#author: sonali dev

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

📖 Kindle Challenge 📖

🦇 I've used an e-reader since 2011, to avoid hauling my massive book collection across city and state lines back when I was moving once a year. To those of you on the fence about buying one, I definitely recommend it!

📖 Type of Kindle? 🦇 Kindle Paperwhite 10th Generation & a Kindle Fire 10

📖 Kindle Unlimited? 🦇 Yes, but I barely keep up with those books, plus ARCs, plus everything I purchase (I grab books when they're on sale).

📖 Buy or Borrow? 🦇 Mix of both, but I mostly only purchase when they're below $5.

📖 Reading progress? 🦇 Page number.

📖 Font size? 🦇 3. Tiny.

📖 Case or no case? 🦇 I've tried the folding case and Strapsicles, but works best for me is no case with a Popsocket over my custom skin decal.

📖 Total number of books on your kindle? 🦇 1663

📖 How many books have your read on your kindle? 🦇 763

📖 What was the last book you read on your kindle? 🦇 The Backtrack - Erin La Rosa

❓Do you decorate your Kindle?

[thousandfireworks]

Authors whose books you have to avoid because they are problematic.

Abigail Hing Wen.

Alex Aster.

Alice Hoffman.

Alice Oseman.

Alison Win Scotch. ‘Terrorism is never acceptable. Not in Israel.’

Allie Sarah.

Amber Kelly.

Amy Harmon.

Annabelle Monaghan.

Anna Akana.

Aurora Parker.

Benjamin Alire Sáenz.

Brandon Sanderson. Islamophobic.

Carissa Broadbent. Said that hamas is doing violence against innocence.

Chloe Walsh. Siding with Israel in the name of humanity.

Christina Lauren. Believe that Israel is the victim. A racist, also Islamophobic.

Colleen Hoover.

Cora Reilly. Travel to Israel despite criticism.

Danielle Bernstein. Islamophobic.

Danielle Lori.

Deke Moulton. Said hamas is terrorist.

Dian Purnomo.

Eliza Chan.

Elle Kennedy.

Elyssa Friedland.

Emily Henry.

Emily Mclntire.

Emily St. J. Mandel. Admiring Israel.

Gabrielle Zevin. Wrote a book about anti-Palestine. Mentioned Israel multiple times without context on his book.

Gregory Carlos. Israeli author. A zionist.

Hannah Whitten.

Hazel Hayes. Reposted a post about October 7th.

Heidi Shertok.

Jamie McGuire.

Jay Shetty. ‘Violence is happening in Israel.’

Jean Meltzer.

Jeffery Archer. Wrote a book with a mc Israel operative (mossad) in a positive and anti terrorist light.

Jennifer Hartman. Liked a post about pro-Israel.

Jen Calonita.

Jessa Hastings.

Jill Santopolo. Said that Israel has right to exist and fight back.

John Green.

Jojo Moyes.

J. Elle.

J. K. Rowling. Support genocide. Racist. Islamophobic.

Kate Canterbery.

Kate Stewart.

Katherine Howe.

Katherine Locke.

Kristin Hannah. Support Israel. Shared a donation link.

Laini Taylor.

Laura Thalassa. Islamophobic.

Lauren Wise. Cussed that Palestinian supporters would be raped in front of children.

Lea Geller. Thanked people who supports Israel.

Leigh Dragoon. Islamaphobic and anti Asian racist rants on Twitter and threads

Leigh Stein.

Lilian Harris. A racist. Blocking people who educates about colonialism in Palestine and call them disgusting.

Lisa Barr. A daughter of Holocaust survivor. Support Israel.

Lisa Kennedy Montgomery.

Lisa Steinke.

Liz Fenton.

Lynn Painter. Afraid of getting cancelled as a pro-Palestine and posted a template afterwards.

L. J. Shen. Her husband joins idf (Israel army).

Mariana Zapata.

Marie Lu.

Marissa Meyer.

