Posted on by Steph-paigesofnovels · 1 Comment

The Door Is Open-Stories of Celebration and Community by 11 Desi Authors

Genre: Middle Grade Short Stories
Publishing date: April 24th, 2024

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound

Rep: Desi, South Asian, South Asian American

Synopsis:

Discover stories of fear, triumph, and spectacular celebration in this warm-hearted novel of interconnected stories that celebrates the diversity of South Asian American experiences in a local community center.

Discover stories of fear, triumph, and spectacular celebration in the fictional town of Maple Grove, New Jersey, where the local kids gather at the community center to discover new crushes, fight against ignorance, and even save a life. Cheer for Chaya as she wins chess tournaments (unlike Andrew, she knows stupid sugary soda won’t make you better at chess), and follow as Jeevan learns how to cook traditional food (it turns out he can cook sabji– he just can’t eat it).

These stories, edited by bestselling and award-winning Pakistani-American author Hena Khan, are filled with humor, warmth, and possibility. They showcase a diverse array of talented authors with heritage from the Indian subcontinent, including beloved favorites and rising stars, who each highlight the beauty and necessity of a community center that everyone calls home.

Review

9.57/10 or 5/5

Characters-10

I loved the characters in this. I don’t read many stories in the anthology genre, but I am so glad I read this one. The kids in this story each had their personality and backstories, which I loved. The sense of community was strong with the characters in this book, and I loved how all the kids supported each other.

Writing-10

With anthologies, there are usually one or two stories that I call my favorites because of the writing, and how the writing fits in with the theme of the anthology. The Door Is Open: Stories of Celebration and Community by 11 Desi had great authors, and I loved each story. The writing styles were different, but they all made sense. The writing had a flow, so the reader could easily read from one story to another.

Plot-9

I loved the plots of all these stories. They were all so fun, and I loved how they all connected. The kids in one story interacted with other stories which I enjoyed. Each character in the story had a passion and something they were trying to do to make a change for the better. These were also stories of family, and I loved seeing the families in the community.

Enjoyment-10

I had so much fun reading this. I enjoyed the characters a lot, and I loved the sense of community this book had. I will read more from the authors.

Hena Khan writes books in a multitude of formats, including picture books, middle grade fiction, pick-your-path adventures, and graphic novels. Her stories are often centered around community, friendship, and family, and draw from her own experiences and culture. Hena’s novels include AMINA’S VOICE, MORE TO THE STORY, and DRAWING DEENA. She is the author of the Zayd Saleem Chasing the Dream, Zara’s Rules, and Super You! series. Hena’s picture books include GOLDEN DOMES AND SILVER LANTERNS, UNDER MY HIJAB, and IT’S RAMADAN, CURIOUS GEORGE, among others.

Website | Instagram | Goodreads

April 22nd
Boys’ Mom Reads! – Review

April 23rd
Sheaf & Ink – Promotional Post

April 24th
Paiges & Lalypops – Review

April 25th
Dana Loves Books – Review, Favorite Quotes
Paiges of Novels – Review

April 26th
Harper’s Court Literary Blog – Review

April 27th
Therearenobadbooks – Top 5 Reasons to Read The Door Is Open

April 28th
Teatime and Books – Promotional Post

April 22nd
whatkarinareads – Promotional Post
library_teacher – Promotional Post
readbytsar – Top 5 Reasons to Read The Door Is Open
aayureads – Review
froggyreadteach – Review

April 23rd
rickys_radical_reads – Promotional Post
sogladtoreadyou – Review
pagesforpaige – Review, Favorite Quotes
sheafandink – Content Creator’s Choice

April 24th
littlelibraryadventures – Promotional Post
debreadsalot – Review
thepagelady – Review
callistoscalling – Review, Favorite Quotes
paigesandlalypops – Content Creator’s Choice

April 25th
ychg_ – Promotional Post
onemused – Promotional Post
dana.loves.books – Content Creator’s Choice
paiges_of_novels – Content Creator’s Choice

