Tag Archives: LGBTQ

So Gay For You by Leisha Hailey & Kate Moennig

Overview
So Gay for You: Friendship, Found Family, and the Show That Started It All

Title: So Gay For You: Friendship, Found Family & The Show That Started It All
Author: Leisha Hailey & Kate Moennig
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Celebrity, LGBTQI, Memoirs
Pace: Medium
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2025

Thoughts

I’ve watched all of The L Word, except for the final season (and the reboot), so, when I saw that two of the actresses had written a memoir together, I was intrigued. And, I was definitely not disappointed. I mean, everything about this was interesting and intriguing. I enjoyed the insight into what it was like to be a part of The L Word team and how groundbreaking it was at the time. But, I also enjoyed how honestly and openly Hailey and Moennig wrote about their lives, before, after and during their hit show. I always love how insightful memoirs that are built around a TV Show (or movie) can be, and how it can provide an insight into the lives of others and different experiences.

Although I loved the insight into The L Word, mostly I just really loved the voices of Hailey and Moennig. They were smart and sassy, with a whole lot of honesty that I seriously appreciated. One woman was out before the show even came to form, the other slowly had her sexual recognition throughout her filming of The L Word. I loved how different their tales and journeys were, but how they built together. Particularly to the moments when they first met, how they felt about it, and then how they built a friendship that is the envy of all friendships. Their love for one another and honesty was enviable and I really enjoyed learning more about how other women have grown and found each other.

I read a lot of stories which feature Found Family and Soul Mates (not romantic Soul Mates, those friends who are forever). But I haven’t read many memoirs that actually feature the reality of this kind of relationship. I love how they were able to find each other in this insane world that we live in, and figure out a way to have each other’s backs. But, they aren’t romantically entangled – I love that Hailey and Moennig found each other and created their own Found Family – one in which they are accepted and beloved. That support and love is something that I think everyone deserves, and I absolutely loved reading about it.

Although I picked up So Gay For You because of my knowledge of The L Word, I love that this novel wasn’t actually all that much about it. Yes, it featured in it for a fair chunk of the book, but even then, it was just a part of a greater story. One which I really enjoyed, and would definitely enjoy reading further. Mostly though, the focus was on the beautiful friendship between these two women, and the ways in which they were able to find each other. The community that they built together and the way that their love for one another was supportive and helped them both to grow into better versions of themselves.

<- The Last Black UnicornThe Hospital by the River ->

Image source: Amazon

Skye Falling by Mia McKenzie

Overview

Title: Skye Falling
Author: Mia McKenzie
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, LGBTQI, Race
Pace: Medium
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2021

Thoughts

This was a brilliant and kind of intense read. But damn, it was also kind of amazing. I mean, it was a great story of self-discovery, with some impressively dynamic relationships and a whole heap of emotional connections. Throughout this personal journey Skye spends a whole lot of time looking inwards. It’s a nice reminder that we never truly stop growing and learning.

This book gave me all of the feelings, it was intense and complex. Skye not only has to navigate her current friendships and family dynamics. But there a heap of new relationships and family dynamics that she also has to negotiate. I love that Skye slowly creates a relationship with the new members of her family. Relationships are never quite as easy as they seem in the books, they’re always way more complicated and McKenzie honours this fact.

Skye is forced to face up to a whole heap of hard truths and realities in her own actions. But it’s about more than that. Skye is forced to face the changing times and how the things we treasure don’t always stay the same. McKenzie also beautifully shows some of the challenges that African American women face and the realities of being an LGBTQI+ woman. McKenzie pulls in so many social justice issues and my head is still spinning after reading this.

I love that the ending of this isn’t neat and tidy. There is no tie it all in a bow ending that shows everyone riding off into the sunset. Rather, everyone finds a new path and a way to find their happy new reality. Life never has a satisfactory conclusion that ties up every loose end. And I love that Skye Falling didn’t either.

<- More Mia McKenzieMore race ->

Image source: Goodreads

Magic’s Pawn by Mercedes Lackey

Overview

Magic's Pawn

Title: Magic’s Pawn
Author: Mercedes Lackey
Series: The Last Herald Mage #1, Valdemar #4
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Fantasy, Romance
Pace: Medium
Format: Novel
Publisher: Daw fantasy
Year: 1989
5th sentence, 74th page: She watched the power-barrier he had built about himself with her Mage-Sight, and Saw the pale violet half-dome waver as he turned his attention to her question and lost a bit of control over the shield.

Synopsis

Mage-craft

Though Vanyel has been born with near-legendary abilities to work both herald and Mage magic, he wants no part of such things. Nor does he seek a warrior’s path, wishing instead to become a Bard. yet such talent as his if left untrained may prove a menace not only to Vanyel but to others as well. So he is sent to be fostered with his aunt, Savil, one of the famed herald-Mages of Valdemar.

But, strong-willed and self-centered, Vanyel is a challenge which even Savil can not master alone. For soon he will become the focus of frightening forces, lending his raw magic to a spell that unleashes terrifying wyr-hunters on the land. And by the time Savil seeks the assistance of a Shin’a’in Adept, Vanyel’s wild talent may have already grown beyond anyone’s ability to contain, placing Vanyel, Savil, and Valdemar itself in desperate peril…

Thoughts

This is one of the most hard-hitting books that I’ve read in a long time. Ever since I read The Pact by Jodi Piccoult, actually. I think that it probably impacted me so heavily because Lackey investigated ideas of depression and not really believing that you are worth the air you breath. Feelings that I experienced a long time ago. This reminded me of those moments, but it also reminded me that I got through it and the strength that it can take to overcome such a debilitating illness.

This book for me was about not only dealing with depression and suicidal thoughts, but also about coming to terms with who you are. Which, for me, is a large part of overcoming such mental illnesses (I am well aware that this is different for everybody). Vanyel does this through the acceptance of his sexuality – as I said, this is a pretty hard-hitting book, not only does it investigate mental health, but also the struggles of the LGBTQ community. I haven’t read many books about this aspect of life that I have enjoyed so thoroughly and that have made me think and connect with my LGBTQ friends.

At the beginning of the book, Vanyel appears to be a very selfish, and almost unlikable hero. But, as it develops, you understand this is a coping mechanism (we all have them, and it’s fascinating how different people cope in different ways). Following him on his journey you discover more about how systematic abuse can seriously damage and change people and how the understanding of self and sexuality can be so integral to a healthy outlook on life and self. Thus far in reading the Valdemar books, Vanyel is definitely the most flawed and damaged hero. But in the end, this unique vulnerability and incredible journey is what really pulls on the heartstrings.

I haven’t felt so emotionally distraught and vulnerable after reading a book in a long time, and for that I’m glad. This was a book that made me think about my own past experiences and sympathise with what others around me are going through in their quest to accept themselves.

<- The Silver GryphonMagic’s Promise ->

Image source: Goodreads