Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time
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Join the Yay for YA Discussion About YA Books Now  

Elastic tension lashed their cars together across space, alone on the road, nothing in his head but grief and freedom.

Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo

February 26, 2026 by carmelpie Leave a Comment

Andrew held the clutch and eased onto the gas, pushing revs while the digital readout reminded him to hold it, wait for the right moment to explode. Sam’s fingers touched the rim of the moon hanging in the sky. A shudder ripped across the bones of Andrew’s forearms, terror and delight and the promise of risk bringing him to life. ― Lee Mandelo, Summer Sons For fuck’s sake Andrew. Is there anything in this scenario that feels heterosexual or well-adjusted to you? ― Lee Mandelo, […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Fiction, Mystery Tagged With: American History, angst, Classism, curse, dark academia, drug use, Fighting, gay awakening, gay romance, Ghost Stories, homoerotic behaviour, Lee Mandelo, LGBTQ author, LGBTQ romance, murder mystery, Nashville, psychic abilities, queer romance, self-destruction, sexual tension up the wazoo, street racing, Tennessee, toxic friendships, toxic relationships, Toxic Romance, transgender characters, transgender main character, trauma bonding

carmelpie's CBR18 Review No:9 · Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Mystery · Tags: American History, angst, Classism, curse, dark academia, drug use, Fighting, gay awakening, gay romance, Ghost Stories, homoerotic behaviour, Lee Mandelo, LGBTQ author, LGBTQ romance, murder mystery, Nashville, psychic abilities, queer romance, self-destruction, sexual tension up the wazoo, street racing, Tennessee, toxic friendships, toxic relationships, Toxic Romance, transgender characters, transgender main character, trauma bonding ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

An Interesting Queer Horror

The Woods All Black by Lee Mandelo

December 27, 2023 by LB 2 Comments

One of my favorite elements of horror from queer voices (and other marginalized identities) is the examination of monstrosity and what makes for horror. I think Mandelo comes at it from an interesting angle in this novella, and I really did enjoy the final arc with Stevie. I also enjoyed Stevie and Les’ dynamic over the course of the story, seeing that call of like to like but also hesitancy given the locale. In many ways, though, I don’t overall know how I feel about […]

Filed Under: Fiction, History, Horror, Short Stories Tagged With: 1920 Appalachia, Alabama, historical horror, horror, Lee Mandelo, nurse, queer horror, t4t, t4t romance, the woods all black, trans, trans man, trans masc

LB's CBR15 Review No:16 · Genres: Fiction, History, Horror, Short Stories · Tags: 1920 Appalachia, Alabama, historical horror, horror, Lee Mandelo, nurse, queer horror, t4t, t4t romance, the woods all black, trans, trans man, trans masc ·
Rating:
· 2 Comments


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