#polycraftory reads

[polycraftory]

Another week, another book haul! These are the books we received between 9/17/24 and 9/23/24. Where did this week go? I feel like I misplaced it somehow.

On the bright side, we've got some stuff in here that I am incredibly excited for. For all of you polyamory lovers, we've been working hard to acquire and review as many books with polyam rep as possible. Out of this week's haul, Darker By Four by June CL Tan, Strange Grace by Tessa Gratton, and the SPECTR series by Jordan L. Hawk should all feature polyamorous relationships. Gabe read the first half of the SPECTR series a long time ago and is really looking forward to diving back into it. Nic also got Gabe The Twisted Ones by @tkingfisher because Gabe is feral about every single one of her books.

We got this lovely version of Dragon Falls (How to Tame a Husband) by Davis Lavender from the @rainbowcrate Cozy Fantasy box. I read it in two sittings and it was exactly the sweet gay romcom I needed as a pick me up after a hard week. Check out @ edgybutfemme on Storygraph for a full review of this funny dragon riding isekai romance. Also, the main character is demisexual & demiromantic, and I've never actually found a book with that rep before!

I'm going to start actually moving some of our written reviews for books from Storygraph (and video reviews from our TikTok, I've been a hot mess) over to Tumblr soon so stay tuned for that!

[polyamorousmood]

Polyamory Merch from Small Artists for Pride Month

@foxflightstudios makes many queer pride pins, including this kick-ass polyam one! Etsy this pin specifically

@lawofcollage makes these neat pride collages! Merch available through the threadless shop and here's OG flag & new flag designs

IfsAndsOrButtons on etsy has the OG flag, the edited flag, & the new flag for polyamory! yay! A variety of other queer flags, pins, & buttons. Portion of sales goes to charity. Too much to link indv., so all poly shit

@polycraftory has a small shop of queer shirts on their etsy including this poly meme shirt!

@soluscheese has a ton of simple, elegant pride designs, including lots of polyamory ones in all sorts of products on their redbubble (poly shapes) ("and")

These gorgeous stone bracelets from ToadintheSun on etsy immediately strike me as something nice enough to wear to work, etc, and subtle enough not to out you! Other flag designs too!

@who-tf-even-am-i made some poly merch based on my suggestions! Available on t-shirts, hoodies, pillows, phone cases, and way too many more for separate links, so check out it all on teepublic

Look at this adorable little frog sticker from @sofftpunk! This is the only poly one I could find, but there's lots of other queer stuff at their shop,featuring a lot of identities I don't often see!

Honorable mentions:

@prideful-things-shop has plans to make poly stuff, but its still in the works! They're a poly creator with other killer🔪 (this is a joke cause they have horror-themed pins) pride designs currently available on etsy

@frogboi2023 is a small artist doing commission work at (honestly too) cheap prices. As such, there aren't any pre-made poly designs to showcase, but they reached out to say they'll do custom poly work, incl. traditional/digital art, jewelry, plushies, bookmarks, & keychains!

@@aesethewitch is doing pride themed readings on their Ko-fi. A follower confirmed they're willing/able to do poly romance readings!

Bonus! queer but not poly shit:

@izzi-illustrates has a variety of pride pins, stickers on etsy

@tflohr is a non-binary artist making weird & wonderful stuff available on redbubble

Abprallen on etsy has a variey of pastel queer merch

Queer, spooky pins, patches, & stickers available at grrrlspells' etsy

LucknLavenderStudios is an etsy shop with queer stickers & prints

@lyrabracelets is selling beaded pride bracelets on etsy

Kyri45 on redbubble does cute pride designs for a LOT of identities

[polycraftory]

Exposed by H.L. Day

Reviewed by Gabe❤️

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 | 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 4/5

This edition is from the Thawing the Ice Rainbow After Dark book box from @rainbowcrate. As always, you can find more of Gabe's reviews @ wordswritinstarlight on Storygraph. You can find Meghan's very long (also 5 star!) review @ edgybutfemme on Storygraph as well. Find all our links from our website: Polycraftory.com

I expected to have a good time reading this book, but honestly I was surprised by how genuinely excellent it was. X is my favorite flavor of fucked up, and Tate is smart, which is frankly rare in plots revolving heavily around an escort mission. I spent this whole book braced for Tate to storm off and almost die or something stupid in that style, and instead he consistently makes what I would say is the smartest decisions available to him, even when the situation sucks.

