Hana Khan Carries On
Length: 368 Pages
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

"My parents had raised me to be honest, to accept that everything would work out if only I had faith. But they had also taught me stories from the life of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. One time the Prophet witnessed a Bedouin man leaving his camel untethered in the desert. When he asked the Bedouin why, the man replied that he trusted God to take care of his animal. The Prophet's advice? 'Trust in God, but tie your camel.'"

Trigger Warnings in this book for Violence, Racism and Racist Attacks with Vandalism, and Islamphobia

24-year-old Hana Khan is -- somehow -- balancing shifts at her Mother's restaurant, Three Sisters Biryani Poutine, working on a hard won internship at a Toronto Radio Station, and running an anonymous podcast called Ana's Brown Girl Ramblings. Oh, and I did I mention her blossoming online romance with a commenter on her podcast known only as StanleyP?

Just when she thinks things can't possibly get more complicated, a new restaurant moves into the close-knit neighborhood of Golden Crescent, a new halal restaurant, which threatens the struggling Three Sisters Biryani Poutine. The owner of the hip new restaurant, Aydin, is cold, frustrating, and, most aggravating of all, totally hot. Hana and him instantly butt heads, but could there be something more to his hard exterior? 

With a colorful cast of characters, like Hana's Machiavellian cousin Rashid, her bestfriends, the Doctor Lily and the ullu Yusuf, and her mysterious tree-climbing aunt, Kawkab Khala, Hana Khan Carries On is a heart-warming story of family and community. It has plenty of cozy, fluffy and romantic moments, but doesn't shy away from harder topics, like Racism and Islamphobia.

It took me a while to warm up to Aydin, who for the majority of the book aggravated me as much as he did Hana! But by the end I liked him well enough, and thought he was a good choice for headstrong Hana. I guessed all of the twists early in the book, though it didn't take away from the enjoyment of seeing their conclusions.

A perfect choice for if you're looking for something a little more on the light-hearted side, and need a guaranteed happy ending!

May 2021 🌼

May has been better but still, such a struggle. It is hard to recover from something as devastating as losing a family member, and while I have good days, where sometimes, as bad as it sounds, I'll forget it for a little, and then it'll all come rushing back, with all the pain of a fresh wound. It's starting to scab over, but it'll take a while. And it'll leave a scar I'll always have.

I'm trying not to dwell. I'm trying to laugh, to remember, and love, just like I know my Grandpa would want.

One thing I've done to treat myself (some would argue I treat myself a bit too often) is go to a bookstore I've grown to really love, not far from where I live. They had a great sale going on and I got so many! It's called the Muddy Water Bookstore and it is located in Navasota, Texas, for any interested! They have new, old, and used books, and the owners are really cool and so friendly. It makes me feel good to support a small, local business. I've always dreamed of having a bookstore one day, and it is what I hope others would do for me. Oh, and did I mention they have a store dog named Dobby?

TV and Movies:

White House Farm (HBO) - This fascinating show, which came out in 2020, recounts the details of the White House Farm murders, which occurred in 1985 in Essex, England. The victims were June and Nevill Bamber, their adopted daughter Sheila, and her six-year-old twin sons Daniel and Nicholas. Originally, the cops assume it was a murder-suicide, with the fragile Sheila, who had been undergoing some mental health issues, assumed as the perpetrator. The only survivor is the adopted son, Jeremy Bamber. I think you can see where this is going...

The cast has been absolutely phenomenal so far, with Jeremy Bamber being played to charmingly cruel perfection by Freddie Fox. It also some of my other favorites actors, like Mark Addy, Gemma Whelan, and Stephen Graham. Definitely check it out if you're a True Crime lover like me!

Who I've Been Watching:

Ciara Foster - One of my go-to Youtubers when I need comfort and relaxation is Ciara Foster. She is so calm and soft-spoken, with such lovely visuals in her videos, that I can't help but feel my stress melt away! She has three channels, one for her Yoga, one for her books, and one for her vegan recipes! I highly recommend you make yourself a cup of tea, get cozy, and binge watch her channels!

