The Casual Vacancy by JK Rowling

The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling

When Barry Fairbrother dies in his early forties, the town of Pagford is left in shock.

Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war.

Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils … Pagford is not what it first seems. And the empty seat left by Barry on the parish council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity and unexpected revelations?

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Racism
  • Rape
  • Paedophilia & incest mentioned
  • Child abuse
  • Domestic abuse
  • Graphic suicide
  • Self-harm
  • Recreational drug use
  • Bullying
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Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P Manansala

Arsenic & Adobo by Mia P. Manansala

When Lila Macapagal moves back home to recover from a horrible breakup, her life seems to be following all the typical rom-com tropes. She’s tasked with saving her Tita Rosie’s failing restaurant, and she has to deal with a group of matchmaking aunties. But when a notoriously nasty food critic ex-boyfriend drops dead moments after a confrontation with Lila, her life quickly swerves to an Agatha Christie case.

With the cops treating her like she’s the one and only suspect, and the shady landlord looking to finally kick the Macapagal family out, Lila’s left with no choice but to conduct her own investigation. Armed with the nosy auntie network, her barista best bud, and her trusted Dachshund, Lila takes on this tasty, twisted case and soon finds her own neck on the chopping block…

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Racism
  • Domestic violence mentioned
  • Drug abuse
  • Police intimidation
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Here the Whole Time by Vitor Martins

Here the Whole Time by Vitor Martins

Here the Whole Time by Vitor Martins book cover

What would you do if you had to spend the next 15 days with your lifelong crush?

Felipe gets it — he’s fat. Not chubby. Not big-boned. Fat. And he doesn’t need anyone to remind him, which is, of course, what everyone does. That’s why he’s been waiting for this moment ever since the school year began: school break. Finally, he’ll be able to spend some time far away from school and the classmates who tease him incessantly. His plans include catching up on his favorite TV shows, finishing his to-be-read pile, and watching YouTube tutorials on skills he’ll never actually put into practice.

But things get a little out of hand when Felipe’s mom informs him that Caio, the neighbor kid from apartment 57, will be spending the next 15 days with them while his parents are on vacation. Felipe is distraught because A) he’s had a crush on Caio since, well, forever, and B) Felipe has a list of body image insecurities and absolutely NO idea how he’s going to entertain his neighbor for two full weeks.

Suddenly, the days ahead of him that once promised rest and relaxation (not to mention some epic Netflix bingeing) end up bringing a whirlwind of feelings, forcing Felipe to dive head-first into every unresolved issue he has had with himself — but maybe, just maybe, he’ll manage to win over Caio, too.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Body shaming
  • Fatmisia
  • Homomisia and homomisic language
  • Bullying
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Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell

Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell and illustrated by Faith Erin Hicks

Deja and Josiah are seasonal best friends. Every autumn, all through high school, they’ve worked together at the best pumpkin patch in the whole wide world. They say good-bye every Halloween, and they’re reunited every September 1.

But this Halloween is different—Josiah and Deja are finally seniors, and this is their last season at the pumpkin patch. Their last shift together. Josiah’s ready to spend the whole night feeling melancholy about it. Deja isn’t ready to let him. She’s got a plan: What if—instead of moping and the usual slinging lima beans down at the Succotash Hut—they went out with a bang? They could see all the sights! Taste all the snacks! And Josiah could finally talk to that cute girl he’s been mooning over for three years . . .