Also, this is a really well executed dystopia. The DTP is somewhere between American police and Stormtroopers, and their willingness to kill just to make a point is driven home with onscreen actions rather than just hearing a report of it. This book really speaks to the part of me that is often frustrated with how dystopian media usually falls into either "we're going to kill the Big Bad and everything is fine now" or "this is how it's going to be forever and there's nothing to be done about it". It perfectly nails a middle ground between the two.

Recommended for anyone whose favorite action movie is Fury Road, or for anyone who likes the romcom Mr. Right.

Content Warnings & Spoilers Under The Cut!

Content Warnings From The Book

Graphic violence

Stalking

Knife play (consensual)

Breath play (consensual)

Mentions of domestic abuse

Police violence

Gun violence

Murder

Death

Alcohol abuse

Sex work

Explicit sexual content

Death of a parent

Ending Spoilers

X and Tate actually get to leave! I love that, even after everything, X has hope for something better, and that Tate decides he'd rather die trying to find a place to be happy than live a miserable life forever.

[polycraftory]

A Whisper of Solace by Milena McKay

Reviewed by Meghan 💜

⭐⭐⭐ 3.5/5 | 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 4/5

This edition is from the Thawing the Ice Rainbow After Dark book box from @rainbowcrate. As always, you can find more of my reviews @ edgybutfemme on Storygraph.

This book was an insightful exploration of healing from PTSD and trauma as well as a high drama contemporary sapphic romance set in Hollywood. Even though this book fell slightly lower on my rating scale because it wasn't necessarily the type of narrative I look for, I think it is an incredible book that achieves what it sets out to do. The vibes are very what if Miranda Priestly from The Devil Wears Prada ran a movie studio instead of a fashion magazine, with the addition that instead of trying to carve her plucky young employee into a version of herself, the two of them instead fell deeply in love and she instantly tries to push her employee away with cruelty to protect herself.

What I Liked

They said they were delivering an ice queen with a slow burn and by god they delivered. Also, despite being an absolute witch and downright cruel at times, I appreciated that Neve Blackthorne did have good standards. She is actually passionate about making good movies, she cares about delivering good representation, and she champions union work and making movies the right way. 

I like that she actually gets to be cruel, but redeemable. Plus, scary competent older woman who will destroy you if you cross her is so many people's exact type.

That being said, my favorite character was Helena Moore, Neve's therapist. I thought the framing every chapter of starting with a therapy session was clever and well used. Helena is compassionate, funny, relatable, and, most importantly, doesn't take any of Neve's shit. Truly I don't know if I would have made through the whole book without these scenes slowly making Neve change and grow.  

This book is an excellent exploration of a person finally being forced to deal with their trauma and PTSD so they stop hurting themselves and everyone around them.

Audrey Avens is great! I love that she gets to go and make her own career after Neve pushes her away. I love that she goes and dates other people and still lives her life. 

Audrey and Neve get to be SO HORNY and so messy and so passionate. So many sapphic romances are only allowed to be so chaste and sweet and I love getting to see a high smut passionate sapphic romance.

What I Struggled With

Okay, so first and foremost this just turned out to not be as much my speed. If the above appeals to you, this book really achieves exactly what it set out to do. That being said, here's what didn't work as well for me in particular:

Listen, this is a midlife crisis novel. I think it's important for these books to exist, and historically this sort of book has been written only about heterosexual cisgendered white men. So, I think this is an important book that should exist, especially because it deals really well with mental health and trauma. That being said, I don't like coming of age novels, and a midlife crisis novel is the same sort of narrative but for adults.

I can tolerate a lot of mistreatment between love interests. I love enemies to lovers. However, this is very one sided cruelty with no extenuating circumstances. It's hard to watch how aggressively Neve drives Audrey away with needless cruelty. It's an important part of their arc, but I struggled with it.

This is a very messy and high drama sort of romance, which can be fun! However, I just wanted any sort of communication between them any amount earlier in the book. They finally get together very late in the game.

Anyway, if these things won't bother you, please go support this sapphic romance! The payoff at the end is absolutely worth it, and I did enjoy this book despite it being outside my normal taste! I think, for me, the best thing about getting book boxes is it helping me stretch outside my comfort zone and try new things.

