In this story by Zoraida Cordova, there is rich Latin American folklore and incredible fantasy blended together to create the book known as Labyrinth Lost, the first book in the Brooklyn Brujas series. Alex Mortiz is a witch, although in her world, they’re called brujas. Alex, more than anything, wants to get rid of the magic that she knows she’ll eventually discover. Unfortunately, Alex’s first display of magic happens, and suddenly she’s all set up for a Deathday; plus, Alex turns out to be an encantrix, the once-in-a-lifetime On her Deathday, Alex casts a spell to banish her magic forever, but instead, she ends up banishing her mother and two sisters to Los Lagos, the in-between land for the living and the dead. Her only hope is to team up with a brujo named Nova and dive into the fantastical realm of Los Lagos.

Amazing, takes a little while to understand certain references though!

Great book! Today's society glamorizes influencers and this book shows the dark side of what we consider influencing today. I felt connected to the characters. It was a very fast read, and I wish I could read it again for the first time. Highly recommend!

I loved the book so much! The imagery and descriptions are impeccable!

Grace leaves an unfulfilling marriage in Australia and travels to Paris where she becomes a model for the House of Dior. Supposedly based on a true story, Grace finds her true self far away from home. Some of the setting seemed implausible; otherwise it was a quick and educational read (learning about fashion in the post WWII era).

This book was very confusing. It sounded good and interesting but it was too confusing. They had a before the accident, after the accident, when she was younger. I couldn't always figure out who was the one speaking. Clare, Amber, Taylor... I wasn't a fan.

"It's like when a plane descends, you know? Gradually, down through the clouds, and suddenly you can't see anything? Except, with a plane, eventually you see the city. There was no city for me." Filthy Animals revolves around the lives of three characters - Charles and Sophie, two dancers that are in a questionably open relationship, and Lionel, a man they meet at a dinner party who is dealing with the fallout from a failed suicide attempt. The majority of the stories follow one or all of these characters, with a few outlier stories that deal with other people struggling through life. All of the stories are poignant, as the characters deal with terminal medical diagnosis, the loss of estranged family members, and most of all, the inability to fully achieve what you want in life. I really enjoyed the stories about the main three, but some of the secondary stories dragged a little more. In some ways, the stories all seemed a little too similar. It was a quick read, but in this case that might not have been a good thing.

Jack and Anna were eating potatos for lunch. Then a hail storm hit. Next a very big dust devil came. Then they rush back to the tree house as fast as they can. Then they rushed back to the school to warn every won about the dust devil. then every won took cover.

"I...I don't know. I mean he was my son. Our son. But what he was doing was wrong. I have to believe that. Because if I don't, then everything I did was a mistake." Never thought I could sympathize with a book set around a whole lot of racist and homophobic people, but dang. This book is brutal and tender, face-paced and beautiful. Set in Virginia, we follow Buddy Lee and Ike, two fathers who have just gone through the unimaginable - their married sons were killed in broad daylight, for reasons unknown. Both fathers are struggling with not only the grief of losing their child, but the knowledge that they will never be able to repair the broken relationship between them that formed when they were unable to accept the fact that their children were gay. When the police mark the case as inactive, the men realize that the only chance they have of putting things right is by using their criminal past to their advantage, and going after whoever put their boys in the ground. You could feel the grief all the characters were feeling, and the action scenes were really well done. This book is as violent as it is beautiful, and I really hope they do wind up making it into a movie - I think it has the chance to be an amazing adaptation.

This was fantastic. I couldn't put it down, and read the entire thing throughout two reading sessions in one day, because sleep was not an option until I had answers. It's like the romantic comedy version of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. August has just moved to New York to try and get lost in the city. She's been alone almost her entire life, as her uncle went missing before she was born and her mother has been dedicated to finding out what happened to him ever since. August learned to speak so she could ask questions, and learned to read so she could help sort through files. She was practically raised to be a detective, but she's done with that now. Now, she's going to finish college and figure out what she wants to do with the rest of her life. At least, that was the plan, before she a wreck of a first day that is ultimately salvaged by meeting a girl named Jane on the subway. Jane is quickly all encompassing - she has a way of being able to charm anyone - and before August knows what's happening she's meeting up with Jane on her commute every day. But no matter how many times August asks Jane to meet up with her outside of the subway, it just doesn't seem to happen. Because Jane can't ever leave the subway. Originally from the 70s, Jane has been stuck riding the same line for fifty years, with no idea what's going on. August makes it her new mission to find a way to free Jane - even if that means they can't be together anymore. I loved discovering what happened to Jane, and the highly supportive atmosphere August has found herself in. This is such a cute, up-lifting book.