When They Met by Luckkk K

This was a really short collection of poetry detailing how falling in love is hard, to keep trying and saying goodbye, can be too easy to do especially for fear or feeling scared of being hurt, a relatable collection of poetry for anyone who's been in love or lost love, even unrequited love, a really relatable read.

What I Wish I Said To You by Isaac Paredes

Detailing how falling in like or love can be deep, chemical, touching on self hatred, facing yourself in the mirror but embracing your flaws for how you see them isn't how others do and tackling your mind this was a concise collection of poetry straight to the depths of what effects us most in life.

Static Communication by L.Q. Murphy

This poetry collection shows us the power of words and communication between people, the main theme through the whole book about the power we hold in connecting with each other, showing us how good and bad we can feel through the emotions connections can bring us. A couple of stand out poems to me of this collection were: I Feel The Static, about a relationship stalling in progress. Trust Has Fatigued, about chances taken, feeling broken and lost amid distrust or betrayal. I really enjoyed this collection and the title especially plays well into rounding up the collection's meaning when all you want is to talk to someone and get through to them just to be met with static and how that leaves you feeling.

Collide by Isaac Paredes

This poetry collection was all about the risk and joy in meeting people and allowing them space in your life if they try and make an effort back to show they appreciate you and how we all see each other better than we see or talk to ourselves. Sometimes colliding can result in bravely and honestly opening up to each other exactly as this collection captures all the feelings it brings.

Bae, I Wish You Knew by Shizuku T

This was a modern language based set of poetic messages exploring what can be hard to say and easier to type and send to your loved one. Through hard times, worrying times and detailing loving and adoring undertones to most messages even after what could be an argument showing the devotion to their partner they have, a raw and openly emotional collection of how even in hard times, simple messages can make such a difference in communication for positivity in a relationship to blossom.

To A Girl I Haven't Met by Zack Grey

This was a unique poetry collection exploring the ways love can come and go, leaving traces, in various ways such as, sharing song lyrics like a love language between you both. With poetry about finding or feeling at home, your mentality and physicality, ageing and coping with anxiety and nervousness. One of the final poems, I just want to be the person you think I am, was a beautiful poem hoping to find love to feel blissful and just right eventually. Each part of the book had beautifully evocative photography in black and white to accompany the poems visually inspiring us alongside the words, a well crafted collection.

I Love You More by Brandon Deem

This was such a beautiful poetry book especially using the photography to background some poems too. The collection speaks a lot about trusting and loving, the desire to be close as you can be enjoying life's most magical yet mundane to some times. I also really enjoy the way Brandon makes us think kindly of ourselves, talking to us readers, realising we're all art in our uniqueness and that's to be embraced no matter how anyone else makes us feel which is such an honest thought to be left with after finishing reading the collection, we should all always speak more kindly about ourselves.

I Swear This Isn't Love by Jim LaFleur

Drew and Paige end up crossing paths more times than they'd like as it seems fate has other plans than them hating each other. When they end up faking being a couple on a couple's retreat and finally they get to realising they actually work in some ways unforeseen to them until they're forced to make the best of a close situation. A really clever story, a bit opposites attract and enemies to friendship/love/something more that keeps you hooked on reading on to see where the story goes, I just wish we got a sequel to see how their future played out!

This Isn't Flirting Probably by Jim LaFleur

This was a really sweet and fun story about the joy basic routine, connection and taking a chance can bring in life. For Wes and Riley, their routine for getting a coffee and simply for being at work, meant they met and continued to do so and even after revelations, shows how much joy taking a chance and risking your feelings can bring. It was a great book full of wit and humour, the characters were sweet and funny together but also caring and encouraging, making you want to read on to see where their story went and it's definitely worth a read to find out!

The Dogs I Have Kissed by Trista Mateer

This collection of poetry details the all consuming feelings of falling deep in love and wanting to stay together before we read how it can unravel and leave you reeling and coping with your feelings. Keys On The Coffee Table, was a powerful poem of freedom and escape from feeling trapped in a relationship too when it can be a toxic situation and was easily the stand out poem of this collection to me for being so simple, leave a bad situation if you don't feel loved or happy there or in that relationship, a very important core message to take away from the collection.

After Hours by Nura Bloom

This was a heartbreaking poetic story of an affair, a pregnancy and a life forever altered. A story of few words per poem, but still impactful in telling the story of a life altered forever by actions and the ripple effects into others lives. It was beautifully laid out with simple black text on floral background and set into five separate parts of the story showing the before, during, after, the pain and accepting the effects of the choices made and the actions it led to.

Girl, Isolated by Trista Mateer

This collection of poems are written in the early time of COVID with themes of love, toxic love, longing and loneliness. I'm Sorry For Looking You Up Online, was sadly relatable about ex's and Small Ghost Plays Animal Crossing, too especially because in Covid I did play hours of it and designing the island I made as well! Making Peace, about grief, acceptance of it and moving on with it was deep feeling after any loss. This collection was such a great accumulation of feelings from the pandemic and all we went through separately yet united in grief and loss of people and life as we knew.

