mylynn (she/her)

✨pick a stray kid bias, get a book rec✨ fun fact: 5 months ago me and @wrenblackburne didn’t know what the word bias meant (in kpop context) if you don’t currently have a bias, choose whoever calls to you!! bonus points if you guess our bias/wreckers!!

✨just a girl and her comfort series✨ do I have an endless amount of books I’m supposed to be reading? yes am I rereading a book I’ve already reread multiple times? also yes I blame @wrenblackburne for me falling into a Dark Heir reread (they’re currently reading it!!! FINALLY!!!) ALSO!! This is me BEGGING YOU 🫵 to read this series!!! HAVE YOU READ DARK RISE + DARK HEIR?

The Last Contract of Isako by Fonda Lee (thank you @orbitbooks_us for the free copy!!) Fonda Lee is an autoread/autobuy author for me, so before I even read the synopsis I was seated, but then I read the synopsis and I was like WHATTTTT AHHHH THIS SOUNDS AMAZING. What do you mean CORPORATE SAMURAI IN SPACE??? obviously, i was HYPED!! and a little worried because you know when you’re really excited about a book and it ends up not living up to your brain’s expectations??? thankfully that is NOT what happened here because whatever i thought i was gonna think about this book, it EXCEEDED that. there was a lot of action and a lot of worldbuilding and it all was paced so well to keep me flipping pages, desperate for more. i’ve always enjoyed the way Fonda Lee worldbuilds— there was a lot of world to build but it never felt like an information dump. it really felt like there was no wasted words, everything felt important to the story!! the characters (as always) were such a highlight, i love how everyone is complicated/messy/human— no one is just black and white good or evil, and i love all the nuance. Isako was an easy character to root for and the way she’s written made her feel so relatable even though her life/situation/world is so different than anything i’ve ever experienced. also! i’m a big fan of political intrigue and trying to guess everyone’s motivations and this book supplied plenty of conflict and friction for me to speculate to my heart’s content. i’d love more books in this world and i know i’ve been asking for adaptations of like every book i’ve read lately (which!! i can’t help!! it’s not my fault i pick banger after banger okay!!??!?!?) but this book— omgggg pleaseeeeee. SOMEONE DO IT. tldr; loved this!! Fonda Lee does not miss!! please read and also please feel free to yell in my DMs!! also please enjoy the jumping pics, i have a new respect for anyone who jumps (lmao) bc my fucking knees owww never again hahahha

🇵🇭 ANHPI Bookstagram Tour: Day 7! 🇵🇭 Today is my stop on the #ANHPIbookstagramtour and I’m highlighting a series that made me feel seen both as a Filipina and as someone who has lost their mom. Content warning for this post: loss of a parent. Full thoughts in the comments. Thank you to @bookish.millennial  and @hyperfixatedreader  for hosting this tour and facilitating a space for Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander readers and writers to share their stories. Thank you to @booknerdkat  for founding and creating this tour in the first place! Be sure to check out @bibliomich who is also posting today! See alt text for image descriptions.

Witch Queen Rising by Savannah Stephens (thank you @acebookspub for the free copy!!) This book has renewed my faith in the urban fantasy genre!! From the start this book is so immersive! The first scene we read is our MC, Phine, unsealing her magic because the power of the prime has somehow defied tradition and gone to her, a witchkin who was in hiding from her family. It was so fun to read about Phine stepping into the role of the Prime, reuniting with a community that shuns her, and solving a mystery of a blight that is affecting multiple paranormal communities. I loved the worldbuilding and the pacing in this!! I also really liked learning about the different factions of paranormal entities and the social heirarchies of this world. I can’t wait for book two!!

The Bridge Back To You by Riss M. Neilson (thank you @BerkleyRomance for the free copy!!) in a surprise to no one, Riss M. Neilson does it again!!! this time with a trope that is one of my favorites (2nd chance!! ahh!!!!) and tropes i normally don’t love but the way they’re handled makes them not only palatable but also super enjoyable (🫵🏽 single dad i’m looking at you!). she also handles being mixed with such care and understanding that it really felt almost like a love letter to being multiracial and not ever feeling like you’re enough of any part of you, the feeling that your two halves don’t actually equal a whole. part of this book felt like Riss was talking directly to me and i’m literally tearing up thinking about it right now. there’s not a ton of mixed race rep in books, so when it’s there and it’s done with such love it’s just something else, something special 🥹. the romance in this was soooo good, i loved how emotionally mature our two main characters, Olivia and Carmello, were!! the history felt so lived in and easy to buy into!! their banter in the flashbacks and present was so cute!! and also the tension?? yuh it was there for sure lol. i know A Love Like the Sun has many fans (🙋🏽‍♀️ me being one of them!!) and Laniah and Issac make more than just a lil cameo in this book! i loved seeing them again, in their settled and comfortable love!! lastly! i can’t end this review without talking about THE FOOD. this book made me so hungry, and i’m literally googling vegan/vegetarian versions of sinigang rn.

