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I’m not a die-hard fan of fantasy although I read books in the genre every now and then. Don’t come at me, fans of ‘Harry Potter’ (Potterheads?) and George R.R. Martin, but I never really saw the appeal behind those doorstopper books. I read all seven Harry Potters (not counting the various add-ons here) and the first part in the ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ series. They didn’t feel as mind-blowing as they were made out to be.

So, naturally, I wasn’t much enthused about the ‘Shadow and Bone’ trilogy despite coming across it at multiple bookstores and people asking me if I had read it. My favorite booktuber (shoutout again to @paperbackdreams) hated it, especially the main character, Alina. She thought Alina was annoying and lame. I usually like and agree with her reviews so I had made up my mind not to pick it up. Then Netflix came out with a series and the promo looked interesting. I hence decided to read the book before binge-watching it. The book is okay, albeit a bit predictable. I want to watch the series now to see what they have done with the story.

A war orphan, Alina Starkov is raised on the estate of a minor noble in Ravka, along with her best friend and fellow orphan, Mal. The two are tested as children for the rare magical ability that would make them a Grisha, elite magician-soldiers of the kingdom. When they are found to have none, they get recruited into the common army instead. Then, during a trek across the Shadow Fold, a swath of impenetrable darkness that crawls with monsters, Alina unleashes a dominant magic that even she didn’t know she possessed. This catches the attention of the Darkling, a soldier close to the king, who believes she is the ‘Sun Summoner’—the only one with the power to destroy the Fold.

My problem with fantasy is that it feels a little too trope-y: There is a hero, a problem to solve and a villain to fight. Just the names and settings are different. Shadow and Bone too follows the same tried and tested path. There’s nothing new here. Hundred pages into the book, I could sense where the story was headed (and I was right). The story would have been riveting if I could have connected with Alina, Mal, the Darkling or any of the many characters that appear in the book. But they are all half-baked and I felt nothing for them. That, in turn, made it difficult for me to get sucked into the world Bardugo has created even though the scene setting is quite good. 

Shadow and Bone was fun while it lasted but I wasn’t actually living in another world while reading it, which is kind of the main point of fantasy, isn’t it?

3 stars 
Fantasy
Shadow and Bone
Leigh Bardugo
Published: 2012
Publisher: Orion Children’s Books
Pages: 307, Paperback

I’m not into romances and love stories. They usually make my eyes roll far back into my head or cringe. I can’t remember the last time I read or enjoyed a romance novel that wasn’t literary or had some other plot going on apart from the boy-meets-girl and-romance-ensues bit. I wouldn’t have read ‘Get a Life, Chloe Brown’ by Talia Hibbert if my absolutely favorite booktuber (@paperbackdreams) and some friends whose reading tastes I like hadn’t been going gaga over it.

‘Get a Life, Chloe Brown’ is the first part in a trilogy of sorts but it works well as a standalone novel too. Hibbert has written three books and each tells the story of a different Brown sister. The second book is ‘Take a Hint, Dani Brown’, and the final one is ‘Act Your Age, Eve Brown’. Dani and Eve both make appearances in Chloe’s book and are interesting characters that you want to know more about. The little of what you get to see of them in Get a Life, Chloe Brown leaves you wanting more and it only seems fair that they each have a book of their own.

Chloe Brown suffers from fibromyalgia, a condition that leaves her in pain, accompanied by fatigue, and sleep and mood problems. Her fiancé dumps her because he can’t deal with her issues and slowly her friends too disappear from her life. She lives in a mansion with her grandmother where everything is taken care of for her. One day, after a near death experience, she decides to take charge of things. The extremely organized and meticulous Chloe makes a list. It includes things like moving out of her family home, going camping, getting drunk, having meaningless sex and other random things.

Then she meets Redford Morgan. He is the superintendent of the building she moves into. Both feel a visceral attraction to each other that they initially try to deny and suppress. But as Redford helps Chloe tick items off her list, they end up giving in to their emotions. What follows is a lot of sweet gestures, hot moments, and ultimately a misunderstanding that eventually leads to a heartwarming ending.

As far as love stories go, it’s an out and out cliché. But what makes Get a Life, Chloe Brown different is Hibbert’s sense of humor that gives Chloe a fun, distinctive and interesting voice and the sensitivity with which the story addresses the issue of abusive relationships. Hibbert also sends out a message of body positivity through her main character who is beautiful and chubby, two traits that are often considered antonyms. It’s a feel-good book that leaves you sighing, giggling, and happy.

