Purple Lotus

I indulged my love of India fiction with Purple Lotus.  This beautiful book is the debut novel of Veena Rao, who was a finalist in the 2021 Georgia Author of the Year Award.  In addition, she was a finalist in several other book of the year awards for this novel.  Purple Lotus tells the tale of a woman's journey from a pariah in India to a free-spirited woman in the American South. 

The publisher's summary:

Tara moves to the American South three years after her arranged marriage to tech executive Sanjay.  Ignored and lonely, Tara finds herself regressing back to childhood memories that have scarred her for life.   When she was eight, her parents had left her behind with her aging grandparents and a schizophrenic uncle  in Mangalore, while taking her baby brother with them to make a new life for the family in Dubai.

Tara's memories of abandonment and isolation mirror her present life of loneliness and escalating abuse at the hands of her husband.  She accepts the help of kind-hearted American strangers to fight Sanjay, only to be pressured by her patriarchal family to make peace with her circumstances.  Then, in a moment of truth, she discovers the importance of self-worth - a revelation that gives her the courage to break free, gently rebuild her life, and even risk being shunned by her community when she marries her childhood love, Cyrus Saldanha.

Life with Cyrus is beautiful, until old fears come knocking.  Ultimately, Tara must face these fears to save her relationship with Cyrus - and to confront the victim shaming society she was raised within. 

This story ends with a bang.  Tara's newspaper article in the Morning Herald about her journey ends the novel. Her aunt makes an observation about her that gives us the title of the book. Aunty says that Tara has always been a shrinking violet. Tara responds that she is not a shrinking violet but rather a purple lotus. It was lovely ending to a lovely story.  Perhaps, you could say that Tara finally grew up.

It's impossible not to have empathy for this character. Tara has to endure emotional abuse from her parents and then from her husband. After several years of marriage, that abuse becomes physical. Thanks to strangers in her Atlanta, Georgia neighborhood, she finds the courage to face Sanjay and demand a divorce. Sanjay, of course, complains about this demand to her parents. Tara then receives more emotional abuse from her parents who tell her it is her job to make the marriage work. She must sacrifice her needs to her husband and eventually it will all work out. However, her American friends from the local church encourage her to leave Sanjay. Tara breaks free from her marriage but still has to consider her self-worth in order to be free.

Purple Lotus shows us that you may not come of age until you are much older than the 18 year old norm. Tara was 36 when she realized her worth.  Not every person starts out in life with all the necessary tools for a healthy existence. Some of us take longer.  The point here is that you can grow if you have the courage.

5 out of 5 stars.

The Spyglass File

The Spyglass File is book 5 in Nathan Dylan Goodwin's Morton Farrier Genealogical Mystery Series. I have read several books in the series and, to date, all have been awesome. This book counts as a selection for the 2022 What's In A Name Reading Challenge in the compound word category as well as The Cloak and Dagger and Finishing the Series Challenges.

When the story begins, Morton Farrier is no longer at the top of his game.  His career as a forensic genealogist is faltering and he does not want to accept any new cases. Morton prefers to spend time working toward locating his biological father.  However, when an intriguing case appears, Morton is compelled to help a woman find the relatives that she lost during the Battle of Britain in WWII. He soon discovers that the answer can only be found in a secret document called the Spyglass File. 

As always, I enjoyed reading about the methods Morton uses in his geneological research. Every step he takes forces him to look in different places for information. This is how we get the twists and turns of the story. The mystery element is provided by Morton going from up to down and vice versa in his research. 

The Battle of Britain has been well researched by the author. It was fascinating to read about this particular battle. I don't believe I have ever read any WWII historical fiction novels that focused on just one battle. All the others cover the entire period of the war. It was a treat to learn all of the details about it. What made it even more interesting was that one of the characters in the book worked for a spy agency. 

The Spyglass File is an extraordinary tale. I highly recommend it and am rating it 5 out of 5 stars.

Roofstompers

Roofstompers is TKO Short Limited Edition #8. TKO issues 3 short comics every quarter and Roofstompers is from their September 2021 release. In this comic, New York City surgeon Carrie Thurston tries to unwind from her stressful job by going on a hunting trip to Wind River, Wyoming. However, she does not find any relaxation. Carrie is assaulted by a wild bear and taken in by an elderly couple who live in the woods. Adelei and Seraphine are helping her recover from her physical wounds but as the weeks go by, Carrie suspects that they are not what they seem to be. They have strange visits every night from what they call the roofstompers. The story then turns into sci-fi.

