Sahi

I remember the author's viral tweet thread about this topic, and this book is basically a bit of expansion. While some of the conclusions/solutions she mentions may feel outlandish, it also shows how easy it can be for men to be responsible in preventing unwanted pregnancies if only they decided to do so. This book is short, accessible, informative and important - but I also don't think it's easy to get to the place where men take more responsibility in this matter than the women. Because most of the issues highlighted in the book and the undue burden placed on the women is due to patriarchy, misogyny and societal conditioning and that will take a long time to change.

I wont consider this book any kind of authoritative material on the topic because this is strictly from a cis straight perspective. Glad that the author mentions this upfront and it would definitely be more helpful to have a book that deals with the specific issues related to the LGBTQ community written by someone well researched on the matter from the community's perspective, especially in these times of increasing homophobia and transphobia. I know the author is a Mormon and this might have been a factor in her not taking any pro-choice/pro-life stand in the book (also maybe hoping for a wider audience), but I think in our current post-Roe world, it's important to take a stand for the woman's right to choose and at the same time expecting men to take more responsibility in preventing unwanted pregnancies.

Whatever the misgivings I may have with this book, I would still recommend because it offers lots of thought provoking points that need to be talked about and discussed and understood.

It was fun to be back in this world and meet some of my old favorite characters are again. And I had forgotten how much I laugh when I read Lily's books. This was as funny as I expected, and worked as a nice extended epilogue.

I've never watched Fresh Off the Boat but Crazy Rich Asians is one of my favorite movies in the past few years. And I do remember all the social media firestorm over Constance's comments during the final season renewal of FoTB, so it was obvious that I was read this book. But I was glad to get the audiobook because I always love celebrity narrated memoirs and this one in particular is made for the audio format.

I can't review a memoir based on the life of the author, so I'll restrict my comments to the writing as far as possible. This book is more like a collection of essays about various topics related to her life that Constance wants to discuss, so there's not a lot of chronological continuity and there were many moments where I was confused about which time in her life she was talking about. The essays can also range from very emotional or significant to just cutesy and random, so my interest in the book kept fluctuating.

But what definitely kept my interest was the narration. Constance is a theatre major who has been doing plays since her school days and all that shows in the way she tells her story. She is emotional, she is crying, she is dramatic, and most of all she is very open and honest about herself. And I loved listening to her. I was particularly moved by the essays about her mental health struggles, the whole Twitter debacle and then her subsequent suicide attempt and how she has recovered from that, her relationships with her sister and parents and they have evolved over time, and her various relationship dynamics.

I'm not sure how the experience of reading this book might be but I can promise you that the audiobook is very entertaining and emotional. I liked getting to know the woman behind the celebrity persona and it was nice to see an Asian American woman living her life on her own terms, being successful, and fearless. Can't wait to see more of her future work.

I'm really regretting not reading this book before the release despite having an arc but I couldn't help it coz I was sick for many days. Even when I started and found myself completely engrossed in it, I couldn't finish it quickly coz the cold weather has been hard to manage and I was finding it hard to hold the book for a long time with freezing hands. But here I am with a review because I somehow managed to finish it and I'm just so so happy that I got to read it.

I was very intrigued by the premise of this book since the first time I saw it. And then we got the lovely cover and also the arc which had the stunning map as the temporary cover, and it all made for great anticipation. And wow was I glad to see that all my expectations weren't wrong. The author has created a very ambitious world with multiple kingdoms (or protectorates), cultures, species and infused this book with all their histories and lore, while never being infodumpy. I can't say I understood or remember all the details but if you go checkout the author's Twitter page, you'll definitely understand a lot. But what amazed me more is that in this epic fantasy world, the author gives us a murder mystery - a mystery that may have empire level consequences, conspiracies abound with interconnecting threads to an old coup attempt, and a group of characters each with their own motivations trying to unravel it all. The writing is engrossing right from page one and if I wasn't having trouble with the cold, I would have finished this book in one sitting.

The magic system with affinities towards materials, specialists who need to be protected from going to spiral and becoming one with their material, and sorcerers with powers beyond just understanding materials - it's very unique and interesting and the way it's written just makes for extremely compelling reading. We only meet a few characters with affinities like bronze, ink and glass but the way their spirals are written is wow. The author called it a magic system resembling anxiety and I think that's a perfect description. And that's another thing I felt the author wrote very well - characters suffering from ptsd and anxiety, both related or not to magic, making all the stakes feel very very real.

How can I not talk about the amazing characters too when we have so many of them. Amadea is a superior generalist of the Imperial Archives - calm and capable one who can bring down her specialists from any bad spiral, the strong and observing kind who remembers everything, gets things done, and protects everyone under her charge. But how she hides all her past anxieties under this cool facade, just hanging onto the threads of the present so that her traumatic past doesn't wreak havoc on her mind - it's all written very well and makes her a very compelling and easy to love character. The author peels the layers of her character chapter by chapter, which is very much integral to the whole mystery of this story and it's just masterfully crafted.

Then there's Quill who starts off the book by being amazed at being able to get a tour of the archives (and I was amazed along with him) but is suddenly thrust into a murder mystery and the death of his friend - he might not understand what's happening but he is determined to get to the truth of it all come what may. His strong convictions and sometimes impulsive nature made him such a fun person to follow along.

Yinni is the only specialist we actually get a pov of and it was such a unique experience getting to understand the magic system through her. The way the ink makes her feel, how every element around her is calling her to become ink, how she is struggling all the time to not give up control, while also battling the expectations of her family - but ultimately she is also invested in the mystery and just wants to protect her friends, even if it means she might spiral bad.

Finally we have Richa to round off this cast, who is a vigilant or investigator who encounters obstacles whenever he is trying to solve this murder mystery but is persistent enough to pursue the truth, even when it puts his job in jeopardy. He doesn't know exactly whom to trust but is won over by Amadea's protective nature and Quill's passion and he also takes his oath to protect the empire seriously, even if the imperial family itself is ready to stop him.

Along with this unforgettable cast of main characters, we also have many other side characters like the other specialists at the archives, the main suspects of the murder from various protectorates, the members of the imperial family who we don't know much about and may or may not be related to our main cast; and Redolfo Kirazzi who may not be technically present but his past coup attempt against the imperial family is the main undercurrent of this entire story, the consequences of his actions so vast that no one is even in a position to comprehend them all.

