Jujutsu Kaisen by Gege Akutami Book Review

Disclaimer : I received a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

This manga was highly entertaining, I had a blast reading through it. This was definitely a one sitting type of read, The main character is reminiscent of how Naruto from the manga "Naruto" was, he is strong willed, kind and courageous. He values friends above everything, the story really takes off when he eats a cursed object to save his friends from a "demon/yokai/ghost".
 I loved the setting even though it started with something in a complete different direction than the one the story took. The way our main character meets the one who will break the curse/expel the demon that is killing his friends, was super interesting, they have this very annoyed with one another relationship which is super entertaining to read about.
Overall, I had a great time and I really don't want to give too much away since there is very little I can say that won't spoil it.
I recommend this book to people who enjoy supernatural reads with elements of ghosts, demons and a lot LOT of ACTION.
I highly recommend it.
Entertaining and fun, but do not expect anything that will blow you away.
3.5/5 stars
-Bookarina.

The UNwilling By Kelly Braffet Book Review -- Harlequin Blog Tour Winter 2020

Welcome to this BLOG TOUR !!!

Disclaimer : I received a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review !

Well, I was supposed to post this earlier but I unfortunately hurt my thumb and was unable to do so, I wanted to apologize for that since I kept you guys waiting !

Now let's get into the book review; I was captivated by the idea/premise of this book. Unfortunately I found myself bored and annoyed  by it for most of my reading experience. We know that our main character is adopted and hated by everyone for being different and maybe a "witch". A long part of the book is taken by the "intrigue" of "will they or will they not" and "who will" kill the antagonist. Furthermore, the magic that made me want to read this book is very badly explained, Judah and us have no idea what the magic is, how it works, why a group has worked so long to get it but can't. WE JUST DON"T KNOW WHAT IT IS. But APPARENTLY it's important ? We have to go through over the 400 pages mark to be like "OOOH that's the magic she has".
We as the reader, are informed by the author of what Judah has been through, how cruel Eldan (the antagonist) is and it is repeatedly shown to us. What was too much for me were the overly long child abuse scenes the author wrote.
I am not a reader that gets easily offended or squeamish. Okay I get it we need to read a little of that but why drag it out ???
There is an abundance of free violence  in this book, such as murders of pregnant women, abortions on non consenting conscious & unconscious women, child abuse, deaths and they are all super descriptive (or most of them), there is no point to 90 or more % of these events. I felt like the author had mistaken violence with storytelling and worldbuilding.

In my opinion great concept and poor execution.
1/5 stars
-Bookarina

Fairy Tales: Beauty and the Beast by Jessica Gunderson Book Review

Disclaimer : I received a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review !

This is such a cute early reading book. It' one step up from picture books and an adorable introduction to simplified fairy tales.
I really enjoyed the art style for the most part, it was very adorable though a little too short in my opinion. I believe they could've added beautiful illustrations to really captivate a younger reader and make them want to "see the pretty pictures" again, again and again.
Other than that my only other complaint would be the lack of storytelling, I understand minimizing it but in certain instances like when the sisters want her fortune, the authors could've added what happens in between that and the beast falling sick. It was cute but not captivating, nice but not anything new. Nothing made me think
if I have to buy a beauty and the beast retelling for a kid "This" is what I would choose. Unfortunately,
not a version I will remember with a particular fondness.
Otherwise a cute intro to comics/graphic novel for any children aged between 5-7 years old or children just learning to read on their own.

2.5/5 stars
-Bookarina

Not Your Idol Vol.1 by Aoi Makino ARC review

RELEASE: MAY 05 2020

welcome to this book review,

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review !

This manga was a surprise, the art is what first caught my attention and the premise really intrigued me. From the first couple of pages I was captivated, the mystery of knowing why Nina (AKA: Karen) left the idol world and was hiding, dressing herself as a guy (even though everyone knew she was a girl) with a new name in a new town. I hated Miyu and her victim blaming/downplaying sexual harassment of herself and another girl. The author beautifully wove the links between the people and the surrounding events without giving away the punch.The cliffhanger left me wanting for more !I totally recommend.Though it should get some trigger warnings for sexual and physical harassment and PTSD.

