teatimelit

Review: A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham

From debut author Stacy Willingham comes a masterfully done, lyrical thriller, certain to be the launch of an amazing career. A Flicker in the Dark is eerily compelling to the very last page.

When Chloe Davis was twelve, six teenage girls went missing in her small Louisiana town. By the end of the summer, Chloe’s father had been arrested as a serial killer and promptly put in prison. Chloe and the rest of her family were left to grapple with the truth and try to move forward while dealing with the aftermath.

Now 20 years later, Chloe is a psychologist in private practice in Baton Rouge and getting ready for her wedding. She finally has a fragile grasp on the happiness she’s worked so hard to get. Sometimes, though, she feels as out of control of her own life as the troubled teens who are her patients. And then a local teenage girl goes missing, and then another, and that terrifying summer comes crashing back. Is she paranoid, and seeing parallels that aren’t really there, or for the second time in her life, is she about to unmask a killer? 

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Wrap Up: February 2022

We here at teatimelit stand with our friends in Ukraine, and condemn the actions of the Russian state. We encourage those who are able to donate to the Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund, with all donations going to supporting Ukraine citizens who are vulnerable. You can find a link for the Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund here, as well as another resource for where you can donate. 

Goodness, hasn’t February flown by? It’s been a big month for us all here, and we’re so excited to be sharing with you what we’ve read this month. 

This month Caitlyn read 19 books, Cossette read 17 books, and Mary read 7 books. 

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Review: Homicide and Halo-Halo and Interview with author Mia P. Manansala

Things are heating up for Lila Macapagal. Not in her love life, which she insists on keeping nonexistent despite the attention of two very eligible bachelors. Or her professional life, since she can’t bring herself to open her new cafe after the unpleasantness that occurred a few months ago at her aunt’s Filipino restaurant, Tita Rosie’s Kitchen. No, things are heating up quite literally, since summer, her least favorite season, has just started.

To add to her feelings of sticky unease, Lila’s little town of Shady Palms has resurrected the Miss Teen Shady Palms Beauty Pageant, which she won many years ago–a fact that serves as a wedge between Lila and her cousin slash rival, Bernadette. But when the head judge of the pageant is murdered and Bernadette becomes the main suspect, the two must put aside their differences and solve the case–because it looks like one of them might be next.

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TeaTimeReads March Pick: Ophelia After All by Racquel Marie

Hello everyone! We hope that everyone is doing well and enjoying CRYING IN H MART. We’re super excited to announce that our March book club pick is Racquel Marie’s OPHELIA AFTER ALL!

Here is the full summary for Ophelia After All:

A teen girl navigates friendship drama, the end of high school, and discovering her queerness in Ophelia After All, a hilarious and heartfelt contemporary YA debut by author Racquel Marie.

Ophelia Rojas knows what she likes: her best friends, Cuban food, rose-gardening, and boys – way too many boys. Her friends and parents make fun of her endless stream of crushes, but Ophelia is a romantic at heart. She couldn’t change, even if she wanted to.

So when she finds herself thinking more about cute, quiet Talia Sanchez than the loss of a perfect prom with her ex-boyfriend, seeds of doubt take root in Ophelia’s firm image of herself. Add to that the impending end of high school and the fracturing of her once-solid friend group, and things are spiraling a little out of control. But the course of love–and sexuality–never did run smooth. As her secrets begin to unravel, Ophelia must make a choice between clinging to the fantasy version of herself she’s always imagined or upending everyone’s expectations to rediscover who she really is, after all. 

Links for Ophelia After All: Goodreads | TheStoryGraph | Bookshop | IndieBound

Content Warnings for Ophelia After All: mentions of underage drinking and vaping, topical mentions of sex, cut-off use of a homophobic slur (challenged), condemned homophobia, discussion of anti-Blackness within a mixed race Latine family (challenged) 

We can’t wait to start Ophelia After All next month and we hope that you’ll join us!

Let’s Talk: Reading Journal Idea

Hi, hello friends and welcome to another post! If you don’t know, I love using my reading journal. Not only is it a creative outlet, but it’s also a fun way to keep track of what I’m reading. I love filling out my various spreads, colour coding them depending on what book it is, and writing a little reflection on my thoughts for it. Sometimes I struggle to think of different spreads in my reading journal, so I thought it would be fun to compile a few ideas just in case you’re lost on what to create. Let’s get into the list! 

