en-US Wed, 30 Apr 2025 17:56:04 -0700 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg 36066034 They couldn't be more opposite, the Hollywood actor and the hometown girl, but all they need is a little convention magic to become the perfect ship in Cathy Yardley's One True Pairing.

Jake Reese needs a decoy girlfriend. Fast. The lead actor of the popular TV show, Mystics, is tired of losing his shirt to overeager fans. Literally. Which is why a chance meeting with gothabilly bookworm-slash-barista Hailey Frost seems almost too perfect to be true. Hailey is not impressed with his TV fame and is desperate to save her family's bookstore. It's a match made in Hollywood, but as the two pretend to date, fan fiction becomes reality. Can this OTP become canon?]]> 8 Cathy Yardley Shannon 4 aapi-books, disability-books 3.64 2017
author: Cathy Yardley
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.64
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/30
date added: 2025/04/30
shelves: aapi-books, disability-books
review:
Really, really enjoyed this dual POV, contemporary romance backlist by Cathy Yardley book that has a casino/cafe worker fake dating a tv star in a mutually beneficial arrangement to boost her family's bookstore business and his acting career. It was spicy, had lots of emotional depth and great side characters and has me itching to read more in the Fandom Hearts series. It was also great on audio had good disability rep (a side character has agoraphobia) and is highly recommended for fans of the movie Notting Hill!
]]> 198973053
Moon Minseok—or Moonster as this WDB fans know him—wasn’t born to lead. Even as part of the world’s most popular K-Pop group, he found comfort in his role as the jokester, the sidekick, the unserious one (with the cutest smile). But now WDB is drowning in dating scandals, and it’s time for Moonster to take charge of the group's image.

Shin Hyeri has been dealing with some scandals of her own. An up-and-coming K-Drama actress, she’s been labeled a “nepo baby� (with a famous idol as a big brother) and now, a bully (which couldn’t be further from the truth). Desperate to show the world that she’s earned her spot, Hyeri is determined not to let her rising star crash and burn.

When these two childhood enemies get caught up in yet another scandal while co-hosting a K-Pop festival, there’s only one solution that will save both of their reputations: appear on one of Korea’s most popular variety shows, Our Celebrity Marriage (where celebrities pretend to get married and compete in ‘newlywed� challenges).

The plan is simple—pretend to get along, win back the fans, then go their separate ways. But what happens when a fake marriage leads to real feelings? Will Moonster and Hyeri bow to the pressures of their famous realities, or will they decide their love is something worth fighting for?]]> Kat Cho Shannon 3 4.00 2025
author: Kat Cho
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/30
date added: 2025/04/30
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, ya-fiction
review:
A drama filled fake relationship of convenience that turns real when two celebrities in need of career boosts agree to be on a reality wedding show that has them getting fake married. This was a cute YA with good anxiety rep but TONS of drama. Just an okay read for me. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 228442809 In this contemporary YA novel, high school student Charlotte Goh is an aspiring Asian American fashion influencer desperately trying to lift her family out of hardship, only to find it may come at a cost higher than any Chanel bag.

Seventeen-year-old Charlotte Goh is juggling two very different the dutiful Korean daughter, and the hustling NYC fashion influencer. Her best friend Steven scoffs at her ambition, but she secretly hopes that her posts will help financially support her struggling family. Then one night, after posting about a racist experience she had at an influencer event, Charlotte finds herself going viral and garnering the fame she’s always craved. And as much as she doesn’t want her newfound popularity to change her, she can’t help but be swept away by the exciting chic new friends, the attention of one of Hollywood’s hottest heartthrobs, and a slew of companies clamoring to sponsor her.

But as she falls deeper into the influencer world, she finds that she may have to sacrifice more than she bargained for—including her unexpected new feelings for Steven. Will Charlotte be able to stay true to herself, or will she lose the things that are most important to her?]]> Claire Ahn Shannon 4
An emotional YA friends to lovers romance that sees Charlotte Goh, an aspiring Korean American high school fashion influencer struggling to balance family obligations, friendships and romantic relationships while also being true to herself. There was a lot of family drama and pressure in this story that added an extra layer of relatability to balance out the NYC influencer lifestyle the FMC is aspiring to. Good on audio and perfect for fans of books like Suzanne Park's Sunny Song will never be famous. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review.]]> 4.00 2025
author: Claire Ahn
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/30
date added: 2025/04/30
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, prh-audio, ya-fiction
review:
3.5 rounded up

An emotional YA friends to lovers romance that sees Charlotte Goh, an aspiring Korean American high school fashion influencer struggling to balance family obligations, friendships and romantic relationships while also being true to herself. There was a lot of family drama and pressure in this story that added an extra layer of relatability to balance out the NYC influencer lifestyle the FMC is aspiring to. Good on audio and perfect for fans of books like Suzanne Park's Sunny Song will never be famous. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review.
]]> 220160916 In this razor-sharp, diabolical debut thriller, a young woman steps into her deceased twin’s influencer life, only to discover dark secrets hidden behind her social media façade.

Julie Chan has nothing. Her twin sister has everything. Except a pulse.

Julie Chan, a supermarket cashier with nothing to lose, finds herself thrust into the glamorous yet perilous world of her late twin sister, Chloe VanHuusen, a popular influencer. Separated at a young age, the identical twins were polar opposites and rarely spoke, except for one viral video that Chloe initiated (Finding My Long-Lost Twin And Buying Her A House #EMOTIONAL). When Julie discovers Chloe’s lifeless body under mysterious circumstances, she seizes the chance to live the life she’s always envied.

Transforming into Chloe is easier than expected. Julie effortlessly adopts Chloe’s luxurious influencer life, complete with designer clothes, a meticulous skincare routine, and millions of adoring followers. However, Julie soon realizes that Chloe’s seemingly picture-perfect life was anything but.

Haunted by Chloe’s untimely death and struggling to fit into the privileged influencer circle, Julie faces mounting challenges during a weeklong island retreat with Chloe’s exclusive group of influencer friends. As events spiral out of control, Julie uncovers the sinister forces that may have led to her sister’s demise and realizes she might be the next target.]]> 320 Liann Zhang 1668079860 Shannon 4
This debut thriller started off strong when Julie, the grocery store clerk getting a cryptic call from her estranged, famous influencer twin sister Chloe. Worried Chloe might be in trouble, Julie catches a bus to NYC, talks her way into Chloe's apartment and stumbles upon her dead body. Then when the police arrive, she doesn't correct them when they think she's Chloe. Deciding to shed her boring, paycheck to paycheck life and assume Chloe's more glamorous one has dire consequences though when she's whisked off to a remote island with some of Chloe's other influencer friends. Once on the island, the other women start sharing the secrets behind their rise to fame and uncover Julie's true identity. Things get bloody and go from bad to worse. I liked the audio narration and am always up for a good thriller about the darker side of influencer/celebrity life but this one got a bit too weird for me to truly bump it into 4-5 star territory. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!]]> 3.89 2025
author: Liann Zhang
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/29
date added: 2025/04/29
shelves: aapi-books, debuts, netgalley-arc, mystery-thriller
review:
3.5

This debut thriller started off strong when Julie, the grocery store clerk getting a cryptic call from her estranged, famous influencer twin sister Chloe. Worried Chloe might be in trouble, Julie catches a bus to NYC, talks her way into Chloe's apartment and stumbles upon her dead body. Then when the police arrive, she doesn't correct them when they think she's Chloe. Deciding to shed her boring, paycheck to paycheck life and assume Chloe's more glamorous one has dire consequences though when she's whisked off to a remote island with some of Chloe's other influencer friends. Once on the island, the other women start sharing the secrets behind their rise to fame and uncover Julie's true identity. Things get bloody and go from bad to worse. I liked the audio narration and am always up for a good thriller about the darker side of influencer/celebrity life but this one got a bit too weird for me to truly bump it into 4-5 star territory. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 228818793 A noirish story about a mysterious disappearance and a moving portrait of a Chinese Canadian family navigating insecurities, expectations, and simmering anger in their small BC town.

Casper Han grew up the dutiful son of immigrants who never felt entirely welcome in their remote corner of British Columbia. Now an adult, living in Vancouver with a boyfriend whose privilege he quietly resents, Casper rarely returns to his hometown, the site of a grief his family doesn’t the loss of his twin brother, Sam.

Over twenty years have passed since Sam went missing, and a crisis brings Casper and his siblings back. Their father has vanished, only to be found wandering the vast woods beyond the family home, confused and clutching a pair of scissors, seemingly trapped in the memory of that tragic night. In order to move forward, the Han family must finally confront the past and untangle the mystery of what really happened to Sam.

Combining the atmosphere and intrigue of a cracking good suspense novel with the depth of a rich character study, The Tiger and the Cosmonaut tells the story of a family whose members have long made themselves small and quiet and obedient—and what happens when the cycle is finally broken.]]> Eddy Boudel Tan Shannon 3 3.00
author: Eddy Boudel Tan
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.00
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/26
date added: 2025/04/26
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, lgbtqia
review:
This Chinese Canadian family drama sounded intriguing but sadly turned into a sad story about the aftermath of a son gone missing and never found and how it impacted his gay twin brother. Set in BC, this was slow moving and just didn't hit any good notes for me. Perhaps a wrong book wrong time situation or I wasn't in the right mood for it. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review. I listened to a complimentary ALC thanks to @Libro.fm.
]]> 223846155
These days nobody can reach Cora: not her aunt, who wants her to prepare for the Hungry Ghost Festival; not her weird colleagues; and especially not the slack-jawed shadow lurking around her door frame. After all, it can't be real—can it? After a series of unexplained killings in Chinatown, Cora believes someone might be targeting East Asian women, and something might be targeting Cora herself.]]> 9 Kylie Lee Baker Shannon 3 4.30 2025
author: Kylie Lee Baker
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/26
date added: 2025/04/26
shelves: aapi-books, mystery-thriller, netgalley-arc, pandemic-reading, mental-health
review:
This (at times gory) murder mystery/horror story sees Cora, an Asian American crime scene cleaner getting caught up in a series of grisly serial killer like murders that seem to be connected to her sister's violent death. Set in NYC during the pandemic, the book tackles anti-Asian racism, grief, mental health, killer cannibalistic ghosts and more. It was also good on audio narrated by Natalie Naudus and pairs well with books like The eyes are the best part by Monika Kim. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 22066999 The Reason I Jump. Written by Naoki Higashida, a very smart, very self-aware, and very charming thirteen-year-old boy with autism, it is a one-of-a-kind memoir that demonstrates how an autistic mind thinks, feels, perceives, and responds in ways few of us can imagine. Parents and family members who never thought they could get inside the head of their autistic loved one at last have a way to break through to the curious, subtle, and complex life within. Using an alphabet grid to painstakingly construct words, sentences, and thoughts that he is unable to speak out loud, Naoki answers even the most delicate questions that people want to know. Questions such as: "Why do people with autism talk so loudly and weirdly?" "Why do you line up your toy cars and blocks?" "Why don't you make eye contact when you're talking?" and "What's the reason you jump?" (Naoki's answer: "When I'm jumping, it's as if my feelings are going upward to the sky.")

With disarming honesty and a generous heart, Naoki shares his unique point of view on not only autism but life itself. His insights - into the mystery of words, the wonders of laughter, and the elusiveness of memory - are so startling, so strange, and so powerful that you will never look at the world the same way again.]]> 1 Naoki Higashida Shannon 5 3.70 2005
author: Naoki Higashida
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2005
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/24
date added: 2025/04/24
shelves: biographies-memoirs, disability-books, neurodiversity, aapi-books
review:
A beautifully written memoir from a young nonverbal autistic boy told in the form of a series of questions and answers about living with autism. This was accessible and honest and sure to be eye-opening for those wondering what life is like for anyone they know and love with the more severe forms of autism. The book has been on my tbr for ages and I'm so glad I finally took the time to read it. HIGHLY recommended.
]]> 226897698
When Dr. Gul Delani receives a call in the middle of the night from the Sindh police, she thinks they may have finally found her niece, Mahnaz—a precocious, politically conscious teenage girl who went missing three years prior. Gul has been racked with grief since Mahnaz’s disappearance, and distracts herself through she’s a talented curator at the Museum of Heritage and History in Karachi, one of the country’s leading experts in archaeology and ancient civilizations, a hard-won position for a woman.

But there is no news of Mahnaz. Instead, Gul is summoned to a narcotics investigation in a remote desert region in western Pakistan. In her wildest dreams, Gul couldn’t have imagined what she’d find amid a drug bust gone wrong, there is a mummy—life-size, seemingly authentic, its sarcophagus decorated with symbols from Persepolis, the capital of the Achaemenid Empire. The discovery confounds everyone. It is both too good to be true, and for Gul, too precious to leave in careless or corrupt hands.

Aided by her team of unlikely misfits, Gul will stop at nothing to get to the bottom of it, even as her quest for the truth puts her in the throes of a dangerous conspiracy and threatens to collide with her ongoing search for Mahnaz. A portrait of a city fueled by corruption and a woman relentlessly in pursuit of justice, The Museum Detective is an exciting, gritty new crime thriller that announces a whip-smart and brilliant sleuth and builds to a stunning, emotional conclusion that readers won’t soon forget.]]> Maha Khan Phillips Shannon 4 aapi-books, mystery-thriller 4.00 2025
author: Maha Khan Phillips
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/23
date added: 2025/04/23
shelves: aapi-books, mystery-thriller
review:
Based loosely on a real scandal in Pakistan, this start of a new amateur detective series starring female museum curator/archaeologist, Dr. Gul Delani, involves the discovery of what could be the first known Pakistani mummy and a drug king pin. As Dalani delves into the mysterious mummy's origins she finds herself also learning more about a mystery in her past a family member she's been searching years for. Good on audio, this was interesting and perfect for fans of the show Bones! I look forward to reading more in the series!
]]> 225842445 Crazy Rich Asians meets Always Be My Maybe in this deliciously sugar-free rom-com from debut author Cynthia Timoti.

She's salty, he's spice - there's no room for sugar in this fake relationship, but it may be sweeter than they think...

