'Killer Content' by Kiley Roache

 5 stars!

Book Blurb:

"Knives Out meets One of Us is Lying! In this paperback original thriller a group of famous TikTokers find themselves turning on each other when one member of the group turns up dead at their beachfront Malibu mansion.

35 million followers. One dead body.

The six teenagers who make up the Hype House seem to have it all. A beach front Malibu mansion, millions of TikTok followers, model good looks, and sponsorship deals up to $30,000 per post. Everything's pretty much a Gen-Z paradise. Except that one member of the house has just turned up dead in the infinity pool. And the rest of them are suspects.

When the group TikTok account starts posting cryptic messages about the murder, the police limit their investigation to the members of the house. Now old joke videos are filed as evidence and past rivalries start to look like motives.

As investigators dig into these influencers' lives beyond their glossy internet personalities, they discover all five had reasons their lives would've been easier with Sydney Reynolds dead. But only one of them killed her."


Review:

Fast-paced and captivating, 'Killer Content' was so good that I didn't want to put it down. Chapters flew by as I devoured the events of the hours after Sydney's death, and eventually learned details about the days leading up to it, and how each remaining member of the house came to have a motive. Chapters and narrators are clearly marked, as each person from the Lit Lair collab house shed light on what happened, the friendships and relationships between them all, and the lavish lifestyle they lead while in their beach front Malibu mansion.

Grab 'Killer Content' on November 30th!

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

'Love from Scratch' by Kaitlyn Hill

5 stars!

Book Blurb:

"This summer, Reese Camden is trading sweet tea and Southern hospitality for cold brew and crisp coastal air. She's landed her dream marketing internship at Friends of Flavor, a wildly popular cooking channel in Seattle. The only problem? Benny Beneventi, the relentlessly charming, backwards-baseball-cap-wearing culinary intern--and her main competition for the fall job.

Reese's plan to keep work a No Feelings Zone crumbles like a day-old muffin when she and Benny are thrown together for a video shoot that goes viral, making them the internet's newest ship. Audiences are hungry for more, and their bosses at Friends of Flavor are happy to deliver. Soon Reese and Benny are in an all-out food war, churning homemade ice cream, twisting soft pretzels, breaking eggs in an omelet showdown--while hundreds of thousands of viewers watch.

Reese can't deny the chemistry between her and Benny. But the more their rivalry heats up, the harder it is to keep love on the back burner..."

Review:

Really enjoyed this slow burn, friends to lovers YA Contemporary. We follow Reese as she and Benny (the other network intern) have their summer responsibilities broadened into a cooking show together. The episodes are full of food puns, witty interactions, and denied chemistry between the two, and so is their off-camera time. Though we do not get to read Benny's perspective, he is a delightful and supportive ray of sunshine. Reese though, tries her best to appear just as delightful on at work while battling sexism and gender double standards, both from network management and what she has internalized through her life experiences.

I highly recommend this PG-rated YA Contemporary to all YA readers, and think many will find it as incredibly relatable as I do.

Grab 'Love from Scratch' on April 5, 2022!

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

'Cinder the Fireplace Boy' by Ana Mardoll

 
5 stars!

Book Blurb:

"Once upon a time there lived... a beautiful prince who kissed a frog. A cinder-smudged child who hid a secret. A princess who climbed a long braid of golden hair for love. A thumb-sized boy with the courage of a giant. And a valiant little tailor whose wit was as sharp as her needle.

These stories and many more await you in this delightful collection of classic fairy tales, lovingly retold and featuring characters who receive wonderfully queer happily-ever-afters! Let these new takes on the Brothers Grimm warm your heart and nurture your yearning to see yourself reflected in beloved favorites.

Features eight original illustrations by artist Alex Dingley."


Review:

I greatly enjoyed this collection of fairy tale re-tellings!  Some stories were retold with transgender, gender-fluid, or non-binary characters, and others with gender-swapped characters.  Some stories included loving, supportive parents, and others did not.  Some stories included loving, supportive parents, and others did not.

This collection was inclusive and very well put together, with a great range of LGBTQIAP+ representation. Before each and every tale, each character's pronouns are listed, as well as any applicable content notes, which I think is a wonderful idea.

'Cinder the Fireplace Boy' will be available on January 4, 2022.

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