YOURS CHLOE: Queer Literature

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Review: When You Smile by Melissa Brayden*

Title: When You Smile
Author: Melissa Brayden
Genre: LGBTQIA+ Romance

Trigger warnings: Death Of A Parent

Rating: ★★★★

Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️ (Open Door)

Have you ever had a crush on your babysitter? Taryn Ross sure did. Sixteen-year-old Charlotte was sophisticated, thoughtful, gorgeous, and fun. Taryn counted the minutes until they’d hang out. But Charlotte and her family moved away.

Now a transfer student at Hillspoint University, Taryn is ready to officially come out when she runs into a familiar face at a party. Charlie, now a grad student, insists on walking a drunk Taryn home. To the detriment of Taryn’s heart (and libido), Charlie has only grown kinder (and hotter) with time.

Charlie Adler has a five-year plan: finish her MFA without any hiccups, figure out a timeline for her engagement, and become an acclaimed fiction writer. Easy, right? That is until Taryn shows up at Hillspoint and shakes up her world like a snow globe. This Taryn is different: soulful, brooding, and all grown up. Charlie’s never been attracted to a woman before, and isn’t dating your one-time charge against the rules? If only their toe-curling, mind-dulling, body-aching chemistry would calm the hell down.

When You Smile is the latest sapphic romance novel from author Melissa Brayden. This was my first time reading anything from the author but I was very quickly hooked into the story and fell completely in love with both Charlie and Taryn.

Charlie and Taryn were an adorable couple who totally captured my heart and their romantic scenes had me smiling from ear to ear. The strong communication and openness between the two of them was also brilliant to see portrayed within romantic fiction.

Both Charlie and Taryn were wonderful quirky protagonists. Despite the age gap they were both mature and it was great to see their passions (writing and photography respectively) explored within the story too. The portrayal of Charlie’s grief following the loss of her mother, who was a single parent, was a particular strength of the book. The side characters were also a highlight for me, particularly Caz and Sasha who were absolutely hilarious. I also loved Taryn’s parents and the way they instantly welcomed Charlie in like she was one of their own, giving her the family she had missed since the death of her mother.

This was a great book to read in Pride month as it focuses on Charlie’s sexuality awakening when she finds herself attracted to a woman for the first time. It really felt like this topic was generally handled with care and I liked the fact that Charlie and Taryn took their relationship slowly. Taryn had already come out as a lesbian prior to the start of the story but she was also inexperienced in WLW relationships which created a nice dynamic between the two of them. When we got to them, the spicy scenes were also well written and felt really realistic, especially for inexperienced characters, which I really loved.

I will say that I would have liked a little more exploration into Charlie’s sexuality as it felt like it went from ‘I was straight and now I’m a lesbian’, which is ultimately bisexual erasure and my pet-hate in books exploring sexuality awakening.

When You Smile was an easy five star book for me until the final quarter or so of the book. There was a third act breakup which did feel misaligned with the rest of the book and the relationship Taryn and Charlie had. Miscommunication and not working issues out like adults didn’t feel true to the characters we knew Taryn and Charlie to be so the choice to add conflict in this way didn’t sit right with me. I also didn’t like the direction they took Danny’s mum in either, it didn’t fit the tone of the rest of the story and felt like a poor attempt to add a bit of angst to the plot. All of this reduced the book to a four star for me but it doesn’t take away from the many strengths of the rest of the book.

Overall, When You Smile is a sweet and easy sapphic romance. It was my first Melissa Brayden read but won’t be my last.

Review: Make You Mine This Christmas by Lizzie Huxley-Jones*

*I received a copy of this book in eBook format via NetGalley in return for this review. All reviews published on Yours, Chloe are completely honest and my own, and are in now way influenced by the gifting opportunity. This review is being posted as part of the Make You Mine This Christmas blog tour organised by Hodder & Stoughton.

Title: Make You Mine This Christmas
Author: Lizzie Huxley-Jones
Genre: LGBTQIA+ Romance / Holiday Romance
Trigger warnings: -
Rating: ★★★★

It's the golden rule of pretending to be someone's girlfriend: don't fall for their sister.

