Yeah, I don’t know how on earth it’s already December, either. I feel like I blinked, didn’t sleep for a week, and the the year ended. 2020 sure is great to us.

Personally I (Anna) have read very well in November: maybe not as much as some people (I mean Charlotte), but only good books. And because of the movie rec list I made a few weeks back, I had a lot of fun with the stuff I watched. Hopefully I can continue that this month and y’all as well.

And, last but not least, you still have until 7th December to vote in our Alternative Choice Awards so:

Go Vote!

What we read

Anna

🔥 The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen (Vietnamese-American gay mc, Vietnamese mc, Vietnamese characters, wlw characters) – 5 🌈 tw cannibalism, off page death, on page death, murder, blood, homophobia [review]
His Footsteps, Through Darkness and Light by Mimi Mondal (Indian characters & setting, mlm mc) – 4 🌈
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston (bi mc with anxiety, Chinese-American lesbian li, Black sapphic sc, Puerto Rican-American trans sc, gay Jewish sc, Black gay sc, Black pan sc) – 5 🌈 tw past homophobic violence, off page death [review]
🔥 Darling by K. Ancrum (Russian bi ace li, lesbian sc, bi sc, mixed race (Irish & Ojibwe) bi sc, Ojibwe bi sc) – 5 🌈 tw violence, guns, blood, off page murder
The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley (half-Chinese gay mc, half-Spanish gay mc) – 5 🌈 rape, murder, blood, violence, guns [review]

🔥 War of the Foxes by Richard Siken (poetry; gay author) – 5 🌈
🔥 Crush by Richard Siken (poetry; gay author) – 5 🌈
A Curse of Roses by Diana Pinguicha (mostly Portuguese cast & setting, lesbian mc, lesbian Muslim li, lesbian scs) – 5 🌈 tw religion-based self harm, homophobia, internalised homophobia, blood, murder, body horror [review]

Charlotte

The Nuns of Sant’Ambrogio by Hubert Wolf (nonfiction) – 3 🌈 cw sexual abuse
Storm the Earth by Rebecca Kim Wells (bi mc, lesbian side character) – 2.5 🌈
The Simple Answer by Lily Seabrooke (lesbian mc with ADHD, bi mc, bi trans side character, gay side character) – 3 🌈 cw past emotional abuse, past bullying, emotional manipulation, car crash
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston (bi mc with anxiety, Chinese American lesbian li, gay side character, Black sapphic side character, Black gay side character, Puerto Rican American trans side character, Black pan side character) – 5 🌈 cw past homophobic violence [review]
Me, My Dad and the End of the Rainbow by Benjamin Dean (Black gay character, nonbinary character, lesbian character) – 5 🌈 [review]

Permafrost by Eva Baltasar, trans. by Julia Sanches (lesbian mc) – 1.5 🌈 cw self harm, suicidal thoughts, drug abuse, suicide of side character, attempted suicide of side character [review]
The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley (biracial Chinese gay mc with epilepsy, gay mc) – 5 🌈 (and 🔥) cw implied conversion therapy & rape, violence, gore [review]
🔥 City of Lies by Sam Hawke (lesbian mc with chronic pain, bi mc with OCD, wlw & mlm side characters) – 4 🌈
Miss Timmins’ School for Girls by Nayana Currimbhoy (Indian bi mc, lesbian li) – 2 🌈 cw attempted rape, period typical homophobia, mentions of domestic abuse, attempted suicide of side character
The Unbroken by C. L. Clark (bi mc with physical disability due to injury, Black lesbian mc, wlw side characters, mlm side character, nonbinary side character) – 4.5 🌈 cw violence, gore, past attempted rape, threats of rape, torture [review]

Division Bells by Iona Datt Sharma (British Indian bi mc, gay mc) – 4 🌈
Disappearing Earth by Julia Phillips (lesbian character) – 3 🌈 cw mentions of homophobic violence, anti-Indigenous violence
Teddy Spenser Isn’t Looking for Love by Kim Fielding (gay mc, Black pan li) – 1 🌈 [review]
In Deeper Waters by F. T. Lukens (bi/pan mc, gay li) – 3 🌈 [review]
Dying for a Living by Kory M. Shrum (bi mc, lesbian side character) – 2 🌈 cw past rape and child abuse