Phone Case (ft. Salem)

Products I've Been Loving:

Phone Case by OhJessMarie - Since I got my new iPhone I've been wanting to get a cute case and I finally found the perfect one! I absolutely adore the sweet and rustic style of OhJessMarie's art on Redbubble. It fits with my current aesthetic obsession -- Cottage Core! If you like that, go over and check her stuff out. She's got stickers, totes, t-shirts, and of course, phone cases!

Ways to Help:

Navajo and Hopi Families COVID-19 Relief Fund

Stop AAPI Hate

Black Lives Matter

Help Inuit Save Our Future

Aid India's COVID Relief Fund

Edith Wilkin's Street Children Foundation, India

Donate to Palestine

Book Review: The Lights of Prague by Nicole Jarvis

The Lights of Prague by Nicole Jarvis
Length: 416 Pages
Genres: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Horror
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

"There was a dark ocean in Ora's chest. It teemed with sharp teeth and gaping maws and spiked tentacles. Most days, she floated on top in a small rowboat, parasol on her shoulder, refusing to look into the abyss. If she fell in, she was quite sure she would drown."

A special thanks to NetGalley and Titan Books for giving me an ARC of this book!

Trigger Warnings in this book for Violence, Gore, and Animal Death

All my life I've loved vampires. From the soft, glittering type, to the snarling, dangerous and black-eyed kind, I love them all, and consume vampire media like it's an addiction. So of course, I've run into some bad ones, though I have to admit, I have a fondness and nostalgia for a good cheesy vamp flick. While I would never say I'm growing bored of vampires, I do admit the genre needs some new blood (😉) injected into it. That is why I was so excited for Nicole Jarvis's The Lights of Prague and even made it one of my most anticipated books of the year! And boy, did it deliver.

Set in the historic and darkly beautiful city of Prague during the early 19th-century, an era of innovation, science, and gas street lamps that illuminate the shadowed streets. We follow two characters: the brooding yet gentle Domek Myska who belongs to the guild of Lamplighters, men who go out and light the lamps dotting the streets and stalk in search of creatures of the night; and Lady Ora Fischerová, a redhaired, hundreds of years old bisexual widow who keeps quite a distance between herself and other pijavice (The vampires in this setting. The word translates to "leeches"). Both are drawn to each other again and again, neither knowing the truth about one another. Their stories run parallel to one another as they investigate a strange claim that pijavice have found a "cure", leaving them immune to the usual killers of their kind: hawthorn and sunlight.

Featuring wonderfully interesting creatures, like the shadowy bubák, the water-dwelling vodník, a fascinating take on a will-o'-the-wisp, and the more common poltergeist, The Lights of Prague is an entrancing fantasy novel, set in the utterly Romantic and Gothic city of Prague, that seamlessly blends in aspects of historical fiction and horror. A new favorite, and a must-read for any fellow vamp lovers!

Book Review: The Silence of Bones by June Hur

The Silence of Bones by June Hur
Length: 336 Pages
Genres: Historical Mystery, Young Adult
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Trigger Warnings in this book for Violence, Gore, Murder and Animal Death

"I have a mouth, but I mustn't speak;
Ears, but I mustn't hear;
Eye, but I mustn't see."

This is what sixteen-year-old Seol tries to live by, but it's hard for an intelligent and curious girl living in 19th-century Joseon (Korea), to follow not only the rigid rules of society, but laws that dictate who and what men and women should be. She is a damo, an indentured servant to the Police Bureau, who makes it possible for the Officers to follow strict Confucian law, which prevents them from being able to touch any woman who isn't related to them, even female prisoners and corpses. Yet she is still little more than an means to an end, forbidden to even make eye contact with those above her station.

When a Noblewoman is found with her throat cut, and most curiously, her nose removed, Seol's bright mind is noticed by the mysterious Inspector Han. For once, she is seen as more, as a living, breathing, thinking person. But when Seol makes a mistake that nearly costs her her life and the Inspector his dignity, she is thrust into a maelstrom of suspicion that leads straight to Inspector Han. And even more shocking, Seol begins to see similarities between the Inspector and someone, thought lost forever, from her past...