Ellie Pang has had enough of her controlling family, who have been micromanaging her life since her type 1 diabetes diagnosis. When her parents orchestrate a public proposal from their business partner's son, a proposal that goes humiliatingly viral, Ellie escapes to the other side of the country to put her dream of opening a sugar-free bakery into action. After all, she's done her research. How hard can it be?

She hits a snag when her storefront turns out to be a dump and in need of major renovations. Worse, the only person who can help her turn things around is Alec Mackenzie, her brother's best friend and the man responsible for crushing her teenage heart ten years ago.

But Alec has a proposal of his he needs a pretend girlfriend in order to cement a business deal. All they need to do is feign love and affection, while trying not to maim each other. As the thin line between hate and fake-madly-in-love starts to blur, buried secrets resurface, and Ellie must learn to trust her heart.

Mature content rated 3/5 chillies.]]> Cynthia Timoti Shannon 4 4.33
author: Cynthia Timoti
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.33
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/22
date added: 2025/04/22
shelves: debuts, disability-books, aapi-books, books-about-food, netgalley-arc
review:
A debut fake dating, second chance, forced proximity, Pride & Prejudice retelling romance that has fantastic disability rep (she has type 1 diabetes) and tons of secret mutual pining. I loved this on audio narrated by Eunice Wong and highly recommend it for fans of books like Only and forever by Chloe Liese or Drive me home by Carly Robyn. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 192761618 AGATHA AWARD WINNER Best First Mystery

In this heart-pounding debut thriller for fans of Lisa Jewell and Celeste Ng, a first-generation Vietnamese American artist must confront nightmares past and present�
Ìý
Annie “Anh Le� Shaw grew up poor but seems to have it all now: a dream career, a stunning home, and a devoted husband and daughter. When Annie’s mother, a Vietnam War refugee, dies suddenly one night, Annie’s carefully curated life begins to unravel. Her obsessive-compulsive disorder, which she thought she’d vanquished years ago, comes roaring back—but this time, the disturbing fixations swirling around in Annie’s brain might actually be coming true.

With dizzying twists, You Know What You Did is both a harrowing thriller and a heartfelt exploration of the refugee experience, the legacies we leave for our children, and the unbreakable bonds between mothers and daughters.]]> 384 K.T. Nguyen 059347385X Shannon 4
CW: gaslighting, infidelity, animal cruelty]]> 3.32 2024
author: K.T. Nguyen
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.32
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2024/04/18
date added: 2025/04/17
shelves: aapi-books, debuts, mystery-thriller, prh-audio, disability-books, mental-health, neurodiversity, ocd
review:
This was a dark psychological thriller debut that deep dives into mental health, complicated mother-daughter relationships and the challenges of living with OCD. I really found this one equally captivating and at times hard to read as the main female character struggles with postpartum depression and extreme OCD. Great on audio and perfect for fans of authors like Sandra SG Wong. Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!

CW: gaslighting, infidelity, animal cruelty
]]> 229926877 "A sparkling travelogue and a poignant journey of self-discovery all in one. . . . Alka Joshi is simply the best!" � Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Alice Network and The Rose Code

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Henna Artist , this sweeping novel of identity and self-discovery takes listeners from Bombay to Prague, Florence, Paris and London, to uncover the mystery behind a famous painter's death.

When renowned painter Mira Novak arrives at Wadia hospital in Bombay after a miscarriage, she's expected to make a quick recovery, and her nurse, Sona, is excited to learn more about the vivacious artist who shares her half-Indian identity. Sona, yearning for a larger life, finds herself carried away by Mira's stories of her travels and exploits and is shocked by accounts of the many lovers the painter has left scattered throughout Europe. When Mira dies quite suddenly and mysteriously, Sona falls under suspicion, and her quiet life is upended.

The key to proving Sona's innocence may lie in a cryptic note and four paintings Mira left in her care, sending the young woman on a mission to visit the painter's former friends and lovers across a tumultuous Europe teetering toward war. On the precipice of discovering her own identity, Sona learns that the painter's charming facade hid a far more complicated, troubled soul.

In her first stand-alone novel since her bestselling debut, The Henna Artist, Alka Joshi uses the life of painter Amrita Sher-Gil, the "Frida Kahlo of India," as inspiration for the story's beginning to explore how far we'll travel to determine where we truly belong.

PLEASE When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.]]> Alka Joshi Shannon 3
A young half British, half Indian nurse, Sona, befriends famous painter Mira Novak over six days in a Bombay hospital where she's staying following a miscarriage. Fired after being held responsible for the painter's accidental death, Sona gets tasked with delivering four of her paintings to the people Mira wanted them left to, leading to a cross Europe adventure that sees Sona discovering both love and herself.

Set in the 1930s, this was a moving coming of age/historical romance that did drag in places but overall had a unique take on a period of history I didn't know much about and was loosely based on real life people. While I wouldn't say this latest standalone from fav author Alka Joshi was my favorite of hers, it was still worth the read and good on audio. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review.]]> 3.80 2025
author: Alka Joshi
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/16
date added: 2025/04/16
shelves: aapi-books, historical-fiction, netgalley-arc
review:
3.5

A young half British, half Indian nurse, Sona, befriends famous painter Mira Novak over six days in a Bombay hospital where she's staying following a miscarriage. Fired after being held responsible for the painter's accidental death, Sona gets tasked with delivering four of her paintings to the people Mira wanted them left to, leading to a cross Europe adventure that sees Sona discovering both love and herself.

Set in the 1930s, this was a moving coming of age/historical romance that did drag in places but overall had a unique take on a period of history I didn't know much about and was loosely based on real life people. While I wouldn't say this latest standalone from fav author Alka Joshi was my favorite of hers, it was still worth the read and good on audio. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review.
]]> 123029113 A whimsical and heartwarming novel about a witch who has a second chance to get her magical powers—and her life—back on track, from the national bestselling author of The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches.

Sera Swan used to be one of the most powerful witches in Britain. Then she resurrected her great-aunt Jasmine from the (very recently) dead, lost most of her magic, befriended a semi-villainous talking fox, and was exiled from her Guild. Now she (slightly reluctantly and just a bit grumpily) helps her aunt run an enchanted inn in Lancashire, where she deals with her quirky guests' shenanigans, tries to keep said talking fox in check, and longs for the future that seems lost to her. But then she finds out about an old spell that could hold the key to restoring her power�

Enter Luke Larsen, handsome and icy magical historian, who arrives on a dark winter evening and might just know how to unlock the spell’s secrets. Luke has absolutely no interest in getting involved in the madcap goings-on of the inn and is definitely not about to let a certain bewitching innkeeper past his walls, so no one is more surprised than he is when he agrees to help Sera with her spell. Worse, he might actually be thawing.

Running an inn, reclaiming lost magic, and staying one step ahead of the watchful Guild is a lot for anyone, but Sera Swan is about to discover that she doesn’t have to do it alone...and that the weird, wonderful family she’s made might be the best magic of all.]]> 336 Sangu Mandanna Shannon 5
Grumpy Sera was easy to root for as she tries to find a way to get her magic back after losing it when she cast a resurrection spell to save her beloved aunt’s life. 10/10 recommend! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!]]> 4.36 2025
author: Sangu Mandanna
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.36
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/13
date added: 2025/04/16
shelves: aapi-books, bipoc-books, fantasy-scifi, neurodiversity, netgalley-arc, prh-audio
review:
I've been eagerly anticipating this book for what feels like AGES and it did not disappoint!! Cozy, full of heart and found family, a magical inn, a zombie rooster, a swoony, bookish, neurodiverse MMC and his autistic younger sister plus a cursed fox and an amazing cast of side characters.

Grumpy Sera was easy to root for as she tries to find a way to get her magic back after losing it when she cast a resurrection spell to save her beloved aunt’s life. 10/10 recommend! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 228448647 A grandmother tells her granddaughter about her twisty, often surprising, journey to who she is now in this sweeping love story by USA Today bestselling author Jesse Q. Sutanto.

Izzy Chen is dreading her family’s annual Chinese New Year celebration, where they all come together at a Michelin-starred restaurant to flaunt their status and successes in hopes to one up each other. So when her seventy-three-year-old glamorous and formidable grandmother walks in with a stunning woman on her arm and kisses her in front of everyone, it shakes Izzy to her core. She’d always considered herself the black sheep of the family for harboring similar feelings to the ones her Nainai just displayed.

Seeing herself in her teenage granddaughter's struggles with identity and acceptance, Magnolia Chen tells Izzy her own story, of how as a teen she was sent by her Indo-Chinese parents from Jakarta to Los Angeles for her education and fell in love with someone completely forbidden to her by both culture and gender norms—Ellery, an American college student who became Magnolia's best friend and the love of her life. Stretching across decades and continents, Magnolia's star-crossed love story reveals how life can take unexpected turns but ultimately lead you to exactly who you're meant to be.]]> Jesse Q. Sutanto Shannon 0 0.0 2025
author: Jesse Q. Sutanto
name: Shannon
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/15
shelves: to-read, lgbtqia, netgalley-arc, prh-audio, aapi-books
review:

]]> 228441386 What if women could get rid of their guilt?

Maya Patel has it all—her own start-up, a sexy, doting husband, influencer status, and now, a new baby. But behind closed doors, Maya's drowning. Her newborn is taking a toll on her marriage, her best friend won't return her calls, and her company's hanging on by a thread. The worst part? It's all her fault. If she could just be a better boss, mother, wife, daughter, friend� Maybe she wouldn't feel so guilty all the time.

#Girlboss Liz Anderson, who introduces her to the "guilt pill," an experimental supplement that erases female guilt. At first, it’s the perfect antidote to Maya’s self-blame and imposter syndrome, and she finally becomes the unapologetic woman she’s always wanted to be. There's just one catch—for Maya to truly "have it all," she has to be willing to risk it all. And as Maya falls deeper and deeper down the pill's guilt-free rabbit hole, her growing ruthlessness could threaten everything she's built for herself... And the family she's worked so hard to protect.

Electric, taut, and sharply observed, The Guilt Pill is a feminist exploration of motherhood, race, ambition, and how the world treats women who dare to go after everything they want.]]> Saumya Dave Shannon 4 4.40 2025
author: Saumya Dave
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.40
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/12
date added: 2025/04/12
shelves: aapi-books, domestic-suspense, netgalley-arc, mystery-thriller
review:
I really, really enjoyed this latest from Saumya Dave that sees Maya Patel, a South Asian CEO and new mom struggling to balance everything and feeling guilty about never doing enough in either role. When her new 'friend' Liz offers her experimental pills that will erase all feelings of guilt, Maya reluctantly succumbs and eventually becomes addicted. And like all things that seem too good to be true, the pills too turn out to have dangerous consequences. Relatable, clever and full of all the stress of new motherhood mom-guilt, this domestic suspense thriller was great on audio and entertaining from start to finish. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 228443363 "Filled with beautiful and dangerous magic, this book swirls around you like irresistible perfume."—Sarah Beth Durst, New York Times bestselling author of The Spellshop

From critically acclaimed author Shveta Thakrar comes a beautifully imagined contemporary fantasy about two teens, one a believer of magic who yearns to belong, the other a skeptic searching for an escape, who find themselves embroiled in a twisty world of court intrigue when they venture into a forest ruled by yakshas, mysterious woodland spirits drawn from Hindu and Buddhist folklore.

Plant-loving Ridhi Kapadia and popular Nilesh Batra were friends once.

Now, seventeen and alone, Ridhi blends natural perfumes, wears flower crowns, and wanders her local woods, listening for the leafy whispers of her beloved trees. Pleading for the yakshas to admit her into their enchanted forest kingdom, where she knows she truly belongs.

After learning his parents� perfect marriage is a sham and getting suspended from school, a heartsick Nilesh lands at Ridhi’s doorstep—the last thing either of them wants. So when a pretty yakshini offers him the distraction of magic, the same magic he mocked Ridhi for believing in, he jumps at it.

Furious, Ridhi strikes a bargain with a noblewoman of the yaksha court. In exchange for helping restore her reputation, Lady Sulochana will turn Ridhi into the yakshini she yearns to be—and teach her to divine the trees� murmurs.

But when Nilesh ends up trapped in the yakshas� realm, Ridhi realizes the leaves might be telling a disturbing story about the forest her heart is rooted in—one that, even if the two of them band together, threatens to shred the future like so many thorns.]]> Shveta Thakrar Shannon 3 3.50 2025
author: Shveta Thakrar
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/11
date added: 2025/04/11
shelves: aapi-books, fantasy-scifi, netgalley-arc, ya-fiction
review:
This was an entertaining blend of YA contemporary romance and fantasy by a new to me author. I really like the main female protagonist and her entrepreneurial spirit, working hard on making nature based perfumes. When she and another boy get whisked away to this alternate fantasy world things get really interesting as they make friends there and then one of them gets trapped forcing the other to find a way to save them both. Good on audio narrated by Soneela Nankani (one of my favs). Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review! 10/10 for the gorgeous cover!
]]> 220160321 A cricket-loving Pakistani girl stifled by patriarchal expectations disguises herself as a boy to get a job to pay her sister’s medical bills in this empowering middle grade novel-in-verse.

Living with her aunt and patriarchal uncle in Karachi, Pakistan, recently orphaned twelve-year-old Aarzu detests the way she and her younger sister get treated like extras and excluded from all the fun stuff. Aarzu dreams of playing cricket, just like her male cousins and the neighborhood boys in the streets, but her uncle will hear nothing of it. According to him, girls ought to master the art of making round rotis, not play sports.

When her sister requires urgent medical treatment but finances are tight, Aarzu decides to earn money herself. She hears of a part-time job at a bungalow near her school—but it’s only open to boys. Aarzu has no choice but to disguise herself as a turban-wearing boy to get the gig.

Now, Aarzu must find a way to balance school, work, chores, and secret cricket practices—all without burning out or getting caught by her uncle—or else her dreams of making the girls cricket team and her quest to save her sister will crumble around her.]]> 384 Marzieh Abbas 1665970413 Shannon 0 4.00
author: Marzieh Abbas
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/11
shelves: to-read, aapi-books, disability-books, middle-grade-fiction, novels-in-verse
review:

]]> 216520773 A debut poetry collection about reconciling with oneself and learning to love, through a youthful, queer diasporic Korean lens


Lotus flowers, youthful hunger, and other temporary beauties intertwine to tell this coming-of-age story, a set of pulsating poems that move toward a distant memory or a flaming future.


