#good zoe lee

[certifiedducky]

whenever i see a post/merch/ad of the "main five" and its zoe instead of chloe a part of me dies a little AND ITS NOT BECAUSE I HATE ZOE

im a queen bee defender until i die, but i like the idea of zoe. the reason i hate seeing promos of ladybug, chat noir, rena rouge, carapace, and VESPERIA is because she sticks out like a sore thumb. she holds little to no weight in the overall story(which the same could be said about nino but thats an entirely different issue and a rant for another day)

chloe is a big character, she has a lot of development and complicated relationships with our protagonists. she earned her spot, narratively speaking, to hold one of the Seven main miraculous. zoe did not. zoe showed up during one of the later seasons, did nothing but serve as a replacement, and is treated like she holds as much weight in the story as chloe. AND ITS TO THE DETRIMENT OF HER CHARACTER!!! again, if chloe has no fans im dead, but they could've made zoe work, there was a lot brought to the table when they introduced chloe's illegitimate sister, but they did nothing with it. and you can feel the void every time vesperia gets called on screen and she's this piece of cardboard with a backstory about being scared to be nice or something but she's being treated like an Important Character.

[melljam]

j high is so back !!!

[pervypeachdraws]

matchmaker marc is here to help

[festering-bacteria]

Kagami, Luka & Zoe!!  I can’t believe gay people are real,,,

[theerurishipper]

do you think Zoe as a character is a necessary for the plot?

I lover her design but as far I can see her character doesn't seems to be necessary for the story, at all. I thought at first she'd be a challenge for Chloe to finally become better, especially after the play they did in Queen Banana. I thought with Chloe break of her friendship with Adrien that would be the time for her to slide in and try to be a sister/friend for her which will create a positive characrer development for Chloe.

But as the story progress I feel like she doesn't seems like to make impact on Chloe's life and it seems like she doesn't even interact with Chloe much, she instead hang out with Marinette and end up become another generic character added for the sake for increasing Marinette's harem and I don't know, a better bee holder who wouldn't talk back to Ladybug or demanding thing from her perhaps? Because this show has allergies toward character who challenge Marinette's morality.

I mean if the reason why they added Zoe is just for the sake for a new bee holder, I don't see a reason why they can't use Aurore or Mirriele since they already have unique model. Being from different class doesn't stop Marc to be a miraculous holder after all. If she's added for the sake of lesbian representation, we have JuleRose already. So why is she here?

Honestly? Zoe is one of the most useless characters in the show. She only really exists so that the writers can fit her into whatever role they need to progress the plot, because she doesn't have any established characterization. I do like her design, but that's really about all I can say. She's just such a non-entity to me.

Her first episode was actually quite interesting to me personally. A character who tries to hide her true self and lies in order to be accepted by her peers? Interesting stuff! I dig characters like that. Her being all nice and friendly with Marinette at first and then switching instantly to becoming mean and cruel? How intriguing! What a good way to establish a character! This could be the start of a really good character journey in which Zoe learns that she doesn't have to put on these roles to be accepted, culminating with her earning the Bee Miraculous as a fully established character!

But there was no character arc. There was no arc, no nothing she just... got over it thanks to one speech and got the Bee Miraculous in the next episode and then descended into obscurity. She could have been so much. Imagine how it could have been if we had gotten to explore her character. Like, maybe she could have caused the akuma on her first day instead of being the one to be akumatized. This could have set up everyone else disliking her while leaving Marinette wondering why she seems so different from before, and it could have started Zoe off on the path of realizing she didn't want to put on an act to please bad people and be accepted by them because she didn't want to hurt other people, actually.

Over the course of the season, maybe we could learn about what exactly happened in her old school through a proper backstory and not just an exposition dump. We could learn about why she is the way she through exploring her relationships with her father and her mother. We could have her grow through her interactions with others and her observing Marinette with her friends, and we could have watched her slowly realize that she maybe doesn't want to put on an act anymore and that she just wants to be accepted for herself. This way, we could actually get to see her act this way and understand why she is the way she is, and have her motivation be revealed in a natural and compelling manner, instead of just having it all be dumped onto us in her debut episode.

