#maggie tokuda hall

[thereadingchallengechallenge]

JOMP BPC - October 20th - Close Up

I love the detail on the cover of The Siren, the Song and the Spy by Maggie Tokuda-Hall 💚

#the siren the song and the spy #the mermaid the witch and the sea #maggie tokuda hall #jompbpc #justonemorepage #trcc original #booklr #lgbt books #bookblr #authors of colour #portraits

[godlyheathens]

(or you can recommend me a book im a little desperate)

#bookish #book polls #book poll #tumblr polls #polls #booklr #down with the prince #xanna renae #the fae keeper #h.e. edgmon #the siren the song and the spy #maggie tokuda hall #a fragile enchantment #allison saft #mirella says #text

[qbdatabase]

Ahoy, mates and mutineers!

This month’s list features some of my top picks for women who rule the high seas–and the occasional space ship. Or really fucked up ghost ship. Plus a couple extra disaster male pirates 😘

Book descriptions and rep for lesbian, bisexual, butch, disabled, autistic, and women of color below the cut!

*Barbary Station / R. E. Stearns: Sci-Fi; grad students turn to space-piracy to pay off their debts but find they’re trapped on-station by an evil AI, feat. autistic lesbian x bi girlfriend

The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea / Maggie Tokuda-Hall: YA Fantasy; a genderfluid pirate accidentally bonds with their noble Lady passenger, set on a wild escape, and free a captured mermaid

Ship of Smoke and Steel / Django Wexler: YA Fantasy, Action; Asian bisexual crime boss fights a ghost pirate ship (yes, the ship itself) with her lesbian healer girlfriend

The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy / Mackenzi Lee: YA Historical; an aro-ace lady schemes to become a doctor, but she’ll settle for being a pirate!

The Fifth Season / N. K. Jemisin: Fantasy, Dystopia; a poly bisexual woman sets out on a vengeance quest to rescue her kidnapped daughter the day the world ends

Compass Rose / Anna Burke: Fantasy / Sci-Fi; a black lesbian goes undercover as a pirate in the 26th century

Windfall / Shawna Barnett: Fantasy; a secret-princess pirate Captain is blackmailed into protecting a runaway real princess in bisexual love square

A Song of Silver and Gold / Melissa Karibian: Fantasy; retelling of The Little Mermaid with enemies-to-lovers, butch lesbian pirate Captain x siren warrior who must cut out her heart

The Dawnhounds by Sascha Stronach: Sci-Fi; bisexual dead cop comes back wrong and works w/pirates to stop a plague

*Captain Raven and the All Girl Pirate Crew: YA graphic novel; Raven needs revenge against her brothers, so she hires a female crew, feat. Deaf, lesbian, and women of color

(extra) The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue: YA Historical; alcoholic bi male x epileptic biracial gay male; the first in the series by Makenzie Lee

*(extra) Kidnapped by the Pirate / Keira Andrews: Romance; a young gay man offers himself as hostage to an older pirate Captain to save his sister

*titles with an asterisk next to them have been featured on QBdatabase.com as a daily book; this lists the book's full jacket summary, detailed notes on representation, and a link to its goodreads page!

#barbary station #R. E. Stearns #The Mermaid the Witch and the Sea #Maggie Tokuda Hall #Ship of Smoke and Steel #Django Wexler #The Lady's Guide to Petticoats and Piracy #Mackenzie Lee #The Fifth Season #N. K. Jemisin #Compass Rose #Anna Burke #Windfall #Shawna Barnett #A Song of Silver and Gold #Melissa Karibian #The Dawnhounds #Sascha Stronach #Captain Raven and the All Girl Pirate Crew #Kidnapped by the Pirate #Keira Andrews #adult books #science fiction #sci fi books #book series #fantasy #YA #YA books #romance #historical romance

[safirefire]

The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea has a she/he gnc lesbian pirate falling for a lesbian noblewoman she’s supposed to be double crossing and an anti imperialist message btw

#the second book just came off hold I’m so excited #the mermaid the witch and the sea #maggie tokuda hall #bookblr #booklr #ya fantasy #pirates #lesbian #lgbtq books #they’re both people of color #sapphic books #it doesn’t go deep at all with the anti imperialism but I’ve only read the first one and it’s ya

[sarah-maclean-completist]

#sarah maclean #maggie tokuda hall #hell's belles #historical romance #romance novel quotes

[readtilyoudie]

“We don’t just read to imagine better lives. We read to be introduced to all kinds of lives. Any kind. Not just for ourselves, but for everyone around us. To understand others better. It’s escape, and it’s also a way to become more connected to everyone around you. There’s power in that, you know. In understanding. It’s like magic.”

