Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows: A Book Review

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows: A Book Review

I read Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows by Balli Kaur Jaswal before it took the book world by a storm. Ok not the book world, at least the book blogger community loved and everyone who read it raved it. But how did it fare on my scale? Let us get on to the review!

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About Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows

Widows

Book Name: Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows

Author: Balli Kaur Jaswal

Genre: Fiction – Romance, Drama

Characters: Nikki, Kulwinder, Jason, Mindi, Olive,

Setting: Southall, London, the UK

Plot Summary of Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows

Meet Nikki, a law school dropout, is trying to make her try at being independent after she finally got out of her over-bearing immigrant mother’s house. She tries to distance herself from her Sikh community, that is too traditional and sexist for her liking. Impetuously, she signs up to teach a Creative English course for the widows of her Punjabi community to earn some quick bucks.

A gross miscommunication leads to her teaching basic English to the lonely widows and most of them turn out to be illiterates. During the classes Nikki realizes these women are much more interested in oral story telling, especially erotic ones.

While the traditional Sikh community considers this as a scandalous act, especially for widows to be involved in, the women (with Nikki’s help) continue their lessons. They try and keep it a secret from the ‘Brotherhood’, a self appointed moral police team, who take it upon themselves to protect the virtue of the woman in their clan.

There is another much more interesting sub plot involving another younger woman who had ‘committed suicide’ after disagreeing with her husband’s way of living and was generally ‘too modern’.

Did the Brotherhood have a hand in her death? Does Nikki’s attempt to bring in empowerment to these widows through erotica meet with the same hatred? You will have to read the Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows on your own to find the answers.

Book review of Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows is one of the most ‘un-put-down-able’ book I read so far this year. I read through it fast and still couldn’t get to the last page quick enough. I needed to know the answers right then and there. But sensibility prevailed and I didn’t peek into the last page to find the answers. The writing was crisp and fast paced.

Yes there are some ‘erotic stories in them but they are written tastefully (is that correct word here?) and not cringe worthy at all. But if you do not wish to read them, you can skip them and it will not hinder the flow of the novel at all.

It has been a while since I loved the side characters and Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows has a bunch of well written and quirky characters.

While I didn’t like Nikki’s holier-than-thou attitude, I was able to relate to her at some point (or did I?) coming from a desi background and all. She reminded of the small sexist things that we do because our tradition demands it and how hapless women who can’t and won’t fight against them are.

Also I was reminded me of the BBC’s sitcom ‘Citizen Khan’ and I am definitely gonna watch them again in a bit.

What worked for me

  • I loved the narrative pace and it kept me on my toes until the end. Truly un-put-downable!
  • Kudos to the author in keeping the erotic stories in taste and yet interesting.
  • I loved the well written and memorable characters.

What may have been better

  • I felt Nikki was a bit annoying and judgmental, at least in the beginning.

Bottom line

If you are looking for something light and funny, or something that might make think about thoughtful or erotic, Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows will fit your bill either way. The book is funny. It is fast paced. It talks about woman empowerment. It has it all. Read it already, I say.

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Have you Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows by Balli Kaur Jaswal? Do you like books that might hit a little close to your home? What was the most unputdownable book you read this year? Let me know. We should dish!

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows: A Book Review

Book Review: Waking Isabella

You all know how am kinda obsessed about reading books set in different countries currently. Though I do not explicitly search for them I am paying attention to the locations these days.

I think it is partly due to the fact that I am re-learning the forgotten geography and partly because of the new series, Flyaway Friday, in my blog. So when I had the opportunity to review Waking Isabella, that is set in Italy I grabbed it with both hands. How did it turn out for me? Read on.

