("We women are a sad lot, aren't we?" "What do you mean?" "Strong enough to take on the world with our bare hands, yet we permit ridiculous boys to make("We women are a sad lot, aren't we?" "What do you mean?" "Strong enough to take on the world with our bare hands, yet we permit ridiculous boys to make fools of us." "I am not a fool." "No, you're not. Not yet.") 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹 A marvellous finish to a wonderful series ❤️❤️❤️❤️.I loved this duology so much that I am planning to buy the hardcovers for my library😻.In addition,I liked Renee's writing so much that I am planning to read her other fantasy duology, "Flame in the Mist ",too. She has done justice to all her secondary characters ,especially vivacious and saucy Despina😆.Her writing is beautiful and the world building exquisite . A wicked book that has to be destroyed ,magicians ,flying serpents and carpets😁😁,twists ,turns ,a solid love story and unforgettable characters .A series that has to be savored .Don't miss this if you are a fantasy lover and if you love "The Arabian Nights "...more
I have always been fascinated with the One thousand and One nights (Arabian Tales) and I just must have read it so many times during my teenage and chI have always been fascinated with the One thousand and One nights (Arabian Tales) and I just must have read it so many times during my teenage and childhood years .It is no surprise that I wanted to read Renee Ahdieh's duology and it has been on my list for a loooong time 🙄 .I am going to complete the first book "The Wrath and the Dawn" and I like it.The writing is lovely ,the word building is slow but well imagined and exquisite .I will not say much until I finish the second book in the series .The ending is a cliff hanger and she has me hooked enough to immediately read the second book😁😁😁...more
This book was my second disappointment this year.I picked it up because the synopsis had all the Latin American mythical elements which I generally loThis book was my second disappointment this year.I picked it up because the synopsis had all the Latin American mythical elements which I generally love and it suggested a supernatural mystery too. However,after a few chapters ,I just felt that the narration was long winded and repetitive. So ,I moved on😁😁😁 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹 I also realised that I have a lot of good books on Kindle which I have ignored ,because I am more of a hard copy person. I love holding books in my hand than E- books.Still,this being the month ,Kindle was released ten years ago ,I have decided to read only E- books this whole month as a tribute .After all,Kindle does have it's plus points. E -books are way cheaper ,easier to carry and you can store as many books as you want👍😄....more
Writing and story telling are two different talents and although many authors write,very few are master storytellers.A master story teller will fill tWriting and story telling are two different talents and although many authors write,very few are master storytellers.A master story teller will fill the stage with his presence and will keep his audience hooked from beginning to the end ,so much so that, they will not have the slightest inclination to leave their seats until they reach the end of the tale and get to know what happens to the various characters in the story.Gabo proves he is the "Master " ,with this small but brilliantly written novella of 122 pages, filled with out -of -this-world characters,that indeed outlines in a journalistic fashion , the various events that take place on the unfortunate day when Santiago Nassar dies at the hands of the Vicario brothers.The storyteller returns to the town after twenty seven years and tries to piece together what really happened on that fateful day. Angela Vicario gets married to an outsider Bayardo San Ramon ,who finds out that she is not a virgin on the wedding night and sends her back to her mother's house.On questioning ,she names Santiago Nassar as the culprit and her twin brothers seek revenge.The irony of the tale is that by morning everyone in the town ,except Santiago know that the brothers are waiting to kill him and still no one warns him for different reasons known only to each one of them .By the end of the story we are aware of the fact that Santiago is not the real culprit and is actually a scapegoat and the greatest mystery of the novel is "who did Angela really lose her virginity to?"Typical Gabo and brilliant story telling 😊...more
The Aithihyamala is a collection of 126 tales that are an amalgamation of fact,history,myth and folklore from the state of Kerala.This collection was The Aithihyamala is a collection of 126 tales that are an amalgamation of fact,history,myth and folklore from the state of Kerala.This collection was written by Kootharathtil Sankunni in the 1900s and the documentation took place over a period of 25 years.The collection has been translated into three volumes by Leela James and is published by #hachetteindia .I love Indian folktales,tradition and myths and so I thought I will check out the first volume in the beginning .I was unable to put the book down .There are stories of miracle doctors -aalathur nambi,saints who could see God ,kings who were real lions,loyal elephants ,astrologers,snakes ,gods and goddesses all combined in this volume.It was magical and these families still exist.I wanted to go to Kerala and actually see these places after reading this .If you love Indian folklore and history ,don't miss this....more
