This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Read my full disclosure policy here.
Interested in what I read last month? Then you’ll want to check out this monthly reading wrap-up featuring everything I read in February!
Well, we’ve survived two months of 2021 thus far-and since this this monthly reading wrap-up is a bit late, we’re all well on our way to making it through a third! Give yourself a pat on the back! In February, I gave myself the additional reading goal of only choosing books written by Black authors, and I managed to accomplish that. Sadly, I did not keep up with my previous monthly pace of 20 books a month, but since February is 2-3 days shorter than all the other months, I’m giving myself a break on that one.
Anyway, as previously mentioned, I won’t be summarizing books here, for the most part; rather, I’ll be sharing my thoughts and feelings on each of the titles I read. So, if you want a summary, I recommend you check out Goodreads (and if you want to be my friend on Goodreads, you totally can!); book titles link to Bookshop, and if you decide to purchase any of the books from the site, I will get a small commission. But without further ado, here are all the books I read in February.
Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston
Wow, I loved this middle grade fantasy novel so much! Aside from all the magic and adventure, Amari is, overall, a cool kid, and there’s a lot about legacy and elitism that could be applied in our own real, non-magical world as well. I want the sequel right now, please and thank you!
The Marvelous by Claire Kann
I’ve loved Claire Kann’s previous two novels, and was excited to read this one as well, though it is a departure from what she normally writes-in a good way! This book is full of mystery, and competition, and a great readalike for The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, but, you know, with more people of color and queer people. I know it doesn’t come out for a bit, but it’s worth a preorder!
Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry by Joya Goffney
Well, this was a bit more serious and sad than I was expecting, but still overall a great read. I love a good list, and when a dare is involved, all the better, but the blackmail part kind of bummed me out. Still, I really loved how the friendships and the romance developed in this one, and if you read and enjoyed Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson, I think you’ll want to pick this up as well.
From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
If a book features teen or tween bakers, you know it’s going to be at the top of my TBR list! And I did love Zoe’s passion for baking, but her quest to find out the truth about her father, and the story’s look at what it’s like to have a parent in the prison system, made it even better. If you are a middle school teacher or librarian, it should absolutely be in your school or classroom library.
A River of Royal Blood by Amanda Joy
As you may recall, one of my reading goals for this year was to read more speculative fiction, and this was the month I finally got back into a fantasy mood. This first book in a duology about a girl who can only inherit the throne if she kills her sister has magic and adventure and moral dilemmas, but there are also so many parallels to our own society’s problems and evils as well. The second and final book in the duology comes out in a little over a week, so you won’t even have to wait that long to find out what happens!
A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow
A fantasy novel in which sirens and other magical creatures exist in contemporary America, in which girls must battle racism and sexism in addition to the challenges brought on by their magic, in which how different magical creatures are perceived has some pretty apropos parallels to race and class. SO GOOD. (And the companion is out in June!)
A Queen of Gilded Horns by Amanda Joy
The sequel to A River of Royal Blood. I was so excited to get back into this world and find out how everything was going to turn out. My only dislike was that things wrapped up kind of abruptly and I’d honestly be thrilled with a 3rd book in the series. Still, absolutely worth a read.
This Poison Heart by Kalynn Bayronn
I know this book isn’t out for a few months, but trust me when I say if you want a contemporary fantasy with serious Secret Garden vibes and the queer cottagecore aesthetic of your dreams, which ALSO weaves in Greek mythology, THIS IS THE BOOK FOR YOU. I don’t know what else to say other than please give me the sequel NOW.
Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
This book broke my heart. Yes, it is, on the surface, a mystery/thriller to hand to fans of One of Us Is Lying, People Like Us, etc. I don’t doubt that those readers will love the suspenseful elements of this book. But it goes so much deeper than that, down to the deep, lasting harm of systemic racism, and how that permeates our educational institutions and so much more. And yes, this book is a work of fiction, but you know that so many Black students and other students of color have gone through similar trauma in their own lives, and it just…is truly a call to action for those of us in education to continue to be antiracist and work to protect our marginalized students.
The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna
Yes, another fantasy book! And if ever there was a book that made you want to smash the patriarchy, it is this one. There are parts where it is brutal and hard to read, and you ache for the girls in this book who have suffered through years of religious patriarchy, but there is triumph too, and action, and girls being complete badasses. Would definitely recommend.
Real Life by Brandon Taylor
I wanted to read something written for adults, and I knew this book had gotten rave reviews, and the description sounded like something I’d like. But literary fiction is just…not my favorite. This book was fine. I don’t really have any complaints, other than my own personal hatred for vague endings, which is honestly a me thing and not a fault of this book. So read the description, because it might be totally up your alley, and, you know, Roxane Gay loved it, so there’s that.
All the Things We Never Knew by Liara Tamani
There are times when I am totally into how teenagers display their feelings and emotions in books, and others when my old lady-ness just makes those feelings and emotions get on my nerves. Unfortunately, this book featured the latter kind. I don’t doubt that the way the romance develops in this book is wholly authentic and realistic for teens, but some of the ways the characters acted and reacted just…were too “teen” for my old self. I would absolutely still buy this and hand it to teen romance fans, but it wasn’t my most favorite.
Facing the Sun by Janice Lynn Mather
I didn’t read Mather’s first YA book, Learning to Breathe, though it got very positive reviews. However, this one, being a multiple POV book, which I tend to love, seemed right up my alley. I also don’t read many books set in the Bahamas, so I was interested in that too. And I did like the focus on how development for the purposes of tourism can harm the local population, even if I didn’t always enjoy how the characters acted. Overall, though, it was a good read, very much character-driven, and a solid addition to library shelves, I think.
Home Home by Lisa Allen-Agostini
Another character from the Caribbean, though in this case the island is Trinidad, and the setting of the book is actually Canada. This is a good look at perceptions of mental health, and family relationships, and it’s also a really short book, so if you have readers in your life who balk at 300+ page novels, this would be a great one for them.
The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow
I don’t generally like books about aliens. And I don’t read a ton of sci-fi in general. But this book, about a rebel girl who serves as a librarian for her community after the aliens ban all forms of art, and then teams up with one of those aliens in order to save the world, surprised me in how much I enjoyed it. I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with how the ending came about, but overall I would recommend this, even to non-sci-fi fans who just want an epic love-story.
Mediocre: The Dangerous Legacy of White Male America by Ijeoma Oluo
What a scathing indictment of white male supremacy. Seriously, much like Dr. Ibram X. Kendi’s antiracist books have been adapted for teens and even babies, I think this also needs to be adapted into a board book and handed to all white male babies (obviously, this version should be handed to white male adults). If you need further confirmation, in detail, of how the white patriarchy has caused harm to EVERYONE else, then read this book (or, if you think everything is fine, and white men are basically harmless, and you need your EYES OPENED, then read this book).
The Princess Trap by Talia Hibbert
I have loved every Talia Hibbert book I’ve read thus far. The Princess Trap was not my favorite of her books, because the sexy parts weren’t really my speed, but the rest of the plot was-I’m always a sucker for a royal-not royal romance! I would recommend this one, but depending on your tastes when it comes to romance, you may want to do a little pre-reading.
Well, that’s all, folks-all the books I read in February. Tell me, what was the best book you read last month?
Facing the Sun sounds super interesting to me! I love reading multiple POVs and the fact that it sheds light on the negatives of tourism really fascinates me. You never really get to hear to other side of the story when it comes to tourists changing up other people’s homes