About the book

Waking Isabella

Book Name: Waking Isabella

Author: Melissa Muldoon

Genre: Fiction – History Drama

Characters: Leonora (Nora), Isabella, Gianluca Donati, Margherita,

Setting: Italy

Disclaimer: Thanks to the Author and iRead Book Tours for the Review Copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Plot

The story begins with the murder of Isabella de Medici, an Italian princess in the 16th Century. We then read about the protagonist Leonora (Nora), a young researcher (a glorified fact checker, as she calls) who is recovering from a failed marriage and focusing on her passion finally. Nora reconnects with an old friend which ignites to return to Italy;. She packs her bags to Italy to film a documentary on Isabella, the renaissance princess with whom she has a special bond.

She meets Luca, an antique businessman who tells her about a missing antique painting that belonged to his family of the princess Isabella and her mother. The story now deals with a young girl Margherita, Lucas grandmother, who smuggled antique paintings from the country during the World War II. How these three women are connected and does Nora find the missing painting form the rest of the story.

My thoughts

Waking Isabella is clearly an output of sheer hard work in terms of research and writing. One can understand how much effort has been put in by the author to bring about a sense of authenticity to the art and history world.

Waking Isabella may be tad difficult to get into, but if you want to cherish the language and to learn more about Italy and the art world it would be worth it. I liked how the author’s writing style changed between the historic and the contemporary worlds, ie, between the stories of Isabella and Margherita, and that of Nora.

I liked and felt invested in Margherita’s story and maybe even Isabella’s, but I never felt the same with Nora’s. There are a few Italian sentences sprinkled in between during thedialogues, though they were not as intruding as I would feel generally. In fact it is one of my pet peeve finding vernacular languages in between the English prose. You might have to watch out if you are the same.

Bottom – line

On the whole, Waking Isabella is a story of lost love, betrayal and some newfound love and friendships in the background of art and history. If you are interested in reading a story based on Italian history and art with a bit of mystery element, you should pick Waking Isabella. 

Meet the Author

Waking Isabella

Melissa Muldoon is the Studentessa Matta—the crazy linguist! In Italian, “matta” means “crazy” or “impassioned.” Melissa has a B.A. in fine arts, art history and European history from Knox College, a liberal arts college in Galesburg, Illinois, as well as a master’s degree in art history from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. She has also studied painting and art history in Florence.

Melissa promotes the study of Italian language and culture through her dual-language blog, Studentessa Matta (studentessamatta.com). Melissa began the Matta blog to improve her command of the language and to connect with other language learners. It has since grown to include a podcast, “Tutti Matti per l’Italiano,” and the Studentessa Matta YouTube channel. Melissa also created Matta Italian Language Immersion Tours, which she co-leads with Italian partners in Italy.

Waking Isabella is Melissa’s second novel and follows Dreaming Sophia, published in 2016. In this new novel about Italy, the reader is taken on another art history adventure, inspired by Melissa’s experiences living and traveling in Italy, specifically Arezzo, as well as her familiarity with the language and art. For more information about Waking Isabella and links to Melissa’s blogs and social media sites, visit www.MelissaMuldoon.com.

Connect with Melissa: Website ~ Twitter ~  Facebook ~ Pinterest ~ Instagram ~ Youtube

Giveaway:​

Prizes: ​ Win a paperback copy of Waking Isabella. One winner will also receive a $10 Amazon gift card (3 winners total / open internationally to wherever Amazon delivers)
(Ends March 31, 2018)

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Have you read a book set in Italy? Do you like books that are difficult to get in? How long you persist before you give a book up? Let us chat.

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows: A Book Review

Book review: Degrees of Love

What more would you want when everyone thinks you seem to have it all? Degrees of Love is a women’s fiction that follows the life of Susan Sinclair and her journey into self-discovery after spending almost a decade and a half trying to be there for her family and proving she could do it all. Did she really have it all? Read ahead to know more.

About the book

Degrees of Love

Book Name: Degrees of Love

Author: Lisa Slabach

Genre: Fiction – Drama

Characters: Susan and Matt Sinclair, Reese Kirkpatrick

Setting: California, The USA

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of the book from iReads book tours.

