The Official Description: A follow-up to the critically acclaimed All Out anthology, Out Now features seventeen new short stories from amazing queer YA authors. Vampires crash prom, aliens run from the government, a president’s daughter comes into her own, a true romantic tries to soften the heart of a cynical social media influencer, a selkie and the sea call out to a lost soul. Teapots and barbershops, skateboards and VW vans, Street Fighter and Ares’s sword: Out Now has a story for every reader and surprises with each turn of the page!
Just the facts: A variety of queer stories! Something for everyone.
Queer, modern, authentic and entertaining! – Kinzie Things
My thoughts bit: I always find it difficult to know how to review a book like “Out Now” because of the variety of voices and themes that are contained within its covers. I find myself in that position once more with this wonderful collection of short works.
What I can say is that I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this collection. There are stories about queer vampires, heartbreak, longing, asking a boy to winter formal, instagram influencers and their take on romance, aliens and other creatures! There are such a variety of delectable queer stories that’s it’s impossible not to connect!
There are some great and visible authors in this collection: Caleb Roehrig, Mark Oshiro, Julian Winters, Candice Montgomery, Tanya Boteju, Tara Sim, and Meredith Russo. I was pleasantly surprised by the diversity of the authors and the different takes on the theme! There really is something for everyone in this collection!
I had my favourite stories, naturally, everyone will. I’m a huge fan of Caleb Roehrig and his story “What Happens in the Closet” was a bitey, snarly, queer joy. I also was really touched by Mark Oshiro’s “Refresh” which deals with online dating and how we represent ourselves in the photos we choose.
The topics are modern, the feel is authentic. A great book for your isolation! Or simply a wonderful gift to someone who might need a pick-me-up or some queer feels!
Links: Goodreads // The Publisher
I received an ARC of Out Now from INkyard Press via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.
Kinzie Things 