A Cup of Water Under My Bed by Daisy Hernandez

Book Review, , ,
Overview

Title: A Cup of Water Under My Bed: A Memoir
Author: Daisy Hernandez
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Immigrant, LGBTQI, Memoirs
Pace: Medium
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2014

Thoughts

This was such an amazing biography and memoir – there was something about the lyricality and non-linear story that I just absolutely devoured. Not only was Hernandez able to share her story and experiences, but she managed to do so in a way that was entirely unforgettable. I mean, there was just… something about her writing style that hit my deep in the soul, worming it’s way into my daily thoughts and dreams.

A Cup of Water Under My Bed was one of those memoirs that really made me stop and think. It just wormed my way into my mind and wouldn’t let go. I can’t say that many author’s actually have the talent to do this so thoroughly. And the part that stuck with me the most was how Hernandez talked about language and how she felt, as a child, that she had to hate Spanish to be able to move along to English. It’s a stark reminder of the intensity and confusion that comes along with a total upheaval of your life and culture. One that I still can’t understand, but definitely have Big Feelings around.

Not only does Hernandez unapologetically talk about her experiences as the child of immigrants, but she also talks about her bisexuality as a Latino women, and the unique challenges that this comes with. Rather than being a big deal, this part of her story is seamlessly woven in amongst the rest of her tale. She discusses how differently her aunts dealt with her sexuality and, that, ultimately, it was something that was kind of just… ignored. Hernandez is honest about how her sexuality sits in amongst her daily life, then and now.

The first read through of this was wonderful, and this felt like one of those layered tales that I would love to read again. Gaining something new in the lyrical prose that I wasn’t expecting, learning something and seeing the moments that I’ve missed. It might be a little while, but I can almost guarantee that this will be one that I will actually read again in the future (not something I frequently do with memoirs).

<- BlackoutThe Not So Subtle Art of Being a Fat Girl ->

Image source: Gulf Stream Lit Mag

Bits and Pieces by Whoopi Goldberg

Book Review, , ,
Overview

Title: Bits and Pieces: My Mother, My Brother, and Me
Author: Whoopi Goldberg
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Celebrity, Family, Memoirs
Pace: Slow
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2024

Thoughts

Bits and Pieces is one of the most beautiful literary love letters that I’ve read in a long while. Whoopi Goldberg’s love for her mother and brother just leaps off of the pages with every single word. I mean, I picked this up because I wanted to learn more about Whoopi, someone I grew up watching and was definitely a household name. And it was a really interesting biography, but what I found the most intriguing and amazing was the fact that everything comes back to her mum. We are shaped by our families, and this connection is absolutely clear in the way that Goldberg is able to write about it.

I’m not going to lie, as someone who has recently lost her dad, there were parts of this that I found a little difficult – I mean, this is literally a biography that centres around a beloved parent, and I’d just lost mine. However, I did find that the final chapter of Bits and Pieces was actually really helpful. I love the way in which Goldberg is able to deal with loss and death with compassion and kindness. Honestly, when I started this final chapter I was kind of filled with trepidation, but I actually found it really supportive and helpful.

Although I grew up knowing Whoopi’s name, voice and face, I didn’t really know much about her early career. Mostly because I just wasn’t alive at this point. It was absolutely fascinating and introduced me to another side of Hollywood that I hadn’t quite anticipated. I really enjoyed learning more and finding out how she rose to fame. I didn’t even know that Goldberg was a mum, so the idea of embracing your fame and chance, whilst also trying to single parent was pretty intense.

Whoopi Goldberg is wonderfully honest about the challenges of juggling motherhood and a career. Not only in her own life, but the empathy she feels towards her mum in her own challenges. I particularly found her compassion for Emma (her mother’s) breakdown and how she was committed to hospital against her will. I just can’t even imagine the fear and uncertainty that the whole family experienced and how strong these women were to pick themselves up from such an upheaval and move forward in their lives.

I knew that I liked pretty much everything that I had seen with Whoopi Goldberg in it, but I honestly didn’t expect to enjoy her biography anywhere near so much. I absolutely demolished this in a really short period of time and I was really disappointed when it finished. This is definitely parts of a fascinating story and a life well-lived so far, and I’m disappointed that there wasn’t more to digest!