Content Warnings Under The Cut

Content Warnings From Storygraph

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Infidelity, and Abandonment

Content Warnings Directly From the Book

Child emotional abuse and neglect

Domestic violence (mentioned, off page)

Internalized homophobia

Cheating

Please feel free to ask me if you have any questions! I'm always happy to provide more context <3

[polycraftory]

We are back with the Thawing the Ice box from Rainbow After Dark @rainbowcrate. I actually managed to read both of these books, so later tonight and tomorrow I will be posting some fun detail shots of each book and with a full book review!

My favorite thing about the RAD box is that both books are indie published, so they both get the full overhaul. This month's theme was ice kings and queens. Exposed by HL Day is a post-apocalyptic action romance with X using all the knife skills and tactics at his disposal to save Tate, an innocent man being hunted by the dystopian "Defenders of the Peace" police force. A Whisper of Solace by Milena McKay is a sapphic contemporary romance set in Hollywood between the CEO ice queen of a major movie studio and the one woman that has been able to melt through her defenses.

Stay tuned for reviews and detail shots of these books soon!

[polycraftory]

The rumors are true and we aren't just disembodied voices who briefly ran a polyamory / relationship advice podcast. We are now on Tiktok @ polycraftory!

This first video is introducing us and what we plan to talk about (TLDW: mostly books, but also crafting, cosplay, board games, D&D, fav media, and more). You can check out our Tiktok for more videos now! We already have a video posted for each of us introducing our taste in books.

Psst: if you can't wait to hear our thoughts on specific books, we have links to each of our Storygraph accounts on our website: www.polycraftory.com

[polycraftory]

August 2024 Reads

This Month's Favs

Gabe @words-writ-in-starlight (wordswritinstarlight on Storygraph) : The Husky & His White Cat Shizun (2ha) Volume 6 by Meatbun Doesn't Eat Meat. Runner up is the whole Murderbot series by Martha Wells (on a re-listen). They refuse to pick favorites.

Nic (businesswife) : The Sacrifice by Rin Chupeco for fav novel and Re-Living My Life with A Boyfriend who Doesn't Remember Me by Gin Shirakawa was their favorite manga.

Meghan (edgybutfemme): The Husky & His White Cat Shizun was also probably my fav, with the final Guardian by Priest as a very close second. Literally any month I read a 2ha volume it'll be hard to pick a different fav book.

We had an absolutely wild August, but thankfully we managed to fit some reading in (especially devouring some of the manga we got at AnimeNYC)!

You can find the reviews for all of these on our individual Storygraph accounts. You can look us up by the names at the top of each of our graphics, or find the links on our website polycraftory.com (I'm not linking them because tumblr hates external links!)

We'll also be making video reviews for some of our favorites soon. You can find both a spoiler free pitch video and a full review with some spoilers on our TikTok & Youtube right now for The Bone Orchard by Sara A. Mueller. We'll also be posting videos about Dark Restraint / The Dark Olympus series by Katee Robert in the next few days.

[polycraftory]

We talk Gabe's taste, which basically boils down to: "That's fucked up, I'm into it!" From fantasy to horror to the only type of romance book they like to read (spoiler alert: it's monsterfucking), the central thread is they love fucked up lil guys and complex worldbuilding.

If you want to read Gabe's book reviews, you can check out their Storygraph account. We also have a video about their favs so far this year coming out later this week, so stay tuned!

This video was too powerful to upload directly to Tumblr, so we've brought it over from Youtube so it'd still be play-able right here. If you'd rather watch on TikTok, click here! We already have Nic & Meghan's taste videos posted there as well.

Also as a PSA: if you hate TikTok but don't want to wait for our videos to be brought over to Tumblr, you can also follow us on Youtube.

[polycraftory]

We discuss Meghan's taste, which was the most straightforward to define: adult queer romance! We dive into the specific dynamics and subgenres that they are drawn to and tease them a little about their love for "high spice romance" aka very smutty novels.

If you want to read Meghan's book reviews, you can check out their Storygraph account. We also have a video about their favs so far this year already up on our TikTok!

This video was too powerful to upload directly to Tumblr, so we've brought it over from Youtube so it'd still be play-able right here. If you'd rather watch on TikTok, click here! While you are there, you can check out our other videos.

Also as a PSA: if you hate TikTok but don't want to wait for our videos to be brought over to Tumblr, you can also follow us on Youtube.

[polycraftory]

We talk Nic's book taste, which is a liiiittle hard to pin down since they are such a mood reader! We give some tips on how to pick your next book if you also struggle with mood reading as well as discussing the themes that Nic enjoys across any genre.

