#melissa Bashardoust

[ace-artemis-fanartist]

Recently re-read Girl, Serpent, Thorn so I thought I'd try a mock cover.

[lgbtqreads]

Fave Five: Queer Fantasy About Monstrousness and/or Villainy

Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust (YA) Briar Girls by Rebecca Kim Wells (YA) Malice by Heather Walter Long Live Evil by Sarah Rees Brennan The Monster of Elendhaven by Jennifer Giesbrecht

[miasbraindump]

I don't think I have a favourite trope...

...girl who hurts everything they touch + love interest who isn't affected/don't care >>>>>>

[queereads-bracket]

Queer Fantasy Books Bracket: Round 1

Book summaries below:

Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust

There was and there was not, as all stories begin, a princess cursed to be poisonous to the touch. But for Soraya, who has lived her life hidden away, apart from her family, safe only in her gardens, it’s not just a story. As the day of her twin brother’s wedding approaches, Soraya must decide if she’s willing to step outside of the shadows for the first time. Below in the dungeon is a demon who holds knowledge that she craves, the answer to her freedom. And above is a young man who isn’t afraid of her, whose eyes linger not with fear, but with an understanding of who she is beneath the poison. Soraya thought she knew her place in the world, but when her choices lead to consequences she never imagined, she begins to question who she is and who she is becoming…human or demon. Princess or monster. Fantasy, young adult, retelling, romance

The Rise of Kyoshi by F. C. Yee

F. C. Yee’s The Rise of Kyoshi delves into the story of Kyoshi, the Earth Kingdom–born Avatar. The longest-living Avatar in this beloved world’s history, Kyoshi established the brave and respected Kyoshi Warriors, but also founded the secretive Dai Li, which led to the corruption, decline, and fall of her own nation. The first of two novels based on Kyoshi, The Rise of Kyoshi maps her journey from a girl of humble origins to the merciless pursuer of justice who is still feared and admired centuries after she became the Avatar. Fantasy, young adult, adventure, epic fantasy

[lola-theshowgrl]

"Girl, Serpent, Thorn" by Melissa Bashardoust 4/5 stars *

I'll be honest, I burned through this whole book in less than 24 hours - it was so good! The story was gripping, the writing was absolutely sumptuous, and I felt a deep, almost immediate connection to the main character, Soraya.

I think that anyone who has ever been in the world and made to feel "other" will immediately relate to Soraya and the themes of the story. I loved how well her loneliness was handled, shown so deftly in her relationships with the people around her, or lackthereof. I could see her despair in every line of the book, in moments that might have seemed simple or gone unnoticed at first, but culminated into an incredibly complex situation and character. It was very easy reading, but as we know, easy reading is very difficult writing, so I was very drawn in by the author's skill here.

The worldbuilding was beautiful, and again, written so sparingly, but in the most clever of ways. In the scents and sounds described, in Soraya's surroundings and possessions and what characters were wearing, sprinkled in amongst the plot like seasoning. I found it so satisfying.

The romance aspect of the story was probably my only sticking point. I love a sapphic love story, and that was one of the main reasons I picked this book up in the first place. I was, however, a little disappointed that the rapport between Soraya and Azad was much more compelling than between Soraya and Parvaneh. I've given it some thought as to why this might be, and I've come to the conclusion that it's slightly because the former have more time together in the story than the latter, but I suppose largely because I can't agree with the idea that you owe loyalty to your family, even when they've hurt and damaged you beyond recognition of who you might have been. 

Soraya is someone who has grown up shut away, feared, and essentailly punished for something beyond her control. The curse she bears isn't of her making, but she's treated somehow like it is. Parvaneh wants her to keep the curse, to accept "who she is", but the curse was thrust upon her by the actions of others - it isn't "who she is" at all. It's just something she has to live with, and something that's made her miserable and outcast by the people who should have loved her - especially considering how it happened in the first place.

Her family neglects her, she's insulted and scorned, and all of the reasoning behind this at the end seems very woolly to me. Why should Soraya not be angry? Why should she not want to be loved and cared for, rather than held at arms length? Why should she not want the curse to be broken?