The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

#book quote #the mermaid the witch and the sea #maggie tokuda hall #fantasy #pirates #queer #romance #quote #quotes #booklr #bookblr

[semper-legens]

188. The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea, by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

Owned: No, library Page count: 411 My summary: Florian is a pirate, whose ship cons people into captivity. Evelyn is the daughter of a rich family, being shipped away to marry a man she's never met. When their lives clash together, nobody would expect them to become close. But these two people who have lived by their society's rules are finding themselves slipping out of the roles cast for them. When you aren't who you were told to be, who are you? My rating: 3.5/5 My commentary:

This is a curious one. If you know anything about me, you can guess just from the cover of this book why I picked it up. It's about the sea! And mermaids! And pirates! Literally, it was just calling out to me to be read. And I…have struggled over the last few days to make sense of what I think of it, if I'm being completely honest. I liked it, that much is true, but there's a certain reservation on that liking, something I'm not entirely sure of. It's a curious world that's built up between these pages, and I did come away wanting to see more. In the end, this is very much a story that's up my street, and I certainly don't regret reading it. I'm just…you'll see what I mean under the cut.

Our main character is Flora, except when they are Florian. The narrative in her sections refer to her as she/her and Flora, so that's what I'm sticking with, even if it's made abundantly clear that Flora's identity is not a simple thing. Really, the issue of her identity is the core of her part of the book. Is she a man or a woman? A person or a pirate? A brother, a sister, a lover, a liar? Coming to terms with who she is forms the emotional climax of Flora's story, and it's not a simple question to answer. I admire the effort here, trying to name a trans identity in a quasi-historical narrative like this isn't tricky. Flora doesn't have the language to say 'nonbinary', let alone 'gender identity'. But at the same time, it makes the handling of Flora's character somewhat clumsy. The narrative is a little too in your face about it, making up for the ambiguity of the language by shoving the end result at you a little too hard. That said, however, I'd prefer a story that clumsily includes LGBT+ narratives over one that doesn't even try, so kudos there. Flora's interesting. She's hardened her heart because of the tough life she's lived, which makes her an excellent foil for love interest and secondary protagonist Evelyn. But she also loves, and is loved, and wants so desperately to cling onto that love even when it seems impossible. She carries a lot of guilt from being complicit in slavery and abuse, even when it's clear she had little real choice. There's tragedy to her, and it's compelling.

Evelyn, meanwhile, is in a tragedy of a different stripe. She's attracted to women in a patriarchal society where her role is to marry and have children. She's a boisterous, loud woman in a society where women are meant to be demure and polite. She's sheltered and naive, but at the same time hopelessly outspoken to a fault. And her apparent inability to see the boundaries of class lead to her befriending, and subsequently falling in love with, Flora. She's another really engaging character, her headstrong nature a good match for Flora's tendency to lurk in the shadows. And I liked that she was a confident and strong character without falling into the trap of needing a female character to be 'just as good as the boys' or physically strong rather than emotionally. She's strong in a way that's very credible to her station in life and her backstory; much like Flora, actually, who is the more physically capable of the pair. They play off each other well and are great to read about. It's really that clumsiness that gives me pause - Evelyn's attraction to women is treated with the same subtlety as Flora's gender. Not bad, just kinda clumsy.

I really enjoyed the worldbuilding here. Mermaid's blood that, when drunk, acts like a powerful intoxicant; spells woven out of stories; a genderless Pirate Supreme in a neverending pact with the Sea; the Sea as a character, as a mother with an agenda of her own; imperialism and colonialism examined under a magnifying glass. It's some good stuff, especially because I never felt as though it was force-fed to me or that there were large swathes of exposition. I'm leery of some of the choices made, though - the colonising force is a fantastical Japanese-inspired culture, but some of the colonised nations are explicitly white, like red-haired Rake. Tokuda-Hall herself is, obviously, of Japanese descent, and I'm white, so I'm hesitant to start throwing labels around, but this seemed a strange choice to me. So too did the decision for Flora and her brother, two of exactly three explicitly black characters, perpetrators of slavery, given the real-world context? I'm not sure what to make of it, but it did give me pause.

Next, still in the sea, but back to reality, as a great ship sinks.

