Tag Archives: India

Review: Flower and Thorn by Rati Mehrotra

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Flower and Thorn by Rati Mehrotra cover shows a tall cluster of flowers in the center.

Flower and Thorn
Rati Mehrotra
Wednesday Books
Published October 17, 2023

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Flower and Thorn

One girl. One boy.
A promise broken.
A magic stolen.

Irinya has wanted to be a flower hunter ever since her mother disappeared into the mysterious mist of the Rann salt flats one night. Now seventeen, Irinya uses her knowledge of magical flowers to help her caravan survive in the harsh desert. When her handsome hunting partner and childhood friend finds a priceless silver spider lily–said to be able to tear down kingdoms and defeat an entire army–Irinya knows this is their chance for a better life.

Until Irinya is tricked by an attractive imposter.

Irinya’s fight to recover the priceless flower and to fix what she’s done takes her on a dangerous journey, one she’s not sure she’ll survive. She has no choice but to endure it if she hopes to return home and mend the broken heart of the boy she’s left behind.

My Review

One of the things I’ve learned about myself as a reader lately is that I struggle with long chapters. Chapter length isn’t something I usually know about a book before I start reading. Some books genuinely need longer chapters because of how they’re structured. This one is one of those. But, because I am a reader who struggles with long chapters, it took me a long time to feel like I hit my stride with this book.

Once I did, though, I was completely hooked. Like, I enjoyed the story from the early scenes, but it felt like it was taking a long time to read, and I kept having to stop mid-chapter, which really threw me off when I started reading again the next time.

I loved the story’s setting. It’s set in India at a time when the country is besieged by the Portuguese. The characters hope to use magic flowers as a weapon in the war, and hope to keep their existence secret from the invaders, though it isn’t clear if they can.

The story has some commentary on markets and unfair systems, particularly those that marginalize nomad communities. I thought the commentary on that was thoughtful and well-integrated into the story. Irinya hopes to help her people find a way to sell the magic flowers for a fair price, as opposed to the current system, in which a few powerful, wealthy individuals control the system.

I really liked Irinya’s character. She’s stubborn, willful, and deeply loyal to her people. She’s fierce and brave. Definitely my kind of heroine.

Conclusion

Definitely by the 20 or 25% mark, I was deeply invested in the story and needed to know what really happened with the mysterious stranger who’d promised the world to Irinya and the deep betrayal between her and her best friend, Fardan. I’m super glad I read this book, and I’m eager for more by this author. I really enjoyed her debut, NIGHT OF THE RAVEN, DAWN OF THE DOVE, as well.

Content Notes for Flower and Thorn

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Characters are Indian.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Two women are in a romantic relationship. Kissing between boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
Some flowers have magic abilities to heal or travel through time or space. Irinya can hear the flowers speaking to her.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Irinya sees a person killed by deadly wasp stings. Several characters engage in battle with swords and other weapons. Some are fatally injured. Irinya uses a blowpipe with poison thorns as a weapon. Thugs kill a man with a knife. A woman hits someone with a cooking pot in a battle.

Drug Content
References to alcoholic drinks.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of FLOWER AND THORN in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Of Curses and Kisses by Sandhya Menon

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , ,

Of Curses and Kisses (St. Rosetta’s Academy #1)
Sandhya Menon
Simon Pulse
February 18, 2020

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Of Curses and Kisses

The first novel in a series set at an elite international boarding school, that’s a contemporary spin on Beauty and the Beast.

Will the princess save the beast?

For Princess Jaya Rao, nothing is more important than family. When the loathsome Emerson clan steps up their centuries-old feud to target Jaya’s little sister, nothing will keep Jaya from exacting her revenge. Then Jaya finds out she’ll be attending the same elite boarding school as Grey Emerson, and it feels like the opportunity of a lifetime. She knows what she must do: Make Grey fall in love with her and break his heart. But much to Jaya’s annoyance, Grey’s brooding demeanor and lupine blue eyes have drawn her in. There’s simply no way she and her sworn enemy could find their fairy-tale ending…right?

His Lordship Grey Emerson is a misanthrope. Thanks to an ancient curse by a Rao matriarch, Grey knows he’s doomed once he turns eighteen. Sequestered away in the mountains at St. Rosetta’s International Academy, he’s lived an isolated existence—until Jaya Rao bursts into his life, but he can’t shake the feeling that she’s hiding something. Something that might just have to do with the rose-shaped ruby pendant around her neck…

As the stars conspire to keep them apart, Jaya and Grey grapple with questions of love, loyalty, and whether it’s possible to write your own happy ending.