Three stars
Get a Life, Chloe Brown
Talia Hibbert
Published: 2019
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 384, paperback

While I’ve always enjoyed good thrillers, horrors and bloodbaths weren’t really my thing. The pandemic changed that. I turned to spooky stuff to get my mind off the very real threat out there. It worked. Now, I no longer need that distraction but I find I’ve sort of developed a taste for it. Readers recommending books that made their skin crawl makes mine tingle in anticipation.

I’d heard a lot about ‘No Exit’ by Taylor Adams. Some friends said it left them traumatized and booktubers would shut their eyes, shake their heads and squeal when reviewing this book. I couldn’t find it at any bookstore in Kathmandu but I finally got the e-book. Twenty pages in, I wasn’t very enthused. I didn’t like the writing style and the setting felt a bit off but things escalated pretty quickly and left me stunned. No Exit is, hands-down, the best edge-of-the-seat thriller I’ve read in a long time.

On her way home to see her sick mother, college student Darby Throne gets stranded at a highway rest stop in Colorado because of a blizzard. There’s no cellphone signal. At the rest stop, there are four other people waiting out the storm with her. Then, Darby sees a little girl locked in an animal crate at the back of a van parked next to her car. She quickly finds out who, out of the four people, the van belongs to and everything from then on is about saving the child and ultimately herself too when the kidnapper finds out she has seen the girl.

The premise feels like that of any other thriller. But what goes down is insane. It’s creepy. The scenes are so vivid. It makes you jump, gasp, and shudder. There were multiple times when I had to put the kindle down and cover my eyes and ears to shake off the images that were forming in my head. I was visibly rattled and my husband, more than once, commented on why I was reading a book that was driving me crazy and making me shriek. Thinking about it now, two weeks after finishing the book, still makes my heart race.

It was so good (if this were a post on Instagram instead of a review in a national newspaper, I’d have put 10, no 20, o’s behind that so.) It’s definitely not for the faint of heart but if you enjoy an eerie, nightmarish read, you’re doing yourself a great disservice if you don’t pick this one up right away.

Fiction
No Exit
Taylor Adams
Published: 2019
Publisher: William Morrow
File size: 1747 KB
Print length: 371 pages

If there is a movie adaptation of a book on Netflix that I haven’t read, I will put off watching it till I’ve gotten around to reading the book. It’s a crime to watch the movie before you’ve read the book, right? I think it should be. However, I must confess, I watched ‘Bird Box’ before reading Josh Malerman’s debut novel by the same name. I had heard so much about it that I just couldn’t stop myself from hitting play. Also, Sandra Bullock, who portrays the protagonist Malorie, is one of my favorite actors.

Bird Box is a dystopian novel where unseen creatures, whose mere sight drives people crazy enough to kill themselves, are taking over the planet. At the beginning of the story, Malorie is seen leaving the house with two children she calls ‘Boy’ and ‘Girl’ to go on a boat ride up the river in search of the safe place that is presumably somewhere out there. The catch is that they are blindfolded and Malorie and the children have to listen carefully to navigate their way despite not being able to see the danger that lurks around them. The narrative alternates between their journey up the river and Malorie’s flashbacks to events that led them to that point.

This is the first time I watched a movie and then read the related book. It’s also perhaps the only time I have liked the movie adaptation better than the book. Is it because I watched the movie first and Malorie was Sandra Bullock instead of a character in my head? Is it because the tension is palpable in the movie and not so much in the book where things appear rather laid back at times? Or is it because I already knew what was going to happen and waiting for it to unfold page by page was a bit taxing?

The book feels a bit stretched out. Malerman builds up tension, a sense of danger, only to have it fizzle out. And there are quite a few such incidents. Then, you know there are some dangerous creatures out there but you don’t know what they are and you never find out. That curiosity is never quelled. It’s frustrating.

Don’t get me wrong; I enjoyed the book. I had a good time. I was a nervous wreck every time I got a sense that something was about to happen. I was rooting for the other survivors—namely Tom, Olympia, Jules, Cheryl, and Felix—even when I knew they were doomed. It’s just that I think I would have loved the book a whole lot more had I read it before watching the movie. Note to self: Never again.

