This book is great! It keeper me engaged and interesting in a topic I knew very little about (bigender). The main character is strong and persistent and readers can definitely relate to him/her. The story is told through his/her lens and teaches readers to be compassionate. Anyone who is looking to read a thrilling and engaging book should definitely read Somebody Told Me! The authors shares her reason for writing the book which gives the reader insight into the mysterious plot.

This novel is so much more than a book to do with a bigender character. I mean, their being bigender is the inciting incident that leads to Aleks/Alexis living with their uncle and aunt, against their mum's best wishes mind you. Aunt Anne Marie and Uncle Bryan are late converters to the Catholic church. Bryan is a priest there.

What was really interesting--and written in Mia's author's note at the end--was the way that Alexis/Aleks first showed themselves to be uncomfortable with the overt Catholicism and yet, from the very first meeting with Sister Bernadette, it became quite clear that it was not what they thought.

Sister Bernadette is such an important character in this book, not just because of the crush Alexis/Aleks has on her, but because she shows a side of Catholicism that I've not seen present in many LGBT books: The way her faith with God is is shown to be incredibly personal and not dependent on converting everyone else around her. It's not about homophobia or transphobia.

And it isn't suddenly perverted by one man of faith's criminal actions towards a minor character (both in presence in the story, and in age).

Another first in this novel, at least in mainstream literature, is that the main character of this novel is bigender. Towards the end of the book, they are even beginning to question whether there are more genders within them that they haven't yet explored.

This is such a wonderful thing that's explored throughout the novel, but not made a big deal of. Mia writes about this changing gender within one person, and the difficulties that come given that it's not a gender expression that a lot of people even within trans and nonbinary circles talk about.

It's a very personal character note for me given that Mia was the first bi- or multigender person I spoke to after realising that was my own gender expression.

<i> Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.</i>

I definitely have mixed thoughts on this book, but overall I enjoyed a lot of aspects of it.

The novel follows Aleks/Alexis, a bigender teen who moves in with their religious aunt and uncle after a traumatic event. They realize that they can hear the confessions from a vent in their bedroom, so they decide to help the people they overhear.

The things I liked: I always appreciate good LGBT representation, and this is the first book I've read with a bigender character. The distinct differences between Aleks and Alexis were clear, and it helped to really understand the character. This book tackles some delicate subjects, including homophobia/transphobia and sexual molestation in the Catholic church, and I feel it was done well. It was not a blanket condemnation of Catholicism, including some great characters who were diverse in terms of race and sexuality while still having that strong faith in God. There were also a lot of nerdy references, which I liked. More than once, I found myself Googling to see if the animes mentioned in the novel were real because they sounded like something I'd sit down and watch right now.

The things I didn't like so much: I had a really hard time suspending disbelief for several things in the story. I won't give away anything major in terms of later plot points, but the idea that a confessional would be so poorly designed that people could be heard clearly through an air vent in a connected house just seems highly unrealistic to me. Also, I am assuming that a lot of these things were only confessed to the priest. If that is the case, how did he not catch flak when things were happening because of Aleks/Alexis being Raziel? Surely at least one of the people would have connected the dots to their confession. The entire ending of the book was a bit lackluster for me. It felt so strange reading the book to see the main character suspecting the person they did when it was abundantly clear who the villain was from the very moment he appeared. I cannot tell if we as the readers were supposed to be surprised at that reveal, but I was just confused that Aleks/Alexis could have possibly suspected the other person.

All told, I still liked the book. It kept my attention and there were some good characters who made me want to keep reading. I liked the splashes of fandom (even the dark side of it that is brought up). I would definitely read more by this author.

4.5 stars

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

It's been almost a month since I finished this book, and I still have no idea how to review it. I think this is for two reasons. (1) reading Somebody Told Me was honestly such a surreal experience and I don't entirely know what to make of it, and (2) this book focused so heavily on extremely personal experiences that I quite frankly cannot speak on

That said, this book was utterly fantastic, so while I'm going to keep this short I'm going to list a few things that I loved about it:

- Aleks/Alexis's voice was so strong and absolutely carried the book. I've rarely read any book with this strong a voice, and it utterly blew me away
- The discussions on religion and abuse of religious power it had, without villainizing religion in any way
- The side characters were so wonderfully fleshed out and alive
- The discussions on fandom and how it can be toxic sometimes
- I also thought the character growth we see in Aleks/Alexis was so powerful and beautifully written

I cannot get over the fact that nothing about this book’s marketing seems to mention the fact that it’s very heavily about cosplay/conventions/fandom. The cosplay community is such an integral part of this book that the “past trauma” Aleks/Alexis has to come to terms with is something that could really only have happened to them at a convention. Which is not to say there aren’t still important takeaways from learning about that experience, because there are, but the situation presented in the book is 100% con-specific.

