Category: Reviews

• Meet the Newmans Review

  For two decades, Del and Dinah Newman and their sons, Guy and Shep, have ruled television as America’s Favorite Family. Millions of viewers tune in every week to watch them play flawless, black-and-white versions of themselves. But now it’s 1964, and the Newmans’ idealized apple-pie perfection suddenly feels woefully out of touch. Ratings are in…

  rachelbeerwoman

  February 25, 2026

  Reviews

  #1960s, #behindthesceneshollywood, #culturalrevolution, #feminism, #flatironbooks, #jenniferniven, #meetthenewmans, #rachelreads&reviews, #socialrevolution

• Lola At Last Review

  Lola Barnes’s summer is not off to the best start. Fresh off a scandal that tanked her social status, Lola has somehow managed to also alienate her twin sister, lose the friends she thought she had, and put a . . . fiery end to the first party of the summer. (The boat was barely on fire,…

  rachelbeerwoman

  February 23, 2026

  Reviews

  #contemporaryfiction, #harpercollins, #homage, #j.c.peterson, #lolaatlast, #lydiabennet, #rachelreads&reviews, #realisticfiction, #retelling, #YA

• Being Mary Bennet Review

  It is a truth universally acknowledged that every bookworm secretly wishes to be Lizzie Bennet. A less acknowledged truth is that Mary Bennet might be a better fit. For seventeen-year-old Marnie Barnes, who’s convinced she is the long-suffering protagonist of her life, this revelation comes at the end of a series of self-induced disasters that…

  rachelbeerwoman

  February 22, 2026

  Reviews

  #rachelreads&reviews, #YA, #realisticfiction, #janeausten, #prideandprejudice, #retelling, #harpercollins, #j.c.peterson, #beingmarybennet, #contemporaryfiction, #homage, #marybennet

• The Story of My Anger Review

  Yulieta Lopez is angry. Angry at her racist drama teacher who refuses to cast Black students in lead roles. Angry at the school board threatening her favorite teacher for teaching works of literature that they deem “controversial.” Angry that she has to keep quiet until she can head to college and leave Texas forever. Yuli…

  rachelbeerwoman

  February 21, 2026

  Reviews

  #bookbannings, #censorship, #contemporaryfiction, #jasminnemendez, #penguinrandomhouse, #POC, #rachelreads&reviews, #realisticfiction, #thestoryofmyanger, #woc, #YA

• The Dead Queens Club Review

  What do a future ambassador, an overly ambitious Francophile, a hospital-volunteering Girl Scout, the new girl from Cleveland, the junior cheer captain, and the vice president of the debate club have in common? It sounds like the ridiculously long lead-up to an astoundingly absurd punchline, right? Except it’s not. Well, unless my life is the…

  rachelbeerwoman

  February 7, 2026

  Reviews

  #contemporaryfiction, #hannahcapin, #historical, #inkyardpress, #rachelreads&reviews, #retelling, #thedeadqueensclub, #tudorera, #YA

• Not So Pure and Simple Review

  Del has had a crush on Kiera Westing since kindergarten. And now, during their junior year, she’s finally available. So when Kiera volunteers for an opportunity at their church, Del’s right behind her. Though he quickly realizes he’s inadvertently signed himself up for a Purity Pledge. His best friend, Qwan, doesn’t believe anyone is worth…

  rachelbeerwoman

  February 4, 2026

  Reviews

  #africanamericanfiction, #contemporaryfiction, #contemporaryromance, #harpercollins, #harperteen, #lamargiles, #rachelreads&reviews, #realisticfiction, #religion, #sexualhealth, #toxicmasculinity, #YA

• The Awakening of Roku Review

  Three years after the mess on Lambak Island, Roku has finally mastered airbending and is on track to become the Avatar the world needs. But when he encounters a mysterious illness on his way to Agna Qel’a, he delays his journey and the next phase of his training to prevent the situation from worsening. As…

  rachelbeerwoman

  February 1, 2026

  Reviews

  #abramsbooks, #amuletbooks, #avatarthelastairbender, #fantasy, #rachelreads&reviews, #randyribay, #theavatarchronicles, #theawakeningofroku, #YA

• Happily Never After: Gaston Review

  Gaston is a sick and frail young man, and with a family who often mock him for his supposed weaknesses, his life moves from one miserable moment to the next. One day, while out exploring, Gaston is attacked, only to be saved by a young witch called Agatha. Little by little, the pair fall in…

  rachelbeerwoman

  January 7, 2026

  Reviews

  #beautyandthebeast, #disney, #disneyhyperion, #fantasy, #gaston, #hachettebookgroup, #happilyneverafter, #lorielangdon, #prequel, #rachelreads&reviews, #YA

• Happily Never After: Vanessa Review

  Ursula is sick to death of mermaids.Ready to carve out a name for herself, she uses an ancient spell to become human for the first time. As the vivacious Vanessa ventures on land, she discovers an incredibly powerful curse has hexed an entire village. Determined to find the source of this dark magic and possess…

  rachelbeerwoman

  December 23, 2025

  Reviews

  #disneyhyperion, #fantasy, #happilyneverafter, #littlemermaid, #lorielangdon, #rachelreads&reviews, #vanessa, #YA

• Thundercats: Lost Review

  After being shot down in the middle of a war zone, five Thunderan warriors are fighting for their lives. Together they face a horde of heavily armored soldiers, and the team’s only hope is to somehow break through their lines to reach the wreckage of their ship. Such overwhelming odds will strain their abilities to…

  rachelbeerwoman

  December 21, 2025

  Reviews

  #dynamitecomics, #edbrisson, #raphalobosco, #thundercats(2024), #thundercats:lost