Then we could have the obligatory akuma, which lets Marinette know that there's more to Zoe after all. Maybe Marinette tries to reach out to Zoe after that. Maybe this leads to Zoe learning what real and true friendships are really like and leads to her finding people whom she can be herself with and who will accept her unconditionally. Maybe we could actually see her hanging out and bonding with everyone and actually watch the scenes with stuff like Rose and Juleka helping her dye her hair instead of it being relegated to an end-of-the-episode montage. They could have used those sneakers of hers more. Those were an interesting and compelling aspect of her character, considering the fact that she would write down the nice things people said about her on it. Maybe we could have a scene of her doing that with her new friends. And maybe after this, she gets the Bee Miraculous, and being able to help Ladybug like this inspires her to help others the way Marinette helped her, which makes her reach out to Chloe, thus letting her true self shine through completely, and this could also prompt a gradual change in Chloe.

I'm just throwing out some scenarios here and I don't claim that I'll do a better job of anything, but I really do think that the reason Zoe's character suffers is because of the abysmal pacing. They set up something interesting with her and then resolved it in one episode, which made her character dull and boring for any other time she's on screen. If they had stretched it out over the course of the season, she would have been way more interesting. As it is, she has nothing going for her.

From a writing perspective, Zoe has the most generic personality ever. She's nice and kind, just like every other character in the show. Any interesting facets to her character or any meaningful conflict she could have faced is fixed in her introductory episode and never seen again, and she herself only ever appears in the background of other episodes along with the rest of Marinette's classmates, contributing nothing of value. Her relationship with Chloe and her promise to always love her? Forgotten. Her conflict about not wanting to put on an act? Somehow, she just... got over it in one day and was always just her authentic self from then on. Like, name one character trait about Zoe that you can't say about anyone else. Even the rest of the class, obscure as they are, have more defined personalities and quirks than she does.

Zoe is literally just there, and the writers pity her sometimes, so they give her stuff to do. And you can't really say any of them don't make sense for her character, because she doesn't really have one beyond the base traits of nice and good. So you need a replacement Chat Noir? Zoe. Need representation? Zoe. There's no real reason for any of this to be her, it just happens to be her... because. Like you said, this could have been done by characters who were already here. We could have had our lesbian rep from Julerose, we could have had Nino for the Black Cat. There's nothing of value that Zoe as a character brings to any of these things, it just so happens to be her because she has nothing else going for her, and because her personality is so underdeveloped and practically non-existent that anything goes. And also Kagami would have been a better choice for both of these things no seriously this is Kagami erasure this is Kagami slander justice for Kagami.

And it really does suck, because Zoe could have been an interesting character. Her character premise was genuinely compelling. But then she just got reduced to another classmate who hangs around helping Marinette confess and to another one of Ladybug's team. All her scenes are just comparing her to Chloe and going "oh Chloe bad Zoe good." There is nothing Zoe has going on for herself. She's really just there to be a replacement for Queen Bee. And this would have been fine if the writing organically and naturally inserted her into the role by fleshing out her character and relationships with Marinette/everyone else. But she has virtually no development or character and most of her scenes are used to beat it down our skulls that Chloe is Evil and Zoe is Good, so root for Zoe, guyz!

They are so insistent on shoving the Zoe is the Good Chloe agenda down our throats that they have characters act OOC just for that. Somehow, being talked down to in front of the school doesn't make Marinette doubt Zoe in any way, shape or form. Instead, the blame is placed on Chloe for corrupting her. Andre suddenly decides to grow a spine and stop enabling his daughter, and once again Zoe is supported and praised and Chloe is condemned (I'm not saying it was wrong for Chloe to be told off, just that it coming from Andre of all people just makes it part of the problem because it's so OOC). They even had Plagg go out of his way to compliment Vesperia over Queen Bee like, five seconds after he's seen her for the first time, even though Plagg never compliments anyone so quickly or so much, not even Adrien. They had Plagg spend the whole of Deflagration kissing Zoe's feet and praising her constantly even though he would never do so while he offers to Cataclysm Chloe! He would not fucking say that.

