The Trans Rights Readathon is an annual decentralized call to action for readers and book lovers in support of Trans Day of Visibility on March 31. The Read A Thon runs from March 17-31.

Horror Recs

1. The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White

London, 1883. The Veil between the living and dead has thinned. Violet-eyed mediums commune with spirits under the watchful eye of the Royal Speaker Society, and sixteen-year-old trans, autistic Silas Bell would rather rip out his violet eyes than become an obedient Speaker wife.

After a failed attempt to escape an arranged marriage, Silas is diagnosed with Veil sickness—a mysterious disease sending violet-eyed women into madness—and shipped away to Braxton’s Finishing School and Sanitorium. When the ghosts of missing students start begging Silas for help, he decides to reach into Braxton’s innards and expose its guts to the world—so long as the school doesn’t break him first.

Featuring an autistic trans protagonist in a historical setting, Andrew Joseph White’s much-anticipated sophomore novel does not back down from exposing the violence of the patriarchy and the harm inflicted on trans youth who are forced into conformity.

1. The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw

   You may think you know how the fairytale goes: a mermaid comes to shore and weds the prince. But what the fables forget is that mermaids have teeth. And now, her daughters have devoured the kingdom and burned it to ashes.
   
   On the run, the mermaid is joined by a mysterious plague doctor with a darkness of their own. Deep in the eerie, snow-crusted forest, the pair stumble upon a village of ageless children who thirst for blood, and the three “saints” who control them.
   
   The mermaid and her doctor must embrace the cruelest parts of their true nature if they hope to survive.

2. Leech by Hirron Innes

   In an isolated chateau, as far north as north goes, the baron’s doctor has died. The doctor’s replacement has a mystery to solve: discovering how the Institute lost track of one of its many bodies.
   
   For hundreds of years the Interprovincial Medical Institute has grown by taking root in young minds and shaping them into doctors, replacing every human practitioner of medicine. The Institute is here to help humanity, to cure and to cut, to cradle and protect the species from the apocalyptic horrors their ancestors unleashed.
   
   In the frozen north, the Institute's body will discover a competitor for its rung at the top of the evolutionary ladder. A parasite is spreading through the baron's castle, already a dark pit of secrets, lies, violence, and fear. The two will make war on the battlefield of the body. Whichever wins, humanity will lose again.

3. Model Home by Rivers Solomon

The three Maxwell siblings keep their distance from the lily-white gated enclave outside Dallas where they grew up. When their family moved there, they were the only Black family in the neighborhood. The neighbors acted nice enough, but right away bad things, scary things—the strange and the unexplainable—began to happen in their house. Maybe it was some cosmic trial, a demonic rite of passage into the upper-middle class. Whatever it was, the Maxwells, steered by their formidable mother, stayed put, unwilling to abandon their home, terrors and trauma be damned.

As adults, the siblings could finally get away from the horrors of home, leaving their parents all alone in the house. But when news of their parents' death arrives, Ezri is forced to return to Texas with their sisters, Eve and Emanuelle, to reckon with their family’s past and present, and to find out what happened while they were away. It was not a “natural” death for their parents . . . but was it supernatural?

1. Your Body is Not Your Body (anthology)

   A centaur seeks illicit surgery in an alien bodily modification club.

   Two medieval monks react to their transformation and demonic pregnancy in very different ways.

   A resourceful trans teen destroys sports bigots through the power of pluckiness...and abundant body horror.

   A stellar cathedral crosses galaxies to dump the corpse of God into a star before the mission devolves into a panoply of psychedelic orgies.

   A doxxed teen falls victim to violent assault and dishes out some

   harrowing retribution of their own.

   Over thirty Trans and Gender Nonconforming creators unite to voice their rage, and the rules of conventional Horror go out the f$%&ing window in this collection featuring murderous pleasure-bots; proselytizing zombies; acid-filled alien cops;

   science run amok; sorcerers, ghouls, cannibals...and that barely scratches the grave-dirt.

Indigenous Recs

1. Jonny Appleseed by Joshua Whitehead

   A tour-de-force debut novel about a Two-Spirit Indigiqueer young man and proud NDN glitter princess who must reckon with his past when he returns home to his reserve.