Set during a fascinating time in Korea, when one Queen used her newly found power to root out those who would question her, all in the guise of violently eradicating the Catholics that have spread across the land, The Silence of Bones is a bittersweet and meticulously researched story of loyalty, family, and how the past indelibly haunts the present. I highly recommend this, and can't wait to check out Hur's newest book, The Forest of Stolen Girls!

Book Review: The Savage Instinct by M.M. DeLuca

The Savage Instinct by M.M. DeLuca
Length: 377 Pages
Genres: Historical Fiction and Psychological Thriller
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

"I dreamt I stood at the door of a ruined barn, its roof split open to the moon. I saw a dark-haired woman standing in a pigsty, and as the pigs swarmed round her ankles, she stroked their bristled snouts and whispered, Thou shalt rest well soon, my husbands.
Then she saw me and seemed to float, through the muck and swill until I felt her behind me, whispering in my ear: I am in the city now. Come to me."

A special thanks to NetGalley and Inkshares for providing me with an ARC of this book!

Trigger Warnings in this book for Violence, Gore, Sexual Assault, Rape, and a Detailed Miscarriage

I have a huge fascination with the past, and while I, like many others, am drawn to the glittering clothes, the balls, and the manners, I think more often than not the darker aspects are pushed aside. Glossed over, or gilded through the lens of time. As much as I enjoy the question "If you you could go back in time, when would you go?", I always add an addendum to my answer: Only for a day. Because as shocking and dangerous as it is to be a woman in my own day and age, I could only imagine what it was like for the women of the past.

The Savage Instinct by M.M. DeLuca never flinches away from the reality of life for a woman in the Victorian era. On one end, we follow our protagonist Clara Blackstone, a woman of wealth who is crushed by the miscarriage of her child, and promptly thrown into Bethlem for a episode that ends in violence. Ferried to another asylum, more fitting of a woman of the Upper Classes, she is eventually released, only to be pushed headfirst into her husband's scheming clutches. Soon, at the behest of a genteel society lady, she is visiting the Durham Prison where she makes the acquaintance of one of Britain's most reviled serial killers of all time: Mary Ann Cotton. 

Poisoner of eight of her children, seven of her step-children, three of her husbands, her mother, a lover, and a friend. She is destitute, the opposite of Clara, but with shocking similarities in their life. Clara can't help but be drawn into Mary Ann's cunning web, and I was just as charmed by her, at times wondering if she was telling the truth about her innocence or spinning another lie.

This book left me breathless and outraged, and I could hardly put it down, despite my growling stomach when dinner rolled around! In the end, I wondered how much truth there is in history's version of Mary Ann Cotton - was she really a heartless killer? Or was she another victim, of men, of circumstance, and time, much like Clara is? The Savage Instinct is a deftly woven work of historical fiction, ran through with bits of truth, and all the questions and chills of a psychological thriller, that will surely leave you wanting more.

Books I'm Reading for the 2021 Asian Readathon!

I talked a little about this in my April post, but I thought I would officially announce the books I'll be choosing for this year's Asian Readathon! So the categories are...

1. Read any book written by an Asian author
2. Read any book featuring an Asian protagonist
3. Read any book by an Asian author in your favorite genre
4. Read any book nonfiction book written by an Asian author
5. Read a book written by an Asian author that's not US-centric

Now, the only rule is that you have to pick a different culture for each prompt. So if you chose a Korean book for Prompt One, you can't choose a Korean book for any of the others. However, you can combine categories!

Without further ado, here are my choices:

Prompts One & Two: Hana Khan Carries On by Uzma Jalaluddin

This is a newly released contemporary Rom-Com for fans of You've Got Mail!

Sales are slow at Three Sisters Biryani Poutine, the only halal restaurant in the close-knit Golden Crescent neighbourhood. Hana waitresses there part time, but what she really wants is to tell stories on the radio. If she can just outshine her fellow intern at the city radio station, she may have a chance at landing a job. In the meantime, Hana pours her thoughts and dreams into a podcast, where she forms a lively relationship with one of her listeners. But soon she’ll need all the support she can get: a new competing restaurant, a more upscale halal place, is about to open in the Golden Crescent, threatening Three Sisters.

When her mysterious aunt and her teenage cousin arrive from India for a surprise visit, they draw Hana into a long-buried family secret. A hate-motivated attack on their neighbourhood complicates the situation further, as does Hana’s growing attraction for Aydin, the young owner of the rival restaurant—who might not be a complete stranger after all.