In the end, I don't know if I've articulated properly but I want to emphasize again that I adored this book. The author gives us a perfect blend of both the epic fantasy and murder mystery genres, a great multicultural and queernorm world, a unique magic system, and a cast of characters immensely memorable. I was thoroughly entertained and intrigued, and that little sneak peak of the next book at the end is already making me all excited for the sequel. I'm gonna have so much trouble making my end of the year favorites list next month but I feel strongly that this book will make its way onto it.

I just found this book while browsing my library catalog and was immediately taken in by the title. I remember the name of the author from msnbc too, so it was an easy choice to pick up the book, without even reading the premise.

I didn't realize the author was embedded in the 2020 campaign, so this book is an interesting rehashing of her experience traveling and interacting with the many democratic women candidates for President in 2020, the unique challenges they face due to their gender, and what does it mean that none of them made it as the nominee. The author tries to analyze both historically as well as the prospect of running against 45, and how that impacts an electorate's decision making about voting for a nominee, and how this electability question always seems to only affect how the women candidates are perceived.

It was interesting to see how the candidates tried to balance their campaigns to be about their policies vs the issues they face as a woman running for the highest office in the country. However, it was inevitable but also sad to see that the double standard is very much front and center because the position of the president of USA was never envisioned as something a woman could helm, and the electorate even now in the 2020s seems to think that women are more emotional and not tough enough to handle such a position during crunch times. I also thought the author made some good points about how any woman who is ambitious and open about it is depicted in negative terms and we've gotten used to that across media and real life, but how can we ever get a woman as president if she can't be ambitious enough to fight for it.

Overall I think despite the history making slate of women, POC and LGBT+ candidates who ran for office in 2020, it seems like it's hard for the people to imagine someone in that position whom they've never seen before. I hope having Kamala Harris as VP has changed perceptions some but I don't really see that. But I also hope the increasing diversity in media and newsrooms impacts the way women candidates are talked about and perceived as, and there'll come a day when they can run as candidates who are the best person for the job and not have to defend their gender or clothing or ambition.

I now realize that the author Dahlia used to be a prominent legal journalist reporting on the Supreme Court and also a podcast host, but I didn't know that. This book only made onto my radar coz I get most of my legal related news from Elie Mystal and Mark Joseph Stern and they both highly recommended this book, so how I could I resist picking it up.

I didn't even bother reading the premise, so I didn't know what this book was gonna be about. But what I got was like an extended profile of some very prominent women lawyers of the country who fought back against some of the most dangerous policies of GOP state governments or the 45th administration. From the people who fought against the Muslim Ban, suing the white supremacists behind the Charlottesville March, fighting for abortion rights, bringing to light the horrible sexual harassment in the legal circles and trying to preserve the right to vote in this country for everyone - this book is an excellent way to get to know about some of the women who have been at the forefront of fighting these legal battles for the rights of women and everyone else too.

There are moments in the book where it's easy to feel helpless and pessimistic because the law has never been about giving women equal rights and everything had to be fought for, through decades. It feels even worse this year with the reversal of Roe and as the author mentions, the haunting chant of “Lock her up” from the 2016 campaign seems to have become a GOP goal now across the country, to lock up as many women as they can for making a choice about their bodies and their lives. But as many of the lawyers in this book insist, we can't give in to this despair and it's important to continue the fight, both within the legal system as well as building grassroots movements and energizing the people.

And while I really admire the women mentioned here and those who are not but continue to fight everyday for the rights of Americans and all marginalized groups, the highest court of the land doesn't seem very interested in letting people have equal rights. So where does this leave the future.. who knows??? But I'm betting on all these fighters.

This is only the second nonfiction book I've finished this November but I feel like finally I'm not in a deep reading slump and able to feel very interested in picking up a book and continuing with it. I also had a feeling I couldn't go wrong with this one coz I remember really liking the author's previous work, Hiding in Plain Sight.

What remains common among the two books is how equally anger inducing they both are, but it's expected. The way levers of corruption turn in this country and how the same elite corrupt players are protecting each other, and how these people span politics, media, billionaires, business and more leaves you feeling angry yes, but also helpless because what is a common layperson supposed to do when up against such a behemoth. The staggering amount of corruption that exists and goes on with impunity, with the backing of an unimaginable amount of money and power will only leave us pessimistic.

I like how the author isn't given to speculations. She only states what she knows to be true, cites her sources for everything she mentions and gives her conclusions. There's no extra sensationalism here, because the truth itself is unbelievable in some ways, but also inevitable in others. The writing was a bit meandering at times, interspersed with her own personal experiences, as well as her feelings about the decline of her home Missouri; and maybe this book doesn't tell us all that much we don't already know because most of this corruption and coverup is happening quite openly these days - but it's still important to see that someone (and the author in this case) is willing to openly talk about and challenge all that's happening.

Between conspiracies and theories, plots and truth - the author tells us a tale we know but asks us not to get dejected, never lose our pursuit for truth, and never stop questioning.

I was taken in by the cover of this book the first time I saw it and how could I resist a space opera reimagining of the story of Cleopatra and Julius Caesar. I was also very excited because this is the first physical arc I got from Orbit US and that makes it very special. And turns out it was unlike anything I've read in a while.

Seeing that it's a space opera featuring a queen in (almost) exile wanting to get it back, and trying to get help from the commander of a huge empire for that purpose, I definitely expected this to be an action packed novel about war. Turns out it's not. It took me only a few chapters to realize that I might have to recalibrate my expectations and then it was an unusual but fun read. The writing was beautiful and poetic, with lots of lingering conversations which were worded in one way but totally meant something else. This layered writing style is not something I'm used to and it took a while for me to get comfortable with it, and I still don't know if I understood all the underlying meanings. The world building is also just too vast with so many planets as part of the empire - so many names, their languages and cultures - I don't think I remember most of them even now after finishing the book, I just went along with it. The story was also very slow paced, with some exciting moments at the beginning and the end, but it was very slice of life for a lot of it in the middle where it felt like nothing was happening - except lots of discussions and musings on philosophy, empire, immortality, religion, god and more which I kinda enjoyed thinking about myself.

