Category: 4.5 Stars

~o~Rating~o~

A laugh-out-loud, heartfelt YA romantic comedy, told in alternating perspectives, about two Indian-American teens whose parents have arranged for them to be married.

Dimple Shah has it all figured out. With graduation behind her, she’s more than ready for a break from her family, from Mamma’s inexplicable obsession with her finding the “Ideal Indian Husband.” Ugh. Dimple knows they must respect her principles on some level, though. If they truly believed she needed a husband right now, they wouldn’t have paid for her to attend a summer program for aspiring web developers…right?

Rishi Patel is a hopeless romantic. So when his parents tell him that his future wife will be attending the same summer program as him—wherein he’ll have to woo her—he’s totally on board. Because as silly as it sounds to most people in his life, Rishi wants to be arranged, believes in the power of tradition, stability, and being a part of something much bigger than himself.

The Shahs and Patels didn’t mean to start turning the wheels on this “suggested arrangement” so early in their children’s lives, but when they noticed them both gravitate toward the same summer program, they figured, Why not?

Dimple and Rishi may think they have each other figured out. But when opposites clash, love works hard to prove itself in the most unexpected ways.

Release Date: May 30th, 2017

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Nobles

~o~Review~o~

I picked this up at ALA Midwinter 2017 which was held in Atlanta this year. A huge thank you to Simon & Schuster for handing these out!

Ahh, this was so freakin’ ADORABLE! This is a Bollywood romance turned into a YA novel. By Bollywood romance, yes I mean the cliches and the overused tropes and the songs and the drama, it was perfect! Now, if you don’t already know this, I. Am. An. ABSOLUTE. Sucker. When it comes to Bollywood romantic comedies. And don’t even get me started if the movie is starring Shah Rukh Khan.

Not the best gif I could’ve chosen…

Hehe, that’s not any better.

Awwww, LOOK

Shounima, you’re not even talking about the book anymore, get a hold of yourself!

Okay, okay, I apologize. On to the story.

Dimple Shah is the only child to her traditional Indian parents; parents whose biggest goal in life is to marry her to a suitable boy now that she has graduated high school. Dimple though has no desire whatsoever to get married. Dimple is a coder and her biggest goal in the book is to win a programming competition and meet Jenny Lindth, her programming role model. She is intelligent, determined, and is always struggling to find the perfect balance between her family’s tradition and western society. I saw a lot of myself in her; I have never been so well represented in a book character before (she’s literally me but much cooler). That’s probably another reason I liked this book so much, I connected with the characters on a much deeper level than I usually do.

Rishi on the other hand is more traditional, he wants to do whatever will make his parents happy and he’s completely on board with an arranged marriage. He is an artist at heart but is pursuing more “practical” goals like going to MIT to become an engineer. I understood where he was coming from, there’s usually a huge pressure in South Asian culture to pursue careers in science and the arts are usually dismissed as silly hobbies that you are supposed to do on the side but not make a career out of.

The book itself can be best described as a romantic comedy and there were lots of funny scenes thrown in there with the romantic ones. I was giggling all through the book because of the sheer cuteness.

The author does add some Hindi dialogues when Dimple and Rishi are talking to their parents which may throw off some non-Hindi speakers. Though you do get the gist of what they’re saying because of the context.

All in all, When Dimple Met Rishi was just plain adorable and I recommend it to anyone who’s looking for a fluffy read.

~o~Rating~o~

In the shadows of Sangui City, there lives a girl who doesn’t exist. After fleeing the Congo as refugees, Tina and her mother arrived in Kenya looking for the chance to build a new life and home. Her mother quickly found work as a maid for a prominent family, headed by Roland Greyhill, one of the city’s most respected business leaders. But Tina soon learns that the Greyhill fortune was made from a life of corruption and crime. So when her mother is found shot to death in Mr. Greyhill’s personal study, she knows exactly who’s behind it.

With revenge always on her mind, Tina spends the next four years surviving on the streets alone, working as a master thief for the Goondas, Sangui City’s local gang. It’s a job for the Goondas that finally brings Tina back to the Greyhill estate, giving her the chance for vengeance she’s been waiting for. But as soon as she steps inside the lavish home, she’s overtaken by the pain of old wounds and the pull of past friendships, setting into motion a dangerous cascade of events that could, at any moment, cost Tina her life. But finally uncovering the incredible truth about who killed her mother—and why—keeps her holding on in this fast-paced nail-biting thriller.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Nobles

~o~Review~o~

TRIGGER WARNINGS: rape, attempted rape, abuse

“If you’re going to be a thief, the first thing you need to know is that you don’t exist.”

Wow, this was a good book.