Kyo Lee's intimate debut poetry collection is simultaneously a vulnerable confession and a micro study of macro topics including lineage, family, war, and hope. i cut my tongue on a broken country explores the Asian American diaspora, queerness, girlhood, and the relationships between and within them, pushing and pulling on the boundaries of identity and language like a story trying to tell itself.


i cut my tongue on a broken country documents a search for love. It's a eulogy for the things we gave up to get here. It's an ode to tenderness. It blossoms and bleeds in your hands.]]> 112 Kyo Lee 1551529777 Shannon 0 4.56
author: Kyo Lee
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.56
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/10
shelves: to-read, debuts, poetry, aapi-books, lgbtqia
review:

]]> 220161319 The “masterful, inspiring, and full of heart� (Ali Hazelwood, New York Times bestselling author) Jackie Lau returns with a thoroughly unique love story about a woman reliving the same Friday over and over again—and the intriguing man who can’t quite remember her.

Noelle Tom really shouldn’t have eaten those dumplings at the night market. But the old lady at the stall said they’d give her what she needed most, and what Noelle desperately needed after another long workweek was food.

Except now she’s reliving the same Friday over and over. Every morning her alarm goes off at 6:45 no matter what, the Wordle answer is always “happy,� and she watches a silly squirrel video go viral day after day. And no matter how much she works on the same proposal, it’s always erased when she wakes up. It seems Monday will never come in this workaholic’s worst nightmare.

Noelle has no idea how being trapped in a time loop is the “thing she needed most,� especially now that everything seems meaningless. Sure, three fancy meals in a row is a fun treat, but it’s getting repetitive. Noelle’s not sure what lesson the old lady was trying to impart. Even a trip to the dumpling stall doesn’t help…because there’s no sign of it.

But then she meets a young woman who also ate the dumplings, and good-looking Cam, who appears in multiple places on her Friday. While he seems to have no memory of their encounters, there are signs he might be the key to getting un-stuck. But Noelle will have to put work aside and live a little in order to make him notice her. As their flirtation progresses, Noelle begins to worry that if she ever gets to turn the calendar page, Cam won’t know who she is and her life may never return to what it was before that fateful Friday…]]> 352 Jackie Lau 1668030799 Shannon 5
I love a good time loop story and Jackie Lau was able to pen one with a fresh and unique spin. I really enjoyed that the first half has our main character, Noelle trying to find a way out of her never ending days of June 20th only for her to want to learn what happened in the second half when she does eventually get out.

Definitely one of my new favorites by Lau and if you like time loop stories, books set in Toronto and hot Asian brewery owners, then you DO NOT want to skip this one!! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and physical copy in exchange for my honest review!! Perfect for fans of authors like Farah Heron or Jacyi Lee.]]> 3.99 2025
author: Jackie Lau
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/10
date added: 2025/04/10
shelves: aapi-books, time-loop-stories, simon-and-schuster-alcs, fantasy-scifi, netgalley-arc, books-about-food
review:
10/10!! This book is going to make you HUNGRY!! Hungry for love, hungry for tasty Asian treats, hungry to explore Toronto and hungry to find a friend who gets you inside and out.

I love a good time loop story and Jackie Lau was able to pen one with a fresh and unique spin. I really enjoyed that the first half has our main character, Noelle trying to find a way out of her never ending days of June 20th only for her to want to learn what happened in the second half when she does eventually get out.

Definitely one of my new favorites by Lau and if you like time loop stories, books set in Toronto and hot Asian brewery owners, then you DO NOT want to skip this one!! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and physical copy in exchange for my honest review!! Perfect for fans of authors like Farah Heron or Jacyi Lee.
]]> 224924807 From the New York Times bestselling author of Mercy Street, a tense, propulsive family drama set in Shanghai, where a fractured American family faces its complicated past

Four years after their bitter divorce, Claire and Aaron Litvak get a phone call no parent is prepared their 22-year-old daughter Lindsey, teaching English in China during a college gap year, has been critically injured in a hit and run accident. At a Shanghai hospital they wait at her bedside, hoping for the best and preparing for the worst.

The accident unearths a deeper fissure in the the shocking event that ended the Litvaks� marriage and turned Lindsey against them. Estranged from her parents, she has confided only in her younger sister, Grace, adopted as an infant from China. As Claire and Aaron struggle to get their bearings in bustling, cosmopolitan Shanghai, the newly prosperous “miracle city,� they face troubling questions about Lindsey’s life there, in which nothing is quite as it seems.

With her trademark psychological acuity, Jennifer Haigh delivers a taut, suspenseful story about family, secret lives, and the unbreakable bond between two sisters, the fabled red thread that ties them together across time and space.

“Ms. Haigh is an expertly nuanced storyteller long overdue for major attention. Her work is gripping, real, and totally immersive, akin to that of writers as different as Richard Price, Richard Ford, and Richard Russo.� � The New York Times
]]> Jennifer Haigh Shannon 4 3.90
author: Jennifer Haigh
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.90
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/07
date added: 2025/04/07
shelves: aapi-books, jewish-voices, lgbtqia, netgalley-arc
review:
A compelling family drama about a divorced couple who learn their biological daughter, Lindsey has been in a hit and run accident in Shanghai and is now in a coma. As they fly across the globe to be by her side, they confront their past and we slowly learn what Lindsey's life was like in China. I really enjoyed this, especially on audio, the novel touches on sex work, adoption, self-harm and mental health, infidelity and more and is perfect for fans of books like Celeste Ng's Little fires everywhere. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 226925818 A society matchmaker realizes she’s in danger when her clients� weddings are sabotaged in increasingly disturbing ways—an utterly original mystery from New York Times bestselling author Aisha Saeed.

“An intriguing mystery and a heartfelt romance all in one . . . fresh, original, and utterly charming.�—Liane Moriarty, author of Big Little Lies

Business has never been better for Nura Khan, a third-generation matchmaker in Atlanta. Her exclusive clientele benefits from her impeccable track record. And while a single thirty-one-year-old matchmaker would normally raise some perfectly threaded eyebrows in the community, Nura’s childhood best friend, Azar, is willing to double as her pretend fiancé at her clients� weddings—even though Nura’s feelings for him might not be so pretend.

But all that glitters isn’t gold. While it’s not uncommon to get the occasional hate mail from rejected prospective clients, Nura is blindsided after a couple’s carefully constructed wedding implodes, the first in a cascading chain of suspicious and increasingly terrifying events. Someone is taking things too far, and with Azar and her matchmaking team by her side, Nura embarks on a dangerous cat-and-mouse game that threatens not only her safety but everything she’s worked so hard to build.]]> Aisha Saeed Shannon 3
I did enjoy the friends to lovers, second chance romance Nura gets but it definitely felt like it took a back burner to all the other shenanigans going on. Good on audio and recommended for fans of authors like Sara Desai's Sima Chopra series. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review.

CW: side character stroke victim, domestic violence (in the past), memory loss]]> 3.00 2025
author: Aisha Saeed
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.00
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/03
date added: 2025/04/04
shelves: aapi-books, mystery-thriller, prh-audio, netgalley-arc
review:
This romantic suspense debut about Nura Khan, a third generation South Asian matchmaker in Atlanta, Georgia whose reputation gets trashed started off strong but went a little off the rails for me. There was stalking, gun violence, car crashes, drug overdoses and so much more. The strongest part of the book for me was the family relationships between Nura and her aunt, cousin and niece (and the shocking family secret Nura didn't know about).

I did enjoy the friends to lovers, second chance romance Nura gets but it definitely felt like it took a back burner to all the other shenanigans going on. Good on audio and recommended for fans of authors like Sara Desai's Sima Chopra series. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review.

CW: side character stroke victim, domestic violence (in the past), memory loss
]]> 228417376 A compulsively riveting story of mistaken identity set within high society New York and the sacrifices made to keep up appearances, “as lively and refreshing as a chilled glass of champagne.� (Kirstin Chen)

Somewhere in New York City, Lata Murthy knows there is another person with her name living a much more interesting life. That's because Lata often receives the other Lata's invites to Hampton soirees, fundraising appeals from the New York City Ballet and reminders about sample sales at Soho boutiques. Lata's own life—working in digital content, watching Food Network marathons, spending recklessly on clothes she can't afford—feels pathetic in comparison. So, one day she decides to take on this other Lata's identity and jumps headfirst into the glamorous New York lifestyle ... but not without consequences.

At first, it all feels like a fairy tale. All of Lata's NYC dreams come she gets a higher-paying job, moves into a chic Chelsea apartment and is embraced by an elite friend group that includes Rajeev, an up-and-coming fashion designer intent on making a splash at New York Fashion Week. But Lata doesn't just catch the attention of the handsome fashion designer—she also incurs the wrath of the mysterious woman she is impersonating. And this Other Lata wants Lata to pay...but in the oddest of ways. Other Lata's blackmail seems designed to humiliate Lata in front of her wealthy new circle, and Lata has no choice but to submit to her demands if she doesn't want to lose her new friends and lifestyle.

Despite Other Lata's machinations, Lata and Rajeev's romance finds ways to blossom. But when Other Lata's demands change from mischievous to illegal, Lata must find a way to extricate herself from Other Lata's control once and for all.]]> Kirthana Ramisetti Shannon 4 aapi-books, netgalley-arc 4.00
author: Kirthana Ramisetti
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/03
date added: 2025/04/03
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc
review:
I really enjoyed this South Asian psychological romantic suspense that has an indebted, Desi shoplifter impersonating a conwoman who has her same name and finagling her way into the upper crust of New York Society. There's romance, mystery and lots of emotional depth in this clever story about a social climber learning the true cost of privilege. I really enjoyed the audio narration by Soneela Nankani and would recommend for fans of Krysten Ritter's The retreat! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 156736247 1 Cynthia So Shannon 0 3.77 2022
author: Cynthia So
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/31
shelves: to-read, aapi-books, ya-fiction, lgbtqia, trans-nonbinary-rep
review:

]]> 220380521
Vera Wong is back and as meddling as ever in this follow-up to the hit Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers.�

Ever since a man was found dead in Vera's teahouse, life has been good. For Vera that is. She’s surrounded by loved ones, her shop is bustling, and best of all, her son, Tilly, has a girlfriend! All thanks to Vera, because Tilly's girlfriend is none other than Officer SelenaÌýGray. The very same Officer Gray that she had harassed while investigating the teahouse murder. Still, Vera wishes more dead bodies would pop up in her shop, but one mustn't be ungrateful, even if one is slightly...bored.

Then Vera comes across a distressed young woman who is obviously in need of her kindly guidance. The young woman is looking for a missing friend. Fortunately, while cat-sitting at Tilly and Selena's, Vera finds a treasure Selena's briefcase.ÌýInside is a file about the death of an enigmatic influencer—who also happens to be the friend that the young woman was looking for.

Online, Xander had it a parade of private jets, fabulous parties with socialites, and a burgeoning career as a social media influencer. The only problem is, after his body is fished out of Mission Bay, the police can't seem to actually identify him. Who is Xander Lin? Nobody knows. Every contact is a dead end. Everybody claims not to know him, not even his parents.

Vera is determined to solve Xander's murder. After all, doing so would surely be a big favor to Selena, andÌýthere is nothing she wouldn't do for her future daughter-in-law.]]> Jesse Q. Sutanto Shannon 4 4.19 2025
author: Jesse Q. Sutanto
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/30
date added: 2025/03/30
shelves: aapi-books, cozy-mystery, prh-audio, netgalley-arc
review:
Everyone's favorite meddling Aunty is back in this second Vera Wong amateur detective murder mystery that has Vera forming bonds with a handful of lonely people in her trademark witty and sarcastic manner and also cracking a human trafficking forced scamming ring. Full of heart, found family and lots of laughs, this was another great addition to the series perfect for fans of Finlay Donovan or Molly the Maid. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 216972041 An atmospheric and profound coming-of-age graphic novel about a Malaysian American teen carving out her own identity in the uneasy space between friends and family.

Fifteen-year-old Azar feels stuck. Her mom’s job forced them to move to Vermont, where Azar doesn't know anyone. Her only friends are the next-door neighbors: an aging sci-fi writer and his nonbinary teen, Tristan, fellow misfits in the small-town community. For a while, Azar can escape her troubles by disappearing into the pages of her kindly neighbor’s epic novel, The Exiles of Overworld. But when her queerness throws her life out of balance, Azar realizes some secrets can’t be escaped forever. Somewhere in the abandoned malls, lakes, and comic conventions that fill her new life, Azar fights to find herself. What else will she discover?]]> 336 Kazimir Lee 1603095527 Shannon 3
When Azar finds an old sci-fi book, she finds solace in its pages and with its author and his nonbinary teenager, Tristan. I enjoyed the diverse characters and found family aspects of this story but I wasn't a huge fan of the art style or the way the very open-ended, unresolved ending.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review. Recommended for fans of books like The deep dark by Molly Knox Ostertag. Content warning for depictions of alcohol abuse and addiction.]]> 3.78 2025
author: Kazimir Lee
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/29
date added: 2025/03/29
shelves: lgbtqia, graphic-novels, trans-nonbinary-rep, ya-fiction, aapi-books, bipoc-books, trr2025-books
review:
This debut graphic novel is a complicated YA coming of age story about a queer Malaysian American teen girl dealing with living in a small Vermont town, her parent's separation and figuring out how to come out to her less than supportive mother.

When Azar finds an old sci-fi book, she finds solace in its pages and with its author and his nonbinary teenager, Tristan. I enjoyed the diverse characters and found family aspects of this story but I wasn't a huge fan of the art style or the way the very open-ended, unresolved ending.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review. Recommended for fans of books like The deep dark by Molly Knox Ostertag. Content warning for depictions of alcohol abuse and addiction.
]]> 228435385 Perfect for fans of Mason Deaver and Becky Albertalli, this tender, raucous novel follows a rule-following, perfectionist teen who starts an underground GSA club at her conservative Catholic high school, from the acclaimed author of Kings, Queens, and In-Betweens .