Even after reading this almost 500 page book I don't know what I can tell you about our main characters Gracia and Ceirran. They are unreliable narrators for sure, particularly Gracia who keeps telling us that. The story is told in first person POV but as if the protagonists are narrating their story to someone (and us), and the lying was not visible at first, until the book proceeded a bit. But come what may, I still can't deign what their motivations were and what they actually wanted. Just having an empire and ruling over it seemed like small things which they would never aspire it, but I still didn't understand what it is they wanted, both from the world and each other. I don't know much about Roman history and definitely very little about Caesar, but this book felt like I was getting a close look at the kind of relationship he shared with Cleopatra and Mark Anthony. Mark's analogous here is Anita whose presence is limited but very vivid and she turned out to be another enigma I wished to know more about.

It might feel like I'm rambling but I'm truly at a loss how to review this book. If you like Roman history as well as space operas, you'll probably enjoy this book, and maybe even understand it to the fullest extent. If you like your sci-fi books to be a slow burn thesis about the philosophy of empire and religion, then this will be right up your alley. But if you are looking for lots of fast paced action and war, you'll end up disappointed. I still can't say if I love it completely but I was definitely impressed, and though this almost works as a standalone, I will surely read the sequel and would love to reread this book before that.

Probably more of a 3.5 but I'm rounding up.

This was an interesting book. I listened to the audiobook and it was well narrated and I finished it in just a couple of days. I really enjoyed the chapters on deep canvassing, cult deprogramming and the opening chapters about the Women's March and the Black Lives Matters movement. I can't deny that the message of the book is important - that we shouldn't write off people who don't share the same worldview as us and the art of persuasion is the need of the day, but it is not an easy thing to do in today's social media world where piling on people is everyone's favorite pastime, whether they deserve it or not. I can see how persuasion can also feel like an exhausting project when many people are living in their own world of misinformation and conspiracy theories and not ready to engage. So all I can say is that hats off to the organizers who are still doing it and who believe they will change people's minds.

The book itself felt like a disjointed collection of profiles of people who are doing this work and while I liked getting to know them, I think the writing felt a bit directionless and then just ended. I would have either preferred a narrower focus with not so much page time dedicated to Bernie and AOC, or the book could have gone broader about the issue and discuss more about the possibility and feasibility of persuasion. I think the book stuck somewhere in the middle and didn't feel totally satisfactory. But it still left me thinking about my own attitude towards those who don't share my views and how I can change my own way of dealing with them in the future.

I've only read The Midnight Bargain by the author before and I've always wanted to read her Kingston cycle trilogy but haven't managed that yet. However, when I saw this sapphic novella announcement from Tor and then looked at the gorgeous cover, I knew I had to read it. I also managed to get an audiobook of it early, and I had a very enjoyable couple of hours listening to it.

I adored January Levoy's narration and couldn't stop once I started. This is a very intense story right from the get go and because of the short nature of the book as well as the deadline in the plot for our main character, it moves pretty fast without much breathing room. We get enough world building context to make sense of what's happening and nothing more. But I did think it made for a fun little story which had a lot of elements and author does a seamless job integrating them all - serial murder investigation, deals with the devil, fallen angels and their desire to go back to heaven, and all of this set in a world where queer couples are ostracized and sapphic women can find themselves forced in an asylum for conversion therapy.

Ultimately though, this is a story of love. Yes, our protagonist's love for her sibling might have kicked off her journey on this path, but the bond she shares with the love of her life is beautiful and full of yearning and even though we never see them fall in love in the book, every word is full of the love that Helena and Edith feel for each other and what they will do to be together. This is a story of fierce woman and their courage in loving each other when the world doesn't let them; and carve out a corner of the world where they can be happy. Definitely pick this book up if you wanna indulge in some sapphic goodness for a few hours.

I frankly can't describe the experience of reading this book in a small review. I'm not exactly Asian American because I came to the states only about a decade ago but it's natural that I want to engage with atleast some part of the Asian American culture, and get to know more of this history. So, this is an excellent book in terms of getting a little introduction to this history and pop culture and I adored every single page of it. There's essays and comics and interviews, very cool looking spreads about boba tea and Asian festivals and some interesting playlists of Asian American artists and so much more. I definitely have added a few indie movies to my watch list which I had never heard of before, the playlists are in my Spotify saved, and I managed to finish watching both the Linsanity and 38 in the Garden documentaries.

Overall, this book gave me a lot of joy and huge amounts of appreciation for everyone in the Asian American community who have fought for these rights and visibility over the decades, and while hate crimes against Asians are on a high since the pandemic, we can't lose hope and only work together to make more strides in the future.

Definitely a 4.5 and I'm happily rounding up.

I never did manage to read the author Joan's second book coz I wasn't much into sci-fi at the time of its release but I remember loving Descendant of the Crane when I read the arc and hoping so badly for its sequel despite knowing it was probably never gonna come. But when I saw the announcement of this book, I was totally over the moon, I had sky high expectations, and I'm honestly more relieved that it did live up to all the hype in my head.

I had such plans in the runup to the release of this book. I begged the author for an earc which I rarely ever do in DMs. I kept talking about it whenever I could on the blog. I wanted to read the original Three Kingdoms - atleast the abridged version - but it just proved to be a bit of a task for me and I also had so many shiny new releases to compete for my time. I also tried listening to the amazing podcast but that was a huge commitment too which I abandoned after about 7 episodes. Ultimately I had to satisfy myself by watching a few YouTube videos which summarized this classic novel for me in a couple of hours. But atleast I was glad that I knew a tad bit more than I knew before. And it was time to dive into this future favorite of mine.

The book starts off with swag and that's the only word I can think of. That first line is instantly captivating and the rest of the book remained so for me. Joan is pretty known among us fans of hers for really tormenting her characters and having stunningly unpredictable plot twists, so I was dreading every page expecting that betrayal to happen. And when they actually did, I heaved a sigh of relief because I also knew that the writing would pull those characters back up after the twists and we'll get more of their amazing story. But I have to say, I never saw the actual twists coming and they were such delightful and jaw dropping surprises that I needed a moment to gather myself. Even when there were moments which felt slow or maybe even fillers, there were layers to the silences, and they also gave me breathing room. The plot is not overly complicated as soon as we get a hang of the world and it's main players, and then it's a lot of fast paced fun. But, this is also a book which is on a constant dangerous journey just like our main character.