2. Disintegrate/Dissociate

   in her powerful debut collection of poetry, Arielle Twist unravels the complexities of human relationships after death and metamorphosis. In these spare yet powerful poems, she explores, with both rage and tenderness, the parameters of grief, trauma, displacement, and identity. Weaving together a past made murky by uncertainty and a present which exists in multitudes, Arielle Twist poetically navigates through what it means to be an Indigenous trans woman, discovering the possibilities of a hopeful future and a transcendent, beautiful path to regaining softness.

3. A Two Spirit Journey by Maa-Nee Chacaby

   From her early, often harrowing memories of life and abuse in a remote Ojibwa community, Ma-Nee Chacaby's extraordinary story is one of enduring and ultimately overcoming the social and economic legacies of colonialism.

   As a child, Chacaby learned spiritual and cultural traditions from her Cree grandmother and trapping, hunting, and bush survival skills from her Ojibwa stepfather. She also suffered physical and sexual violence, and in her teen years became an alcoholic herself. At twenty, Chacaby took her children and, fleeing an abusive marriage, moved to Thunder Bay. Despite the abuse, racism, and indifference she often found there, Chacaby marshalled the strength and supports to help herself and others.

   Over the following decades, she achieved sobriety, trained and worked as an alcoholism counsellor, raised her children and fostered many others, learned to live with visual impairment, and came out as a lesbian. In 2013, Chacaby led the first gay pride parade in Thunder Bay.

   Ma-Nee Chacaby has emerged from hardship grounded in faith, compassion, and humour. Her memoir provides unprecedented insights into the challenges still faced by many Indigenous people.

   
   

4. Godly Heathens by HE Edgmon

   Gem Echols is a nonbinary Seminole teen living in the tiny town of Gracie, Georgia. Known for being their peers’ queer awakening, Gem leans hard on charm to disguise the anxious mess they are beneath. The only person privy to their authentic self is another trans kid, Enzo, who’s a thousand long, painful miles away in Brooklyn.
   
   But even Enzo doesn’t know about Gem’s dreams, haunting visions of magic and violence that have always felt too real. So how the hell does Willa Mae Hardy? The strange new girl in town acts like she and Gem are old companions, and seems to know things about them they’ve never told anyone else.
   
   When Gem is attacked by a stranger claiming to be the Goddess of Death, Willa Mae saves their life and finally offers some answers. She and Gem are reincarnated gods who’ve known and loved each other across lifetimes. But Gem – or at least who Gem used to be - hasn’t always been the most benevolent deity. They’ve made a lot of enemies in the pantheon—enemies who, like the Goddess of Death, will keep coming.
   
   It’s a good thing they’ve still got Enzo. But as worlds collide and the past catches up with the present, Gem will discover that everyone has something to hide.

5. It Was Never Going To Be Okay by jaye Simpson

   it was never going to be okay is a collection of poetry and prose exploring the intimacies of understanding intergenerational trauma, Indigeneity and queerness, while addressing urban Indigenous diaspora and breaking down the limitations of sexual understanding as a trans woman. As a way to move from the linear timeline of healing and coming to terms with how trauma does not exist in subsequent happenings, it was never going to be okay tries to break down years of silence

Summary

In Original Sins, Ewing demonstrates that our schools were designed to propagate the idea of white intellectual superiority, to “civilize” Native students and to prepare Black students for menial labor. Education was not an afterthought for the Founding Fathers; it was envisioned by Thomas Jefferson as an institution that would fortify the country’s racial hierarchy. Ewing argues that these dynamics persist in a curriculum that continues to minimize the horrors of American history. The most insidious aspects of this system fall below the radar in the forms of standardized testing, academic tracking, disciplinary policies, and uneven access to resources.

By demonstrating that it’s in the DNA of American schools to serve as an effective and underacknowledged mechanism maintaining inequality in this country today, Ewing makes the case that we need a profound reevaluation of what schools are supposed to do, and for whom. This book will change the way people understand the place we send our children for eight hours a day.

Review
I'm going to keep this review short and sweet and let the learnings talk for themselves. This is necessary reading for all educators. So if you're one, please pick it up ASAP.


What I learned

• Noah Webster, who created The Webster Dictionary wrote it in order to promote uniformity and "purity" in language in the United States as immigration from countries other than England became to increase.

