Dystopia by Manoj Jain
Published by The Write Place Genres: Fiction
Pages: 146
Format: Paperback
Goodreads

With a peculiar cover Manoj Jain, this is his 5th book release. I have read some of his work in the past and has expressed my views accordingly. I am on a firm belief that writer Manoj Jain’s work is mostly targeted to the length of a novella, he is definitely trying to accomplish something there.

The storyline of his latest novel revolves around the peculiar nature of a child and their parents. The theme of this novella is everything related to a childhood. The pain of growing up, teenage angst, role identities, and parenting. A spirit is constantly present guiding these children and oversees their journey in the beautiful fantasy land of Shambala, a kingdom where children start their travels and are protected and taken care of.

These children continue their journey, skipping along the path till they reach a dark forbidding gate, which like some powerful vacuum sucks them inside and into the next kingdom of Dystopia. The plot starts around the reunion of five friends where they recall the past wounds and a memory to resolve why a young girl had to kill herself at the age of eighteen.

The writing style is up to the mark here. What I liked about this whole storyline is how the author has used the spirit of Dystopia as an expression that closely resembles a parent as an adult who guides a child during their from the young age to their teenage years and helps them to emerge as adults. As a reader, one can clearly observe the psychology from this end. Next, the thing I like about this novella is how Manoj Jain engages a reader like me in his twisting and turning of the storyline.

I read this book in one go and I am sure you will enjoy reading it to. If you are a parent, this might turn on an internal debate with your subconscious mind for the good or the bad but beware, that the message this novella wants to spread, must be taken seriously.

4 out of 5!

The post #BookReview: Dystopia by Manoj Jain appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

One of the hardest thing about blogging is consistently writing and publish blog posts and for that, you have to keep coming up with the ideas. Often times, I find myself blank when thinking or writing a blog post that is not a book review. I haven’t posted a non-book in a while.

So I thought, I’d try to help others who might find themselves in the same situation as of me. Below in this post, I compile a list of 10 (ten) ideas for possible blog posts for a book blogger. It follows a pattern of ten days in which you have to consistently write. Does not matter that you post them one after the other, I do not want to interrupt your blogging schedule.

To complete this challenge all you have to do is for next at least draft these topics I mentioning. I do hope after going through the list, you will become a blog post idea generating machine.

Day One: [Book Haul/Currently Reading/Recently Read/Weekend Reading/Bookstagram #xxx]

Post pictures of your shelves, books, kindles or the one you are recently bought and cannot wait to read.

Day Two: Discuss a character

I love writing in-depth posts. I also love reading in-depth posts about characters. A character can be good or bad, twisted or naive and you can tell this reader by spotlighting one.

In past, I have written a few posts like this. One is an essay I wrote a few years back on one of my favorite Scottish detective John Rebus.

Day Three: Tell The Story Of How You Loved Reading Books

Everyone has a story about how they fell in love with reading books and I (as your audience) am waiting to hear about yours.

See my post on the same topic!

Day Four: Book Cover Likes and Dislikes

I wanted to do this for a long time. Book covers can be a great asset to lure readers. But I have seen covers that have put me off even though that book is worth reading.

Day Five: Writing About Film/TV adaption of your favorite book

Or the one you have read. If you start writing this post, it will never be focused on or about only one book. You can build up a series of posts.

Day Six: Book Lists that are tied to a seasons and Holidays

This type of post is read by everyone. We all need books to add to our TBR or read it on an upcoming weekend/holiday.

Day Seven: Analyze Your Reading Year

Even though it been only nine months this year, you can write a post about analyzing how your reading year is going through. If you are on Goodreads, you can do it easily. Go to ‘My Books’ and then in the left corner there click ‘Reading Stats’ under the section ‘Your Reading Activity’.

• My Goodreads year 2017
• My Reader Profile Analysis which I recently posted with the help of BookSirens.com (for free)

Day Eight: Write about at least one blogging lesson

Share your experiences about blogging. What are you doing to keep your audience interested? What has changed or you put a lot of effort into learning from the point you started blogging up to now. Inspire others and give suggestions or advice. I often find Book Bloggers creative in this area.