Honestly, when it comes to others interacting with Zoe and the conversation actually being about her instead of about Marinette, it just results in more comparisons to Chloe and how Zoe is sooooooo much better than her. Even the episode focusing on Zoe and her feelings has a Chloe subplot that basically takes over the whole thing so that they can be compared.

And I am self-admittedly not a Chloe stan. I am not particularly fond of her. But I also don't like being told what to think, and I don't like how the narrative tries so hard to make us hate Chloe and like Zoe without developing either of them or letting us come to our own conclusions. Zoe isn't given anything of her own. Either she is being whatever the writers want her to be or she is being Chloe but Good or she is being Marinette's newest wingman. They could have explored so much about her. They could have fleshed out her struggles and her backstory. They could have done something with that set up in Queen Banana between Zoe and Chloe's relationship. They could have explored Zoe's new relationships (the Zoe/Lila parallels practically write themselves, as does the Adrien-Zoe friendship). They could have elaborated more on her dream of being an actress. But they didn't. They just kept comparing her to Chloe whenever anything had to do with her, and her character suffered for it.

Zoe could have been her own character in her own right, and she did not need to be bogged down by being forever labelled "Chloe's replacement," but the show didn't let her grow beyond that initial label and now it's pretty much stuck forever. Honestly, she deserved better.

Thank you for your ask!

[causalityparadoxes]

Colt used the Peacock to create Felix. Later he became sick from using it and died. Felix has 1 alive parent and is confirmed as a senti.

Emelie used the Peacock to create Adrien. She became sick and died. Adrien has 1 alive parent (for now lol) and is implied to be a senti

Kagami's father is never shown and iirc never mentioned. Kagami has 1 confirmed alive parent and is implied to be a senti.

Chloé's parents, Audrey and André, are both alive and accounted for.

Zoe's father 'Mr. Lee' has never been seen but was mentioned in Sole Crusher. So he's probably alive too.

Imo? Everyone who used the broken peacock miraculous is now dead. Zoe and Chloe probably arent sentis. And one of Tomoe's motives for helping Gabe is bringing back her spouse who died after using the Peacock miraculous.

[miraculous-lesbians]

I need to make time for a proper “Where are they now” for my Chlogami fanfic (which will include other ML characters obviously), but spoilers for Chloe and Zoe because uh-

[chloebourgeoisofficial]

Do you love your sister?

She loves me. Even if I don't deserve it.

[nerdyenby]

[Deflagration spoilers]

• AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

• that was so good, what??!?!!!

• ZOE SUPREMACY <3333

• Alya is also freaking amazing and her relationship with Tikki is so sweet, the “I feel safe with you��� broke my heart /pos??

• Plagg :((((((( he’s so good, he just wants his kids to be happy and he’s ready to include Zoe in that the moment he lays eyes on her

• so much was going on that I straight up forgot Gabe’s plan and him using venom startled me so bad, my jaw dropped

• Nino is such an interesting character this season, he has so much nuance and I love that he’s getting the space for that to show

• but seriously, the way Nino has been vocal and in charge of the resistance all along but when it comes down to it he’s the one to shield Ladybug? Mans truly embodying protection <3 we stan a man who leads by example

• also Rose and Juleka carrying an Akumatized Chloe like a battering ram was the funniest thing I’ve ever seen, it’s such a power move

• Adrien snatching the earrings is a Moment, Gabe’s eyes conveyed so much emotion right then, I have no idea how they animators did it but dang they sure did

