Wrap-up: October 2021

Yes, the year is ending, no, we can’t believe that either. But on the plus side, one of us (Anna) finished their reading challenge last month! (We absolutely do not talk about the amount of book Charlotte have or have not read this year, thank you very much.)

We also, surprisingly, both watched quite a few things in October, so really, just take a look and maybe get inspired in your watching/reading choices!

What we read

Anna

Stage Dreams by Melanie Gillman (trans sapphic mc, Latina sapphic mc) – 4 🌈
Unwritten Rules by K.D. Casey (Jewish hard of hearing gay mc, Venezuelan American bi li, sapphic side characters) – 3.5 🌈 tw internalised homophobia [review]
Thanks a Lot, Universe by Chad Lucas (biracial (Trinidadian, Polish) American gay mc) – 5 🌈 tw suicide attempt, panic attacks
Briar Girls by Rebecca Kim Wells (bi mc, sapphic li, nonbinary side characters, sapphic trans side character) – 2 🌈 tw gore, immolation, amputation, magic requiring blood/self-harm
Delilah Green Doesn’t Care by Ashley Herring Blake (lesbian mc, bi mc, f/f relationship, bi side characters) – 5 🌈

Blaine for the Win by Robbie Couch (gay mc, Vietnamese American bi li, Black sapphic character, Latina sapphic character, gay side characters) – 4 🌈 [review]
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Willow by Mariko Tamaki, Natacha Bustos & Eleonora Bruni (lesbian mc) – 3 🌈 [review]
Wynd, Book One: Flight of the Prince by James Tynion IV & Michael Dialynas (achillean mcs) – 4 🌈 [review]
Specter Inspectors by Bowen McCurdy & Kaitlyn Musto (sapphic mcs, nonbinary mc) – 4 🌈 [review]
Something Fabulous by Alexis Hall (gay demi mc, gay li, sapphic side characters, genderfluid side character, achillean side characters) – 3 🌈 [review]
🔥 Crush by Richard Siken (poetry) – 5 🌈

Charlotte

Girls of Fate and Fury by Natasha Ngan (Southeast/East Asian-coded sapphic mcs) – 3 🌈 cw mentions of past sexual assault and rape, gore, violence, death [review]
Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo (gay mc, bi li, bi trans side character, achillean side character, Black gay side character, side polyamory) – 3 🌈 cw gore, violence, blood, f slur, internalised homophobia, implied suicide, body horror, animal death, drug use
The Bone Shard Emperor by Andrea Stewart (sapphic mcs) – 3.5 🌈 cw gore, violence, blood [review]
The Bone Spindle by Leslie Vedder (lesbian mc, sapphic li) – 3 🌈 [review]
The Furies by Katie Lowe (sapphic mc, sapphic side characters) – 2 🌈 cw rape, blood, implied suicide, animal death, drug use, car crash, child abuse, domestic abuse, torture

The Hollow Inside by Brooke Lauren Davis (sapphic mc, lesbian li) – 4 🌈 cw statutory rape, deaths in car accidents, abandonment, lesbophobia, emotional abuse, stalking
A Little Hatred by Joe Abercrombie (gay mc) – 4.5 🌈 cw gore, violence, implied torture, implied(?) incest
Puck Drills & Quick Thrills by Eden Finley & Saxon James (bi mc, gay mc, bi & gay side characters) – 2 🌈
My Dearest Darkest by Kayla Cottingham (bi mc, lesbian mc, sapphic side characters) – 2.5 🌈 cw gore, eye horror, outing [review]
🔥 The Secret by May Archer (gay mc, bi mc) – 3 🌈

Blaine for the Win by Robbie Couch (gay mc, Vietnamese American bi li, gay side characters, Black sapphic side character, Latina sapphic side character) – 4 🌈 [review]
Abbott: 1973 by Saladin Ahmed & Sami Kivelä (Black bi mc, Chinese American lesbian li) – 4 🌈 [review]
Wynd: The Flight of the Prince by James Tynion IV & Michael Dialynas (achillean mc) – 3 🌈 [review]
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Willow by Mariko Tamaki, Natacha Bustos & Eleonora Bruni (lesbian mc) – 3 🌈 [review]
Specter Inspectors by Bowen McCurdy & Kaitlyn Musto (sapphic mcs, nonbinary mc) – 4 🌈 [review]

A Case of Exploding Mangoes by Mohammed Hanif (Pakistani cast & setting, gay mc, gay side character) – 4 🌈 cw racial slurs, homophobic slurs, torture
The Black Coast by Mike Brooks (nonbinary mc, sapphic & achillean characters) – 4 🌈 cw violence, gore
The Taking of Jake Livingston by Ryan Douglass (biracial Black gay mc, Black gay li, gay mc) – 2.5 🌈 cw suicide attempt, domestic abuse, homophobic violence, homophobic slurs, implied paedophilia & rape, gore, violence, school shooting, animal abuse
The Lost Girls by Sonia Hartl (bi mc, bi li) – 2 🌈 cw violence, blood, gore, grooming
Artie and the Wolf Moon by Olivia Stephens (Black sapphic mc, Black sapphic li) – 3 🌈