Melissa de la Cruz.

Michelle Cohen Corasanti.

Michelle Hodkin. Spread false rumors about arab-hamas. Islamophobic.

Mitch Albom. ‘We shouldn't blame Israel for surviving attacks or defending against them.’

Monica Murphy. Siding with Israel.

Naomi Klein.

Navah Wolfe.

Neil Gaiman. Suggested Palestinians unite with Israel and become citizens.

Nicholas Sparks.

Nic Stone. Talked nonsense that children in Palestinian refugee camp are training to be martyrs for Allah because they felt it was their call in life.

Nyla K.

Olivia Wildenstein. Blocking people who disagree with Israel wrongdoing.

Pamela Becker.

Penelope Douglas.

Pierce Brown.

Rachel Lynn Solomon.

Rebecca G. Martinez.

Rebecca Yarros. ‘I despise violence’ her opinion about what's happening in Gaza. Blocking people who calls her a zionist.

Rena Rossner.

Renee Ahdieh.

Rick Riordan.

Rina Kent.

Rivka (noctem.novelle).

Rochelle Weinstein.

Romina Garber. ‘These terrorist attacks do nothing to improve the lives of Palestinians people.’

Roshani Chokshi. Encourage people to donate to Israel.

Samantha Greene Woodruff.

Sarah J. Mass. Her book contained ideology of zionism.

Stephanie Garber. Promoting books by zionist author (Sarah J. Mass)

Skye Warren.

Sonali Dev.

Talia Carner.

Tarryn Fisher. Said ‘there was terrorist attack in Israel.’

Taylor Jenkins Reid. Posted a video about genocide.

Tere Liye. Rumoured to have ghoswriters to write his books and never give credit to them.

Tillie Cole.

Tracy Deon.

Trinity Traveler (Ade Perucha Hutagaol). Rumour to wrote book about handsome Israelis.

T. J. Klune.

Uri Kurlianchik.

Veronica Roth.

Victoria Aveyard. ‘Israel has the right to exist.’ quote from her about the issue.

V. E. Schwab. Shared a donation link and video about Israel.

Yuval Noah. ‘Israel has the right to do anything to defend themselves.’

Zibby Owens.

[longsightmyth]

Mid Year Book Freak Out

@agardenandlibrary tagged me and I should probably participate on SOME things I'm tagged in

Number of books you’ve read so far: 62, having finally waded through the end of Graceling.

Best book you’ve read so far in 2024: The two best NEW (to me) books I've read this year are Recipe for Persuasion by Sonali Dev and Winterkeep by Kristin Cashore.

Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2024: Memory? Yeah, we'll say Memory. Memory by Lois Mcmaster Bujold.

New release you haven’t read yet but want to: ...what came out this year, I whisper, scrolling frantically through my goodreads. OH. The Amethyst Kingdom by AK Mulford and The Brides of High Hill by Nghi Vo.

Most anticipated release for the second half of the year: Long Live Evil by Sarah Rees Brennan is also my pick. Y'all know I'll read the phone book if she writes it.

Biggest surprise favorite new author (debut or new to you): Favorite isn't the right word, but I was pleasantly surprised by Scarlett St Clair's King of Battle and Blood. I'll probably read more of her. Thanks @bookishfeylin for mentioning her

Newest fictional crush favorite character: Oh god do they have to be new? Uuuuuuuhhhhhhhhh Adventure Fox from Winterkeep.

Book that made you cry: Recipe for Persuasion by Sonali Dev (and probably others from the same series), Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore, Memory by Lois Mcmaster Bujold, New Spring by Robert Jordan (It was late and the 'too late for dreams' part came up okay).

Most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year (or received): honestly IDK

Book that made you happy: Diana Rubino's Crowned by Love and Jewels of Warwick series. Were they good? Absolutely not. They weren't even trashy good. They were genuinely terrible novels with a terrible lack of research behind them. But god did I have fun subjecting my friends to them.