As life on the Golden Crescent unravels, Hana must learn to use her voice, draw on the strength of her community and decide what her future should be.

Prompt Three: The Wolf of Oren-Yaro by K.S. Villoso

One I've been eyeing for a long time in my favorite genre: Fantasy

A queen of a divided land must unite her people, even if they hate her, even if it means stopping a ruin that she helped create. A debut epic fantasy from an exciting new voice.

"I murdered a man and made my husband leave the night before they crowned me."

Born under the crumbling towers of Oren-yaro, Queen Talyien was the shining jewel and legacy of the bloody War of the Wolves that nearly tore her nation apart. Her upcoming marriage to the son of her father's rival heralds peaceful days to come.

But his sudden departure before their reign begins fractures the kingdom beyond repair.

Years later, Talyien receives a message, urging her to attend a meeting across the sea. It's meant to be an effort at reconciliation, but an assassination attempt leaves the queen stranded and desperate to survive in a dangerous land. With no idea who she can trust, she's on her own as she struggles to fight her way home.

Prompt Four: Remembering Shanghai by Claire Chao

A memoir written by Isabel's daughter, this book shows the truth behind wealth and privilege, war and Communism

A high position bestowed by China's empress dowager grants power and wealth to the Sun family. For Isabel, growing up in glamorous 1930s and '40s Shanghai, it is a life of utmost privilege. But while her scholar father and fashionable mother shelter her from civil war and Japanese occupation, they cannot shield the family forever.

When Mao comes to power, eighteen-year-old Isabel journeys to Hong Kong, not realizing that she will make it her home--and that she will never see her father again. Meanwhile, the family she has left behind struggles to survive, only to have their world shattered by the Cultural Revolution. Isabel returns to Shanghai fifty years later with her daughter, Claire, to confront their family's past--one they discover is filled with love and betrayal, kidnappers and concubines, glittering pleasure palaces and underworld crime bosses.

Lavishly illustrated and meticulously researched, Remembering Shanghai follows five generations from a hardscrabble village to vibrant Shanghai to the bright lights of Hong Kong. By turns harrowing and heartwarming, this vivid memoir explores identity, loss and the unpredictable nature of life against the epic backdrop of a nation and a people in turmoil.

Prompt Five: The Silence of Bones by June Hur

I've had this one on my TBR since it came out and can't wait to finally read it! She just released another book, which sounds equally as good, called The Forest of Stolen Girls.

I have a mouth, but I mustn't speak;

Ears, but I mustn't hear;

Eyes, but I mustn't see.

1800, Joseon (Korea). Homesick and orphaned sixteen-year-old Seol is living out the ancient curse: “May you live in interesting times.” Indentured to the police bureau, she’s been tasked with assisting a well-respected young inspector with the investigation into the politically charged murder of a noblewoman.

As they delve deeper into the dead woman's secrets, Seol forms an unlikely bond of friendship with the inspector. But her loyalty is tested when he becomes the prime suspect, and Seol may be the only one capable of discovering what truly happened on the night of the murder.

But in a land where silence and obedience are valued above all else, curiosity can be deadly.

June Hur's elegant and haunting debut The Silence of Bones is a bloody tale perfect for fans of Kerri Maniscalco and Renée Ahdieh.

There is also a giveaway going on for those who donate to any charities supporting Asians! You just take a screenshot as proof and send it in using the forum on the Asian Readathon document! It also lists some charities you can choose from, or you can pick one of your own. 

For more information, go to this video by Cindy, or head over to their Twitter!

Book Review: Black Water Sister by Zen Cho

Black Water Sister by Zen Cho
Length: 382 Pages
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

"You can submit yourself to me, or you can meet an ugly death at the hands of cruel men.
You can kill, or you can die."

A special thanks to NetGalley and Berkeley Publishing Group for providing me with an ARC of this book!

Trigger Warnings in this book for Violence and Gore and Attempted Kidnapping and Rape

Jessamyn Teoh has a lot on her plate: A secret girlfriend (plus keeping the truth of her sexuality from her traditional Chinese parents), trouble finding a job after graduating from Harvard, and who could forget the ghost of her Grandmother haunting her?

