'One for All' by Lillie Lainoff

5 stars!

Book Blurb:

"An OwnVoices, gender-bent retelling of The Three Musketeers, in which a girl with a chronic illness trains as a Musketeer and uncovers secrets, sisterhood, and self-love.

Tania de Batz is most herself with a sword in her hand. Everyone in town thinks her near-constant dizziness makes her weak, nothing but “a sick girl”; even her mother is desperate to marry her off for security. But Tania wants to be strong, independent, a fencer like her father—a former Musketeer and her greatest champion.

Then Papa is brutally, mysteriously murdered. His dying wish? For Tania to attend finishing school. But L’Académie des Mariées, Tania realizes, is no finishing school. It’s a secret training ground for a new kind of Musketeer: women who are socialites on the surface, but strap daggers under their skirts, seduce men into giving up dangerous secrets, and protect France from downfall. And they don’t shy away from a swordfight.

With her newfound sisters at her side, Tania feels for the first time like she has a purpose, like she belongs. But then she meets Étienne, her first target in uncovering a potential assassination plot. He’s kind, charming, and breathlessly attractive—and he might have information about what really happened to her father. Torn between duty and dizzying emotion, Tania will have to lean on her friends, listen to her own body, and decide where her loyalties lie…or risk losing everything she’s ever wanted.

This debut novel is a fierce, whirlwind adventure about the depth of found family, the strength that goes beyond the body, and the determination it takes to fight for what you love."

Review:

Really enjoyed this #ownvoices gender-bent spin on 'The Three Musketeers' in which Tania, our main character, has the POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome) sub-type of Dysautonomia, just as the author does. I loved the disability rep, and also the LGBTQIA+ rep and the friendships between the lady Musketeers.  

'One for All' releases on March 8, 2022.  Grab a copy here!

#NetGalley - I voluntarily read a Review Copy of this book. All opinions stated are solely my own and no one else’s.

'Spin Me Right Round' by David Valdes

5 stars!

Book Blurb:

"From lauded writer David Valdes, a sharp and funny YA novel that's Back to the Future with a twist, as a gay teen travels back to his parents' era to save a closeted classmate's life.

All Luis Gonzalez wants is to go to prom with his boyfriend, something his “progressive” school still doesn't allow. Not after what happened with Chaz Wilson. But that was ages ago, when Luis's parents were in high school; it would never happen today, right? He's determined to find a way to give his LGBTQ friends the respect they deserve (while also not risking his chance to be prom king, just saying…).

When a hit on the head knocks him back in time to 1985 and he meets the doomed young Chaz himself, Luis concocts a new plan-he's going to give this guy his first real kiss. Though it turns out a conservative school in the '80s isn't the safest place to be a gay kid. Especially with homophobes running the campus, including Gordo (aka Luis's estranged father). Luis is in over his head, trying not to make things worse-and hoping he makes it back to present day at all.

In a story that's fresh, intersectional, and wickedly funny, David Valdes introduces a big-mouthed, big-hearted queer character that readers won't soon forget."

Review:

Fantastic, well-thought-out LGBTQIA+ inclusive YA Contemporary with time travel and nods to several of the greats, including 'Back to the Future' and 'A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court.'  

Luis' narrating was top-notch; fun and easy to follow. It's also really easy to root for him and his friends, both in present-day and 1985. Cannot recommend highly enough!  

Highly recommended for Young Adult and time travel fans!  Grab 'Spin Me Right Round' on December 7, 2021.

#SpinMeRightRound #NetGalley - I voluntarily read a Review Copy of this book. All opinions stated are solely my own and no one else’s.