Tag Archives: Casey McQuiston

Moreish Queer Romances: Direct Descendant and The Pairing

2 Apr

Direct Descendant
by Tanya Huff
Tanya Huff’s fantasies are always enjoyable. I loved her mystery series Blood Ties about a human detective losing her eyesight and a vampire who assists her; the TV show was also lots of fun. I also enjoyed her Gales and Keeper Chronicles fantasy series. This sweet stand alone novel keeps with Huff’s ability to combine interesting likeable characters with humor along with some dark fantasy elements. Direct Descendant is a sweet lesbian romance story about Cassidy Prewitt, a baker, living in a town out of a Lovecraft story where eldritch horrors are ugly cute and children learn to hunt shadows with marshmallow skewers. The basic idea is what if your ancestors made a dark pact, but you just want to sleep in late and not use your power to control the world. When a beautiful women comes to investigate a mysterious disappearance though it will set things in motion that will require Cassidy to find her own inner strength. This is a page turner, a perfect read if you need cheering after the cold, dark winter months. I didn’t want to put it down as I read it over a long weekend.

The Pairing
by Casey McQuiston
I had enjoyed one of Casey McQuiston’s previous novels, One Last Stop, so was curious to check out The Pairing which promised a second chance romance set against a fabulous food travel adventure. Theo and Kit where childhood friends before falling in love and then breaking up right before their big culinary tour of Europe. Of course when they are given vouchers to book the trip at another time, both wait till the last possible moment, which means they will be on the tour together after spending years apart. I like that we are seeing more bi representation in romance and this one takes time to explore it more in depth with its two bisexual/pansexual main characters. I also enjoyed how we see things from first Theo’s and then Kit’s perspective which gives a more complete view of their relationship and feeling for each other. Beyond the romance and friendship, also delightful were the scrumptious description of the food and learning about the different destination they visited. This was another page turner, that was hard to put down.

Written by:
Aimee Harris
Information and Digital Services Manager

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Three Terrific Time Travel Stories: Sea of Tranquility, Paradox Hotel and One Last Stop

28 Jun

Sea of Tranquility
by Emily St. John Mandel
I read the Sea of Tranquility for our April, Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Discussion. The book centers on a mysterious anomaly, which seems to have bled through several different points in time. Edwin St. Andrew is in the Canadian forest when he hears the sound of the violin. Centuries later Olive Llewellyn’s best-seller about a pandemic includes a scene of a man playing a violin in an airship terminal suddenly surrounded by a forest for a brief moment. Gaspery-Jacques Roberts, a time-traveling detective attempts to solve the anomaly and deduce what it means for society. The story jumps focus between several different characters and periods, but they are all distinctive and clearly written so I didn’t find it in any way difficult to follow. Although I’m not sure if I completely agree with some of the existential conclusions that the book seems to make, I enjoyed reading it and found it a thought provoking novel. Despite this being a stand alone story, it includes characters from another of her works, The Glass Hotel. Her novel, Station Eleven, was recently adapted into a TV series and had been previously featured in one of our blog posts.

Paradox Hotel
by Rob Hart
Time Travel is often a favorite of our book club and another HPL Book Club Pick with time travel in it was this June’s Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Discussion featuring Paradox Hotel by Rob Hart; if you have read the book, you can come and discuss it with us tomorrow (June 29 2023) at the main branch at 6 PM. The Paradox Hotel is a government sponsored location that oversees time travel and is also funded by rich tourists. January Cole oversees security and she isn’t having a great day when she sees a future murder occur that rapidly becomes part of her present. January has a condition, which causes her to become unstuck in time so often has bleeds from the past in present into her consciousness, but she desperately wants to continue working at the hotel since it allows her glimpses from the past of her lost love. The book was a finalist for a LAMBDA Literary award and NPR called it one of the Best Books of the Year. Whether you are a fan of Mystery, Science Fiction, or Romance this terrific novel should appeal. I can’t wait to see what the book discussion club members thought of it!

One Last Stop
by Casey McQuiston
One Last Stop is an unusual time story romance. August is a world weary woman in her early twenties, originally from New Orleans, she states early on in the story that she doesn’t do magic. This of course means magic soon finds her when she moves to New York and gets a job at a diner which sells pancakes 24/7. When she meets the beautiful punk, Jane, on the subway she thinks she might just have met the girl of her dreams, but Jane isn’t just sporting old school style, she literally is from the late 70’s. August must try and figure out with the help of her quirky roommates how they can rescue Jane who is stuck in time, perpetually riding the Q train. I enjoyed listening to the audio book version narrated by Natalie Naudus, who brought to life the charming characters inhabiting the story. Naudus had also done a great job with narrating Siren Queen, which I also enjoyed. If you loved the Gwyneth Paltrow movie Sliding Doors, you should check this magical subway novel out. For more great LGBTQ books you can see a previous post where One Last Stop was included in a list of Hudson Pride Month Picks. McQuiston’s I Kissed Shara Wheeler was included in our Best Books of 2022 for Teens and Kids post.

For more time travel story recommendations checkout our Pursuits Through Time blog post and Out of Time blog post.

Written by:
Aimee Harris
Information and Digital Services Manager

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