April 26th
bookdemonio – Promotional Post
aneedleinmybookstack – Promotional Post
monikasbookblog – Review, TikTok
bookameme – Review, Favorite Quotes
courtharpers – Content Creator’s Choice

April 27th
ninebookishlives – Promotional Post
bookmarked.by.becky – Review
alexandriavwilliams_ – Review, Favorite Quotes
therearenobadbooks – Content Creator’s Choice

April 28th
tbrandbeyond – Promotional Post
shariva.writes – Review
dharashahauthor – Top 5 Reasons to Read The Door Is Open
acourtofspinesnpages – Review
avainbookland – Review, Favorite Quotes

Posted on by Steph-paigesofnovels · 3 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday-Spring TBR

Hi! After a week off, I’m back with Top Ten Tuesday. Jana hosts Top Ten Tuesday @https://www.thatartsyreadergirl.com/. Our love of lists brings this meme to you, and bringing the book blogging community together. Jana will post a prompt each week, and we readers will make our list based on that topic. This week, our topic is movies/TV shows that would make good books submitted by Sabrina @paperplanenomad I missed last week, so I’m sharing my spring TBR. Some books for each month but I Hope to read more than just what’s listed.

April

1- The Familiar-Leigh Bardugo-physical- Adult Historical Fantasy

2- A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal-audio-YA Historical Fantasy

3- Spirit Hunters by Ellen Oh-ebook-Middle Grade Horror

4- Girl Abroad by Elle Kennedy-physical-Adult Romance

May

5- The Other Woods by Justine Pucella Willaims-audiobook- Middle-Grade Fantasy

6- Truly Madly Deeply by Alexandria Bellefleur-physical-Adult Romance

7- Funny Story by Emily Henry-physical-Adult Romance

June

8- A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas-YA Fantasy Romance

9- Winter by Marissa Meyer- YA Sci-Fi

10- Boulevard of Dreams by Mandy Gonzalez

Posted on by Steph-paigesofnovels · 8 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday-Books I’m Worried I Might Not Love As Much the Second Time Around

Hi! After a break last week, I’m back with Top Ten Tuesday this week. Jana hosts Top Ten Tuesday @https://www.thatartsyreadergirl.com/. Our love of lists inspires this weekly meme, and bringing the book blogging community together. Jana will post a prompt each week, and we readers will make our list based on that prompt. This week’s topic is Books I’m Worried I Might Not Love as Much the Second Time Around.

Middle Grade

1- Shannon in the Spotlight

I love theater, and this book just git all the right notes for me. I will be rereading it this month because I can’t stop thinking about it.

2- From the Desk of Zoe Washington

This was my first real YA Mystery, and it was great. I do want to reread this book because I want to read the sequel, but I’m still worried I won’t love it as much as I did the first time.

Young Adult

3- Imogen Obviously

This book was a vibe. I felt for Imogen, and I loved most of the characters in this book. I don’t think it will have the charm the book had at first read.

4- Where You See Yourself

I don’t see many people talking about this book. I read this book last year and want to reread it at some point this year. I just hope the charm lives up to the first time upon second reading.

5- Love Letters For Joy

This was a surprise favorite read last year. I loved it and felt seen through some characters and the plot. I want to reread this book because I can’t stop thinking about it.

6- With The Fire on High

I read this book a few years ago on a whim and I loved it. I don’t think this book will have the same impact it had on the first read.

7- All My Rage

Oh boy, this book was a lot. I do want to reread it because I haven’t stopped thinking about it, and I might notice things in the book the second time. This is another book where I don’t think the impact will be the same as it was the first time.

8- The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue

I loved this book. This was my foray into Historical Romance, and ot was just really sweet. I need to reread the first two books to finish the series, and then probably will reread them all every few years. I’m just worried I won’t love the characters and the story as I did the first time.

9- The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy

The second book in the Montague Siblings series, and one of the first ones that explored Asexuality. As someone who uses that label now, this was a very important book for me. I don’t want to reread it because I don’t want to love this book less the second time around.