After spending the majority of her life in America, Jess's parents have decided to move back to Malaysia, and out of a growing listlessness and filial duty, Jess tags along. Little does she know, she's got even bigger problems coming in the form of family secrets, gangsters, and a dangerous God known as Black Water Sister.

I loved learning about all the Gods, especially the titular Black Water Sister, who's tragic past reminded us that she was once human, too, and experienced one of the most human emotions: Rage -- sometimes justified, oftentimes not. My favorite character of the book was Jess's Grandma, Ah Ma, whose grumpy exterior hid a long suffering hurt. She was intelligent and funny when she wasn't being downright rude. Cho's writing brought the heat and wildness of Malaysia, the bustling, crowded city streets and hipster cafes to roaring life.

Black Water Sister is a poignant story of finding where we comfortably belong, of making painful choices to get the outcomes that let us be who we truly, authentically, are, and maybe even more importantly, letting go.

Fifteen Books by BIPOC/AAPI Authors You Should Preorder (Like, Right Now!) 2021 - Part Three

Here is my final part of fifteen books you should preorder! I'd love to hear your opinions on them, and any I might have missed!

Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Urban Fantasy, Horror)

While originally published in 2016, this Vampire novel by Moreno-Garcia is getting a reprint and an amazing new cover!

"Welcome to Mexico City, an oasis in a sea of vampires. Domingo, a lonely garbage-collecting street kid, is just trying to survive its heavily policed streets when a jaded vampire on the run swoops into his life. Atl, the descendant of Aztec blood drinkers, is smart, beautiful, and dangerous. Domingo is mesmerized.

Atl needs to quickly escape the city, far from the rival narco-vampire clan relentlessly pursuing her. Her plan doesn't include Domingo, but little by little, Atl finds herself warming up to the scrappy young man and his undeniable charm. As the trail of corpses stretches behind her, local cops and crime bosses both start closing in.

Vampires, humans, cops, and criminals collide in the dark streets of Mexico City. Do Atl and Domingo even stand a chance of making it out alive? Or will the city devour them all?"

She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan (Fantasy)

The first book in a new series, billed as "The Song of Achilles" meets "Mulan".

"To possess the Mandate of Heaven, the female monk Zhu will do anything

'I refuse to be nothing…'

In a famine-stricken village on a dusty yellow plain, two children are given two fates. A boy, greatness. A girl, nothingness…

In 1345, China lies under harsh Mongol rule. For the starving peasants of the Central Plains, greatness is something found only in stories. When the Zhu family’s eighth-born son, Zhu Chongba, is given a fate of greatness, everyone is mystified as to how it will come to pass. The fate of nothingness received by the family’s clever and capable second daughter, on the other hand, is only as expected.

When a bandit attack orphans the two children, though, it is Zhu Chongba who succumbs to despair and dies. Desperate to escape her own fated death, the girl uses her brother's identity to enter a monastery as a young male novice. There, propelled by her burning desire to survive, Zhu learns she is capable of doing whatever it takes, no matter how callous, to stay hidden from her fate.

After her sanctuary is destroyed for supporting the rebellion against Mongol rule, Zhu takes the chance to claim another future altogether: her brother's abandoned greatness."

An Acquired Taste by Kelly Cain (Contemporary Romance)

A fun Foodie romance, for fans of the Food Network!

"May the best chef win…

After four years at the country’s top culinary school and several years as head chef in her mother’s restaurant, Rowan Townsend has built a notable reputation. Her farm-to-table collard greens have long been bringing everyone to the yard, but limits on the restaurant’s size have led to long waits. Looking to expand the restaurant, she enters a televised chef competition. The problem? Her infuriatingly-talented nemesis from culinary school also enters.

To the culinary world, Knox Everheart is restaurant royalty. As much as Rowan wants to deny it, he’s a gifted chef. Rowan knows her arrogant arch-nemesis is confident he’ll win—he’s certainly given her a run for her money more times than she’d like to admit. But this time, she’s ready to show him who’s boss.