My Review

I think this is one of the books I bought during the early days of the pandemic, but it’s obviously taken me a while to finally read it. After I heard another blogger (can’t remember who it was) name OF CURSES AND KISSES as their favorite YA romance, I moved it up my TBR list. The next time I found myself needing a romance as a pick-me-up after a darker book, I reached for this one.

I’m a huge fan of fairytale retellings, so I immediately loved the Beauty and the Beast storytelling in this book. I liked that there was a little bit of magic through the curse, but that it didn’t dominate the story. Another thing that I seem to generally be in favor of are grouchy boys, so I found Grey lovable right away. Despite his prickliness, I couldn’t wait to see the romance develop between him and Jaya. I think my favorite moment in the whole book, though, was when Jaya imagined telling Kiran off after receiving an email from him. I literally laughed so hard I had to put the book down.

On the whole, I enjoyed reading this book. I loved the swoony elements and the friend group around Jaya and Grey. I think readers who enjoyed BOOKISH AND THE BEAST by Ashley Poston will find similar fun and romance here.

Content Notes for Of Curses and Kisses

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Jaya and her sister are Indian royalty.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
The family lore says Jaya’s family cursed Grey’s family after his ancestor stole a ruby that belonged to the people of India and refused to return it.

Violent Content
A boy has a nightmare about falling off a mountain and a girl stomping on his hand as he tries to hold on.

Drug Content
Teens drink alcohol at parties.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog.

Review: Rea and the Blood of the Nectar by Payal Doshi

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Rea and the Blood of the Nectar (Chronicles of Astranthia #1)
Payal Doshi
Mango and Marigold Press
Published June 15, 2021

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Rea and the Blood of the Nectar

It all begins on the night Rea turns twelve. After a big fight with her twin brother Rohan on their birthday, Rea’s life in the small village of Darjeeling, India, gets turned on its head. It’s four in the morning and Rohan is nowhere to be found.

It hasn’t even been a day and Amma acts like Rohan’s gone forever. Her grandmother, too, is behaving strangely. Unwilling to give up on her brother, Rea and her friend Leela meet Mishti Daadi, a wrinkly old fortune-teller whose powers of divination set them off on a thrilling and secret quest. In the shade of night, they portal into an otherworldly realm and travel to Astranthia, a land full of magic and whimsy. There with the help of Xeranther, an Astranthian barrow boy, and Flula, a pari, Rea battles serpent-lilies and blood-sucking banshees, encounters a butterfly-faced woman and blue lizard-men, and learns that Rohan has been captured. Rea also discovers that she is a princess with magic. Only she has no idea how to use it.

Struggling with the truth her Amma has kept hidden from her, Rea must solve clues that lead to Rohan, find a way to rescue him and save Astranthia from a potentially deadly fate. But the clock is ticking. Can she rescue Rohan, save Astranthia, and live to see it all?

Rea and the Blood of the Nectar is Payal Doshi’s stunning #ownvoices middle-grade fantasy debut about understanding complex family dynamics, fighting for what is right, discovering oneself, and learning to make friends.

My Review

This was a really fun book to read! I have been hearing such great things about it for so long that I was a little nervous about reading it. I tend to have that anxiousness about books that have a lot of hype around them. In this case, though, I was not disappointed.

I felt like Rea was easy to identify with. She’s a loner but also lonely, and that absolutely resonated with me, especially in thinking back to my own life at that age. She’s also smart and motivated, though her trust issues kind of trip her up sometimes. I loved that the story explored her relationships with others and gave her opportunities to grow both as an individual and as a friend/sister/leader.

REA AND THE BLOOD OF THE NECTAR is full of playful moments. Sometimes they verge on being a bit cheesy, but I kind of liked those moments, too. It was nice to read a book that was both rich and beautiful but that didn’t take itself too seriously and embraced the silly and fun, too. That made it really fun to read.

The pacing of the story seemed pretty even to me, too. I felt like the stakes kept going up, and the tension definitely built as the story progressed toward the moment where Rea had to confront her antagonist.

I think readers who enjoyed THE FIREBIRD SONG by Arnée Flores or VASILISA by Julie Mathison will love this one.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12

Representation
Rea and her family are Indian.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity used twice.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Rea follows her mother to a woman’s home who can predict the future. Later Rea and her friend visit this same woman for help themselves. Rea discovers an entrance to another world in which she and a few others have the ability to use magic.

Violent Content
Some brief battle scenes and brief references to torture.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support running this blog. I received a free copy of REA AND THE BLOOD OF THE NECTAR in exchange for my honest review.