What books do you need to read by the end of the year?: Sorry I read for no monetary profit I am therefore free of reading obligation

Tagging @bookishfeylin @feyres-divorce-lawyer @discountalien-pancake @displayheartcode @wizardheart83 but also anybody who wants to participate

[ashleybenlove]

Which June books were your favorites?

[Link to the June books.]

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi (I like the way he writes!)

Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn (I love this series so much omg.)

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala (The first book in a series of cozy mysteries with a Filipino-American character by a Filipino-American author. Also, the lead has a dachshund!!!!! Named Longganisa which is Tagalog for a certain kind of Spanish sausage.)

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt (One of the narrators is a Giant Pacific octopus!!!!!!)

Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson (I just like his science fiction books.)

Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors by Sonali Dev Recipe for Persuasion by Sonali Dev (Indian-American retellings of Jane Austen novels! That namedrop Austen!)

The Six: The Untold Story of America’s First Women Astronauts by Loren Grush

Mary Anne and the Secret in the Attic by Ann M. Martin/ghostwriter Ellen Miles (this one is in the mystery sub-series; the book is focused on Mary Anne learning about her maternal grandparents and when she lived with them for a while after her mom died)

[blackkatmagic]

24 through 29 for the book ask!

24. The book with the best title

Hmm, probably The River Has Teeth by Erica Waters. Something about it has stuck with me.

25. Did you discover any new authors?

I did! Several, because I limited my rereads this year and tried to specifically look for queer authors or authors of color, but the standouts: a friend recced Justina Ireland near the beginning of the year and I am in love now, and then a couple months ago I found Sonali Dev in my endless quest for fun romcoms. They're both a lot of fun.

26. What was your top genre for the year?

....I think it's technically fantasy? But "fantasy-inspired historical fiction" is more accurate.

27. Did you discover any new genres?

Not particularly, unless "the nonfiction breakdown of why disasters happened" counts as a genre.

28. Did you start any new series?

Many many many. The standout is probably T. Kingfisher's World of the White Rat series, with The Nameless Republic by Suyi Davies Okungbowa a close second.

29. Did you finish any series?

The Big One was the Dreamer trilogy by Maggie Stiefvater. And I finally finished the series of novels about Alexander the Great by Mary Renault, though I'm not sure it has an official name - Fire From Heaven, The Persian Boy, and Funeral Games. I'd read the first two in school, but hadn't had the courage to read the last one until now, ha.

[stpauligirl]

7 & 39 and would also love a book rec if you please

7. a book you did not finish

Already answered here, so I'll give you #8 instead: a book you finished in one sitting

Sonali Dev has a series where she re-tells Jane Austen novels with a modern Indian-American twist. I believe I have finished each of them in one sitting, or very close.

Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors

Recipe for Persuasion

Incense and Sensibility

The Emma Project

39. a book featuring your favourite character

Well, the 4-book series I mentioned above of course!

And also Taliesen, which is book 1 of Stephen R. Lawhead's Pendragon Cycle series. It is a telling of the Arthurian legend that focuses on the ancestry of Merlin. I read it as a teenager and it made me absolutely obsessed with King Arthur.

A recommendation just for you

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. Sometimes it’s hard to imagine you will like an author’s second book as much as the first. Not a problem here. I was enraptured.

Also The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver.

[ladyherenya]

Predominately contemporary fiction, I suspect because my headspace for worldbuilding was predominately claimed by Real LifeTM.

Also read: The Missed Connection by Denise Williams

Reread: Jeremiah in the Dark Woods by Janet and Allan Ahlberg.

Total: Seven novels (including one audiobook) and three novellas.

Still reading: The Nature of a Lady by Roseanna M. White and Lady of the Forest by Jennifer Roberson.

My favourite: The Rosie Project is is so warm and optimistic and romantic, but in a really grounded way. Also very funny.

I’d also recommend: Nim’s Island. Sense and Second-Degree Murder. Speak For Yourself. Etc.