And it just feels like such a huge miss to not then market this book towards teens who go to cons and who engage with fandom, both online and in-person. Not everyone finds their best friends and their perfect community in fandom, and the cosplay community in particular struggles a LOT with navigating people’s genders and sexualities, as well as with objectification/consent/abuse/assault/etc., all of which are explored here in a way that’s real and eye-opening and could be so useful to younger people in these communities.

Aside from that, I think this book could be important to a lot of people, but it wasn’t really for me personally. I had some issues with the writing being a bit simplistic, characters being a bit too much like caricatures of themselves, and plot posts/twists being overstated and obvious, but I think all of that can be chalked up to the fact that I’m outside of the intended age group for this book. It’s refreshing to see a depiction of fandom that acknowledges its darker sides and isn’t just the happy place where a character feels truly at home.

Very hard to read but to me it's a necessity to read the hard along with the light. Well written but it has scenes of rape so it's up to you if you want to read it. Happy reading!

This is a difficult book to give feedback on, because while there were things I really loved about it, there were also several things I had issues with.
The basic premise of the book is that our main character Aleks/Alexis is a bigender teen who moves in with her Aunt and Uncle to get away from some trauma in their past. However the twist in this particular tale is that her Uncle is a Catholic priest who converted several years ago, and he and his wife do not support or understand Aleks/Alexis since they began living as a bigender queer person. Determined to leave the past behind, Aleks/Alexis agrees to living by their strict rules , but when they happen to overhear some of the parishoner's confessions they decide to try and help, until a shocking confession reveals a dark and criminal secret with the power to destroy lives.
First up, the good. I loved the fact that the book has a bigender main character, and that it explains very clearly what it is like to live when that switch is outside your control. Aleks/Alexis is a well developed character, and as their backstory is revealed it poses some interesting questions about gender identity, consent and cyberbullying for the reader to ponder.
Now for the bad. The central idea of having a character overhear the confessions is extremely unlikely, most are still held in sealed confessional boxes with screens to ensure privacy for both the priest and the petitioner. and certainly not in rooms with vents into the living space of the priest. Incidentally most Catholic churches do not have the priest's home attached, its a completely separate building. I also found the lack of growth of Aleks/Alexis to be a problem, they made sweeping assumptions over and over again, and never seemed to learn to step back, slow down and think clearly. I also thought that the conclusion of the book was a little over dramatic, which strained the credibility of the whole thing.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own,

Somebody told me this book had a non-binary MC, and honestly, that was all I needed to know. The rep was unlike anything I've read before and I loved it. It was a very prominent part of the book as well, because Aleks/Alexis changes gender quite frequently, and they discussed their gender feels a lot, which was amazing to see represented.

I did feel like this book was really slow to start. Halfway into it, I still had no clue what direction the book would take, or what exactly the plot was.

That said, the tone of the book really appealed to me, and I had a really hard time putting it down. So despite the plot being slow to start, it was a very quick and engaging read.

CWs: trauma, pedophilia, murder, abuse, sexual assault, (internalized) transphobia, misgendering, (internalized) homophobia, fetishization, bullying, menstruation

Ale/xis/ks is a high school senior and bigender. To escape assault from their previous group of friends, they decide to move in with their aunt and uncle, who's a catholic priest. Well aware that this will be hard and the people there will be less accepting. But they push through and manage to make new friends. Pretty soon they discover they can eavesdrop on the confessions, and decide to try to help people with their problems. Ultimately they discover someone else enduring abuse, who needs their help. In order to uncover the truth and stop the abuse, Ale/xis/ks puts themself in danger and has to confront their own past.

I very much enjoyed this book! I started out without having read the synopsis, and was pleasantly surprised. The book deals with really important issues, like gender identity, sexuality, religion and mental health. I loved that the main character is bigender, as this is rarely represented. I've never really given it much thought as I don't know any bigender people and haven't read about it before, but I appreciate getting to know about it. It also deals with religion and the catholic church really well. It shows some of the dark parts of the church without condemning the whole religion. It shines a light on the abuse of power and coverups, but also explains how the faith and church can still be a good thing.