What I will say in favour of the romance is that aside from a few subtle remarks from other characters, it’s never made a big deal of that Soraya prefers other women romantically. I think we need more of that in queer literature - I grew up reading and seeing only queer people being treated poorly, abused, hated, murdered for it. Not every LGBTQIA+ story needs to be about how difficult it is to be gay, and it’s my hope that future generations will see themselves reflected in media not as something to be hated and hurt because of who they love, but as a simple fact of life.

Of course, Soraya’s innate “monstrosity” is an allegory for queerness, but it isn’t explicit, and I personally appreciate that. We need more stories where being gay isn’t the story, the story happens to someone who just happens to be gay.

Despite this, it was still an excellent book. The prose is gorgeous, the pace of the story was good, and the main character was very compelling. I just wish the romance had been left out, or given more time to flourish so that there was real chemistry between Soraya and Parvaneh.

As an aside, I really appreciated the glossary at the back of the book, and the list of "further reading" that was included. This has been a lovely introduction for me to Persian mythology and fables, and I'll be adding all of those books to my tbr! 

[haveyoureadthisqueerbook]

[bookcub]

Best Books Read in February 2023

A recap of the best books I read each month of 2023

An Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak

I read this because my sister loved it and she's got good taste! This is a book from the perspective of a fig tree about a family over the course of a few decades. It's a multigenerational novel about generational trauma, yet it feels quite mystical. It's emotionally heavy but really beautiful.

Monster by Walter Dean Myers

I was assigned this book for class and I'm glad because I wouldn't have read this on my own. It follows a Black teenage boy who was arrested for a murder and is imagining his trial as a movie. I highly recommend it, very emotional and harrowing.

Honorable mentions:

Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust

A story inspired by Sleeping Beauty and a Persian myth, where the princess is also a monster, so to speak. I'm excited to reread this.

Lost in the Moment and Found Again by Seanan McGuire

Another fascinating installment in The Wayward Children series, proving why this is one of the few series I continue to follow.

[sapphic-book-tournament]

[haveyoureadthismgyabook]

[loverrrworld]

i’m always searching for ‘the smell of meat cooking mingled with everyone’s happy laughter and it felt like home’ and ‘one thing was clear: the pariks were a family’ and ‘if i had grown up in that house i couldn’t have loved it more’ and ‘our people. when had that happened?’ and ‘it was strange to think that…she trusted no one in the world as much as the people in this room.’

lost boy, christina henry / girl, serpent, thorn, melissa bashardoust / the secret history, donna tart / ruin and rising, leigh bardugo / rule of wolves, leigh bardugo

[books-to-add-to-your-tbr]

Title: Girls Made of Snow and Glass

Author: Melissa Bashardoust

Series or standalone: standalone

Publication year: 2017

Genres: fiction, fantasy, retelling, LGBT+, romance

Blurb: 16-year-old Mina is motherless, her magician father is vicious, and her silent heart has never beat with love for anyone...has never beat at all, in fact, but she’d always thought that fact normal. She never guessed that her father cut out her heart and replaced it with one of glass. When she moves to Whitespring Castle and sees its king for the first time, Mina forms a plan: win the king’s heart with her beauty, become queen, and finally know love...the only catch is that she’ll have to become a stepmother. 15-year-old Lynet looks just like her late mother, and one day, she discovers why: a magician created her out of snow in the dead queen’s image at her father’s order. But despite being the dead queen made flesh, Lynet would rather be like her fierce and regal stepmother, Mina. She gets her wish when her father makes Lynet queen of the southern territories...displacing Mina. Now, Mina is starting to look at Lynet with something like hatred, and Lynet must decide what to do - and who to be - to win back the only mother she’s ever known...or else defeat her once and for all.

[the-library-and-the-teashop]

📖 Book-Tea 🍵 Association

Girl, Serpent, Thorn (by Melissa Bashardoust)

Will be magnificently paired with

Iranian-style Darjeeling black tea infused with rose petals and cinnamon.

[webedragons]

What I read in 2023

And what I thought about it. Pretty much all Scifi/YA, read on if you want book reccs or just to be nosy <3 Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them? Do you have a favorite book of 2023? please let me know <3 Images and image descriptions included below the cut.

I will be using a 5 star system to rate each book.

