's all worth it when you find yourself. The book is just that.
✨ I would love to highlight that the book is published in an atypical fashion. Margins have been disregarded, spacing has been used to emphasize her mood, words repeated which almost gives a poetic effect. All these help to convey the story much better and connect with Aouli.
✨ Definitely go for it. Book is available to purchase.
✨ Author - @kauawrites
✨ Publisher - @epicreads (I received this arc as part of the Epic Insiders program. Thank you so much )
#hawaiian #story
If someone says, You have such good taste-- is that a compliment?
If someone "steals" your taste (aka buys the same armoire or wedding shoes or mejuri necklace), are you flattered or ticked off?
As any Brown (University) freshman knows: Taste is a social construct. I'll do you one better: All the adulation around tastemakers (the entire industry of lifestyle influencers, which are just walking catalogs)--is a psyop.
How proud should one be of having so-called "good taste"?
Taste is necessarily possessions-based. Taste is something that other people see with their eyes. Taste has to do with one's belongings. Taste can be photographed.
I don't think you should hang your hat on something that can be copied so easily. If someone can Amazon dupe your entire life, do you really have a life?
Some people absolutely have quantifiably better taste than others. Curation is a skill. Some people definitely have an eye. But people who have exquisite taste and inspire the admiration/envy of millions--what their followers&haters really want is that person's self-actualization.
You'll never be Martha Stewart
It's no coincidence that people with great taste often have a successful life to go with it.
You'll never be Martha Stewart unless you have her knowledge of botany. Her inventiveness. Her work ethic. I got her 1991 gardening book (from the thrift store in ACK) and though it looks like a chic coffee table book-- it's detailed instructions about how to plant shit and she's wearing a sweatsuit in most of the pictures. This book is neither aEsThEtiC nor is it aspirational (for me at least).
"I want her life"
The most adored tastemakers usually have a close circle of friends. They often have a loving partner. They have a dream job. They are constantly launching initiatives. They are daily turning their ideas into reality. They are supremely self-actualized and that's what people are actually drawn to, but they're too myopic to realize it. Internet folk obsess over the things they can acquire (decor+car+clothes+accessories) because it's the lowest-effort way to be like the self-actualized tastemaker.
Internet folk fail to understand that what's desirable in this person's life is the intangible. The relationships and "free will" and the deciding to do something and following through. Tastemakers provide fantasies. But the fantasy of just-so tablescapes and perfectly-arranged closets is just the tip of the iceberg. The real fantasy it's that they thought of something (I'm going to throw a turn-of-the-century themed dinner party) and then they did it. In today's lurking world, action is mind-boggling.
The "I want her life" reaction grosses me out because it's mistaking the objects in a life for the life itself. It's the dumbest metonymy conceivable.
It's not that you want her life, you want her effort
A lot of tastemaker types have money so the argument goes: their followers actually want the wealth/access/privilege/security--yeah sure. But the common wisdom is "money can't buy taste" and the poor, resourceful tastemakers are the most self-actualized of all. People who can plan a gorgeous microwedding on a shoestring budget.
Wedding dinner at PF Changs (not a joke)
Alignment > taste
As soon as you refer to someone's "taste"-- it's commodified. You're talking about things that are purchasable. Someone at Salon used the word "alignment" to describe when someone's values+vision+personality dovetail, and their wardrobe matches their interiors matches their book recs matches their worldview matches how they're raising their kids matches the poetry they write etc etc
When I like someone's "taste", it includes their opinions (which is why separating the artist from the art is not something I can do without effort). If a tradwife has a "beautiful" home, her values necessarily color how I perceive the house. Aesthetics are political and taste is aesthetic so if you don't have a POV--if you don't have beliefs and opinions--you don't have taste either.
The lives I envy
belong primarily to artists with creative freedom. When I salivate over someone's life, it's because they were able to publish a vanity project that is definitely losing money. They have enough social/cultural capital to tell their publisher that their next book is about a topic that no reader is interested in. The premise is not "hook-y" and they will not be going on tour to promote it. That's the stuff of dreams to me.
Prince. Linda Perry. Beastie Boys. I try to stay oriented to these north stars so I don't fall into the trap of making executive-approved art. If you're gonna bend the knee to beancounter execs, just stay corporate and be a normie and at least have health insurance, right?