Tina is a refugee from eastern Democratic of the Congo. When she was five, her and her mom escaped from the Congo to Kenya because of the raging war. Tina is a strong, independent protagonist who has had to learn to survive on the streets after her mom’s murder. She will do anything to avenge her mom’s death and that’s exactly what brings her to the gang – Goondas – in the first place. She is fiercely loyal to her little sister Kiki and she takes care of her to the best of her abilities. Tina is a multi-dimensional character and I felt genuinely attached to her.

The originality of the setting is one of the qualities that sets this book apart. The setting is rich, descriptive and made me fall completely in love with Kenya. The story is set in the made-up city of Sangui, Kenya, which isn’t a real city but was inspired by Mombasa and Nairobi.

City of Saints and Thieves is a murder mystery and revenge story while being a contemporary refugee story. The author, Natalie Anderson, spent a lot of time with refugees from the Congo and a big part of this novel is based on her first-hand experiences with those women. It was a eye-opener for me. Refugee stories are heart-breaking but important and I thought the novel portrayed it respectfully.

I also loved her two sidekicks: Michael and Boyboy. Boyboy provided the much needed comic relief in the story and I love funny characters so he was a favorite of mine.

All in all, I thought how the overall story unraveled was fantastic. It was engaging and kept me turning the pages throughout the novel, beginning to end. I highly recommend!

Have you read this book? Or are you planning to?

~o~Rating~o~

~o~ Release Date: November 1st 2016 ~o~
~o~ Publisher: Delacorte Press ~o~

I was lucky (and knowledgeable) enough to win an ARC of this book at B-Fest trivia at Barnes and Nobles a few weekends ago (as you can see, I am also great at remembering dates).

~o~Goodreads Synopsis~o~

Natasha: I’m a girl who believes in science and facts. Not fate. Not destiny. Or dreams that will never come true. I’m definitely not the kind of girl who meets a cute boy on a crowded New York City street and falls in love with him. Not when my family is twelve hours away from being deported to Jamaica. Falling in love with him won’t be my story.

Daniel: I’ve always been the good son, the good student, living up to my parents’ high expectations. Never the poet. Or the dreamer. But when I see her, I forget about all that. Something about Natasha makes me think that fate has something much more extraordinary in store—for both of us.

The Universe: Every moment in our lives has brought us to this single moment. A million futures lie before us. Which one will come true?

Click here for the Goodreads page.

~o~Review~o~

The Sun is Also a Star is very unlike what I expected. Is it a cute love story? Yes. But it’s also a story about immigrating into the USA and what it means to come from an immigrant family, especially the family expectations that come with it.

Natasha’s family immigrated to the USA from Jamaica when she was eight years old so her dad could pursue a career in acting. Her story is one I can connect with at a deeper level being an immigrant myself (who also happened to move to America at eight years old. It’s actually almost scary how that happened actually). Though unfortunately in her case, Natasha is undocumented and her family is getting deported that night.

Daniel is a first generation Korean-American living with his parents’ high expectations of being a doctor and marrying a nice, Korean girl. I’m not sure why the Goodreads synopsis says “Never the poet. Or the dreamer” in his description because that’s exactly what he is: Daniel is a poet and a dreamer. While Natasha is more factual and rational, Daniel is more sensitive and optimistic.

Now usually, I LOATHE books that are love at first sight or books where the main characters fall in love after one day of knowing each other. But honestly, this was the cutest thing ever. In the span of one day, their relationship developed more than I can say for 80 percent of YA characters. You know those books where the story tells you the main characters are in love but really, you have absolutely no idea why because they’ve never even had a decent conversation? Well, that’s not this story! I felt their connection, I knew the exact moment each of them fell in love with the other and, just THE FEELS!

The book itself mostly focuses on Natasha’s and Daniel’s points of views but it also shows some brief POVs of side characters which I enjoyed immensely because you also get a glimpse of their lives.

I also like books with big themes and this one had quite a few up its sleeves. How so many things had to go right for the world to form. How the smallest of all decisions can lead to and entirely different parallel universe. How a single exchange with another person can change your life forever.

And the ending is just

so BE WARNED!

~o~Rating~o~

~o~Goodreads Synopsis~o~

One Life to One Dawn.

In a land ruled by a murderous boy-king, each dawn brings heartache to a new family. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, is a monster. Each night he takes a new bride only to have a silk cord wrapped around her throat come morning. When sixteen-year-old Shahrzad’s dearest friend falls victim to Khalid, Shahrzad vows vengeance and volunteers to be his next bride. Shahrzad is determined not only to stay alive, but to end the caliph’s reign of terror once and for all.

Night after night, Shahrzad beguiles Khalid, weaving stories that enchant, ensuring her survival, though she knows each dawn could be her last. But something she never expected begins to happen: Khalid is nothing like what she’d imagined him to be. This monster is a boy with a tormented heart. Incredibly, Shahrzad finds herself falling in love. How is this possible? It’s an unforgivable betrayal. Still, Shahrzad has come to understand all is not as it seems in this palace of marble and stone. She resolves to uncover whatever secrets lurk and, despite her love, be ready to take Khalid’s life as retribution for the many lives he’s stolen. Can their love survive this world of stories and secrets?