• Marinette is an icon as always, not to mention an absolute genius, I love how we get to see her thought process when she finds Alya

• also this girl probably owns a disproportionate amount of red and black paint and you know what? good for her

• and, of course, Adrien being patient and supportive of Marinette is the sweetest, but we knew

• Plagg and Zoe pack-bonded with zero hesitation and I will not shut up about it, they are friends, I want more of them

• also we need to talk about Plagg’s sacrifice real quick because I had to take a minute when watching. Like holy crap he did that. Tikki says it just destroyed his connection to the human world, but he sacrificed himself and his chance of seeing anyone and everyone he cared about and he did it with zero hesitation, even being the one to reassure Tikki “we’ll see each other again” IM NOT OKAY

• This episode was so much, I’m never going to recover /pos

[alwaysnervouswitchprince]

What would you think if Chloe and Audrey heard rumours about the way they were going to be portrayed in Astruc’s new movie, so they went back to Paris in an unsuccessful attempt to stop the movie from being completed? Then an evilized villain (maybe a wishmaker-like villain or maybe even a villain that's unrelated to the butterfly miraculous) caused Chloe and Zoe to switch bodies somehow, and nobody fully understands what's going on, so Zoe (in Chloe's body) is taken by Audrey back to New York, despite Zoe desperately trying to explain things. But Chloe enters a fugue state (heavily due to trauma caused by the neglect of her parents) and genuinely thinks she's Zoe, and is even able to recall many of the things Zoe did due to being in Zoe's body. The class thinks “Zoe's” change in behavior is due to the psychological effects of method acting, since “Zoe” is playing Chloe in Astruc's new movie, but they gradually convince “Zoe” to let them help her relearn how to be “herself” again. Meanwhile, in New York, Zoe is trying to get back to Paris, but when she gets there, “Zoe” thinks she’s there to try to hurt Marinette.

Eventually, after listening to “Chloe��, Marinette starts to suspect that “Chloe” might be telling the truth, so she decides that she must test “Chloe” and “Zoe”. She fakes being in danger to see how they react. “Zoe” reacts slightly faster than “Chloe”, so Marinette comes to the conclusion that “Chloe” is lying and that “Chloe” has an evil and manipulative plan. Marinette thinks that “Chloe” must have picked up a few tricks from Lila, because she thinks no version of Chloe could possibly react faster than Zoe when it comes to protecting her. So Audrey takes “Zoe” back to New York again to “correct” her after “Zoe” fails to convince anyone of the truth.

10 years later, “Zoe” gets seriously injured after fighting a villain when Ladybug isn’t around, which causes “Zoe” to not have long to live. Then Ladybug accidentally stumbles upon the truth about “Zoe” while trying to help “Zoe” using magical powers. Ladybug decides that the moral thing to do is to switch Chloe and Zoe back to their original bodies. Once Zoe gets her body back, she blames Chloe for her impending death and for leaving her with 10 years of loneliness, while Chloe got off scot-free. When Lila gets defeated, Zoe steals the Butterfly Miraculous to get her hands on Ladybug and Catnoir’s miraculouses, hoping to “make things right”. Zoe gets defeated by the heroes (including Chloe, who has gotten her memories back) and Ladybug manages to cure Zoe’s injuries.

Holly shit dude that's sick! I love AUs where things get mixed up and change. I love Chloe, she's my favourite and she really has potential as we saw until asstruc™ go on an ruined it but it really ended up more of a tragedy like someone else said in a post, by Marinette forcing Chloe out of her life where she plays a villain Chloe has to be the victim of her story and i think that's really poetic. I love when "villains" are only villains for other people while having their reasons and trauma etc. which the "main characters" can't see or understand.