3 stars
Fiction
Bird Box
Josh Malerman
Published: 2014
Publisher: Harper Collins
Pages: 379, Paperback

There’s a lot of Young Adult fiction out there these days. I’m a bit jealous of those who are able to grow up reading these uplifting, important stories that help you understand yourself and the world around you. I wish the stories that are being written today were there when I was growing up. Armed with the wisdom, might I have made fewer mistakes, been a less difficult daughter, and had as much sense at 25 as I think I have now, a decade later? I’d like to believe so.

 The YA books that I’ve been reading in recent times have made me slightly more compassionate and tolerant of people and ideas that don’t necessarily support my stand on things. They might have hit differently and I might have gotten far more out of them had I read them earlier, as a teen or in my 20s. When I was growing up, I was reading mostly for entertainment and stories largely served that purpose too. Not that there is anything wrong with that. But the books that are being written now, with the added value of insight and the experiences of the characters, are so vast and varied.

‘Simon vs. The Home Sapiens Agenda’ is a much-talked about book. Many adult book clubs have chosen to read and discuss this YA novel and almost every booktuber I follow on YouTube has raved about it. Becky Albertalli’s debut novel tells the story of 16-year-old Simon Spier who is gay but hasn’t come out. The only person who knows the truth is a boy named Blue, another closet gay teen. The two meet through Tumblr and they communicate via emails. Both have no idea who the other person is.

Then one day, a boy named Martin reads Simon’s emails to Blue on the school computer after Simon forgets to sign out of his email account. Martin now knows his secret and he wants Simon to help him date Abby, the new girl in school. If he doesn’t figure out how to do that, then Martin is going to tell the entire school that Simon is gay.

What follows is a part-hilarious, part-moving story about the angst of growing up and learning to accept yourself for who you are. It’s also a tender and poignant tale of friendship and love. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The only reason I gave it three stars is because I’m quite stingy with my four and five stars and reserve those for books that blow my mind and have me blabbering about them all wide-eyed. Simon vs. The Home Sapiens Agenda might not have had that effect but it was still a great read.

3 stars
Fiction
Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda
Becky Albertalli
Published: 2015
Publisher: Penguin Books
Pages: 303, Paperbac

Simply put, Yaa Gyasi is a genius. Her books, and there are two, brim with an unparalleled understanding of the human mind and condition. You don’t just read her stories—you feel and live them. Gyasi, whose debut novel ‘Homegoing’ was published in 2016, has a subdued writing style that makes every word seem important. In 2017, Gyasi was selected as one of Granta’s Best of Young American Novelists and in 2019 BBC selected her debut as one of the 100 Novels That Shaped Our World.

‘Transcendent Kingdom’, Gyasi’s second work of fiction, was probably the most awaited book of 2020. The internet was abuzz with anticipation for another masterpiece from a brilliant writer who was only getting started. And she didn’t disappoint. The book is an excellent meditation on life and how we are sometimes consumed by our losses. But it also celebrates the resilience of human spirit and the way we don’t stop trying to rebuild our lives.

The novel’s protagonist is Gifty, a PhD candidate at Stanford University, who is running an experiment on mice to study the neural circuits of reward-seeking behavior. The mice are addicted to a sugary energy drink and caged in a behavioral testing chamber fitted with a lever that administers either the drink or an electric shock. With the help of optogenetics, Gifty is trying to identify which neurons are firing whenever the mice press the lever. She is interested in those mice that can’t stop pushing the lever, even after being shocked dozens of times.

The experiments are Gifty’s way of trying to figure out why humans do what they do. The driving force behind the study is her need to understand why her brother Nana couldn’t get over his drug addiction and make sense of his death due to overdose. Gifty hopes her work will someday lead to an effective diagnosis and treatment of addiction. Then, her mother comes to live with her after suffering from a relapse of the severe depression she had after Nana died and Gifty’s carefully crafted world crumbles. She is forced to confront some traumatic memories as she takes care of her mother.

I have always loved narratives that explore parent-children relationships. They help me make sense of the complex ways in which we are often forced to navigate it. Stories like that make me realize that you don’t always have to understand your parents and that love is still possible without it. In that way, Transcendent Kingdom really hits home and leaves you with a bittersweet feeling. It’s sad, it’s contemplative, and, above all, Gyasi’s power-packed prose haunts you for days after you finish the book. 