Cassie Perera is a star student in St. Luke's junior class. But the new school year brings an unwelcome surprise—the return to St. Luke's of Cassie's former friend, Ben, who left a few years ago after a homophobic bullying incident Cassie knows she didn't do enough to prevent.

Still harboring guilt from her inaction, Cassie decides, in her usual, overzealous way, to team up with the neighboring public school to found an underground Gender and Sexuality Alliance—as a complicated strategy for making things up to Ben. Secretly, Cassie is also tempted by the possibility of opening up about her own sexuality for the first time.

As Cassie’s new friends urge her out of her comfort zone, she unlocks a kind of joy and freedom she’s never felt before—even as she struggles to balance these experiences with her typical tightrope of being the perfect daughter, student, and Catholic.

Cassie’s perfectly curated life unravels into turmoil, but can she embrace the mess enough to piece together something new?]]> Tanya Boteju Shannon 5
She befriends members of the public school's Gender and Sexuality Alliance and along the way discovers she may not be as straight as she's so desperately been trying to insist.

I thought the author did such a great job showing how complicated it can be for some teens to reconcile their gender and sexual identity with their religious beliefs. Cassie also finds an ally in her school's librarian who brings in LGBTQIA+ books.

Great on audio with excellent anxiety rep, this is a new favorite for me by Canadian author Tanya Boteju and perfect for fans of Sonora Reyes. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!]]> 5.00 2025
author: Tanya Boteju
name: Shannon
average rating: 5.00
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/28
date added: 2025/03/29
shelves: aapi-books, lgbtqia, netgalley-arc, ya-fiction
review:
A beautifully messy and oh so relatable YA queer coming of age story about Cassie, a high school senior at a private Catholic school who is determined to make up for past mistakes with an old friend and subversively works to support different queer friendly initiatives for her classmates.

She befriends members of the public school's Gender and Sexuality Alliance and along the way discovers she may not be as straight as she's so desperately been trying to insist.

I thought the author did such a great job showing how complicated it can be for some teens to reconcile their gender and sexual identity with their religious beliefs. Cassie also finds an ally in her school's librarian who brings in LGBTQIA+ books.

Great on audio with excellent anxiety rep, this is a new favorite for me by Canadian author Tanya Boteju and perfect for fans of Sonora Reyes. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 228419925 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind meets Past Lives in this gripping, emotional story of two childhood friends navigating the fallout of one erasing their memory of the other, from acclaimed author Sarah Suk.

Seventeen-year-old Yena Bae is spending the summer in Busan, South Korea, working at her mom’s memory-erasing clinic. She feels lost and disconnected from people, something she’s felt ever since her best friend, Lucas, moved away four years ago without a word, leaving her in limbo.

Eighteen-year-old Lucas Pak is also in Busan for the summer, visiting his grandpa, who was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. But he isn’t just here for a regular visit—he’s determined to get his beloved grandpa into the new study running at the clinic, a trial program seeking to restore lost memories.

When Yena runs into Lucas again, she’s shocked to see him and even more shocked to discover that he doesn’t remember a thing about her. He’s completely erased her from his memories, and she has no idea why.

As the two reconnect, they unravel the mystery and heartache of what happened between them all those years ago—and must now reckon with whether they can forge a new beginning together.]]> Sarah Suk Shannon 0 0.0 2025
author: Sarah Suk
name: Shannon
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/27
date added: 2025/03/27
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, ya-fiction, alzheimers-dementia, fantasy-scifi
review:
This YA romance from a Canadian author I've enjoyed in the past sounded interesting with the MMC having erased his memories of his love interest but sadly it just fell a little flat for me. I liked that the MMC travelled to Korea to help his grandfather get into a study to aid with his Alzheimer's but other than that the romance didn't resonate with me. Would recommend for fans of Dustin Thao who enjoy a lot of emotional angst and forced separation. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review.
]]> 228411794 Shortlisted for The Women’s Prize Named a most anticipated book by Electric Literature , Publishers Weekly , The BBC, Daily Mail (London), and more

A darkly funny, life-affirming debut novel following five women from a once illustrious Iranian family as they grapple with revolutions personal and political.

Meet the Valiat family. In Iran, they were somebodies. In America, they’re nobodies.

First there is Elizabeth, the regal matriarch with the famously large nose, who remained in Tehran despite the revolution. She lives alone but is sometimes visited by Niaz, her Islamic-law-breaking granddaughter, who takes her partying with a side of purpose and yet manages to survive. Elizabeth’s daughters wound up in Shirin, a charismatic and flamboyantly high-flying event planner in Houston, who considers herself the family’s future, and Seema, a dreamy idealist turned housewife languishing in the chaparral-filled hills of Los Angeles. And then there’s the other granddaughter, Bita, a disillusioned law student in New York City trying to find deeper meaning by quietly giving away her belongings.

When an annual vacation in Aspen goes wildly awry and Shirin ends up in jail, the family’s upper-class veneer is cracked open. Shirin embarks upon a quest to restore the family name to its former glory, but what does that mean in a country where the Valiats never mattered? Can they bring their old inheritance into a new tomorrow?

By turns satirical and philosophical, spanning from 1940s Iran to a splintered 2000s, The Persians upends the listener's expectations while exploring questions about love, family, money, art, and how to find yourself and each other when your country is lost. Wry and witty, brazen and absurd, The Persians is a deeply moving reinvention of the American family saga.]]> Sanam Mahloudji Shannon 4
This was a compelling multigenerational domestic drama about an Iranian American family that spans generations. While I loved the audiobook narration for this debut, I felt that it was difficult to stay invested as the novel is long and alternates timelines, perspectives and countries often. Moving nonetheless with strong female characters, I look forward to reading more by this author and would recommend for fans of authors like Marjane Satrapi and Marjan Kamali's book, The stationery shop. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!]]> 3.25 2024
author: Sanam Mahloudji
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.25
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/25
date added: 2025/03/25
shelves: aapi-books, bipoc-books, netgalley-arc, debuts
review:
3.5 rounded up

This was a compelling multigenerational domestic drama about an Iranian American family that spans generations. While I loved the audiobook narration for this debut, I felt that it was difficult to stay invested as the novel is long and alternates timelines, perspectives and countries often. Moving nonetheless with strong female characters, I look forward to reading more by this author and would recommend for fans of authors like Marjane Satrapi and Marjan Kamali's book, The stationery shop. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 62923256
flow

flip

throw

me back,

tease with swells so I keep

watching

waiting

hoping

for the bigger wave,

that might take me all

the way to

the shore.

Thirteen-year-old Ava loves to surf and to sing. Singing and reading Rumi poems settle her mild OCD, and catching waves with her best friend, Phoenix, lets her fit in--her olive skin looks tan, not foreign. But then Ava has to spend the summer before ninth grade volunteering at the hospital, to follow in her single mother's footsteps to become a doctor. And when Phoenix's past lymphoma surges back, not even surfing, singing, or poetry can keep them afloat, threatening Ava's hold on the one place and the one person that make her feel like she belongs. With ocean-like rhythm and lyricism, this novel in verse is about a girl who rides the waves, tumbles, and finds her way back to the shore.

Includes a supplemental discussion guide PDF.

Runtime: 3. 50 hours, 4 library CDs]]> 4 Diana Farid 170506390X Shannon 0 4.00 2022
author: Diana Farid
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/25
shelves: to-read, aapi-books, bipoc-books, disability-books, historical-fiction, mental-health, middle-grade-fiction, neurodiversity, ocd, novels-in-verse
review:

]]> 63204017 Just as she’s about to turn her back on this dream a YouTube clip of Madhu goes viral and she is suddenly catapulted into the bright lights of stardom. It’s not long before she catches the attention of a fellow Asian comedy legend who offers her the chance of a lifetime.

But the road to comedy glory is not a barrel of laughs � and Madhu’s own struggles with her family and identity soon catch up with her. Can she follow her dreams and stay true to herself and those she loves in the process?]]> 262 Nikesh Shukla 1444969897 Shannon 0 3.27 2023
author: Nikesh Shukla
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.27
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/25
shelves: to-read, aapi-books, bipoc-books, ya-fiction
review:

]]> 219501727 Starting over is hard. Falling for her gorgeous butch roommate might make it impossible.

When a tall, stunning butch protects Mira from her ex-boyfriend at the club—and offers her a safe place to stay—Mira should be relieved. Not flustered. She’s not into women.

Yet this tough electrician with curves for days makes Mira’s heart race like never before.

But Isabel, wounded by grief, forces Mira to keep her distance. Until Mira’s desperate to win a union election at work—and only Isabel has the experience to teach her how.

Soon they’re lingering over dinner, teasing each other as the apartment heats up. And Isabel is making her coffee every morning, hanging her shelves, giving her smoldering looks before bed�

But Mira can’t afford temptation. Not after living with her nightmare ex.

No matter how well Isabel takes care of her…or how much Isabel needs healing, too.

She can’t risk her freedom—or her heart.

Make Room for Love is a steamy slow-burn romance starring a trans woman discovering she’s bi and finding her happily ever after.]]> 335 Darcy Liao Shannon 4 4.05 2024
author: Darcy Liao
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/24
date added: 2025/03/25
shelves: aapi-books, bipoc-books, debuts, indie-authors, lgbtqia, trr2025-books, trans-nonbinary-rep
review:
I've been seeing 'Make room for love' on so many book rec lists and I finally made time to read this indie queer romance gem featuring a South Asian trans woman and an Asian butch lesbian who become roommates and eventually more. Unexpected bonus points that a lot of the book deals with fighting for unions and worker's rights. The romance is a slow burn but it works for the characters who are recovering from a toxic ex and grieving the death of a sister respectively. There's great communication, spicy moments and some great food. Highly recommended, especially for the Trans Rights Readathon!
]]> 228672446 Better Nate Than Ever meets ¶Ù³Ü³¾±è±ô¾±²Ôâ€� in this charming, poignant debut by Kyle Casey Chu, aka Panda Dulce, a founding queen of Drag Story Hour.

After making the buzzer-beating shot at the Georgia basketball state championships, Derrick Chan becomes the star of Bayard Middle School, and Derrick’s single dad could not be prouder. But there are parts of Derrick that no one knows about, like the toenail polish he wears under his basketball sneakers, his secret lip-sync performances in the bathroom mirror, and the feelings he’s developing for his best friend and teammate, JJ.

As the school year comes to a close, Derrick’s dad takes an out-of-town job and ships Derrick off to spend the summer with his estranged, eccentric grandmother, Claudia. Soon, Claudia introduces Derrick to the world of small-town southern beauty pageants, and Derrick suddenly feels he’s found where he belongs. But when the opportunity arises to compete in the town pageant, Derrick is forced to decide just how much of himself he’s ready to show the world.

Can he learn to love and accept the most unique parts of himself? And what will happen if others—like his father and JJ—can’t do the same?]]> Kyle Casey Chu Shannon 5
When Derrick goes to spend the summer with his grandmother Claudia in small town Georgia, he gets caught up in her beauty pageant work and even enters one himself as his drag persona, Bee Daring. This book is all about self-acceptance, queer joy, embracing your true self and living your truth.

It also doesn't shy away from tough topics like coming out to a parent, homophobia and anti-Asian racism but the overall message is so important!! Highly recommended for fans of books like Martin McLean, middle school queen or Middle school's a drag.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Fav quotes:
"I am proud to be who I am...And I am here today, because I was wrong about not belonging. I do. And the more I've learned about my family and my friends, the more I realize...people like me...we belong. And we always have."

"I've learned that despite what everyone says and thinks, what matters most is your own joy. ... I've learned that I would rather be myself even if some people don't like it, than be loved for pretending to be someone I'm not."]]> 4.67 2025
author: Kyle Casey Chu
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.67
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/22
date added: 2025/03/22
shelves: lgbtqia, middle-grade-fiction, trans-nonbinary-rep, netgalley-arc, aapi-books, trr2025-books, 2025-favorites
review:
I absolutely adored this middle grade novel about Derrick Chan, a Chinese American gender-nonconforming tween boy who loves basketball and tries to please his father but also secretly loves wearing nail polish and dressing in drag.

When Derrick goes to spend the summer with his grandmother Claudia in small town Georgia, he gets caught up in her beauty pageant work and even enters one himself as his drag persona, Bee Daring. This book is all about self-acceptance, queer joy, embracing your true self and living your truth.

It also doesn't shy away from tough topics like coming out to a parent, homophobia and anti-Asian racism but the overall message is so important!! Highly recommended for fans of books like Martin McLean, middle school queen or Middle school's a drag.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Fav quotes:
"I am proud to be who I am...And I am here today, because I was wrong about not belonging. I do. And the more I've learned about my family and my friends, the more I realize...people like me...we belong. And we always have."

"I've learned that despite what everyone says and thinks, what matters most is your own joy. ... I've learned that I would rather be myself even if some people don't like it, than be loved for pretending to be someone I'm not."
]]> 211003839 Love, family, and food collide in this sparkling Romeo and Juliet-inspired romance.

Julie Wu and Randall Hur used to be best friends. Now they only see each other on Saturdays at the Pasadena Farmers Market where their once close families are long-standing rivals.

When Julie and Randall are paired with ultra-rich London Kim for a community-service school project, they are forced to work together for the first time in years. It quickly becomes obvious that London has a major crush on Julie. But Julie can’t stop thinking about Randall. And Randall can’t stop thinking about how London is thinking about Julie. Soon, prompted by a little jealousy and years of missing each other, school project meetings turn into pseudo dates at their favorite Taiwanese breakfast shop and then secret kisses at the beach—far from the watchful eyes of their families.

Just as they’re finally feeling brave enough to tell their grandmas, the two matriarchs rehash their old fight and Julie and Randall get caught in the middle and Julie’s brother finds out they are dating. Their families are heartbroken.

But it’s the Year of the Dragon, an auspicious time to resolve disagreements and start anew, and Randall isn’t going down without fighting for what—and who—they love. Could the Lunar New Year provide not only a second chance for Randall and Julie, but for their families as well?

Jennifer Chen’s Hangry Hearts is a funny, big-hearted romance about friendship, family, and first love—and being brave enough to have it all.]]> 320 Jennifer Chen 1250374405 Shannon 4
The FOOD in this book abounds and will have you drooling from start to finish!! It was definitely a highlight for me. I also really liked that there was a trans masc main male character who was wholeheartedly accepted by his nuclear family.