• The beginning of public schooling in America was built upon the idea of encouraging assimilliation and to teach the principles of "Americanism", which is why the Pledge of Allegiance was introduced into the classroom. The hope was that children would then be figures of assimillation in their household and influence the rest of their family.

• Home Economics stemmed from evangelists hoping to "save our social fabric".

"The sin lies not only in the act of violence, but in the creation of the idea that makes the violence morally permissable. I argue that the way Black and Native children have been treated in schools, from the earliest days of this country to the present, is an integral part of the way racial hierarchy is constructed and maintained; that school is a place where thse ideas leave a lifelong mark on our sense of who we are, how we fit into the world, what is normal, and what is just."

• White women educators were often used by the state in order to "tame" and control Black students. This can be especially seen through Lydia Marie Child who taught and wrote how Black people should recieve violence with grace and that retribution should never be an option. She said that the most important thing for a Black child to learn was patience.

• The Carlisle Indian Industrial School opened in 1879 and wasn't closed until 1918. Over 10,000 students were enrolled in this school and were taught by literal military discipline. It's estimated that almost 200 children died here.

  • By 1900, 75% of Native children were enrolled in boarding schools.

    On residential schools:
    " 'Education for exctinction.' Civilization was a code word for the total erasure of Indigenous peoples from the face of the land. Civilization meant genocide."

    

    Photo: from Carlisle Indian Industrial School, 1880
    

• In 1972, Native women were still reporting that they had recieved hysterectomies under duress or without consent. It was discovered that at least a quarter of Native women between the ages 15-45 may have undergone sterilizations. This was also a widespread problem during this time for Black women.

  • In fact, a 2022 report found that 31 states have laws that still permit sterilization without an individual's consent. This largely targets people who are disabled.

• In 1984, a survey of over 1,000 researchers of education and psychology found that 45% of them believed that the differences in Black and White IQ tests were at least partially due to genetic reasons. In 1984!

"We tend to selectively call the beliefs of the past pseudoscience when they make us uncomfortable, rather than confronting the reality that they were once considered orthodox science and relfecting on what that should mean for us now."

• The convict laborer program that started in the 1800s was a death sentence. In Mississippi, not one person involved in the system lived long enough to serve out their ten-year sentence. 1/4 of these prisoners were children.

Hello! I'm so late, I know, I am STRESSED. It's been a struggle lately but I yearn for our book club and want to hear from you! Here's a brief description of the 3 options, vote for which you'd most like to read and/or discuss :) One is a newer release, and two are in honor of the NWSL season!!

Rooting Interest by Cat Disabato

Women's basketball player and a sports journalist caught in a "will they/won't they" that has had people infatuated.

Cleat Cute by Meryl Wilsner

NOT sapphic Heated Rivalry. A young player gets called up to national camp, where she meets one of her idol's. She later gets signed to the same team as her idol, who plays the same position as her, and isntead of feeling the pressure and competition of both wanting to start in that position, she... falls head over heels. AMAZING adhd and autism rep, and a rare miscommunication trope that made me giggle instead of scream.

Hotshot by Clare Lydon

Sport psychologist and the new start player, straight from the NWSL and new to the UK. A really fun at UK women's soccer, with NWSL as an entry point.

click here to access the stream

I'll be live from 10:30am EST to 12:30 pm EST

Here are some March 17th new book releases on my radar (and should be on yours!). First, the ones I've had a chance to read:

I Love you Don't Die by Jade Song 5.0/5 stars

Put this on your TBR if you enjoy books with mental health rep. This book made my best books read in 2025 list. The throuple will likely gain the most attention, but the discussion of depression is what most interested me.

The Plans I Have for You by Lai Sanders 4.25/5 stars

Put this on your TBR if you enjoy thrillers with some depth. We're exploring cancel culture, feminine rage, and anti-Asian hate with unlikable FMCs.

And the four I'm still waiting to get my hands on:

Innamorata by Ava Reid

Why it interests me: Ava Reid is a must-read author for me. This is described as dark and gothic: yes, please.

Sisters in Yellow by Mieko Kawakami

Why it interests me: by the author of Breasts and Eggs, translated from Japanese.

Under Water by Tara Menon

Why it interests me: climate fiction and grief.

A Mask the Color of the Sky by Bassem Khandaqji

Why it interests me: a Palestinian passes for Jewish in order to gain greater access in Israel. This book was written while the author was imprisoned for his political activities.