I have not read a protagonist like Zephyr in a while. I guess I'm used to my heroines underestimating themselves or being more modest about their achievements. Zephyr has no such false modesty. She is arrogant in the best ways that a young well learned person can be, is confident about her skills as a strategist, and has the accomplishments to back it up, alongwith some cool sobriquets to call herself. While this may make some readers feel that she is an unlikable character, I only found it refreshing. And it also helped that her loyalty to Xin Ren is unwavering despite an almost futility of their rebellion. Whether this is because their association is fated, Zephyr has no other choice, she wants to stand by the person with the right surname, or she truly believes in the righteousness of Ren's cause - whatever might be Zephyr's reasons, her loyalty is very commendable and I loved her for it.

Because we only get one pov, we don't really get too many scenes with the three sworn sisters but even the limited amount is enough to see the depth of affection and trust they have among each other - it goes beyond just loyalty and I absolutely adored their dynamic. I don't know much about the source material but I definitely know about this particular sworn brotherhood and enjoyed its depiction in the Dynasty Warriors movie, so it was nice to also read a similar dynamic in a YA fantasy book. I definitely loved Ren a lot more because she is this filial, virtuous leader who is determined to help her empress, and all the people along the way even if she has to suffer too many hardships for it. I can't completely say I liked Lotus's totally impulsive personality initially but it was interesting to explore her dynamic with Cloud in the second half of the book.

Now how can I not mention Crow when he and Zephyr are almost like birds of the same feather - they are strategists, there's natural mistrust between them but also a mutual respect and the way their relationship develops is almost inevitable. I was actually glad it didn't develop into a full blown love story because that's not the kind of people they are but there's so much unspoken between them that the yearning is spectacular, and very signature Joan he if I'm being honest. And the less I say about their zither scenes together, the better, because I found myself lost in the beauty of those scenes and just wanted to listen to such soulful zither battles irl (the scene from Red Cliff which inspired the author definitely helped my craving).

Miasma on the other hand is still an enigma in my head because while she might be very stabby and power hungry, there was just something about her that made me intrigued and interested in her. Cicada is a total revelation because I absolutely did not expect either the way she is introduced or the later reveals about her plans - she is definitely one to look out for the most in the next book.

I don't know if I actually have been able to articulate how much I adored this book. I actually abandoned my audiobook as well as my annotation of the hardcover a quarter way through coz it was all slowing me down, and then rushed through the ebook coz I always read faster on my kindle - I just wanted to know what was gonna happen next and I couldn't wait. But I still have to mention the excellent Nancy Wu's beautiful narration and how she has quickly become one of my favorite audiobook narrators.

In the end, I can only say this book felt absolutely written for me and I adored every bit of it. If you enjoy fantasies which are inspired from or are reimaginings of classics, then you should totally check this out. Even if you know nothing about Three Kingdoms, this book will still give you a fun and adventurous YA fantasy with a whole host of unique female characters, a memorable protagonist, and enough twists and turns to keep you hooked throughout. And if like me you are a guzhuang drama lover, then I think you shouldn't miss this one. I'm very very excited to see where this story goes next, but I'm also very satisfied. And now that there's probably an year before we get the sequel, here's hoping I'll get to the original book or watch Red Cliff in the meantime, maybe even be ambitious and aim for the 95 episode Three Kingdoms drama from 2010. Who knows..???

This has been one of the most fun series I've read in recent times, so I was very excited when a new installment was announced. And this felt like something that was written just for me.

The past two years has been me absolutely binging and adoring Chinese wuxia dramas, so imagine my delight when I read the premise of this story. The author does a brilliant job bringing the delight and charm of those dramas to this lovely little novella and we get a tale of legends, amazing martial artists, awesome fight sequences and discussions of their styles (really reminiscent of Condor Heroes) and the overall freedom in being able to traverse through the dangerous riverlands and fight against bandits.

It's always nice to be back with our favorite cleric Chic and the sassiest bird Almost Brilliant whose one liners make this book even more fun. But I thought this was all Lao Bingyi's show - mysterious woman and brilliant fighter, who definitely has so much more to do and share with the world. Wei Jintai didn't have too many lines in the book but she definitely is a legend in making herself and I had this intense wish to know what happens to her next.

Overall, this was a slightly bloody, but charming story, reminding one of all our favorite wuxia stories, whether you've watched the dramas or read Jin Yong's books. It starts off with the signature tavern brawl and only gets more fun from there, so if you wanna indulge in some nostalgia, don't miss this quick and entertaining read.

It might be more of a 3.5.

I've been pretty bad this year at keeping up with series and that's what happened with this finale/sequel and I couldn't read it before the release despite having both a digital and audio arc. The Keeper of Night was one of my top favorite reads of last year, so when I finally felt in the mood for this book, I finished it way quicker than I expected.

While the first book was about Ren's descent into darkness, I think this was about what she is going in the darkness now that she is all alone. I can't say that she has entirely become cruel or that she is a very bad person, but her compassion mostly only extends to Neven and what she can do to save him. The love depicted in this series is all angsty and gut wrenching, but no way any less impactful while reading. I don't know if I like Ren a lot anymore but there's no doubt that I still wanted her to succeed and protect her brother, gain the acceptance that she so craves, and make a home for herself.

But the plot itself didn't feel as exciting as I found the first book. It almost was like Ren didn't know much about what she had to do and was scrambling across Japan to figure it out - which felt too reminiscent of the first book. I also think meeting all the different Yokai in the first book felt exciting, so there wasn't much new world building this time. Meeting a couple of new gods was fun but again I got the feeling it didn't add much to the story.

Overall, while I did enjoy following the characters - old and new - again and see what they've been upto, the not very substantial plot slightly disappointed me. I think I just had too many expectations after loving the first one a lot. But I did love the narration of Rebecca Yeo in the audiobook and she made it a pretty fun and quick listen. Despite my conflicting thoughts about this book, I'm still definitely looking forward to the author's new series next year.

Definitely more of a 4.5.

It's been a while since I read the author Nafiza's debut The Candle and the Flame but I remember adoring it at the time. While I never did manage to read her The Wild Ones, I was totally enamored by the cover of this book and couldn't resist asking for an arc. I'm also so excited that I get to participate in this blog tour.

