charvi_not_just_fiction's reviews
695 reviews

A few pages into this book and I already knew it was going to be a favourite. But this book literally changed something in me. Easily one of the best books I've ever read <3

I don't know how I'm supposed to review this???
This book is about books, coffee and a bookshop for sure but it's so much more than that. At its heart, this book is about our fast-paced lives and the self-reflection and human connections we need to survive and thrive. The Hyunam-Dong bookshop is a place where people come to borrow moments in time where they can take a breather, meet new people and find some peace.

Reading this book is like asking yourself a hundred questions but also so soothing and comforting at the same time. I've never annotated a book so hard and it's been so long since a book asked so much of me and moved me to reflect and contemplate on life. This is a 1000 times better than any self-help book out there. This book becomes your own personal safe place, just picking it up makes me feel lighter and the characters already feel like old friends I'd love to keep revisiting again and again.

If you pick up a book from my recommendations please please pick this one up <3

This is the first time I'm reading a graphic novel as an audiobook and wow, what an experience!
First off, the narrator and the entire production of this book were mindblowing! The sound effects, multiple narrators where needed and the music to dramatise or emphasise certain portions really gave heart to the narrative.

This is the story of Theo Parish and how they explored their life and identity while growing up and beyond. It was a very sweet and heart-touching story. I really resonated with some of the instances in the author's life and the way they wrote felt so lyrical and beautiful.

What a delight to read!

I hope to read the graphic novel someday because from what I can see the author does some gorgeous illustrations <3

When I heard ghost romance I was like nope. Love Ashley Poston but that sounds weird. Except my friends convinced me to give it a shot and wow, I apologise for questioning Ashley Poston.

She never misses???

How was this book this good? Not only do we get a lovely toe-curling romance with extreme pining cause one of them is literally a ghost but we also have some wonderful themes like grief, family, self-love and asking for help <3

I'm here for all the writer-editor tropes of course but the heart of the story lies in Florence and her family. I'm all here for messy families and figuring stuff out. Grieving, living life and remembering everything nice. 

Gosh this isn't a coherent review at all but this book will make you laugh, want to strangle certain characters, cry with the protagonist and then yearn for the romance as well <3
I'd actually hate for people not to read this book thinking it's just another romance because it's SO much more than romance! In fact I felt that this was more of a contemporary novel than romance, as in I loved the focus on our protagonist's other aspects of life and the romance just came in like the cherry on top.

Highly recommended from my side <3

Before I jump into the review, the blurb did this book dirty. This isn't a novel, but four interconnected short stories which the blurb conveniently skips out. Also the blurb is only for the first story? Make it make sense. I don't know who decided to market it like this but I was so confused listening to the audiobook. I could barely grasp onto the second story because it was such a sudden departure from the first and even the following stories. Apparently many other readers felt this way and agree that the second story is the weakest of the lot. 

Hence my experience was ruined a bit and the review is written keeping that in mind.

Terrace Story is a beautiful book and quite different from anything I've ever read. My words cannot do justice to the number of themes explored around family, space, the balance of loss and gain in life, loneliness, death and so much more. The author has a beautiful writing style which had me hooked from the beginning. I loved the first story and was thoroughly invested in the characters and their lives. It was a magical realism story about a terrace that doesn't exist and how the family of three plus Stephanie become truly happy in an imaginary space. But what happens when that space disappears and takes someone along with it?

The second story was an absolute blur to me. I remember it being just strange and talking about death and jealousy but I literally couldn't make head or tail of it. I almost dnfed it.

But the third story got us back on track by delving into the backstory of Stephanie, the girl who creates spaces. It was a touching exploration of what it means to be someone who can create so much space but doesn't have the pleasure of anyone to share it with. I love how this story explored the equilibrium of life and the consequences of Stephanie's power. We truly see the forces that shape this girl and dictate her decisions in the first story. In think the aftermath of the first story explored here was brilloiant and I especially loved reading about the idea of parallel worlds.

And lastly, we have the third story which takes a time skip and takes a turn towards sci-fi. It's more or less an interview held by Rosie, the daughter, of an old woman who hails from a parallel world applying to move to the suburbs. I dare not say that I was able to grasp all the intricacies of the worldbuilding here but I was on board for the most part and thought that it was quite a nice way to wrap up a couple loose ends and bring this collection to an end.

All in all, this is a piece of work unlike any I've ever read. It is definitely thought-rovoking and engaging and it's the perfect kind of book to re-read and annotate. Unfortunately the physical copy costs an arm and a half so that's not happening for me.

And a special shoutout to the audiobook narrator, they did a splendid job <3

I don't even know where to begin with this book.

I don't think I have the words to write a review but this book is absolutely magical and immersive. I loved exploring the world and the Amrithi culture and rituals alongside our protagonist Mehr. Mehr is such a teenager, I was often yelling at her for being reckless or showing that typical teenage bravado. But I absolutely loved her arc and the lessons the world taught her. The themes of sacrifice, racism and relationships lie at the core of this story and Tasha Suri executed them all brilliantly. I was screaming at the amount of torture our main characters had to go through but you know what, at least we get a happy ending. Also, I adore Amun. He's a precious cinnamon roll who needs to be showered with love. Amun and Mehr's relationship was quite interesting and I loved watching it bloom so beautifully. 