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Let’s Talk: Caitlyn’s 5 Favorite Books & 5 Anticipated 2022 Releases by Black Authors

Happy Black History Month, everyone! I wanted to take a moment to give some extra love to a few of my favorite stories by Black authors – and truthfully I wanted another excuse to talk about why I love these books. Additionally, there are so many 2022 releases that I’m excited about, so I wanted to hype those up as well!

Before I get into the post, I want to say that it is so important that we are uplifting, listening to and supporting Black voices and stories every day and not only do so during Black History Month. 

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Review: Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert

Danika Brown knows what she wants: professional success, academic renown, and an occasional roll in the hay to relieve all that career-driven tension. But romance? Been there, done that, burned the T-shirt. Romantic partners, whatever their gender, are a distraction at best and a drain at worst. So Dani asks the universe for the perfect friend-with-benefits—someone who knows the score and knows their way around the bedroom.

When brooding security guard Zafir Ansari rescues Dani from a workplace fire drill gone wrong, it’s an obvious sign: PhD student Dani and ex-rugby player Zaf are destined to sleep together. But before she can explain that fact, a video of the heroic rescue goes viral. Now half the internet is shipping #DrRugbae—and Zaf is begging Dani to play along. Turns out, his sports charity for kids could really use the publicity. Lying to help children? Who on earth would refuse?

Dani’s plan is simple: fake a relationship in public, seduce Zaf behind the scenes. The trouble is, grumpy Zaf’s secretly a hopeless romantic—and he’s determined to corrupt Dani’s stone-cold realism. Before long, he’s tackling her fears into the dirt. But the former sports star has issues of his own, and the walls around his heart are as thick as his… um, thighs.

Suddenly, the easy lay Dani dreamed of is more complex than her thesis. Has her wish backfired? Is her focus being tested? Or is the universe just waiting for her to take a hint?

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Review: The New Girl by Jesse Q. Sutanto

Lia Setiawan has never really fit in. When she wins a full ride to the prestigious Draycott Academy on a track scholarship, she’s determined to make it work even though she’s never felt more out of place. But on her first day there she witnesses a girl being forcefully carried away by campus security. Her new schoolmates and teachers seem unfazed, but it leaves her unsure of what she’s gotten herself into. As she uncovers the secrets of Draycott, complete with a corrupt teacher, a golden boy who isn’t what he seems, and a blackmailer determined to get her thrown out, she’s not sure if she can trust anyone–especially when the threats against her take a deadly turn.

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Let’s Talk: My Favourite Tropes

I don’t know about you, but I love tropes and cliches. There’s something so comforting about knowing you’re going to read something that’s slightly familiar, but with an original spin on it. Every author approaches tropes differently, and I love seeing how they incorporate them into their writing. Despite having the same core fundamentals, no two authors write tropes the same way, which is why I love seeing them in the books I read! I thought it would be fun to talk about five of my favourites, so let’s get into it! 

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Review: Weather Girl by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Ari Abrams has always been fascinated by the weather, and she loves almost everything about her job as a TV meteorologist. Her boss, legendary Seattle weatherwoman Torrance Hale, is too distracted by her tempestuous relationship with her ex-husband, the station’s news director, to give Ari the mentorship she wants. Ari, who runs on sunshine and optimism, is at her wits’ end. The only person who seems to understand how she feels is sweet but reserved sports reporter Russell Barringer.

In the aftermath of a disastrous holiday party, Ari and Russell decide to team up to solve their bosses’ relationship issues. Between secret gifts and double dates, they start nudging their bosses back together. But their well-meaning meddling backfires when the real chemistry builds between Ari and Russell.

Working closely with Russell means allowing him to get to know parts of herself that Ari keeps hidden from everyone. Will he be able to embrace her dark clouds as well as her clear skies?

A TV meteorologist and a sports reporter scheme to reunite their divorced bosses with unforecasted results in this charming romantic comedy from the author of The Ex Talk. 

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