After a year from hell, Haf is ready to blow off steam at a Christmas party: a kind stranger, a few too many drinks and suddenly she's kissing Christopher under the mistletoe - in front of his ex-girlfriend.

The next day the news is out that they're apparently a couple, madly in love and coming to Oxlea to spend the festive season with Christopher's family. But Haf doesn't have better holiday plans and to save her new friend from embarrassment, she agrees to pretend to be Christopher's girlfriend for Christmas.

It has the makings of a hilarious anecdote they'll be telling for years. Until Haf meets Christopher's sister: the mysterious, magnetic and utterly irresistible Kit. Maybe love was waiting for Haf in this quiet little town all along ...

Make You Mine This Christmas is the latest heartwarming novel from author Lizzie Huxley-Jones and the must-read queer rom-com of this festive season.

The plot is packed full of all of your favourite romance tropes set against the backdrop of a snowy UK Christmas. Although a fake dating plot is at the forefront of the story, we also have a fantastic queer meet cute in a bookshop and the forbidden love trope is explored through Haf’s attraction to her fake boyfriend’s sister Kit. Lizzie Huxley-Jones has a really engaging writing style which you can just sink into like a big hug and I read the entire book in one sitting. I just couldn’t get enough!

I loved how much representation we had within the story and this is really something which I think sets Make You Mine This Christmas apart from other books. This includes neurodivergent, disability and chronic pain rep, a curvy and body-positive FMC and a range of LGBTQIA+ representation including characters who were non-binary, bisexual and lesbian.

This book is perfect if you want a really Christmas-heavy read packed full of festive cheer to cosy up with this holiday season. It really gave off Hallmark-movie vibes with everything from questionable Christmas jumpers and handmade decorations to kisses under the mistletoe and a cosy community Christmas fair with real (albeit unpredictable) reindeer.

One of the things which stood out within the story was how loveable and relatable all of the characters were. Haf was a truly fantastic protagonist and, as someone who was diagnosed as autistic in adulthood, I loved that she was written as an autistic character whose autism had been missed but probably explained a lot of the aspects of her character. This representation is so important and really made me feel seen so I want to thank Lizzie Huxley-Jones for including this in the story. Haf’s fake-boyfriend Christopher was a total sweetheart and, whilst being mindful of avoiding spoilers where possible, I loved the journey his character went on towards starting to advocate more for his wants and dreams rather than feeling like he has to confirm to the expectations set of him. I honestly don’t know where to begin with talking about how much I loved Kit’s character. I fell in love with her the minute we met her in the bookshop and this love only grew the more we got to know her. Her relationship with her brother felt like a really authentic sibling relationship and, as I’ve already said, I thought her disability and linked chronic pain were really well portrayed and some of the best disabled representation I’ve seen in any book. The romantic and sexual tension between Haf and Kit was well-written, as were the (spoiler alert) romantic and spicier scenes when we got to them. If anything, one thing I would have liked in way of improving the narrative was if we’d had even more stolen romantic moments between Haf and Kit to build up their romance gradually. Although it’s a slow burn prior to their first kiss, after that it feels like we go from 0-100 and I would have liked a few more stolen kisses here and there to increase the tension even further by the time we get to the spicier moments.

We also have a fantastic cast of supporting characters and I loved every single one of them, from Laurel the fake boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend to the queer meet-cute obsessed bookseller and the ever-present Bryn. Ambrose, Haf’s flatmate and best friend, had to be my favourite though and they made me laugh out loud almost every chapter with their witty remarks and hilarious use of twitter polls. I loved that although Ambrose was non-binary, they weren’t defined by their gender identity and aside from use of they/them pronouns throughout the narrative, their gender identity was only referenced briefly and the focus was more on their other character traits.

Overall, Make You Mine This Christmas is a charming festive sapphic romance packed full of Christmas spirit, witty characters, laugh-out-loud moments, cute romantic scenes and truly incredible disabled and LGBTQIA+ representation. It’s a must-read this Christmas.