Also, hi, where's the line to stab the Maha a hundred times? I'd like to have a go thank you. He's an interesting villain and an absolutely vile person. 

This review is such random strands of thoughts but also shout out to the beautiful ritual dance descriptions, they felt so vivid! The author said that they were inspired by the Bharatnatyam dance style and oh my god I'm in love. I simply cannot wait to read the second book!

I blame Joan for writing mindblowing books that always leave me out of commission for a couple of days... review coming at some point

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"Honor is defending what you can't bear to lose. It's fighting for a family that can't help you."

Strike the Zither is a fascinating retelling of The Three Kingdoms that delves deep into politics, relationships and war. You don't need to read the original, (I certainly didn't and don't intend to) you'll still get a wonderful experience.

I absolutely adore Zephyr! She is such a different protagonist. Arrogant, confident, proud and sure of her abilities to manipulate others and the circumstances to get what she wants, which in this case is seeing Ren's victory. You'd think I'd get annoyed by her after some point but I was just in awe of her. When I say I was ready to worship her, I truly mean it.
Zephyr is dedicated to her lordess Ren who she sees as a sister and friend and will go to any lengths for her, even when Ren might not agree. It was so interesting to see the dynamics between Ren, Zephyr, Cloud and Lotus. I think Lotus was one of my favourites, her loud, boisterous and straightforward warrior personality is infectious and hard not to like. While Cloud might be less friendly, over the course of the story we see that she truly has her swornsisters' interests at heart and you can't help but like her for that. And then there's Ren, who wants to lead the others with compassion, honour and love. Literally, she's such a nice character sometimes I'm yelling at her to get the tiniest bit more ruthless because how else is one supposed to reach their goals in this cruel world?

Nobody does strategies and politics better than Joan He. As Ren's strategist, Zephyr plots to help her get a hold of the Southerlands and invade Miasma by staging a betrayal and pretending to join Miasma's side. Which is where she meets Crow, the only strategist who can really rival her. It was fascinating to see the mind games being played between the two and generally by Zephyr as she ruthlessly cuts everything and everyone who stands in her way, plotting and double-crossing throughout the narrative when needed. 

I'm holding back so much because like any typical book by Joan He, this one is filled with plot twists that will make you gasp and chuck the book to the other corner of the room. All I'll say is you simply won't be able to stop reading from Act 2 onwards. 

The writing is beautiful and lyrical, I love the poetry bridging the gaps between the acts and the descriptions of the zither and its music. Also, I totally see the hype behind Crow. He's such a gentleman and you can clearly tell he's gone for Zephyr which is why the slow-burn can really be excruciating sometimes.

So I don't know if this review was helpful in any way to make you decide to pick this book up but all I can say is this won't leave you disappointed. 
I love this book with all my heart and now that I finally have my review up I'm gonna go read the sequel :D

The only reason I picked this one up is because so many friends and mutuals raved about it and gosh, I'm glad I got to read it <3
Lately YA contemporary has been a hit or a miss and this was a definite hit. It was an absolute emotional rollercoaster centring around Yamilet who is a closeted lesbian who recently switched schools to keep her brother safe. It's just as well because her best friend at the old school outed her so she gets a fresh start here. But handling Catholic school, new crushes, protecting her brother, a lack of money at home and simply being herself might be too much for one girl.
I love Yamilet's personality, it shone through the book. Her relationships with her brother, mother and Bo were rocky and complex but wonderful to read about.
I don't want to say too much about this book because I don't want to spoil anything but just know you'll need the tissues, I was crying at so many points!

Linwood Barclay never disappoints, he always has me hooked!
While I didn't read the others in the Promise Fall series (you don't need to either), I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It might be because I had read at least one other book set in Promise Falls but I was able to keep track of the characters and plotlines.

I love the way Barclay writes his characters and weaves multiple stories into the main plot. It's often hard to tell what might happen and while I had some guesses, I was still left shocked multiple times. The mystery in itself is engaging and fascinating as is the history of the town but I also liked how it explored the impact of social media, vigilante justice and the psychological conditions of young people who are framed as criminals. I won't go into any details to further maintain the suspense but I really flew through this book.

My only complaint is that the ending is so freaking abrupt! I get the intention and even though I was screaming at the choice my contention is that yes we got our answers but it felt like the book literally ended mid-paragraph.
Oh well, here's hoping it won't keep me up at night!

I did enjoy this more than the last one and thank goodness for that.
It was an adorable story and I loved getting to know Eve Brown! She's such a talented girlie who believes she's not good at anything? Who let her confidence down like that, I'm asking for punching purposes.

Jacob was a great character as well, and really fun to get to know. Together their banter and interactions had me cracking up! It was very amusing and then simply adorable to watch them get together. The romance was great and I'm glad that the third act was slightly different than the usual breakup and was better written than certain other romances. All in all, I loved having the audiobook in the background as I went about my day :D

I love Adam's artwork!
The comics were funny and relatable, and overall an enjoyable read.