10- Tweet Cute

One of my first Enemies to Lovers! I loved this book and have put it on several TBRs. I do want to reread this and love it, but it’s another book that I hope doesn’t lose the charm of the first read.

Posted on by Steph-paigesofnovels · 1 Comment

Kira and the (Maybe) Space Princess-Blog Tour -Review & Favorite Quotes

About the Book

Genre: Middle Grade Graphic Novel
Publishing date: March 5th, 2024

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound

Synopsis:

Fashionable fights, flashy attacks, and friends that are out of this world! This wacky and funny graphic novel series is a love letter to manga fans. With a tongue in cheek humor and delightfully fun action scenes, this series is perfect for fans of Sailor Moon , Cardcaptor Sakura , and Katie the Catsitter .

There’s nothing cooler than Magical Girls – pretty superheroes fighting villains with the power of friendship and glitter? What could be better than that! This year in middle school, Kira is going to be cool and popular and have SO many friends because she’s going to be a MAGICAL GIRL! …Or not.

Frustrated beyond belief, Kira makes a wish on a shooting star that her life will change – and when Catacorn, a cat-unicorn-space-princess, crashes into Kira’s backyard, it seems her wish has come true…kinda…maybe… Oh no. Is Kira’s dream of being a Magical Girl really possible…or is Catacorn not really what she promises to be?

Favorite Quotes

Space empires on the lookout for new acquisitions take note

She’s so cool… She’s totally a magical girl now. 

I’m what they call a space princess!

I want to believe you, but you’re making it really hard to feel like I’m really your friend.

Review

8.29/10 or 4.5/5

Characters-8

The characters in this book were great. I enjoyed Kira for the most part, and I appreciated her journey in this book. Catacorn was a gem and was the best character in this book for me. Tulip was also a great character, and I loved her fairy vibes. The villain in this story was fun, but i wish we could have seen more from her as a character. 

Atmosphere-9

The atmosphere in his book was great. I liked the sci-fi vibes. I’m not much of a Sci-Fi reader, but the art and the characters in this book made Sci-Fi digestible for someone who doesn’t read many space stories. 

Writing-9

I enjoyed the fun writing style in this book. Kira and the Maybe Space Princess was a graphic novel that relied a lot on the story, and how the characters interacted with each other. I loved how the art worked well with the story. 

Plot-8

I felt like this was a relatable story to middle schoolers. Kira has things she deals with, and like  every other kid her age, she is trying to be the best she can. Catacorn both as a character, and the story arc was great. The friendship vibes of this book were great, and I loved how Kira and Tulip came together in the end. Kira goes on a journey in this book, and she learns about herself and others around her at the end of this book. 

Intrigue-8

This was an interesting story. I was kept engaged for the most part, but especially once the story got going. 

Logic-8

I’m hoping that some of the logic in this story will be explained in later books. It didn’t make sense to me how Kia and Tulip were chosen for their jobs. Also, the story with catacorn didn’t make much sense to me either. 

Enjoyment-8

Overall, this was an enjoyable vibe. I liked the characters in the story, and the plot was fun. 

About The Author

Megan Brennan is an indie comics sweetheart who has been publishing zines for years. She has also worked on the production side of comics on books like DRAMA, AMULET, and THE ADVENTURE ZONE: HERE BE GERBLINS. This is her debut graphic novel.