Review: Her Forgotten Promise by Corin Burnside*

Title: Her Forgotten Promise
Author: Corin Burnside
Genre: Historical Fiction

Trigger warnings: Suicide, War, Death Of A Parent, Guns

Rating: ★★★★

A wartime secret. A journey to uncover the truth.

Claire has always had a special bond with her aunt Margaret, but she’s astonished when Margaret suddenly begins talking about a friend called Agnes, who Margaret met working as a WAAF in World War 2 – a past Claire had no idea about. Margaret and Agnes were best friends until Agnes started acting strangely, becoming secretive and distant. Then one morning, Agnes vanished and never returned home, leaving Margaret distraught.

Claire promises to delve back into the past and help discover what happened to Agnes. But Margaret’s memory is rapidly deteriorating, and apart from an old photograph of the two women, Agnes seems to have disappeared into thin air. Can Claire uncover Agnes’ story before it’s too late?

Her Forgotten Promise is the debut novel from author Corin Burnside. It is a beautiful story of love and loss which is as heartbreaking as it is heartwarming. Our story is told through a dual-timeline narrative, moving between 2014 and the 1940s, as Claire tries to uncover the mystery of where Agnes went once her aunt Margaret lost contact with her during the war.

To say that this is Corin Burnside’s debut work is truly amazing. She has a real gift for storytelling and her vivid descriptions made the rural French setting come alive on the page and had me fully immersed within the story. The narrative is perfectly paced, the writing flows effortlessly and the history was also clearly very well researched. I’m really looking forward to seeing more from her as an author, she’s earnt hirself a firm place on my ‘Authors To Watch’ list!

From the synopsis I was not expecting a beautiful sapphic romance to be at the centre of the story and I’m a big fan of LGBTQIA+ representation within historical fiction so this was a pleasant surprise. Although I will say that omitting Agnes and Margaret’s romance from the marketing of the book did feel like an example of ‘history will say they were… roommates’ meme! Their friends to lovers love story was so beautiful that I thought it was a shame it was not shouted about in the synopsis and marketing.

Her Forgotten Promise is full of strong female characters who were all beautifully written with lots of depth to them. Agnes was a fantastic character with admiral courage, strength and tenacity. Through her I think Corin Burnside perfectly portrayed the incredible courage of the female SOE agents operating within the German-occupied countries during the war. I also loved Margaret as a character and thought she was fantastically written as both a young woman and an elderly woman. I did find myself struggling initially to warm to Claire, confused as to why she’d neglected to visit an elderly woman who had played such an important role in her life, but this began to change as the novel progressed and I ended up really enjoying her chapters.

One of my only criticisms would be that there were too many coincidences driving the plot which made it feel unrealistic at times. I also felt that the plot point surrounding Claire’s ex-husband and his new partner unnecessarily took our focus away from Agnes and Margaret. Whilst it did give us good mental health representation through the portrayal of Claire’s experiences of panic attacks, it largely felt rather pointless and like it would have been better to simply say she was recently divorced and leave it at that.

Overall, Her Forgotten Promise is a fantastic debut historical fiction novel from Corin Burnside which combines themes of love, loss and courage into a fast-paced story about SOE work in wartime France. It is a must-read for fans of historical fiction.

Review: Fake Dates and Mooncakes by Sher Lee*

Title: Fake Dates And Mooncakes
Author: Sher Lee
Genre: LGBTQIA+ Young Adult
Trigger warnings: Death Of A Parent
Rating: ★★★★★

Fake-dates, mooncakes and rich people problems. But love wasn't meant to be on the menu . . .

Meet Dylan Tang: he juggles school and delivery runs for his aunt’s struggling Chinese takeout in Brooklyn. Winning a mooncake competition could bring the publicity they need to stay afloat.

Enter Theo Somers: a charming, wealthy customer who convinces Dylan to be his fake date to a family wedding full of crazy rich drama. Their romance is supposed to be just for show . . . but soon Dylan’s falling for Theo. For real.

With the mooncake contest looming, Dylan can’t risk being distracted by rich-people problems. Can he save his family’s business and follow his heart – or will he fail to do both?

