LGBTQIA+ – Page 3 – Made of Stardust and Stubbornness

“We’re Not Broken” Review

Posted on April 21, 2025April 28, 2026 by Jen

“We’re Not Broken: Changing the Autism Conversation” by Eric Garcia

Garcia began writing about autism because he was frustrated by the media’s coverage of it; the myths that the disorder is caused by vaccines, the narrow portrayals of autistic people as white men working in Silicon Valley. His own life as an autistic person didn’t look anything like that. He is Latino, a graduate of the University of North Carolina, and works as a journalist covering politics in Washington D.C. Garcia realized he needed to put into writing what so many autistic people have been saying for years; autism is a part of their identity, they don’t need to be fixed.

In We’re Not Broken, Garcia uses his own life as a springboard to discuss the social and policy gaps that exist in supporting those on the spectrum. From education to healthcare, he explores how autistic people wrestle with systems that were not built with them in mind. At the same time, he shares the experiences of all types of autistic people, from those with higher support needs, to autistic people of color, to those in the LGBTQ community. In doing so, Garcia gives his community a platform to articulate their own needs, rather than having others speak for them, which has been the standard for far too long.

Review

I originally read this back in 2022 sometime after it came out in 2021 and wanted to re-read it now both to do a review for it and also because of the current political rhetoric around autism. I really like the way Eric Garcia took the time to explain why and how he wanted to write this book. There was a good variety of people represented in this book from across the spectrum of support needs as well as gender and race.

Garcia also makes a point of saying how people can have different needs but often assumptions are made about who needs what supports to be successful. He emphasizes that Autistic individuals who succeed don’t “overcome” their autism but rather succeed because they are given the proper supports throughout their lives. There was a lot of discussion about being willing to seek out support along with the fear that needing support means one is not capable of being out in the world which can hinder actually getting support.

The book is divided into several categories including those for work, education, housing, gender, and race and in each one Garcia both tells his own experiences and also shares the experiences of others. Again, each section does a good job of showing a range of experiences. I particularly appreciated the first chapter which outlined a lot of the history of autism and how it has been viewed over the years. It’s a bit weird reading this book now during the second Trump presidency when it was written during the first and some policy decisions were made at that time.

I also appreciated the gender and race sections of the book, which illustrated why there is seemingly such an increase in diagnosis over the years. Girls, non-binary, and trans individuals are often overlooked as many traits are assumed to be more about gender (like being shy) than anything else. Also, with regard to race, there was a point in time when it was assumed only white boys were autistic (mostly due to the way studies were conducted), while Black and Brown children were given different diagnoses, such as Oppositional Defiant Disorder.

Overall, I think Garcia does a great job highlighting the various issues that autistic people face and the ways that assumptions have been made across the spectrum with regard to ability and how best to support autistic people. There is some good discussion about the conflicts that can exist between parent advocates and self-advocates. Nearly always, parents want to do best by their children, but sometimes the idea of finding a cure can cause more harm than good. Often, the push for a cure comes at the expense of actually providing care and support to the children and adults that currently exist. And this is true for a lot of different disabilities where better supports would be appreciated more than finding a cure.

Book Details

The book cover is a sold white background with the title written one word per line down the center. The letters of the title are colored in different colored sections: orange, pink, purple, green, blu and red. The subtitle is under the main title in solid black and then the authors name is at the bottom with the same color patterns.

Author’s Website: Eric Garcia
Publisher / Date: Harvest Publications, August 2021
Genre: Essay Collection
Page Count: 304
Completion Date: April 21, 2025

“Warped State” Review

Posted on April 13, 2025April 28, 2026 by Jen

“Warped State” (“The Gifted of Brennex” No. 1) by Jo Miles

Jasper Wilder is an activist, not a spy, but he’ll become one if that’s what it takes to stop Ravel Corporation from reviving the research project that devastated his home planet.

His plan is simple enough: Break into the secure facility. Steal the research data. Find a weakness and sabotage the project. But all that goes out the airlock when he meets Havoc, a passionate but politically naive labor organizer trying to reform Ravel from within.

Havoc could help Jasper, but instead, he’s fighting for a lost cause. Jasper knows that if he sticks with his own plan, Havoc will likely take the blame—and Ravel doesn’t treat activists kindly.