Cover thoughts: From the covers, Hazelwood’s other STEMinist novellas appealed to me more than Stuck With You did -- but Stuck With You turned out to be my favourite in the series, so, you know, there’s a reason for that old saying about covers and judging books.

Titles, authors, genres and ratings listed below, with links to my reviews on LibraryThing.

Nim's Island by Wendy Orr. Children's fiction, about a girl surviving by herself on an island. 4☆

Sense and Second-Degree Murder by Tirzah Price (narrated by Morag Sims). Murder mystery retelling of Sense and Sensibility, set in the same 1800s London as Pride and Premeditation. 3½☆

The Emma Project by Sonali Dev. Contemporary romance, a genderswapped retelling of Emma set in California. Same series as Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors, etc. 3☆

Stuck With You by Ali Hazelwood. Nerdy romance novella, same series as Under One Roof. Single POV. 3½☆

Speak for Yourself by Lana Wood Johnson. Young adult fiction about nerdy extra-curricular activities.  3½☆

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion. Australian contemporary fiction about an eccentric genetics professor helping a woman find her biological father. 4☆

The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion. Sequel about adjusting to marriage and life in New York. 3☆

The Rosie Result by Graeme Simsion. Sequel about parenting an 11 year old struggling adjust to school back in Australia. 4☆

The Missed Connection by Denise Williams. Contemporary romance novella about two academics.

[gillianfx]

Book Talk with Jennifer Wilck

What are your top 10 favorite books/authors? The Lions of Fifth Avenue by Fiona Davis, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, The Wizard of Oz by L Frank Baum, This is All I Ask by Lynn Kurland, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid, Peony in Love by Lisa See, The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro, The Bollywood Bride by Sonali Dev, Life After Life by Kate Atkinson, Silent in the…

[lvtyvar]

The Vibrant Years - Sonali Dev

EPUB & PDF Ebook The Vibrant Years | EBOOK ONLINE DOWNLOAD

by Sonali Dev.

Download Link : DOWNLOAD The Vibrant Years

Read More : READ The Vibrant Years

Ebook PDF The Vibrant Years | EBOOK ONLINE DOWNLOAD Hello Book lovers, If you want to download free Ebook, you are in the right place to download Ebook. Ebook The Vibrant Years EBOOK ONLINE DOWNLOAD in English is available for free here, Click on the download LINK below to download Ebook The Vibrant Years 2020 PDF Download in English by Sonali Dev (Author).

 Description Book: 

Living on their own terms means being there for one another.When sixty-five-year-old Bindu Desai inherits a million dollars, she?s astounded?and horrified. The windfall threatens to expose a shameful mistake from her youth. On an impulse, Bindu quickly spends it on something unexpected: a condo in a posh retirement community in Florida.The impulsive decision blindsides Bindu?s daughter-in-law, Aly. At forty-seven, Aly still shares a home with Bindu even after her divorce from Bindu?s son. But maybe this change is just the push Aly needs to fight for her own dreams.As Bindu and Aly navigate their new dynamic, Aly?s daughter, Cullie, is faced with losing the business that made her a tech-world star. The only way to save it is to deliver a new idea to her investors?and they want the dating app she pitched them in a panic. Problem is, Cullie has never been on a real date. Naturally, enlisting her single mother and grandmother to help her with the research is the answer.From USA Today

[escondidolibrary]

Join us for a chat all about Jane Austen in Popular Culture with romance authors Sarah Dass, Sonali Dev, & Tirzah Price, along with the Jane Austen experts Bianca Hernandez-Knight & Devoney Looser!

This virtual chat will be available to watch on our Facebook Live (escondidolibrary) on Thursday, December 9 at 5:30 p.m. PDT, and later on our YouTube Channel (escondidolibrary).

Purchase books from Mysterious Galaxy.