Bourdieu plug
Bourdieu explains fake taste as follows: basically, if you have "real" taste (aka you're not just a derivative schmuck) you can apply your taste to anything. Most people can manage home design and clothing bc they ingest so much of it and they "know what they like when they see it" (aka pinterest)-- but what about other spheres of taste? Do you have opinions on dance and theater and music and sculpture? Can you extrapolate your taste or is it so shallow that it peters out the second you don't have a menu of aesthetics to select from?
You can have an opinion on art without having a deep knowledge of it. Guides like T Magazine's How to Be Cultured make it seem like there are prerequisites to being cultured: "books you should read", "essential animated films", "poems to memorize" (!!). How absurdly prescriptive and ...totally antithetical to art. They make it seem like culture is a series of horse pills to swallow, and taste is something you earn by keeping it all down.
People who know their art
It's great to have a conversation with someone who is informed ... sometimes. Usually, the more studied someone is, the more they need to shove it down your throat (which usually means regurgitating some NYT review).
Blowhards who consume all the art, just like people who buy all the trends -- they wear their fraudulence on their sleeve because you can shatter their illusion of taste by just asking what they think of something.
They need someone to tell them what they think in order to have thoughts.
At Sad Rich Girl Salon
earlier this week, I listened in on a bunch of different convos on taste and the same principles kept coming up:
taste is about curation
you can't buy taste
taste requires education (as in, you have to learn about design or fashion or whatever)
shortcuts to taste are in bad taste
I was pretty good about keeping my mouth shut and not monopolizing the conversation. But I had to say my piece about taste is a psyop. It's policing via shame ("you have bad taste," is a way to get people to self-police).
The genuine article
Someone brought up real-true-genuine taste--the type possessed by a visionary who is ahead of their time, who has a defined sensibility and won't be swayed even if that vision is rejected by everyone else--a Basquiat type. We all knew what she meant and agreed that it existed and is admirable.
I said, but that's not really taste. To call what Basquiat had "taste" is really diluting it (and that's when someone else brought up "alignment" as a better description). And that wasn't a controversial opinion--everyone agreed (to my face at least).
The thing that Basquiat had-- whether you call it alignment or artistic sensibility or vision--unlike taste, it cannot be photographed. It is not related to one's possessions.
Taste is at it's core about class, respectability politics, and proximity to whiteness. Taste is the greatest means of social control that exists.
Happy Thursday!
I've been slowly making my way through this one so as not to rush the incredible storytelling Sabaa Tahir is doing in this book.
For those of you who are following along, I wanted to share some annotations and themes that have come up for me while reading. Please feel free to use them as you navigate through the story, and also drop any themes that come up for you while reading!
*breath/breathing - Sal uses the "breathe in for 5 seconds, breathe out for 7 seconds" method to calm himself down during moments of being anxious. There is also the breathing associated with living, surviving, and death.
*numbers - Noor is obsessively tracking the college applications/rejections she receives and Sal is overly conscious of the mounting debt his family is drowning under.
*deficits - As Noor and Sal navigate through their public school, there is a clear distinction between the "haves" and "have nots" between them and their classmates. There is also more rejection, specifically within the family dynamics of the two characters. Lastly, I've noticed the deficits between hope and dreams that seem to surround Noor and Sal, but originate from the parents/guardians in their lives.
This is a heavy read, hence my moving slowly through it, but I hope you all are enjoying it as much as I am.
If you're reading along, or have read this one before, what other themes/annotations have come up for you? Drop your comments below!
Diva Down Books
Joe
Welcome to Diva Down Books! Here, you’ll get the inside scoop on what I’m reading and how I feel about it. One thing about me is that you’re going to get a brutally honest review. I’m happy to have you here!
Rebel Ever After
Ella Dawson
A celebration of swoony, progressive romance novels, hosted by author and podcaster Ella Dawson. Listen to new episodes in the Rebel Ever After feed wherever you get your podcasts!
Not A Phase Books
Sawyer Cole Hobson
Welcome to Not A Phase Books! A book loving community where we’re inclusive and dare to be our authentic selves in the face of the societal norms. Come for the book talk, stay for the community, grow together.
Gab with Gaby
Gaby
like if the L word stood for literature
Melanin Margins
Kia B.
Melanin Margins is a space devoted to stories that center around our depth, our legacy, our softness, our resiliency, and everything in between. This is where books are not only just read... but shared, fawned over, cherished, reflected upon, and remembered.
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