I truly didn't know what I was expecting when I went into this. It's so totally different from the author's debut that I pretty much went in without any expectations, just wanting to experience it. And wow what a ride this turned out to be. I don't tend to read a lot of Fae books - I've read my share of SJM's series and The Cruel Prince trilogy too - but I don't have a fascination with the fae like many other readers tend to have. But I feel like this book may have finally succeeded in making me like them. As this is mostly a journey book - mainly through forests - it is heavy on descriptions. If you know me at all, you'll realize that I tend to hate long descriptions but I couldn't stop reading every single line here. The author creates a mesmerizing world with her words and I felt myself lost in the woods, trying to experience the charm of everything our protagonist was experiencing herself for the first time. I'm definitely lost for words here too because I'm unable to articulate how beautiful this reading journey was for me. The pacing of the book is definitely slow, as it feels more like a slice of life story, but the author keeps our interest with each small revelation that comes at the right time. The author is also very good at making us feel every single emotion that the main character does - her innocence, mischievousness, ignorance, wonder, awe, pain and rage - every feeling of hers felt palpable on the page.

This is truly a coming of age story of Croi. This is probably the first time I'm reading a book where the main character grows both physically and metaphorically as the pages go by and this transformation is the story. Croi starts off as an innocent brownie who is happy being invisible, stealing little things from the human market and just spending time with her stone friend in the garden. She may not know her origins or why she doesn't have parents, but she is relatively happy because she doesn't know any other reality. But then her life is upended and she has to go on an inevitable journey, hoping to find some truths about herself at the end of it.

While the uncertainty and pain of her physical transformation is a hurdle in her journey, she never gives up and is determined on her path. She doesn't know what having a friend means but she does meet other kin during her journey, thinks she has found friends, experiences betrayal and maybe even the beginnings of first love. But through it all, even when she is scared of what her true form might be, she keeps her heart. She is compassionate and always tries to help those who are in need, never expecting much in return. But she is also not one to accept things as told to her - she is smart and very observant and as her powers grow, she questions what she is told and tries to figure out what is right and what is wrong.

What I did like most about her though (and I'm glad the author portrayed her this way) is that she is angry about her circumstances - how she was never given a choice in her entire life, how she now has to endure extensive pain to reach her true form, how everyone keeps using her for their own ends - and she does not shy away from expressing her rage. She is not cruel and won't harm those who don't deserve it, but she does not give forgiveness to those who harmed her, not until she feels they have earned it.

In the end, I don't think I've been able to express how much I adored this book, and especially our MC Croi. This is a beautifully written story of a young fae and her journey of finding herself and more truths about her world. With evocative descriptions, a very easy to love main character, a Fae world unlike anything I've encountered before, and a story that charmed me completely - Road of the Lost is definitely one of the best YA books I've read this year. This is an adventure tale unlike any other and I hope you all will get to experience it too.

CW: bullying, panic attacks

I don't know if I would have decided to add this book to my tbr if I didn't have my goal of the year to read more translated works. But the premise also instantly captivated me and I just knew I had to read it. The publisher was very kind enough to send me both an arc and a finished copy closer to the release date and I had a very lovely experience annotating a book for the first time.

On first glance, this is not an easy book to read because we mainly follow Kokoro who has been through some intense bullying experiences at her junior high and is now almost unable to get out of the house or be among people. Her loneliness and being unable to articulate her feelings with her mother and just the sheer sadness permeating through her initially is a very heartbreaking to read. But once she gets into the castle and meets the others, that's when things start changing a little.

Even though the trajectory is not straightforward because every one of these children has their own issues, it's heartwarming to see them struggle and open up and understand each other. There are issues in between, they all have setbacks within their dynamics, but they all come to find joy in their friendship. What we mostly get is a slice of life story of each of the kids trying to bond with each other, and some times try to solve the mystery behind the castle.

But what it ultimately is is a tale about the necessity of friendship and support in the lives of young kids. It's about the loneliness and bullying and so many other issues they can suffer through in their life, but all they need to push through them is someone to listen to them and understand them, and give them the confidence to stand up for themselves. I loved reading this book and my only gripe at the end of it was that I wanted more. I just wanted to know more about what happened to the kids next. I wanted to see them all be happy and thrive, and I can only hope they all are.

CW: mass murder, religious extremism

I'm a huge fan of Neon Yang's Tensorate series and have always wished the author would write more stories in that world. But I was still delighted when this first full length novel of theirs was announced and I've been eager to get to it. Despite getting the arc though, my reading slump prevailed and it's only now when I managed to get my hands on the audiobook did I finally finish the book, and I think my wait was worth it.

This is a space opera set in a far futuristic world with quite a few intense action sequences, but ultimately it feels like a personal story of our main character - which makes the scope of the story wide as well as small, and I loved this dichotomy. The framing device used here with someone else narrating this story to others in the future is something I've come to enjoy, and I particularly liked getting to know the narrator's opinions in some of the brief interludes. I know that this book is promoted as a queer Joan of Arc retelling but I know nothing about the Saint, so I will refrain from commenting about it. But the religious elements are definitely very strong here and I think that's what made this a very unique experience for me. And it's also such fun to see a very religious world, with almost a Christianity like religion, but in a very queer normative world where every character is introduced along with their pronouns, and gender and sexuality atleast are not the basis for any bigotry.

While having only a single character and their journey being a focal point of the story might have put me off coz I love having a huge cast of characters to love, I actually liked Misery. They are someone who just wanted to escape from their remote mining town and have a life of independence, hopefully, but are thrust into a centuries long religious war between the Faithful and the Heretics. They can't be sure if they are going voidmad or are an actual prophecied Messiah - and if their constant companion Ruin is an Angel or a figment of their imagination - but they go along with it so they can survive. They are either hindered or helped in their endeavors by various people, one of whom becomes their lover but I don't wanna spoil much, except that it's a very intense and meaningful relationship for the both of them.

But where religion and messiahs are a thing, we can clearly see what will follow. While we get our action set pieces featuring spaceships and mechs and very advanced technology, the heart of this story is about what happens when religious fanaticism meets a very quick thinking, self assured person like Misery Nomaki; what happens when one person's hubris borne out of the need for survival combines with the (maybe misguided) righteousness of a religious cause, and is equally hailed by others as a messiah and savior. It ends in messy confusion and destruction, but not necessarily enlightenment, but that's what makes this a compelling story.

In the end, I don't know if I can call this story enjoyable but I was engaged all through and loved following along with Misery on her journey towards greatness or infamy. This is definitely a story for those who love exploring religious themes through the lens of sci-fi, and I thought making it a queernorm world makes it's a much more unique experience. This book feels very self contained, even if there are quite a few loose ends and I liked that. But I remember the author mentioning that the next book would be told through a new character's POV, so now I'm eager to explore more of this world through another person's eyes and hope we'll still get glimpses of Misery and the others.