Plot

Susan, a devoted mother of two, is smart, successful and creative and just been promoted to the senior vice president. She doesn’t regret that she had to give up her acting career and her dreams to live in New York for the family. The price she had paid for that doesn’t seem too high when Matt, her husband offers the stability her life had been missing before she met him.

But with every hike in her salary and her career, Matt has been growing distant and indifferent. Of late she has started to suspect that Matt has been keeping her boys away from her and putting her down whenever possible. She craves for the feeling of being needed and appreciated by them. Her increased load at work and work-related travels are the only things that keep her sanity.

And that changes when she meets her new boss, Reese Kirkpatrick. With the fiery chemistry and whirlwind romance, Susan cannot stay away from Reese and her feelings are reciprocated manifold. Ridden with the guilt she is forced to take a decision that might change not only her life with Matt but also that of her young children. Find out what ensues by reading Degrees of Love.

My initial thoughts

Degrees of Love is a realistic and poignant novel that follows the life of Susan Sinclair and the difficulties in marriage. Lisa Slabach’s down-to-earth portrayal of its characters will be relatable to all women. Despite the book being 340+ pages I finished it in two days, (nights, rather) mainly due to the engaging narration and the writing style.

Though it would be easier to blame Matt and Susan, I was able to understand the circumstances and try to be not judgmental of them. There were times when I wanted to strangle Susan’s choices but that is how real life is, confusing and chaotic.

Bottom – line

I will recommend Degrees of Love to anyone who likes reading women fiction about strong women. I just want to warn off those who strongly react to books about cheating.

Meet the Author

Degrees of Love

Degrees of Love is Lisa Slabach’s debut novel. She is currently working on her third full-length manuscript and a collection of short stories inspired by her experiences growing up in a small farm community in Washington’s Yakima Valley. In addition to writing, Lisa works for a Fortune 500 Company, leading a sales team in the financial industry. She currently resides in Northern California with her husband and has two daughters, who are both pursuing careers in film. In her free time, she enjoys drinking wine with friends and cooking in her pink kitchen.

Connect with the Author: Website  ~  Twitter  ~ Facebook 

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Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows: A Book Review

Review Shots: A cocktail of travelogue, dystopian thriller and a dash of geekiness

You all know I turned out fairly ‘nice’ on Santa’s meter this festive season. But I realized there are quite a number of books that I have accumulated under the ‘to-be-reviewed’ shelf and I finally decided that it is high time I caught up with them.

And since it seems like a Herculean task, I have come up with a way around – bite-size reviews. In this month’s review shots, I have three books that I read sometime in the mid of 2016. Don’t judge me, I was in a blogging slump then.


Book Name: Fast Cars & Fidgety Feet

Author: Rishad Saam Mehta

Genre: Non-Fiction – Travel

Review Shots

Everybody has a dream job. Yes, sadly Netflixing and eating potato chips on the couch is not a job. But what if on a random day, an ad for your dream job lands on your lap, figuratively, what would you do? Would you drop everything and apply it? Or chicken out. That was just a rhetorical question, do not answer.

That’s what exactly happened to the author when he found an advertisement in a newspaper for a job in the automobile magazine. He now lives his dream by keeping up with his interest in driving cars and feet that wanted to travel all around the world. Fast Cars & Fidgety Feet is a nonfiction written by Rishad telling us tales of his misadventures while traveling around the world. There are a few funny anecdotes that you might enjoy.

Final thought: Perfect for a Sunday afternoon read.

Recommended to: Travel book aficionados


Book Name: Dvarca

Author: Madhav Mathur

Genre: Fiction – Dystopian, thriller

Review Shots

Setting: India

As it says on its back over, this book can be the perfect mix of ‘1984 and Meluha series’. Dvarca is a dystopian fiction set in the 22nd century where the Indian nation is governed by a single religion called Navmarg. The State watches every move of the citizens, controlling their schedules including their sleep and food habits. It chooses their life partner, when and how to procreate as well. And anyone who didn’t fall in line was considered outcasts and stranded without benefits. Reminds you a bit of the Handmaid’s tale eh?