Cover Reveal and #1001DiverseBooksCampaign: Rea and the Blood of the Nectar by Payal Doshi

Middle Grade 8-12, News and Fun, , , , , , , , ,

Cover Reveal and #1001DiverseBooksCampaign

Exciting news! Mango and Marigold Press is launching its eighteenth book and first middle grade novel ever. REA AND THE BLOOD OF THE NECTAR is written by debut #ownvoices author Payal Doshi. It tells the story of Rea Chettri, a 12-year-old girl living a simple, if boring, life on the tea plantations of Darjeeling, India. When her twin brother goes missing, Rea’s life gets turned on its head. Determined to save him, Rea embarks on a secret, thrilling adventure into the enchanted world of Astranthia. There, Rea will make new friends, grapple with dark truths, learn the meaning of family and friendship, and discover her true self.

REA AND THE BLOOD OF THE NECTAR is the first book in the series The Chronicles of Astranthia. It’s expected to release in May 2021.

#1001DiverseBooksCampaign – You Can Help!

I rarely participate in cover reveal posts, but because this one also supports a campaign to help not only bridge the diversity gap, but also the accessibility gap in children’s literature. With each new book launch, Mango and Marigold Press is committed to also raise funds to donate 1001 books to literacy and advocacy nonprofits across the country working to help those in need.

When you pre-order your copy of REA AND THE BLOOD OF THE NECTAR, you can also sponsor a copy for a nonprofit partner for only $10!

For all pre-orders placed between September 15th through September 22nd, 2020 you will receive:

  • an exclusive chapter to read as a sneak peek into Rea’s adventure.
  • Limited edition character buttons.
  • Bookmark.
  • Sticker.
  • Signed bookplate from the author.

Visit Mango & Marigold Press to pre-order a copy of the book. Then click the 1001DiverseBookCampaign link to add a $10 sponsored copy. This copy will be given to a nonprofit literacy and advocacy group.

Ready to see the gorgeous cover?

About Rea and the Blood of the Nectar by Payal Doshi

Pre-Order Link | Goodreads

It all begins on the night Rea turns twelve. After a big fight with her twin brother Rohan on their birthday, Rea’s life in the small village of Darjeeling, India, gets turned on its head. It’s four in the morning and Rohan is nowhere to be found.

It hasn’t even been a day and Amma acts like Rohan’s gone forever. Her grandmother, too, is behaving strangely. Unwilling to give up on her brother, Rea and her friend Leela meet Mishti Daadi, a wrinkly old fortune-teller whose powers of divination set them off on a thrilling and secret quest. In the shade of night, they portal into an otherworldly realm and travel to Astranthia, a land full of magic and whimsy. There with the help of Xeranther, an Astranthian barrow boy, and Flula, a pari, Rea battles serpent-lilies and blood-sucking banshees, encounters a butterfly-faced woman and blue lizard-men, and learns that Rohan has been captured. Rea also discovers that she is a princess with magic. Only she has no idea how to use it.

Struggling with the truth her Amma has kept hidden from her, Rea must solve clues that lead to Rohan, find a way to rescue him and save Astranthia from a potentially deadly fate. But the clock is ticking. Can she rescue Rohan, save Astranthia, and live to see it all?

Expected publication: May 2021

About Author Payal Doshi

Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram

Payal Doshi has a Masters in Creative Writing (Fiction) from The New School, New York. Having lived in the UK and US, she noticed a lack of Indian protagonists in global children’s fiction and one day wrote the opening paragraph to what would become her first children’s novel. She was born and raised in Mumbai, India, and currently resides in Minneapolis, Minnesota with her husband and two-year-old daughter. When she isn’t writing or spending time with her family, you can find her nose deep in a book with a cup of coffee or daydreaming of fantasy realms to send her characters off into. She loves the smell of old, yellowed books. REA AND THE BLOOD OF THE NECTAR, the first book in The Chronicles of Astranthia series, is her debut middle grade novel.

About Mango & Marigold Press

Mango & Marigold Press is an award-winning independent publishing house that shares the sweet and savory stories of the South Asian experience. Sharing every day and extraordinary stories of the South Asian experience, the company has produced fifteen books across four different product categories with features on The Today Show, The New York Times, The Washington Post, US Weekly, People Magazine and so much more.

They just launched their first young adult book, UNTOLD: DEFINING MOMENTS OF THE UPROOTED, in partnership with Brown Girl Magazine. REA AND THE BLOOD OF THE NECTAR is the company’s eighteenth book and first upper middle grade novel. Available for pre-order today!