While there was a lot of drama, there was also a ton of heartwarming found family, multigenerational friendships and trans joy. I truly enjoyed this sophomore novel so much and would recommend for fans of books like A pho love story, Bingsu for two, Cafe con lychee or Fake dates and mooncakes.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and finished copy in exchange for my honest review!! This was the perfect start to my #TransRightsReadathon2025 !!! BTW the cover design/illustration by Leni Kauffman is chef's kiss!!!]]> 3.27 2025
author: Jennifer Chen
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.27
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/21
date added: 2025/03/21
shelves: aapi-books, books-about-food, lgbtqia, trans-nonbinary-rep, ya-fiction, trr2025-books
review:
I absolutely adored this over the top enemies to lovers YA Romeo and Juliet retelling that has the offspring of two feuding Asian American farmer's market vendors falling in love while forced to work together on a school project.

The FOOD in this book abounds and will have you drooling from start to finish!! It was definitely a highlight for me. I also really liked that there was a trans masc main male character who was wholeheartedly accepted by his nuclear family.

While there was a lot of drama, there was also a ton of heartwarming found family, multigenerational friendships and trans joy. I truly enjoyed this sophomore novel so much and would recommend for fans of books like A pho love story, Bingsu for two, Cafe con lychee or Fake dates and mooncakes.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and finished copy in exchange for my honest review!! This was the perfect start to my #TransRightsReadathon2025 !!! BTW the cover design/illustration by Leni Kauffman is chef's kiss!!!
]]> 223733045 'A modern-day Mrs. Caliban, BLOB is a book that looks at identity and desire in profoundly interesting ways'
Kevin Wilson, author of Nothing to See Here

A hilarious and moving debut novel about a young woman who decides to turn a sentient blob into her perfect boyfriend...

The daughter of a Taiwanese father and white mother, Vi Liu has never quite fit into her Midwestern college town. Now at twenty-three, after getting dumped and dropping out of college, Vi works as a front desk attendant at a hotel where she refills cucumber water samovars and fends off overtures of friendship from her bubbly blond coworker, Rachel. But when Vi decides to accompany Rachel to a local drag show, her life changes forever. In the alley outside the bar, next to a trash can, is a blob with beady black eyes. Unable to leave it behind, Vi picks up the creature and, in a moment of drunken desperation, takes it home with her.

As her pet blob becomes sentient, Vi realizes it obeys her commands and she decides to mold the blob into her ideal partner. She feeds it sugary cereal and a stream of pop culture, and soon the creature transforms into a movie-star handsome white man. But as Vi's desire to be loved unconditionally threatens to spiral out of control, she is forced to confront her lonely childhood, the ex-boyfriend who has unfriended her, and the racial marginalization that has defined her relationships. Ultimately, Vi embarks on a journey of self-discovery and learns that it's impossible to control those you love.

Blending the familiar with the fantastical, BLOB tells a witty, heartfelt story of what it means to be human.

'An inventive, utterly unique debut'
Kimberly King Parsons, author of Black Light]]> 8 Maggie Su Shannon 0 3.45 2025
author: Maggie Su
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.45
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/18
shelves: to-read, aapi-books, fantasy-scifi, debuts
review:

]]> 225820247
There are two things that Ruby Dhanji loves with her whole entire Christmas and anything to do with the UK. For Ruby the holiday season means joy, generosity, and warm memories with her late mother.ÌýAnd now she’s on the verge of realizing the dream she and her mom always moving to England and opening a cozy inn. The only problem,ÌýRuby needs some hotel experience first.Ìý
Ìý
Rashid just doesn’t get all the holiday hype. But when he meets a woman dragging home a Christmas tree alone from the Winter Market, he has to offer to help—even if he soon finds Ruby adores all the things he dislikes. When Ruby discovers that Rashid’s family owns a luxury boutique hotel chain in Britain, she offers him a she’ll help him give his young nieces an amazing Christmas if he’ll facilitate an introduction to his family.Ìý
Ìý
As Ruby and Rashid get closer, she realizes that the great big grump loves his large, eccentric family fiercely. And when their friendship turns to something more, she’s afraid she’s falling for someone weeks before she moves across the Atlantic and she’ll soon have to decide which dream she wants to chase.Ìý]]> 368 Farah Heron 1538725495 Shannon 0 0.0
author: Farah Heron
name: Shannon
average rating: 0.0
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/18
shelves: to-read, christmas-holiday, aapi-books, bipoc-books
review:

]]> 214986269 A bombshell bestseller in Japan, a provocative, defiant debut novel about a young woman in a care home seeking autonomy and the full possibilities of her life.

Born with a congenital muscle disorder,ÌýShaka spends her days in her room in a care home outside Tokyo, relying on an electric wheelchair to get around and a ventilator to breathe. But if Shaka's physical life is limited, her quick, mischievous mind has no boundaries: She takes e-learning courses on her iPad, publishes explicit fantasies on websites, and anonymously troll-tweets to see if anyone is paying attention (“If I were to live again, I’d want to be a high-class prostituteâ€�). One day, she tweets into the void an offer of an enormous sum of money for a sperm donor. To her surprise, her new nurse accepts the dare, unleashing a series of events that will forever change Shaka's sense of herself as a woman in the world.

Hunchback has shaken Japanese literary culture with its skillful depiction of the physical body andÌýunrepentant humor. Winner of the prestigious Akutagawa Prize, it's a feminist story about the dignity of an individual who insists on her right to make choices for herself, no matter the consequences. Formally creative and refreshingly unsentimental, Hunchback depicts the joy, anger, and desires of a woman demanding autonomy in a world that doesn't aways grant it to people like her. Full of wit, bite, and heart, this unforgettable novel reminds us all of the full potentialÌýof our lives, no matter the limitations we experience.]]> 112 Saou Ichikawa 0593734718 Shannon 5
Many of the things Shaka has to deal with are similar to my own disability challenges so I found this book extremely relatable. It was so great reading about a disabled main character expressing their desires for sex, bodily autonomy and independence in frank and at times shockingly honest ways!

This was great on audio and I can't recommend it enough, especially for fans of authors like Alice Wong. Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!]]> 3.51 2023
author: Saou Ichikawa
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.51
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/17
date added: 2025/03/18
shelves: 2025-favorites, aapi-books, disability-books, prh-audio, translation
review:
This was an INCREDIBLE ownvoices debut translated from the original Japanese about Shaka, a disabled woman who has congenital myotubular myopathy (similar to muscular atrophy or ALS). She lives in a care home, has a trach, uses a ventilator, often uses technology to speak for her and requires a caregiver to help with daily tasks (ie showering).

Many of the things Shaka has to deal with are similar to my own disability challenges so I found this book extremely relatable. It was so great reading about a disabled main character expressing their desires for sex, bodily autonomy and independence in frank and at times shockingly honest ways!

This was great on audio and I can't recommend it enough, especially for fans of authors like Alice Wong. Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 220908971 A teen descendant of a Japanese dragon god must team up with a cute rogue agent to subvert a corrupt time travel organization and find out the truth of what happened to her missing sister in acclaimed author Kylie Lee Baker's magical new YA romance, I'll Find You Where the Timeline Ends.

When you’re ready, come find me. I will keep you safe. -Hana

Descended from a Japanese dragon god, Yang Mina was born with the power to travel through time, and has spent her life training to take her place in the Descendants, a secret organization whose purpose is to protect the timeline. Then Mina’s world is uprooted when she moves to Seoul and finds a note from her sister–a sister who no one remembers, as if she had been erased. The only people who could have made her sister vanish so completely are part of the very agency that she’s been working so hard to join. So now Mina has a new mission, infiltrate the agency as quickly as possible to find her lost sister.

And, as if things weren’t complicated enough, a strikingly handsome rogue agent has determined that Mina is the only person who can help him put an end to the Descendants' corruption. Placed in an impossible situation, Mina must decide how much she’s willing to risk to find the truth.]]> 304 Kylie Lee Baker 1250381983 Shannon 0 4.08 2025
author: Kylie Lee Baker
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, fantasy-scifi, dragons, ya-fiction, time-loop-stories, aapi-books
review:

]]> 210563310
Evie is heartbroken and betrayed when a video of her confronting her cheating ex boyfriend goes viral, so what's a girl to do? Flee to London for the summer, of course! Evie loves everything about London - the double decker buses, afternoon tea, history around every corner. Everything that is but having to stay with the person who's hurt her most of all - her father.



Desperate for a distraction from their contentious relationship, Evie spends her days wandering the historic streets . . . where as though fate is intervening, she keeps meeting a charming and beautiful British busker named Aiden.



Evie doesn't want to open herself up again, but Aiden is funny, kind, and he never treats Evie like she's too much. He may just be worth taking a chance on . . . if Evie can keep her past from getting in the way of her future.



Internationally bestselling author Elizabeth Eulberg pens an unforgettable journey that's heartwarming, hilarious, and heavy on both romance and jetlag.]]> 304 Elizabeth Eulberg 1546129278 Shannon 4 3.68 2025
author: Elizabeth Eulberg
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/16
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: aapi-books, ya-fiction, disability-books, mental-health
review:
This was a moving YA summer romance that has American Evie travelling to London to spend time with her father following a breakup. When she bumps into busker, Aiden on her first day there, the two strike up a friendship that leads to more. While I thought the romance in this story was really cute and fun, I especially enjoyed how well written and realistic the story about Evie's father's disordered eating was and what an impact that had on those around him. Great on audio and HIGHLY recommended!
]]> 60553010 From the award winning author of The Buddha in the Attic and When the Emperor Was Divine, a tour de force of economy, precision, and emotional power about what happens to a group of obsessed recreational swimmers when a crack appears at the bottom of their local pool.

The swimmers are unknown to each other except through their private routines (slow lane, fast lane), and the solace each takes in their morning or afternoon laps. But when a crack appears at the bottom of the pool, they are cast out into an unforgiving world without comfort or relief.
One of these swimmers is Alice, who is slowly losing her memory. For Alice, the pool was a final stand against the darkness of her encroaching dementia. Without the fellowship of other swimmers and the routine of her daily laps she is plunged into dislocation and chaos, swept into memories of her childhood and the Japanese internment camp in which she spent the war. Narrated by Alice's daughter, who witnesses her stark and devastating decline, The Swimmers is a searing, intimate story of mothers and daughters, and the sorrows of implacable loss, written in spellbinding, incantatory prose.
The most commanding and unforgettable work yet from a modern master.
]]> Julie Otsuka Shannon 4 3.47 2022
author: Julie Otsuka
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.47
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2022/03/05
date added: 2025/03/15
shelves: aapi-books, mental-health, alzheimers-dementia
review:
Small but mighty! This was a quick listen on audio but a wonderful meditation on experiencing living with a parent who has dementia. The story begins with a group of swimmers who daily enjoy swimming in this one particular pool. For Alice it has been helping her keep her encroaching dementia at bay. However, when a crack forms in the pool forcing the swimmers to go elsewhere, Alice's grip on her memory starts to fade. At this point the story switches to Alice's daughter's perspective and we get to witness her experience watching a loved one slowly lose their mind and memories. Deeply moving, this was a wonderful read and highly recommended, especially for fans of Lisa Genova's Still Alice.
]]> 153417475 From the author of Canada Reads finalist Scarborough, a stunning new novel about the unbreakable bond of family and the magic that can happen when we meet in the middle

Like many Overseas Filipino Workers, Mary Grace Concepcion has lived a life of sacrifices. First, she left her husband, Ale, to be a caregiver in Hong Kong. Now, she has travelled even farther, to Canada, in the hopes of one day sponsoring Ale and having children of their own.

But when she arrives in Toronto, she must navigate a series of bewildering and careless employers and unruly children. Mary Grace seeks new employment as a Personal Support Worker and begins caring for Liz, an elderly patient suffering from Alzheimer's disease, whose health is as fragile as her rundown bungalow beside the Rouge River in Scarborough. While Mary Grace's time with her charge challenges her conservative beliefs, she soon becomes Liz's biggest ally, and the friendship that grows between them will turn out to be just as legendary as Liz's past.

Beautifully narrated by the all-seeing eye of Mary Grace's newborn baby, The Story of Us is a novel about sisterhood, about blood and chosen family, and about how belonging can be found where we least expect it.]]> 9 Catherine Hernandez Shannon 5
While she's working, she's also training to become a Personal Support Worker and hoping she'll be able to sponsor her husband so he can join her in Canada and they can start a family of their own. Her next job involves looking after an aging Alzheimer's patient who is living with her son in a rundown Scarborough bungalow.

Told from the unique perspective of Mary Grace's unborn child and great on audio narrated by the author herself. I really loved this story!! The focus on some of the most neglected and disrespected members of society was so well done (both immigrant workers and PSWs). I also really enjoyed the friendship that developed between Mary Grace and Liz and the way she ended up fighting for her was so touching!

Highly, highly recommended! I read this in one sitting and it was such an enjoyable experience!

⚠�TW: pregnancy loss/miscarriage, transphobia, adultery, mistreatment of elders (among others)]]> 4.08 2023
author: Catherine Hernandez
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2023/02/28
date added: 2025/03/15
shelves: aapi-books, lgbtqia, trans-nonbinary-rep, alzheimers-dementia
review:
Another amazing book from one of my favorite Canadian authors!!! This story features Mary Grace Concepcion, a young Filipino woman who travels overseas to help support her husband. Eventually she finds herself in Toronto working as a nanny for a series of not-nice women who take advantage of her terribly.

While she's working, she's also training to become a Personal Support Worker and hoping she'll be able to sponsor her husband so he can join her in Canada and they can start a family of their own. Her next job involves looking after an aging Alzheimer's patient who is living with her son in a rundown Scarborough bungalow.

Told from the unique perspective of Mary Grace's unborn child and great on audio narrated by the author herself. I really loved this story!! The focus on some of the most neglected and disrespected members of society was so well done (both immigrant workers and PSWs). I also really enjoyed the friendship that developed between Mary Grace and Liz and the way she ended up fighting for her was so touching!

Highly, highly recommended! I read this in one sitting and it was such an enjoyable experience!