Their rivalry soon sparks fireworks in the kitchen and, as the competition heats up, so does Rowan’s attraction to Knox. And somewhere between pasta and gumbo, they both need to decide what’s worth fighting for."

The Taking of Jake Livingston by Ryan Douglass (YA Horror)

Jake, one of the only black kids at his Prep School, can see ghosts. His most recent spectral encounter? The vengeful spirit of a local school shooter.

"Jake Livingston is one of the only Black kids at St. Clair Prep, one of the others being his infinitely more popular older brother. It’s hard enough fitting in but to make matters worse and definitely more complicated, Jake can see the dead. In fact he sees the dead around him all the time. Most are harmless. Stuck in their death loops as they relive their deaths over and over again, they don’t interact often with people. But then Jake meets Sawyer. A troubled teen who shot and killed six kids at a local high school last year before taking his own life. Now a powerful, vengeful ghost, he has plans for his afterlife–plans that include Jake. Suddenly, everything Jake knows about ghosts and the rules to life itself go out the window as Sawyer begins haunting him and bodies turn up in his neighborhood. High school soon becomes a survival game–one Jake is not sure he’s going to win."

The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Córdova (Magical Realism)

The newest book from Córdova about a family with inherited power and long buried secrets.

"The Montoyas are used to a life without explanations. They know better than to ask why the pantry never seems to run low or empty, or why their matriarch won’t ever leave their home in Four Rivers—even for graduations, weddings, or baptism. But when Orquídea Divina invites them to her funeral and to come and collect their inheritance, they hope to learn the secrets that she has held onto so tightly their whole lives. Instead, Orquídea is transformed, leaving them with more questions than answers. Seven years later, her gifts have manifested in different ways for Marimar, Rey, and Tatinelly’s daughter, Rhiannon, granting them unexpected blessings. But soon, a hidden figure begins to tear through their family tree, picking them off one by one as it seeks to destroy Orquídea’s line. Determined to save what’s left of their family and uncover the truth behind their inheritance, the four descendants travel to Ecuador—to the place where Orquídea buried her secrets and broken promises and never looked backed.

Alternating between Orquídea’s past and her descendants’ present, The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina is an enchanting novel about what we knowingly and unknowingly inherit from our ancestors, the ties that bind, and reclaiming your power."

April 2021 ❤️🌱

April was a tough month for me. It started off really well, with my 25th birthday on the 7th (Aries unite), and had such a lovely time. I received so many thoughtful gifts and a cake from Duff Goldman, which made my little foodie heart swell up with excitement. My grandfather had been ill for a little, after hurting his back lifting tile, which eventually turned to something worse, with his oxygen dropping dangerously low. He was put into the hospital and we later found out he had really serious problems with his heart. Then he was put into hospice. It was so out of the blue I could hardly wrap my mind around it. One minute he was the life of the party, dancing with every woman he could at his local bar (where he had become some of a celebrity), and the next minute we're being told he had a heart attack and if he had another...it would be his last. 

Him and my Grandmother live four hours away from us, and right after my birthday we decided to head up there, me, my sister, and my father. My father got to visit him, and we were supposed to visit him the day after. Unfortunately, we never got to. I wish that I could have told him I loved him once more, could have told him goodbye, could have told him how much we'll all miss him. I'm trying hard to think of all the good things, the silly moments we had, instead of all the things I wish I could change. 

RIP Lowell Ogle. You were one of a kind.

If any of you are interested, there is a GoFundMe set up in order to help my Grandma pay for his memorial. Any amount, even a dollar, is greatly appreciated.

(I'll continue the rest of the post as it was written originally, as a part of a new thing where I'll talk about movies, tv, music and products I've liked each month. Hope you enjoy.)

Book Review: Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala

Length: 336 Pages

Genres: Cozy Mystery

Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

"My name is Lila Macapagal and my life has become a rom-com cliché. 

Not many romantic comedies feature an Asian-American lead (or dead bodies, but more on that later), but all the hallmarks are there. 

Girl from an improbably named small town in the Midwest moves to the big city to make a name for herself and find love love? Check.

Girl achieves these things only for the world to come crashing down when she walks in on her fiancé getting down and dirty with their next-door neighbors (yes, plural)? Double check.