The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar (Bangladeshi Bengali lesbian mc, Black Brazilian bi li) – 3.5 🌈 cw homophobia, racism, outing [review]
The Impending Possession of Scarlet Wakebridge-Rosé by S. L. Saboviec (Black lesbian mc) – 1 🌈 cw torture, homophobia
🔥 A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine (lesbian mc, wlw li, bi side character) – 5 🌈 [review]
The Copper Promise by Jen Williams (gay mc) – 2 🌈 cw torture, gore, violence
The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri (Indian-coded lesbian mcs) – 5 🌈 [review] cw homophobia, gore, violence, execution by burning, forced drug use

The Seep by Chana Porter (Jewish Native American trans lesbian mc, lesbian & gay side characters) – 3 🌈 [review]
Tell the Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt (gay characters) – 1 🌈 cw homophobia, seraphobia, AIDS-related deaths, implied incest, references to paedophilia
Silk & Steel ed. by Janine Southard (lesbian cast, trans mcs) – 3.5 🌈
Giant Days, Vol 1 by John Allison & Lissa Treiman (lesbian mc) – 4 🌈
Heavy Vinyl: Y2K-O! by Carly Usdin & Nina Vakueva (lesbian mc, lesbian side characters) – 4 🌈

Nighthawking by Russ Thomas (gay mc, lesbian side character) – 4 🌈 [review] cw gore
Giant Days, Vol 2 by John Allison & Lissa Treiman (lesbian mc) – 4 🌈

What we watched (and listened to)

Charlotte

Les de l’hoquei (S1) cr. Núria Parera (lesbian mcs, bi/pan mc) – 4 🌈 cw abortion, miscarriage, drug abuse
John Was Trying to Contact Aliens (2020) dir. Matthew Killip (documentary) – 3 🌈
Space Force (S1) cr. Steve Carell & Greg Daniels (gay mc) – 3.5 🌈
Monsoon (2019) dir. Hong Khaou (Vietnamese gay mc, Black gay li) – 3 🌈

Anna

Bad Education (2019), dir. Cory Finley (gay mc, gay scs) – 3.5 🌈
All Cheerleaders Die (2013), dir. Chris Sivertson & Lucky McKee (sapphic mc, sapphic sc) – 2.5 🌈 tw blood, graphic violence, murder, graphic body horror, past rape
🔥 Handsome Devil (2016), dir. John Butler (gay mc, gay characters) – 3.5 🌈 tw homophobia, bullying, outing
Dating Amber (2020), dir. David Freyne (lesbian mc, gay mc, lesbian & gay scs) – 4 🌈 tw homophobia, internalised homophobia, bullying
Blockers (2018), dir. Kay Cannon (lesbian mc, lesbian Chinese-American sc) – 3.5 🌈 tw vomitting, drugs

Happiest Season (2020), dir. Clea DuVall (lesbian mcs, gay sc, lesbian sc) – 3 🌈 tw internalised homophobia, outing
Boy Meets Girl (2015), dir. Eric Schaeffer (trans bi/pan mc, bi/pan character) – 2.5 🌈 tw transphobia, homophobia, assault
The Craft: Legacy (2020), dir. Zoe Lister-Jones (trans mc, bi character) – 3.5 🌈 tw questionable consent, off-screen suicide, murder, snakes, misogyny

On the blog

• Interviews with Kate Hazel Hall and Chloe Spencer.
• Rec lists for songs from October, more books with less than 400 Goodreads ratings, graphic novels, books with bi MCs and an m/f romance, comedy films and recs for when you want that yearning.
• A list of 2020’s ownvoices m/m releases from January to June.
• Our November book of the month.
• All of December’s releases.

On other blogs

• Erin @ Reading on a Star interviewed Wendy Heard.
• Nicholas E. Miller @ The Middle Spaces wrote about the nonbinary politics of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power.
• Michelle @ Magical Reads reviewed When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain.
• Dahlia @ LGBTQReads shared four cover reveals: for Handmade Holidays, for A Beautiful Doom (with an excerpt!), for Prize Money, and for The Wasteland.
• Joce @ The Quiet Pond reviewed Written in the Stars.
• Jess @ A Lesbian and Her Laptop shared a guest post by Rae Dodd about being butch.
• Caitlin @ Caitlin Althea interviewed an upcoming author, Xiran Jay Zhao.
• Cherry @ Cherry Actually Reads made a playlist inspired by Lie With Me.

So, how was November? What did you read and watch?

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