That Which Feeds Us by Keala Kendall (thank you @getunderlined for the free advanced copy!! i will treasure it!! #GetUnderLinedPartner) (pub day: TODAYYYYY!! 🥳🥳🥳) before I get into my review, I just want to say that I when I got this book in the mail I was a little emotional to hold an arc of a book from an islander. it’s so rare to see islander stories traditionally published and it just feels so special to have a copy. (a note: i’m not Native Hawaiian, but I am CHamoru and while these islands are not close to eachother and the culture is not the same, i see some of Guam in this book— in the talks of colonization and land being taken and disrespected, in the mythology, in the respect for the land). okay a review!! where to start??? 1) this book is CREEPY AF. and just when I thought we were at peak creepy Keala Kendall amped it up (to my dismay/horror/delight). in this story we follow Lehua, a Native Hawaiian, as she returns to her homeland to search for her missing twin sister, Ohia. oh man, i loved unraveling the mysteries of this island and also the suspense of WILL WE FIND OHIA??? and WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON HERE??? and also: WHY ARE WHITE PEOPLE SO FUCKING WEIRD??? ALSO!! LEHUA!!! I loved following her and hearing her thoughts. she was so easy to root for and I loved how smart and determined she was. also, her feelings of disconnect from her culture felt so relatable 🥺😭. the writing! was! so! lush! i really got a feel for the resort and the island and also it was lush in really creepy ways (like the smells?? why am i smelling rotten fruit as i read?? help!!!) (also why does it feel kinda humid and sweaty in here?? just me?) but it all added to the unsettling ambiance that immersed me in this book. something that really stood out to me was the way that some guests of the island look at islanders and don’t see them as equals. instead of viewing them as the rightful custodians of the land, they see them as workers, savages, and/or an experienced to be had. it’s so gross, but also felt so real. tl;dr— such a fun (???), beautifully written, unsettling read that i thoroughly enjoyed and highly rec!!

A Beast Slinks Towards Beijing by Alice Evelyn Yang thank you @williammorrowbooks for the free print copy + ALC!! this book hooked me from the first chapter, where one of our main characters, Qianze, has to come and retrieve her estranged/missing father from her childhood home. her Ba, Weihong, has a hard time staying in the present and slowly begins telling Qianze/reliving his past to tell the story that ultimately leads to a warning he must deliver to her. i’m starting to really appreciate books told with multigenerational POVs and seeing the rippling effects in the life of someone who wasn’t even born when the ripples began. this book has so much generational/collective trauma, and had me googling more events mentioned (i’m not well educated on the history here for sure) to confirm that these gut wrenching things did happen. a third POV, Ming, is introduced later in the book and i found her story as compelling as it was rough to read/listen to (which is to say: very). it’s hard to say i “enjoyed” this book because of the content, but i did find the story very captivating and i really liked how the author incorporated magical realism into the story in a way that felt like it could be true.

hi everyone! I’m zoe! welcome to my tour stop on the #ANHPIBookstaTour Day 2. I like to read a lot of history and nonfiction, which has always helped me better understand my identity & the events/cultural forces that shaped it. Simultaneously, though, it’s made me more aware of the invisible hierarchies that shape how we see ourselves and others. These are my thoughts on those hierarchies, and how I’m trying to challenge them. These are not definite statements, obviously, just my own experiences & observations. Still, recognising these patterns has pushed me to question my assumptions and, hopefully, become more compassionate and open-minded in the process. I’d love to hear your thoughts, whether you’ve navigated similar questions or seen this from a different perspective! Excited to be sharing this day with @zeelacson - make sure you check out her post as well! (and a big ty to @bookish.millennial and @hyperfixatedreader for organising this!)

✨recent audiobook reviews✨ tldr; all super enjoyable!!! shout out to @yeahimreading for the impromptu buddy read of strange houses!! what’re you listening to rn?? (music or books or both??)

✨HOLD ME LIKE A GRUDGE by CELINE ONG COVER REVEAL!!!✨ i am looking at this cover... RESPECTFULLY (hehehhehe) and i’m so happy to be a part of the cover reveal (and even more excited to have a date that i can hold this book in my hands!!)!!! pub date: june 30th!!! tropes: -Steamy sports romance -Rivals to idiots to lovers -Forbidden love -Fuck you (nuclear grade yearning) -Grumpy x sunshine / black cat x himbo golden retriever -“I can fix him” ok well i can make him scared of me and hard -“Archenemy” ok what is he arching? His back? -Love letter to queer history and revolution -Soft love, big secrets, scorching spice -Pissing on teslas (middle fingers up to capitalism) -Everyone in this clown car is gay! -A depressed gay and chaotic bisexual walk into a bar -Diverse & BIPOC cast -Insults as a love language -Hurt/comfort -Hair playing! -My beloathed (also don’t you just wanna read this because of how clever these are??? bc i personally need to read the book by the author who penned “ok what is he arching? His back?” ok now let’s all take a second (or 800) to look at this beauty!! happy cover reveal day @readwithcel !!!

✨the magic of untamed hearts by raquel vasquez gilland✨ (thank you @berkleyromance for the free copy!!! #berkleypartner) so uh when i requested this i did not realize it was the third in a series and guess what I STILL LOVED IT!! it made me want to go back and read the previous books in the Wild Magic series (also what a cool name for a series!!) i loved this story so much, and i loved how each of the sisters has a gift. in this book, our mc Sky’s gift is communicating with animals and i loved how this played out. i felt for Sky so much as she navigates losing 8 years (she vanished and came back) and reintegrating with her family/friends/the world. ALSO the communication between Sky and Adam was so lovely, honestly this book was just a joy to read and root for Sky!! 📚for THE DIVERSE BASELINE, i used this as my April: fiction by a Mexican author prompt!! #thediversebaseline also i just got back from APOLLYCON so i’m hoping to catch up with review posts this week!! wish me luck!! <3