This comic is only 20 pages long but it still has a complete plot. There were many surprising twists and turns and each page forwarded the story using both dialogue and drawing. The eerie atmosphere added even more to the comic. I enjoyed the color scheme for the artwork. Ian MacEwan did both the drawing and coloring for the comic. The passage of time is shown through the use of colors. They show each of the seasons and one page can have more than one season on it. 

Simply fabulous!  5 out of 5 stars.

Double Blind

Double Blind is Sara Winokur's debut novel. Although she lives in California, this story takes place in Iceland during the 1990s. We have a young boy here, Lukas, who disappears in North Iceland. Twenty years later a mysterious poem lands on the desk of his twin sister Brynja, a forensic geneticist. The poem hints that Lukas may have never died. Brynja job is to work with the police using DNA research to catch criminals. The finding of the poem rekindles her hopes that her brother might be found and found alive. As Brynja unravels the clues, more poems arrive, each bearing dire consequences. 

Double Blind has many different components.  We read about old manuscripts, Icelandic myths, DNA forensics, Icelandic birds, farming, fishing, recipes and a touch of megalomiania.  There is even some romance as Brynja is engaged to Ari, Iceland's prime minister.  The medieval Icelandic Sagas are also part of this story as one of them is scheduled to be displayed for the country's independence celebration.  It seems like everything but the kitchen sink is part of the plot. However, these parts all blend well together.  

Being interested in medieval manuscripts, this story was right up my alley. Iron gall ink was used to make the ink that the words were handwritten with. In one of my classes on ancient manuscripts we had to make ink the old fashioned way and stirred up our own iron gall ink.  It's amazing to me that it was used by ancient scribes as well as modern scribes up until the early twentieth century. A few other components of ancient manuscripts were discussed in the story, which thrilled me. Another aspect to the investigation was the specific style of writing that Icelandic poets used. The poems that Brynja received were different though, adding more to the mystery. Ancient recipes for poisons add yet another layer to the mystery.

In the beginning of the story it seemed like the death of Lukas and the manuscript plotlines could not be intertwined. However, they were and the author also showed her expertise in RNA and DNA matching. The reader learns more about RNA but the information was written in layman's terms. I found it all fascinating. As the plot progresses we see Brinja's co-workers poisoned from eating sweets that are delivered to the office. Clues to the location of her brother are written on the paper used to wrap the sweets in.

Double Blind is unputdownable.  I highly recommend it for mystery fans.  5 out of 5 stars.

Happy New Year!

2022 New Release Reading Challenge

The 2022 New Release Challenge is a year-long challenge in which we aim to read books released in 2022.  Brandee and Linda at the Unconventional Bookworm Blog are the hosts of the challenge. There is one post on the top of their homepage for all review links for the year, where the link is open for books you read and review each quarter. While I read 55 new release novels in 2021, I am signing up at the New Release Newbie Level which requires me to read between 1 and 30 books.

There is a 2022 Release shelf on Goodreads and a Facebook Group for the New Release Challenge, to have a place where we can keep up with each other, cheer each other on, and get to know each other better. It is also a place where we can help each other find even more new releases. For those of you who have participated in the challenge before, it’s the same group as before.

The rules for the 2022 New Release Challenge are simple:

• Books have to be released and reviewed in 2022.
• Other challenges can be used as well. Books can count towards more than one challenge, as long as the ones you use for the 2021 New Release Reading Challenge qualify to the other rules.
• The minimum length for a book to qualify is 100 pages, it can be in any format though, physical, e-book, ARC or audiobook.
• The New Release Challenge is open from January 1 through December 31, 2022 and sign-ups are open until September 1, 2022.
• You don’t have to be a blogger to participate, you can link to your review on Goodreads or Booklikes instead.
• If you want to spread the love, please use #2022NewReleaseChallenge on Twitter.

There are five levels  in the 2022 New Release Challenge:

1. 1-30 books per year – New Release Newbie (my challenge level)
2. 31-60 books per year – New Release Pro
3. 61-100 books per year – New Release Veteran
4. 101-200 books per year – New Release Enthusiast
5. 200+ books per year – New Release Obsessed

Top Ten Books I Want in 2022

Several of my favorite authors will be publishing their latest novels in 2022.  We readers wait all year for new books from our favorite authors and then they are read in a day or two. The waiting begins again.  It's an awful affliction to have.