This au can also be interpreted as Chloe when given a chance with people not treating her like devil incarnate can be better and i think that just shows how hypocritical everyone else is. It can also be a way for Zoe to understand why change is so hard for Chloe rather than her actually hating her sister. Even when she's being Zoe and being nice as long as people see Chloe's face they call her all kinds of things behind her back and to her face. I think she might start hating the "good people of Paris" rather than blaming Chloe because when she first came to Paris everyone was nice without even knowing anything about her, only hesitating when they heard her sister is Chloe, even then the immediate though they had was "she's actually secretly nice but Chloe is what's wrong" when it was Zoe acting how she did whenever she was around people before coming to Paris, sure that's an act but Chloe isn't the one who made her start doing that, it was Zoe herself who deals with her trauma caused by their mother and people around her just like how Chloe is determined to be like their mother so she loves her own daughter, it's literally the same trauma but she has no one who teach her what's wrong or right, only thing nice she knows is her dad drowning her with gifts not taking care of her, and only people who might've been helpful (hotel staff) she can't possibly listen to because she's conditioned to belittle and hate them since birth.

It'd be cool if Chloe and Zoe worked together against the people who would rather send Chloe to hell before they can even think about her not actually being a villain and more of a victim of abuse and not having a parent figure that isn't abusive or only spoils her to the point she doesn't know what being loved means other than having money and gifts.

They could even do the whole stealing miraculous thing but being more of a vigilante duo rather than villains but Ladybug still want to get the miraculous back and seeing the sisters more of a villain while the people of Paris slowly warms up to them since they're mostly helping people in a different more emotional way while researching a way to switch back to their own bodies.

I can see Marinette and at first Chat Noir alongside with Alya and most of Paris hating them seeing them as Hawk Moth 3.0 but slowly seeing that they're not evil (probably except Marinette at first until maybe they found out the truth or thinking this was a trap to gain trust so they can take over the world or something because she's also traumatized and have trust issues alongside paranoia)

Eventually as the sisters use miraculous to help people rather than villainy people start to trust them and they continue to try finding a way to turn back. They also try people to give Chloe (Zoe) a chance while Chloe as Zoe starts to get better and heal without all the drama and hypocrisy from Parisians especially her classmates since she has to go to Zoe's class for now and is away from people who hate her more than others.

[tilia-cacophonous]

WAIT pause pause pause everyoene, I was todays ten thousand to learn that akechis VA robbie daymond is a va for league of legends???????

[syndianites]

What would you think if an evilized villain(maybe a wishmaker-like villain or maybe even a villain that's unrelated to the butterfly miraculous) caused Chloe and Zoe to switch bodies somehow, and nobody fully understands what's going on, so Zoe(in Chloe's body) is taken by Audrey back to London, despite Zoe desperately trying to explain things. But Chloe enters a fugue state(heavily due to trauma caused by the neglect of her parents) and genuinely thinks she's Zoe, and is even able to recall some of the things Zoe did due to being in Zoe's body. Everyone thinks "Zoe's" change in behavior is due to the psychological effects of method acting, since "Zoe" is playing Chloe in Astruc's new movie. Meanwhile, in London, Zoe is trying to get back to Paris.

Under the assumption that Ladybug and Chat Noir don't catch on to the akuma before Zoe is taken to London, I'd imagine a few things would happen:

Someone would confront "Zoe" and try to talk to her about how, even if she is just trying to get into the role, there needs to be a line drawn with how her behavior is affecting others and that she can't just act like Chloe without consequences. This could either confuse "Zoe" since all she remembers is how to act like Chloe, even if she thinks she IS "Zoe."

In the event that Ladybug called on Zoe for Miraculous help, I imagine that either the differences in "Zoe" or, if "Zoe" is given the Bee miraculous to use, Pollen might notice something is off or "Zoe" might accidentally transform into Queen Bee- which could even bring some clarity to Chloe

"Chloe," meanwhile, would actually have a fairly easy time getting back to Paris. Not only is England a stone's throw away, from what we've seen in canon Audrey is a famously busy person and most of the reason Chloe got her attention was because of Marinette bringing them together and Chloe trying to force her way into her mother's activities. Without Chloe trying to make herself as present as possible, I could see Audrey getting swept up in work and forgetting about "Chloe" or even being apathetic to "Chloe" if we take a more cynical approach to Audrey.