Oh, everything is not so gloomy, erm.. as long as you are not outcasts, most things work perfectly in the nation though. Each person is given a task according to their ability, the children are trained at what was required for their chosen lives. The nation represents what could be achieved with a great leader with a vision. Dvarca might be a little difficult to get into initially but it gets gripping as it can be. Be warned of the cliffhanger though.

Final thought: A dystopian nightmare.

Recommended to: Indian mythology lovers


Book Name: The Geek’s Guide to Dating

Author: Eric Smith

Genre: Non Fiction

Review Shots

The Geek’s Guide to Dating is targeted at a particular audience which unfortunately is not me and that brought the fun a notch down for me. Now that we got out of the way, this book is quite a hoot to read. Okay, let me break it up to you – dating is no rocket science and you might have heard all these advice earlier elsewhere. Even if some of the geek jokes went over your head, as it did for me, it was still funny.

Also, you should be ready to overlook the fact that the book addressed only geeky guys seeking girls, geeky or otherwise. See why I am never gonna be the correct audience?

Final thought: A quirky entertainer.

Recommended to: Geeky men; people who need a laugh.


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Have you read any of these books? Should I continue doing shots, I mean these review shots, or should stick to the lengthier formats? Let me know in the comments section.

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows: A Book Review

Book review: Second Chance

Why are some people rude to people without thinking twice? Do they realize the effects of their actions on others’ lives? Do they know they are hurting, belittling and may even pushing the other person to the edge?

And most of importantly, would they change their behavior towards other people if they were given a Second Chance?

About the book

Second Chance

Book Name: Second Chance

Author: Sandeep Jatwa

Genre: Fiction – Drama; Paranormal

Characters: Shekhar Kappor, Unnati Sharma, Manohar, Kailash

Setting: India

Disclaimer: Thanks to V Influencers for sending me the free copy of the Kindle edition in exchange of an honest review.

Plot

The story begins with Shekhar Kapoor, a business tycoon and the owner of Aerowalk Shoes receiving a strange telephone call from ‘the city of justice’ warning him to change his behavior and to be a better person. He ignores it presuming it was a prank call and continues to live his life.

Shekhar Kapoor is the stereotypical businessman who would do anything to get whatever he wishes for. He holds a grudge against his paralyzed father for decades now. He does everything to make sure the lives of people he doesn’t like a hell and promotes men who praise him and women who sleep with him. Yes, our protagonist is a petty, arrogant, disrespectful and obnoxious guy.

Back to the plot, he receives two more warnings and when he disregards them, he meets with an accident and dies (!!). The book is called Second Chance for a reason, that is what he exactly gets but not without being a taught a lesson or two. Was it enough to change him? And if it was, does he change for good or worse? Read Second Chance to know more.

My initial thoughts

By far, Second Chance is my quickest read of 2017 and it took me an hour and a little more to finish it, thanks to the simple narrative style of Dr. Sandeep Jatwa. The book reminded me a lot of the movie Anniyan (Tamil) / Aparichat (Hindi), which explains a lot about the punishments one would receive in Hell, after your Judgment Day according to Hindu Mythology.

Things that didn’t work for me

Again the writing style irritated me to the core. The sheer number of grammatical errors and the literal translation of the Indian slang into English made me cringe. The characters were all one dimensional and flat, and none of them ever developed until the end.

Things that worked for me

  • Despite the above-mentioned problems I had with the book, the story had me sucked in.
  • Not that it was unpredictable but I just wanted to know how it turned out for Shekhar.
  • The moral lessons were spot on and the lesson about Karma was growing stronger, (some may consider this a spoiler) except that Shekhar ends the story saying “Why can’t we do the right thing in the wrong way?”. Erm.. so the Second Chance did not work? Or has it?

