Bookmarks and Popcorns

Genre:  Chick-lit Author:  Lauren Weisberger Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ “Oh, don't be silly - EVERYONE wants this. Everyone wants to be us ” I don’t know about you, but I feel this book created and pushed a lot of standards (not necessarily all good). The Devil Wears Prada is a book about Andrea Sachs and the witty way by which she navigated herself through a highly dangerous career in an explosively dynamic field. Andrea Sachs is a quiet, no-drama English Graduate who is looking for an editorial job in the magazine industry in New York City. But the odds are not in her favor as she gets a job as a junior assistant for the Editor-in-chief, Miranda Priestly, in one of the fashion magazines – Runway. For someone who wears minimal make-up and has a low fashion sense, Andrea struggles in her new job, only initially. She learns things soon enough. Inspite of solid competition and an unappreciative boss, she learns to rise into recognition. But what after that? She also has a troublemaker for a ...

Genre:  Mystery, drama, thriller Author:  Sidney Sheldon Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ ⭐⭐ “ Business is a game, played for fantastic stakes, and you’re in competition with experts. If you want to win, you have to learn to be a master of the game ” I always knew how big an author Sidney Sheldon was. But as a teen, I was not supposed to read his books. You know… Because of the adult content. So like any other good teenager, I read his books in secrecy. And this book was my first act of reading-stealth (I know that’s not a real term. But you know what I’m saying, right?). In short, if I were Ginny Weasley, this book would be Tom Riddle’s Diary that opened a Chamber of Secrets into Sidney Sheldon’s World. Master of the Game is a book about passion, business and family drama of the highest esteem. A story that talks of four generations of the McGregor/Blackwell family that dealt with diamond trading. Jamie McGregor, a diamond prospector, goes to South Africa on a quest for diamonds and rises to powe...

  Genre:  Mystery, Drama Author:  Shivani Malhotra Before I proceed with the book review, I would like to apologise to the author, Shivani Malhotra, for the late submission. The delay was due to some personal reasons. I am terribly sorry. Content Warning: The book contains sensitive content. If you are someone who’s going through emotional or mental trauma, read the book after you feel like you are ready to pick it up. Acquainting with someone is no big deal. An acquaintance with trust is what makes a bond. Trust seals belief, safety and comfort. But when that trust in someone significant breaks down, will one break along? Letters from a Dead Girl is a story about the mystery behind the death of Simran, a smart and bold college student. To puzzle things out more, after her death, Simran’s friends and family receive letters from her. Determined to solve the mystery, Simran’s brother takes every step to uncovering the truth. The answer to the question: Was it really a suici...

Genre: Romance Author: Rohit Sharma Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ “The truth is, everyone, no matter how rich or poor he is, is skirmishing with this battle called life. Whether we win it or lose it, depends upon if we surrender, or we stay strong and positive.” Love is something that means different things to different people. But no, it is not an illusion. Love, to me, is magic. It has the power and force that science cannot explain. Power and force to create, destroy, survive, and thrive. It could be your dream or your nightmare or mere sight. What is it to you, is up to you to decide. Moving on from that serious intro, tell me, have you ever wished for the beads of your dupatta to get caught in some guy’s watch or bracelet? Have you wondered why you have never bumped into a guy and let your books fall so that you both could pick them up in slow motion? Yeah, I know da. Me too! Well, here’s a story that made me wonder why I hadn’t tried the Titanic Suicide scene yet. (Jk. I did not wonder t...

  Genre: Coming of age, Romance Author: Debashrita Manik Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ I know I have given a rating of 3 stars. But it’s more 2.5ish. “Accept the things to which fate binds you and love the people with whom fate brings you together, but do so with all your heart.” - Marcus Aurelius This is a quote I came across on Pinterest while I was searching for a quote on Fate. And I really liked this one, and it seemed the perfect fit for the book The Fate I Cherished. The Fate I cherished is the debut book of author  Debashrita Manik.  The book tells the story of Pihu – a girl from Cuttack, Odisha, who has the perfect husband and a settled life. Pihu has recently launched her debut book. She feels delighted and blessed for everything she has, except for one thing. She constantly misses her best friend who had left her. Who is this best friend? Why did she leave Pihu? Was Pihu’s life always this perfect? Pihu had a lot of plans for her life along with her best friend. But ...

  Genre: Crime fiction Author: Chetan Bhagat Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ “Love seemed elusive to us, but we had something else. We had friendship, which in many ways is even more beautiful than love.” I know I have given a rating of 3 stars. But it’s more 2.5ish. Okay. I have this book because my friend gifted it to me. And he gifted it to me because I asked him to. You have to understand that I was a huge fan of Chetan Bhagat as a teenager. I had developed a habit of reading his books ASAP. Song: Dharala Prabhu Title Track (by Anirudh Ravichander) Now I am finding it hard to get rid of this habit. You know it’s unfair how an author starts disappointing you more and more  after you have fully become his fan. It’s not fair because when you become someone’s fan, there is this inbuilt loyalty in your adorations for that person’s work. And loyalties are hard to ditch just like that. Okay, enough with my whining. Let’s jump to the business. One Arranged Murder is a story of 2 detecti...