⚠�TW: pregnancy loss/miscarriage, transphobia, adultery, mistreatment of elders (among others)
]]> 214540656 Fans of When Dimple Met Rishi will love this charming, slow-burn YA romance about all the ways you can honor tradition while still giving it a modern flair.

When it comes to romance, Maya still believes in meet-cutes, but she’s done with boys wasting her time. After her freshman romance refuses to put a label on their relationship, Maya decides to reclaim her life and completely turnaround her college experience. She’s got big plans to throw the most spectacular Holi—a colorful Hindu festival symbolizing rebirth, which Maya feels she desperately needs.

Enter college heartthrob Nishant Rai, an upperclassman, notorious playboy, and well-connected DJ. After the student council makes him Maya’s co-planner, she finds herself working closely with the one guy on campus she can’t have and definitely doesn’t want. He plans to turn the event into #HoliFest, a flashy EDM festival blending old traditions with the fresh new twist of a music festival. As the two grow closer, Maya realizes Nishant is so much more than a pretty face. Is he just wasting her time, or has she finally found her meet-cute?]]> 304 Swati Teerdhala 1368096123 Shannon 4 3.95 2025
author: Swati Teerdhala
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/11
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, ya-fiction
review:
This was such a cute YA freshman college slow burn romance between two South Asian teens forced to work together to plan and organize their school's best ever Holi festival. I loved the Spring vibes, the food and music content and the great banter between the two MCs. Great on audio and highly recommended for fans of books like Salaam, with love or Four Eids and a funeral. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 217323775 From the author of IF YOU STILL RECOGNISE ME comes a delicious story of two people brought together by a shared love of food as they figure out themselves and each other.

Auden is finding different ways to be themself. The first - using their new chosen name, which feels most authentically them. The second - starting a food blog where they can share their passion for food, through family recipes and the stories behind them. And when the blog brings them Valerie, they discover more than they'd ever expected.

It's been over a year since Valerie lost her mum - her beautiful, vibrant mum who loved cooking. Since her mum's death, Valerie and her dad have drifted further and further apart, the kitchen left cold and empty, until Valerie finds Auden's blog. The blog (and its writer) spark something in Valerie. Could she have found a recipe for happiness?]]> 352 Cynthia So 1788953452 Shannon 0 4.06 2025
author: Cynthia So
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/10
shelves: to-read, aapi-books, books-about-food, lgbtqia, ya-fiction, trans-nonbinary-rep
review:

]]> 210365271 By turns wry and lyrical, a generational story of identity and freedom that reveals a rarely seen insider’s view of China’s contemporary history.

Lemei, a student Red Guard leader in 1960s Shanghai, leads a life of deception after her father dies a political prisoner. She is assigned to a journalism position at the state newspaper and forced to churn out propaganda. During the Tiananmen Square protests, she is involved in a brutal act of violence. Losing all hope for China, she sees America as the only way out for her daughter, Lin.

Ten years later, Lin escapes to an American university with a mission to become a true Westerner. She tirelessly erases her birth identity, abandons her Chinese suitor, and pursues a white love interest. However, her painful upbringing haunts her at every turn.

At Lin’s graduation, Lemei realizes the America dream was only an illusion. Following China’s meteoric rise, she is slowly dragged into a nationalistic perspective that stuns Lin, leading to a grave conflict between mother and daughter. Their final confrontation comes with tragic consequences, but nonetheless shines a light of hope for the future.]]> 384 Su Chang 1487013175 Shannon 5
Beginning in 1960s Shanghai and ending in present day Canada, we follow Lemei, a journalist during the Tiananmen Square protests who becomes disillusioned and works hard to provide her daughter Lin the opportunity to study abroad in America.

Lin's time as a student in America though is far from perfect, she has to deal with anti-Asian hate from both outsiders and fellow Asian immigrants who judge her for not embracing her culture enough. She also tries to resist Dali, a rival student from her hometown who also won a scholarship and is intent on becoming Lin's boyfriend.

After graduating Lin eventually moves to Toronto where she pursues a passion in theatre, marries a white man and struggles with postpartum depression after the birth of her own daughter.

In turns heartbreaking and eye-opening, this Chinese immigrant story is a must read and highly recommended for fans of authors like Amy Tan or Lisa See.]]> 3.70
author: Su Chang
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.70
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/09
date added: 2025/03/10
shelves: aapi-books, historical-fiction, debuts
review:
This was a moving multigenerational debut story about one family of Chinese women fighting for their country, their identities and their places in societies that don't always want them.

Beginning in 1960s Shanghai and ending in present day Canada, we follow Lemei, a journalist during the Tiananmen Square protests who becomes disillusioned and works hard to provide her daughter Lin the opportunity to study abroad in America.

Lin's time as a student in America though is far from perfect, she has to deal with anti-Asian hate from both outsiders and fellow Asian immigrants who judge her for not embracing her culture enough. She also tries to resist Dali, a rival student from her hometown who also won a scholarship and is intent on becoming Lin's boyfriend.

After graduating Lin eventually moves to Toronto where she pursues a passion in theatre, marries a white man and struggles with postpartum depression after the birth of her own daughter.

In turns heartbreaking and eye-opening, this Chinese immigrant story is a must read and highly recommended for fans of authors like Amy Tan or Lisa See.
]]> 218112900
Eight years in prison changes a person. Particularly when you're only there because your partner, your best friend, your all-but-sister, sold you down the river.

Even getting Edie out on early parole doesn't earn Angel any forgiveness. That's why Edie knows they'll turn down Angel's offer of a job. One last, big score. A chance to take down the man who put them away: Joyce Atlas.

But Edie's lost too much time with their family. A heavily pregnant sister, a seriously ill niece, and a nephew who wasn't born before they went to prison. There's not a question. Edie's going straight. Or trying to - but Atlas has had them blacklisted from every employer on the station.

Edie really doesn't want to work with Angel. It's far too complicated, they're far too angry, and Angel is bringing up a lot of confusing feelings. But they don't have any other choice . . .

And if they pull it off, the 1.25 billion payout might just soothe some old wounds.

"Betray me, and I'll ruin your life."
"You've done it once already."
"And I won't hesitate to do it again."]]> 1 Makana Yamamoto Shannon 3 3.17 2024
author: Makana Yamamoto
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.17
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/07
date added: 2025/03/07
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, lgbtqia, trans-nonbinary-rep, fantasy-scifi, sapphic-romance, mystery-thriller, bipoc-books
review:
This sci-fi heist novel sounded interesting and while I did enjoy parts of it, I thought the actual heist itself was a bit of a let down. The novel does not live up to its comparison to Ocean's Eleven but where its strongest is the heartfelt family connections, the second chance Sapphic romance and the cast of queer BIPOC characters. Good on audio and recommended for fans of books like The undetectables by Courtney Smyth. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 224824565 “A wise, tremendously moving exploration of what it means to seek companionship and understanding, in books and in life.�—Hua Hsu, author of Stay True

“[A] stirring and sparkling new memoir.�� The Washington Post

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE Time, Los Angeles Times, Cosmopolitan

Books can seduce you. They can, Sarah Chihaya believes, annihilate, reveal, and provoke you. And anyone incurably obsessed with books understands this kind of unsettling literary encounter. Sarah calls books that have this effect “Life Ruiners�.

Her Life Ruiner, Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye, became a talisman for her in high school when its electrifying treatment of race exposed Sarah’s deepest feelings about being Japanese American in a predominantly white suburb of Cleveland. But Sarah had always lived through her books, seeking escape, self-definition, and rules for living. She built her life around reading, wrote criticism, and taught literature at an Ivy League University. Then she was hospitalized for a nervous breakdown, and the world became an unreadable blank page. In the aftermath, she was faced with a question. Could we ever truly rewrite the stories that govern our lives?

Bibliophobia is an alternately searing and darkly humorous story of breakdown and survival told through books. Delving into texts such as Anne of Green Gables, Possession, A Tale for the Time Being, The Last Samurai, Chihaya interrogates her cultural identity, her relationship with depression, and the intoxicating, sometimes painful, ways books push back on those who love them.]]> Sarah Chihaya Shannon 3 3.50 2025
author: Sarah Chihaya
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/06
date added: 2025/03/06
shelves: biographies-memoirs, aapi-books, books-about-books, mental-health, prh-audio
review:
Part memoir, part critical theory of books and reading and how finding the right book at the right time can be life-changing. I enjoyed some parts of this more than others but thought the reflections on some of her favorite books was excellent (Anne of Green Gables, Toni Morrison's The bluest eyes, etc) and the insights into her depression and mental health challenges were the strongest parts. Good on audio and definitely a book I'd recommend.
]]> 211003894
Now, Noon is stuck navigating the submerged town with her mom, who believes their dead family has reincarnated as sea creatures. Alone with the pain of what happened that night at the cove, Noon buries the truth: she is not the right shape.

When Mercy’s predatory leader demands Noon and her mom capture the creature drowning residents, she reluctantly finds an ally in his deadly hunter of a daughter and friends old and new. As the next storm approaches, Noon must confront the past and decide if it’s time to answer the monster itching at her skin.]]> 272 Trang Thanh Tran 1547611111 Shannon 4 3.60 2025
author: Trang Thanh Tran
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.60
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/02
date added: 2025/03/02
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, mystery-thriller, ya-fiction
review:
I am always up for a good rage-fueled thriller (the world sure has no shortage of things to get enraged about) and this newest from Trang Thanh Tran features a nonbinary Asian American teen dealing with an algae bloom inspired monster in their Southern hometown as well as intergenerational trauma handed down from their refugee immigrant mother. There's also anti-Asian racism and queer-phobia in this highly relatable and creative YA cli-fi dystopian/thriller. Great on audio and highly recommended for fans of books like Pink slime or authors like Jamison Shea and her I feed her to the beast series. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review.
]]> 214511213 During a summer in Italy, two best friends discover whether true love is up to destiny or free will in this winning romantic comedy by the international bestselling author of Woke Up Like This.

For generations, the fortune-telling women in Lo Zhao-Jensen’s family have foreseen The One—the great loves of their lives—before ever meeting them. Except for Lo, who has zero psychic abilities. Just memories of old rom-coms and a lot of poor judgment when it comes to love.

Until now.

When Lo finally has the vision she’s been waiting for, her delighted aunties are convinced she’ll meet The One on her backpacking trip in Italy. Vero amore, here she comes.

Along for the summer is Lo’s best friend and confidant, Teller Owens, her opposite in every way. Upon arrival in Venice, Lo is saved from a runaway trolley by Caleb, a fellow backpacker. It’s a meet-cute so swoony, it has to be fate. But with each destination, Lo’s complicated feelings for Teller are becoming harder to ignore. From the cobblestone streets of Rome to the rocky cliffs of Amalfi, Lo begins to wonder if fate has other plans.]]> 352 Amy Lea 1662517602 Shannon 3 aapi-books, netgalley-arc 3.52 2025
author: Amy Lea
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.52
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/02
date added: 2025/03/02
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc
review:
This was a YA friends to lovers vacation romance with a bit of a magical twist that is sure to appeal to fans of authors like Jenny Han. While I have loved Canadian author Amy Lea's books in the past, this latest young adult romcom fell a little flat for me. It was cute and sweet but the romance didn't grab me or feel believable and I really only stuck around for the interesting Italian settings. Okay on audio but nothing I would go out of my way to recommend. If you do want a great YA Italian romance check out All roads lead to Rome by Sabrina Fedel. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 211953338
Meet the Agarwals, who have gathered on a private, luxury island off the west coast of Scotland for a much-anticipated family reunion.

Raj, the patriarch and a business tycoon, is about to announce to his wife and three children the succession plan for his multimillon-dollar Delhi-based company. Shalini, the fragile matriarch, is ready to have her husband to herself after years of sacrifice to the family business. Myra, the golden child, owner of the island and host of the reunion, is, unbeknownst to her family, on the brink of bankruptcy. Aseem, the son and supposed heir, is torn between his love for his wife and his duty to family. Aisha, the youngest, a party girl whose antics are legendary, can’t pass up an opportunity to wreak havoc. And then there’s Zoe, Aseem’s wife, the outsider whose #InstaPerfect life is built on a foundation of lies.

They’ve all got secrets they would die to protect. Who will survive this high-stakes reunion, and who will become a victim of their own greed? One thing is certain: this family gathering will shatter more than just their illusions of unity.]]> 352 Trisha Sakhlecha 0593832566 Shannon 4
This was my first book by Trisha Sakhlecha and I enjoyed it quite a bit. While the remote Scottish island setting seems to be getting a bit overplayed, it worked well with this domestic suspense thriller that involves a wealthy South Asian family whose adult children are fighting over their future inheritance. There's lots of secrets, lies and betrayals and even more losses, grief and regret as we slowly learn everyone's motives as the story unfolds, alternating POVs from the sisters. Good on audio and recommended for fans of books like The night of the storm by Nishita Parekh. Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review.

CW: infertility, multiple miscarriages, loss of an infant/child]]> 3.67 2025
author: Trisha Sakhlecha
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/01
date added: 2025/03/01
shelves: aapi-books, domestic-suspense, mystery-thriller, prh-audio
review:
3.5 rounded up.

This was my first book by Trisha Sakhlecha and I enjoyed it quite a bit. While the remote Scottish island setting seems to be getting a bit overplayed, it worked well with this domestic suspense thriller that involves a wealthy South Asian family whose adult children are fighting over their future inheritance. There's lots of secrets, lies and betrayals and even more losses, grief and regret as we slowly learn everyone's motives as the story unfolds, alternating POVs from the sisters. Good on audio and recommended for fans of books like The night of the storm by Nishita Parekh. Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review.

CW: infertility, multiple miscarriages, loss of an infant/child
]]> 218112728 One I couldn’t afford.
And I could afford just about anything.
Selena There wasn’t a dirty secret on the Upper East Side I couldn’t clean up. That was until I made a mess of my own. Henry Amari’s account was my redemption, an easy image rehab, and my one-way ticket out of New York City for good. One goal.
One year.
One high-society CEO. To my delight, Henry Amari made the job easy. Too easy. He wasn’t anything like the man I thought he would be when his sister hired me in secret. Despite himself, he drew me in. But it didn’t matter. I knew from experience that fairytale endings didn’t happen in real life. People like me got lost in his world. Once my year was over, so was the fantasy he kept trying to pull me into.

