when meghna finds out that her college boyfriend (and, unfortunately, current crush) seth is engaged to someone else, and he ask4.5
2024 reads: 232/250
when meghna finds out that her college boyfriend (and, unfortunately, current crush) seth is engaged to someone else, and he asks her to be his best man, she’s determined to move on. she agrees to let her parents introduce her to a potential match. this is how she meets karthik, who’s handsome enough, but has a sour attitude towards marriage and life in general. however, karthik would love to get his mom off his back, so he proposes a fake engagement to meghna. and, while meghna doesn’t like the idea of lying to her loved ones, she realizes this just might be what she needs to show seth she’s moved on. the deeper they get into this fake engagement scheme, though, the more meghna and karthik start to have real feelings for each other…
this was such a lovely romance, and i had a hard time putting it down. i loved meghna and karthik so much! meghna is an english teacher who’s passionate about theatre, directing the school play and even writing her own play on the side. she feels like she disappointed her parents by following her passion, and that maybe she’ll make them proud with an engagement.
karthik is an engineer who’s deeply affected by his father’s actions. because of his father, karthik is sure he could never treat his future wife how she deserves to be treated, making him wary of marriage. he agrees to let his mom try to match him to please her, but he never expected to meet someone who makes him feel the way meghna does.
while i loved the main plot, i also loved that both characters had other things going on with their family and friends as well. this made the story very well-rounded, in my opinion, which captivated me even more.
i’m actually very upset this is naina kumar’s debut because i want to read more from her ASAP! with that said, i know her next book will be well worth the wait!...more
sai has led a quiet life by keeping the family teahouse up and running and taking care of his mother. he also has a side hustle of matchmaking, as he’s been given the special gift of seeing the red threads of fate that run between soulmates. so far, he’s been content to not follow his own thread, the only one he’s ever seen that’s grey and fraying. but soon, his life is turned upside down, leading to him running from the ruthless emperor and into the arms of a mysterious dragon.
i LOVE books with a fated soulmates aspect and with inspirations from east asian mythology, so i was very excited to dive into this one! i ended up really enjoying this book. i thought it was interesting that the lead was a male, because i honestly don’t read that many male-led books. i really loved this because sai was so down-bad for jyn and we got to witness that firsthand.
overall, this was a lovely book that i’d recommend to fantasy romance fans. i will be adding katrina kwan’s other books to my tbr!...more
content warnings: bulimia, fatphobia, death of parent
valerie chu just wants to be a good daughter. she’s quiet, studious, and thin.2024 reads: 214/250
content warnings: bulimia, fatphobia, death of parent
valerie chu just wants to be a good daughter. she’s quiet, studious, and thin. no one, not even her best friend, knows that she stays thin by purging. but when tragedy strikes, valerie finds herself questioning if being thin really is the key to being happy.
i loved seeing valerie’s journey of healing, with her own body and mind and with her mother, who, unfortunately, fostered the fear of food in her. though this was a short book, i think the topics were explored well. as pointed out in the author’s note, eating disorder recovery takes a long time, but i thought this did a good job of showing the start of that journey....more
akari is a high school junior who has devoted her life to her oshi, masaki ueno. when masaki is caught in a scandal, akari is sure 2024 reads: 212/250
akari is a high school junior who has devoted her life to her oshi, masaki ueno. when masaki is caught in a scandal, akari is sure the rumors are just that. as her personal life falls apart, akari becomes even more obsessed with her oshi.
this book was painful to read. i’m not saying this is a flaw of the book, but actually the opposite. rin usami did a little too good of a job portraying the obsessive fans that can be found on many corners of the internet. i liked the social commentary in this book. i hope to read more from rin usami in the future!...more
leah lakshmi piepzna-samarasinha follows up care work with this exploration of living during covid-19 as a disabled femme of color 2024 reads: 210/250
leah lakshmi piepzna-samarasinha follows up care work with this exploration of living during covid-19 as a disabled femme of color in an ableist world. they discuss mutual aid and disabled joy in the face of isolation and discrimination. i loved this book. i’d highly recommend this to anyone interested in disability justice!...more
at thirty-two years old, tara sidhoo fraser has a stroke caused by an arteriovenous malformation. after surgery, she has no memory 2024 reads: 207/250
at thirty-two years old, tara sidhoo fraser has a stroke caused by an arteriovenous malformation. after surgery, she has no memory of her previous life, so she starts trying to piece it all together. when her memories begin to surface, though, they’re seen through someone else’s eyes. she calls this person whose body she stole “ghost.” during this time, she meets jude, who is also struggling with their identity. tara’s conflict with ghost increases, and ghost, her memories, and her ex all threaten tara’s new relationship.
