In Brighter Than Scale, Swifter than Flame, Neon Yang gives us a bright, fast-paced novella about dragons and knights and clandestine feelings. I have to admit, I was initially drawn in by the luscious cover art by Tran Nguyen, featuring a tough woman in beautiful armor with a second gorgeous, tattooed woman draped over her back asRead More
Faeries, Dragons, and Space Monsters, Oh My: Three Sapphic SFF Novellas
I first want to give a shout-out to the Asian Readathon, which Cindy Pham (@WithCindy on Youtube) hosts during May. While we’re near the end of the month, the associated Directory of Asian Books is an incredible resource year-round, and both it and this year’s challenge contain an LGBT category. With that in mind, I’veRead More
Dragon-Slaying Knights and Devotion: Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame by Neon Yang Review
I love stories about knights, especially gay knights, and especially repressed knights. Something about the parallels of wearing full armour to protect yourself and keeping all emotional walls up is something I find extremely compelling to read. So Neon Yang’s novella Brighter Than Scale, Swifter Than Flame (out May 6th, 2025), about a stoic knight who never removes herRead More
Surprise and Delight Yourself with Silk & Steel: A Queer Speculative Adventure Anthology
This review is long overdue, considering how much I adore Silk and Steel: A Queer Speculative Adventure Anthology. Published in 2020 and edited by Janine A. Southard, this beautiful collection of seventeen stories contains “big names and bold new voices” (full author list in tags). The book features warriors and gentlewomen and centers queer women’s strength—andRead More
Cult Leader, Zealot, or Savior?: The Genesis of Misery by Neon Yang
Buy this from Bookshop.org to support local bookstores and the Lesbrary! Misery Nomaki (she/they) wields the power to manipulate holystone, an ability only saints or those void-touched have. She believes she is void mad, while the angel that guides her, Ruin, tells her she is the next Messiah. But regardless of what is the truth,Read More
An Ode to Burning it All Down: The Genesis of Misery by Neon Yang
Buy this from Bookshop.org to support local bookstores and the Lesbrary! Have you ever been seized with the inexplicable urge to destroy an intricate and beautiful object? But you don’t; you just sit with that strange, uncomfortable urge twisting in your chest and gnawing away at your heart. That’s a bit like what reading The GenesisRead More