Day Nine: Post an Author Interview/Book Blogger Interview

If you haven’t posted yet, this is the time. To complete this challenge, you will have to interview in whatever way you find suitable and post it.

Day Ten: What Genres You Do Not Like To Read?

In my opinion, this particular post will be great for your audience to read. You pick some genres that you do not read and tell them why.

Do you think you can complete this challenge?

These are the ten ideas I have come up initially but feel free to add or replace a post idea or two while doing the challenge.

Here is some swag for you to post/re-suse or spread the word about this challenge.

The Complete 10 Day Checklist

Download as pdf: 10-day-book-blogging-challenge

WINNER BADGES

WHEN You have completed the challenge successfully you can even brag about it by displaying the following badge in the colour of your choice:

Three more colours. All badges – Download

NOTE If you decide to the challenge, please post the link of your posts or the complete challenge below in comments and I will compile those links and spread the word for you. Inspire others!

You got inspired by this post and now you want to start a book blog? Let me help you. You can check out my ebook on Book Blogging which has tons of insights on how to get started and continuing building your book blog. A Blogger’s Manifesto is available on Amazon IN and US.

The post Ten Day Book Blog Posts Challenge #1 appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Caina by Joseph Albanese
Published by Mockingbird Lane Press on 05/07/2018
Genres: Fiction
Pages: 174
Goodreads

Caina is a dark comedy thriller, a light-hearted novel written by Joseph Albanese. The story revolves around two siblings who are born only a few minutes apart. One is highly successful, the other is attracted towards trouble. This opposite nature of two brothers seems like a yin yang situation is what this book about.

Lee Tolan attracts trouble wherever he goes. In debt to multiple gang members, Lee is given a second chance in life to pay back his dues. After not seeing his twin brother for more than a decade, Lee is forced to overcome this strange nature of their relationship only to find that Grant, his twin brother dead but leaves a fortune behind. Soon Lee realizes that to claim this fortune, he has to turn into his brother for the DEA and fight the mob cleverly and do save a little for himself. From this point starts a dark comical thriller of the chase, sympathy, friendship, and love. During these events, Lee learns a lot about his brother and his dark secrets.

The plot is well constructed due to the following reasons. There is a lot in the storyline going in 170 pages that keep the reader on the edge. With themes of dark comedy and crime, this novel is well suited to be read in a seating or two. The timing of the climax is on the mark. However, I did not see any subplot emerging from the shadows of the characters. A subplot could give a reader some breathing space and thinking time as to what will be the turning point. This book does not. As a reader, you keep following the series of events with a variety of characters.

The characterization in this novel is above par. Realistic enough to digest and well suited with the plot. I do like how novel starts and then from there the story builds up. The author does a great job of providing the background of the protagonist in the start. Though in between, I did lose interest due to same nature of events getting repeated. The multiple gang members due was not necessary in my opinion. One such occurrence could have been enough.

3.5! An entertaining read overall.

The post #BookReview: Caina by Joseph Albanese appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Sherlock's World: Fan Fiction and the Reimagining of BBC's Sherlock by Ann K. McClellan
Published by University Of Iowa Press on 15/11/2018
Genres: Nonfiction
Pages: 286
Format: ARC, eBook
Goodreads

Sherlock series by BBC set in contemporary London has one of the most mixed bag reviews I have ever heard from fans and non-fans of the original Sherlock Holmes books. Sherlock Holmes is still popular after making his first appearance in the print 130 years ago. It is one of the most fan-fictionalized characters. No other character from the literary world has been written about than Sherlock Holmes. So what makes Sherlock’s fanfic so popular?

Ann McClellan tries to answer this question in her latest book which consists of a series of essays. She tries to answer, even after 130 years of Sherlock Holmes, why are people so attracted to it? Sherlock’s fanfic does not end at the BBC’s remaking that stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes and Martin Freeman as Dr. John Watson and created by one Mark Gattis and Steven Moffat. After reading this book, it does seem that Sherlock as a series is a mere portion of the fandom. The more aggressive and a larger portion is available on the internet where the world of Sherlock is constantly rebuilt. It explores different characters, genres, settings, fictitious realities.