4/5 stars
-Bookarina

Of Curses and Kisses by Sandhya Menon ARC Book Review

Welcome to this book review,
Disclaimer : I received a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

Okay so first things first, I am a HUGE disney fan and fairytales fan so I was expecting to love this.
The premise had every aspect that I was looking for, beauty and the beast modern retelling in a boarding school. What's not to love ?
Unfortunately, I tried three times. three very far apart times to read this. And I thought maybe I wasn't in the mood or that I needed to read at least 50 pages to really have an idea about it.
I am here to report that they weren't successful attempts, I very rarely DNF a book and it hurts that I have to do this but I have to be brutally honest. Why torture myself to finish a book that I cannot get into or feel anything towards what happens in the story. I did not care for anyone and sometimes the only thing to do is give up.
The writing style/storytelling was not for me, it felt like an attempt to be like other authors, I didn't feel the WOW factor that I expect to get when I have read 50 or more pages of a book, something that gets me hooked to the story. It felt like the author did not know how to tell the story in a concise way that made us understand what was happening. There is also, in my opinion a bad and hurtful portrayal of diversity, PEOPLE ARE NOT THEIR NATIONALITY OR DIVERSITY STEREOTYPES !!!!
Apart from the rose necklace there wasn't anything that made me think " OMG a Beauty and the Beast retelling" if I hadn't known from the publicity surrounding it I would not have known that it was a retelling.
I cannot recommend this.
1/5 stars
-Bookarina

A Touch Of Danger by Elaine White ARC Book Review

Disclaimer : I received an ARC of this book in exchange of an honest review. This book was unexpected, unfortunately not in the best way possible. I read paranormal romances or romances in general to put me in a good mood, to read a love story where I know for a fact that my OTP (one true pairing) will end up together. I went into this novel not knowing much about it which did make it a lot better than it would've been otherwise. I loved Drew and how he is willing to do anything to keep his family safe, I enjoyed the romance overall though Rylee was way too oblivious at times and that felt unrealistic because of how he is presented and portrayed the rest of the time. Another good thing was the unique take on shifter romance, and shifters transformation. While it was unique, it was also confusing and I felt like I was jumping in the dark following the author who had forgotten to explain a lot of how things work during the transformation stages which left me confused and feeling like I had skipped a chapter or two. It was also a heavily packed book, honestly a bit too sad at times for me. The cover made me believe this would be a happy, cute romance. What I got was an insta love with a rocky relationship at times, sad moments and devastating consequences. This is not a "I will escape to an happy place reading this" kind of book. That being said, overall it's not a bad story, the world building was well done for the most part. In the end it is not a story I will pick back up to read favourite moments or parts of it. If you are looking for a unique take on shifters and an emotional rollercoaster of a book I recommend this, if on the contrary you want cute moments with a fluffy happy ending then don't pick this up ! 3/5 stars Bookarina

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton Book Review

(Note: this edition can be found at bookdepository.com, it is the UK paperback)

This book was a surprise, personally I don't typically enjoy mysteries, thrillers or suspence oriented books. They just tend to bore me, I HATE when I can predict the ending or tell who is lying or being truthful too easily.
Which is why I was so hesitant to read "the seven deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle" even though I had heard nothing but wonderful things about it.  I think part of the reason for my enjoyment of this book is due to the fact that I love reading journal articles and that the author is a journalist, I could tell how much had been put into each characters, why they acted certain ways and it felt like they all had a very distinct voice in my head.
From the first page I was intrigued, first of all the time period in which this book is taking place is one my favourite I love the decorum, parties and whole socio-political side of things. Second, the writing style, while we had many point of views, in certain ways, I didn't feel lost or confused even after picking it back up a couple of weeks after I had first started it, being more than halfway done with my read at that point. I appreciated the complexity of the story, it was a multilayered one that made everything, from the characters to the setting and relations between everyone real and tangible.
Now a part of what I did not completely like was the pacing, sometimes it felt like everything was going too slow and at the end it felt a bit rushed. Everything happened all at once. However, I did enjoy that it did not end in an open ending sort of ending.
I loved the sci-fi element of waking up in a different body everyday, living the same day from a different perspective.
All in all, I would recommend this book, it is worth checking out but I would also like to warn that it is slow at times and thus is not a book for everyone, it did after all take me 2 months to complete my read of it.
If this author writes another mystery or better a fantasy or Sci-fi you WILL ABSOLUTELY see me pick it up !
4/5 stars
-Bookarina.