My thoughts in general

This is not part of my critical view of the writing or the characters as such, but I feel the need to say these things as an angry reader. I did not even mind the cardboard cut characters, but the portrayal of the female characters, even the flat ones. There are about five women in the story.

One is introduced as a airhead, who sleeps with someone and gets a promotion after being in the company for a week. Another employee who is ‘pretty’ but ditched by her fiancé when she becomes bald temporarily, due to a surgery.

The same female was enraged when she is passed on for a promotion that she very well deserves but gives up her career to take care of her fiancé’s bed ridden father. I mean ‘okay, it is her right and all’ but it bothers me how all the women had to be reduced being ‘pretty’ ‘docile’ and ‘beautiful’ repeatedly. There is more to us.

Maybe am just being overtly sensitive. (I AM NOT)

Bottom – line

Anyway, if you are up for a story that has a good balance between suspense and moral lessons, that has a simple narrative Second Chance should be your pick.

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Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows: A Book Review

Book review: Second Acts

How often do you find people who are gonna travel all the way through your life?

I have a set of friends whom I have known for a decade and a half now. We may not be physically close, but when we meet or talk to each other from different parts of the world, it has always been like we are back to our primary classes, mostly. We know each other’s heartbreak stories, the crushes, and the family issues.

Most of my friends are people with whom I have been for more than four years now. That is quite a huge thing, especially for someone like me, who jumps from one shiny thing to another frequently. Thankfully my friendships have not taken that route.

Why am I converting a book review into a sappy old story of yours truthfully? Nothing much other than sheer narcissism and the fact that Second Acts is a book about the friendship between grown ass adult women.

About the book

second acts

Book Name: Second Acts

Author: Teri Emory

Genre: Fiction – Drama

Characters: Sarah, Miriam, Beth

Setting: The USA

Disclaimer: Thanks to the Author and Edelweiss for the Advance Review Copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Plot

The story takes through the lives of Sarah, Miriam, and Beth right from their college days. They have spent their lives together for decades, all through their happiness, heartbreaks, the ups and the downs, even when they had lived physically far from each other.

Now the ladies are in their fifties, and their careers and domestic lives are changing. Would their friendship sustain through these storms?

The book alternates between the voices of Sarah, Miriam, and Beth in the first person throughout. Sarah lives with her boyfriend Kevin who wouldn’t commit or even let her in on his life, which seemed convenient for her. She finds out something huge about Kevin and his son and Kevin did not even feel it was important to inform her. And the changes at work makes it impossible for her continue shying away from commitments.

Miriam has had her heart broken once, and she wonders about all the men that she had turned down. She is more than settled with the idea that she is never going to meet the right one. Beth seemingly has it all, until she finds her husband cheated on her. To make her life more fragile the love of her life, the one that got away is back. The group has a second chance in life. Should they trade their old lives?

My initial thoughts

The idea that college friends can stay together well into their fifties is highly romantic. The dynamics among them does not change and if anything, it has become better with age. Though the ladies are all at different points of their life and have chosen different paths, there is no judging and an unwavering support through it all.

Second Acts makes it a point to let us know that 50s are not something to be dreaded about. Lives still go on and about, and exciting things do happen.

Things that worked for me

  • The characters were well developed, and even the minor characters had depth. 
  • I found a part of myself among all the three leads, and I kept rooting for Miriam the most. She was just too cool.
  • Several themes like grief over death, lost love, hurt by a loved one, despair over unrequited love, unexpected changes were all dealt with such flair that the reader would feel them.

Things that could have been better

  • Though there were too many details and the book as such was tad bit lengthy, I continued through it.
  • I would not call the book an un-put-down-able, and it took a lot more than usual to complete the book.
  • On the whole, I was not disappointed at all, thanks to the realistic plot and engaging writing.

Bottom – line

Second Acts could be your summer read, the one that you wanna read when you miss your friends in real life or the one you read during your daily commute. If you are up to reading a woman’s fiction with realistic writing this weekend, you should watch out for Second Acts.

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