A definite 4.5 but I'm happily rounding up.

When I first got to know the premise of this book, I knew I had to read it. It sounded right up my alley and I was ecstatic when I got both the eARC and an audio advance copy, and I had a blast alternating between them.

Even though my YA consumption has reduced in the past few years, I still read my fair share of YA fantasy. However, I have lately been feeling too old for those books and sometimes even find it hard to not judge them too harshly. This book though just took me on a spin and I was delighted to be swept away. Was it the familiar world building, the fast paced plot with twists and betrayals with some calm and lovely interludes in between, the characters who were so easy to love, or the engaging writing which kept me hooked throughout - it's probably a combination of all these factors and I'm stunned at how well the author managed to blend everything together perfectly to give us such an amazing story.

The world building and mythology and the philosophy that underlines this narrative is definitely what delighted me the most. The medieval India inspired land of Bharat felt familiar and I had the same feeling of joy that I usually have when I read a good English version of the Mahabharata. I especially loved seeing references to the epic as well as how some of the teachings from the Gita or the overarching Hindu philosophical concepts like karma, the ashrama dharma, the ethics and moralities of warfare, the practice of gurukul and gurudakshina, pranayanam etc were such integral parts of this story. But it is to the author's credit that all these ideas come organic to the plot and characterizations, and never feel like infordumps. I'm so used to seeing creatures or monsters from western mythologies/folklore in fantasies that it was such a breath of fresh air to read about beings like the vetals, pretas, daayans and more, bringing back memories from my childhood when I used to consume stories filled with them in my native languages. Ofcourse the liberal mentions of desi food, sarees and jewelry and just usage of Hindi words will always give me joy. But I also thought that the magic system, which wasn't too prominent but was just enough to serve the plot was interesting, especially the usage of astras which ignited my imagination with all my favorite scenes from my beloved Mahabharata tv show.

After harping on about the world and writing, how can I not talk about the characters who make this a well rounded and exciting book. Katyani is a bodyguard and adopted sister of the Royal princes/princess and also soul bonded to the queen of Chandela whose biggest problem in life is being forced to attend gurukul with her brothers. She is brave and loyal and lovable and quick witted, has a teasing and naughty streak, and has no idea what horrors the future has in store for her. But even when her world comes crashing down on her and betrayals and revelations cleave her heart open, even when she vows revenge and destruction, she never loses her compassionate heart, or the memories of her childhood bonds. She is very easy to love, and I laughed and cried and despaired along with her, and only wished she could find peace and justice.

Katya also has an easy way of forging new bonds and making new families as she goes through her life, and none is more evident than during her time spent at gurukul. While she starts with irking Acharya Mahavir initially, they both grow to respect each other, and I really liked how the guru mentored and advised her. His son Daksh on the other hand is a stoic and composed young man who is a worthy disciple of his father, and Katya can't stop trying to tease him. Their banter is amazing and the way their relationship develops is beautiful to watch, and I only kept wishing they would talk more. I know I'm probably very inclined to see it this way, but their dynamic reminded me so much of Wangxian - Katya all chirpy and enthusiastic and teasing like Wei Ying and Daksh just as stoic as Lan Zhan. Add to that a slightly less grumpier version of Lan Qiren in the form of the acharya and the whole first arc in the gurukul felt like the first Cloud recesses arc in Untamed.

There are many other small and big characters - human and not - that we get to meet in Katya's journey and I loved the way the author developed a unique bond for her with every one of them. Her quick thinking and compassionate heart really comes into play when she is talking to the various mythological beings and I thought those interactions were some of the best in the book. I don't wanna expound more on the other side characters lest I spoil the story, but I thought overall it was a very interesting cast of characters.

In the end, I had expectations from this book and I hoped going in that it would be good, but I truly didn't expect to be so blown away. I just couldn't stop once I started, and even put down the wonderfully narrated audiobook by Zehra Naqvi because I wanted to read it faster. This book has the perfect mix of Indian inspired world building, very cool mythology, fast paced and action packed plot, charming dialogue, and a wonderful set of characters. It's a great choice if you are looking for a fun fantasy standalone and if you want a story that'll warm your desi heart, you absolutely cannot give this a miss. The audiobook is also equally well engaging and I was glad to enjoy the book in both formats simultaneously. I can't wait to see what the author writes next.

I'm not much into YA contemporaries these days but just the cover of this book and the slightly magical elements in the premise intrigued me and I couldn't resist.

I loved how the author establishes the setup and stakes in just the first couple of chapters. Alice as a protagonist is brilliant, smart, sarcastic and very easy to like, so we are immediately drawn into her troubles and feelings. We loathe her rival Henry just like she does and really hope she'll be able to make the money to keep continuing to study at her school. And slowly, we get to see her discover secrets and truths and grapple with what she thought about others, what the actuality is, and how justified is what she is doing with her invisibility powers. Add to this a very intriguing rivals to lovers dynamic, and this makes for a very enjoyable story.

But what really made this book good for me was how the author managed to integrate so many themes in the story while also keeping it lighthearted enough and fun. Alice's invisibility doesn't just signify her newfound powers but also the way she feels invisible and not seen in many ways by her friends because they just can't fathom what it is to live in poverty or less financial wealth than them. The classism here is really on point, because while it may reflect modern Beijing, it's also true for most metro cities around the world, and it starkly depicts how unimaginable it is for wealthy people to fathom the kind of privileges they enjoy, and how much the things they take for granted are not true for others.

Overall, this was a great YA book with light speculative elements that don't really overpower a more contemporary story, great characters who are easy to fall in love with, and excellent commentary on classism, racism, wealth inequality, poverty and more.

After really loving Last Night at Telegraph Club, I was anyways interested to read what the author was gonna write next, but I definitely couldn't resist this book at all because it's kinda set in the same universe. And this turned out to be everything and nothing like I thought it would be.

Firstly, I was definitely expecting this to be a romance, just like Telegraph Club, and I think I should clarify right at the beginning that it is not. This is more of a coming of age story, finding out the truths about yourself, and figuring out your future. It's about connections and honesty and dreams and art and so much more. It's a slice of life story about family and friendships, so it moves at a sedate pace, taking us on a dreamy journey. We also get interludes philosophizing about art and artistic expression and music and astronomy and more, and I absolutely devoured it all. But there was something about it that left me a bit unsatisfied and I don't know how to put a finger on it.