Heart of Flames by Nicki Pau Preto BOOK REVIEW !!

Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book in exchange of an honest review.

First thing first, I would like to mention that this is the sequel of Crown of Feathers and though I will try to keep this spoiler free, it will contain some spoilers for the first book (Crown of Feathers) so please proceed with caution.

This book was, as the first one was, beautifully written. I loved the atmosphere and getting to know our main characters and the world better. While I loved the first book in the series and expected to love this one, I was not ready for how much I would love it. From the first couple of pages it felt vibrant and real (as real as phoenix riders and a fictional world with fantasy can get), Nicki Pau Preto manages to transport us to a whole other world while also giving us a feeling of "ahh I'm coming home".
Simultaneously, reading it also gave me the feeling of "I have to re-read all these books again and again", that's how much I loved them.
While I am not supposed to love Val, I can't help but love reading and learning more about her. Reading this novel felt like watching a movie, everything is so well paced and carefully thought out, I was never bored or looking at the time while reading this. This new installment in the series is truly wonderful. One of my favourite part of this book is how much history is put in the world building, it feels like an ancient civilization that we are only now learning about.
The author is quickly becoming one of my favourite authors, she makes the whole story feel so organic and does a great job when making us feel for every character she introduces into the story.
This multiple perspective books makes us see multiple facets of a world, while I did not have as much "Tristan" time as I would've liked to, I believe it is because he will have a bigger role in the next book.
The romances are well developed and organic, which is rare, I loved every second of them.
Keep an eye out for Nicki Pau Preto, she is an author that is worth checking out even if you rarely enjoy fantasy !
BEWARE THE CLIFFHANGER ENDING ! though delectable, I am so excited for the next book while also being frustrated that I do not have it yet. A good mix I would say.
I totally recommend picking this series up.
5/5 stars
-Bookarina

The Gravity of Us by Phil Stamper Review

Welcome to this book review !
I received an ARC of this book in exchange of an honest review.

This was one of my most anticipated release of the year, while it did not become "my favourite book of all time" I did have a great time reading it.
I was hooked from the first page, the main character Cal felt real and I had a great time reading about him and his drive to "fix things". His journalism and the NASA aspect really kept me invested in the story.
This book focuses on familial relationship, I loved the way the author included anxiety and rash decision making by having the parents (mother and father respectively), also how Cal  had to go through moving away and being away from his best friend.
The romance was enjoyable, I loved how Cal learned that he could not fix people, through his relationship with Leon and his (Leon's) depression. There is fighting and messes, but he learns to listen to people and ultimately this helps him grow as a person.
I also loved the representation of social media and of the impact/influence it has on us.

Now for what I didn't enjoy is how self centered Cal was, he seemed super realistic at moments and other times would do a complete 160 which made for moments in the story where I couldn't understand why he would've made such actions/reacted in certain ways. The Orpheus mission to space definitely stole the spotlight, in my opinion, from what the main character was going through. I went in wanting a romance and the best part of the book was the NASA mission, even then it felt like if not for it the story would've been seemingly boring at times. That's not to say that I did not enjoy it, because I certainly did. But I expected more.

If you are a fan of space and vloggers I would recommend picking this up.

overall good, but nothing blew me away or made me want to re-read moments of it.

3.5/5 stars
-Bookarina