Panelists:

Sarah Dass was born and raised in Trinidad and Tobago. A graduate of the University of the West Indies and University College London, she works as an Office Administrator by day and writes stories about growing up in the Caribbean by night. When she’s not writing, she’s thinking about writing, or taking walks with her dachshund. The only thing she loves more than a lazy day at home is exploring new countries. Her debut novel, WHERE THE RHYTHM TAKES YOU, a YA contemporary retelling of Jane Austen’s PERSUASION, will be published by Balzer + Bray / HarperCollins in 2021.

USA Today bestselling author Sonali Dev writes Bollywood-style love stories that explore universal issues. Her novels have been named Best Books of the Year by Library Journal, NPR, the Washington Post, and Kirkus. She has won numerous accolades, including the American Library Association’s award for best romance, the RT Reviewer Choice Award for best contemporary romance, multiple RT Seals of Excellence,  has been a RITA® finalist, and has been listed for the Dublin Literary Award. Shelf Awareness calls her “Not only one of the best but one of the bravest romance novelists working today.” She lives in Chicagoland with her husband, two visiting adult children, and the world’s most perfect dog. Find more at sonalidev.com.

Social media mage by day, and nerd of many fandoms by night, Bianca Hernandez-Knight is a lady of many interests. From fighting for a more inclusive Jane Austen community, to ignoring her TBR pile, she’s always ready for her next nerdy project.

Devoney Looser is Regents Professor of English at Arizona State University. She has authored or edited nine books, including The Making of Jane Austen and The Daily Jane Austen: A Year in Quotes, as well as a series of video lessons on Jane Austen for The Great Courses. She has published essays in such places as the Atlantic, the New York Times, Salon, the TLS, and the Washington Post. With the support of a Guggenheim Fellowship and NEH Public Scholar Award, Looser has completed a biography, Sister Novelists: Jane and Anna Maria Porter, to be published in fall 2022 by Bloomsbury.

Tirzah Price is the author of the Jane Austen Murder Mysteries. She grew up on a farm in Michigan, where she read every book she could get her hands on and never outgrew her love for YA fiction. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children & Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and is a former bookseller and librarian. Now, she’s a contributing editor at Book Riot. When she’s not writing, reading, or thinking about YA books, she splits her time between experimenting in the kitchen and knitting enough socks to last the fierce Michigan winters.

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

[strangenoquestion]

Debut novels, BiPOC authors, series finales, and more! [x]

[aspoonfuloffiction]

Seeing a lot of this:

(And this is before the Netflix tie in covers will be available mass market in the States when I can only assume Avon Books and Julia Quinn will profit even more off of POC bodies)

So if you find yourself in a situation where you’re looking for romance novels that feel Bridgerton-esq with actual South Asian representation after watching Bridgerton don’t reach for The Viscount Who Loved Me, try these:

The Marriage Game Series-Sara Desai. Contemporary Romance. Centers around a family in San Francisco. Very Julia Quinn tropey rom com vibes. My favorite is The Dating Plan, wherein the heroine enters a fake relationship with her brother’s best friend—if this sounds familiar it’s because it is.

Betting on a Duke’s Heart-Royaline Sing. Historical Romance. Set in Victorian England and follows an Indian British heroine with an affinity for horses and her enemies to lovers romance with a hero with a past that makes him hate love…listen no one has ever accused the romance genre of being original. The book also weaves in the Mahabarat story of Nala and Damayanti which I thought was really cool.

The Rajes-Sonali Dev. Contemporary Romance. A modern retelling of Jane Austen’s works but with an Indian American family at the center. Book one is called Pride Prejudice and other Flavors (gender swapped Darcy and Elizabeth archetypes! subverts a lot of P&P tropes actually) My favorite though is Recipe for Persuasion…however I also think Persuasion is my favorite Austen novels she’s adapted so your results may vary.

Two States- Chetan Bhagat. Contemporary Romance. This book was actually published in India. The author is pretty well known amongst Indian audiences. But book was written in English originally so definitely followable by non Indian audiences. The story is semi autobiographical and followed a relationship between a South Indian woman (Tamilian! Like both Simone and Charithra) and a North Indian man and the cultural differences that brings. There’s also a movie adaptation.