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

March 4th
Therearenobadbooks – Review

March 5th
Twirling Book Princess – 15 Reactions While Reading Kira and the (Maybe) Space Princess

March 6th
PopTheButterfly Reads – Promotional Post

March 7th
Confessions of a YA Reader – Promotional Post

March 8th
Jen Jen Reviews – Review

March 9th
Stuck in Fiction – Promotional Post

March 10th
Paiges of Novels – Review, Favorite Quotes

March 4th
dharashahauthor – Top 5 Reasons to Read Kira and the (Maybe) Space Princess
library_teacher – Review
therearenobadbooks – Content Creator’s Choice

March 5th
ychg_ – Review, Favorite Quotes
callistoscalling – Top 5 Reasons to Read Kira and the (Maybe) Space Princess, Mood Board
avainbookland – Review, Favorite Quotes

March 6th
ablueboxfullofbooks – Creative Post: Little Free Library Drop, TikTok
_believeinyourshelf – Review
popthebutterfly – Content Creator’s Choice

March 7th
nissa_the.bookworm – Review
bookameme – Review, Favorite Quotes
artxsouls – Review, Favorite Quotes

March 8th
bookdemonio – Promotional Post
booking.with.janelle – Promotional Post
jenjenreviews – Content Creator’s Choice

March 9th
ninebookishlives – Promotional Post
pawsitivelybookish – Review, Mood Board
morningstarlitpages – Top 5 Reasons to Read Kira and the (Maybe) Space Princess, Mood Board

March 10th
tbrandbeyond – Promotional Post
enthuse_reader – Review, TikTok
paiges_of_novels – Content Creator’s Choice

Posted on by Steph-paigesofnovels · 3 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday-Covers/Titles with Things Found in Nature (covers/titles with things like trees, flowers, animals, forests, bodies of water, etc. on/in them)

Hi! Jana hosts Top Ten Tuesday @https://www.thatartsyreadergirl.com/. This weekly meme is inspired by our love of lists and bringing the book blogging community together. Each week, Jana will post a prompt, and we readers will make our list based on that prompt. We also have the option of doing our own thing. This week, our topic is Covers/Titles with Things Found in Nature (covers/titles with things like trees, flowers, animals, forests, bodies of water, etc. on/in them) submitted by jessica-agreatread.

1- Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia For Faeries

2- A Court of Thorns and Roses

3- Six of Crows

4- In The Weeds

5-Turtles All The Way Down

6-Last Tale of the Flower Bride

7-Lost in the Never Woods

8-The Moth Keeper

9-The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea

10-The Secret Garden

Posted on by Steph-paigesofnovels

In The Weeds by B.K. Borison Review

Hi! I’m going to try to review the books I enjoyed on my blog this year. I love talking about my favorite books and getting recs for similar books. First, I thought I’d review my favorite book of the year so far.

Review

Read from: 1/2/24-1/22-24

Format: Audio

Loved loved loved this one 9.86/10. I love one grumpy farmer cat dad and his sunshine social media influencer girlfriend.

Characters-10

I loved Evie and Beckett. We met them in Book 1, but I loved seeing their story unfold. I thought they matched each other perfectly in terms of personality. We also have appearances from the characters from Book 1, and I loved seeing them again. Evie as a character was definitely relatable, and I saw some elements of myself in her.

Atmosphere-10

I’m here for the small-town vibes of this series. I love the small-town stores and the phone tree. I grew up in a similar town, and this series really has the small town vibes I love.

Writing-10

I’m rating the audiobook a 10. I loved the duel POV, both narrators did a fantastic job with the audiobook. The dialogue is witty and heartfelt. The book is a romantic comedy, and overall, it’s a happy book which I love!

Plot-10

I haven’t noticed the tropes in the romances I read until recently. I loved the plot of this small town-second chance romance, and I want to find more like it. The story was perfect because we saw how the characters were feeling and how the two of them grew throughout the story. I loved the small and big moments of their love story.

Intrigue-9
I was interested in the story. Because of spoiler reasons, I don’t want to say why I docked a number for the intrigue of this story.

Logic-10

This was a logical story. The characters communicate most of their feelings and reasons for their actions. All the plot beats in this story made sense to me.

Enjoyment-10

I loved this story. I loved the characters, the plot, the writing, the setting, the cats, and how everything worked so well for me. If you like small-town romances, check out this story.

