Number of stories: 17
Great stories: 3
Good stories: 6
Okay/not for me stories: 8
Despite what those stats might suggest, I adored this collection. The stories which I loved, I really loved and I know I'll remember them for a long time. The good stories were similarly very enjoyable, and those I didn't enjoy were mostly due to them being genres I am not typically a fan of. I have comments for every story so I'm going to launch straight into those.
Kick. Push. Coast. by Candice Montgomery-This was a great opening story about a girl who is skateboarding and questioning her sexuality. The skateboarding works as a decent metaphor and while not a lot is going on, it's very well-written and I like the general themes and feel of it.
What Happens in the Closet by Caleb Roehrig-I LOVED this story. Set in a world with vampires, a gay guy is at his Homecoming dance when a vampire attack happens. He ends up in the closet with his crush and things go from there. This had a brilliant sense of humour and fantastic character dynamics. It was also very hot! One of my favourites and I wish it was a whole book.
Player One Fight! by Eliot Schrefer-This started off strong but got a bit lost along the way. A guy uses videogame metaphors to describe the kind of messy relationship he's in at the moment. It ended very abruptly and I couldn't quite get what the author was trying to say.
Lumber Me Mine by CB Lee-This story is the perfect example of how to flesh out things with only a few words. A lesbian who has recently gone through a bad breakup is forced to return to school where her ex attends. She also thinks the new girl in her class is pretty cute. This had great rep, cute character dynamics and I liked the protagonist a lot. Very solid.
Follower by Will Kostakis-Whilst hanging out on a beach, a guy sees a famous influencer and strikes up a conversation with him. This is a great example of how I don't necessarily have to like the characters in order to appreciate a relationship dynamic. It had some good moments and potentially could have been fleshed out more but I still really enjoyed it.
Refresh by Mark Oshiro-A boy waiting for his app date is in for a surprise. This could have gone a bit sour but I loved the writing and it was so well-executed. Again, this was another story I wanted more of but not in a bad way. It ended at a good point and, while not as fluffy as some of the others, still had an engaging relationship dynamic.
Victory Lap by Julian Winters-This story genuinely almost made me cry, despite not being sad in the least bit. A boy is looking for a date for his dance and is unsure of how to come out to his father. This was the best kind of cute, the characters were insanely fleshed out for how short it is and I absolutely adored it. A definite favourite.
A Road of One's Own by Kate Hart-A group of queer people go on a road trip together and a romance ensues. This one was okay and again, it had a decent discussion of rep and various things that can come up when you are not white and straight. However, it was a bit lacking and I never really bonded with the characters that strongly.
Seditious Teapots by Katherine Locke-This had an awesome premise. A person starts collecting teapots with various anarchist/political things on them and the story is about them trying to work out their gender identity, pronouns etc while accepting that labels don't necessarily fit them well (I use 'they' as that was the phrase used in the story, though it was also discussed as not a great-fitting label. Alas I lack a better one).
Starcrossed in DC by Jessica Verdi-This short story basically has the plot of State of Us as far as I can tell. That is, two daughters of the president and a rival candidate fall in love. It had potential but again, the characters weren't super engaging and that made it hard to get invested in their romance.
Floating by Tanya Boteju-I could not remember this story for the life of me and sadly, none of the reviews I checked could remember it either. I like Tanya Boteju's other work but this did not stand out.
The Soft Place by Hillary Monahan-This story was almost entirely about a girl's drug trip. I can see some people really liking this story but sadly it didn't gel well with me and I didn't get a whole lot out of it.
A Pound of Flesh by Kosoko Jackson-This was the story about a human in love with a god and the punishment Aphrodite enacts on them because of it. Again, this was a story that just wasn't for me but this time it was because of the fantasy element and the way it was done. Fantasy fans might get a lot more out of this but it didn't do a whole lot for me.
One Spell Too Many by Tara Sim-In a world with witches, a girl works at a bakery incorporating spells into the things they sell. She gets asked to make a love potion for a friend and a confidence potion for her crush and hi-jinks ensure. This was another favourite for me. Very cute set-up and, while somewhat predictable, I loved the world and characters.
Far From Home by Saundra Mitchell-This is about an alien/Superman expy and him getting into a situation with his crush. This had some interesting points and not bad writing, but the sci-fi/alien element didn't do a whole lot for me.
The Coronation by Meredith Russo-I got lost pretty soon when reading this one. Two trans teens get sent out into a fantastical world but I couldn't keep track of what was going on. Again, not my kind of fantasy sadly.
Once Upon a Seastorm by Fox Benwell-This was another fantasy story which looked at being trans through the lens of the selkie mythology. I actually really enjoyed this, partially because my trans partner is super into selkies but also just because it was a well-written story which was lighter on the fantasy elements. I liked what it did and thought it was a cool concept.
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So yes, overall I really adored this book. I've not yet read All Out so I can't say how it compares, but this had a whole variety of rep, plots and characters to enjoy. I am so glad I read this and I will 100% be recommending this to my queer (and not so queer) friends.
Overall Rating:
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