Fake Dates and Mooncakes is a fantastic queer romance debut from Sher Lee. As the title suggests, it is the fake-dating story of our two male protagonists Dylan and Theo and the narrative utilises other well-loved romance tropes such as only one bed, instant connection and the couple coming from different worlds. Through this, Sher Lee has created a charming and wholesome queer romance which was so easy to read in a single sitting and had me smiling from ear to ear.

Dylan and Theo were both fantastic protagonists who were beautifully written as realistic teenagers. I loved their instant connection and Theo’s charm and flirtatious nature will make you swoon. The supporting characters were all wonderful too. I fell in love with Dylan’s family and it was fantastic to have a diverse family type represented within YA fiction as Dylan lives with his aunt and cousins following the death of his mother.

The book is also a love letter to Chinese culture, particularly Chinese street food as Dylan is an aspiring chef working for the family takeout business and taking part in a local mooncake competition. The impact of grief was also beautifully explored through Dylan and Theo connecting over having both lost their mothers.

This book has been marketed as ‘Heartstopper meets Crazy Rich Asians’ and that couldn’t be more spot on. If you are looking for a cute and easy to read queer romance packed full of your favourite tropes, look no further than Fake Dates and Mooncakes. This was an incredible debut from Sher Lee and I’m so looking forward to reading more from them.

Review: I Wish You All The Best by Mason Deaver*

Title: I Wish You All The Best
Author: Mason Deaver
Genre: LGBTQIA+ Young Adult

Trigger warnings: Transphobia, Misgendering, Rejection From Parents After Coming Out, Panic Attacks

Rating: ★★★★★

I Wish You All The Best is the story of Ben, a teenager who comes out to their parents as non-binary and is thrown out and forced to move in with their estranged sister Hannah and her husband Thomas, attending therapy to try and process their parents’ rejection and the anxiety and panic attacks is has triggered. When they relocate to move in with Hannah, Ben has to move schools mid-way through their senior year and tries to keep a low profile but the outgoing and charismatic Nathan takes Ben under his wing and makes them part of his wider friendship group. Slowly Ben and Nathan’s friendship begins to grow and their feelings begin to change, giving Ben a chance to start a happier new life as his authentic self.

This book has been on my to-read list for a while now so I was excited to have the opportunity to read and review it following it’s UK publication and I was definitely not disappointed. I normally write notes on the book I’m reading as I go along, to prepare for reviewing, but I was so captured by the story that I read it in a single sitting, barely even pausing for breath.

I Wish You All The Best is a complex yet powerful coming of age story of acceptance, friendship and love which is equal parts heart-warming and heart-breaking. Mason Deaver has a truly beautiful writing style which is so engaging yet easy to read. I was astounded to read that it was their debut work and really look forward to seeing more from them in the future because they truly are one of the current standout authors, particularly within queer fiction.

Ben was an incredible protagonist who I didn’t feel ready to part with when the story came to a close. Nathan is just joy personified in a character and the unconditional acceptance Ben receives from the entire friendship group was incredibly heart-warming. The slow burn romance between Ben and Nathan was truly beautiful and the scenes on Nathan’s rooftop were some of the best romantic scenes I’ve read in a long time. Also, the scene where Ben comes out to Nathan was particularly powerful and Nathan’s immediate apology for having unknowingly misgendered Ben so many times just melted my heart.

I Wish You All The Best has strong mental health representation through it’s authentic portrayal of Ben’s experiences of anxiety, panic attacks and depression. I also enjoyed the positive portrayal of therapy, particularly seeing Ben’s initial resistance to attending the sessions grow into appreciation of the positive impact talking to an impartial person can have.

Through reading I Wish You All The Best I feel I’ve learnt so much about non-binary experiences, therefore enabling me to be a better ally. Ben’s story has made me consider things I previously wouldn’t have as a cisgender person, such as how commonly used terms of endearment for friends and siblings are gendered. The intolerance and prejudice shown by Ben’s parents was a heart-breaking and difficult read but it’s so important that we don’t shy away from these stories.