Every Dark Desire by Fiona Zedde (Jamaican lesbian mc & li) – 1 🌈 cw gore, rape
The Trouble With Peace by Joe Abercrombie (gay mc) – 5 🌈 cw violence, gore
This Adventure Ends by Emma Mills (half Dominican lesbian character) – 4.5 🌈
Foolish Hearts by Emma Mills (Chinese American lesbian character) – 4.5 🌈
The Wisdom of Crowds by Joe Abercrombie (amputee gay mc, gay side character) – 5 🌈 cw violence, gore

Pepper’s Rules for Secret Sleuthing by Briana McDonald (bi/pan mc, trans side character) – 4 🌈
The Lighthouse by Fran Dorricott (lesbian mcs) – 4 🌈 [review]
An Oath of Dogs by Wendy N. Wagner (Guatemalan American bi/pan mc, trans side character) – 3 🌈
Never Been Kissed by Timothy Janovsky (demi gay mc, gay li, achillean & sapphic side characters) – 2 🌈 [review]
The River Has Teeth by Erica Waters (sapphic mcs, Black sapphic side character, Korean American pan side character, Korean American nonbinary side character) – 2.5 🌈 cw abusive relationship, blood, gore

Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney (bi mc with endometriosis, lesbian character, bi side character) – 3.5 🌈 cw past domestic abuse, alcohol abuse, mentions of miscarriage, self harm
Peter Cabot Gets Lost by Cat Sebastian (gay mcs) – 4 🌈
Renegade Rule by Ben Kahn, Rachel Silverstein & Sam Beck (lesbian mcs, Black lesbian mc, Japanese American bi mc, Black bi side character, Latina lesbian side character, gay side characters) – 2.5 🌈
A Love Story for Bewildered Girls by Emma Morgan (lesbian mc, bi mc with agoraphobia, lesbian side character) – 2 🌈 cw biphobia
The Perks of Loving a Wallflower by Erica Ridley (lesbian mc, nonbinary lesbian mc) – 3 🌈
The History of Sound by Ben Shattuck (gay mcs) – 5 🌈

What we watched (and listened to)

Charlotte

The Brokenwood Mysteries (7.05) cr. Tim Balme (gay characters) – 3 🌈
Miss Scarlet and the Duke (S1) cr. Rachael New (gay character)
Operation Hiacynth (2021) dir. Piotr Domalewski (gay mc, gay side characters) – 5 🌈 cw police brutality, homophobia, slurs, autopsy, implied suicide (body on screen), gun violence, shooting, homophobic violence, drowning, violence [review]
The Baby-Sitters Club (S1-2) cr. Rachel Shukert (Latina sapphic (bi/pan?) mc, Japanese American sapphic character, Black sapphic character, trans side character, gay side characters) – 4 🌈
The Long Call cr. Kelly Jones (gay mcs) – 4 🌈 cw domestic abuse, sexual assault, past alcohol abuse, mentions of deaths in car accidents

Anna

Season of Love (2019), dir. Christin Baker (deaf lesbian mc, poc sapphic mc, Chinese American lesbian mc, bi mc, Latina sapphic mc, sapphic mc, gay deaf side character) – 3 🌈
Some Kind of Christmas! (2020), dir. Davien Harlis (Black gay mcs) – 2 🌈 tw homophobia, age-gap relationship, past death of a toddler, depression
City of Trees (2019), dir. Alexandra Swarens (lesbian mcs) – 2.5 🌈
Operation Hiacynth (2021), dir. Piotr Domalewski (gay mc, gay side characters) – 3.5 🌈 tw police brutality, homophobia, slurs, autopsy, implied suicide (body on screen), gun violence, shooting, homophobic violence, drowning, violence [review]
Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021), dir. Andy Serkis (achillean mcs) – 4 🌈 tw body horror, fire, blood
🔥 Dashing in December (2020), dir. Jake Helgren (gay mc, gay Colombian American mc) – 3.5 🌈

On the blog

• Our October book of the month.
• Interviews with Shawn Hitchins, Farhad J. Dadyburjor (and a review of The Other Man) and Sarah Manvel.
• A guest post from Candas Jane Dorsey.
• An ARC review (and mix!) for Payback’s a Witch, and reviews of comics from Boom! Studios.
• A film review of Operation Hyacinth.
• Rec lists for sports fiction, adult fantasy, spooky season and retellings.
• September’s music releases, November’s book releases and 2021’s Middle Grade and Picture Books releases.
• A sneak peak at some of the books 2022 has to offer.

On other blogs

• Dahlia @ LGBTQReads shared covers for Chef’s Kiss and The Wicked and the Willing, both coming out next year.
• Lili @ Utopia State of Mind chatted with Sarah Glenn Marsh.
• Sarah @ S Ames-Foley reviewed one of Charlotte’s favourite books of the year, The Dead and the Dark.
• Gabrielle @ QueerBookDom shared the November releases they’re excited about.
• Skye @ The Quiet Pond interviewed Xiran Jay Zhao.

So, how was October for you? What did you read and watch?