I was shocked to see people often think of Sherlock as a sex symbol and there is a huge collection of fanfic all over the internet that likes to talk about it. Heck, many fans even have re-imagined their wildest dreams of performing a relationship between Dr. Watson and the detective himself. Most essays are written in third person narrative. I do feel this book could have been a bit short. It is a perfect read for someone looking to write or explore Sherlockians world deeply but if you just want to be in the awe of the literary character, this book is not for you.

3.5 out of 5!

What is your fantasy about Sherlock Holmes? Or do you like the classic/original cast and do not want to fiddle with it since it is mind-boggling…?

The post BOOK REVIEW: Sherlock’s World: Fan Fiction and the Reimagining of BBC’s Sherlock by Ann K. McClellan appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Zen and the Art of Admin Tasks by Nic De Castro, Nathan Pettijohn
Published by Lioncrest Publishing on 27/06/2018
Genres: Nonfiction, Business, Entrepreneurship
Pages: 66
Format: eBook
Goodreads

In the world of hustle, we often forget how much time we lose instead of spending it in a useful manner. Time management is an actionable task if you run a startup or a micro business. If you are not managing your time wilfully, you are not only losing time but your energy too in performing mundane tasks. Think about the most mundane task you go through every day that unknowingly consumes a lot of time?

I am a remote worker and I spend a lot of my time reading and answering emails (not from my workmates). Emails in a modern world, consume a lot of our time. I often find myself reading emails on my laptop and if away from that, my mobile phone happily delivers them to me. Zen and the Art of Admin Tasks is a short book, mere 65 pages, about how to outsource these type of administrative tasks. It offers a system that if followed and maintained can add a lot of value to your time and save that energy. It is a tactical guide that might not interest everyone, but let me convince you to read it at least once.

Along with defining the situation by giving a real-life example of the major difference by managing these tasks on your own versus hire someone to manage your inbox, this book offers a variety of tools, mostly free. Written by Nic De Castro and Nathan Pettijohn, both of them are startup owners. They describe by hiring a virtual assistant how they were able to add more value to their personal and work life.

This book even the so short is about implementing the strategies defined in it ASAP. That is the idea both the co-authors want to convey. The writing style is simple and to the point. The tools and systems defined are pragmatic. Two of those tools, I have started using them. However, I do feel this book could have been a longer and tackled other issues for a modern-day hustler. I would have loved to hear about how Nic’s and Nathan’s manage and tackle different situations in their startup world. That zen could have been more descriptive.

3.5 out of 5!

The post BOOK REVIEW: Zen and the Art of Admin Tasks by Nic De Castro and Nathan Pettijohn appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Infin-Eight: Eight Principles for Infinite Professional Success by Prajeet Budhale
Published by Fingerprint! Publishing on 01/05/2018
Genres: Nonfiction, Business, Entrepreneurship, Self Help
Pages: 224
Format: Paperback
Goodreads

The post BOOK REVIEW: Infin-Eight by Prajeet Budhale appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Blurb

Pyjama Profit is a guide for millennials to get started with a self-sustained online freelance practice, while developing their skills needed to succeed. The book talks about in-demand online skills and the different paths one can take to become an expert in these fields. A stable income from freelancing in college was the bedrock that had allowed the authors to explore their ambitions further and get to where they are today. In the process, they’ve worked with many of their own batch mates, colleagues and friends to help them set up highly successful freelance careers.
The author duo decided to detail their story of what worked for them and how anyone in the country could thrive without being tied down to a full-time job. The authors feel the timing of the book is perfect because of the growing freelance economy and growing aspirations among millennials to find a job they love and not just something that pays their bills.

You can check more information about the book on Amazon.in.

Are you on Instagram?

It has been close to 6 months and I am getting hang of Instagram and use it as a bookstagram .