My only possible criticism for the book would be that it wasn’t longer. I was so captivated by Ben’s story that I would have loved it to be longer to allow for a deeper exploration of certain characters, particularly Maleika and Sophie who brought such joy to the story, and certain aspects of the plot such as Ben and Hannah reconnecting after being estranged for over a decade.

Overall, I Wish You All The Best is a powerful truly ground-breaking story that I think everyone should read at least once. It’s going to be particularly impactful for both members of the LGBTQIA+ community and those who want to become better allies. I was so delighted to hear that the book is being adapted into a film and I’m really excited by the casting and the opportunity to see Ben’s story portrayed on the big screen.

Review: Stolen Kiss by Spencer Greene*

Title: Stolen Kiss
Author: Spencer Greene
Genre: Romance / LGBTQ+ Fiction

Trigger warnings: Sexual Harassment, Transphobia, Misgendering, Death Of A Partner

Rating: ★★★★

When Anna Nelson finds herself newly single, unemployed and apartment-less, she reluctantly returns to her hometown of Trenton, Virginia. Whilst in a local dive bar run by an old friend, Anna meets a beautiful stranger named Louise and their instant chemistry leads to them sharing a passionate stolen kiss before parting ways. But when Anna reluctantly returns to her family home, she comes face to face with Louise again and is shocked to learn that Louise is her brother Clay’s new girlfriend. Anna and Louise are then forced to ignore their attraction to each other and supress their growing feelings.

I tend to typically avoid books which are centered around the cheating/unfaithfulness trope but the combination of instant attraction and forbidden love really drew me into the plot so I decided to put my reservations to one side and I’m so glad I did.

Stolen Kiss is told through a dual POV narrative, with chapters alternating between the different perspectives of Anna and Louise. This was really well executed and the insight into the thoughts, feelings and background of both women it gave us really added depth to their characters and made us really want to root for their relationship.

Anna and Louise were incredible instantly-likeable protagonists with off the charts chemistry who both have real depth to them. I loved how unapologetically herself Anna was and through the character of Louise we were given a beautiful exploration of grief and the difficulty of allowing yourself to be vulnerable enough to open your heart to a new relationship following the death of a partner.

We also had some really strong supporting characters through Rachel, George and Louise’s Mum (who is an absolute gem). I’d really love further books on this gang as I feel they have so much more to give and it would be lovely to see some of the potential relationships hinted at towards the end of the story play out.

As you would expect from an LGBTQIA+ romance, Stolen Kiss has a really diverse set of characters and we have lesbian, bisexual, gay and non-binary representation. There’s a great coming out scene and we get some wonderful spicy scenes which were some of my favourite I’ve read in queer romances.

I liked the simple choice to set the story around the holidays. The description of the Christmas market made me fall in love with the fictional town of Trenton and it added a real cosy element to the story.

In Anna and Clay’s parents, Spencer Greene has successfully written two of the most intentionally unlikeable characters I’ve ever come across, which is no mean feat. They honestly have no redeeming qualities whatsoever and I felt myself tense up whenever they entered a scene, in the knowledge that it wouldn’t be too long before something vile and homophobic came out of their mouths. I did like the choice to give the parents no reprieve and focus more on the characters cutting ties and focusing on their found family instead as this isn’t something I’ve seen a lot of in other stories despite it ultimately often being the reality for LGBTQIA+ people with unaccepting families.

Towards the end of the book there is a twist involving the character of Clay and I will say that this was something I predicted very early on and I’m in two minds of whether or not I think it was a necessary twist.

I would also have liked an epilogue to give some closure on how their relationship played out. They do have a real whirlwind romance so it would be really interesting to get some insight on how their relationship is months or even years down the line.

Overall, Stolen Kiss is a strong, heart-warming queer romance which is hot and flirtatious from the first chapter and very difficult to put down. It would be the perfect holiday read.