Aria is the sole POV that we get to read here but I felt like we were at a remove from her, and I never got to know her properly. She felt things deeply but also seemed completely detached at times, and I wasn't sure how to understand this dichotomy. I also feel like I get to understand my own asexuality better when I'm reading a book like this, where the character is figuring out her own sexuality and I can see how I felt at that age was so different. I could also definitely empathize with her wanting to understand herself better and also trying to live on the edge between her past and her future.

Through Aria, we also get to know the people who influence her. Her artist grandmother Joan becomes a source of inspiration for Aria in this summer before college, making her want to explore her artistic side before going to study for a science major. Her mom and dad also make small appearances though they have very different kind of relationships with Aria. Joan's genderqueer gardener/musician Steph evokes a spark in Aria, completely changing her perspective about what she could be. Their connection is immediate and intense and they had some of the most evocative and bittersweet moments in the story. Through Steph, we also get to meet her other queer friends and see Aria discover the queer community and the solidarity that exists, against the backdrop of the overturning of Prop 8 by the Supreme Court.

I thought this book works great in contrast to Telegraph Club. In that book, every gathering of the people of the queer community was an act of defiance and even acknowledging one's sexuality felt almost impossible - it was amazing to see how much California has changed in the intervening 5-6 decades, the amount of visibility the queer community has, and the heartwarming solidarity that is depicted through the Dyke March and the Queer Music Festival. It shows that things have changed for the better, maybe not everywhere and not for everyone, but they are better.

Overall, this is a beautifully written story that moved with its stunning prose. While I may have liked a bit more depth in character relationships, it works very well as a bittersweet tale of first love, loss, grief, sexual awakening, finding your dreams and holding onto them. It will transport you to its tranquil California setting and make you wanna get lost in it. I definitely feel like I wanna visit this side of SFO - who knows when that'll happen - but hopefully I'll get to read Malinda Lo's next before that.

This book was never on my radar but when I got an advance copy, I was interested to see how it is. A Rapunzel retelling also sounded completely like my kind of story, so I was eager to explore that as well. Turns out, I should have tempered my expectations.

I am not saying it's a bad book. In fact, it is immensely readable, pretty fast paced too which means I breezed through this book very quickly. It's just that these days I am having a tough time appreciating young adult books for what they are without putting too many expectations on them. I was also disappointed that there's hardly any elements of the Rapunzel story which are explored here except Selestra having long hair and being confined to a tower before she is of age.

The world building is good enough, if a bit difficult to get the hang of. The action sequences are pretty cool, especially towards the end. The side characters are also very interesting, Irenya and Micah being very easy to love and quite fascinating. But the main characters Selestra and Nox didn't evoke the same feelings in me. And without that connection with the couple, it's hard to enjoy the yearning that comes with an enemies to lovers story. I definitely wish their characters were more fleshed out and had definitive arcs which made it easier to root for them.

Overall, this was an easy to read and tad bit predictable YA fantasy novel with some cool action and interesting world building. It probably just doesn't cater to my current expectations from fantasy novels.

Probably more of a 3.5 but I'm rounding up.

The first time I saw this cover, I was immediately intrigued but I wasn't sure if I wanted to read it. But when the arcs became available, I couldn't resist requesting and it's almost relieving that I've managed to finish an arc before the release after quite a while.

I'm in the middle of a reading slump, so I was actually glad to have both the digital and audio arcs as I felt it easier to navigate the two based on my mood. I however do have to mention that there was a strange echo throughout the audio production, and I don't know if it'll be present in the final audiobook. The book starts off in a pretty intense manner and I felt like that tone remained all through, with the stakes always being high. The world building is also pretty cool with Korean inspired gods and mythology, a whole new realm of Gyeulcheon where the Dokkaebi live and their powers and motivations. I also liked how the mortal realm is kind of modern with their technology which makes it feel almost like a contemporary fantasy, which isn't usually my cup of tea, but it worked well here. I will agree that it took me a few chapters to get into the groove of things, but once our main character moved to the Dokkaebi realm, things got very cool and intense.

Lina is the reaper, or a highly skilled assassin, working for a gang lord against her will. Her character is defined by the self loathing and guilt she has for the death of her group, Talons, and how much she adores her baby sister Eunbi. She will do anything for her sake, including saving her boss whom she hates by killing the Dokkaebi Emperor, Rui. She is quick thinking and full of anger about her circumstances, and can get impulsive at times, but is also naive and trusting in ways which surprised me.

Rui on the other hand is a trickster, playful and charming and wants to see if Lina will be able to kill him. But he is also fascinated by her and tries to keep interacting with her even when she only tries to kill him or shows disdain. Theirs is a truly crackling enemies to lovers dynamic with pining as well as hatred (from her side) which turns into something more. It was quite delightful to see the progression of their relationship. It's still obvious that Rui is keeping a lot of secrets related to his realm but I was glad to see that they both could come to some understanding despite both of their differing motivations when it comes to mortals.

There are quite a few side characters but frankly I don't think anyone was fleshed out enough that I cared for them deeply. But I did like Rui's friends, who also happen to be his generals and advisors, and how protective they were about him. The more significant side characters are Lina's dead Talons, her found family, who taught her everything she knew, whose values and teachings and words are still embedded in her mind, and whose deaths still haunt her every night. Their story is all told through flashbacks, which worked well in some moments, but also pulled me away from the current storyline at other times.

Overall this was a fun read. Fast paced, intense and emotional, charismatic main characters, and a very fascinating mythology make this an easy book to enjoy, and might also be just what you need if you are in a slump like me. Jaine Ye narrates the book matching the intensity of the main character Lina, and I did enjoy listening to her narration, if only a bit peeved by the strange echo. The climax action sequences and the surprises we get were very enjoyable, which has definitely made me much more interested in the sequel.

I'm definitely having a good time with cozy fantasies this year, so I couldn't resist when the author offered arcs of this book. But I couldn't read before it's release, so it was nice finding it on KU and getting to it when I was in the right mood for it.

The author's first thanks in her acknowledgements is to Travis Baldree for writing Legends & Lattes and inspiring her to write this book, and it definitely shows. The similarities in the vibes are very strong but the author still manages to give the feel of a very different world, slightly darker in tone, lots of tasty tea - but ofcourse the delicious baked goods still remain and I totally couldn't have done without them. This story is also slightly more tense, and we get a possible mystery involving dragon eggs which makes for far reaching consequences, which I'm sure will come to fruition in the rest of the series.