The Heir is the second book in a series of interconnected standalones following the biotech billionaires.
A happily ever after is guaranteed.]]> 1 Ava Rani Shannon 4 3.91 2023
author: Ava Rani
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/26
date added: 2025/02/26
shelves: bipoc-books, aapi-books, netgalley-arc, romance-rom-coms
review:
I liked this second Biotech billionaires book even more than the first I think! It follows Sloan's older brother, Henry, newly made CEO of the family company and in need of an image makeover. Sloan secretly hires, Selena, a PR consultant to help which leads to a forced proximity workplace romance with all the forbidden tension one could want. Two strong BIPOC leads, lots of SPICE and family drama and great on audio. This was perfect for fans of authors like Ana Huang or Lauren Asher. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 212688557 The third in the steamy, hilarious Campus Diaries series by New York Times bestselling author Elle Kennedy, set in the same world as Off Campus and Briar U.

College senior Charlotte Kingston is living two lives―and she's nailing both of them. By day, she's the perfect sorority girl, a STEM student in biomedical engineering, and the adopted daughter of an overachiever family. At night, she's Charlie: a risk-taking daredevil looking for fun who finds herself chatting on a dating app with two anonymous hotties.

Will Larsen may seem like the breezy boy next door, but his congressman father is a constant thorn in his side. After a scandal hits another Division 1 hockey program, Will's dad is determined to distance his son from it, hiring a journalist to prove how squeaky-clean Will and his team are. Which means the last thing Will wants is for anyone to find out he and his best friend Beckett Dunne―a laidback Aussie shielding secret heartache―sometimes share girls in the bedroom.

When Charlie finally meets them in person and realizes she's been chatting with two gorgeous Briar U hockey players, things get steamy―fast. But all their messy secrets are piling up, and real life soon threatens to shatter the fantasy. With Charlie, Will, and Beckett all coming to terms with what they want and what others want for them, difficult decisions will need to be made.

Especially when lust starts to look a lot like love.]]> 528 Elle Kennedy 1464219354 Shannon 4
Charlie is a type-A sorority and STEM student with anxiety and panic attacks who gets nervous when she does a DNA test that turns up a half brother. She also is working on grad school applications and her final capstone project so to let off steam she drives fast cars, writes historical romance fanfic and secretly sexts with anonymous guys.

But when her latest sext buddy turns out to be her lab partner and one of the school's star hockey players, things get especially complicated, especially after she finds herself falling for both him and his best friend and teammate.

Super spicy with great emotional depth, this was excellent on audio narrated by Teddy Hamilton, Sean Masters and Persephone Lee and perfect for fans of Lauren Blakely's My hockey romance series. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio and physical ARC copy in exchange for my honest review!

⚠�CW: death of a loved one to cancer, anxiety and panic attacks]]> 3.47 2025
author: Elle Kennedy
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.47
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/19
date added: 2025/02/26
shelves: sports-romance, aapi-books, lgbtqia, netgalley-arc, anxiety, mental-health, disability-books
review:
Another emotionally gut-wrenching, incredibly SPICY, why choose, multiple POV, MMF college hockey romance between adopted Korean born Charlotte 'Charlie' who finds herself sexting two friends who like to hookup with the same girls.

Charlie is a type-A sorority and STEM student with anxiety and panic attacks who gets nervous when she does a DNA test that turns up a half brother. She also is working on grad school applications and her final capstone project so to let off steam she drives fast cars, writes historical romance fanfic and secretly sexts with anonymous guys.

But when her latest sext buddy turns out to be her lab partner and one of the school's star hockey players, things get especially complicated, especially after she finds herself falling for both him and his best friend and teammate.

Super spicy with great emotional depth, this was excellent on audio narrated by Teddy Hamilton, Sean Masters and Persephone Lee and perfect for fans of Lauren Blakely's My hockey romance series. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio and physical ARC copy in exchange for my honest review!

⚠�CW: death of a loved one to cancer, anxiety and panic attacks
]]> 223630243 Evan Mok is getting married, much to his family’s surprise.

Early in the pandemic, my longtime friend Jane Yin and I made a if we were both single on her thirty-third birthday, we’d get engaged and plan a simple wedding. We were lonely, envious of people who weren’t isolated in apartments by themselves.

More than three years have passed, and I’m ready. Even if I’m outgoing and optimistic on the outside, I’ve given up on romantic love, and it’ll be nice to build a life with my friend. With both of our savings, we can actually afford a house. Jane also longs to be part of a family, and I can give her that. It sounds convenient and comfortable, but we won’t have a physical relationship.

It turns out that married life is just what I want it to be. We buy a place in the suburbs and eat dinner together every day. Neither of us is attracted to the other, except�

Oh hell. I’m definitely starting to wish I could share a bed with Jane, and my feelings are much more complicated than I expected. Unfortunately, I doubt my serious, perfect wife feels the same way, and I don’t want to screw up this marriage of convenience by revealing the truth.

But it’s getting harder and harder to hide my desire.

Two Friends in Marriage is the third novel in the Weddings with the Moks series. Each book in the series features a different brother and at least one wedding (or almost-wedding). ]]> 231 Jackie Lau 1989610447 Shannon 4
It was refreshing to read a slow burn love story where the characters really learn to love each other for who they truly are, flaws and all, and do so without any messy miscommunication or third act breakup. This is the third book in the Weddings with the Moks series, set in the GTA, and while it can be read as a standalone, there are some cameos from the other Mok family members.

Highly recommended especially for fans of authors like Jayci Lee or anyone who enjoys a good romance set in Canada with a cute penguin pal who likes to dress up! Many thanks to the author for a digital ARC copy in exchange for my honest review. I voluntarily read this book and all opinions are my own!

]]> 3.85 2025
author: Jackie Lau
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/24
date added: 2025/02/25
shelves: aapi-books, aspec-rep, bisexual-rep, lgbtqia, indie-authors, novellas
review:
I really enjoyed this friends to more, marriage pact romance that sees Jane and Evan making a deal to get married if they're still single after Jane turns 33. The queer rep in this book was fantastic! Jane is on the aro/ace spectrum and demisexual and Evan is bisexual. Evan is also taking medication for his depression and the two communicate about these things SOOO well.

It was refreshing to read a slow burn love story where the characters really learn to love each other for who they truly are, flaws and all, and do so without any messy miscommunication or third act breakup. This is the third book in the Weddings with the Moks series, set in the GTA, and while it can be read as a standalone, there are some cameos from the other Mok family members.

Highly recommended especially for fans of authors like Jayci Lee or anyone who enjoys a good romance set in Canada with a cute penguin pal who likes to dress up! Many thanks to the author for a digital ARC copy in exchange for my honest review. I voluntarily read this book and all opinions are my own!


]]> 109253821 Two high school seniors with family trauma keeping them up at night fall in love over a series of secret late-night driving lessons.

“An achingly beautiful coming-of-age story�Midnights With You is everything I’ve ever wanted in a book.� —Ann Liang, New York Times best-selling author of I Hope This Doesn’t Find You

***

“Where were you thinking of going?�
“N´Ç·É³ó±ð°ù±ð.â€�
“Great,� he says lightly, putting the car in gear. “Then we’ll go there.�

Seventeen-year-old Deedee’s life is full of family ghosts and questions she can’t ask. She longs for an escape, but guilt holds her back—that, and the fact that her strict Filipino single mom won’t let her learn to drive. But one sleepless night leads Deedee down a road she never thought possible: secret driving lessons with the new boy next door, Jay, whose turbulent family life also keeps him up until sunrise.

As midnights stretch into days, Jay helps Deedee begin to unravel her past, and as shared secrets blossom into love, Deedee starts to imagine a life where happiness is possible. But the deeper she digs into the trauma that has shaped her, the more that trauma threatens to tear Deedee and Jay apart. Together, these two must decide if the pain they’ve both inherited has the power to choose their fate, or if they have the power to choose for themselves.]]> 368 Clare Osongco 1368101933 Shannon 4
An emotional YA coming of age love story featuring two Asian high school seniors who fall in love and find their way back to one another. I liked how well the author wrote about family trauma and grief over losing a parent and I found their romance a realistic slow burn as they get to know one another by driving around. Good on audio too but if I'm honest, not a super standout read for me but still a strong debut and I LOVE the cover!

CW: loss of a parent, emotionally abusive/toxic parental relationships]]> 4.18 2024
author: Clare Osongco
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.18
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/23
date added: 2025/02/24
shelves: aapi-books, ya-fiction, debuts, mental-health
review:
3.5 rounded up

An emotional YA coming of age love story featuring two Asian high school seniors who fall in love and find their way back to one another. I liked how well the author wrote about family trauma and grief over losing a parent and I found their romance a realistic slow burn as they get to know one another by driving around. Good on audio too but if I'm honest, not a super standout read for me but still a strong debut and I LOVE the cover!

CW: loss of a parent, emotionally abusive/toxic parental relationships
]]> 220480202 Listening Length: 8 hours and 31 minutes

Seven struggling customers are given the unique opportunity to take home a “blanket cat� . . . but only for three days, the time it’ll take to change their lives.

A peculiar pet shop in Tokyo has been known to offer customers the unique opportunity to take home one of seven special cats, whose “magic� is never promised, but always received. But there are rules: these cats must be returned after three days. They must eat only the food supplied by the owner, and they must travel to their new homes with a distinctive blanket.

In The Blanket Cats, we meet seven customers, each of whom is hoping a temporary feline companion will help them escape a certain reality, including a couple struggling with infertility, a middle-aged woman on the run from the police, and two families in very different circumstances simply seeking joy.

But like all their kind, the “blanket cats� are mysterious creatures with unknowable agendas, who delight in confounding expectations. And perhaps what their hosts are looking for isn’t really what they need. Three days may not be enough to change a life. But it might just change how you see it.]]> Kiyoshi Shigematsu Shannon 3 aapi-books, prh-audio 3.00 2008
author: Kiyoshi Shigematsu
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.00
book published: 2008
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/23
date added: 2025/02/23
shelves: aapi-books, prh-audio
review:
I enjoyed this Japanese translation of a bestseller about a unique pet shop that rents out cats for a few days. Told in a series of short stories each of which feature a different breed of cat, we get to know different people grappling with tough times, from infertility, early terminal cancer diagnoses, bullying, loneliness and more. I liked it a lot and would recommend to fans of books like We'll prescribe you a cat. Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 213870133 A wickedly funny and audacious debut novel following an academic who flees from heartbreak and lands in Iraq with a one-of-a-kind job offer—only to be forced to do the work of confronting herself.

When Nadia Amin, a witty and bighearted PhD, publishes an article on deradicalization, everything changes. The United Nations comes calling with an opportunity to put her theory into practice and lead a rehabilitation program for women caught in the crosshairs of harmful ideology. And why not? Abandoned by her mother and devastated by unrequited love, she leaps at the chance.

In Iraq, Nadia quickly realizes she’s in over her head. The UN is a mess of competing interests, and her team consists of Goody Two-shoes Sherri who never passes up an opportunity to remind Nadia of her objections; and Pierre, a snippy Frenchman who has no qualms about perpetually scrolling through Grindr. But then Nadia meets Sara, a hilarious, foul-mouthed East Londoner who was pulled into radicalism at just fifteen. The two are kindred spirits, and Nadia vows to get Sara home.

As the rehabilitation program picks up traction, Sara reveals a secret that upends everything, forcing Nadia to make a drastic choice. In the fallout, Nadia’s brown-savior fantasies crumble, leaving her to wonder if she can save someone who doesn’t want to be saved.

A fierce, wildly funny, and razor-sharp exploration of radicalism, family, and the quest for belonging, Fundamentally boldly inspects one of the defining controversies of our age and introduces a fearless new voice in contemporary fiction.]]> 352 Nussaibah Younis 0593851382 Shannon 4 3.81 2025
author: Nussaibah Younis
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/22
date added: 2025/02/22
shelves: aapi-books, debuts, netgalley-arc, prh-audio, lgbtqia
review:
I went into this debut completely blind based only on the appealing purple cover and its tag as 'wickedly funny' and boy was that accurate!! I would also add, wickedly smart and full of heart with a protagonist who is utterly flawed but endearingly relatable as she works as a UN aid worker in Iraq trying to help the ISIS women detained there. Nadia is an idealistic, queer, British, lapsed Muslim who is estranged from her mother because of her life choices but she is determined to try to do some good in the world. I really enjoyed this on audio and highly recommend it! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary for an ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 223097553 AÌýNew York TimesÌýbestselling series!

The highly anticipated fourth novel in the Woven Kingdom romantasy series, brimming with fiery romance, spectacular magic, and breathtaking secrets, from Tahereh Mafi, the award-winning and bestselling author of the Shatter Me series. Perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Leigh Bardugo, and Sabaa Tahir.

At long last, the wedding day has arrived.

The Jinn queen and the enigmatic ruler of Tulan are to be married in a magical, enchanted ceremony—butÌýCyrus, tethered by a blood oath to his bride-to-be, can find nothing to celebrate in this union. He’s falling ever more deeply in love with the one person oathbound to kill him.

Sworn to an ancient, unbreakable magic, Alizeh can only fulfill the prophecy to free her people by ensuring Cyrus dies by her own hand. And Cyrus is forced to await his end all while Prince Kamran inches closer, ready to take his place by Alizeh’s side.Ìý

The countdown to murder coils tensions ever tighter, but the historic wedding has already drawn deadly attention. To prepare for war and protect her people, Alizeh must finally discover her magic—and outrun the enemies trying to stop her.

Alizeh and Cyrus, along with Kamran and their friends from Ardunia, must flee on dragon-back to begin the perilous journey into the legendary mountains of Arya, where a firestorm of revelations, magical discoveries, and fresh allies awaits them. Every allegiance will be tested, every darkness uncovered, and when the shattering secrets of the Tulanian king are finally revealed . . .

Nothing, and no one, will be the same.