Top Ten New Authors

I read 99 books this year by new (to me) authors. Some were more special than others. These ten have me excited about the future.

Edward Rutherford (historical fiction)

Charles Finch (historical fiction)

Stacy Green (psychological thriller)

Alka Joshi (India fiction)

Balli Kaur Jaswal (India fiction)

Elzbieta Cherezinska (historical fiction)

Ronald Balson (historical fiction)

Jess Ryder (mystery)

Karen McQuestion (mystery)

Sharon Mitchell (mystery)

Top Ten Book Covers 2021

My top ten book covers for 2021 are all from graphic novels. I am surprised that the fiction books I read did not have covers as phenomenal as these.  In past years I did not have any comic covers on the list so this is a first for my blog.

Primer is my best book cover for the year. I love its colorfulness and the girl known as Primer has a curious look on her face that's appealing. As an artist, I am always drawn to these colorful covers.

Top Ten Books of 2021

I read 154 books in 2021!  99 of the authors were new to me.  I primarily read historical fiction, mysteries and graphic novels but also read a few science and political books.  My top ten list combines my favorites from all genres.  Here they are:

10. Twisted Tea Christmas (cozy mystery)

9.  Primer (comic)

8.  Hemlock (cozy mystery)

7.  Superman Smashes the Klan (comic)

6.   Peril (politics)

5.  Dominus (historical fiction)

4.  The September Society (mystery)

3.  Tunnels (graphic novel)

2.  Defending Britta Stein (historical fiction)

And my number 1 book is:  China (historical fiction)

2022 Library Love Reading Challenge

The sixth annual Library Love Challenge hosted by Angel’s Guilty Pleasures & Books of My Heart is back.

Rules:  

The Challenge runs from January 1, 2022 – December 31, 2022.  You can join anytime.  The sign-up will remain open until Dec. 31st, 2022.

The goal is to find your love of your local library and to read at least twelve (12) books from the library, but you can read more.  While twelve is the minimum; there is no maximum limit. See the different levels below and pick the one that works best for you.

Any format will work for this challenge (prints, ebooks, or audios); as long as you checked it out from the library, it counts.

Books can be any genre (fiction, nonfiction, romance, fantasy, mystery, thriller, horror, etc.). Crossovers from other reading challenges are allowed, including re-reads.  The goal is to support your local library and save money.

You do not have to be a book blogger to participate; you can track your progress on Goodreads, Facebook, LibraryThing, etc. As an added bonus: We’re offering up FOUR GIVEAWAYS plus a few surprise giveaways throughout the year (2022) with this Challenge.  The main giveaways will be posted for (Jan., Feb., & March), (April, May, & June), (July, Aug., & Sept.), & last (Oct., Nov., & Dec.).  A linky will go up on both Angel’s Guilty Pleasures and Books of My Heart; where you can leave your links for the reviews on your library books you have read.  So make sure to stop by to enter.  More details in the giveaway section below. 

Optional Reviews: Write a review to enter the giveaway – 2 sentences or an essay, whatever works for you, but there is a minimum of 2 sentences.  Not sure what to write?  How about something like, “The plot was a delight, but the characters didn’t capture me.” “I enjoyed the story and really liked the characters.” Please use #LibraryLoveChallenge when sharing your reviews, library pictures, etc…

 Levels: 

• Dewey Decimal: Read 12 books
• Thrifty Reader: Read 24 books (my personal challenge)
• Overdrive Junkie: Read 36 books
• Library Addict: Read 48 books
• Library Card on Fire: Read 60+ books 
•  

If you are interested, there is a Goodreads Group for the Library Love Challenge, where we talk, share, and discuss the books we snagged/read during the 2022 Library Love Challenge – Click Here

2022 What's In A Name Reading Challenge

The 15th annual What’s in a Name challenge is on! In years past, this challenge was hosted by Charlie at The Worm Hole.  Andrea at the Carolina Book Nook took over in 2019 and she is hosting again next year!