Girl then moves back home in disgrace and finds work reinvigorating her aunt's failing business? Well now we're up to a hat trick of clichés."

Trigger Warnings in this book for Evidence Planting and Police Intimidation, Drugs, Racism, Domestic Violence, and some Fatphobia

Where to start with this delightful cozy mystery! Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala came at the perfect time in my life. Recently, I lost a family member. It was sudden, and I didn't have the chance to say goodbye. All I could focus on was how much I wished I had been there, how much I wished I could have spent more time with them. This book helped me in so many ways -- took my mind off the pain, helped me laugh and feel excited again, and felt, in general, as comforting as wrapping myself in a blanket. I was so glad I chose it for my very first Book of the Month! (Not sponsored, btw.)

Lila Macapagal has returned to her hometown of Shady Palms, Illinois, after a disastrous life in Chicago, where she was cheated on be her fiancé, and may have had a run in with the law. Luckily for her, she has a place ready for her in her Tita Rosie's restaurant, and in her home (alongside her cranky Grandmother). Unluckily for them, Lila's high school sweetheart has taken to leaving bad reviews for all the Mom-and-Pop places in town -- and Tita Rosie's Kitchen is top of his list. When he keels over dead in the middle of dessert, the police think they have their murderer: Lila. With the help of her bff Adeena and her hot brother, the lawyer Amir, Lila sets out to solve the case, and to find out who's framing her.

I absolutely adored not only Lila, who had a spunky and sometimes prickly personality, but all of the characters in this novel, from opinionated Adeena, to the gossiping "Calendar Crew", Lila's godmothers, who each have a month name. And who could forget Lila's dachshund, Longganisa, named after the sausage?

It was just a dream for a foodie like myself, and I can't wait to check out the recipes included in the back, to see if I can bring some of Tita Rosie's comfort home!

Fifteen Books by BIPOC/AAPI Authors You Should Preorder (Like, Right Now!) 2021 - Part Two

 

Continuing on from Part One - tell me which you're most excited for!

The Shaadi  Set-Up by Lillie Vale (Contemporary Romance)

This book by Lillie Vale has everything you want and more: exes-to-lovers, forced proximity and a slow-burn romance!

"In this witty and heartfelt rom-com debut for fans of Jasmine Guillory, Emily Henry, and Tessa Bailey, an Indian-American woman signs herself and her boyfriend up for a matchmaking site to prove they’re a perfect match, only to be paired with her ex instead.

High school sweethearts Rita Chitniss and Milan Rao were the golden couple, until the day he broke her heart. Now, six years later, Rita has turned her passion for furniture restoration into a career and has an almost-perfect boyfriend, Neil. The last thing she needs is for Milan to re-enter her life, but that’s exactly what happens when her mother, an unfailing believer in second chances, sets them up. Milan is just as charming, cocky, and confident as he was back in school. Only this time, he actually needs her business expertise, not her heart, to flip a hard-to-sell house for his realty agency.

While Rita begrudgingly agrees to help, she’s not taking any risks. To prove she’s definitely over him, she signs herself and Neil up on MyShaadi.com, a Desi matchmaking site famous for its success stories and trustworthy enough to convince everyone that she and Neil are the new and improved couple. Instead, she’s shocked when MyShaadi’s perfect match for her isn’t Neil…it’s Milan. Ignoring the website and her mother is one thing, but ignoring Milan proves much more difficult, especially when she promises to help him renovate the beach house of her dreams. And as the two of them dive deeper into work—and their pasts—Rita begins to wonder if maybe her match wasn’t so wrong after all…."

My Sweet Girl by Amanda Jayatissa (Mystery, Thriller)

A new thriller, featuring a complex and perhaps, unreliable, female protagonist.

"Paloma thought her perfect life would begin once she was adopted and made it to America, but she’s about to find out that no matter how far you run, your past always catches up to you…

Ever since she was adopted from a Sri Lankan orphanage, Paloma has had the best of everything—schools, money, and parents so perfect that she fears she'll never live up to them.

Now at thirty years old and recently cut off from her parents’ funds, she decides to sublet the second bedroom of her overpriced San Francisco apartment to Arun, who recently moved from India. Paloma has to admit, it feels good helping someone find their way in America—that is until Arun discovers Paloma's darkest secret, one that could jeopardize her own fragile place in this country.