Posted on by Steph-paigesofnovels · 15 Comments

Top Twenty One (Ten) Tuesday-Favortie Books of 2023

Hi! I’ve been gone for a few weeks, and I wanted to share more than my top ten for today’s TTT. Jana hosts Top Ten Tuesday @thatartsyreadergirl. This meme is inspired by our love of lists, and bringing the book blogging community together. Jana will post a prompt each week, and we readers will post our list based on that prompt. We can also do our own thing if we don’t have any ideas for the topic. This week, our topic is the top ten reads of the year. As I said at the top of this post, I added some of my favorite reads.

YA

1- The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Deya Muniz-Graphic Novel

2- Reggie & Delilah’s Year of Falling by Elise Bryant-Contemporary

3- Legendborn by Tracy Deonn-Magical Realism

4-Gwen & Art Are Not In Love by Lex Croucher-Historical

5-Imogen Obviously by Becky Albertalli-Contemporary

6- Where You See Yourself by Claire Forrest-Contemporary

Adult

7- Iris Kelly Doesn’t Date by Ashley Herring Blake-Contemporary

8- Lovelight Farms by B.K. Borison-Contemporary

9- For Never & Always by Helena Greer-Contemporary

Middle Grade

10-Shannon in the Spotlight by Kalena Miller-Contemporary

Middle Grade

11- Dungeon Club Role Cal by Molly Knox Ostertag-Graphic Novel

YA

12-Going Bicoastal by Dahlia Adler-Contemporary

13- Love Letters for Joy by Melissa See-Contemporary

14-Mooncakes by Suzanne Walker-Graphic Novel

15- Out of Character by Jenna Miller-Contemporary

17- Begin Again by Emma Lord-Contemporary

Adult

18- Kiss Her Once for Me by Alison Conchrun-Contemporary

19- Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree-Fantasy

20- Nettle & Bone by T Kingfisher-Fantasy

21- Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas-Fantasy

Posted on by Steph-paigesofnovels

General Blog Update- National Novel Writing Month

Hello! As you may have noticed, the blog has not been as active this month. The reason is that during National Novel Writing Month; I focus on a Fiction Story, and Fanfic when I’m in the mood for a fanfic.  I wanted to take this time to tell you about the story I’m working on this month. I’m calling the project It’s a Family Thing, and it’s a YA Story about three sisters: Imogen-18, Cass/Cassie-15 (turning 16 throughout the story), and Phoebe-Cass’s twin-15 who turns 16 throughout the story. Each of the sisters had an element of me: Imogen is interested in books, and runs a blog. Cass is a theater kid, and writing her character is really bringing me back to when I was in high school, and heavily involved with theater and choir. Phoebe is interested in a lot of things and is in many clubs, but my plan is to lean heavily into DND and Table role-playing, along with video games in general which I have really grown to love over the last few years. These elements in the story are fun, and I’m very much enjoying this story. As of writing this post, the project word count is 11,360 out of 50,000. This is the most passion I’ve had for a project in the last few years of doing National Novel Writing Month. This was a story that I did base planning for, but I still left it open to writing a lot of the scenes with no plans,  which is how I prefer writing. 

When I’m not working on my YA project, I’m working on Fanfiction. I have a few projects on the go right now. If you’ve been around this blog for a while, you know that I’m a big fan of Critical Role, and those characters are my inspiration for stories. I have an AU of Six Times We Almost Kissed, and One Time We Did with Beau and Yasha from Campaign Two, and an AU with characters from Campaign Three.

Posted on by Steph-paigesofnovels · 1 Comment

Wild Wishes and Windswept Kisses by Maya Prasad-Blog Tour-Five Reasons to read Wild Wishes and Windswept Kisses

About the Book

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Publishing date: October 17th, 2023

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound

Rep: Indian American

Synopsis:

How much can change in a day? Nidhi, Avani, Sirisha, and Rani are about to find out in this follow-up to Drizzle, Dreams, and Lovestruck Things.