<- The GapWe Wish To Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families ->

Image source: Target

Bloodchild by Octavia E. Butler

Book Review, ,
Overview

Title: Bloodchild
Author: Octavia E. Butler
Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one)
My Bookshelves: Horror, Science fiction
Pace: Medium
Format: eBook, Novella
Year: 1984

Thoughts

Bloodchild was a seriously uncomfortable and awkward science fiction story. It made me seriously uncomfortable, but yet, I actually really enjoyed it at the same time. Something about this majorly uncomfortable story called to me, something about it made me not want to stop reading. Even while I was feeling really quite icky about the whole thing.

I found it really interesting the afterword by Butler at the end of this novella. All of my preconceptions that I developed during reading this were shattered. Where is thought of this as a bit of a coming of age tale, and a story that was about the imbalance of power, particularly within age-gap relationships. Butler stated that this was a bit of a love story. I just… still can’t get my head around that approach. But I loved learning the difference in perceptions and thinking deeply upon this.

There were so many nuances within this short novella. It might not have been my favourite story to read, but it definitely makes me intrigued to potentially read more of Butler’s stories in the future – it was just so wondrously layered and unexpected…

<- More horrorMore science fiction ->

Image source: Moonshake Books

The Book Shop Girl and the Billionaire by Jennie Kew

Book Review
Overview

Title: The Book Shop Girl and the Billionaire
Author: Jennie Kew
Rating Out of 5: 1.5 (Couldn’t get past the first chapter)
Pace: Slow
Format: eBook, Novel

Thoughts

Honestly, I seriously dislike any story that just constantly emphasises the curviness of a female character. I’m all for body positivity, but after ten chapters, I wanted to know more about the lead. I didn’t actually care that she was a handful of woman, had curves for days, wasn’t the conventional “pretty”. Women are more than their looks, and I just can’t stand that when a book is trying to be “body positive”, it is still just focusing on the woman’s body.

So yeah, after ten chapters, no connection and no lessening of the body focus. I absolutely decided to DNF the crap out of this one…

Image source: Goodreads

Howl for It ReRead by Shelly Laurenston & Cynthia Eden

Book Review, , , , ,
Overview

Title: Howl For It ReRead
Author: Shelly Laurenston & Cynthia Eden
In: Howl For It (Shelly Laurenston & Cynthia Eden)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Short story collections, Werewolves
Pace: Fast
Format: Anthology, eBook
Year: 2012

Thoughts

Howl for It is a great anthology with two fun and engaging novellas. Even on the reread, I absolutely adored both of these stories. They were a whole lot of fun, quite light and a fantastic way to leave aside the whole adulting thing for a little while. Both paranormal romances featured werewolves, but in starkly different ways – one was part of a greater series and filled in aspects of Laurenston’s Shifter World. The other, a story about Hunters and Shifters ultimately coming together.

I picked this up as a reread as part of my Laurenston ReRead, and there are zero regrets about this decision. I always love revisiting a well-loved anthology of stories, and Howl For It definitely ticks those boxes. It’s a great reminder of why I love reading anthologies – the novellas and short stories just work as a brilliant window into another world. Into a new author, or a great way to revisit someone that you have read before, and just want to return to again.

<- Wed or Dead ReReadLike a Wolf with a Bone ReRead ->

Image source: Penguin Books Australia

Reading Update as of mid-June 2025

List, ,

It’s been hectic, but in the best way. Which has meant a little bit less reading, but still all of the enjoyment and fun. A lot of rereads in amongst things though, mostly because you know… a hectic life and my brain feeling like it’s going to explode.

Graphic Novel

Non-fiction

Series

Standalones – Novels

Checking You Out by Ann Whynot & SmartyPants Romance

Book Review, , , ,
Overview

Title: Checking You Out
Author: Ann Whynot & SmartyPants Romance
Series: Green Valley Library #4
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Contemporary, Contemporary romance
Pace: Medium
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2022

Thoughts

Meeting Norman and getting hints of Lois in Dewey Belong Together meant that I was incredibly excited when I started reading Checking You Out. I love how their whole story is interconnected with Max and Jonathan, but they also have their own start. They meet online, create a relationship, and then Lois gets a Dear Jane letter to completely break her heart. As with most second chance romances, on the surface, the initial break up / misunderstanding seems incredibly harsh, and I still question Norman a little. But, ultimately, they are a gorgeous couple and I really enjoyed reading this story!

