The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren

🌴 Here I have a holiday romance suggestion for you all. The Unhoneymooners is about Olive, an otherwise luck forsaken woman who recently lost her job and is quite disappointed with her life. That is, until everyone in her twin sister Ami’s wedding is down with food poisoning, except her and Ethan, the best man. The next thing she knows, she is obliged to go on the honeymoon with her sworn enemy, Ethan, pretending to be a married couple.

🌴 Given that the book is an enemies to lovers rom com, the plot is obviously quite predictable. However the writing style is lucid and hilarious enough to keep the reader going. I was looking for a light, hearty novel and I am glad I choose this book. This book has everything that we often dream of, a handsome and caring lover, a diverse yet supportive family and trip to an exotic holiday location.
The book is mostly narrated by Olive, but Ethan has a small contribution in the end. The book has twenty chapters and took me around ten days to finish, given that I was taking it slow. Recommended to every romance reader out there!

Image courtesy @bookisheclipse

Book Review: Punk 57

🎸 Misha and Ryen are pen friends since the fifth grade. They share every detail of their life with each other over letters until one day, when they finally come face to face. After the encounter, Ryen stops receiving Misha’s letters but continues to write to him in hope that someday he’ll reply. However, what follows next isn’t something Ryen was prepared for.

🎸 Punk 57 is a standalone adult romance novel. The story is told from two POVs, Ryen’s and Misha’s. Although the ending was quite predictable for me the plot was intriguing and enjoyable. The writing style and character building is praiseworthy. Although I did not like the character of Ryen first, it was great to see her flourish in the end.

🎸 Strong themes such as childhood trauma, bullying and moving on in life are covered in this book. It also addresses the human urge to fit in, so much that one loses their individuality and how it is harmful. Lastly, the attractive cover and the playlist recommended in the book are something I am grateful for. I picked up the book just for fun but it taught me some important lessons. Recommended to readers who are 18+ and enjoy high school romance novels.

🎸 RATING: 4.5🌟/5🌟

The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley

🥀 Jess, just after leaving her waitressing job, decides to visit her only family, her stepbrother, Ben. Ben is a renowned journalist, living in a posh apartment in Paris. It is only when Jess arrives in Paris and finds her brother is missing, she realize things are darker than they look. The occupants of this apartment are far more heinous than their posh facade can afford to cover. Will Jess be able to find her brother in this unwelcoming city?

🥀 This is my first book by Lucy Foley and I can strongly recommend this as a masterpiece. From the very beginning, it gives this uncanny insight to the reader which gets darker as the story proceeds. Multiple characters and their point of view is what makes the plot even more thrilling. The ending is great and totally unpredictable. At some points I got Agatha Christie vibes from this book and I really liked it! It took me around 4 hours to complete this book. In my opinion it was fast paced and a gripping thriller. The main theme of the book was the age old saying “blood is thicker than water” and ” how far will you go to protect your family?” A very pragmatic and compassionate story that will warm your heart and give you chills at the same time.

Under the whispering door by T J KLUNE

🌛 Thank you @netgalley and @torbooks for the eARC.

🌛 The moment I finished reading The house in the Cerulean sea, I was eagerly waiting for this one. Unlike the previous book, which dealt with children and life, this one dealt with death and after life. However, it was quite beautifully executed by the author. It can be rightly claimed that only T J Klune can take up such a sensitive theme of grief and trauma and turn it into hope and healing.

🌛 Under the whispering door is a humorous tale of life after death with queer protagonists. The story is narrated in third person, starring a grumpy middle aged lawyer, Wallace Price. The story starts when he dies and finds himself in a strange place that apparently is impossible to explain with logic. There he meets Hugo, who is known as a ferryman. A ferryman is someone who is supposed to help you move forward through a door in the ceiling post your death. At first, Wallace is reluctant to accept the reality of his death but eventually he not only changes his attitude towards life but also find a family. A beautiful saga built from elements which are otherwise considered as disturbing or triggering, this book is a must read for everyone. It was published on 21st September. It takes approximately 9 hours to complete the book. The cover, the characters and of course, the typical slow burn romance are sure to keep you hooked to the book, just like Wallace was hooked to Hugo.🤭

🌛 To sum up, this book feels like a home, a lovely family and a warm, tight hug. All in one combo. The lesson that this book teaches us is that sometimes we need to die in order to truly live. Highly recommended!

🌛RATING: 5🌟/5🌟

Book Review: Ikigai

🌸 Ikigai: The Japanese secret to a long and happy life by Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles 🌸

🌸 Do you listen to audiobooks? If yes, I would like to inform you that this book is free on YouTube! Do listen up if the following review interests you!💕

🌸 Ikigai is a short read of just nine chapters. The book is kind of a survey where the authors are trying to find out what is the secret behind the good health and long life, which is most commonly found in Japan compared to the rest of the world. They meet various people from different towns and cities and find out the following points:

🌸 Discipline: The Japanese people believe in leading a disciplined life and most of them cooperate.

🌸 Work: The Japanese people does not believe in retirement. They work until their last day, and hence find purpose in life. They never feel useless and hence desire to live longer.

🌸 Exercise: People in Japan believe in early morning exercise and although Japan is quite technologically advanced, they still believe in human skills and handicrafts.

🌸 Food: The Japanese people does not eat until they are full. A little hunger doesn’t hurt.