With an elite security operative closing in, and time running out to sabotage the deadly project before it launches, Jasper needs to find a way to team up with Havoc… before his mission hurts the person he’s coming to care about.

Review

I really enjoyed reading this book. The characters were interesting and I had fun getting to know them. I also liked the way various methods of advocating for change were explained and discussed in the book. It was interesting seeing how the main characters, Jasper and Sowing of Small Havoc were dealing with the various issues. I thought it worked out well to explore why Havoc was so loyal to the company (Kovari cultural reasons) and that there were others who felt differently among his people but it took work for him understand it. I also liked that while Jasper had ideas about how to do things he was willing to work with Havoc later on to resolve everything.

I liked the way the friendship developed between Jasper and Havoc and I was okay with the potential romantic relationship developing because it came later on in the plot and didn’t distract from what was gone on. The main villein was a bit ridiculous but given how certain people in the current administration are reacting to criticism it clearly isn’t as far fetched as you’d think.

One somewhat frustrating part was the existence of a villain character who had augmented legs while also being addicted to pain killers. The addiction only seemed to exist as a method to allow the ship he was using (which has at some point become sentient) to help Havoc and Jasper with their work as the character was unconscious at the time. Nothing is ever mentioned about it again after that.

I did like that there were other people on the planet that were working to free themselves from Rival’s occupation and that it was a mix of both Human and Kovari – seemingly with Kovari in charge of that group. I also liked that there was at least one disabled character (a wheelchair user) in that group to balance out the evil disabled character.

I’m interested in reading the next book in the series though and seeing more of this universe.

Additional reviews and warnings can be found on the StoryGraph page for “Warped State”

Book Details

The cover is blue with what looks like an industrial land scape at the bottom of the cover. With a star filled sky above it. In the background there is the black profile of a head over the sky looking towards the right. There is another planet with a moon orbiting it at the top right corner and a space ship flying up and to the left with a trail of yellow, white light coming from the bottom.

Author’s Website: Jo Miles
Publisher / Date: Self Published, September 2023
Genre: Science Fiction
Page Count: 398
Completion Date: April 12, 2025

“The Way of Thorn & Thunder” Review

Posted on April 6, 2025April 28, 2026 by Jen

“The Way of Thorn & Thunder Trilogy: The Kynship Chronicles” by Daniel Heath Justice

Originally Published by Kegedonce Press between 2005 and 2007 as three books “Kynship”, “Wyrwood”, and “Dreyd”. The revised and expanded 2011 reissue from the University of New Mexico Press is an omnibus volume: one novel now divided into seven cycles.

The Everland-home of the tree-born Kyn since time immemorial, a deep green world of ancient mystery and danger. The wyr-powers of the Kyn and the other Eld Folk have preserved this wild region from the ravenous hunger of Humanity for over a thousand years, but those powers are fast fading away. As the eyes of Men turn once more to the Everland and its rich bounty, the leaders of the Folk gather in Sheynadwiin, the Kyn capital, hoping to find a way to survive the growing storm.

She is Tarsadeshae the Spearbreaker a fearless Kyn warrior trained in the Redthorn ways of battle and blood. She knows her place in the Everland’s cycle of life and death, and that knowledge gives her strength and purpose. Yet Tarsa’s ordered world is shattered when an act of courage goes horribly awry, and her spirit awakens to the wild wyr of her ancestors powers long persecuted by the assimilationist Shields and their allies. As she struggles to reconcile her former life with the call of the rising bloodsong, Tarsa joins the summons of the Sevenfold Council, where she is swept into the struggle between those Folk who would embrace the promises of Men, and those who would hold fast to the rooted understandings of the Eld Green. For all who call the Everland home, there can be no middle path.

Review

This is a really interesting and complex book. I read the original three novels years ago and have always wanted to read it again. The story itself is an alternate version of Europeans colonizing the “new world”. Only in this case a fantasy version of humans with magical powers caused a catastrophic merging of two worlds a thousand years ago – the world of Men and the world of Eld Folk. And of course Men want to have everything and don’t care what the Eld Folk want.