"Chloe" would likely have many issues trying to get people to believe she's actually Zoe, but the easiest method would be tracking down Ladybug and telling her that she knows "Zoe" was Vesperia because she IS Zoe. Alternatively, she could also plead to her school friends because, from what I understand, she actually hangs out with them on the regular. She'd be able to, at least, convince them that she is either Zoe or a copy in Chloe's body- since "Zoe" would also have some recollection of Zoe's memories.

Regardless, even if the akuma wasn't found right away, once they did something that stirred enough attention to get Ladybug and Chat Noir on the case, the second they are defeated the situation would be remedied. Even if Zoe was still stuck in London and Chloe had fully leaned into being "Zoe" they would get switched back.

Ultimately, it'd be a good way to see Chloe and Zoe held in different contexts, and see how each are seen and the trials that come with how others see them. How far would people go to justify "Zoe's" actions if she acted more and more like Chloe? How much would it take for people to believe "Chloe" wasn't trying to hurt them or lying? It would be a good exploration of both the relationship they have with their schoolmates and family as well as their own sense of self.

[floralbeautysweet]

I Like both they're awesome and Zoé with the Ladybug Miraculous Holder i'm going to name her Floral Beetle and name you Rosella

Her with the Ladybug and the Bee Miraculous holder is way better than Kitty Noire

Zoe with the ladybug miraculous??

This is the joy of sharing a name with a character. Like, did you mean me, or...?

Also please enjoy this alternative for Zoé’s “antennae” situation that made me laugh:

Lookin’ gooooood.

Ko-fi | Patreon

[butchmarner]

Who is the gayest PWHL Team?🌈

(Based on my extensive and unprofessional research of players' instagrams lol)

Minnesota: 3 confirmed

Michela Cava- dating teammate Emma Greco

Emma Greco- dating teammate Michela Cava

Liz Schepers- dating Ohio State teammate Michaela Boyle

Toronto: 7 confirmed

Brittany Howard

Carly Jackson

Allie Monroe

Jess Jones

Hannah Miller

Kristen Cambell- dating Team Canada softball player Emma Entzminger

Erica Howe

Ottawa: 7 confirmed

Brianne Jenner- (C) Married w/ 2 kids to Hayleigh Cudmore, her former teammate in Calgary

Emily Clark

Emerance Maschmeyer- married to Team Canada goalie Genevieve Lacasse

Ashton Bell

Malia Schneider

Zoe Boyd- either gay or really really really good at lesbian thirst traps and a queerbait of an instagram

Amanda Boulier

Boston: 7 confirmed

Hilary Knight- (C) dating speed skater Brittany Bowe (sorry Freddy Anderson)

Shiann Darkangelo- dating Montreal's Elaine Chuli

Jamie Lee Rattray

Samantha Isbell- exes with New York's Jill Saulnier

Taylor Wenczkowski

Amanda Pelkey- married to Finnish Olympian Venla Hovi

Erin Brown- dating New York's Savannah Norcross

New York: 9 confirmed

Micah Zandee-Hart (C)

Madison Packer- married to former teammate Anya Packer

Jade Downey-Landry

Jill Saulnier- exes with Boston's Sam Isbell

Chloe Aurard- dating basketball player Ella Bushee

Savannah Norcross- dating Boston's Erin Brown

Olivia Zafuto- dating former Boston Pride teammate McKenna Brand

Elizabeth Giguere- married

Johanna Fallman

Montreal: 9 confirmed

Marie-Philip Poulin- (C) engaged to teammate Laura Stacey

Laura Stacey- engaged to teammate Marie-Philip Poulin

Elaine Chuli- dating Boston's Shiann Darkangelo

Sarah Bujold

Erin Ambrose

Leah Lum

Mélodie Daoust- has a son with ex-wife, currently dating retired Team Canada player Hannah Bunton