For the lovers of “Unhinged” books except I’m tired of seeing that word used so much recently on bookstagram so I’m just gonna go with WTF instead

Some of my recent reads. These are not Indigenous, but explore other areas of marginalized identities such as disability, trauma, mental illness, gender, sexuality, class, etc.

Also sorry I’ve been so absent, I’m really struggling with my health!!!! :(

but I will try to commit to more regular posts!

It's time to switch over from You Can't Scare Me to One Day At Horrorland.

One Day At Horrorland is probably my all time favorite from when I was a kid. I was a big amusement park fan and the fact that this park was deadly absolutely terrified me!

WRAP UP

You Can't Scare Me was full of pranks and urban legends. I personally wish the mud monsters were featured more! the build up was great but I needed more time with the creatures!

What was your favorite part?

Your least favorite?

The episode can be found here! I meant to watch it last night but didn't get a chance to! If you watch it, let's talk about it on discord!

KICK OFF

Now it's time to kick off One Day At Horrorland. As stated above, I loved this one as a kid and CANNOT wait to return to this creepy amusement park.

Synopsis: The next ride might be their last. . . . The Morris family got lost trying to find Zoo Gardens Theme Park. But that's okay. They found another amusement park instead. It's called HorrorLand. In HorrorLand there are no crowds. No lines. And the admission is free. It seems like a pretty cool place. But that was before that heart-stopping ride on the deadly Doom Slide. And that terrifying experience in the House of Mirrors. Because there's something weird about the rides in HorrorLand. Something a little too creepy. A little too real . . .

The Episode can be watched here . It is a two parter!

Book recs for this one will drop Sunday March 22nd. We will finish reading by March 29th!

Happy Sunday, mis internet amigxs,

Today I invite you to pour your cafecito, have a seat and buckle in for a LONG introduction before we get to today's releases.

If you've been following me on Threads this week, first of all, sorry. I've been feeling a bit discouraged by many publishing headlines/how BIPOC authors are cast aside by an industry that seemingly doesn't value us and our stories, unless it's convenient for them or creates positive press. It's been wearing me down and robbing me of my creativity and desire to create. This has been a constant in my almost 11 years on social media and it's hard not to let myself grow jaded. However, I am old enough to understand that my happiness on social media is guided by MY hand and not by publishing. I want to take some happiness back not only for myself, but so that I can bring you more joy with my content as well.

For a while now, I've been thinking about leaning into the Textiles part of my account name. I love fashion and I think featuring more of that side of myself would not only enable me to express myself more authentically and creatively on social media, but also allow me to explore Latinx fashion brands and to support them in addition to Latine authors. To that end, I've tentatively started a new series on Tik Tok highlighting my favorite Latine brands on TT shop. I'll also be sharing more of my outfits and make-up in stories and little wrap-ups like this on on Threads this morning.

Many of you found me because of my love of Latine books, so let me be clear, the goal of Bien Leidos hasn't changed, just the method in which I interact and show up on social media. Allowing myself the freedom to fully express who I am and everything I love should help me beat this social media slump I've been feeling for quite a while now. You'll still receive this weekly newsletter of upcoming Latine releases. Bien Leidos book club and Discord is literally part of my DNA, so don't expect any changes on those 2 fronts. I appreciate you being along for the ride and for your support. It means the world to be me; you have no idea.

Regarding this week's releases, there is only 1 Latine releases this week, so I'm going to share all the remaining March Latine releases on my radar with you so you can get ahead on pre-ordering. But before we do that, let's catch up where all the action and conversations happen...

BIEN LEIDOS BOOK CLUB & DISCORD UPDATES

WE HAVE MODS! After a short application process, I have added 5 moderators to help me continue to make our Discord safe and fun space to talk books, life, hobbies, and more. Be on the lookout to improvements and changes to your Discord experience!

Already mentioned on Discord, but I wanted to give you a quick heads up to expect The Intrigue by Silvia Moreno-Garcia as our August book club pick. She mentioned this week on Threads that when she writes outside of horror/fantasy genres, her numbers aren't as strong. I've fallen off my SMG train a bit with everything going on in the world, so I wanted to remind you that The Intrigue releases July 14th. You can pre-order on Bookshop or LibroFM.