There is a lot going in this novel and while it does take some time to get through, I feel like it’s ultimately worth it. The writing is very detailed and mostly narration, while also having many different characters and points of views with individual stories happening around the central story. If you’ve read “Lord of the Rings” you’ll get a sense of what the writing is like. I really enjoyed getting to know all of the different characters and learning their stories. I did like the ending of the book and the hopeful feel of it despite everything that had happened.

You may be interested in reading Bogi Takács’s reviews of the novel (in three parts):
The Way of Thorn and Thunder by Daniel Heath Justice (Part 1)
The Way of Thorn and Thunder by Daniel Heath Justice (Part 2)
The Way of Thorn and Thunder by Daniel Heath Justice (Part 3)

Additional reviews and warnings can be found on the StoryGraph page for “The Way of Thorn & Thunder”

Book Details

The book cover is fulled with orange and red and yellow flames covering the vague image of ground and a tree with one or two faces in the center of the image - two eyes are visible but it looks like there might be two faces half on top of each other in the middle of it. The title of the book is on the top with a white transparent background over the tree and the authors name is at the bottom.

Author’s Website: Daniel Heath Justice
Publisher / Date: University of New Mexico Press, 2011
Genre: Fantasy
Page Count: 616
Completion Date: April 5, 2025

“The Final Strife” Review

Posted on March 31, 2025April 28, 2026 by Jen

“The Final Strife (The Ending Fire Trilogy No. 1)” by Saara El-Arifi

The Empire rules by blood

Red is the blood of the elite, of magic, of control.

Blue is the blood of the poor, of workers, of the resistance.

Clear is the blood of the servants, of the crushed, of the invisible.

The Aktibar – a set of trials held every ten years to find the next Ember rulers of the Empire – is about to begin.

All can join but not just anyone can win; it requires great skill and ingenuity to become the future wardens of Strength, Knowledge, Truth and Duty.

Sylah was destined to win the trials and be crowned Warden of Strength. Stolen by blue-blooded rebels she was raised with a Duster’s heart; forged as a weapon to bring down from within the red-blooded Embers’ regime of cruelty. But when her adopted family were brutally murdered those dreams of a better future turned to dust.

However, the flame of hope may yet be rekindled because Sylah wasn’t made to sparkle, she was born to burn.

Review

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were really interesting and I enjoyed getting to know them. The word building was great – I really liked how everything started to come together as the story progressed and the characters learned more. There were a lot of twists and turns in this book and not everything was as it seemed. I liked the way the different relationships grew and developed during the course of the book. Though it doesn’t end on a cliffhanger it does set up the threads of the next book, which I’m looking forward to reading soon.

Warnings and additional reviews are available on the StoryGraph page for “The Final Strife”.

Book Details

The cover is taken up by a white laced pattern that has a red strip through the bottom half and red cen also be seen through the lace. The title is written near the top with the authors name at the bottom

Author’s Website: Saara El-Arifi
Publisher / Date: HarperVoyager, June 2022
Genre: Fantasy
Page Count: 478 pages
Completion Date: March 30, 2025

“The Tensorate Series” Review

Posted on March 27, 2025April 28, 2026 by Jen

“The Tensorate Series” by Neon Yang

Across four novellas, Neon Yang established themself as a fantasist in bold defiance of the limitations of their genre. Available now in a single volume, these four novellas trace the generational decline of an empire and unfurl a world that is rich and strange beyond anything you’ve dreamed.

In the Tensorate Series you will find: rebellious nonbinary scions of empire, sky-spanning nagas with experimental souls, revolutionary engineers bent on bringing power to the people, pugilist monks, packs of loyal raptors, and much, much more.

The Tensorate Series omnibus contains The Black Tides of Heaven, The Red Threads of Fortune, The Descent of Monsters, and To Ascend to Godhood

Review

This was such an interesting series! The format of the third and fourth novellas are very different from the first two but I enjoyed reading all of them. I loved learning about the world and the characters. There were a few times I wished things had been explained a bit more, but it didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment of the series. If the author were to ever write more in this world I would definitly read it.

1) The Black Tides of Heaven: Mokoya and Akeha, the twin children of the Protector, who rules the empire are introduced. They were sold to the Grand Monastery as infants as payment for a debt. As they grow to adulthood Mokoya develops visions of the future while Akeha grows more discontent with their situation. Soon after reaching adulthood Akeha leaves to find their own destiny.