Four stars
Fiction
Transcendent Kingdom
Yaa Gyasi
Published: 2020
Publisher: Viking
Pages: 264, Paperback

I have read many thrillers. So many that I’ve lost count. Over the years, I have become really good at figuring out who the bad guy is. I would say I’m right 95 percent of the time. Let’s up that to 97 percent. You can tell I’m quite smug about it, can’t you? So, when I’m more than halfway through a thriller novel and still can’t guess who the murderer/stalker/rapist is, I have to give it to the author for weaving a unique and captivating narrative. I have to concede defeat.

‘The End of Her’ by Shari Lapena never gave anything away despite having so much going on. I could not make up my mind about any of the characters. They all seemed flawed and perfect at the same time—very human. One moment I would think I had it all figured out, and the next I would be unsure again. The plotline isn’t unique but what Lapena has done with it is phenomenal.

Stephanie and Patrick are adjusting to life with their colicky twin girls in New York. Stephanie is a stay-at-home mom and Patrick works a nine-to-five job to foot the bills. Despite being largely sleep-deprived, they are happy. Then Erica arrives. She was Patrick’s first wife’s best friend. She also had an affair with him. Now, she claims Patrick murdered his first wife. She then starts blackmailing the couple, threatening to go to the police otherwise.

Patrick insists he is innocent, that his first wife died of carbon monoxide poisoning. She was in the car while he was shoveling snow right before they were to leave to visit her parents. But Erica says he wanted her out of the picture so that he could start all over. She says she was too scared to come forward earlier. But she wanted to warn Stephanie when she found out he had remarried. Then, why is she blackmailing them? Did Patrick really kill his wife?

 The entire novel reads like the last 50 pages of a thriller; there is so much happening and so many gasp-inducing moments in each page right from the start. There are also other engaging sub-plots that weave into the story and make it compelling. Author Linwood Barclay called Shari Lapena ‘The queen of the one-sit read’ while Steve Cavanagh said she was one of the best thriller writers in the business. The End of Her was my first Lapena book and I’m a fan. Immediately after finishing The End of Her, I started searching for her other books and I’m elated I found ‘A Stranger in the House’. If it’s even half as good as The End of Her, it should be another fantastic read.   

Four stars
Fiction
The End of Her
Shari Lapena
Published: 2020
Publisher: Penguin Random House  
Pages: 414, Paperbac

There are books that make you cry ugly tears. You have to sometimes put them down and actually walk away because you need time to recover. But you can’t do that with Suleika Jaouad’s ‘Between Two Kingdoms’ because hers is a story that’s heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time. You want to keep reading, though your eyes are glazed with tears and your heart shatters every now and then.

Jaouad was 22 when she was diagnosed with a rare form of acute myeloid leukemia and given a 35 percent chance of survival. Over the next four years, she went through rigorous chemotherapy, became a part of a clinical trial, and finally underwent a bone-marrow transplant that left her weak and heavily dependent on her caregivers—her parents and then-boyfriend she refers to as Will.

What makes this book different from other cancer memoirs I have read is that Jaouad doesn’t just share her experiences. Instead, she tells you what was going on in her mind while dealing with such a traumatic event, and that too when her friends were kick-starting their careers, traveling the world or settling down. It’s not about the event as much as it’s about her reaction to it.

As cancer ravaged her body, Jaouad’s spirit got stronger. She knew she might not make it but she would find little things to keep her going. One of them was the 100-day project. She decided she would write in her journal every single day, even when she couldn’t sit up. She had been considering a career as a war correspondent before cancer (B.C as she puts it) so writing was always something she enjoyed. She proposed to write a series of blog posts for The New York Times. Her column, ‘Life, Interrupted’ got her a steady fan-following and responses from other people who were going through difficult times themselves.

In Between Two Kingdoms, Jaouad hasn’t tried to present in a way to make you sympathize with her. She is selfish, needy, and even mean to those she loves. She breaks things in anger, says unspeakable things to her boyfriend when she knows he has always put her needs before his. She doesn’t sugarcoat her flaws and uses cancer as an excuse for her horrid behavior.

I would have probably given it a five-star rating had the book not felt a bit stretched in the end—where Jaouad embarks on a road trip with her dog, meeting people who had written to her and helped her in some way or the other. That aside, Jaouad’s writing is stunning and her story can inspire us to try and do--and be--our best but not be too hard on ourselves when we can’t either. 

4 stars                                                              
Non-Fiction
Between Two Kingdoms
What Almost Dying Taught Me About Living
Suleika Jaouad
Published: 2021
Publisher: Bantam Press
Pages: 348, Paperback