this memoir was absolutely beautiful. i’ve learned a lot about the medical side of strokes from my education, and even a bit about the personal side of strokes from my (limited) clinical experience, but never something as personal and unique as this memoir. i’d highly recommend this to people who enjoy reading memoirs, especially if you’d like to know more about how strokes can affect people....more
in this collection of essays, leah lakshmi piepzna-samarasinha discusses the politics of disability justice, centering queer, trans2024 reads: 201/250
in this collection of essays, leah lakshmi piepzna-samarasinha discusses the politics of disability justice, centering queer, trans, black, and brown people. i have not read nearly enough books centering disability justice, and unfortunately even fewer centering queer, trans, and non-white people, so i learned a lot from this book. this was also written with disabled people being the intended audience, which i loved to see. i can’t wait to read more from leah lakshmi piepzna-samarasinha!...more
this book follows a palestinian woman named amal, from her birth in jenin during the nakba to her eventually fleeing to the united 2024 reads: 160/250
this book follows a palestinian woman named amal, from her birth in jenin during the nakba to her eventually fleeing to the united states and having a child of her own. it’s kind of hard to put my feelings about this book to words. i don’t think a fictional book has gutted me this much, because this book isn’t all that fictional. what an incredible debut novel. i can’t wait to read more of susan abulhawa’s books....more
nayra mansour is under constant pressure from her family and is undergoing bullying at school. as she considers transferring school2024 reads: 159/250
nayra mansour is under constant pressure from her family and is undergoing bullying at school. as she considers transferring schools, a djinn named marjan appears. nayra has always wanted to meet a djinn, but marjan’s past might just catch up to them both.
first, i absolutely adored this art style!! and the color scheme was mainly pink and purple, which i loved.
the story was also really interesting. as i mentioned, nayra unfortunately faces a lot of islamophobia at school. her parents don’t understand why she’d want to transfer because of this, since her older siblings went to the same school and did well. she’s friends with the only other muslim girl at school, but it’s still hard. marjan, the djinn, becomes her new friend, but also biggest secret. i really liked the moments we were taken into marjan’s world.
i recommend this to anybody who enjoys YA graphic novels....more
xue is a talented young musician with an apprenticeship at one of the kingdom’s most esteemed entertainment houses. when her uncle,2024 reads: 161/250
xue is a talented young musician with an apprenticeship at one of the kingdom’s most esteemed entertainment houses. when her uncle, who arranged the apprenticeship, is killed, xue finds herself in an uncertain situation. however, she’s soon offered a place as a musician in duke meng’s manor for one year, upon which he will release her from her indenture. this sounds like a good deal to xue, but she learns that she may have signed up for trouble.
a couple years ago, i read judy i. lin’s the book of tea duology and was captivated by its beautiful world building and writing. i went into this book expecting the same, and i was not let down! i was also really interested in the story and the characters. we have the mystery of xue’s uncle’s murder, the impending war, and the rising tension between xue and the duke.
i recommend this to YA fantasy readers and i can’t wait for whatever’s next from judy i. lin....more
i received an advanced listening copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. this did not affect my rating.
once the b2024 reads: 155/250
i received an advanced listening copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. this did not affect my rating.
once the best art thief in the galaxy, maya hoshimoto is now in hiding from her dangerous past life. but she can’t resist a job from an old friend that might mean saving an alien species from extinction. the more she explores the universe, the more her visions of the future cast a dark shadow on those she calls friends.
even though i really enjoy this genre, i rarely read sci-fi books. when i read the description of this one, though, i knew i had to try it out! as a fellow graduate student, i found maya really relatable in this aspect (unfortunately, i cannot speak to the space explorer bit at this moment). i also thought it was interesting how her visions mimicked real-life migraines!
narration: this was narrated by katharine chin, who i’ve only heard in one other audiobook. i really enjoyed her narration and thought it was great for the story and for our main character!...more
i received an advanced listening copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. this did not affect my rating.
this is th2024 reads: 153/250
i received an advanced listening copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. this did not affect my rating.
this is the sequel to stars and smoke.
a year has passed since winter and sydney’s undercover mission. though they haven’t spoken since then, they haven’t stopped thinking about each other. now, though, they’ve been put on another mission together, providing the opportunity to rekindle what they once had…though the situation might not be the most romantic.
it’s been over a year since i read book one, and honestly, i had forgotten just how much i loved these characters! i loved seeing their character growth throughout this book. we also got more detail about how they grew up, which definitely helped put their stories into perspective. as a superstar, winter is dealing with more than just the mission at hand. part of this involves family issues. i think that marie lu handled this subject very well, with both characters.
narration: becca q. co narrated this audiobook and did a wonderful job! i felt very immersed in the story while listening. i’ll definitely be on the lookout for more audiobooks narrated by her.
if you enjoyed stars and smoke, i’d recommend continuing the story with this book. also, marie lu fans are in for a treat...more
punpun punyama has a tough home life, with his father winding up in prison and his mother in the hospital shortly after the book st2024 reads: 107/250
punpun punyama has a tough home life, with his father winding up in prison and his mother in the hospital shortly after the book starts. however, he has big dreams that involve going to space and settling down with a girl.
it’s extremely rare for me to receive recommendations from my brother, so when he told me about this manga, i had to put it on my tbr right away. well, he somehow knows my reading tastes very well, because i really enjoyed this one. it was bizarre, but meaningful, and had great art. i also like the decision to make punpun’s family consist of birds, and everyone else human.
overall, this was an enjoyable manga, and i plan on reading the other volumes soon....more
in this short story collection, we follow a palestinian community in baltimore, with each character being at a different point in t2024 reads: 104/250
in this short story collection, we follow a palestinian community in baltimore, with each character being at a different point in their life.
going into this, i was given the heads-up that there are lots of characters. i agree, so it only feels fair i give everyone else this heads-up, too. despite the numerous characters, though, i really connected to them. i also enjoyed how, unlike some other short story collections i’ve read, these stories were interconnected and characters from previous stories often showed up in others.
i highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys adult contemporary novels....more
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