🌸 Friends: They always make new friends and laugh and celebrate with them. Laughter is therapeutic and so are friends.

🌸These are some of the points that I found really helpful. There is obviously way more knowledge in the book than I can share in this post. I used to listen to this every night before bed for atleast 20 minutes. It really helps to calm the mind while the eyes are resting.

🌸 RATING: 5🌟/5🌟

Book Review: Night Watchman Pvt Ltd

The story is about a man named Sanjay Dhingra who is an entrepreneur and the inventor of a product named JB. His company, named Night Watchman Pvt. Ltd. consists of Shivangi and Chandra apart from Sanjay. In the Great State, while juggling his professional and personal problems, will he be able to achieve his goals or surrender to his enemies.

This book consists of 418 pages and 11 chapters. A fast paced gripping thriller, it has introduced so many characters in the very beginning that it was difficult to remember all of them. However, as the story proceeds we come to know the importance of each character and realize that they are multi layered and grey. The language is a mixture of English with occasional vernacular words. The use of raw and savage language with themes of greed, lust and betrayal makes it suitable for readers above 18 years. The ending was not really liked by me but it is brutally honest, just like the entire story. Although the author tries to portray Sonia and Ruhi as strong female characters, in my opinion Shivangi and Kali are far better. Among the men, only inspector Ganpule was a man with morals. The author states, as I had assumed, that not all the characters, places and objects in this story are fictional. Recommended to crime thriller lovers who enjoy plot twists. Do check the trigger warnings beforehand.

A History of Wild Places by Shea Ernshaw

🌳 The story begins with an excerpt from a children’s book named Elios and the Foxtell. The comes the first narrator, Travis Wren who is capable of finding missing people. He has been hired to search for Maggie James, the author of Elios and Foxtell series who went missing five years ago. On the other hand, Theo lives in a locality called The Pastoral with his wife, Calla and sister-in-law, Bee. He has always wanted to venture out of Pastoral but a deadly disease in looming beyond the borders so nobody is allowed to venture out there. However these characters are related to each other and their secrets is sure to blow up your mind!

🌳The story is narrated from multiple POV and hence makes it more interesting to read. The first few chapters were hard to connect but after finishing 15% of the book the story became a fast paced gripping thriller. I am so in love with the strong character of Bee. All the characters in the book are so realistic, at one point I totally forgot that it is just a book! Totally unpredictable and unputdownable, I even dreamt of this last night, especially the last part got so intense.If you like multiple POV, slow burns and gripping suspenceful thrillers then this is highly recommended. This book will be out in December, if you like the review do pick it up! Couldn’t believe it was the debut novel of Shea Ernshaw, bestselling author of The Wicked Deep.

🌳RATING: 5🌟/5🌟

🌳Thank you @netgalley and @atriabooks for the ARC.

Vitamin H volume 2

Firstly the cover of the book itself gives a beautiful message of how we should help someone below us when we reach the peak. This book is a continuation of the Vitamin H volume 1. It consists of 151 motivational quotes. While the previous volume consists of quotes that focused on self confidence and hope, this volume focuses on giving up of negative habits like procrastination and self doubt. This book consists of 173 pages and can be read as a standalone even without reading the previous book. The language is simple English and easy to understand. Recommended to readers who like to read meaningful quotes and phrases about motivation. However, the quotes and nothing extraordinary and the impact of the book on readers may vary.

BEFORE Jared’s Story by Gina Detwiler

This book is unlike any other book I’ve ever read. Firstly, the cover is so attractive. Secondly, the unique plot, the simple and lucid language of the book, interesting narration and unexpected plot twists will surely leave you awestruck. The story begins with Jared, narrating his own journey. He was born as Jean Luc and his parents were circus performers. At first everything seemed pretty good until his parents noticed that he was quite different from other children. He had extremely slow rate of growth and looked like a three year old even at ten. Also, he had some exceptional qualities that no human can possess naturally, hence he was feared to be either angel or evil. His father tried to kill him on multiple occasions until one day after his father’s death his mother left the circus and moved to France. She remarried and started another family but Jared seemed to be never growing up. All this while, black shadow people used to communicate with him and ask him to do things that he himself didn’t want to. How Jared, who was feared by one and all, will one day be a savior is what the book is all about.
As mentioned above, the story is quite gripping and full of fantasy elements. There are elements of historical fiction, contemporary fiction, and mythology but romance was missing. There are some Biblical references also, along with Norse mythology. All of them spice up the story all the more. There is an important social issues mentioned in the book which generates some trigger warnings like sexual abuse. The book ends in a cliffhanger and I would love to read a second part of this book. Recommended to everyone who loves fantasy fiction. It is a really short read of 115 pages and can be finished within two hours.

Vitamin H: volume 1

🌿This book is a collection of highly motivating and energizing quotes. There are 111 quotes that talk about heartbreaks and healing, moving forward and self development. The quotes are short and easy to understand. A highly recommended read to start or end your day with. Although it is something one should read all his life, it is specially recommended for young adults and people in their 20s. The quote I liked the most and totally agree with the author, is that we should all try self counseling from time to time because we are the one who know ourselves the best.

🌿In conclusion, this book gives some very useful life advices in the form of quotes. However, I would have loved to see some beautiful illustrations in the book.