Book Review: Erika, A thriller by Mansi Narula Kashyap

BLURB: After her parents died in a tragic car crash, Erika moves to London from Dublin to get rid of the bad memories, her frantic nightmares, anddisturbing hallucinations. In time, her life settles into a new routine with Lara, with whom she shares an apartment. They become the best of friends, enjoying London and meeting new people. Life is good.

A few months later, Erika meets Ethan who is suave, professional anddependable. A whirlwind romance follows and within a week they aremarried. Soon, Erika starts noticing some unusual incidents; themysterious girl Maya, some cryptic books about secret societies and evena murder.

My Review: The cover of the book states that it is a thriller but I had no idea this will turn out to be a psychological thriller with a paranormal twist in the end. The three main characters in this book are Erika, Ethan and Lara. All of them contributed equally to the plot, making it the masterpiece that it is. A fast paced thriller, enjoyed every single page, recommended to everyone. Only thing is, I wish to know more of the story, and not really satisfied with the ending, which is a cliffhanger.

RATING: 4⭐/5⭐

Book Review: Lost in Translation by Himanshu Goel

💘”I hope there isn’t a time when we give more importance to words and forget about the meaning they carry.They are words in the end, hollow until we utter them and give them life.”

💘BLURB:Lost In Translation is an experimental poetry chapbook containing words in the poet’s native language that he founnd to be beautiful and worth writing about.

💘My Review:The poems are about a lot of things, both abstract things and abstract feelings. Some are living, like the Musafir (traveler) and some are non living like The Moon. The poems are of 5 to 8 lines maximum. The poems have  an emotional touch but I was expecting better than this from Himanshu Goel. To be honest, I was a bit disappointed, after reading so many flash fiction stories by him but if poetry is your genre, you can try it. 

RATING: 3.5⭐/5⭐

Book Tour and Review: Summer of Second Chances by Andrea Hurst

Thank you @andreahurst_author and @katerockbooktours for including me in this tour.

 

🏖QOTD: Your last vacation destination.

Aotd: Mumbai, and I’m missing Juhu beach so much.

🏖BLURB:Shelby, is forced to spend her vacation with her grandmother Alice, after her mother plans a trip to Florida with her new boyfriend. To be honest, she is more than happy to be with her sweet grandmother, than her mother Dana, who is too self centered to care about Shelby.

However, with the help of Alice and Theo, Shelby sets up a dog walking business in the town and loses her heart to the handsome lifeguard, Logan. But how long is the happy days gonna last?

🏖My Review:This book is the best example, that the friendship between man and dog is the best. The story is all about dogs, family, friends and love. The language is simple and writing style is lucid. Loved the cover. Definitely recommended to everyone who loves cozy romantic novels. This one just won my heart💗.

Rating: 5⛦/5⛦

Book Review : She still loved me

Author: Sunil Kumar

🌷BLURB: 

Vinod, the son of an ordinary farmer from Uttar Pradesh, goes on to become a successful IAS officer. This story is about his journey of the same, during which he meets so many different kinds of people. He gets attracted to Kiran, Neha and ultimately, Sikha. Among them Sikha, finally teaches him, the meaning of the word “love”.

🌷My Review: 

After a while, I have read a book that actually has a good story in it and covers a lot of topics, from the teachers who put extreme punishment to the labors who walked for days without food during the lockdown, amidst the Corona virus outbreak.The pain and agony of the common illiterate people as well as civil servants and medical staff are also put forward. Lastly, there is a heartbreaking end to the story. However, the writing style has a scope of improvement. 

Rating: 3.9⛦/5⛦

Book Tour and Review::

Last to Know by Jo Furniss.🦋.QOTD : Your favorite read of the month..🌼Thank you @katerockbooktours and @jofurnissauthor for including me in this tour and also for this wonderful book. .🌼

.🌼BLURB:American journalist Rose Kynaston has just relocated to the childhood home of her husband, Dylan, in the English village of his youth. There’s a lot for Rose to get used to in Hurtwood. Like the family’s crumbling mansion, inhabited by Dylan’s reclusive mother, and the treacherous hill it sits upon, a place of both sinister folklore and present dangers.

🌼Then there are the unwelcoming villagers, who only whisper the name Kynaston—like some dreadful secret, a curse. Everyone knows what happened at Hurtwood House twenty years ago. Everyone except Rose. And now that Dylan is back, so are rumors about his past.When an archaeological dig unearths human remains on the hill, local police sergeant Ellie Trevelyan vows to solve a cold case that has cast a chill over Hurtwood for decades.🌼As Ellie works to separate rumor from fact, Rose must fight to clear the name of the man she loves. But how can Rose keep her family safe if she is the last to know the truth?.

🌼My Review: The story is narrated by Rose, a journalist, who shifted from Nairobi to Hurtwood, which is her husband’s native place, along with her husband and son. There she meets her mother in law Gwendalin, who is suffering from dementia. However, a lot of mysterious things of past are yet to be uncovered that directly involve Rose’s family. Will she be able to do that along with Sergeant Ellie?