Not only do Lois and Norman reconnect through kismet and their mutual connections, but I love how Max, Jonathan, Lois and Norman manage to make a pretty unstoppable foursome. They are wonderfully suited to each other as a group. And the fact that this all takes place around Christmas just makes it all that much better. I love that they manage to celebrate together, and make the festive season particularly special for Agoraphobic Rose, and Lois (who is missing her daughter a whole lot). The romance between the two leads might be the main driver of this story, but the building of the community between the four of them is all that much more special to my mind.

With all of the space between Norman and Lois’ first and second chance, there is obviously going to be a whole lot of other history. I love how realistic Whynot is about Lois’ feelings towards her ex husband. Rather than it just being about him realising that he’s gay and being true to himself, she has a whole mess of other feelings. Feelings of abandonment, rejection and betrayal all due to the ways in which he goes about it. I love that towards the end, when she finally confronts him for some of his less than stellar behaviour, she highlights that it’s actually not about him coming out – it’s about the way in which he chose to go about it. Her ex made a choice, and there are consequences to it.

I love when romance authors deal with chronic conditions which have an impact on someone’s everyday experiences and lives. In the case of Checking You Out, Whynot is able to emphasise the ways in which chronic pain can have a daily impact. The risks (and often experiences) of substance abuse to deal with the pain. And then the multitude of ways in which to live with such a condition. The fact that a chronic condition can change your daily experiences and impact every decision you make. The realism is wonderful and I seriously enjoyed taking this walk in someone else’s shoes.

<- Dewey Belong TogetherMore SmartyPants Romance ->

Image source: Amazon

Sisters of Sorrow Volume 1. by Kurt Sutter, Courtney Alameda & Heonjin Kim

Book Review, , , , , ,
Overview

Title: Sisters of Sorrow Volume 1
Author: Kurt Sutter, Courtney Alameda & Heonjin Kim
Series: Sisters of Sorrow #1
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Feminism, Graphic novels
Pace: Fast
Format: eBook, Graphic novel
Year: 2017

Thoughts

Sisters of Sorrow Volume 1 is a seriously dark and twisty graphic novel. I mean, it starts with a domestic violence homicide and then just… spirals from there. And honestly, this is exactly how I seem to like my graphic novels. Dark, twisty and filled with a surprising amount of violence. It also left me thinking. A lot. After I turned the final page. And I think that that too is the mark of a good graphic novel for my shelves.

At its core, Sisters of Sorrow Volume 1 is all about women who are filled with feminist rage. Honestly, there’s a reason why I liked it so much – these are women who are 1000% done with the system and the lack of protection that it offers. It is about a group of women who have been so brutalised that they have zero fucks left to give. And, honestly, I was right there beside them. The feminist rage that screamed and yelled in the pages, I felt that down to my very soul.

Even though I loved how this feminist rage was displayed, it did make me kind of sad to read this. Because I feel like it is such an accurate reflection of the world as we know it at the moment. I wish that this felt like a fantasy. But honestly, the older I get, the more society seems to be moving into a direction that protects the aggressors. And, as much as I enjoyed this, it made me sad to read this story. People senselessly losing their lives because of a system and social injustices that are rife in the world.

To match the incredible darkness of this story, the images and artwork in this graphic novel is gloriously dark. There is a little gore, and everything is done in dark tones. I can’t wait to read more in this story to see how this gorgeous artwork continues to tell this dark tale.

<- More Courtney AlamedaSisters of Sorrow Volume 2 ->

Image source: Head Hunters Holo Suite

Blaze of Memory ReRead by Nalini Singh

Book Review, , , ,
Overview

Title: Branded by Fire
Author: Nalini Singh
Series: Psy-Changeling #7
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Shapeshifters, Urban fantasy
Pace: Fast
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2009

Thoughts

It doesn’t matter how many times I read the Psy-Changeling series, Mercy and Riley’s story is always one of my favourites. To the point that when I wanted to get my sister into this series, I actually gave her Branded by Fire instead of Slave to Sensation, because this is a fun way to dive into this amazing world. Something about Mercy and Riley is just adorable and too damn beautiful for words. They are sweet, adorable and with just enough fire to be incredibly interesting.

