We Deserve Monuments by Jas Hammonds is a romantic mystery novel where Avery moves from D.C. to a small southern town and unravels her family secrets, and what it means to fall in love again. This story tackles both racism and homophobia in the United States, weaving a deep mystery. Avery has to reconnect with her tough, hardened Mama Letty. There is a lot of characterization of both Avery and Letty. The other characters help support the novel but feel a little stereotypical without a lot of growth.
A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi is a diverse teenage love story dealing with Muslim racism post 9/11. Shirin, a socially excluded hot-headed Muslim girl living in a world thrown against her culture, meets Ocean, a star basketball player and school golden boy. This unlikely romance leads to discrimination, and the two have to deal with a world stacked against accepting others and love. This is a very solid book on diverse representation, as Shirin is an interesting character with a Muslim background.
The live-action The Little Mermaid (2023 version) is a Disney movie based on the original The Little Mermaid. The movie is about Ariel, a mermaid who dreams of living on land with humans. When she falls in love with a human prince, she makes a deal with the sea witch, Ursula, to trade her voice for legs.
Divergent is a fantasy book by Veronica Roth. In the book, the city is divided into five factions, each based on a different talent: Abnegation, Amity, Candor, Dauntless, and Erudite. Beatrice Prior must choose which faction she will belong to for the rest of her life. However, during the aptitude test, she is revealed to be "Divergent," meaning she has an aptitude for multiple factions.
Binding 13 by Chloe Walsh is a drama-written romance that almost reminds you of It Ends With Us as the book grapples with hard topics such as abuse. This book is a duel POV about rugby player Johnny Kavanagh and shy new girl Shannon Lynch. Shannon has had to move school her whole life because of how badly her bullies have treated her throughout her life.
King of Greed by Ana Huang is a mediocre at best book written with the Marriage In Crisis Trope. This book is about Dominic and Alessandra Davenport, their marriage is failing due to Dominic’s overworking, on the night of their 10th wedding anniversary when Dominic forgets about their trip, Alessandra gets so fed up with the feeling of being forgotten she asks Dominic for a divorce, but Dominic doesn’t want to let her go.
Summary: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen follows the lives of the Bennet family, particularly the second eldest daughter, Elizabeth Bennet, as they navigate the social norms and expectations of 19th-century England. The novel explores themes of marriage, class, and gender roles. The arrival of the wealthy Mr. Darcy in the neighborhood sparks both attraction and disdain, leading to a series of misunderstandings and romantic entanglements.
I read A Court of Thorns and Roses over my winter break, and I really enjoyed it. If you have ever imagined Beauty in the Beast but a little more intense and a little more PG-13, then this book is for you. In a land divided by a magical wall, there are humans and there are fairies. Feyre, the protagonist, unknowingly breaks an ancient fairy law and is forced over the wall into the fairy realm to pay her debt. The first book is moderately paced but picks up towards the end.
Romeo and Juliet is a popular play written by Shakespeare. In this story set in medieval Italy, there are two families in the city of Verona who have a long enmity between them, the Montagues and the Capulets. However, one day, Romeo, a Montague, and Juliet, a Capulet, see each other and instantly fall in love. They marry in secret and plan to secretly meet each other without their parents ever knowing, as if they did they would punish them.
“Go wisely and slowly. Those who rush stumble and fall.”
By far the most famous of Shakespeare’s works, Romeo and Juliet, is the famous tragedy warning of the dangers that love can get you into. Following two feuding families, and their children. Young Romeo wants only the attention of his love, while Juliet is soon to be married to the pompous Paris. They marry in secret and begin a set of events that lead to their eventual deaths by their own hands.