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Fatmisia & body shaming
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Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

Eleanor is the new girl in town, and with her chaotic family life, her mismatched clothes and unruly red hair, she couldn’t stick out more if she tried. Park is the boy at the back of the bus. Black T-shirts, headphones, head in a book – he thinks he’s made himself invisible. But not to Eleanor… never to Eleanor. Slowly, steadily, through late-night conversations and an ever-growing stack of mix tapes, Eleanor and Park fall for each other. They fall in love the way you do the first time, when you’re young, and you feel as if you have nothing and everything to lose.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Racism & racial slurs, including the fetishization of Asian characters
  • Ableism & ableist slur
  • Fatphobia & body shaming
  • Transphobia
  • Domestic abuse & child abuse
  • Alcoholism
  • Alcohol consumption & abuse
  • Recreational drug use
  • Bullying

Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

Together with her parabatai Julian Blackthorn, Emma Carstairs must learn to trust her head and her heart as she investigates a demonic plot that stretches across Los Angeles, from the Sunset Strip to the enchanted sea that pounds the beaches of Santa Monica. If only her heart didn’t lead her in treacherous directions…

Making things even more complicated, Julian’s brother Mark—who was captured by the faeries five years ago—has been returned as a bargaining chip. The faeries are desperate to find out who is murdering their kind—and they need the Shadowhunters’ help to do it. But time works differently in faerie, so Mark has barely aged and doesn’t recognize his family. Can he ever truly return to them? Will the faeries really allow it?

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Ableism & ableist language
  • Racism
  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Rape by coercion mentioned
  • Psychological, emotional & physical child abuse recounted
  • Trauma (theme)
  • Nightmares
  • Schizophrenia
  • Hallucinations
  • Nonconsensual drugging
  • Blood & gore depiction
  • Dead bodies
  • Emesis
  • Physical injuries
  • Cancer mentioned
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a friend
  • Death of a brother
  • Death of a mother & father
  • Murder & attempted murder
  • Torture
  • Kidnapping
  • Home invasion
  • Exile
  • Drowning
  • Fire
  • Whipping
  • Cults
  • War themes including graphic battle scenes
  • Bullying
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Every Day by David Levithan

Every Day by David Levithan

Can you love someone who is destined to change each day?

Every morning, A wakes in a different person’s body. A has made peace with that, even established guidelines by which to live: never get too attached, avoid being noticed, do not interfere. And then A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Suicide
  • Self harm
  • Depression
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Will Grayson Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan

It’s not that far from Evanston to Naperville, but Chicago suburbanites Will Grayson and Will Grayson might as well live on different planets. When fate delivers them both to the same surprising crossroads, the Will Graysons find their lives overlapping and hurtling in new and unexpected directions. With a push from friends new and old – including the massive, and massively fabulous, Tiny Cooper, offensive lineman and musical theater auteur extraordinaire – Will and Will begin building toward respective romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history’s most awesome high school musical. (less)

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Coming out themes
  • Homophobia & slurs
  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Bullying

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne

Cath is a Simon Snow fan. Okay, everybody is a Simon Snow fan, but for Cath, being a fan is her life. Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath just can’t let go. Now that they’re in college, Cath must decide if she’s ready to start living her own life. But does she even want to if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?

Cath doesn’t need friends IRL. She has her twin sister, Wren, and she’s a popular fanfic writer in the Simon Snow community with thousands of fans online.  But now that she’s in college, Cath is completely outside of her comfort zone. There are suddenly all these new people in her life. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming boyfriend, a writing professor who thinks fanfiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome new writing partner … And she’s barely heard from Wren all semester!

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Antisemitism
  • Starvation
  • Death of a child
  • Murder & mass murder
  • Chemical gassing
  • Concentration camp (setting)
  • The Holocaust & World War Two
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Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty

Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty

Nine people gather at a remote health resort. Amidst all of the luxury and pampering, they know these ten days might involve some real work. But none of them could imagine just how challenging the next ten days are going to be.

Frances Welty, the formerly best-selling romantic novelist, arrives at Tranquillum House nursing a bad back, a broken heart, and an exquisitely painful paper cut. She’s immediately intrigued by her fellow guests. Most of them don’t look to be in need of a health resort at all. But the person that intrigues her most is the strange and charismatic owner/director. Could this person really have the answers Frances didn’t even know she was seeking? Should Frances put aside her doubts and immerse herself in everything Tranquillum House has to offer – or should she run while she still can?

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Suicide
  • Depression
  • Substance addiction
  • Drug use
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