In Branded by Fire, things are starting to seriously heat up with the triumvirate, with individuals from all three groups playing silly games. I love that Mercy and Riley are so obviously on the side of “good”, but they are also caught deeply in it all. It also gives a great secondary storyline to their romance – one that continues the common thread throughout the rest of the series. I love that one of the themes throughout this series, and one that is very much highlighted by the actions of the Human Alliance in this series is that Absolute Power corrupts Absolutely. It’s a reminder to be humble and kind.

As a strong and independent woman, I completely understand why and how it is so difficult for Mercy to “submit” to Riley. Ultimately, their relationship is about partnership and being equal. But in all relationships, there is a bit of giving to one another, or submitting in some small ways. It’s something that often causes conflict and makes things difficult in my own life, so reading about another strong-willed, independent woman struggling with fitting herself in with another person was kind of cathartic to read about.

Every time that I read Branded by Fire, I love that Riley is a prime example of just why our preconceived notions of who and what will make us happy can often be wrong. Sometimes what we think is going to be our “perfect mate” is just the easy option, and not the one that will make us happy. A certain level of being challenged is important in everyone’s lives, but sometimes that can make us uncomfortable as well. Sometimes it’s the people closest to us that pick up on what we need the most, and how those that make us a little uncomfortable can be the ones that also make us the best version of ourselves.

Branded by Fire is a story that’s all about healing from the past by moving into the future. Having the willingness to compromise and adjust in an attempt to find your happily ever after. Particularly for Riley who is stubborn as dirt, but willing to take the dive when it really matters. Still one of my favourite Psy-Changeling books, and one that I look forward to rereading each and every time.

<- Branded by Fire ReReadBonds of Justice ReRead ->

Image source: Open Book Society

Branded by Fire ReRead by Nalini Singh

Book Review, , , ,
Overview

Title: Blaze of Memory
Author: Nalini Singh
Series: Psy-Changeling #6
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Shapeshifters, Urban fantasy
Pace: Fast
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2009

Thoughts

Whilst I enjoy Katya and Dev as a couple, and their story, they are definitely a couple that I struggle just a little bit more with compared to the others in the Psy-Changeling series. I’m not sure why, maybe because I’m particularly invested in the shifters in this world. And neither Katya nor Dev are shifters. Or this is the only story of the Forgotten, so I don’t have as many characters overlapping to be excited about. Or it could just be that I don’t identify so strongly with either of them. Whatever it is, whilst I enjoy Blaze of Memory, it’s not one of Singh’s books that I can’t put down. Which is maybe not such a bad thing… I actually manage to continue acting like a responsible adult when I read this book.

Although I’m not so excited about the Forgotten, it was still interesting to receive some insight into them and how they function. The different battles they’ve faced over the hundred odd years of silence. I particularly enjoyed the letters to Matthew placed throughout the book – it was nice to read about the thoughts and motivations of a mother as their lives fracture. Plus, it gives two different timelines and points of view. The past and the present of the Forgotten and how important feelings are to people and living their best lives.

One part of the Forgotten’s journey that I love, and that is emphasised in Blaze of Memory is the importance of genetic diversity in evolution. I have a background in biology, so I, admittedly fixated on the fact that the “purity” of the Psy causes some evolutionary dead ends. In contrast, the Forgotten are able to evolve alongside the world that they live in. And ultimately are a healthier population (not just mentally, but also physically and psychically adapting to the world around them). I probably didn’t really notice this on my first few read throughs. But I really liked fixating on that within this read through of the story.

Katya has appeared in past stories and is closely tied to Ashaya, but I like how her identity isn’t obvious from the very beginning. Whilst the books have been leading to a great story arc for the entire Psy-Changeling world, the arrival of Katya and the depths that Ming will go to to destroy his “enemies” is unleashed. It’s the next step of change and things are really starting to heat up in this war. Plus, Katya’s arrival ties another group of people more closely to DarkRiver, giving them all that much more power in the world around them.

The non-stop theme throughout this series is definitely that love can conquer all. And whilst I don’t blindly believe that, I love the hope that it gives. With each reading, I find a new positive and point of joy within. Love is a powerful force, and it’s great to be reminded of that in darker days. Something about Singh’s writing always reminds me of that.

<- Dorian ReReadBlaze of Memory ReRead ->

Image source: The Nile