I really liked the way this one played out as the children grow up and explore their world. The relationship between the twins is great. Given how things played out I thought it made sense for Akeha to need to leave to figure things out. While the ending did feel a little abrupt it did make sense for the story being told and resolved a lot of what Akeha had been looking for.

2) The Red Threads of Fortune : Set a few years after the events of the previous story, Mokoya’s daughter was killed in an accident causing her to leave her old life behind. Currently Mokoya to hunts deadly creatures in the outer reaches of the kingdom. During one such hunt she meets Rider, but all is not as it seems.

I enjoyed reading this story – I thought a lot of things made sense with the way Mokoya was acting even though her actions weren’t always great. In this story we do learn a bit more about how the “magic” of the world works as well as Mokoya’s prophecies which I enjoyed. Again I liked the relationships between all the characters. The ending felt a bit more resolved in this one at least as far Mokoya’s story. The overall issues of the world are still there in the background but were never really the main point which is fine.

3) The Descent of Monsters: Set sometime after the second novella this one is told entirely in the form of letters between people investigating something terrible that has happened at an institute for experimental methods, and the journal entries of one of the investigators. There is a subplot involving Rider (from the previous book) and their own missing twin.

This one was interesting. The format isn’t usually my cup of tea but I ended up liking it a lot because it all flowed really well. The focus is on the main investigator for the case but he end ups meeting up with the rest of the characters from the previous plots. Still all told in journal entries we find out what happened and how the case was solved. Some might feel the ending doesn’t answer a few questions but I thought it gave enough hints to suggest where things were going.

4) To Ascend to Godhood: Set sometime farther into the future when the Protector has died. Lady Han tells her story of how she met the Protector while at a tavern in the aftermath. There are bits before and after the prequel story that give some hints at what has gone on, and what will happen next.

I thought this was an interesting way to finish up the series – and as an individual story I really did enjoy learning about Lady Han’s history with the Protector. It’s the shortest novella in the collection and while it’s a rambling story about the past, it fits in with the rest of the novellas as part of the larger world.

Warnings and additional reviews are available on the StoryGraph page for “The Tensorate Series”

Book Details

The book cover has many different patterns and designs on the cover set against a black background with red hues at the top right. There plants at the at the bottom spaced around the curls of a dragons tail and water spouts around the tail and balls of fire. There are yellow symbols that have dragons drawn inside them. The title is written across the top with the authors name above the title.

Author’s Website: Neon Yang
Publisher / Date: Tor.com, September 2021; The individual novellas were originally published from 2017 to 2019
Genre: Science Fiction, Fantasy
Page Count: 480 (across 4 novellas give or take a few pages)
Completion Date: March 26, 2025

“Compound Fracture” Review

Posted on March 22, 2025April 28, 2026 by Jen

“Compound Fracture” by Andrew Joseph White

On the night Miles Abernathy—sixteen-year-old socialist and proud West Virginian—comes out as trans to his parents, he sneaks off to a party, carrying evidence that may finally turn the tide of the blood feud plaguing Twist Creek: Photos that prove the county’s Sheriff Davies was responsible for the so-called “accident” that injured his dad, killed others, and crushed their grassroots efforts to unseat him.

The feud began a hundred years ago when Miles’s great-great-grandfather, Saint Abernathy, incited a miners’ rebellion that ended with a public execution at the hands of law enforcement. Now, Miles becomes the feud’s latest victim as the sheriff’s son and his friends sniff out the evidence, follow him through the woods, and beat him nearly to death.

In the hospital, the ghost of a soot-covered man hovers over Miles’s bedside while Sheriff Davies threatens Miles into silence. But when Miles accidentally kills one of the boys who hurt him, he learns of other folks in Twist Creek who want out from under the sheriff’s heel. To free their families from this cycle of cruelty, they’re willing to put everything on the line—is Miles

Review

Another great book by Andrew Joseph White! Since it set in modern times (shortly after President Trump’s first election) without a large fantasy element it’s a little different than his other books. Some of the plot seemed a bit far fetched on how things would go down. However the setting is small town Appalachia so maybe it works more than I think it would. I really enjoyed reading Miles’ story and finding more about what had happened to the family and who the ghost that appears to Miles ends up being. Nothing is ever as simple as it seems. I really liked the way in this story Miles actually had a family that cared about him and other community members who were supportive against the threat of the Sheriff. I really liked the ending of the book as well and the hopefulness of what could come next for the town.