If you are on Instagram and like to share about each other’s books, leave your handler or link below in the comment and I will follow you.

The post Mini Book Haul Wednesday appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Keeping Up with Kaneda by Gaurav Kumar
Published by Sristhi on 01/11/2017
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary
Pages: 136
Format: Paperback
Goodreads

Keeping up with Kaneda is Gaurav Sharma’s debut in the world of fiction. It is a short novella, the published work being only 130 pages long.

The plot is about the author’s experience in Canada where he went as a student. Living in a different country that is not your native land can be an amazing experience but it does come with some hardships. These hardships are not speaking the native language, finding work, expenses and money, food, etc. To overcome these hardships, the narrator of the story picks on a few  part-time jobs in the process of residing there. Thus, the story tries to explore a deeper meaning in all these, a theme that few writers try to do in Indian literature.

The theme of the book comes with occasional humor. It is written in first person narrative style and uses a simple, curt language. I did not like the occasional “Hinglish”, not why it is there, but the context it has been put in. The reason I mentioned curtly is the in between the author shifts from narrating the story to a dialogue formation between two or three characters. This is rare to be seen in present-day fiction.

Speaking of characters, I think they are all well-formed. There is not much into that I can tell you without spoiling the rest of the novel. After reading it, I did realize that there are different layers to this novella, and if only it could have been written from a bit different perspective.

Recommended only for those who are looking for short fiction, novellas, or humor.

3 out of 5!

The post BOOK REVIEW: Keeping Up with Kaneda by Gaurav Kumar appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Flaming Forties by Giri Sharma
Published by Notionpress on 16/10/2017
Genres: Fiction, Travel
Pages: 80
Format: eBook
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads

Giri Sharma’s latest novella Flaming Forties: A Journey Which Changed Their Lives has a lively theme with all the modern elements one can think of. The book is based in Mumbai, India, where four childhood friends dwell together on a journey. The story of these four friends is an interesting reflection of life.

The plot starts with the journey to Manali and Shimla from Mumbai. All of the friends are in their forties and happily married or recently widowed. They are meeting after a long time and haven’t been in contact for 28 years. The plot covers two themes simultaneously and succeeds in doing so. These two themes, friendship, and marriage are rarely seen together in one book. The storyline is eventful with some twists in between.

The characterization in the novel is above par and I think since the length of the novella is only 80 pages, there isn’t enough time given for the characters to mature to the highest possible extent. Third person narrative voice is used in this novella to describe the events. It is written with simplicity. A better editing or a little expansion of the plot could have done better though. This book did feel too short to read. The themes, the thing I most adore about this book could have then been reflected more in depth but that might not be the intention of the author.

Nonetheless, if you are looking to read something short and crisp, something that you can read in one sitting, this is for you. I will be looking forward to more and a bigger (in length) work from Giri Sharma, the author.

3 out of 5!

The book is available on various platforms:


Amazon.in (print edition) :

https://goo.gl/oTmRLC
FLIPCART ( print edition) : https://goo.gl/ppPxrh
Kindle (e-book) : https://goo.gl/ekBYt2
Google play (e-book) :https://goo.gl/XAqFBf
Apple i-Books- ( e book ) : https://goo.gl/NZMhEv
USA- Amazon Kindle: https://goo.gl/mXb3w
UK- Amazon Kindle: https://goo.gl/Mqdhda

The post BOOK REVIEW: Flaming Forties by Giri Sharma appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.

Hi Readers !

I am currently looking for book lovers who are eager to grab to-be bestsellers or debut work of authors across the globe. To declutter any confusion, I have created two lists for you to join. First is Book Giveaway, for Indian residents only. The second is Ebook Giveaway, that anyone across the globe can join.

If you subscribe any of the list, you will only receive email from me when there is an offering of the book. Otherwise, there will be no email so I won’t be bothering you much . Subscribe to them if you a book blog account and wish to read and review a book.

The post Announcement: Book and Ebook Giveaway appeared first on Confessions of a Readaholic.