Inspired by A Thousand and One Nights, The Wrath and the Dawn is a sumptuous and enthralling read from beginning to end.

Click here for Goodreads link.

~o~Review~o~

“Some things exist in our lives for but a brief moment. And we must let them go on to light another sky.”

I LOVED it. The Wrath and the Dawn is a retelling of the infamous A Thousand and One Nights. It’s similar to A Thousand Nights by E.K Johnson but it’s more action packed and I enjoyed it a lot more.

Shahrzad is intelligent and resourceful and witty without sounding snobby. The same could be said for countless other YA main characters but Shahrzad actually pulls it off. Her best friend was taken to be Khalid’s wife and like all his other brides, she was killed. Shahrzad volunteers to be Khalid’s bride to end his regime once and for all. I’m not usually a big fan of the whole “falling in love with the monster” trope but Ahdieh plays it off very well. Shahrzad gradually realizes all is not black and white after all as she struggles to understand how she could possibly be drawn to her best friend’s murderer.

Khalid was mysterious and alluring and too secretive for his own good. Like Shahrzad, I also gradually came to like him. He is also intelligent and observant. Not much could be said about him without spoiling.

I really enjoyed the romance in this book, it was well written and well developed. Khalid and Shahrzad are a good match and will always keep each other on their toes.

I liked most of the secondary characters though at times it felt like there were too many of them to where their personalities felt the same. If you gave me a description, I wouldn’t be able to tell you whether it was Rahim, Tariq or Jalal (or maybe it’s just because they say men are all the same :D). Feisty Despina on the other hand (Shahrzad’s maid) was my favorite secondary character and I loved the interactions between her and Shahrzad. YA often lacks female to female interaction as if a strong female MC cannot have a female best friend so it was a nice change.

Now to my favorite thing about this book: the food. No book has ever made me this hungry, not even the lavishness of the food at Hogwarts. I came as close to tasting the food as you possibly can while reading.

~o~Spoiler Alert~o~

So, I understand Ava’s father cursed Khalid and told him he had to kill the next hundred brides and all but what I don’t understand is why it had to be a secret. Surely Khalid  could have announced to the people that hey, I’m cursed and I must kill your daughters once I marry them or the kingdom will be destroyed. It would have still created problems but at least the people would know and no doubt many girls would willingly volunteer. Hasn’t keeping it a secret done more harm than good?

~o~Rating~o~


~o~Goodreads Synopsis~o~

This Printz Honor Book is a “tender, honest exploration of identity” (Publishers Weekly) that distills lyrical truths about family and friendship.

Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship—the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.

~o~Review~o~

“Do you think we’ll ever discover all the secrets of the universe?”

I’m a mess right now. This was so good! (That’s my new favorite phrase, I’ve been using it too much lately. That’s not a bad thing though). I am in the middle of a crisis guys. I think I’m falling in love… with contemporaries. It just happened, okay? It happened because of books like this.

I loved the writing style of this book. It was simple in a good way. No extra description, not filled with metaphors and imagery, nothing too complicated but it felt real.

Both Ari and Dante are wonderful characters. They’re both kind of a loner but in different ways.

Ari was constantly plagued by thoughts of his older brother who was in prison. His parents never talked about him. Ari’s father is a war veteran of the Vietnam war and he is a secluded person who doesn’t like to talk about his life. Ari’s relationship with his mother is one of the best parts of the book though. She understands him and she knows how to get him to talk even though Ari would love to do anything but.

“I’m crazy about my mom and dad.”

Dante’s parents were another high point of the books. That is about the sweetest thing anyone could ever say. How many teenagers would ever admit that they’re crazy about their parents?  His parents are very sweet and they’re both hilarious (his dad especially).

I LOVED this book and the only reason I’m not giving it five stars is because I found a few typos that bothered me. Other than that, it’s definitely five stars worthy.

~o~Spoiler Alert~o~

I’m just going to put a bunch of my favorite quotes from the book down here because some of the lines were just fantastic.

“Words were different when they lived inside of you.”

“To be careful with people and with words was a rare and beautiful thing.”

“This is my problem. I want other people to tell me how they feel. But I’m not so sure I want to return the favor.”  (<— it’s scary how much I could relate to Ari at certain points).

“One of the secrets of the universe was that our instincts were sometimes stronger than our minds.”

“You can’t make anyone be an adult. Especially an adult.”

“Words were not things you could control. Not always.”

“Talking to myself in my journal qualified as talking to someone my own age.”  (<— my point exactly).

“I’m not into all this academic stuff. Too much analysis. What ever happened to reading a book because you liked it?” (<– agree completely).