Heartbreak Cocktail by Dominika Stančíková

This poetry collection has many lengthier poems with beautiful rhymes and impactful messages behind each one. A stand out poem to me was, Love Is Kind, a beautiful poem talking how love should be so simple and caring. It was a detailed and honest collection of poetry all about love, honesty, reality in a relationship of it undoing and learning to be ok again in the aftermath of the heartbreak.

Skeleton by Ryan Sam Turner

This poetry collection is so relatable about the struggles of growing up and feeling behind or not enough in life, from pressures to be ok and not feel depressed or finding love and settling down pressures. Pills Pills Pills and Pill Game, were two so well written descriptions how the pills can seemingly have no effect so you take more and more to try feel something at all better despite not feeling they'll make a difference at all. The Heron, about the beauty of their freedom and uncaring at the world around them feeling no pressure like us humans can put on each other. Pure O aka Purely Obsessional, about how your mind can make you feel so low, see yourself so negatively and distorted your mind plays tricks on you. Missed Milestones and Time Only Moves One Way, about feeling life is passing you by without reaching expectations others assume you want to, which can be and also not be the case as everyone has different goals and dreams. So deep into the discussion of mental health, feeling pressure you're not enough in life as your peers seemingly grow up to have kids around you whilst you feel life is on pause for you, the discussion around panic attacks too was utterly relatable as someone who's experienced and lived with them for half my life now, it was great to read someone capture the feeling that seems indescribable when it occurs in such an honest relatable way.

My Battle With The Enemy by Issa Marie

TW, mentions of sexual assault and Rape. This poetry collection has some deep poems about Issa's life and tough times faced I know many of us will relate to. She Is Breaking, about faking feeling fine when you are inside collapsing. A Mile In Ours, about shared pain how we all cry, we all hurt, we all ache, just in different ways. Daddy's Girl, a poem I found relatabe of feeling the one man supposed to care the most didn't care at all. I love when a book includes a playlist as well to soundtrack the story, wirh the hard topic of rape and sexual assault, the song Grave by Avery Anna for me came to mind as one I'd add to that too. The final part of the book details Issa's story and I'm so glad to hear life has been kinder after such hard and dark times to endure in younger years.

The Fall Of Days by Kristin Knight

As autumn has fully arrived now I found this poetry collection and was pulled to read it as the seasons change and embrace it. Life, a beautiful poem about how rainy, stormy weather can mimic our moods as humans and we can't always be bright happy and sunshine. Once Upon A Time, a powerful poem of seeking answers to be insulted by how time changes everything. A beautiful collection of evocative poetry around life changing like seasons.

The Sun Will Rise and So Will We by Jennae Cecelia

This collection was written during 2020 in the pandemic and is about appreciation for and embracing all life moments, finding the joy in simple daily living and putting yourself first in situations to feel happier and more content. One particular poem about Anxiety, how you can worry on something you said or did ages ago lingers in your mind really resonated with me as I have many times over my life even thought of moments from years gone by and still anxiety can linger.

Kimmy Carson Is Not Scared by C.H. Williams

Kimmy was looking forward to her school's Halloween event, only, upon announcement of a horror maze, she's filled with the dread of being unable to partake due to her heart condition. Used to a life of safety with her over protective mum using guidelines as hard set rules you have to comply by to stay feeling fine, instead, Kimmy starts feeling suffocated and explores painting and skating with friends over her mum's safety hobbies of ballet and chess. This book was all about compromise at the heart of wanting to just explore your own passions fearlessly embracing the opportunities and learning to compromise in trusting each other having good intentions in your best interest.

These Are The Apologies We Never Said by Miranda Noel

This is a clever poetry collection, set talking about people in the author's life who owe them apologies for various reasons. Cocktail of a broken heart, a poem about all the ways that the breakup of a relationship can effect you short and long term. The main themes of the collection were parental love, romantic love, which scars, drowns you in tears, not be adoring or improves life when together, it was just an honest recollection of how you can feel after situations.

Dear Love by Charles McEnerney & Adam Larson

This book intrigued me by the title and I was kindly allowed to review a copy. It's a simple layout of bold bright backgrounds, rich vibrant red and black for devotion and love on the cover before we even look into the book. The book uses brighter, lighter colours and text, yellow shades flowing through green, purple to red and with a mix of white to black text, to make the flow of text desiring to take on adventures and share moments together. It could easily be used not just as a sweet gift, but a book to use to pick a date night or even by chance or choice together as a fun adaptation of how to use it not just read it straight through as advice or a guide but with intention for couple's too adding a deeper meaningful intention with it.