Matthew reads, I guess...

  So I’m talking about The Convenience Store by the Sea by Sonoko Machida. Apparently, there is a whole genre of this kind of book that the internet seems to think is cozy, or I’ve seen branded as cozy. Like a place where people come and their troubles are either solved, or they’re sent on their way to deal with them. The blurb says that a quaint little seaside town in Kitakyushu, Mojiko is full of hidden delights. And one unexpected treasure is the 24/7 convenience store, Tenderness. Sure, it’s a bit off that the handsome manager has his own fan club. And perhaps the customers are somewhat eccentric. But there’s a warmth about Tenderness that draws you in. The bright lights are always on. The employees know you by name. And the shelves are stacked with delicious treats from ramen and crispy fried chicken to parfaits. After a while, you get the feeling that whatever you need might just be waiting for you here… The prologue has a person going on a drive when they stop by Tenderne...

  So I’m confident in saying When Haru Was Here by Dustin Thao is my favourite book, so it was a given that I had to go back and read You’ve Reached Sam . It may not be gay, but I still have to traumatise myself somehow and yes that’s exactly why I bought it. The blurbs, multiple, I've now decided, say that seventeen-year-old Julie Clarke has her future all planned out – move out of her small town with her boyfriend, Sam; attend college in the city; spend a summer in Japan. But then Sam dies. And everything changes. Heartbroken and desperate to hear him one more time, Julie calls Sam’s phone just to listen to his voicemail recording. And Sam picks up the phone. The connection is temporary. But hearing Sam’s voice makes Julie fall for him all over again, and, with each call, it becomes harder to let him go. The first chapter is a week after Sam has died and obviously, Julie isn’t doing well. In a shock twist, really, who would be doing well in that situation? And since she’s not ...

  I feel like every so often I’ll just have a bunch of books that I talk about that I say, “I got this from Gay’s the Word” in London, and shockingly, this is one of them. In my defence, every time I go to London now for a gig, I end up going to Gay’s the Word and buying, minimum, two books. The Prospects by KT Hoffman just happens to be one of them. Our blurb central says that Gene Ionescu is content to play in the minor leagues. He’s seen teammates get their big breaks, but as the first openly trans man in the world of competitive baseball, he has nearly everything he’s ever let himself dream of. When his former teammate and long-time rival, Luis Estrada, is unexpectedly drafted onto the team, the careful equilibrium of Gene’s life is destroyed. Luis is standoffish, talented and inconveniently gorgeous, and the two men can barely get through a game together. This is war, and the team pays the price. So when Luis surprises Gene with a softer side to his haughty demeanour, Gene ...