LGBTQ Fiction – Emma's Biblio Treasures

BOOK REVIEW: Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Published June 3rd, 2025 by Hutchinson Heinman
Historical Fiction, Romance, LGBTQ Fiction

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ABOUT THE BOOK:

An epic novel set against the backdrop of the 1980s space shuttle program about the extraordinary lengths we go to live and love beyond our limits.

In the summer of 1980, astrophysics professor Joan Goodwin begins training to be an astronaut at Houston’s Johnson Space Center, alongside an exceptional group of fellow candidates: Top Gun pilot Hank Redmond; mission specialists John Griffin and Lydia Danes; warmhearted Donna Fitzgerald; and Vanessa Ford, the magnetic and mysterious aeronautical engineer. As the new astronauts prepare for their first flights, Joan finds a passion and a love she never imagined and begins to question everything she believes about her place in the observable universe.

Then, in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, everything changes in an instant.

Atmosphere is Taylor Jenkins Reid at her best: transporting readers to iconic times and places, creating complex protagonists, and telling a passionate and soaring story about the transformative power of love – this time among the stars.

BUY HERE

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MY REVIEW:

Atmosphere was my 100th read this year and it is certainly one I’ll not forget. It’s been a few weeks since I finished this magnificent book and I still haven’t recovered. Epic, illuminating, transporting, heart-stopping and emotional, this glorious love story is a must for your summer TBR.

Joan Goodwin has always loved space. But as a girl she never dreamed of being an astronaut. After all, that’s something only boys could do. So when she hears that NASA is advertising for female scientists and astronauts she applies and is thrilled to be successful. So, in the summer of 1980, Joan begins her training as an astronaut at Houston’s Johnson Space Centre alongside a group of exceptional candidates. Joan expected to find adventure, but what she didn’t expect was to find a love, but that all changes as she and Vanessa, one of the other candidates get closer, leading to a passion she never thought was meant for her. Then, in December 1984, disaster strikes on mission STS-LR9 and Joan must find a way to help get Vanessa and any other survivors home to safety.

Atmosphere is my third time reading a Taylor Jenkins Reid book and she just gets better and better. I’ll be honest, I didn’t think she could top The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo for me, but this spectacular story soared into the top spot. Beautifully written, evocatively told and cleverly choreographed, TJR had me in a chokehold from her opening author’s note to the last sentence. I thought I knew what to expect from a TJR read, but I was totally unprepared for this book. At its heart this is a love story about breaking down barriers. Joan and Vanessa are strong, brilliant and determined women who were easy to root for at every step. The story explores topics including sexism, prejudice, inequality, vulnerability and resilience. It broke my heart, made me smile and enraged me – often all on the same page.

The story is set against the backdrop of the American Space Race of the 1980s. As someone who has never been that into space I honestly didn’t expect to be that into the setting. But I loved it. The combination of the meticulous details, compelling characters and heart-pounding tension had me completely hooked. This was an era when men still ruled the Space Programme and it was rare for a woman to be accepted. This instantly makes Joan and Vanessa’s life at the Space Centre more difficult as they battle for equality in a misogynistic industry. Then there was the added complication of them being LGBTQ. Homophobia and stigmatisation was still rife and the couple knew their jobs would be at risk if anyone found out about them, so they are forced to keep their love a secret.

A mesmerising and unputdownable love story, I can’t recommend this highly enough.

Rating: 🚀🚀🚀🚀🚀

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Taylor Jenkins Reid is the author of the New York Times Bestselling novels Atmosphere, Carrie Soto Is Back, Malibu Rising, Daisy Jones and The Six and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, as well as One True Loves, Maybe in Another Life, After I Do, and Forever, Interrupted. Her books have been chosen by Reese’s Book Club, Read with Jenna, GMA Book Club, Indie Next, Best of Amazon, and Book of the Month. Her novel, Daisy Jones and The Six, is now a limited series on Amazon Prime. She lives in Los Angeles.

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Thanks for reading, Bibliiophiles xxxx

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BOOK REVIEW: Patterns of Us by S. J. Gathercole

Published May 21st, 2026
Romance Novel, LGBTQ Fiction

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ABOUT THE BOOK:

Russell and Loukas were that couple in university. The one that was joined at the hip and does everything together. Until they weren’t.

After five years of tactically avoiding anything to do with each other, they find themselves thrust back together and facing their biggest challenge yet — co-parenting.

Packed with angst and yearning, Patterns of Us follows Russell and Loukas in their past and present. Can they learn from their mistakes and finally build the life they dreamed of?

BUY HERE

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MY REVIEW:

Russell and Loukas, who were the couple at university who were joined at the hip. But five years ago it all fell apart and they have tactically avoided one another ever since. Now, after the tragic deaths of their best friends Kieran and Millie, they have been thrown back together after being named as co-parents to the couple’s young son, Henry. Not only that, but the will states that they must live and parent under one roof. Moving between timelines, we follow Russell and Loukas in their past and present, watching as they fall in love, fall apart and then try to come back together for Henry.

I love an emotional read but was still unprepared for the emotional rollercoaster I went through reading this book and it will take my heart some time to recover. S. J. Gathercole has crafted a compelling and unforgettable love story that is intricately interwoven with grief. Steph perfectly conveys the overwhelming pain grief causes, how hard it is to enjoy life again and how it catches you off guard out of nowhere. It’s heartfelt, poignant and filled with yearning.

I loved Russell and Loukas. They are charismatic characters who were easy to like and root for. Because the story is told from both points of view it felt like I really got to know both of them and moving between past and present gave us a fuller picture of their whole relationship and an understanding of why they were behaving certain ways in the present. It was apparent early on that these two belonged together. They were yin and yang. Soulmates. And Steph knew what she was doing with the will they/won’t they storyline, keeping me on tenterhooks as I kept screaming at them in my head to just admit they were meant for each other.

As someone with a chronic illness, I loved the representation in Russell’s character through his Psoriatic Arthritis. Because of my own personal experience, Steph asked me to be a sensitivity reader for the book and what she wrote was pitch perfect. She made Russ’s illness honest and real, showing us how it affected every facet of his life but also how determined he was and that he is more than his illness. I appreciated how seamlessly it was woven into the story and felt very seen, especially in terms of how it affected his confidence. Seeing him so worried about Loukas deserving someone better, someone who isn’t ill, felt very relatable. Loukas is a sweetheart and I love that he saw past Russ’s illness and thought of ways to help him rather than resenting the limitations it brought into their lives. Thank you, Steph, for writing a character and a story that will help so many understand what it is like to live and have a relationship with chronic illness.

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰

Thank you Steph for sending me a copy of this bok in exchange for my honest review.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Steph started reading at a very young age and quickly fell in love with stories and storytelling.

Her debut novel The People We Trust, was a passion project over several years to bring more representation into the murder mystery genre.

Throughout many turbulent times in her own life she turned to poetry to help put a voice to the thoughts that whirled around inside her head. The ‘Teenager’s Guide’ series, which consists of three poetry collections, were hugely cathartic to write, and she hopes they’re just as cathartic to read.

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Thanks for reading, Bibliophiles xxxx