We will be voting on upcoming June and July picks, but here are upcoming book club selections so you can get your TBR in order.

FICTION

March: Now I Surrender by Alvaro Enrigue and translated by Natasha Wimmer (we will be chatting with Alvaro on Monday, April 6th in lieu of sprints at 8:00 PM--invite to register will go out soon)

April: The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

May: Asiri and the Amaru by Natalia Hernandez

June: TBD -- will be voting on Discord soon

July: TBD -- will be voting on Discord soon

August: The Intrigue by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

NONFICTION

March - April: Everyone Who Is Gone is Here by Jonathan Blitzer

May - June: Accordien Eulogies by Noe Alvarez

I'll do a formal post updating all our upcoming reads, but wanted you to have the latest list of upcoming reads.

Finally, this is your evergreen reminder that we meet every Monday night on Discord and sprint--whether you're trying to get ahead with your current read or need to clean the house, we're chatting, working, chatting, working, all evening long if you ever want some virtual company.

March 17th Latine Releases

ROMANTASY

Daughter of the Hunt by K. Arsenault Rivera (Audiobook) Retelling of Iphigenia and Artemis myth from Puerto Rican Romantasy author, Rivera. Second book in the Oath of Fire series.

March 24th

MARVEL SERIALIZATION

Enemy of My Enemy: A Daredevil Marvel Crime Novel by Alex Segura: Streets-to-courtroom noir tale of the Punisher on trial for the murder of the Kingpin—with Matt Murdock as his defense attorney. Book two in the Marvel Crime series of thrillers for adult readers.

PICTURE BOOK

Ways Papi Says I Love You by Delia Ruiz : Picture book about the 5 love languages

ROMANCE

The Love Feud by Janine Amesta (Audiobook) second chance romance between 2 exes who pretend to have a feud between their 2 family businesses as a marketing ploy

ROMANCE - MARCH 26th

Home Runner by Millie Perez: Baseball romance featuring grumpy/sunshine and best friends to lovers trope? Yes, please.

CONTEMPORARY FANTASY - MARCH 27th

Bastard of the Alpha by Karina Espinosa: The Damned Return book 1 -- Urban fantasy from Colombia American author.

March 31st

TRANSLATED ECOLOGICAL FICTION

Only A Little While Here by Maria Ospina (Audiobook) Colombian author, Ospina, weaves interrelated animal stories in this truly unique work of ecological fiction from the POV of migratory songbird, orphaned porcupine, two dogs grieving their human companions, and a determined beetle.

POETRY

the light of your body by ire'ne lara silva: Indigenous spiritual poetry collection

xoxo,

Carmen

PS--There is a pretty big March 31st release by a Latina author missing from this list because if you don't want to claim your Latinidad, I'm not here to force an identity on your. Please keep that in mind before commenting on this missing release and any others moving forward.

Hi there book bestie,

Welcome back for another weekly reading update. I wasn't quite sure if I would make this a weekly thing, but the response to last week's little update was very positive. All last year I created a Sunday Evening Post series, featuring my current reads along with other fun bookish and non-bookish updates. That ended in December, and truth be told, I kinda miss creating a weekly update. But rather than spend hours filming and editing a short-form video, I'm going to stick with newsletter style weekly updates which are much easier to create. And Bindery is the PERFECT place to share those. So, buckle up, buttercup! 😜

I started the week last Sunday on the sofa, recovering from one of the absolute worst travel experiences of my life. The partial government shutdown has made traveling a nightmare at some airports. Unlucky for me, George Bush International (IAH) was one of those airports last weekend. I always connect through Houston when flying to/from Baton Rouge, but I never experience delays other than the occasional summer storm. Well, last weekend I spent a VERY long time in the terminal waiting to board my flight home to Los Angeles, only to finally leave nearly 5 hours after I was originally scheduled to leave. I spent that time editing Youtube videos, but I would have much rather have been home. I finally crawled into my bed at 5am PST Sunday, which means I spent much of that day recovering.

Needless to say, my Monday was rough! I didn't get much reading done after work because I could barely keep my eyes open. Actually, that was me much of the week thanks to Daylight Savings Time. I finally hit my stride later in the week, just in time to finish What Ever Happened to Lori Lovely and make good headway into The Secret Lives of Murderer's Wives. Both are perfect summer vacay reads but for very different people. More on that in my forthcoming March monthly wrap-up!