The Songbird Inn has always been the perfect home. No one knows that better than the Singh sisters. Nidhi, Avani, Sirisha, and Rani have been lovestruck and heartbroken and everything in between, all at their dad’s cozy bed-and-breakfast. And today the whole Singh family will support aspiring filmmaker Rani in her first film festival—if only they can make it through the windstorm ravaging the Pacific Northwest.

After spending the last few months in India, Nidhi is coming back to Orcas Island, and she can’t wait to see her sisters again! But thanks to a series of weather-induced travel delays, she finds herself struggling to make her way home—beside none other than her sort-of ex, Grayson. Will an old flame spark to life once again?

Avani can’t decide what she wants from her future. What college, what major, what career—it’s all so stressful! The only thing she’s sure about is Fernando, but lately, things between them have been anything but smooth. Will they manage to save their relationship? And how will she ever decide what to do with her life?

Sirisha is trying to overcome her first heartbreak after her romance with Brie has fizzled out. But it’s not easy—especially when your ex wants to be friends and everyone acts like they’ve got you all figured out. Sirisha’s ready for a change. Will she be able to break out of her shell?

Rani has the perfect relationship with her boyfriend, Raj. And she won’t let anyone forget it! That’s why her short film for the festival is all about their epic love story, one that transcends time and space. But when filmmaking stress reveals cracks beneath the surface, how will Rani respond?

Relationships fall apart and come together. But through it all, there’s one thing the Singhs can count on: their family will always be there for each other.

Five Reasons to Read Wildwishes and Windswept Kisses

Rating:4.5/5 or 8.43/10  

1- The character’s personalities and hobbies 

Wild Wishes and Windswept Kisses follows four sisters, and each of the sisters has a role to play in the family dynamic. Nidhi is the oldest sibling and the one who wants to protect her sisters, be out on her own, and learn more about her culture. Nidhi had many plans, and she has the drive and ambition to achieve them. Avani is the second oldest, and trying to make things better with her boyfriend, while also trying to figure out what she wants to do with her life. Avani enjoys dance, and she has several clubs she was in during school. Rani is Avani’s twin and the artistic creative one of the sisters. She enters a short film contest and tries to win a chance to meet her favorite director. Sirisha was the youngest, and someone who was still getting over an ex. 

2- The setting of Orcas Island 

I loved the setting of Orcas Island. Wild Wishes and Windswept was set in a small town where you needed to go to the ferry to get to the mainland. The town seemed so quaint, and I wanted to vacation there just to see the different places. The Inn also seemed like a lovely place to hang out. 

3- The relationship between the family 

The family, specifically the relationship between the sisters, made me want to keep reading the book. The Sisters had a love for each other, and I loved how they all interacted with each other. No matter what the sisters were going through personally, if another sister needed them, they would be there for her. There were also moments in the story when the sisters would help each other, and I loved that.  

4- The Representation 

All four sisters were of Indian descent, and I loved seeing them shine in this story. There were supporting characters with multiple cultures that I loved seeing. Sirisha was a women-loving women, and I loved seeing someone like her in a book, especially someone who was still in high school. 

5- The Friendships 

 Each of the girls had a crew of friends that was with them, and I enjoyed the interactions between the groups. Rani has her cast, and I loved seeing how they all interacted and helped each other. Sirisha has the people at the party, and they are fun to read about. Nidhi meets several people who become her friends and help her journey getting home. 

About Maya Prasad

Maya Prasad is a South Asian American writer, a Caltech graduate, and a former software engineer. She currently resides in the Pacific Northwest, where she enjoys hiking, kayaking, and raising her budding bookworm kiddo.

Her YA debut Drizzle, Dreams, and Lovestruck Things is a Children’s Book Council Young Adult and Librarian Favorite of 2023. Sejal Sinha Battles Superstorms is the first in her new STEM chapter book series. Maya has also had short fiction published in Foreshadow: Stories to Celebrate the Magic of Reading and Writing YA, Cast of Wonders, and Voyage YA. She’s passionate about creating joyful representation for kids and teens. 

Website | | Instagram | Goodreads | TikTok