Those Pricey Thakur Girls-Anuja Chauhan. I actually don’t super recommend this series, especially to western audiences in the way I would recommend the ones above but in a funny Bridgerton connection that makes me laugh and thusly worth mentioning-this series follows a family of sisters that are also named in alphabetical order. Though I think they read more like the Bennets than Bridgertons.

There are other HRs with South Asian characters but literally all of them are written by white people and I really wanted to highlight South Asian authors but they do exist if you want to read them just know that they’re probably not the best representation of Desi culture

[yanszreads]

Celebrating Asian Authors: a Reading List

Before you get to the actual list, there are a few things I would like to warn you about.

First: This list is in no specific order, because I copied it directly from my to-be-read and already-read lists, which are quite chaotic at the moment. Perphaps I'll organize it in the future, but for now this is it.

Second: I didn't order the list by genres, but it mainly includes young adult books, memoirs, historical fiction, poetry, one or two graphic novels, and literary fiction, so keep that in mind as you scroll through the titles (I'm aware these might not be everyone's cup of tea).

And finally third: Celebrating asian authors is really important, so please do support them by reading their books!

Now, on with the list:

1. Where the Wild Ladies Are, by Aoko Matsuda.

2. Last Night at the Telegraph Club, by Malinda Lo.

3. One Indian Girl, by Chetan Bhagat.

4. Little Fires Everywhere, by Celeste Ng.

5. My Year Abroad, by Chang-Rae Lee.

6. On Fragile Waves, by E. Lily Yu.

7. A Pho Love Story, by Loan Le.

8. Tiger Daughter, by Rebecca Lim.

9. Reflection: a Twisted Tale, by Elizabeth Lim.

10. Land of Big Numbers, by Te-Ping Chen.

11. Folklorn, by Angela Mi Young Hur.

12. Girls Burn Brighter, by Shobha Rao.

13. Descendant of the Crane, by Joan He.

14. The Kiss Quotient, by Helen Hoang.

15. Brave, Not Perfect, by Reshma Saujani.

16. The Hellion, by Harriet Young.

17. Sisters of the Snake, by Sasha Nanua.

18. The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane, by Lisa See.

19. Yolk, by Mary H. K. Choi.

20. Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982, by Cho Nam-Joo.

21. If I Had Your Face, by Frances Cha.

22. Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors, by Sonali Dev.

23. These Violent Delights, by Chloe Gong.

24. The Sympathizer, by Viet Thanh Nguyen.

25. Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee.

26. Interior Chinatown, by Charles Yu.

27. The Woman Warrior, by Maxine Hong Kingston.

28. The Leavers, by Lisa Ko.

29. Minor Feelings, by Cathy Park Hong.

30. On Earth We Are Briefly Gorgeous, by Ocean Vuong.

31. The Henna Wars, by Adiba Jaigirdar.

32. The Joy Luck Club, by Amy Tan.

33. Convenience Store Woman, by Sayaka Murata.

34. All You Can Ever Know, by Nicole Chung.

35. A Tale for the Time Being, by Ruth Ozeki.

36. How Much of These Hills Is Gold, by C. Pam Zhang.

37. To All The Boys I've Loved Before, by Jenny Han.

38. The Garden of Evening Mists, by Tan Twan Eng.

39. Please Look After Mother, by Kyung Sook Shin.

40. Crying in H Mart, by Michelle Zauner.

41. The Best We Could Do, by Thi Bui.

42. The Vegetarian, by Han Kang.

43. Native Speaker, by Chang-Rae Lee.

44. Girl in Translation, by Jean Kwok.

45. Out, by Natsuo Kirino.

46. Eat a Bowl of Tea, by Louis Chu.

47. The Inheritance of Loss, by Kiran Desai.

48. Days of Distraction, by Alexandra Chang.

49. Wild Swans, by Jung Chang.

50. We Are Not Free, Traci Chee.

51. Good Talk, by Mira Jacob.

52. Shortcomings, by Adrian Tomine.

53. Frankly in Love, by David Yoon.

Have you read any of the books I listed? Which ones were your favourites?