Reyne is a Queen's guard who is fed up of her life of sacrificing herself for the sake of a cruel ruler and wants out with her lover. Kianthe is the most powerful Mage across the realm but also hates that no one sees the person behind the title and would love to settle down with Reyne and start a bookshop. I like how the book starts with an established relationship, but one which was forbidden and then we see how they adjust to proximity when they manage to run away. They both have a lot of anxieties due to their upbringings and positions but they work through their issues with proper communication, and I adored that aspect of the story. I also liked that one is an avid reader and the other loves baking and teas, so we get a bookshop and cafe. It was nice seeing the place come alive and I so wanted to be there.

The people of Tawney maybe apprehensive initially but bonds are built slowly and it was nice to see a helpful community, which comes together despite their differences. Matild and Tarly were amazing right from the beginning, offering their help. It was hilarious seeing Wylan and Feo bicker and our main couple envision a rivals to lovers relationship for them. I hope that definitely works out.

Overall, this was a fun read. I didn't know going into it that it was going to be a series but I'm definitely excited to continue. The author does a great job balancing the cozy fantasy elements with more tense and darker moments, and I can't wait to see more of it. It also ends on a little epilogue which promises new as well as our main characters, and surely more shenanigans.

It's probably more of a high 3.5.

This is another of those arcs of mine which got put on the back burner because I couldn't focus and could only manage to get to it now coz I got my hands on the audiobook, which was very helpful and I finished listening the whole thing in less than 4 days. But now trying to review it isn't an easy task.

I'm unsure how to categorize this one in ways I understand. It has many characters who have varying motivations and values and methods of dealing with issues, but we also only get one POV which doesn't lend itself to too much character development. There is exploring of relationships - motherhood and in general, child rearing playing a very important part of this book - and we see how new bonds are made between people of various species with varied interests, and how this affects the overall fate of the people and the planet/habitat.

But it's also not a completely plot focused novel. It's a very simple plot point if we think about it - aliens are here who think earth will not survive and want to take all of humanity onto their space habitats (maybe by force) and it's the turn of various communities on earth who have been working tirelessly to reverse the effects of climate change, to convince them otherwise. How this happens is the plot. But the way the author goes about it involves contemplation, arguments, discussions, consensus building and not any big action set pieces that we would expect from these kind of futuristic novels.

Ultimately what remains in our memory after finishing the book is all the concepts that are explored here. There are watershed communities that have been formed around large sustaining rivers who have worked incessantly to bring more ecological balance and reverse the drastic effects of climate change. The technology they use combined with their negotiation methods and how they build consensus to solve methods feels like something to aspire to if we ever want to actually solve problems which are plaguing our world today. We also see corporations and how they've created their own world within the world, but I don't think we got a clearly sense of how their hierarchy and structure works. Their way of treating everything like a game wasn't something I understood entirely, but I did understand the resentments some of the people living in those lands had against the watersheds. The watersheds ofcourse have their own grievances with the corporations which destroyed the world for their greed. But the author also does an interesting job of giving us mostly clear cut notions of who is ultimately responsible for how close the earth came to collapse, but also the fact that playing a blame game decades later doesn't help anyone and it's more necessary to work together.

This idea of consensus building is greatly put to the test when our main protagonist and her family have to argue their case in front of the aliens for wanting to stay on earth, confident that the work they've put into is helping restore balance to the planet and more can be done with the help of the Ringer's high tech. The author illustrates the importance of trying to understand each other view points, the necessity of negotiating with even those people who've tried to harm you, and how understanding each other's motivations and goals and helping each other in bettering everyone is the only way to resolve conflict without violence.

Ultimately, I felt it was an admirable attempt at creating a hopeful story of building families and communities which will all work together to avert disasters. Its nicely aided by an eccentric cast of characters - both humans and aliens and their respective delightful children - and lots of intense negotiations and conversations. But while I hope that humanity is capable of being this community oriented, the cynic in me thinks it's unrealistically hopeful and that optimism of it all just made me sad, coz it felt impossible. However, I'm very eager to see what more interesting concepts the author comes up with next in her books.

I don't think I have followed the author on social media or read his political satire before, but when I saw the premise of this book, I couldn't resist asking for an arc because it seemed like the thing I would like. And I wasn't completely wrong.

I didn't have many expectations from the book, so it was pleasantly surprising to see the author give an explanation for the way the book is structured and follow through in a very methodical way. It might simplistic on first glance - three stages of ignorance, namely, Ridicule, Acceptance, and Celebration. But once the book gets going with each of these sections, it's easy to see these historical events and rise of the ignorant politician as a natural progression. While I am much more familiar with the Celebration section of the book because I have been living in the Trump era of American politics, I learnt a lot about the rise of Ronald Reagan and the Bushes, and the failures of Don Quayle and maybe Sarah Palin but how those failures have led to where we are today. There were many surprises that also felt inevitable, and because this celebration of ignorance and vilification of knowledge, facts and reality can feel both disheartening and anger inducing, the author writes about these historical figures and events with a lot of humor, just to reduce the sting a little.

I particularly dreaded reading the section about Trump because we have seen it all play in real time and I didn't wanna read those horror stories again but I think this section was relatively smaller than the others, thank god. But even before the release, the book already feels slightly outdated because so much has happened since the author must have finished writing the book, including the Jan 6 hearings and the current Top Secret documents investigation and I'm sure things will get worse. However, the author ends the book on a hopeful note. Ofcourse he agrees that it's not easy because we have to all stop being hobby political activists and actually do work on the ground to change one mind at a time to save our democracy - and maybe these efforts will yield results someday but it feels scarier by the day to me. Changing people's minds sounds like a good idea and even a necessary idea, but I don't know if we are in a position where it's possible to change most minds. I can only hope the author's call to action and optimism works, and more of us actively contribute to bring politics back to the real world, and not live in Trump's alternative reality anymore.

Overall, the book was written in a very humorous way and that's definitely necessary because the content can be very bleak. It's hard to imagine the reigns of the oldest democracy of the world being in the hands of leaders who celebrate ignorance and call anyone else who wants to live in a reality/facts based world as elite - but that's where we could possibly be again and what this book proves is that things can always get worse. So, yes, read this book, have a laugh, but also remember how the events of the last fifty years led to our today and work to change that.