Cath Dubois

Brigitte Laganiere

Notable mentions to 4/6 captains in this league being gay 🌈

(thank you @lesbianracecars for helping me in my extensive research)

[englishsub]

book rec by me

so you want to get back into reading books but have no idea where to start and disdain booktok (if you get me started on this however i will become an unskippable cutscene so that's for another day). understandable. there is so much out there and it is all so overwhelming and you don't even know what you like now that you've been a decade out of the game. again, understandable. it does not have to be scary. i will help you. below i have created some categories that can get you started.

i want to read Literature

literary fiction, with crossover from historical fiction and magical realism

PEACH BLOSSOM SPRING by melissa fu

THE VASTER WILDS by lauren groff

THE FAMILY CHAO by lan samantha chang

OUTER DARK by cormac mccarthy

SEVERANCE by ling ma

LIGHT FROM UNCOMMON STARS by ryka aoki

IDENTITTI by mithu m. sanyal

PIRANESI by susanna clarke

i want to read sci-fi/fantasy that won't break my brain

sci-fi and fantasy that is gentler on the brain cells. easier to grasp magic systems with multiple but not an overwhelming number of overlapping plotlines

EMILY WILDE'S ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF FAERIES by heather fawcett

KINGS OF THE WYLD by nicholas eames

THE JASMINE THRONE by tasha suri

THE CITY OF BRASS by s.a. chakraborty

A RIVER ENCHANTED by rebecca ross

JUNIPER AND THORN by ava reid

BLACK SUN by rebecca roanhorse

THE FINAL STRIFE by saara el-arifi

THE BONE SHARD DAUGHTER by andrea stewart

i want to read sci-fi/fantasy that forces me to lock the fuck in

i would not recommend picking these up as your first foray back into books after many years of not reading recreationally, but i'm not your mom.

THE SPEAR CUTS THROUGH WATER by simon jimenez

JADE CITY by fonda lee

THE FIFTH SEASON by n.k. jemisin

THE RAGE OF DRAGONS by evan winter

A MEMORY CALLED EMPIRE by arkady martine

GIDEON THE NINTH by tamsyn muir

THE ART OF PROPHECY by wesley chu

THE GRACE OF KINGS by ken liu

horrify me!

there is far more to the horror literary canon than stephen king and dean koontz, i promise. consider looking up warnings for these.

TENDER IS THE FLESH by agustina bazterrica

THE RUINS by scott smith

CONFESSIONS by kanae minato

EPISODE THIRTEEN by craig dilouie

REPRIEVE by james han mattson

MARY by nat cassidy

DEAD SILENCE by s.a. barnes

AUDITION by ryu murakami

THE SALT GROWS HEAVY by cassandra khaw

don't care, i want romance

some of these feature crossover genres, like fantasy and horror.

VAMPIRES OF EL NORTE by isabel cañas

DAUGHTER OF THE MOON GODDESS by sue lynn tan

SEVEN DAYS IN JUNE by tia williams

HAPPY PLACE by emily henry

ONE DARK WINDOW by rachel gillig

i want QUEER romance

again, a mix of historical, fantasy, and contemporary crossover genres.

WE COULD BE SO GOOD by cat sebastian

IN MEMORIAM by alice winn

MOST ARDENTLY by gabe cole novoa

A STRANGE AND STUBBORN ENDURANCE by foz meadows

A MARVELLOUS LIGHT by freya marske

THE EMPEROR AND THE ENDLESS PALACE by justinian huang

SPELL BOUND by f.t. lukens

SORRY, BRO by taleen voskuni

ONE LAST STOP by casey mcquiston

DELILAH GREEN DOESN'T CARE by ashley herring blake

i haven't felt anything since i read percy jackson/the hunger games in middle school/high school

adventure is still out there.