This book was an awesome read ,so much of snow .It reminded me of another book I read "the snow child " which was also snow filled .The prose was beauThis book was an awesome read ,so much of snow .It reminded me of another book I read "the snow child " which was also snow filled .The prose was beautiful and so much of magic and magical creatures like rusalkas,banniks,bolotniks,leshies and my favorite the domovai.The story is supposed to be based on an ancient Russian folktale and after reading the novel,you feel you have lived in ancient Russia for some time. The story is about Vasya ,who is wild and a child of the woods and who believes the old ways have to be followed and her conflict with her stepmother who is confused ,scared because she does not want to accept what she actually sees. It is about what Vasya has to do to protect her land and family .Every character is interesting and you began to like all the family especially the old nurse dunya.There is also an underlying thread criticising the church for forcing religous doctrines on the local peasants and using fear to make them belief in God .All in all, it was a beautiful read and I admit I actually had dreams of umpyrs and rusalkas at night.Fairy tale lovers don't miss this ☺...more
Well ,it is time to make way for Lettie peppercorn ,an impulsive ,independent teenager who is capable of taking care of herself and her father.I love Well ,it is time to make way for Lettie peppercorn ,an impulsive ,independent teenager who is capable of taking care of herself and her father.I love fairytales and magical realism and fantasy and I still collect young adult and kids fiction which takes my fancy.This was a wonderful read ,humorous ,adventurous and never a boring moment throughout the ride.It is about Lettie 's search for her mama and the characters she meets along the way ,all of them crazy and messed up😂.,except of course Noah because you see ,Noah is Lettie's first friend and the only person in the whole world who understands and believes in her and that is a very important fact and indeed it is.So does Lettie find her mother and who is this snow merchant after all? Well if you love magic and believe in the power of love and friendship ,do read the book and find out....more
Being strongly feminist with a penchant for novels with strong female characters ,how could I miss a novel with a heroine named Agnieszka😁.I immediateBeing strongly feminist with a penchant for novels with strong female characters ,how could I miss a novel with a heroine named Agnieszka😁.I immediately purchased it on kindle and read it in one go ,that too with a toddler in tow🤗.Well,the main characters are of course the heroine and her friend Kasia and the wizard Sarkan.We have a formidable villain in the form of The Wood which is evil in it's purest form.It is a tale of magic and fantasy with a spunky leading lady who takes a lot of unexpected and independent decisions and who loves to stand on her own feet.The author shows us that even the strongest of female friendships do have a slight tinge of jealousy and regret underneath amid all that warmth and comfort and soothing words that friendship offers.This tale with all it's unexpected twists and turns is a delightful read and you find yourself thinking of the characters especially The Wood ,long after you have finished it.All fantasy and YA genre lovers should give it try....more
his book was one of the novels purchased online and I loved it.It is a story of two totally different magical creatures a Golem and a Djinni .It painthis book was one of the novels purchased online and I loved it.It is a story of two totally different magical creatures a Golem and a Djinni .It paints a vivid picture of the little syria community in New York in the 1900sand you meet a whole bunch of interesting characters.It talks about loneliness,nostalgia and the need to belong somwhere and underneath all this is a love story that arises from a foundation of friendship and acceptance. This is a wonderful read for fantasy lovers and if you love the unusual please give it a go....more
This book was really a reminder to me that sometimes the plot narrative does no justice to the beautiful cover outside. I wanted to read this because This book was really a reminder to me that sometimes the plot narrative does no justice to the beautiful cover outside. I wanted to read this because Natasha Pulley's "The Watchmaker of Filigree Street " received rave reviews and the book synopsis mentioned that the story was set in Peru. This excited me because Peru sounded exotic and I had never read a story set in Peru before. The story is pretty straightforward and is set in the year 1859. Merrick Tremayne , worked as an opium smuggler for the British East India Company when an accident disables him and makes him retire to his decrepit estate in remote Cornwall,England , leaving him at the mercy of his elder brother Charles , a polio