After finishing Lori Lovely on audio I dove straight into Lady Tremaine, and, boy, it did not disappoint! I devoured it, just like I said I would in my March new release video. Mothers of daughters are going to LOVE this one, as will anyone who enjoys a book with a fierce female main character who has some age and experience under belt. There's a scene toward the end of the book that had me SHOOK! It was fun to tag the author, Rachel Hochhauser, in my stories and see her engage! I'll never get over the access we have to authors who are active on social media.

I'd originally planned to drive to Tucson this weekend to meet some BookTok friends and attend the Tucson festival of books. But, as you can imagine, I said "no way" to more travel, opting instead to stay home. I had taken the day off work on Friday in anticipation of that travel, so I decided to spend it doing some spring cleaning and grocery shopping, prime audiobook time. I managed to finish Lady Tremaine on audio and dove straight into The Hired Man on Saturday while cleaning the house and prepping for company. It's really great, but I don't expect anything less from Sandra Dallas. Listening to this one reminds me that I still owe my Youtube subs a Dust Bowl Historical Fiction vidoe, so stay tuned for that soon.

Today, I plan to record a few videos and then settle down to finally start the BBFL Book Club March book, Before We Were Yours. I'm way behind (as usual), but I just haven't had much time to sit down with a physical book which is how I prefer to read my book club reads. It's much easier to engage with folks along the way in the chat rooms when I'm reading the book with my eyes. I'll be setting my book aside this evening to watch The Oscars, knowing full well that my vote for Best Picture won't win.

Well, that's a wrap on this past week. Stay tuned for a few more book recs next week, and be sure to let me know what you're reading so I can add it to my TBR!

This Week in SBB:

• This is who...a trendy throwback series

• Unbox a Portland Leather bag with me

• Book Review: Fireflies in Winter

• Booktube Anniversary: Meet Me In 5 Books

• January Reading Wrap-up: Three 5⭐️ Books

• Updated Post: How/Where to Find Free Books

Hear it Here First:

I'm giving away a bundle of Tiffany McDaniel books to one lucky winner! Enter to win here.

Ok folks, a little late, but better late than never. I'm participating in the trans rights read-a-thon this week and here is a list of 66 sapphic books you can choose from. I'm going to try and read five or six this week depending on time and work schedule!

Are you participating?

To Ride a Rising Storm by Moniquill Blackgoose

I waited two years for the second book in the Nampeshiweisit series and To Ride a Rising Storm did not disappoint!

Anequs, Theod, and their dragons are reconnecting with their communities on Masquapaug during their summer break after a taxing first year at Kuiper’s Academy. Their hopes for some relaxing time with family & space to define their relationship are dashed when the Anglish begin encroaching more and more on the island.

I love that we got a chance to get to know Anequs, her family, and her culture more in this book. Through Theod, we get to unpack European conditioning and think about what love and family could look like outside of those standards. Although I continued to enjoy the ways that Anequs pushes back against the status quo, I like that Liberty keep her grounded by explaining the ways that bucking the system in such a way can cause harm, too.

We also get a bit more of a peak into Liberty’s world, which I’d hoped would be fleshed out more. Although we learn more about her concerns and community, I would like to see a lot more of them integrated into the storyline of the third book. The Black community in New England (IRL) were no strangers to the struggles of the Indigenous tribes around them, so it would be cool to read that in the Nampeshiweisit series, too. Do they have dragon-culture? Are there other creatures they are bonded with? I hope we find out!

Pacing-wise, I think this book picks up a bit sooner than the first one with Anglish political conflict pushing the plot forward. It was really thrilling to see the way it all comes to a point and the plot definitely left me excited to get into book 3.

I think this series is on par with my love of N.K. Jemisin’s Broken Earth Trilogy and The Greenbone Saga by Fonda Lee.

Until the Clock Strikes Midnight by Alechia Dow

Read the full review here: https://bookish-afrolatina.binderybooks.com/item/4uuLHyJmLqIWL060tu5F/

The People's Library by Veronica G. Henry

This book had me on a rollercoaster of emotions! Veronica G. Henry blends speculative fiction, sci-fi, fantasy, and mystery in The People’s Library. 