Before Paloma can pay Arun off, she finds him face down in a pool of blood. She flees the apartment but by the time the police arrive, there's no body—and no evidence that Arun ever even existed in the first place.

Paloma is terrified this is all somehow tangled up in the desperate actions she took to escape Sri Lanka so many years ago. Did Paloma’s secret die with Arun or is she now in greater danger than ever before?"

Dead Dead Girls by Nekesa Afia (Historical Mystery)

Afia's debut novel features speakeasies, glamour, and an insidious mystery surrounding black girls being killed in 1920's Harlem.

"The start of an exciting new historical mystery series set in 1920s Harlem featuring Louise Lloyd, a young black woman caught up in a series of murders way too close to home...

Harlem, 1926. Young black girls like Louise Lloyd are ending up dead.

Following a harrowing kidnapping ordeal when she was in her teens, Louise is doing everything she can to maintain a normal life. She's succeeding, too. She spends her days working at Maggie's Café and her nights at the Zodiac, Manhattan's hottest speakeasy. Louise's friends might say she's running from her past and the notoriety that still stalks her, but don't tell her that.

When a girl turns up dead in front of the café, Louise is forced to confront something she's been trying to ignore--several local black girls have been murdered over the past few weeks. After an altercation with a local police officer gets her arrested, Louise is given an ultimatum: She can either help solve the case or let a judge make an example of her.

Louise has no choice but to take the case and soon finds herself toe-to-toe with a murderous mastermind. She'll have to tackle her own fears and the prejudices of New York City society if she wants to catch a killer and save her own life in the process."

Within These Wicked Walls by Lauren Blackwood (Young Adult Fantasy)

Another anticipated read for me, "Within These Wicked Walls" is an Ethiopian-inspired retelling of "Jane Eyre".

"Andromeda is a debtera—an exorcist hired to cleanse households of the Evil Eye. When a handsome young heir named Magnus Rochester reaches out to hire her, Andromeda quickly realizes this is a job like no other, with horrifying manifestations at every turn, and that Magnus is hiding far more than she has been trained for. Death is the most likely outcome if she stays, but leaving Magnus to live out his curse alone isn’t an option. Evil may roam the castle’s halls, but so does a burning desire."

My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones (Horror, Thriller)

Stephen Graham Jones' newest book, perfect for all the horror aficionados out there...

"In her quickly gentrifying rural lake town Jade sees recent events only her encyclopedic knowledge of horror films could have prepared her for in this latest novel from the Jordan Peele of horror literature, Stephen Graham Jones.

'Some girls just don’t know how to die…'

Shirley Jackson meets Friday the 13th in My Heart Is a Chainsaw, written by the New York Times bestselling author of The Only Good Indians Stephen Graham Jones, called 'a literary master' by National Book Award winner Tananarive Due and 'one of our most talented living writers' by Tommy Orange.

Alma Katsu calls My Heart Is a Chainsaw 'a homage to slasher films that also manages to defy and transcend genre.' On the surface is a story of murder in small-town America. But beneath is its beating heart: a biting critique of American colonialism, Indigenous displacement, and gentrification, and a heartbreaking portrait of a broken young girl who uses horror movies to cope with the horror of her own life.

Jade Daniels is an angry, half-Indian outcast with an abusive father, an absent mother, and an entire town that wants nothing to do with her. She lives in her own world, a world in which protection comes from an unusual source: horror movies…especially the ones where a masked killer seeks revenge on a world that wronged them. And Jade narrates the quirky history of Proofrock as if it is one of those movies. But when blood actually starts to spill into the waters of Indian Lake, she pulls us into her dizzying, encyclopedic mind of blood and masked murderers, and predicts exactly how the plot will unfold.

Yet, even as Jade drags us into her dark fever dream, a surprising and intimate portrait emerges…a portrait of the scared and traumatized little girl beneath the Jason Voorhees mask: angry, yes, but also a girl who easily cries, fiercely loves, and desperately wants a home. A girl whose feelings are too big for her body. My Heart Is a Chainsaw is her story, her homage to horror and revenge and triumph."