patient and a rather disgruntled and unhappy man. Meanwhile , there is a malaria epidemic in India leading to the huge loss of life and business to the company.The only cure for malaria is quinine which is obtained from the bark of the cinchona tree which is available only on the Andes slopes of Peru which makes it difficult to obtain.Merrick is therefore dispatched on an expedition to Peru to retrieve some tree cuttings so that they ca be grown in Srilanka in huge quantities.He is sent along with his friend Sir Charles Markham and the reason he is chosen is because he is good at gardening and the his grandfather and father stayed in the village Bedlam, which is nearest to the cinchona forest.The story is all about whether Merrick retrieves the cuttings or not and the experiences he has during the expedition. Into this plot natasha pulley introduces markayuqs,pollen lamps, a priest named Raphael who sleeps for seventy years at a stretch ,floating kingdoms, a language of knotted strings, a hospital colony , a border of salt and bones, glass obelisks , exploding trees and phoenix eggs making it a magical adventure. The best thing I took from the book was the deep and wonderful way in which the author builds the profound and tender friendship between Raphael and Merrick. The plus points are that the writing is lush , imaginative and creative .The way the author blends history with fiction is beautiful and this book has really made more interested in the Inca civilization. Inspite of all this, the single fact that makes spoils it is that the plot could be more intense .It is a very thin plot line ad seems to surround the markayuqs. Would love to hear your comments on this book
I looved everything about this book.The book traces the family history of three generations of family members in an unnamed Latin American country whoI looved everything about this book.The book traces the family history of three generations of family members in an unnamed Latin American country whose fortunes rise and fall together with the rise and decline of the goverment .We may say that Isabel Allende's writing is similar to Gabriel Garcia Marquez.I felt that although the key factors of magic realism,exotic elements,out of the world imagery and the use of local folklore are the same in both their books,I felt Allende was the better writer because her story has a lot of deep ,unshakable love ,compassion and forgiveness in it. As,I have already mentioned ,I loved reading this book in and out so much that ,I actually checked if there was a film adaptation because I was so desperate to see the characters come to life.My favorite was of course clairvoyant Clara ,the girl who is silent for nine years and who is transformed into a woman who just stops talking to her husband when he hits her for the first time.Clara ,who loves everyone equally and does not agree to everything her husband ,Esteban Trueba ,a self made man who the world fears ,tries to impose on her.Ah ,the women in this story are magnificent .They all do just what they want to do with their own ideals in mind ,inspite of living under the roof of Trueba.I wanted to cry when Barrabas the dog dies an unfortunate death and when Alba ,Clara's granddaughter is caught by the wicked Colonel Garcia. In addition ,Allende has done a magnificent job in the last few chapters in portraying how a country with a stable rightist government ,becomes leftist due to the discontent of the working class.She then goes on to show how the leftist government becomes a dictatorship and military rule in a country is not to be preferred. I guess what I took most from this book is that in the end ,"Old Sins Cast Long Shadows" and a single act of kindness can save your family one day❤️. If you love Gabo and have not read Allende yet ,please run and get this book.You will love her writing💖 PS:I forgot to mention there was a movie adaptation with Meryl Streep playing Clara....more
am a big fan of Grabiel Garcia Marquez .The love affair started with "One Hundred Years of Solitude " and it is still steadily progressing at a stead am a big fan of Grabiel Garcia Marquez .The love affair started with "One Hundred Years of Solitude " and it is still steadily progressing at a steady rate 💕.There are a lot of things one can love about his novels ,but for me what I appreciate the most of Marquez's writing is the inherent sensuality,dark humor and magical realism that permeates every page and also the fact that all his characters brim with vitality and are totally unapologetic. So ,why am I talking about Marquez here?It is because my search for similar stories in Latin American fiction after reading "love in the time of cholera ', led me to this wonderful book by Laura Esquivel,that is set in Mexico and which has all the elements described above. The story is all about Tita and her forbidden love for Pedro. The novel is a tall tale brimming with sensuality and has a heady mix of food ,love ,relationships ,romance ,lust ,with even a brief glimpse of the Mexican civil war thrown in with Tita's kitchen as the central setting. My conclusion :Anyone who loves reading about food and loves Marquez,will fall in love with this book....more
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