If you want to read Nic's book reviews, you can check out their Storygraph account. We also have a video about their favs so far this year coming out later this week, so stay tuned!

This video was too powerful to upload directly to Tumblr, so we've brought it over from Youtube so it'd still be play-able right here. If you'd rather watch on TikTok, click here! While you are there, you can check out our other videos.

Also as a PSA: if you hate TikTok but don't want to wait for our videos to be brought over to Tumblr, you can also follow us on Youtube.

[polycraftory]

Last day of the @rainbowcrate photo challenge, featuring our fav Rainbow Crate printed edges!

The books are (from left to right): The Fall that Saved Us by Tamara Jerée, Pirates of Aletharia by Britney Jackson, Phantom & Rook by Aelina Isaacs, AITA? by Cassie Alexander, Stars Collide by Rachel Lacey, and Junker Seven by Olive J. Kelley.

You can read a review for AITA? on Meghan's Storygraph. You can look up @ edgybutfemme on Storygraph or follow the link from our website (which is linked in our pinned post!) Review Spoilers: I absolutely loved it and I'm so glad I have a pretty edition. Will I someday do a cosplay of Quenalith? (They made her SO hot on the hard case guys you have idea) Only time will tell.

We'll be reading and reviewing more of these gorgeous books soon so stay tuned!

[polycraftory]

Today we took some fun photos of @rainbowcrate book box's edition of Stars Collide by Rachel Lacey. In hardcover for the first time, this critically-acclaimed 2023 favorite is the love story of a jaded pop star whose career is beginning to wane after 20 years, and the young, rising vocalist that brings the light back into her life!

Genre: Adult Contemporary Romance

Rep: lesbian mc, pansexual mc, trans, sapphic, Black, Filipino-American, and Mexican-American scs

Length: 327 pgs

Special Features: fully-redesigned dust jacket, foiled hard case, art end papers, printed edges, signed bookplate, deleted scenes, & collectible bookmark

Meghan is planning to read and review this adorable looking sapphic romance very soon!

[polycraftory]

We unbox the Rainbow Crate @rainbowcrate July book box. The theme for July was Hollywood and featured Stars Collide by Rachel Lacey and Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle @drchucktingle. We chat representation, plot summaries, content warnings, and show off these gorgeous books.

If you'd rather watch this on TikTok, you can click the source to find our page! We also crosspost on Youtube. You can find always find all our links if you check out our website in our pinned post.

Stay tuned for reviews for both these books coming soon (probably Bury Your Gays first because Nic is already reading it!)

[polycraftory]

This was our very first monthly box from Rainbow Crate @rainbowcrate and we were insanely excited about it. This month's theme was Hollywood and we went a little feral taking fun photos for their challenge, so keep an eye out for these over the next few days!

For this first photo we put a (literal) spotlight on Stars Collide by Rachel Lacey, with the more sinister Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle @drchucktingle hiding in the shadows. We'll be deep diving each of these books in the next two days, but you can also hear some book highlights later tonight when we move our unboxing video over from TikTok & Youtube.

[polycraftory]

Here we observe a wild Gabe in their natural habitat: in front of a large bookshelf telling you all about their favorite books from this year so far!

Featured in this video are: The Bone Orchard by Sara A. Mueller, The Tithenai Chronicles by Foz Meadows, Witch King by Martha Wells, and Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher! Also an honorable mention for the Hollow Places also by T. Kingfisher. If you want to read Gabe's book reviews, you can check out their Storygraph account.

This video was too powerful to upload directly to Tumblr, so we've brought it over from Youtube so it'd still be play-able right here. If you'd rather watch on TikTok, click here!

[polycraftory]

What's this? A book haul with less than a dozen books?! In all seriousness though, I am so beyond thrilled that we're in a place in life for So Many Books to be possible.

These are (mostly) a pre-order and the July Hollywood themed box from @rainbowcrate. I am SO EXCITED for the last volume of Guardian. Gabe already read it which means it's my turn!!! You can find Gabe's review already up on their Storygraph account. Once I'm finished reading Volume 3, we'll be making a Guardian spoiler free pitch video and a review with spoilers for the whole series.

Gabe is also obsessed with S.T. Gibson's Dowry of Blood, and Evocation is apparently also polyam, so I'm really excited we got this pretty Bookish Box edition resale!

We have an unboxing video for this Rainbow Crate box as well as a video version of our book haul coming out in the next day or two so stay tuned!