Straight Expectations by Calum McSwiggan

Pages: 336 

Publisher: Penguin

Released: 4th of May 2023 

Seventeen-year-old Max has always been out, proud and just a little spoiled. Frustrated by the lack of romantic options in his small-town high school, during an argument with his lifelong best friend Dean, Max lashes out and says he wishes he had never been born gay.

Max gets more than he bargained for when he wakes up to find his wish has come true - not only have his feelings for boys vanished, but so has Dean.

With his school life turned upside down and his relationship with his family in tatters, Max sets out on a journey of rediscovery to find a way back to the life he took for granted, and the romance he thought he'd never have.

 What I Have to Say 

This was a fun, alternate universe comedy about friendship, identity and what it really means to be gay. It did what it set out to do and looked at identity in a comedic way. 

I enjoyed it mostly but it felt a little out of touch in parts? At one point the main character said that there wasn't really a fight for gay rights anymore. I understand that publishing takes a while and this may have been written before all the recent turmoil, but the trans fight has never stopped and it's still illegal t be gay in many countries. I could forgive it if it was just cis white gay privilege (which the character certainly has in abundance) but as nothing was said to combat the statement, I can't really figure it out. 

The characters were fun. There were definitely a lot of stereotypes, but they seemed like young boys trying to explore their identities and there was some exploration of that in the text and they seemed like well rounded characters as well. I loved how they looked at gender non-conforming fashion so much both as part of the characters and part of the plots as well.  There was also a beautiful emphasis on friendship between the main trio of characters and that was beautiful to see. 

All in all, I'm a bit conflicted about this book. I think if they take out the line about not having to fight anymore, I could say I enjoyed it, but as it stands, I'm just uncomfortable. 

3 stars 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Penguin for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Star-Spun Web by Sinéad O'Hart

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages:  384 

Publisher: Stripes Publishing 

Released: 7th of February 2019 

With her passion for scientific experimentation and her pet tarantula Violet, Tess de Sousa is no ordinary orphan. When a stranger shows up at Ackerbee’s Home for Lost and Foundlings, claiming to be a distant relative come to adopt her, Tess hopes to find some answers to her mysterious origins. But as she adjusts to her new life at Roedeer Lodge, it becomes clear that Norton F. Cleat knows more about Tess – and the strange star-shaped device left with her when she was abandoned as a baby – than he’s letting on. And when Tess discovers that the Starspinner is the gateway between her world and a parallel world in which war rages, she realizes she may be the key to a terrible plan. A plan she must stop at all costs...

What I Have to Say 

Parallel worlds, science-enthusiast characters (male and female) and a whole load of mystery. This was a very promising start to this new series! Apart of my arachnophobia having a couple of issues with Violet (although less squirmy moments than I'd expected). 

I really liked Tess as a character, but I did feel that she didn't do that much for most of the book. The book was more focused on the way she studied the Starspinner from a science perspective, but I prefer a much more action packed adventure story. It picked up towards the end, but I do hope that there's more adventure in the next book. 

I really liked the way they wove in the historical elements with Tom's world. It was interesting to have him in Dublin during WW2 while Tess was in her own world, connecting to him through the starspinner. It was really interesting to see what was happening in Dublin during WW2 and how it was woven in with the plot in Tess's world. 

I'll be interested to see what happens next to Tess, Tom and their friends! 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Stripes for providing me with this free copy to review.