autism

by L. V. Peñalba

Audiobook narrated by Mieko Gavia

coming May 19, 2026

(4 / 5)

Many thanks to Macmillan Audio, St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for providing free review copies of the eBook and audiobook of Shapes of Love! All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

Shapes of Love follows Sasha, a young adult musician who is aroace. While this isn’t your typical love story, I thought it was quite beautiful, showing love in many different forms. It was very diverse with several characters that were LGBTQ+, plus characters from different races and cultures. I felt like Sasha was a relatable character who portrayed being aroace in a positive light while still showing realistic struggles a person might have. I’ll admit that I hated seeing her hiding her true identity from her fans, but I also understood why she felt the way she did. I also like that she represented a person who is (probably) autistic very well. I loved watching her character grow over the course of the story. I enjoyed a lot of the side characters and seeing their journeys and interactions as well. At times the book felt a bit slow, especially at the beginning, but I didn’t notice it as much as I kept reading. There’s a lot of internal monologue, and it overall seems like a very introspective book. I think the book handled some interesting topics very well, and even kept some lighthearted humor along the way.

I had the opportunity to read the audiobook version of the book, and I thought the narrator did a great job. She used different voices for different characters, and even did accents for the characters who had them. I thought her delivery of the text added to my enjoyment of the book.

by Elle McNicoll

coming August 26, 2025

(4 / 5)

Thank you to Wednesday Books, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the free review copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

In Wish You Were Her, we follow a young actress, Allegra, who is taking a break and spending her summer in a small town, where she meets a grumpy bookseller, Jonah. It’s dual POV, which gives us the opportunity to see things from both Allegra and Jonah’s perspectives. Since the author is Scottish, the book is written in British English.

I enjoyed reading this book and had a hard time putting it down. While there wasn’t anything super surprising about the plot, it didn’t really take away from my enjoyment of the book. The relationship between Allegra and Jonah could be a bit explosive but was fun to watch it evolve. We meet a variety of characters, with some very likable and others having a darker side.

A big topic in this story is autism, and we meet a couple autistic characters along the way. I thought it was all very insightful, with great descriptions of how characters felt. It was portrayed in an optimistic and uplifting way while still showing the obstacles characters faced. Allegra was an especially interesting character since we could see what it was like to be famous, the challenges that came with it, and how her autism affected that experience, sometimes in a very positive way.

This was a quick, fun read, and I look forward to seeing more from the author!