Isaiah Roby's Blog: MI Book Reviews, page 59

Winter’s Orbit

What a brilliant combination of political intrigue, arranged marriage, SciFi, and queer romance!

Ancillary Justice meets Red, White & Royal Blue in Everina Maxwell’s exciting debut.

While the Iskat Empire has long dominated the system through treaties and political alliances, several planets, including Thea, have begun to chafe under Iskat’s rule. When tragedy befalls Imperial Prince Taam, his Thean widower, Jainan, is rushed into an arranged marriage with Taam’s cousin, the disreputable Kiem,...

Jailmates

This was totally unexpected and very different from what title, cover and description make you believe. I loved it to pieces – except the constant and flippant misgendering of the love interest made this harmful and a huge disappointment.

This wasn’t in the contract.
Simon Quigley had no idea what to expect when he agreed to do this for the money, but the eight-foot-tall pink alien isn’t what he was expecting. For starters, Simon’s straight.
And Mohrn isn’t a girl.
The contract? It’s unbreakable...

Last Reading Challenge Reminder of 2020

Hello all!

Today is 12/31. There is less than 24 hours left of the reading challenge. Today is your last chance to enter. You just need to read one book to be eligible. Be sure to email your list to mibookreviews@gmail.com before today ends!

~Isaiah

Best Books of 2020

Hi all!

2020 is coming to a close, so it’s time for a roundup of my favourite reads of the year, in no particular order. I’ll mostly include books that also released in 2020, but some books with earlier release dates that I read this year for the first time were just too good to exclude!

I might make a separate post about my 2020 in books and some reading stats, though let me say I read a total of 314 books this year, 89 of which were rereads (and some books I reread more than once this ye...

A History of Madness

“The four remaining fugitives are now spread across the Kingdom. And with the fate of the others unknown to him, Nate Anteros prays for a fast execution.

Yet execution does not come. After a meeting with the King which leaves Nate questioning his sanity, he’s sent to a workcamp in Argon Basin for five years of hard labour. It’s there that Nate learns what became of his friends upon their arrest.

And as his strength returns to him, and he’s plagued by dreams which are much too real to be ignored, N...

Be Dazzled

This is a nice gay contemporary YA story about cosplay, ambition, romance, and unsupportive parents. I loved the concept, but to me it constantly had very strange undertones in every aspect.

Who’s ready to sparkle??
Project Runway goes to Comic Con in an epic queer love story about creativity, passion, and finding the courage to be your most authentic self.
Raffy has a passion for bedazzling. Not just bedazzling, but sewing, stitching, draping, pattern making–for creation. He’s always chosen hi...

Reading Challenge Reminder

The 2020 reading challenge ends in a little over a week. The last day to enter is December 31st. Be sure to send in your book list to mibookreviews@gmail.com. You only have to had read ONE book this year to qualify for a prize. It really is that easy, a picture book counts and there are some that people will read to you on Youtube (the video is four minutes and is the perfect fit for prompt 14)! Just a reminder here are the prompts and the links to the hint pages.

1. A non-fiction book about a g...

Zero Tolerance

“Seventh-grader Sierra Shepard has always been the perfect student, so when she sees that she accidentally brought her mother’s lunch bag to school, including a paring knife, she immediately turns in the knife at the school office. Much to her surprise, her beloved principal places her in in-school suspension and sets a hearing for her expulsion, citing the school’s ironclad no weapons policy. While there, Sierra spends time with Luke, a boy who’s known as a troublemaker, and discovers that he’s...

Earth Husbands are Odd

It’s no secret that I adore Earth Fathers are Weird. I knew there would be a sequel coming eventually, but had no idea it would be this year, so when I got the email about it being available it was the BEST sort of surprise!

Max, the stranded Earth pilot, and Rick, his tentacled partner in love, are forced to return to a universe that dismisses Rick as an asymmetrical, loud outcast. But Rick hasn’t told Max the whole story. Max wants to live in a universe where his children and his lover are ...

Local Star

“Local Star is a polyamorous space opera with a fast-paced, action-packed adventure that’s sure to punch you in the feels. It follows guttergirl Triz as she saves her hub from invaders from the Cyberbionautic Alliance, all the while negotiating her rekindled romance with Kalo, her ex who’s returned from battle and won’t stop hanging around the wrenchworks.”

I got an ARC of this book.

I got excited. I saw polyamorous and space opera (and people tagged it as queer). So I needed this book...