Warnings and additional reviews are available on the StoryGraph page for “Compound Fracture”

Book Details

Author’s Website: Andrew Joseph White
Publisher / Date: Peachtree Teen, September 2024
Genre: Young Adult, Thriller
Page Count: 371
Completion Date: March 21, 2025

Existing As I Am

Posted on February 27, 2025April 28, 2026 by Jen

As someone who has spent their entire life proving the doubters wrong with regard to disability, I am not surprised at the way things are going. When you live in a world where a baby’s potential value is judged within days after birth, it’s not surprising that some people would rather we just disappeared (or died).

I was born in 1979 in Texas, of all places. Apparently I came out the blue and it took a lot of work to keep me alive the first night. At least one doctor told my parents that even if I lived I’d be blind, deaf and intellectually disabled. Thankfully there was another doctor who said I’d most likely be fine. There’s even a story that I kicked out the sides of the incubator I was in at one point. Here I am four and a half decades later, and while I’m hard of hearing, have a facial disfigurement and vision issues, there’s no sign of an intellectual disability. Not that it should have mattered. All lives are worthy – having an intellectual disability shouldn’t have meant I was better off dead or institutionalized either.

A large issue with having to prove doubters wrong is the way we have to constantly prove our worth. Things like excellent behavior, getting the best grades in school, going to college, graduating with distinction, getting a good job and doing our best at it, are all signs that it is worth keeping us alive. We’re proving our worth to a society that thinks we shouldn’t exist at all. We shouldn’t have to prove anything – a disabled person who doesn’t do well in school or a job and struggles with everything shouldn’t deemed less worthy than someone who is successful. You only have to take one look at media that glorifies successful disabled people and says things like, “they never let their disability stop them” to see the truth. In reality it almost never is our disabilities stopping us. It was the ableism of society making assumptions about our worth.

It’s not surprising that society also judges people based on their relationships. We’re supposed to date, get married and have kids all for the betterment of society. And of course, we must find someone of the opposite gender to do all of this with. Any deviation from that norm is seen as abnormal and wrong. Unfortunately, there is an assumption that disabled people are exempt from this because we’re not worthy enough to date, get married or have kids. As a result, some disabled people may strive to prove that assumption wrong by doing exactly what is expected.

Those of us who are asexual and/or aromantic are often assumed to be that way because of our disabilities, which causes conflict in both groups. The truth is we are asexual and/or aromantic while also being disabled, and not because of it, and there shouldn’t be anything wrong with that. I’ve known for years I was asexual – I never had any interest in dating or anything. Aromantic was a word I learned more recently and also fit. There isn’t any particular reason why I am asexual and aromantic, I just am.

Gender has always been something in the background for me, as being hard of hearing and dealing with that – and other issues – took up most of my focus. I had to navigate communication issues with everyone, almost all of the time. It’s not fun having to remind people that I am in fact hard of hearing, even with my hearing aids on. As a result I never really thought about it all that much, other than knowing I didn’t enjoy typical girl things. I didn’t like dolls or makeup or bright colors that girls are often expected to like. But it is also true that my parents never really made that much of a big deal about it.

Within the last few years, I’ve really come to understand what being non-binary or agender means, and realized that it describes me. Agender probably fits best as I don’t really feel particularly drawn to any gender specifically. Having said that, I generally don’t mind female-gendered terms, with some exceptions. I don’t particularly like being called lady, as an example. On the flip side, I would much rather be called my parents’ daughter than child, because I’m an adult and the word “offspring” just sounds weird. But these are my own personal preferences – everyone else should be allowed to describe themselves on their own terms.

As I said at the beginning, I’m not surprised at the direction we’re going right now. And as I work out my gender and learn more about the trans/non-binary communities I see the same battles and the same struggle to be allowed to exist. I recently read the article “The fight against ableism mirrors the fight against transphobia” written by Ayman Eckford at PinkNews, which has a lot to say about what’s going on. Anyone who doesn’t fit the assumed norm is under attack right now by the current administration, and as always it’s about ableism:

“Throughout history, ableism has been used against women to justify gender inequality, against Jewish people to justify the Holocaust, against people of colour to justify slavery and colonialism, and, of course, against the LGBTQ+ community.”