I only had a couple of issues with the book. First of all, like other people have mentioned, the fact that Ale/xis/ks listened in on the confessions through an air vent is highly improbable. I don't really mind the plot hole, but it might bother other people more.
I also felt that the end of the book was a bit rushed and the action sequences could be longer and more detailed.

But other than that, a really solid book that I very much enjoyed!

I have decided to split this review into two parts: one that discusses what I enjoyed and the other about the things I didn't or would like to have seen. This review will be written in dot points for easy consumption.

I received an e-arc from Netgalley

What I Liked:

- The diversity! This is the first time I read a novel with a bigender character and I really enjoyed it.

-I loved the main character and enjoyed reading their arc. I liked watching them develop into a strong human being by the end of the story. She was going through a lot and I liked the way the author explored this aspect in the novel.

-I loved the important topics that were discussed within the novel such as trauma, abuse, acceptance, christian values etc. I like the way they were handled in the novel and how important it was for the characters and the plot.

-I enjoyed the author's writing style and found it to be very engaging.

What I didn’t like:

- I think the author could have taken these topics further and expanded on the conflict within the story.

- I wished we got perspectives from the other characters in the story because I feel like it would have given the story more depth and enhanced the plot.

TW: homophobia (internalized as well), transphobia (internalized as well), misgendering, pedophilia (off page, talked about), sexual assault (off page, talked about)

SOMEBODY TOLD ME is more than anything, a story of abuse and survival. Due to events that happened with Aleks/Alexis’ friends, they live with their Catholic aunt and uncle for the summer. Their uncle is aa Catholic priest and Aleks/Alexis soon realizes their room is right next to the confessional booth. They overhear something they weren’t supposed to hear in the Confessional, and after being disappointed with their uncle’s response, they must find the confessor and bring them to justice.

Aleks/Alexis is bigender and queer, an aspect that often comes into conflict with their conservative aunt and uncle. Their trauma is tied to their being trans, which makes their experience with gender very messy, which I appreciate. Nonbinary identities are rarely mentioned in books, and I’m glad this book and show that nonbinary identities aren’t so cut and dry. Their experience with gender is more in depth than one day he’s Aleks and one day she’s Alexis.

More than anything, this book is about trauma and survival, even more so than the confessional booth part. This book is about the trauma the Catholic church has inflicted on people as well as the trauma Alexis/Aleks endured at the hands of their friends. It’s messy, but important, especially as Aleks/Alexis’ trauma is related to convention/cosplay culture, something I feel like often goes unsaid.

My main issue was the book was the pacing felt off in the beginning and the plot regarding the mystery confession hinged on a lot of miscommunication and assumptions. It's just a trope I'm not a fan of, even if I recognize it was a part of Aleks/Alexis' growth.

3.5 stars! I feel like I may end up rereading this in the future, but it was overall enjoyable, even if the subject matter could be hard to handle.

I was excited to receive an ARC copy via NetGalley for my honest review. I really wanted to like this book, from learning what it means to be bi-gender, a new term for me, as well as characters dealing with trauma. One thing I couldn't get past was the biggest inaccuracy which sort of ruins a part of the big plot. Let me explain. Alexis/Aleks goes to live with his aunt and uncle after suffering some type of assault. They give you pieces of that assault throughout the book. Their uncle is now a Catholic priest after converting from Episcopalian, which is how the uncle is married. Alexis/Aleks's bedroom in the rectory shares a wall with the confessional and they are able to overhear confessions. This is where I struggled. Being Catholic, I know this would not be possible. Confessionals are ventless and soundproof so that type of thing CANNOT happen. It would have been believable to have been able to overhear counseling sessions from their uncle's office or something , but not a confessional. If this part of the story could be edited, I think it would be a more valuable story to share - otherwise I feel like if I discuss the book, I have to make the disclaimer, that that critical piece of the story could never happen.

Now that my biggest issue with the book is explained, overall I appreciated learning about Alexis/Alek and what is means to be bi-gender. Students struggling with their identities would appreciate another perspective. I also like how they worked to help others and in doing so helped themselves understand their own tragedy and themselves. Alexis/Alek's parents were extremely supportive, and although their aunt & uncle were not, I saw value in that transformation throughout the book.

SPOILER ALERT

I do think the resolution to the murder/kidnapping as a result of the sex abuse by the pastor was rushed to finish the book. I would have preferred another chapter or two to give more insight and allow for a slower pace in tying up all the storylines.