[lakecountylibrary]

Own Voices Rom Coms

#OwnVoices novels often deal with serious social issues and these stories are no exception. 

But they're really funny, too.

[ID: Six book covers, listed below, with the hashtag Own Voices between the top three and the bottom three /ID]

(Editor’s note: Own Voices books are books with minority/marginalized characters written by authors who share that aspect of their characters’ identity.)

You Had Me at Hola by Alexis Daria

Rendered the subject of tabloid gossip by a messy public breakup, soap star Jasmine takes a part in a new bilingual comedy at the side of a telenovela costar who would revitalize his career.

Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert

Emerging from a life-threatening illness, a fiercely organized but unfulfilled computer geek recruits a mysterious artist to help her establish meaning in her life, before finding herself engaged in reckless but thrilling activities.

Dial A for Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto

After accidentally causing the death of a blind date, Meddy is persuaded by her meddlesome Chinese-Indonesian mother and aunts to dispose of the body, which upends a billionaire’s wedding and Meddy’s reunion with a former flame.

Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors by Sonali Dev

A neurosurgeon from a politically ambitious immigrant family clashes with a talented dessert chef looking to prove he is more than his pedigree.

Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur

A lighthearted romance depicts the experiences of a free-spirited social media astrologer who agrees to a fake relationship with a no-nonsense actuary to appease their respective families.

Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall

When his rock-star father’s comeback leads to unwanted attention, Luc fabricates a respectable relationship with a man with whom he shares nothing in common. But his publicity-friendly dates become complicated by all-too-real feelings.

(All summaries provided by @novelistra​!)

See more of Chris’s recs

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 2/5

Book Blurb: Emma gets a fresh Indian-American twist from award-winning author Sonali Dev in her heartwarmingly irresistible Jane Austen inspired rom com series.No one can call Vansh Raje’s life anything but charmed. Handsome—Vogue has declared him California’s hottest single—and rich enough to spend all his time on missions to make the world a better place. Add to that a doting family and a contagiously sunny disposition and Vansh has made it halfway through his twenties without ever facing anything to throw him off his admittedly spectacular game.A couple years from turning forty, Knightlina (Naina) Kohli has just gotten out of a ten-year-long fake relationship with Vansh’s brother and wants only one thing from her life…fine, two things. One, to have nothing to do with the unfairly blessed Raje family ever again. Two, to bring economic independence to millions of women in South Asia through her microfinance foundation and prove her father wrong about, well, everything.Just when Naina’s dream is about to come to fruition, Vansh Raje shows up with his misguided Emma Project... And suddenly she’s fighting him for funding and wondering if a friends-with-benefits arrangement that’s as toe-curlingly hot as it is fun is worth risking her life’s work for.

Review:

Two rivals, competing projects, and romance. This was pitched as a modern day Emma... but it unfortunately missed the mark, it was very very loose on the Emma aspect. I usually adore Jane Austen adaptations and inspired stories but this one missed for me. The story follows Vansh Raje ( Emma ) a rich, handsome, well meaning guy who upon discovering a friend’s secret decides he is going to help him and also help the homeless population. Knightlin or rather Naina (Knightly) has just gotten out of a ten year lobg fake relationship witih Vansh’s brother and has finally stuck it to her abusive father and is so excited to work on her passion project... only to have Vansh steal the funding from her and now she has to fight him for it. Throw in a weirdly magical romance story about two other people (literal magic), the romance between Vansh’s older brother and his gf, the tragic abusive relationship between Naina’s mother and abusve father, and this story is jam packed. For a story inspired by Emma I was expecting a bit more Emma influence.

*Thanks Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager, Avon for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*