I am Jen Rohrig. I am hard of hearing, asexual, aromantic, agender and likely autistic. Proving the doubters wrong is the goal every day. Existing exactly as I am is the goal every day. I believe we all deserve to be able to be exactly who we are and exist as who we are, because we’re all human, with our various identities and differences.

Reading List

“Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century” edited by Alice Wong
“Being Seen: One Deafblind Woman’s Fight to End Ableism” by Elsa Sjunneson
“Black Disability Politics” by Sami Schalk
“The Future Is Disabled – Prophecies, Love Notes and Mourning Songs” by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha
“Ace and Aro Journeys: A Guide to Embracing Your Asexual or Aromantic Identity” by The Ace and Aro Advocacy Project
“Gender: Your Guide: A Gender-Friendly Primer on What to Know, What to Say, and What to Do in the New Gender Culture” 2nd Edition by Lee Airton (make sure to get the 2024 edition)
“Ace: What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Society, and the Meaning of Sex” by Angela Chen
“Refusing Compulsory Sexuality: A Black Asexual Lens on Our Sex-Obsessed Culture” by Sherronda J. Brown
“Ending the Pursuit: Asexuality, Aromanticism, and Agender Identity” by Michael Paramo

“He/She/They” Review

Posted on February 17, 2025April 28, 2026 by Jen

“He/She/They: How We Talk About Gender and Why It Matters” by Schuyler Bailar

Go‑to expert on gender identity, Schuyler Bailar, offers an essential, urgent guide that changes the conversation about gender identity and how we talk about it.

He/She/They uses storytelling and the art of conversation to give us the fundamental language and context of gender so that we can meet people where they are and pave the way to understanding, acceptance, and inclusion.

As a transgender man, inclusion advocate, and LGBTQ+ educator, Schuyler Bailar is more than familiar with the myriad questions that come up. In He/She/They, he addresses them head on, such as why being transgender is not a choice, why pronouns are important, and what is biological sex. But this book is more than a book on allyship; many of Schuyler’s vast followers come to him for support; one of his most popular reels is speaking to a young trans person who asks, “does it get better?”

He/She/They is an essential, urgent, and potentially life-saving book that will change the conversation about gender identity and how we talk about it, moving us toward a more equitable future.

Review

I really enjoyed reading this book. Schuyler did a really good job using both his personal story and additional facts about being trans to provide a lot of information. There was as lot of good information about what being Trans means and how gender is never as simple as male or female. He also had a lot of discussion about the discrimination Trans individuals face and how the sports and bathroom bans are a lot of manufactured outrage. He tells his own story about being a swimmer along with another trans athlete and how all the outrage is ridicule in the face of actual facts about their stats and the stats of other athletes in competition. I also like how Schuyler outlines various ways to handle working with other people to help them understand and how to respond to transphobic comments. The stories that Schuyler told about his own history were great too and I really enjoyed hearing about how his Korean family members responded to his transition. There are a lot of important things about this book and I think everyone should read it.

Additional reviews and warnings can be found on the StoryGraph page for “He/She/They”.

Book Details

The book cover is blue and is mostly taken up by the title of the book which is written in large font one word at a time on each line. Schuyler, a brown skinned Korean man with short black hair and a mustache wearing a white shirt and black pants is sitting with his arms on his knees with his hands clasped in front of him.

Author’s Website: Schuyler Bailar
Publisher / Date: Hachette Go, October 2023
Genre: Non-Fiction, Essay Collection
Page Count: 384
Completion Date: February 16, 2025

“Model Home” Review

Posted on February 8, 2025April 28, 2026 by Jen

“Model Home” by Rivers Solomon

The three Maxwell siblings keep their distance from the lily-white gated enclave outside Dallas where they grew up. When their family moved there, they were the only Black family in the neighborhood. The neighbors acted nice enough, but right away bad things, scary things—the strange and the unexplainable—began to happen in their house. Maybe it was some cosmic trial, a demonic rite of passage into the upper-middle class. Whatever it was, the Maxwells, steered by their formidable mother, stayed put, unwilling to abandon their home, terrors and trauma be damned.