Overall a decent story, but wouldn't recommend unless the inaccuracies are fixed regarding confessionals which is disappointing because we need more quality LGBTQ+ stories for our teens.

I really enjoyed this book right from the beginning. I don't read a lot of novels that feature trans teens so it was an interesting chance of pace from what I'm used to. One of the things that I really enjoyed was how supportive Alex/Alexis' mother was in their transition, and how fiercely she stood up for her child against anyone even her own family. This gave it another nice change since I"m used to trans teens being oppressed in the few stories I read with them. This book starts off with a huge problem of Alex/Alexis dealing with their persistent and unexpected changes between genders, not being accepted by their family as well as them being sent to spend the summer with their aunt and uncle. While they are with their relatives they realize that their bedroom is right next to the priests' confessional and they are able to hear all of the people confessing their sins. Alex/Alexis decides that it is up to them to try their best to help the people who's confessions they
have unintentionally overheard. There were many things discussed in this book that really connected to me on a human level and made the characters really seem real not just an image from someone's brain. While the story was nice and light at parts it also covered on lots of dark subjects such as abuse, homophobia, and murder. This made it very different but a must read. I"m very glad that I got the chance to check out this book I would highly suggest it to anyone. I loved all of the twists in this book. Right when I thought I knew everything that was going to happen and was just trying to figure out what the author was going to talk about for the rest of the book I was thrown a huge curve ball that made me more invested and more confused about what was actually going on. Great read, so much better than I expected!

My entire childhood was spent as an active parishioner of the Catholic church. My grandfather went to seminary to become a Pallottine Father. He and my grandmother passed down the importance of faith, service, and ritual. I attended a Catholic school from kindergarten up through graduation. My weekends were spent in CCD (which my grandmother often taught). With her, I fundraised for the March of Dimes, gathered donations for the food pantry, prepared and studied to receive four of the seven major sacraments. When she died, so did my faith. I entered adulthood blind and agnostic. 
I requested Somebody Told Me because while I knew it would address the abuse that festered in some of our churches, I was interested to see an outsider's view of our faith. And like a protective older sibling, I had a reaction while reading. 
I'm sure every review will hash out the technicalities: that priests and clergymen live in rectories that are near the main church, but never attached. That confessionals are separate, non-ventilated boxes where confidentiality is key. In fact, it's most likely you'd never know which priest is hearing your confessions. That deacons (like Alexis/ks' uncle) are not allowed to hear confessions. That confession--or Rite of Penance, which it's never called in the book--is one of the major sacraments that all Catholic youth train for months to participate in, and follows a strict ritual that isn't an ad hoc event, but rather a scheduled service that includes steps: Confession, Penance, Contrition, Absolution. Alexis/ks overhears her uncle give ill-advised commentary and judgement, like a scolding, when Penance is really designed for the parishioner to lean in and be absolved of sin through prayer. 
I was disappointed that the main character didn't seem to respect the services, prayers or rituals. While the church seemed to accept her pretty quickly (albeit as Alexis), Alexis/ks' responses to their lives was flippant and entitled, while barely skimming the surface of Catholicism, and lumping all Catholic belief systems into a stereotypical box. I'd hoped for an internal arc that aimed to see beyond the surface of the Catholic church, and even if the main character decided that religion wasn't for them, that at least a newfound respect was found for those within the church who do lead with dignity. Not having secondary characters, Bernadette or Deacon Jameson, in this place was a huge miss.
As for those secondary characters, Deacon Jameson, Dmetry, and Bernadette's identities were reduced to their romantic storylines, rather than a more nuanced look at the origins of their faith: why or what they studied, took vows, and dedicated themselves to the church.
I'd say, overall, it felt like the main character was self-absorbed and had a major issue with privacy and respect, something I'd hoped they would have learned. And I'd hoped that the issue of pedophilia would have been explored while not reducing the Catholic church down to its ugliest corner.
I will not use the "Not all Catholics" line, but this felt unfair, especially in a time that diversity is finally having it's moment in young adult literature. If a book had been written like this about a marginalized religion, I would have faith that publishing would not have supported it. 
As a former Catholic, to say this book hurt me is inconsequential, as I'm an adult and have my own personal reasons I turned away from my church. I also know reading is subjective and not every experience is not going to be like my own. But as I reflect back on the good my grandmother, a devote Catholic, helped bring to my community, this book made me sad that the main character never experienced that. I have no problem with the main character addressing and fighting against the issue at hand, but in order to have a satisfying character arc, other viewpoints need to be brought in to challenge that fight. 
Sometimes, religion is less about cannon and more about the altruistic outlets and family it provides. It's a shame Alexis/ks' didn't see that.

