2026 Reading Goal: 30 books
Current Count: 15 books; Fanfic Count: 212
Last Updated: 7/29/2026
IMAGO
Started: 8/6/2026
Premise from StoryGraph: Child of two species, but part of neither, a new being must find his way. As his body changes, Jodahs develops the ability to shapeshift, manipulate matter, and cure or create disease at will. If this frightened young man is able to master his new identity, Jodahs could prove the savior of what's left of mankind. Or, if he is not careful, he could become a plague that will destroy this new race once and for all.
my favorite butch
CALL DOWN THE HAWK
Started: 7/17/2026 Finished: 8/7/26
Overall Rating: 3.75/5
Review From StoryGraph:
I think it’s hard to do as many things and manage them as Maggie has tried to in this novel. For what it was, this was a strong introduction to this series, and I appreciate it as a continuation of the stuff at play in TRC. Ronan and his family were always deserving of their own stories and their own time on the page, and oh they’re captured so beautifully!
STAG DANCE
Started: 7/17/2026 Finished: 7/29/26
Overall Rating: 4/5
Review From StoryGraph:
The titular story is amazing! It is the best I’ve read by Torrey Peters, and I wish there were more stories like it. I think the Chaser is a close second, with it being not at all like you’d expect.
In general, we need more trans stories. I find a lot of her work dissatisfying because much of it feels like commentary about being trans (generally) but so much of it seems to be her personal experiences OR what she perceives to be general experiences within the community. These are stories written for tgirls, and
that’s great — but are they written for every tgirl? What about us tboys? I actually don’t love her representation of us at times! The Masker is also an example of how she presents and understands other people in our community, and I don’t know if this is Great rep. And I don’t mean we need to appeal to cis people or something — I mean what does her presentation of the intersection between fetish (or sexuality) and gender do to push the conversation forward around this subject?
I think these are the types of stories Torrey wants to write. These are certainly all stories for trans and queer people. At the same time, I don’t think they’re handled with nuance, and I think sometimes they’re stories I’ve either heard before because they’re stereotypes that fail to be deconstructed or constructed in a new way OR they’re stories I don’t know who would relate to. But the second part might be my particularity of being a trans guy as opposed to a woman.
I don’t think I’ll forget Stag Dance or the Chaser. Those are the stories that pushed this towards a 4 rather than a 3.75!
A GUARDIAN & A THIEF
Started: 7/11/2026 Finished: 7/17/26
Overall Rating: 4/5
Review From StoryGraph: Difficult to get a read on the ending. I found so much of this story gut wrenching and terribly interesting — this is a novel about human nature. How do we behave under crisis? Majumdar doesn’t beat around the bush when answering this question, either. She’s pretty blunt about the subject. I find it refreshing, though nihilistic in its viewpoint. There are brief moments of happiness and kindness, which is a little why I find the ending underwhelming. It is not bittersweet. It is just tragic, suggesting that we will all kill each other rather than find a way to become strong together. The general trajectory of the novel is down this line of thinking — that we are doomed to kill us all, in part due to our love of only a small amount of humans rather than all of humanity.