(Image Description, 4 books covers in a collage including half a soul, the house of lost wives, Saint Deaths Daughter, and The stargazers war). Half a soul By Olivia Atwater. I picked this book up on sale on kindle, and I liked it! It was easy to read but covered some interesting topics. The main character is cursed by the fae as a child and the book covers her dealing with this curse as an adult in victorian england. Think pride and prejudice but with curses and wizards. 4/5 stars. The house of lost wives by Rebecca Hardy. This was another kindle sale book and while i liked it, I think it could have used another run through editing as the pacing was strange. This book follows a young woman who can see ghosts and is trying to find answers behind the death of her sister. 3/5 stars. Saint Deaths daughter by C.S.E Cooney. This book was probably my biggest surprise of 2023. I loved this book, its beautifully written and very fresh. It follows the daughter of 2 famous necromancers as she struggles with family members both alive and dead. 5/5 stars, excited to see more from this author. The Stargazers war by JP valentine. This author has become one of my favorites this year. I love his sense of humor and the fact that his books often have found family feels. 5/5 stars, cannot wait for the next book.

(Image description, 4 book covers in a collage including Briar heart, The false princess, Nona the Ninth, and This quest is Bullshit). Briar heart by Mercedes Lackey. This is a fairy tale retelling that plays with the usual tropes of that genre. Any book by this author is very comforting to me and this one was fun but not stunning. 3/5 stars. The false Princess by Eilis O'neal. This felt like a book 12 year old me would have been obsessed with, and 24 year old me really liked it too. It follows a princess who finds out she was a body double this whole time, and her journey after leaving her childhood home. 4/5 stars. Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir. Listen, this is Tungler dot com, I do not need to sell this book here. 5/5 stars, I will break into your house and leave copies of this series for you to start reading :) This quest is Bullshit! By JP valentine. This is this authors second appearance on this list and for good reason. This book was my first foray into LitRPG - fiction written as though the characters are in a roleplaying game. It was extremely funny and very fresh and exciting to me. If you enjoy playing DND or baldurs gate, you will probably like this series. 5/5 stars.

(image description; 4 book covers in a collage including Terrier, A coup of tea, Wolfsong, and Hyperbole and a Half). Terrier by Tamora Pierce. This was a reread! I love Tamora Pierce, she is one of my go-to comfort authors. This series is not my favorite of her Tortall series, but it still stands up! 4/5 stars. A coup of tea series by Casey Blair. This series follows a princess who chooses her own path - which turns out to be making tea! If you loved Uncle Iroh, you will like these books. 5/5 stars, I wanted more! Wolfsong by TJ klune. This was my first TJ klune book and it delivered. This book will have you asking "Did TJ klune grow up reading high quality werewolf fanfiction?" because it reads like high quality werewolf fanfiction. 4/5 stars. Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh. This is the only nonfiction on the list but for good reason! It is an absolutely hilarious collection of true stories that had me hooting like a goose. 5/5 stars.

(Image description; Just one book cover, Girls made of snow and glass by Melissa Basherdoust). Girls made of snow and glass by Melissa Bashardoust. This book is an honorable mention because I'm pretty sure I read it in 2022, but I really loved it. This book was special to me because it involves a positive relationship between a stepmother and stepdaughter and nice sapphic representation (NOT between stepdaughter and stepmother you guttersnipes). 5/5 stars for me :D

[seraphim-s]

Dedication of Girl, Serpent, Thorn

Melissa Bashardoust

[lola-theshowgrl]

My favourite reads of 2024 📚 💛 “Piranesi” by Susanna Clarke 💛 “Your Silence Will Not Protect You” by Audre Lorde 💛 “To Wield The Darkest Night” by Beau Van Dalen 💛 “Hamnet” by Maggie O’Farrell (not pictured) 💛 “Girl, Serpent, Thorn” by Melissa Bashardoust (not pictured) 💛 “Exquisite Corpse” by Poppy Z Brite 💛 “For The Wolf” by Hannah Whitten 💛 “The Slow Regard of Silent Things” by Patrick Rothfuss 💛 “The Penelopiad” by Margaret Atwood 💛 “The Secret History” by Donna Tartt