I was immediately drawn in by the premise of this novel: a bigender teen voluntarily going to stay with their Catholic priest uncle. That and the fact that it's a YA LGBTQ+ thriller, a growing genre that's broadening the discussion for important topics within the community from a different angle. (Which means, as opposed to the angle of YA romance)

There were so many things I enjoyed about this book, like the importance of education instead of anger (wherever possible) acceptance, a LGBTQ+ character with accepting parents, privilege checks, not being immediately forgiven just because you said sorry and the occasional sass/splash of humour.

The one thing that stood out to me, which I found especially important, is what Sister Bernadette said about your faith being between you and your god. Highlighting one of the major themes of the novel.

I couldn't quite connect with Aleks/Alexis, and the anime and cosplay aspects were slightly lost on me, but overall it was a great slow burn thriller!

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the ARC!

I first found this book thanks to Dahlia at LGBTQReads shouting about it as the first YA novel with bigender rep. The way this rep was handled was definitely my favourite part, but ultimately the plot of the novel felt confusing and I didn't click with the writing style.

Aleks/Alexis has moved in with their strict Catholic Aunt and Uncle, to escape their old life after an assault. Choosing to present only as Alexis, they find solace in a new identity, Raziel. After discovering they can overhear confessionals from their room, as Raziel, they try to help others. But when they overhear a Priest confessing to assaulting an alterboy, they end up confronting their own assault as well as that of the priest.

I want to first talk about the bigender rep in this book, because I found it absolutely wonderful and you could really feel how honest and true the author was being to their identity. I think this book will really help a lot of teens in providing such great representation of a marginalisation not commonly talked about. I really appreciated the honesty of this portrayal and in addition, I have such appreciation for the portrayal of Aleks/Alexis parents as well, to really show how easy and effective it is to support someone's identity.

However, as much as I wish I loved this book, I just don't think it was my cup of tea. I initially really liked the stream of consciousness style of writing as it gave a really great, detailed look at who our main character is, and I felt I connected with them much quicker than usual thanks to this style. However it did get really repetitive and by the end of the book, I wasn't clicking with it at all. I also think the pacing was a little off. Until about 70% through, it's the repetitive stream of consciousness thoughts, very focused on who Aleks/Alexis is and how they feel, and then suddenly it's a thriller novel?? It was quite confusing and I didn't think it flowed well.

However despite that, I do want to raise my support for this novel because the bigender rep is fantastic and I am happy to finally see the less spoken about queer identities finally getting their chance to shine in YA!!

Aleks/Alexis is a troubled and complex character who is dealing with their own trauma while also trying to help other people after overhearing confessions. At first, they try to help people who are struggling, but by the end of the book they are trying to bring down someone who committed and awful crime that was being covered up by the church. Their inner turmoil throughout the book was a big deal and they had a lot to overcome, I think the topics of gender and trauma were dealt with delicately. I wouldn't say I enjoyed this book, just because 'enjoyed' doesn't feel like the right word considering the heavy topics, but it's an important story and I'm glad I read it. I would also recommend it to others.

