Heartstopper

 

I think, by the time this goes live, we've all seen this show and, hopefully, have news on series two. However, at the time of writing this, Heartstopper has only been out for a week and I have binge-read Volumes 1 & 2 (and will be starting Volume 3 & 4 over the May Day Bank Holiday Weekend). And we are all raving about this adaption. At the time of writing this, Rotten Tomatoes has given this show of 100% (which is UNHEARD OF!) and it has an average audience score of 98% (again, unheard of). 

I have reread Volume One and then bought Volumes Two, Three and Four (though I did read the web-comic when it was coming out) and read Volume Two and, so far, am finding it an utterly joy. It's just lovely and is a wonderful feel-good read with positive LGBTQ+ themes. 

I think one of the reasons why most viewers adore this series is the characters matters. We care for them and we fall in love with them. Plus, the level of representation in both graphic novel and TV series is high. If this show came out when I was in my teens and figuring myself out, it would have been a lifeline. 

REPRESENTATION MATTERS, NOW MORE THAN EVER!

Sorry, I did have plans to write a long post about the show and have faithful it was to the first 2 volumes while expanding stories with other characters and hopes for series two (do we want a series two? I kinda do as I want to see more, but I don't at the same time as scared it will mess series one's happiness up!), but I can't really think of anything to say. I am reading the series, I've read the show and I have probably chatted too many times on social media about this. But yes, this is a lovely series and I am having a blast!

Self-Isolations Mini-Reads - A Taste of Honey & HeartStopper

Oh, the joy of thinking you are on a verge of a reading slump: you are never sure on how you feel about the book and if you should do a small write-up about the stories you have read. I’m probably going against my better judgement and I am going to do a two mini-reviews in one post. Which isn’t going to be a difficult thing to write as one ebook I read, I had a blast with and the other… not so much. 

Might as well get them out of the way now! 

• Title And Author: A Taste of Honey by Kai Ashante Wilson
• Publisher: Tor
• Physical, eBook or Audiobook: eBook
• Bought, Borrowed or Gifted: Bought
• Length: 162 Pages

I had such high hopes for this. Such high hopes. I mean, LOOK AT THAT COVER! Yes, I did buy this because of the cover. Plus, part of the book’s blurb catch my eye and I went “YES!”. Aqib, fourth-cousin to the royal family and son of the Master of the Hunt, finds himself falling for a handsome Daluçan soldier named Lucrio. As the two start a star-crossed whirlwind of a romance, the two don’t know if their love cam survive all the hardships the world has planned to throw at them… 

Like I said earlier, I had such high hopes. An adult fantasy novella with a black queer romance at its heart? SIGN ME UP! And yet… and, sadly, yet, this didn’t work for me. There’s nothing wrong with this - the writing and world building were on point, though a tad confusing at times if you’re not on the ball. Plus, maybe it’s because I am on the verge of reading slump that I felt that this was a tad dense for my brain. But the main reason I went into this novella - the black queer romance - while there, often felt overshadowed by the writing and the world-building. 

Ok, so I had a tiny misfire as I judged a book by its cover (DON’T!), but I thought I would try something with kissing. So, when I saw an eBook version of Heartstopper: Volume 1 on my kindle for 99p, I “ooh”ed and “ahh”ed over it. I have read the webcomic for a few years now, but kept putting off buying the first volume. Not sure why, but I did. So, I got Volume One now (AT LAST!) and, oh, hang, I need to do the links/essential info! 

• Title And Author: Heartstopper: Volume One by Alice Oseman
• Publisher: Hodder Children's Books
• Physical, eBook or Audiobook: eBook
• Bought, Borrowed or Gifted: Bought
• Length: 288 Pages

Ok, with that out of the way, let’s chat graphic novel/webcomic! Charlie and Nick go to the same school, but have never met. Until they made to sit next to each other in class. The two become friends, and soon Charlie finds himself falling hard for Nick, though he’s sure he has got a chance with Nick. But Nick might be more interested in Charlie than either of them realise. 

This is wonderful, feel-good graphic novel. The art might not be as polished as other graphic novels, but this has a lot of heart and does wonders for representation within the LGBTQ+ community. Plus, if you follow the web-series, this series does tackle some issues with sensitivity and care, but this is very much setting up Nick and Charlie’s friendship and slowly growing romantic relationship and it’s wonderful! 

I had to jump onto the web-series once I had read the volume to double-check what happened next as it ends on a bit of a cliffhanger. But this was exactly what I needed after reading A Taste of Honey. 

Speaking of this, this might be my last bookish-review/write-up for a while as life is slowly trying to return to normal plus reading slump so going to give myself a few weeks off blogging my reading and my thoughts (though not for long. I just need to find my feet again and then, can hit the ground running again. And oooh, I have titles I want to read that I can’t wait to sink my teeth into!!!)