🌼This story is a tragic thriller, that will make you feel sorry for that victims. There is struggle, suspense, sadness but ultimately a happy ending. Read such a lovely book after a long time. Recommended to everyone..

🌼RATING ~ 4.7⭐/5⭐

Book Review : And we walked away

By Subrat Saurabh

Blurb :

And We Walked Away revolves around the friendship of three friends in college, with a love story blooming in their hearts. It connects to the kind of boys who are in love and keep trying to convince the same girl in different ways for a long time, not moving on in life. Also, it talks about the kind of girls who don’t believe in love but also, don’t want to take advantage of a boy’s feelings. The girls who are not conservative but don’t want to pursue love.

Abhimanyu, a well-known author returns to his engineering college in Bangalore after a decade and notices a lot of changes in the college over this period. It reminds him of how he met his ladylove, Naina on the first day of college and fell in love with her at the first sight. Abhimanyu, being an impulsive, stubborn and impatient guy decides to propose her in a rush. She doesn’t believe in love and has her own reasons for it. Abhimanyu with the help of his friends Aarush and Dev proposes and tries to convince Naina many times in unusual ways but he fails miserably. However, a trick helps to melt her heart, but destiny has a different plan.

My Review:

This story is narrated by the protagonist Abhimanyu as he arrives in his college campus after being a successful author. He recalls his college days and his journey of friendship and love. In the beginning I thought that it is a tragic love story, but fortunately it is not. The language is simple English and although there are some typos, it is easy to understand. Also, there are some beautiful verses in hindi that are appropriate for the respective situations. A beautiful advice from Abhimanyu’s grandfather won my heart.
Recommended to everyone.

4.3⛦/5⛦

Book Review : Indestructible : The hidden gifts of Trauma

By Krista Nerestant

🌼BLURB:

Krista was a traumatized overachiever bound by the cultural and societal limitations of her home country. But coming out as a spiritual medium exposed the many resources she had in her arsenal, inspiring her to embark on a healing journey. In Indestructible, she shares how she learned to extract life-healing lessons while overcoming a violent past, with the hope of inspiring and teaching survivors to approach personal wounds as a gateway to unleashing their self-actualization. Her story will stimulate you mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually—but most of all, it will lead you to start your own journey of self-discovery and uncover your very own hidden gifts of trauma.

🌼My Review:

Imagine that you are a child, who committed some mistake, and your father decided to punish you. Would you, in your wildest dreams, expect him to place red hot coal pieces on your palm, publicly, while others, including your own mother, watch in silence described her traumatic childhood in her father’s home in Philippines as a prison for herself and her siblings. As a child, she was the witness to domestic violence and extreme punishment that her Mama Eva and her siblings were made to suffer. Then one day, her mother leaves to stay with her sister, leaving behind the children at their father’s mercy. Krista, being the well behaved and submissive child was her father’s favorite and hence her siblings hated her. However, she makes up her mind to help others while fighting against her own trauma. Will she be successful? This book is all about the hidden gifts of trauma, like patience, compassion and much more that can be used as a strength rather than weakness.

Book Review:: The Lost Child || Bookish Santa

The lost child by Mulk Raj Anand

■ Mulk Raj Anand was an Indian writer in English, notable for his depiction of the lives of the poorer castes in traditional Indian society. Best known for his short stories, his other prominent works include Untouchable, Coolie, Two leaves and a Bud, The Village and many more. He received the Sahitya Akademi Award, Padma Bhushan and International Peace Prize.

■ This story is the story of a small child who gets lost in a fair. He had gone with his parents to the fair but loses them when he gets engrossed in looking at a roundabout swing. The story highlights the bond of love and affection that the child shares with his parents.

■ On a deeper analysis, we realize that the child at first, is mesmerised by the various attractive stuffs in the fair. He is seen constantly pleading his parents for those. In the end when he is separated from his parents and unable to find them, he wants only his parents and nothing else. This signifies that when we have our most important things in life, we run after those that wont matter in the long run. When we realize that, it is too late.

https://www.bookishsanta.com/

Book Review: I am in love…. with myself!

BLURB::

The book ‘I am in Love…with Myself’ – a collection of 51 short poems dedicated to women, highlights the importance of loving yourself just the way you are ! You are special, beautiful and unique in your own way. Each and every woman out there is extremely strong individual doing wonders in her life. They only need to realize their own magic. These heart-warming poems are inspired by real women around us and salute their never-dying spirit! So whoever you are- a young college girl, or a woman in ’30s, ’40s, ’50s, 60s or even 70s this book definitely has something to offer you! Indulge in self-love and self-appreciation with these sweet mini bites of poetry!

MY REVIEW::

This is my second read of Author Deeksha Tripathi and I must admit that she has got this exclusive talent of bringing up the beauty of womanhood in her poetry. The title is totally appropriate and the cover is so aesthetic. I love the way, each women of the society is encouraged and empowered in her poems. She writes of not only human but also animals and deity. She always highlights the tantrums of society and how to deal with it. Just don’t care!!!😌
Definitely recommended to everyone!!