Rules:

1)    The challenge runs from January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022. You can sign up any time, but only count books that you read between those dates.
2)    Read a book in any format (hard copy, ebook, audio) with a title that fits into each category.
3)    Don’t use the same book for more than one category.
4)    Creativity for matching the categories is not only allowed, it’s encouraged!
5)    You can choose your books as you go or make a list ahead of time.
6)    Sign up with a link to your WIAN challenge page/post, not your main blog URL. 

The categories below are links to each category sign up link.  Add your book review for each category so we can see what you’ve read and discover ideas as needed.  In 2022, choose 6 books that have titles that contain a:

(Click on the links for more examples and info)

• Compound word

• Speed 

• Person and their description

• Mythical being

• Season 

• Color

I have some ideas on what I want to read but note I am prone to change my mind daily.  Here are the books that I probably will be reading for the challenge:

The Spyglass File by Nathan Dylan Goodwin

Fast Girls by Elise Hooper

The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid

Why Mermaids Sing by C. S. Harris

Hawaii One Summer by Maxine Hong Kingston

Purple Lotus by Veena Rao

2022 Finishing the Series Reading Challenge

It’s back for another year!!  This challenge is focused on finally finishing those series that you’ve started but not yet completed.  It was previously hosted by Bea’s Book Nook, but Celebrity Readers has been hosting it since 2018.  I am proudly rejoining this challenge in 2022 at the B List Series Finisher Level which requires that I read books from 5 to 8 series.  Some of the series that I read that I expect to see new books published for in 2022 include the Somershill Manor medieval mystery series by S. D. Sykes, the wine country cozy mystery series by Ellen Crosby, Anna Castle's Francis Bacon Mysteries, Sujata Massey's Perveen Mistry series, Alison Stuart's Harriet Gordon historical mystery series and Cleo Coyle's coffeehouse mystery series.  Alka Joshi's Jaipur trilogy will conclude next year too.  In addition, I need to work on completing Nathan Dylan Goodwin's Morton Farrier Geneological Mystery series which is set in England, Susan Finley's Tangled Roots historical geneology series, and Janet Macleod Trotter's India Tea series. 

guidelines:

• The challenge will run from January 1st, 2022 to December 31st, 2022.  Books must be read during this time frame to count.  Sign up is open from now until December 1st, 2022, so you may join even just for the last month of the year.
• Series can be already completed as well as still ongoing.  For ongoing series, the goal is to catch up to the most recent book published by the end of 2022.
• We don’t care if you have only 1 book or 10 books to read in order to finish your series, as long as you’ve started the series before 2022 (ie read at least one book in the series), it counts.  Re-reads are not required.
• Any format and length of book counts – print, ebook, audio, ARC, etc.
• Series can be any length (even if it’s just a Duet).
• Crossovers from other challenges are totally acceptable!
• Reviews are not required, but highly encouraged.

new this year:

A side Finishing the Anthology challenge has been added to the challenge this year!  For this side challenge, you must have read at least one story in the anthology prior to 2022, and then obviously finish it this year (I don’t care if you DNF a story, as long as you give them all a try).  There are a few “read an anthology in a year” type challenges, but what the host was really looking for, and thus far hadn’t found, was one where you’d already started the anthology and just want to get it off your TBR once and for all.

how to play:

• Declare your intentions to participate in this challenge somewhere on the internet!!  You do not need to be a blogger to participate, there are many ways to declare.  You could write a blog post, create a reading challenge page, create a Goodreads shelf containing series you hope to finish, post about it on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
• Some things you could include (but that aren’t required):
  • A link to the challenge page so that others may find us and join the fun as well (feel free to download the button at the top to use in your posts).
  • A list of series you hope to read for this challenge.  You could even get fancy and list the length of the series, or the books you’ve already read, etc.
  • The level you are aiming for.
• This year only one link up will be posted for the whole year.  This is where you can add links to your reviews or any wrap-up/overview posts you wish to share.
• Go forth and READ!!  And have fun!!
• Use the hashtag #FinishingTheSeries2022 on any social media to keep up with other participants!

the levels:

Participants are offerred 3 different “Celebrity” levels of achievement for this reading challenge:

C-LIST SERIES FINISHER ⇒ COMPLETE 1-4 SERIES.

B-LIST SERIES FINISHER ⇒ COMPLETE 5-8 SERIES.

A-LIST SERIES FINISHER ⇒ COMPLETE 9+ SERIES.