Review: Six Times We Almost Kissed (And One Time We Did) by Tess Sharpe*

Title: Six Times We Almost Kissed (And One Time We Did)
Author: Tess Sharpe
Genre: Young Adult / LGBTQ+ Fiction

Trigger warnings: Parental Loss, Abuse/Neglect by a parent, Cancer, Parental Illness, Death, PTSD, Suicide Ideation, Anti-Therapy and Anti-Medication Attitudes (from a parent, including therapy denial).

Rating: ★★★★★

Six Times We Almost Kissed (And One Time We Did) tells the heart-warming coming of age story of Penny and Tate, two girls who have always clashed but whose lives constantly overlap through their mothers who have been best friends since childhood. When Tate’s mum needs a liver transplant, Penny’s mum volunteers to be a live donor and they choose to combine households so the families can support each other physically, emotionally and financially. This means that Penny and Tate are living under the same roof and are forced to address the one thing they keep ignoring: the fact that they keep almost kissing.

Penny and Tate’s story is a beautiful slow burn romance, perfect for fans of the enemies to lovers trope. In Penny and Tate’s love story we also really see the everyone can see it trope as not only do their friends see a spark between them but their mums do too. The book is structured into multiple parts, with each part telling the story of an individual time the pair has almost kissed, gradually building up to them actually kissing and becoming a couple. Structuring the story in this way gave us as readers an insight into the full complicated story of their relationship and how shared experiences have brought them closer together. We also have occasional pages which share text feeds between different characters, particularly between Penny and Tate and between Meghan (Penny’s best friend) and Remington (Tate’s best friend). This breaks up the narrative in quite a light-hearted and often humorous way so was a nice addition to the story.

In Six Times We Almost Kissed we have a story which goes beyond the typical light-hearted love story you’d expect from a YA romance novel. Both girls have had to grow up incredibly quickly and I think Tess Sharpe explores this really well. Tate has had to manage having a single parent with a long-term illness and this has included taking a role in managing the family finances despite only being a teenager. Penny is recovering from the trauma of the water sports accident which injured her and killed her father and interjected within the narrative are occasional chapters which provide a flashback to the events surrounding the accident. This really helps readers to understand the trauma Penny has as a result and the way it has impacted on her relationship with her mum. We see real character development in the character of Penny throughout the story as she learns to stand up to herself against her Mum and demand what she needs in order to be able to start to heal from her trauma. The mental health representation we have in the book through the exploration of the PTSD and trauma Penny has is truly fantastic and a really sets Six Times We Almost Kissed apart from other YA books. As it covers so many hard-hitting topics, the book does have a number of content warnings and I have listed what I consider to be the key ones in the information above. Tess Sharpe posted an in-depth content warning list on her blog, which you can find here.

We have two really strong female leads in Penny and Tate and I instantly warmed to the both of them. Whilst I adored Penny’s love of bullet journalling and the real journey of character development she goes on throughout the book, Tate was my personal favourite character. I found her character really endearing and found it so sweet that she would drop everything whenever Penny needed her. I do wish we’d had more exploration of her passion for swimming though as it became a bit of an insignificant detail in the story.

Although it doesn’t take away from it being a five-star read for me, I did struggle with the structure of the narrative. The story is told through a dual perspective narrative and although I really enjoyed having both Penny and Tate’s perspectives as they provided really distinctive takes on the story, I didn’t like that was no pattern to whose chapter was whose. Whilst traditionally in a dual perspective narrative you might see the chapters alternate, in Six Times We Almost Kissed it flits between perspectives quite willy-nilly. I’m conscious that this is just something which goes against my personal preference and I did get used to it as the book progressed, which is why it hasn’t impacted on my star rating.

Overall, Six Times We Almost Kissed (And One Time We Did) is a beautiful queer love story which is incredibly heart-warming whilst also not being afraid to tackle some really hard-hitting topics. Although it’s a YA novel, I feel that adult readers such as myself can take so much from the story.

Have you read Six Times We Almost Kissed (And One Time We Did)? What did you think?