#The Mermaid the Witch and the Sea #Maggie Tokuda Hall #bookblr #book blog #book blogger #3.5

[fearsomeandwretchedandwrong]

As much as I would hope this would be a story of a distant past, it is not. It’s very much the story of America here and now. The racism that put my grandparents into Minidoka is the same hate that keeps children in cages on our border. It’s the myth of white supremacy that brought slavery to our past and allows the police to murder Black people in our present. It’s the same fear that brings Muslim bans. It’s the same contempt that creates voter suppression, medical apartheid, and food deserts. The same cruelty that carved reservations out of stolen, sovereign land, that paved the Trail of Tears. Hate is not a virus; it is an American tradition.

Maggie Tokuda-Hall

#you're right and you should say it #call out america's racist bullshit #maggie tokuda hall

[queer-books-bracket]

#the mermaid the witch and the sea #shades of magic #a darker shade of magic #ve schwab #maggie tokuda hall #books #lgbt books #polls

[bastard-of-a-bog-being]

📕 Book Review 📕

SQUAD by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️/5

This graphic novel was SO good I actually HAD to post a book review SOMEWHERE so you guys could read it too.

Maggie Tokuda-Hall wrote one of my top reads of last year: The Mermaid, The Witch, and the Sea. I didn’t think that could be topped, but a good werewolf story with lesbian rep? Hell yeah!!

Paired with the clean, colorful artwork of Lisa Sterle, it’s the perfect recipe for to invoke the chilly, crisp days of autumn with what feels like a very well made Halloween special, even if Halloween never comes up in the story at all. It takes the traditional werewolf story, mashes it up with a sort of Heathers vibe, and never says sorry.

While there is sensitive subject matter in the graphic novel, I did find it a very fun and engaging read. Don’t hesitate to research the content of the book if you’re concerned, and make your own decisions on if you feel comfortable reading it anyway!

Book Summary:

SQUAD follows Becca as she moves to Piedmont and transfers schools, immediately being invited into the clique of popular girls. When they invite her to a party on the night of a full moon she discovers their secret, and promptly jumps at the chance to join their exclusive club. How far is she willing to go to fit in?

#book review #graphic novel review #werewolves #comics #book recs #book reviews #five star books #five star graphic novels #Maggie tokuda-hall #maggie tokuda hall #squad #squad comic #squad by Maggie Tokuda hall #graphic novel recommendations #Halloween reads #fall reads #fall books #werewolf books #werewolf stories #werewolf comics #okay to reblog #to share the love of this comic lol #still don’t get posting on tumblr just to say don’t reblog but whatever #you can always reblog anything I post

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

Title: Squad

Author: Maggie Tokuda-Hall, Lisa Sterle

Series or standalone: standalone

Publication year: 2021

Genres: fiction, graphic novel, fantasy, LGBT+, horror, comics, paranormal

Blurb: When Becca transfers to a high school in an elite San Francisco suburb, she's worried she's not going to fit in. To her surprise, she's immediately adopted by the most popular girls in school. At first glance, Marley, Arianna, and Mandy are perfect...but at a party under a full moon, Becca learns that they also have a big secret. Becca's new friends are werewolves. Their prey: slimy boys who take advantage of unsuspecting girls. Eager to be accepted, Becca allows her friends to turn her into a werewolf, and finally, for the first time in her life, she feels like she truly belongs...but things get complicated when Arianna's predatory boyfriend is killed, and the cops begin searching for a serial killer. As their pack begins to buckle under the pressure and their moral high ground gets muddier and muddier, Becca realises that she might have feelings for one of her new best friends.

#squad #maggie tokuda hall #lisa sterle #standalone #2021 #fiction #graphic novel #fantasy #lgbt #horror #comics #paranormal

[thereadingchallengechallenge]

If you liked The Mermaid The Witch and the Sea, try Venom and Vow

They both include:

bigender MCs

cases of mistaken identity

YA fantasy with rich, unique cultures

#the mermaid the witch and the sea #maggie tokuda hall #venom and vow #anna marie mclemore #elliott mclemore #booklr #bookblr #lgbt books #transbooks365 #trans books #bigender #book recs #book recommendations

[bigdreamsandwildthings]

A beautiful book haul from the weekend 💛

#booklr #book photography #book picture #book haul #forging silver into stars #brigid kemmerer #the mermaid the witch and the sea #maggie tokuda hall #my dearest darkest #kayla cottingham #bookworm #bibliophile #ya fiction #ya fantasy #book community #book aesthetic #book lover #book nerd #i read ya #my photos #mine

