Reviews

Being Ace: An Anthology of Queer, Trans, Femme, and Disabled Stories of Asexual Love and Connection by Madeline Dyer

t_reesa's review

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.75

anunsungcarol's review

Really quite good! Just got busy and lost focus so I'm moving on to something that'll excite me more.

space_gaudet's review

adventurous emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

mooney_ec's review

emotional hopeful fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

roannasylver's review against another edition

5.0

My story aside, this collection is so full of wonderful ace creations that deserve to be appreciated and shine, just like their creators. I'm so proud to be among you!

sapphire_mayo's review

emotional hopeful

jo_bookscapingreality's review

emotional inspiring reflective

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

gigireadswithkiki's review

adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This short story collection has blown me away, I hadn’t even finished it yet before innately knowing that it would become one of my favorite short story collections.

The stories are varied and diverse, full of beautiful connections between vibrantly unique Ace characters and their family/friends/partners. The world-building in every single story is so well thought-out and intricate, the writing is compelling, and SO MANY of the stories are making me cry!

As with every short story collection not every story is a hit but the ones that are, completely knock it out of the park. I highly recommend this book it’s one of the best ace representations I’ve ever read for sure! 

A comprehensive ranking of all stories:

• How to Love a Sidewinder: 5/5
• Across the Stars: 5/5
• Well Suited: 2.5/5 
• Nylon Bed Socks: 4/5
• Give up the Ghost: 3/5
• No Such Thing as Just: 4/5
• Smells Like Teen Virgin: 3/5
• Sealights: 5/5
• Moonspirited: 2.5/5 
• The Third Star: 3/5
• The Mermaids Sister: 4/5
• The Hazards of Pressing Play: 0/5
• No Cure for Doubt: 1/5
• The Witch of Festa Falls: 4/5

smrath's review

hopeful informative sad slow-paced

3.0

leopardsummer8's review against another edition

4.0

Finally some aroace representation in sci-fi/fantasy!!!

This is the first anthology I've ever read, and I'm glad that it gets to be the first. It covers a variety of genres, ranging from contemporary to science fiction to fantasy and each story takes place in its own little universe. My favorite story was "The Mermaid's Sister," but I also really liked "Across the Stars," "Give up the Ghost," "Smells Like Teen Virgin," and "Nylon Bed Socks" (that one was super deep). And all of the protagonists are ace, if not aro so that's a bonus!

Thanks to Spoiler Alert at YCL for the ARC.