Welcome to Litsy!

This book is a vibe. Dark academia plus Southern gothic plus The Outsiders or American Graffiti or something along those lines. Add in an almost painful depiction of grief and slow burn queer longing. The characters were complex. The mystery was a bit predictable, but that‘s a minor quibble. One of my favorites for the year, for sure.

Bite to eat and a latte and a little reading before work

Relaxing Sunday with an egg and cheese on a cheddar chive biscuit and an iced mocha and enjoying my book 📖

“Andrew nodded, glancing out the doors again. A steep hill rose up at the edge of the yard, shale sticking out of the crumbling dirt and grass, straggling trees tumbling and growing on the slope. A curious tremble ran up his fingers into his sore arms.”

Lunch and errands today

Starting a new book (instead of finishing one of the many I‘ve started but not yet finished) and trying a new coffeeshop. I got the gourmet grilled cheese and a latte. Running errands after this.

Just as Andrew was to join his lifelong friend Eddie in a graduate program, Eddie apparently dies by suicide. But Andrew is convinced he‘s been killed. He works to embed himself in Eddie‘s life to try to get to the truth. There‘s also a supernatural element shared by the two which adds an interesting layer to the story. The ending was a bit messy (both too drawn out and too short), but otherwise I really enjoyed this.

I loved this book the first time I read it and I continue to love it. The atmosphere, Mandelo‘s voice, the characters… I didn‘t realize that they were first year Master‘s students and now I‘m older than them? That‘s weird to me lol but I love this book. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#wintergames #wintergames2023 #wintergames23 #snowangels #teamsnowangels #20in4 #ScaryChristmasReadathon #Rushathon

My first #wintergames read will be Summer Sons! I read it last year and it‘s honestly one of my favorite books, so I can‘t wait to start this month off with something I know I‘ll love.

#wintergames #wintergames2023 #wintergames23 #snowangels #teamsnowangels

One of the best horror books I‘ve read. The suspense and dread builds throughout the book so wonderfully. It‘s absolutely beautiful prose and has fantastic ideas and responses to grief. READ THIS!

I don't know how to review this. I feel like I didn't enjoy it as much as it deserves, though I did enjoy it. I couldn't fully get into Andrew or Sam as characters, so even though the writing was good and I enjoyed the story overall (other than a few things that needed a bit more development toward the end), I feel so-so on it. I also don't love atmospheric books, and this was very atmospheric. This came to me from #RainbowCrateBookBox. #LGBTQ

Imaking my way through my goals for the #JoyousJanuary challenge from @Andrew65 !

✅Finish Flocks
✅Start and finish Stage Dreams
🎧Finish Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow
📖Read 100 pages in Summer Sons (from 234): reached page 252
🎧Start a new audiobook

#Readathon

Here are my goals for the #JoyousJanuary challenge from @Andrew65 :

📖Finish Flocks
📖 Start and finish Stage Dreams
🎧Finish Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow
📖Read 100 pages in Summer Sons (from 234)
🎧Start a new audiobook

#Readathon

Talk about a chill-inducing first paragraph. Can't wait to get this one started for spooky season! I've heard such good things about it.

I had no idea what this about going just that the cover was cool and it was shelved under horror. I really enjoyed this story. Not really scary horror but maybe cause it deals with some supernatural elements maybe.

Andrew and Eddie are the best of friends. That is why Andrew is having a hard time dealing with Eddie‘s death due by suicide. When Andrew inherits Eddie‘s position clues start coming to light that Eddie‘s death looks more like a murder.

This book was just not for me. I didn‘t enjoy the writing. It took me longer to get through it then it should have. Even with trying the audiobook I just couldn‘t connect with any of the characters.

Pride Month: Day Twenty Two! ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

If you like your queer books to be a little spooky, than this is the one for you! I really really enjoyed this one! #pridemonth #queerbooks #lgbtq

LOOK AT THAT COVER, HOLY SH*T.

Anyway, I really, really didn‘t want to put this book down, but also I picked it up during a super heavy homework weekend (whoops). Andrew gets propped up by an amazing cast of side characters in this book, BUT THE VIBES? Immaculate. Beautiful prose, a good ghost story, but a lot - A LOT - of cars.

Full review at: https://www.rainyreader.com/single-post/summer-sons

Elf and a sploot to make up for the fact that this tbr read is definitely out of season 😲😂
But I‘m a sucker for a southern gothic, and this one has infernal inheritances, negotiations of queerness amid toxic masculinity, and a low-key indictment of higher education, and I am here for it!