[maddiesbookshelves]

Squad by Maggie Tokuda-Hall & Lisa Sterle (illustrator) (September 2022)

When Becca transfers to a high school in an elite San Francisco suburb, she’s worried she’s not going to fit in. To her surprise, she’s immediately adopted by the most popular girls in school. At first glance, Marley, Arianna, and Mandy are perfect. But at a party under a full moon, Becca learns that they also have a big secret. Becca’s new friends are werewolves. Their prey? Slimy boys who take advantage of unsuspecting girls. Eager to be accepted, Becca allows her friends to turn her into a werewolf, and finally, for the first time in her life, she feels like she truly belongs. But things get complicated when Arianna’s predatory boyfriend is killed, and the cops begin searching for a serial killer. As their pack begins to buckle under the pressure—and their moral high ground gets muddier and muddier—Becca realizes that she might have feelings for one of her new best friends.

Would I recommend it to anyone? Already did, hehe. And she shared it with her friends. I feel like I'm playing Plague Inc when this happens.

Level of (dis)satisfaction based on the summary and my expectations? I had seen this graphic novel on tumblr and thought it seemed cool but that's it. Then I had to work on a graphic novel in English for my classes and I thought it was a good time to read it, so I worked on it and I really liked it.

My thoughts on it? The illustrations are really pretty, the colors too, and the plot was pretty cool. I thought the werewolves were used in an original way, and the little lesbian romance was cute. I think it would be bery easy to adapt it into a movie.

I'm not really used to reading graphic novels (I'm more of a manga kind of girl) but it was fun, I really liked it.

French version under the cut

Lorsque Becca arrive dans un lycée d'une banlieue huppée de San Francisco, elle a peur de ne pas s'intégrer. A sa grande surprise, elle est immédiatement adoptée par les filles les plus populaires de l'école. Au premier abord, Marley, Arianna et Mandy sont parfaites. Cependant, lors d'une fête un soir de pleine lune, Becca apprend qu'elles ont un grand secret. Ses nouvelles amies sont des louves-garous. Leurs proies ? Les garçons vicieux qui s'en prennent à des filles innocentes. Désireuse de se faire accepter, Becca autorise ses amies la transformer en louve-garou et, enfin, pour la première fois de sa vie, elle se sent à sa place. Mais les choses se compliquent lorsque le prédateur qui sert de petit-ami à Arianna est tué et que la police commence à chercher un tueur en série. Alors que leur meute commence à craquer sous la pression et que leur sens moral devient de plus en plus confus, Becca réalise qu'elle a peut-être des sentiments pour une de ses nouvelles meilleures amies.

Est-ce que tu le conseillerais à quelqu’un ? Déjà fait, héhé. Et elle l’a partagé avec des amies. J’ai l’impression de jouer à Plague Inc quand ça se passe comme ça.

Niveau de déception/satisfaction par rapport au résumé et tes attentes ? J’avais vu passer ce roman graphique sur Tumblr et je m’étais dit que ça avait l’air cool mais sans plus. Puis j’ai dû bosser sur un roman graphique en anglais pour les cours et je me suis dit que c’était l’occasion de le lire, donc j’ai bossé dessus et j’ai vraiment bien aimé.

Avis sans spoiler ? Les dessins sont jolis, les couleurs aussi, et le scénar est plutôt cool. J’ai trouvé que les loups-garous étaient utilisés de manière originale et la petite romance lesbienne était très cute. Ca serait très facilement adaptable en film je pense.

J’ai pas non plus l’habitude de lire des romans graphiques (en général je suis plutôt manga) mais c’était fun, j’ai beaucoup aimé.

#squad #maggie tokuda hall #lisa sterle #graphic novels #booklr #books #booklr community #book recommendations #book recs #queer books #french #book reviews

[desdasiwrites]

Yes, she was an orphan, a sister, a pirate, a girl, and also a boy. But more importantly, she was a person who sought power to protect those she loved. Including herself. Or himself. Both were equally true to her. Neither told the whole story.

– Maggie Tokuda-Hall, The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea

#book quote of the day #maggie tokuda hall #the mermaid the witch and the sea #genderfluid #gender fluid character #book quotes #lgbtqia+

[twoclaws]

“Squad,” Maggie Tokuda-Hall

#werewolf #monster #squad #squad 2022 #graphic novel #my true name is a growl #my fury could eat all of you #werewolves #maggie tokuda hall