Our main character is a Black woman librarian named Echo London. At the start, she’s the head of a public library in near-future Cleveland until her boss informs her that it will no longer receive funding from the cit but she’s a top contender for the position of curator at the brand-new People’s Library. A place where patrons can check out a virtual historical figure/thinker and learn directly from them. To many, this seems like a pretty cool place to learn, but Echo is skeptical. With no other viable options, that she could see, Echo takes the job and begins to see its appeal. That is, until mysterious woman attacks her on behalf of the anti-tech rebellion. This rouses her suspicions and sends the librarian on a journey of dark discoveries.

As a Black librarian, I vacillated between despair, suspicion, annoyance, and sadness as I read The People’s Library. In Echo’s world, AI is embedded in just about everything, which is a big fear of mine as I know how detrimental that will likely be. While I related a lot with her natural curiosity, I kept thinking that my girl was not being skeptical enough!! I was writing comments to her in my book like she could read it somehow. Despite my feelings, I found that this book was clever and engrossing. I felt like I could not put it down because I needed to know what would happen next! 

If you’re interested in discussions of the future of AI, utopias, privacy, surveillance, knowledge preservation, and what it means to be alive, this is a fantastic book to read.

*Note: I chatted with the author about her book on IG Live thanks to Sistah SciFi, so if you want to hear more of our thoughts on it, you can head over to their social media or watch our panel discussion on Saturday, April 25th, 2026.

The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar

The audiobook of The River Has Roots is incredible!  The story is entrancing but the music elevates the experience and gave me the feeling of being transported into it. 

It’s about two sisters with an unbreakable bond and powerful magic they were gifted by the ancient trees that they care for. This includes a queer main character and a suitor who refuses to take, “no” for an answer.

I love that their magic system is literary and musical. It’s beautifully unique! I hope y’all listen to it when you get the chance.

I Accidentally Hired a Shadow Walker (Accidents Happen #3) by Jessica Cage

I love that each of the books in the Accidents Happen series has a Black woman main character who is a badass at her job and is guaranteed to be pampered by her loved ones. 

Jericha Brown owns her own security firm and is dedicated to all of its inner workings. When a lead agent leaves the firm, taking some of her other employees with him just as she's landed her dream contract, she's put in a precarious situation. All Jericha can think of to save her ass is reaching out to the backstabbing ex-bestie who stole her ideas in college for a temporary partnership. Turns out, Miss Klepto up and sold her company to an annoyingly gorgeous man named Raymond Statton. What Jericha doesn't know is that this man is a Shadow Walker.

This is a super entertaining enemies-to-lovers romance with plenty of spice, hilarious banter, and found family. The book is a bit too long for my liking but it's worth it.

If you haven't already, get your hands on the Accidents Happen series so you can kick your feet and cackle to your heart's content!

Here are 10 horror books written by women I'm looking forward to:

1. She Waits Where Shadows Gather by Michelle Tang

   Avery and Carlos Tam have built their lives on logic, not legends. Carlos, the host of a hit reality show that exposes paranormal hoaxes, has made a name disproving the supernatural.

   But when they travel to his ancestral home in the Philippines, darkness clings to every corner. The mirrors are shrouded. The housekeeper won't stay in the house alone. And no one will speak of the tragedies the family has seen.

   Then a brutal car crash leaves Carlos trapped in his own body―silent, helpless, and utterly vulnerable. As Avery tends to him, the house begins to stir. It watches. It listens. And it speaks―in a voice only Carlos can hear―offering a twisted kind of comfort.

   And as the lies buried by Carlos and his family begin to surface, Avery must confront the truth: if the past won't rest, their future may never begin.

   Some inherit memories. Others inherit monsters.

2. Not Your Final Girl by Mikayla Rudolph

   A feminist slasher novel fueled by female rage and haunted by gruesome murders, in this contemporary reimagining of Tess of the D’Urbervilles there can only be one Final Girl.

3. The Temptation of Charlotte North by Camilla Bruce

   A rebellious young woman desperate to escape her predetermined life.
   
   The handsome but married priest who has caught her eye.
   
   And the resolute schoolteacher who values science above all.
   
   In 1910, on a small, remote island that boasts more sheep than people, the fates of Charlotte North, Jasper Hill, and Ruth Russel are perched on the edge of a cliff, and a strange wind is blowing. . . .
   