Review: Sorry, Bro by Taleen Voskuni*

Title: Sorry, Bro
Author: Taleen Voskuni
Genre: Romance / LGBTQ+ Fiction

Trigger warnings: Parental loss, Alcoholism, Car Accident, Workplace Sexism and Misogyny, Forced Coming Out, Biphobia and Homophobia

Rating: ★★★★★

When Nar’s non-Armenian boyfriend gets down on one knee and proposes to her in front of a room full of drunk San Francisco tech boys, she realizes it’s time to find someone who shares her idea of romance.

Enter her mother: armed with plenty of mom-guilt and a spreadsheet of Facebook-stalked Armenian men, she convinces Nar to attend Explore Armenia, a month-long series of events in the city. But it’s not the mom-approved playboy doctor or wealthy engineer who catches her eye—it’s Erebuni, a woman as equally immersed in the witchy arts as she is in preserving Armenian identity. Suddenly, with Erebuni as her wingwoman, the events feel like far less of a chore, and much more of an adventure. Who knew cooking up kuftes together could be so . . . sexy?

Erebuni helps Nar see the beauty of their shared culture and makes her feel understood in a way she never has before. But there’s one teeny problem: Nar’s not exactly out as bisexual. The clock is ticking on Nar’s double life, though—the closing event banquet is coming up, and her entire extended family will be there, along with Erebuni. Her worlds will inevitably collide, but Nar is determined to be brave, determined to claim her happiness: proudly Armenian, proudly bisexual, and proudly herself for the first time in her life.

Sorry, Bro tells the story of Nareh, an Armenian American woman who breaks up with her long-term boyfriend in the opening chapters of the story and then goes on a journey of self-discovery and ultimately self-acceptance, exploring both her bisexual identity and her identity as an Armenian American woman. Giving in to her mother’s insistence that she settles down with a nice Armenian boy, Nareh attends a local festival called 'Explore Armenia' with the aim of meeting some of the men on her mother’s approved list. But instead she meets Erebuni, a young bisexual woman fully in touch with her Armenian heritage who helps Nareh to explore her identity as both a queer woman and an Armenian. In Erebuni, Taleen Voskuni has created the love interest of queer fiction dreams and fellow fans of the friends to lovers trope will adore watching their friendship blossom into love.

Sorry, Bro explore societal attitudes to bisexuality in a really powerful way and much of the conflict in the story comes from Nareh being torn between her blossoming love for Erebuni and the fact that she’s not ‘out’ to her family. The book also features parental loss and parental alcoholism in a subtle yet powerful way, exploring how the trauma of loosing a parent in a drink driving accident continues to have on Nareh's life even years later.

Although Sorry, Bro is at heart a beautiful queer romance, it isn’t all light-hearted as it also explores Armenian culture in depth and provides an important political commentary on American attitudes to the Armenian genocide. The author’s love of her heritage and culture seeps through the pages of the book and although I came to Sorry, Bro with very little knowledge of Armenian culture and history, reading such a beautiful exploration has inspired me to educate myself further on both Armenian culture and the history of Armenian Genocide.

I would also like to take a moment to praise the beautiful cover art and chapter title pages in Sorry, Bro. The cover is minimalist but captures the story perfectly. Each chapter opens with an Armenian proverb and a beautifully decorated page. It was a small simple touch but really helped to immerse us into Armenian culture.

My one criticism of the book would be the title. Whilst I understand the choice of ‘Sorry, Bro’ as it’s a phrase repeated throughout the narrative, I felt the book was deserving of a richer title which was more in tune with the themes of the story. But this is a minor detail that really hasn’t taken away from the book’s status as a definite five star read.

Taleen Voskuni writes in such a beautiful way and creates characters with such depth and charm that it’s hard to believe this is her debut work. Humour is woven seamlessly into the story and she writes an engaging well-paced narrative which I found easy to devour in one sitting. Whilst I can’t put my finger on how a sequel could take place and where it could fit into Nareh and Erebuni’s love story, I don’t feel ready to part with such wonderful characters so I’d be one of the first to preorder a second book. But whether it’s through a return to Nareh’s world or in a new fictional universe, I can’t wait to read more works from Taleen Voskuni, she is definitely an author to watch.

Have you read Sorry, Bro? What did you think? Or can you recommend any other books with good bisexual representation?

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