4.5 stars

Ending the year on a high note!

How dare a *Great Gatsby* retelling, retell the events of *The Great Gatsby* and hurt me like this 😭. Seriously, K.M. Fajardo, how could you do this to me with Local Heavens?

This (and bear with me for this seemingly random comp) is for everyone who loves the messy tangle of relationships in *If We Were Villains*. If you're looking for character-driven book reviews, definitely check out Local Heavens by K.M. Fajardo.

You walk like a miracle, bathing in starlight / Your voice burning holes in the frame / I danced in the parking lot, cried in the taxi home / 'Cause I still remembered your name (Angela – Flower Face).There are good books, there are bad books, and then there are books that plunge you knee-deep into a Silent Hill-esque brain fog, leaving you completely out of it for the rest of the evening because your mind is solely focused on sifting through all the emotions it stirred up. Sure, K.M. Fajardo's ...

I feel completely empty. Rarely has a book left me feeling so sad and hopeless. One note: I have never read the original and am only vaguely familiar with the story. Therefore, I don't know how much of this book is K.M. Fajardo's own work and how much is not.What I really enjoyed, though, was the setting in a cyberpunk future. For me, it was perfect. At first, I felt like I had landed in Blade Runner. The atmosphere was so fitting, and then it took on something different and unique.That's what m...

I need a minute.

Knowing it's a *Great Gatsby* retelling: haha, I wonder what happens.
*Rocking back and forth on the floor* haha, I wonder what happens.

Seriously, K.M. Fajardo's *Local Heavens* wrecked me. If you're looking for emotional book reviews, look no further. This book… wow.

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Thanks to Netgalley & Bindery Books for the eARC! All opinions are my own, as always. I read *The Great Gatsby* back in high school, so it's been a minute. I really dug this sci-fi, almost dystopian spin on the story, even though I'm sure hardcore Gatsby fans probably caught a bunch of Easter eggs I missed. The themes, though? Absolutely nailed it. Fajardo gets into how the mega-rich keep raking it in while everyone else is struggling to survive. Super relevant, right? It shows how blinded peo...

I would like to thank NetGalley and Bindery Books for the opportunity to read and review this ARC. Something in his leisurely movements and the secure position of his feet upon the lawn suggested that it was Mr. Gatsby himself, come out to determine what share was his of our local heavens.-F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (1925) 🍾 a C L A S S I C . But make it queer, tragic, and effervescent all at once. Local Heavens was an arresting, stylistic pleasure thatc o n s u m e d me...

Hmm… I have complicated feelings about this one (so I wrote an essay).First things first, I did my homework and re-read The Great Gatsby right before diving (lol) into **Local Heavens** by K.M. Fajardo. Consequently, all the similarities and differences between the two narratives were immediately obvious—which led me to question: how close should a retelling be? We retell fairytales, but fairytales are archetypal and so firmly stamped in the cultural landscape that we associate crumbling towers ...

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC!I finished this book in less than twenty-four hours, but waited a bit to write the review because I doubt I can truly do the novel justice. I wanted to sit with it, let it wash over me, keep it in my mouth like candy. It was the first time in a while I didn't feel bombarded with info-dumps, but trusted as a reader. I felt as if I had the space to unpack this, that it was more than just the text on the page. It was at once the original work and ...

I'm planted. The bookstore employees are freaking out, telling me to leave because it 'isn't out yet,' but I'm simply too planted. I'm not moving until I finish K.M. Fajardo's *Local Heavens*. This *Local Heavens* book review is going to be epic, just you wait.

Hi everyone, with the centennial of THE GREAT GATSBY just around the corner, I'm incredibly grateful to be publishing my thematic response to Fitzgerald’s beloved novel this year. I hope you enjoy meeting Nick, Gatsby & co. (again, or for the first time). I'm just popping in to answer some questions I've been getting about the project, and then I'll be disappearing for a bit, lol. Content warnings are below.Do you 'need' to read GATSBY before reading this book? — Not necessarily. Whether or not ...