![]() ![]() ![]() It's a really intense journey for her… and for us.Īs if the ferocity of Lakshmi's hope wasn't spectacular enough in its own right, the entire novel is written as a series of vignettes, some of which are pure poetry. Yet the friendships that develop and the kindnesses she experiences keep Lakshmi tethered to her hope of freedom. ![]() When Lakshmi journeys from her home in Nepal to a brothel in India and her new reality sets in, she sinks into despair. For the family to survive, her stepfather tells Lakshmi that she is going to the city to work as a maid-in actuality, though, he has sold her into prostitution. In Sold, Lakshmi has a hard life on a mountaintop in Nepal-her family's rice paddy is at the mercy of the weather, and her stepfather gambles away what little money they have. A young adult novel about sex trafficking in India and Nepal? And one that doesn't completely depress us or misrepresent the reality of modern day slavery? ![]()
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![]() ![]() ![]() It starts with a stolen kiss under an English sky, and it ends with a walk down the aisle. When the three collide in the Oval Office many years later, the unsaid words between them leave Greer breathless and burning. Except her first kiss goes to the man who will one day lead the country, war hero Maxen Ashley "Ash" Colchester, and her second goes to his best friend and future vice president, Embry Moore. Not when she is warned to keep her kisses to herself. The sharp-eyed granddaughter of a former vice president, Greer is well-versed in politics and people-but not romance. ![]() Her name is Greer Galloway, and she serves at the pleasure of the president of the United States. From USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Sierra Simone comes a steamy new polyamorous romance trilogy with a dash of politics and a pinch of magic. ![]() ![]() ![]() One of the best love stories I've ever read. " Opposite of Always is as beautiful as it is funny, warm, and captivating. And when one choice turns deadly for someone else close to him, he has to figure out what he's willing to do to save the people he loves. However, Jack will learn that his actions are not without consequences. Even if that means believing in time travel. Still, if he has a chance to prevent Kate's death, he'll take it. ![]() ![]() Yet Kate's death sends Jack back to the beginning, the moment they first meet, and Kate's there again. Soon she's meeting his best friends, Jillian and Franny, and Kate wins them over as easily as she did Jack.īut then Kate dies. When Jack and Kate meet at a party, bonding until sunrise over their mutual love of Froot Loops and their favorite flicks, Jack knows he's falling-hard. Perfect for fans of Nicola Yoon and John Green. Reynolds delivers a hilarious and heartfelt novel about the choices we make, the people we choose, and the moments that make a life worth reliving. the Homo Sapiens Agendaĭebut author Justin A. "Read this one, reread it, and then hug it to your chest." -Becky Albertalli, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Simon vs. "One of the best love stories I've ever read." -Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Hate U Give ![]() ![]() ![]() When a relationship means throwing Jenny’s life off the path she’s spent years mapping out, she’ll have to decide once and for all just how much she’s willing to risk for love. He’s a member of one of the biggest K-pop bands in the world-and he’s strictly forbidden from dating. Three months later, when Jenny and her mother arrive in South Korea to take care of her ailing grandmother, she’s shocked to discover that Jaewoo is a student at the same elite arts academy where she’s enrolled for the semester. ![]() But in a moment of spontaneity, she allows him to pull her out of her comfort zone for one unforgettable night of adventure…before he disappears without a word. When she meets mysterious, handsome Jaewoo in her uncle’s Los Angeles karaoke bar, it’s clear he’s the kind of boy who would uproot her careful plans. My content rating: YA (Nothing more than kissing)Ĭello prodigy Jenny has one goal: to get into a prestigious music conservatory. Today, I have a YA contemp, a MG (YA? Adult?) contemporary fantasy, a MG biography, and a YA fantasy! I hope these bite-sized reviews will be enough to feed your fiction addiction! ![]() ![]() ![]() The vampires are your classic gothic horror variety they can’t cross open thresholds and running water, with the added twist that the four original bloodlines of the empire each have a bonus power. Both of these stories are of particular interest to his observer, a vampire secretary of one of the vampire emperors who currently rule the world ever since it got locked into eternal night. Our storyteller is Gabriel de León - silversaint and terror to vampires - as he tells the stories of his childhood training to become a saint and his quest to find the holy grail to save the world in two different time periods. “ Empire of the Vampire is told in the increasingly popular historical analyst narrative style, as made famous by Name of the Wind. It struggles with tonal issues, pacing, and direction and is chock full of herculean pros and devastating cons.” ![]() ![]() While this stylistic choice certainly differentiates Empire from most of the other books of 2021, it also makes it very hard to connect with or take seriously. “If I needed to describe Empire of the Vampire, by Jay Kristoff, in one word, that word would be ‘extra.’ This gigantic epic fantasy, that reads like a cross between Interview with a Vampire and The Name of the Wind, does everything in its power to be edgier than the sharpest knife, louder than a gigaton bomb, and more intense than a life-threatening wound. ![]() ![]() ![]() Featuring descriptions of the ancient chants as well as art and photography from the CATHOLICISM series, this booklet serves as an abbreviated spiritual study based upon the entire 10-part journey, CATHOLICISM. Peter Latona and performed by the Choir of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.Ī full-color, 28-page booklet comes with the soundtrack explaining the composer's inspiration and the meaning behind each song. ![]() “Agnus Dei: Tropes on the Resurrection,” was composed by Dr. Father Barron's words and the rich imagery of the series are amplified by the emotional power of these treasures of the faith. ![]() The 15-track musical score that accompanies Father Robert Barron's CATHOLICISM documentary series was composed by Steve Mullen and draws upon melodies from traditional Gregorian chant. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() There’s quite a bit of character development in that short space of time and I can’t wait to see what Clark does with a full length novel. Fatma was a fantastic main character and even though this is short I completely fell in love with her. As she digs deeper into the supernatural underworld of the city, she finds a much more sinister plot going on. Set in Cairo in the 1900s, the story follows Special Investigator Fatma el-Sha’arawi as she works to uncover the truth behind an odd suicide case. This story might only be forty three pages, but it absolutely packs a punch. The Fatma el-Sha’arawi is a series I have seen doing the rounds online recently, so when I heard that the best place to start is with the short novelette A Dead Djinn in Cairo, I decided to give it a go. What starts off as an odd suicide case for Special Investigator Fatma el-Sha’arawi leads her through the city’s underbelly as she encounters rampaging ghouls, saucy assassins, clockwork angels, and plot that could unravel time itself. In an alternate Cairo infused with the otherworldly, the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities investigate disturbances between the mortal and the (possibly) divine. Source: I read this online on the Tor Books websiteĮgypt, 1912. ![]() ![]() ![]() With nothing left to lose, he agrees to take on an insane mission from a group of Cambridge scholars who call themselves the Order of Chronos. His wife and children are dead, killed in a hit-and-run accident in which they never found the culprits. The army wants nothing to do with him, and his once popular survival webcast had to be shut down after ratings fell. In a not too distant future from now, Hugh Stanton is an ex-soldier and a washed up celebrity who has lost everything. In truth, it focuses more on the repercussions of changing history and what it means for the main character-as well as for the whole world and the generations after him. ![]() ![]() With shades of Stephen King’s 11/22/63, this novel is a suspenseful and heartfelt adventure through time and alternate realities. Even though history is at the center of this plot and WWI is the inciting incident that sparks the fuse, Time and Time Again turned out to be about so much more. Really, I needn’t have worried about a thing. Looking back at those questions now, I have to laugh. While I enjoy time travel books as much as the next reader, I still recall my doubts when I was first pitched this book: What if I don’t know that much about World War I? How much history do I need to know in order to follow the plot? Will I still be able to enjoy this story? Book Review: Time and Time Again by Ben EltonĪ review copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. ![]() ![]() ![]() Upon watching the comm disks, Keralie sees all four queens murdered in four brutal ways. When Keralie intercepts a comm disk coming from the House of Concord, what seems like a standard job goes horribly wrong. Ludia: the pleasure quarter that values celebration, passion, and entertainmentĪrchia: the agricultural quarter that values simplicity and natureĮonia: the futurist quarter that values technology, stoicism and harmonious community Toria: the intellectual quarter that values education and ambition Four queens rule together, one from each region: For in the nation of Quadara, each quarter is strictly divided from the other. She steals under the guidance of her mentor Mackiel, who runs a black market selling their bounty to buyers desperate for what they can’t get in their own quarter. These are the words Keralie Corrington lives by as the preeminent dipper in the Concord, the central area uniting the four quadrants of Quadara. Book: “Four Dead Queens” by Astrid Scholteīook Description: Get in quick, get out quicker. ![]() ![]() I experimented with this idea, since I had a nice firm and gigantic eggplant. Mayes writes: "Italians love the involtini concept – something filled and rolled. Eggplant Involtini, from "The Tuscan Sun Cookbook: Recipes from Our Italian Kitchen" by Frances Mayes and Edward Mayes. Mayes, who is profiled by correspondent Rita Braver on a special edition of "CBS Sunday Morning" May 19, offers some delicious dishes to our viewers. ![]() ![]() In 1990, American professor and poet Frances Mayes felt an irresistible urge to buy a derelict 300-year-old property in Tuscany, transforming it into one of the most famous villas in in the world, thanks to her international bestselling memoir, "Under the Tuscan Sun." That was followed by more books extolling the beauty and traditions of her adopted village of Cortona – not to mention the food. ![]() |