As adults, the siblings could finally get away from the horrors of home, leaving their parents all alone in the house. But when news of their parents’ death arrives, Ezri is forced to return to Texas with their sisters, Eve and Emanuelle, to reckon with their family’s past and present, and to find out what happened while they were away. It was not a “natural” death for their parents . . . but was it supernatural?

Rivers Solomon turns the haunted-house story on its head, unearthing the dark legacies of segregation and racism in the suburban American South. Unbridled, raw, and daring, Model Home is the story of secret histories uncovered, and of a queer family battling for their right to live, grieve, and heal amid the terrors of contemporary American life.

Review

I can always count on Rivers Solomon to write something deeply disturbing and powerful while exploring various themes and this book, with the central themes of trauma, memory, racism/segregation, and parenting, was no different. There are a lot of different layers to what was actually going on due to Ezri’s (along with their siblings’) memories not being completely reliable. It’s clear their ongoing trauma has caused all of their memories are muddled and mixed up with what they believe happened and what actually happened. The truth does come out in the end and it’s even worse than you might expect.

The writing style might take some getting used to as it’s somewhat stream of conscious deeply in Ezri’s head but I think it works once you get used to it. The ending is a bit abrupt and there are unanswered questions but it makes sense for the story. That said there is also the sense that the unresolved issues that still need to be worked out, between the siblings, will be more than they were before.

I will be re-reading Rivers Solomon’s other books to add reviews to my blog. I’ve enjoyed all of them!

Warnings and additional reviews can be found on the StoryGraph page for “Model Home” by Rivers Solomon

Book Details

Author’s Website: Rivers Solomon
Publisher / Date: MCD, October 2024
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Page Count: 286
Completion Date: February 7, 2025

“Màgòdiz” by Gabe Calderón

Posted on January 26, 2025April 28, 2026 by Jen

“Màgòdiz” by Gabe Calderón

Everything that was green and good is gone, scorched away by a war that no one living remembers. The small surviving human population scavenges to get by; they cannot read or write and lack the tools or knowledge to rebuild. The only ones with any power are the mindless Enforcers, controlled by the Madjideye, a faceless, formless spiritual entity that has infiltrated the world to subjugate the human population.

A’tugwewinu is the last survivor of the Andwanikadjigan. On the run from the Madjideye with her lover, Bel, a descendant of the Warrior Nation, they seek to share what the world has forgotten: stories. In Pasakamate, both Shkitagen, the firekeeper of his generation, and his life’s heart, Nitawesi, whose hands mend bones and cure sickness, attempt to find a home where they can raise children in peace without fear of slavers or rising waters. In Zhong yang, Riordan wheels around just fine, leading xir gang of misfits in hopes of surviving until until the next meal. However, Elite Enforcer H-09761 (Yun Seo, who was abducted as a child, then tortured and brainwashed into servitude) is determined to arrest Riordan for theft of resources and will stop at nothing to bring xir to the Madjideye. In a ruined world, six people collide, discovering family and foes, navigating friendship and love, and reclaiming the sacredness of the gifts they carry.

With themes of resistance, of ceremony as the conduit between realms, of transcending gender, Màgòdiz is a powerful and visionary reclamation that Two-Spirit people always have and always will be vital to the cultural and spiritual legacy of their communities.

Review

This was a really interesting and complex book with great characters. I really liked how everything developed and the way the characters ended up working together. I enjoyed the complicated ending and the fact that it ends with hope for a better future. The world building was interesting though I did feel like things could have been explained in a bit more detail. However that may have been intentional since a lot of information had been lost and what was left was very personal, including cultural stories that aren’t for outsiders. That said I really enjoyed the oral story telling aspect of the book and the various stories that were told throughout. I also liked the gender and disability representation in the book as well and the way both aspects just existed as part of the story.

The book does get fairly graphic in places both with regard to the violence the characters experience and the bleakness of the dystopian future. There are also a couple sex scenes near the end of the book that are somewhat graphic as well.

Warnings and additional reviews can be found on the StoryGraph page for “Màgòdiz”.

Book Details

Author’s Website: Gabe Calderón
Publisher / Date: Arsenal Pulp Press, November 2022
Genre: Science Fiction
Page Count: 284
Completion Date: January 22, 2025