  Genre: Fiction, Romantic comedy Author: Siddarth Raj Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ “Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind, And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.” – Helena, A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Almost everyone who goes to college for the first time will have a mind prepared for crushes and proposals, for love and heartbreaks. Not everyone will find love but the ones who do will assume it to be everything. After all, this could be the one, right?! Never Date a Senior Girl is a book I won in a Giveaway. I was very excited to read it, for the concept was unique and it was the first giveaway that I had won. When at last I started to read the book, 10 pages later, I was no more an adult. Instead, I was the 14-year-old girl who had run to the library after discovering Chetan Bhagat and Durjoy Dutta, and picked every Indian Author’s romantic comedy books one by one because of the mere surprise that Indian authors could write so well and loving the way the stories and people...

  Genre: Gothic fiction, romance, tragedy Author: Emily Brontë Rating:  Read the disclaimer Disclaimer: This is not a review. Rather consider this a discussion. Yet, it might contain the storyline because I feel not many have read Wuthering Heights, merely because it’s not being spoken about much. I always wanted to read Wuthering Heights because of the contrast in people’s opinions about this. This mainly tingled my curiosity when I noticed some people who normally liked romance novels hated this book, in spite of it majorly being a romantic novel. Initial part of the book, left me wanting more because this is the first Gothic Classic I read. But after finishing the book, I closed it and stared at it for a while, saying nothing, thinking nothing. Lockwood is a new tenant at Thrushcross Grange. He visits his landlord, Heathcliff, at Wuthering Heights where he meets some unwelcome, incongruous people. He stays there that night only to be frightened by a ghostly presence...

Genre: Historical fiction Author: Uday Singh Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ “I don’t want to be one of the majority that don’t seem to care about others. I don’t want to be adding to the problem; I want to be a part of a solution.” India, being the most populous democracy with the coexistence of various cultures, faces many questions and problems that arise day by day in large numbers. This book takes aim at a problem and answers many questions. Pokhran is the story of Chaintanya who was born a few months after the Smiling Buddha nuclear test held in the underground of a remote village in Rajasthan named Pokhran. The test was a success, but at a cost paid by the people of Pokhran is left unattended. Chaitanya is born disabled. Taken care by a loving sister and a stern father, Chaitanya goes through a lot at a very young age. Lost innocence and blood-bound passion are things hard to change. When his father is killed for trying to uncover the nuclear fallout to the world, Chaitanya is forced to ...

  Genre: Psychological Fiction Author: Anna Burns Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Another book of which I could not ascertain or classify the genre and had to Google it. The genre suggested is also not something I completely agree with.) All of us have a habit that makes us unique. That makes us stand alone. Not a habit that many or anyone else has. A habit that is not offensive or bothering anyone in any way. Just you and your harmless habit. Imagine being judged by that habit. Imagine being judged, categorized, classified, and objectified by the society merely because of that habit. Milkman is the story of a girl with such a habit. In a society where mundane is preferred over an interesting lifestyle, lives the protagonist, an 18-year-old girl who is rumored to be in a relationship with Milkman who is twice as old as she. The rumor, being spread by her first brother-in-law, has tormenting and cascading consequences. Some of which, even prove to be fatal. Will she save herself from these ru...

  Genre: Novel of manners Author: Jane Austen Rating: Read the disclaimer Disclaimer: I should admit, I picked up Emma purely because of Pride and Prejudice. I did not write a review for Pride and Prejudice and so I was not sure if I should write a review – considering the fact that it is a classic. But I so badly wanted to rant about it. So here we go - A book discussion of Emma – NOT a book review. After reading the book, while drafting this, I was wondering what genre this book belonged to. Romance? No. Friendship? Nope. Comedy? Nah. Coming-of-age? No way. Drama? Not exactly. So I ended up Googling it and found a whole new genre whose existence I was clueless about – Novel of Manners. Emma is a novel about “youthful hubris and romantic misunderstandings” that “involves the relationships among people from a small number of families” is what Wikipedia says. I say Emma is a futuristic novel. Why, you ask? Let me explain the story and its relatability to the present. Emma ...

Genre: Romantic Comedy Author: Beth Reekles Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ I admit it. I read this book immediately after watching the movie. I thought this book would be my guilty pleasure just like how the movie was. Is that what I found? Books are usually better than the movies. Was this one? The Kissing Booth is the story of Roch”elle” Evans, Lee Flynn and Noah Flynn. Elle is a popular tom-boyish teen who has never been kissed (this point is given more importance for some reason). Lee is her best friend since childhood. Noah is the fiery, hot elder brother of Lee who excels in picking fights (and chicks), and in being an over-protective boyfriend. With this premise, even a person with no clue about this story could guess it right. Yes. Elle has a crush on Noah. Noah likes her too. They both date secretly. But Lee finds out. Mess. Easy problem, handled badly, is at last solved. Oh, wait. Another Mess. Possible problem handled badly is solved again, slowly. The END. 🌻 Although the plot is clic...