   When an ancient tower—rumored to have once imprisoned a witch—crumbles, it releases something powerful: a restless spirit that knocks inside the walls and sends household objects flying. A spirit that seems to be drawn to Charlotte, who sees in it a potential for power and change.
   
   But first she must overcome Jasper’s piety and Ruth’s fierce determination to banish the terrifying entity. Only then will she gain the power to claim the life that she desires.

4. Accumulation by Aimee Pokwatka

   A twisty, searing, conversation-starting novel about a filmmaker-turned-housewife who moves into her dream house and is forced to consider whether it's the house or herself that is haunted.

5. We Could Be Anyone by Anna Maria Mclemore

   Two teen con-artists must execute an almost impossible scam at an exclusive mansion in this thriller that's White Lotus meets Mexican Gothic - for teens.

6. The Girl With The Thousand Faces by Sunyi Dean

   a stunning Gothic tale set in a historical Hong Kong that meshes ancient myths and local legends into a haunting story of ghosts, grief, and women who will not forgive.

7. Neon Moon by Grace Reynolds

   Darlene Boone is a survivor. For more than a year, she’s been bartending at the famous Teegarden Saloon, a honky tonk in the Texas Hill Country, while attempting to put her life back together in the wake of an abusive past. But when an axe-wielding maniac descends on The Teegarden during one of the bar's busiest nights of the year, Darlene, along with everyone else in the crowded establishment, will have to put down their whiskeys and take up the nearest weapon if they're to survive this unexpected night from hell. No one knows if they'll make it out alive, least of all Darlene, but one thing's for sure no matter what: Texans don't go down without a fight.

8. Doe by Rebecca Darrow

   Thrilling crossover YA Horror perfect for fans of Krystal Sutherland and Tiffany Jackson, where the captain of a high school cheer team is caught in a bitter rivalry and turns to an ancient, supernatural creature for help, not knowing she’s just made a deal with a devil and could lose everything that matters, including her life.

9. The Summer of the Serpent by Cecilia Eudave

   This surreal, horror-tinged, Guadalajara-set work of Latin American “literature of the unusual” is a kaleidoscopic descent into the small violences and hidden horrors of one sweltering summer, forming a coil of vignettes that slither under the skin for a strange, deeply human portrait of memory, myth, and family.

10. Muneca by Cynthia Gomez

    A vivid, surreal Gothic about a queer, Latine, working class witch who sets out to rescue a bespelled heiress and loses control of her powers and her heart in the process.

My dream for this community is that we come together to support Indigenous creators, authors, bookstores!

Together we have the power to make a real difference.

Each month, I will tell you about the bookshop I am supporting for the month and create a community shopping day. I try to make these around paydays! Buy a book (or two or five) from the bookstore directly, or get a two-for-one and buy the book through my bookshop link in Bindery and support me and the bookshop!

This month, we are supporting Black Walnut Books, an Indigenous queer woman owned bookstore! Let's give her the best day.

I've added some of my favorite reads for you to order, or if none of them are your taste (or you already own them!) click through and then search for any book you want! I still will get a small commission!

Happy Book Shopping! (And request a bookstore to support in April below!)

With the weather turning nice and spring-like this past week where I live I've been going for more nature walks on a trail close to my house. It's peaceful and beautiful. I love listening to audiobooks while I walk and take in nature.

The below books all deal with horror centered around hikes and nature walks!

The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King

A young girl goes for a hike with her mother and brother and winds up getting lost.

The Woodkin by Alexander James

A man trying to run away from his past decides to hike a long trail only to come across a dead body and a strange mountain town.

The Hike by Drew Magary

While hiking on a work retreat, a man stumbles into a whole new reality.

Hunted by Darcy Coates

A hiker goes missing and her friends take to the woods to try and find her before it's too late.

The Extra by Annie Neugebauer

A hiking/camping trip turns odd when ten hikers become eleven. However everyone seems to know each other. So who is the extra?

The Ritual by Adam Nevill

A hiking/camping trip goes wrong when a group of friends decide to cut through the woods to get home.

The Woods are Always Watching by Stephanie Perkins

Two best friends take a hiking/camping trip as one last hurrah before they go off to college. However something sinister awaits them in the woods.

What's your favorite out door activity during sping/summer?