I‘m other news, I cleared 12561 points last week for #wintergames2021 #mistletoemaniacs 👊🥰

Getting organized and preparing for all the 2022 reading! I have jinxmoon's #NewYearWhoDis list in my Reading Challenge notebook along with a few from Story Graph. Getting really excited!

@jinxmoon
@monalyisha
#NYWD22

RATING: 4/5

According to Oxford, characteristics of Southern Gothic include the presence of irrational, horrific, and transgressive thoughts, desires, and impulses; grotesque characters; dark humor, and an overall angst-ridden sense of alienation.⁠
⁠
This could not have been more fitting for Summer Sons.⁠
⁠
I stepped into Summer Sons expecting a coming-of-age story that would make my skin crawl.⁠
⁠
I wasn‘t wrong.⁠

#Horror #SouthernGothic

The #RainbowCrateBookBox is running their photo challenge for the October Dark Academia box, so I thought I'd pop over from Instagram land to share a photo of everything in October's box. I'm very excited to read the book of the month (tagged), and can't decide whether the mug or the notebook are my favorite items from October. #BookBox #SubscriptionBox #RainbowCrate

October wrap up: I read 27 books, some were children's books. My favorites were Summer Sons, The Book of Magic, And The Trees Crept In, and Silence For The Dead. Above is my bingo card for #BookSpinBingo I got one bingo. @TheAromaofBooks
I plan to readjust my plans for #BFC21 I did really well on my reading goal (over 10 books) but not my exercise goal (no where close to 21 days). I did drink more water and watched the candy. @wanderinglynn

Queer based southern gothic. After the sudden death of his best friend, Andrew returns to his BFF's Nashville home only to be confronted by secrets and something sinister and supernatural. Fans of Mexican Gothic will enjoy this LGBTA+ horror read.

I loved this book. Andrew whose best friend committed suicide and left him everything including his wraith and family curse. But Andrew doesn't believe Eddie killed himself so he goes to Vanderbilt to investigate 💚
#Scarathlon2021 #TeamHendrix
#wickedathon @StayCurious
#Screamathon @4thhouseontheleft
#Booked2021 #AppalachianNoir @Cinfhen @BarbaraTheBibliophage
#OmniousOctober #RoaringWolf #FamilyAffair @Littlewolf1 @Roary47

Really enjoying this so far! It's very spooky, with an added bonus of queer romance, street racing, and academic mysteries! 👻🎃

I'm about a third of the way through this book, and it's much MUCH spookier than I thought it was going to be! 😨 It's perfect to read outside on a crisp, cloudy, fall day! 📚🍁

Another perfect forest-y day! 🌿📚💕

Another very stormy Fall night! Perfect atmosphere for this spooky book, which I'm really enjoying so far! ⛈💕📚

The most perfect spot to start this new book! 😍🌿💕📚

I think I picked the perfect week to take off! It's been very rainy and cool, and the park smells like damp earth and damp rock. It's magical! 🌿🍁💕📚

I really wanted to like this book billed as a southern gothic with ghosts, death, fast cars, bad boys…and, well, you get the idea. All those elements were there & on occasion well executed but it never felt like the characters had any real substance (they were also all really angry or really not nice), the pacing was erratic so the story sort of just lurched along. This may be me & not the book though, I‘ve seen lots of rave reviews.

My mini Barnes & Noble book haul! 🎉📚

I was excited and surprised to find BOTH these titles in the store today, since they technically debut on Tuesday! Also, how cool is that tote?! 😍

Wow! I loved this book.

Summer Sons is being called a "queer southern gothic" tale and its definitely that and so much more. I didn't quite get the street racing world it was set in, but the dark academia side was handled excellently. The folklore and haunted tales of the Appalachian region take center stage here and create such a spooky read full of action and a lot of heart.

#NetGalley

"Lee Mandelo's debut Summer Sons is a sweltering, queer Southern Gothic that crosses Appalachian street racing with academic intrigue, all haunted by a hungry ghost." (Publisher summary)

I found out about this book on an August Tor.com article, "The Hills are Haunted; the Mountains are Hungry: Digging Into Appalachian SFF," and went looking for it immediately. It comes out September 28, 2021.↘️

🎧 NetGalley has this audiobook labeled as “sci fi & fantasy”. They left off the main thread weaving through the story, LGBTQ+ southern gothic!

Andrew & Eddie were closer than brothers until Eddie took off to graduate school without Andrew. Six months later he‘s dead & Andrew is coming to the conclusion that he didn‘t know Eddie at all.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️👇🏻