SCYTHE by neil shusterman

WE HUNT THE FLAME by hafsah faizal

SIX OF CROWS by leigh bardugo

GEARBREAKERS by zoe hana mikuta

i'll read anything that's not straight or white

many books in the above categories fit this, but here's even more, across a variety of genres.

LAST NIGHT AT THE TELEGRAPH CLUB by malinda lo

BABEL by r.f. kuang

WHEN THE RECKONING COMES by latanya mcqueen

THE UNBROKEN by c.l. clark

IF YOU'LL HAVE ME (graphic novel) by eunnie

LEGEND OF THE WHITE SNAKE by sher lee

THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE THE TIME WAR by amal el-mohtar and max gladstone

SHE WHO BECAME THE SUN by shelley parker-chan

"all ya books suck"

like any other genre or book age group, there are duds and there are standouts. ya is not special in this regard. try some of these!

DIVINE RIVALS by rebecca ross

STRIKE THE ZITHER by joan he

THE RED PALACE by june hur

A STUDY IN DROWNING by ava reid

EMPIRE OF SAND by tasha suri

LEGENDBORN by tracy deonn

i check out and read a lot of these books for free via my local library by using the libby app (you can even add your friends' library cards to gain access to libraries in places you don't live). when i'm feeling like reading via audiobook, i use libro fm!

look, no one HAS TO read diversely. no one is going to be reverse fahrenheit 451'd and locked in a room with no fanfic and only books and not let out until they work their way through the entire literary canon. but reading, and reading widely, and reading diversely, is what teaches people to form their own opinions and question the things they are told. it's why they hang up stuff like "READ READ READ!!" in grade school classrooms.

we live under systems that increasingly benefit from going unquestioned. no, of course reading ASSASSIN'S APPRENTICE by robin hobb is not going to dismantle these systems tomorrow, nor probably even in our lifetimes. but doing it will help set up a world capable of doing it in the future. and until further notice, we are all part of this wretched world. might as well read a good story while we're here.

anyway, i'm reading THE WEST PASSAGE by jared pechaček and the new cmq book this week.

[the-bi-library]

Here are bisexual books out in April!

Books listed:

In Universes by Emet North Dear Bi Men: A Black Man's Perspective on Power, Consent, Breaking Down Binaries, and Combating Erasure by J.R. Yussuf Truly, Madly, Deeply by Alexandria Bellefleur Of Blood and Aether (Harbingers, #1) by Harper Hawthorne Saint-Seducing Gold (The Forge & Fracture Saga #2) by Brittany N. Williams Darker by Four (Darker by Four, #1) by June C.L. Tan Rough Trade by Katrina Carrasco The Last Love Song by Kalie Holford Moon Dust in My Hairnet by J.R. Creaden What Is Love? by Jen Comfort Finally Fitz by Marisa Kanter The Boyfriend Fix by Lee Pini Playing for Keeps by Jennifer Dugan She Came for Blood (Dreamers & Demons: Sapphic Monsters Book 3) by Darva Green Call Forth a Fox by Markelle Grabo I'm The Same by James Ungurait Something Kindred by Ciera Burch Calling of Light (Shamanborn, #3) by Lori M. Lee Off With Their Heads by Zoe Hana Mikuta Even If We're Broken by A.M. Weald Harley Quinn: Redemption (DC Icons Series Book 3) by Rachael Allen Rainbow Overalls by Maggie Fortuna Smile and Be a Villain by Yves Donlon Lights, Camera, Passion by Isabel Lucero Hearts Still Beating by Brooke Archer Aubrey McFadden Is Never Getting Married by Georgia Beers Court of Wanderers (Silver Under Nightfall, #2) by Rin Chupeco Good Mourning, Darling (Darling Disposition, #1) by Azalea Crowley All the Hype (Oak Haven Romance) by S. Bolanos The Devil to Pay by Katie Daysh Every Time You Hear That Song by Jenna Voris

You can find these books in this list on goodreads