AAAAAGGGGHHHHHHH.
This book gave me all the feels and maybe the first book hangover I’ve had in a while.
I self identify as a part of the LGBTQIA+ community, being bi/pan, so I am always looking for more books which tell stories about the community. Years ago, a couple of LGBTQIA+ members of a D&D group I was a part of were vocal about the need for there to be more books about Queer poeple, that weren’t soley Coming Out stories. That stuck with me, and I am so glad that it has started to filter through and become more commonplace in YA Lit.
This story was more of the second type; our main character Aleks/Alexis (him/him - she/her respectively) knows that they are Bi-gender, are out as Bi-gender to their family and friends. It’s not a coming out story. Aleks/Alexis moves in with their Catholic Aunt and Uncle - the latter of which is actually a Priest - following a traumatic incident which led them to cut off a significant part of their life. Spending a year away from the DRAMA; away from the people who were meant to be their “friends”; away from cosplay; and away from Aleks, seems to be the only way. Aleks/Alexis’ aunt and uncle are aware that they are bi-gender, but choose to misgender and misname them throughout the book, referring to them only as “Alexis” and our “niece” (the gender they presented at birth. Aleks/Alexis decides to pull back, to present as Alexis despite who they wake up as, in an effort to make the year simple and get through it. This obviously causes internal stress for them, which was at times heartbreaking to read.
I know the author's note should be at the end, but I’m going to drop some of it here, because it’s important.
Author’s Note: I wanted to write a book about the ongoing problems in the Catholic Church without attacking Catholics for their faith. I didn’t want to tarnish something that’s sacred for many people. At the same time, as a child safety advocate, I knew I needed to write something. I believe that if a person knows about a crime and does nothing, they are as culpable as the perpetrator.
Seriously, ow. This book in my opinion (not a Catholic but with a religious family and background), did a really good job of this. There were times where Aleks/Alexis did stand up for themselves and for other characters who identify as LGBTQIA+, and maybe they did ‘blame’ Christanity for some of the beliefs, but they also tried hard to make the choice to not judge people just because of their faith. The author did a really good job of making them huma; having them make snap judgements and realising (sometimes) that they were wrong and needed to be fixed. In regards to the Catholic Priest child abuse side of things - I agree with the author. It should NEVER matter what one’s Religion, sexuality or history is when it comes to abuse. That the Catholic Church can absolve people of sins such as these while not reporting them to the authorities is dead wrong.
This book was great. Basic Plot: Aleks/Alexis found that they could overhear confessionals from their bedroom. Hearing the Priest reprimand a woman for stealing to feed her children, while not offering to help her in any other way, Aleks/Alexis takes it upon themself to help - by finding her details online, making a CV and applying for jobs for her. Time goes on and they hear more sins, more things that they believe they have some ability to fix. Then things get dark. Aleks/Alexis overhears a Priest confessing to abusing a young teen, and their uncle basically says ‘you’re forgiven, try not to do it again.’ And all the sh*t hits all the fans.
I learned a lot in this book. There is a mention in the back of the book that the author wondered if featuring a bigender protagonist was the right way to go, if “people [would] be interested in reading about someone who identifies as me? And I felt the same fear that Aleks/Alexis experiences: what if I’m the only one?” While no one person can speak to the whole experience, own voices lit is so important, especially in YA.
This story isn’t simple, we don’t instantly fall in love with our main character. We can see their flaws before they do, and it was hard at points to not scream at them “LIKE DUH??!! WHAT YOU JUST SAID IS EXACTLY WHAT YOU WENT THROUGH HOW CAN YOU NOT SEE THIS??? SAJVGDBwghku!!!!!!!!”
But that’s what life is about, what life is like, and how we grow. No-one can force us to make a change if we aren’t ready. We can’t always see our abusers until it’s gone too far; can’t see the addiction til we are at the bottom of the glass. It’s called growth and it’s important.

ALSO: COSPLAY! Yay for cosplay being a thing and not being like “ew, gross, nerd, geek, creepy dude who lives in his Mum’s basement”. I liked that Aleks/Alexis talked about cons and cosplay as if it were just a normal thing like playing baseball - because it is :-).
Content Warnings: hoo boy. dicussions of child abuse and grooming (no on-page explicit), sexual abuse, emotional abuse, homophobia, swearing, murder.
Overall Rating: 4.5 stars

I have never loved a character’s voice more than Alexis/Aleks’s.

Mia Siegert’s protagonist IS an actual teenager, not just the result of an adult’s research and distant memories and that bleeds through the page. Aleks/Alexis reach wrong conclusions, fantasize, have crushes, evolve in their thinking, have their own prejudices, actively try to be a good person, fight with adults when they feel their values and ideas are being crushed by someone else’s, they are insecure, they long for connection, they are unsure about the future, ...they were impossible not to love.

I was not so much a fan of some of the most technical aspects and I did have a huge problem with Alexis/Aleks’s crush who I just plain couldn’t stand and would have rather it hadn’t gone that far but I did really like most of the other secondary characters arcs and would have loved to know more about them.

This might not be the easiest book to read, I feel that there should be some trigger warnings in it for sexual assault, abusive relationships, homophobia, abuse of power and PTSD but I’m glad I read it and I’m really glad I got to learn about Alexis/ Aleks and about being bigender and having a relationship with a God that actually loves you for who you are.

Thank you to NetGalley and Carolrhoda Lab for this DRC.

This was a very stressful book to read. Aleks/Alexis's anxiety and inner voice were incredibly realistic, as was his/her issues with the Catholic Church.