Desperate confessions, impossible decisions, unfathomable magical power—and a love so devastating it rewrites destinies�Every Spiral of Fate is the shimmering, breathtaking fourth volume in a saga that continues to transcend expectations.]]> 512 Tahereh Mafi 0063315343 Shannon 0 4.83 2025
author: Tahereh Mafi
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.83
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/21
shelves: to-read, aapi-books, dragons, fantasy-scifi, ya-fiction
review:

]]> 213870084 From award-winning novelist and journalist Omar El Akkad comes a powerful reckoning with what it means to live in the heart of an Empire which doesn’t consider you fully human.

On Oct 25th, after just three weeks of the bombardment of Gaza, Omar El Akkad put out a tweet: “One day, when it’s safe, when there’s no personal downside to calling a thing what it is, when it’s too late to hold anyone accountable, everyone will have always been against this.â€� This tweet was viewed over 10 million times.Ìý

One Day Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This chronicles the deep fracture which has occurred for Black, brown, indigenous Americans, as well as the upcoming generation, many of whom had clung to a thread of faith in western ideals, in the idea that their countries, or the countries of their adoption, actually attempted to live up to the values they espouse.Ìý

This book is a reckoning with what it means to live in the west, and what it means to live in a world run by a small group of countries—America, the UK, France and Germany.â€� It will be The Fire Next Time for a generation that understands we’re undergoing a shift in the so-called ‘rules-based order,â€� a generation that understands the west can no longer be trusted to police and guide the world, or its own cities and campuses. It draws on intimate details of Omar’s own story as an emigrant who grew up believing in the western project, who was catapulted into journalism by the rupture of 9/11.Ìý

This book is his heartsick breakup letter with the west. It is a breakup we are watching all over the U.S., on college campuses, on city streets, and the consequences of this rupture will be felt by all of us. His book is for all the people who want something better than what the west has served up. This is the book for our time.]]> 208 Omar El Akkad 0593804147 Shannon 4 4.68 2025
author: Omar El Akkad
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.68
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/21
date added: 2025/02/21
shelves: biographies-memoirs, aapi-books
review:
An insightful and scathing critique of the current state of the world and our apparent lack of empathy and action for the genocide going on in Palestine and what's going to keep happening in America if we don't take action and speak out. I haven't always been the biggest fan of this author's fiction but this nonfiction book was a great call to action - hopefully people will read it and take heart, speak out and not sit idly by as the world continues to be ruled increasingly by dictators.
]]> 216775509 A sweeping family saga following one woman’s struggle to protect her culture and her family amidst the backdrop of a military occupation.

In the foothills of the Himalayas, the picturesque mountain village of Poshkarbal is home to lush cherry and apple orchards and a thriving community. Yet Aisha and her mother Noorjahan live on the outskirts. A social pariah ever since her husband left, Noorjahan remains the only trusted healer and midwife and teaches Aisha about her special herbs and remedies. Isolated but content, Aisha is shocked when Noorjahan decides it’s time for her to attend the village school. From there, Aisha reconnects with her cousins from her father’s side of the family and excels in academics under the watchful eye of her teacher.

When Aisha is promised to the teacher’s son, Alim, in marriage, she is forced to abandon her dreams of college and become a wife. Their marriage is happy and fulfilling, but Aisha is also the keeper of her mother’s secrets, including the hidden poppy field that may have been the cause of her parent’s separation. As life in Poskarbal becomes increasingly difficult to navigate, Aisha and Alim eventually have children of their own, but the growing military presence forces Aisha to make impossible choices in order to save her family and preserve the independence Noorjahan fought so hard for. What follows is a family chronicle brimming with life, love, and humor, about sacrifice and honor, and fighting for your home and culture in the face of occupation.

Call Her Freedom is a lyrical, beautifully written novel about one woman’s love for her family. It is a sprawling investigation into colonialism’s relationship with loss and innocence spanning from 1969 to 2022. It is brimming with the violence of militarism, family secrets, and generational trauma announcing Tara Dorabji as a thrilling new voice in fiction.]]> 1 Tara Dorabji 1797194348 Shannon 4
I loved how this story followed the same family across decades, showing how the country changed over the years, through military occupations, the pandemic and more and how the lives of women often took a backseat to those of men but that the women remained strong and independent in their own ways too. It was also great on audio narrated by Soneela Nankani and marks the start of a talented new author to keep an eye on in future!]]> 4.00 2025
author: Tara Dorabji
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/20
date added: 2025/02/21
shelves: aapi-books, historical-fiction, lj-reviews
review:
This was an incredibly moving debut intergenerational family saga set in a remote Himalayan village. The story follows Aisha and her mother, two outcasts who are able to survive on their own through Aisha's mother's skills as a midwife and herbalist. But when Aisha decides she wants to go to school, she gets sent to live with her father's family where she meets new cousins and gets taken under the wing of her teacher, eventually becoming engaged and marrying his son, Alim.

I loved how this story followed the same family across decades, showing how the country changed over the years, through military occupations, the pandemic and more and how the lives of women often took a backseat to those of men but that the women remained strong and independent in their own ways too. It was also great on audio narrated by Soneela Nankani and marks the start of a talented new author to keep an eye on in future!
]]> 224082955
After dumping his girlfriend, walking out of the SATs, and quitting his job at his parent’s coffee shop all in one day, landing a gig at a failing Korean cafe, Bingsu for Two, seems like his lucky break. Until he discovers his new coworker is the snarky goth girl who humiliated him: Sarang Cho, who’s as determined to save her family’s cafe as she is to make River’s life hell.

When River accidentally uploads a video of his coworkers to his popular fandom account, Bingsu for Two goes viral, but to keep the internet’s attention and save the store, River and Sarang must pretend to be a couple for their adoring subscribers. Easier said than done when they’re one more milk frothing incident away from throwing hands in the breakroom.

Between brewing coffee and acting lovey-dovey for the camera, River realizes Sarang isn’t the heartless girl he originally took her for. But when his ex-girlfriend and old coworkers blackmail him into tanking Bingsu for Two’s fame, River must choose: sabotage Sarang and the one place that feels like home, or save himself from his parents finding out that he’s helping the competitor run their family’s cafe out of business.]]> Sujin Witherspoon 1038695910 Shannon 3 3.50 2025
author: Sujin Witherspoon
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/16
date added: 2025/02/17
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, ya-fiction, books-about-food
review:
This coming of age rivals to lovers YA romance was more angsty and heavy than I was expecting. To be honest it was just an okay read for me. Nothing super standout but I would still recommend it for fans of books like Fake dates and mooncakes or A Banh mi for two or anyone who likes learning more about Korean American cafes and books about food. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 211158166 This laugh-out-loud debut romance introduces perfectly imperfect Payal Mehta, whose plan to get her long-time crush to finally notice her is destined for success, but only if she ignores her budding feelings for her archnemesis...

Payal Mehta has had a crush on popular, athletic, all-around perfect Jonathan Slate ever since he smiled at her in freshman–year Spanish class. At a party during spring break of her junior year, Payal finally works up the courage to ask Jon to hang out. However, her romantic plans are derailed when he vomits on her Keds. Twice.ÌýBut when Jon offers to take her out to lunch as an apology, Payal is convinced this is the start of their love story.Ìý

Over chalupas and burritos at Taco Bell, Payal's best jokes are landing as planned. Jon is basically choking on his Coke—and then it happens. "Do you have a boyfriend?" Payal is (finally) about to get the guy. And then he tries to set her up with his Indian friend. Payal's best friends, Neil Patel and Divya Bhatt, are just as mad about the microaggression as Payal is, but they think she’s a little too hung up on him.Ìý

Determined to teach Jon a lesson by making him fall for her, Payal ropes in her archnemesis, Philip Kim, to help by ceding creative control over their psych project. It’s the perfect plan. Minus Philip’s snarky, annoying quips and lack of faith in its success. But as Payal lies to the people she loves, hides the too-Indian parts of herself in front of her crush, and learns that maybe Philip isn't the worst, she starts to wonder if what she's been looking for has been scowling at her all along...]]> 304 Preeti Chhibber 0593461886 Shannon 4 3.82 2024
author: Preeti Chhibber
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/15
date added: 2025/02/16
shelves: aapi-books, prh-audio, ya-fiction
review:
This was a laugh out loud, hilarious coming of age, fake-dating YA romcom featuring a South Asian teen determined to get her white crush, Jon to date her but instead gets set up with Philip Kim, the only other Desi boy at school. Full of secret pining, great South Asian rep and heartwarming side characters. This was good on audio narrated by Mayuri Bhandari and perfect for fans of authors like Nisha Sharma or Mayuri Bhandari. Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 200388453 This debut teen graphic novel from social media influencer Jyoti Chand and rising star illustrator Tara Anand follows one girl’s journey navigating high school and her mental health within a traditional South Asian family. Perfect for fans of Netflix’s Never Have I Ever and Tillie Walden’s Spinning.

All Nitasha’s parents want is for her to be the perfect Indian daughter—something she is decidedly not. Everything she does seems to disappoint them, especially her mom. They just don’t get that she’ll never be like her doctor older brother. To make matters worse, she’s never quite felt like she belongs at school either, and lately, her best friend, Ava, and her crush, Henry, seem to be more interested in the rich new girl than in her.

Alcohol takes the edge off, but when that doesn’t work, Nitasha turns to cutting. She can’t stop asking herself: Will she ever be enough for her friends or her family? Or even for herself?

This authentic and powerful teen graphic novel shines a light on how harmful the stigma of mental illness is and how lifesaving a community that is honest about mental health can be.]]> 288 Jyoti Chand 0063237539 Shannon 5
CW: suicide attempt, depression, anxiety, self-harm, alcohol abuse]]> 4.68 2025
author: Jyoti Chand
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.68
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/02/16
date added: 2025/02/16
shelves: aapi-books, debuts, graphic-novels, disability-books, mental-health, ya-fiction, netgalley-arc, 2025-favorites
review:
This was an incredibly powerful and deeply personal debut YA graphic novel that features a South Asian teen struggling with anxiety, depression, alcohol addiction and self-harm. Nitasha comes from a traditional South Asian family where they don't speak about mental health issues and where the community as a whole places a huge stigma around anyone with mental health problems. When a viral video upends her life and causes a rift in her family, Nitasha goes to a dark place. Luckily with the help of her family, friends and therapy, she is able to find a light amidst the darkness and stand up for more mental health support in her community. This is such an important book and is sure to resonate with readers of all ages and backgrounds. HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommended, especially for fans of books like In limbo by Deb JJ Lee or Hungry Ghost by Victoria Ying. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

CW: suicide attempt, depression, anxiety, self-harm, alcohol abuse
]]> 223734781 A mesmerizing debut novel set in a tightly knit Pakistani American community where a young doctor gets an unexpected second chance with the first love she never got over when he becomes one of the most eligible bachelors in town.

The Ibrahim family is facing a crucial moment: Their patriarch just lost his fortune as the result of a Ponzi scheme, and the family is picking up the pieces. At the family’s core is Asma—successful doctor and the long-suffering middle daughter who stepped into the family center after the death of her beloved mother years ago. Despite what the prying aunties think, Asma is living the life she has always wanted, fulfilling her childhood dream of becoming a doctor . . . or so she thinks.

In walks Farooq Waheed, Asma’s college sweetheart whose proposal was cruelly rejected by Asma’s aunt and father. Now, eight years later, Farooq has made his fortune by selling his Silicon Valley startup and is widely considered one of the most eligible bachelors in California. As he enters Asma’s social orbit, she finds herself navigating a tricky landscape—her pushy sisters, gossiping aunties, and her father’s expectations—on her path to reconciling the past and winning Farooq back in the present. If there is still time.

Yours, Eventually is a story about a young woman finding the courage to follow her heart and coming to the realization that living your life according to what other people think is no life at all.]]> Nura Maznavi Shannon 4 3.44 2025
author: Nura Maznavi
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.44
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/14
date added: 2025/02/14
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, prh-audio, debuts
review:
This was a heartfelt and moving second chance romance debut about Asma Ibrahim, a Pakistani American ER doctor who unexpectedly is forced to spend time with her recently engaged ex, Farooq, who is now a wealthy engineer. I liked the big messy Muslim family drama, the family dynamics and the tightknit Pakistani American community, which the author does a great job of illustrating both the upsides and downsides of in this book about family and love. Good on audio narrated by Soneela Nankani and perfect for fans of authors like Sonali Dev or Sajni Patel. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 211004176 Follow the river Liss to the small town of Thistleford, on the edge of Faerie, and meet two sisters who cannot be separated, even in death.

“Oh what is stronger than a death? Two sisters singing with one breath.�

In the small town of Thistleford, on the edge of Faerie, dwells the mysterious Hawthorn family.

There, they tend and harvest the enchanted willows and honour an ancient compact to sing to them in thanks for their magic. None more devotedly than the family’s latest daughters, Esther and Ysabel, who cherish each other as much as they cherish the ancient trees.

But when Esther rejects a forceful suitor in favor of a lover from the land of Faerie, not only the sisters� bond but also their lives will be at risk…]]> 133 Amal El-Mohtar 1250341086 Shannon 3 4.19 2025
author: Amal El-Mohtar
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/12
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: aapi-books, fantasy-scifi, netgalley-arc, novellas, lgbtqia
review:
This novella about sisters bound together and magical faerie trees growing beside a river was a little too literary for me. While it was lyrical and AMAZINGLY well done on audio, I'm not sure I fully got into it other than to just enjoy the listening experience with songs and sound effects. I would recommend it for fans of authors like Alix E Harrow. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @libro.fm for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 223198186
From USA Today bestselling author Sonali Dev comes the heartfelt story of a woman determined to reunite a lost ring with its owner, who ends up finding herself along the way.

Mira Salvi has the perfect life—a job she loves, a fiancé everyone adores, and the secure future she’s always imagined for herself. Really, she hasn’t a thing to complain about, not even when she has to go on her engagement trip to New York alone.

While playing tourist in the city, Mira chances upon a lost ring, and her social media post to locate its owner goes viral. With everyone trying to claim the ring, only one person seems to want to find its owner as badly as Mira journalist Krish Hale. Brooding and arrogant, he will do anything to get to write this story.

As Krish and Mira reluctantly join forces and jump into the adventure of tracing the ring back to where it belongs, Mira begins to wonder if she is in the right place in her own life. She had to have found this ring for a reason…right? Maybe, like the owner of the lost ring, her happy ending hasn’t been written yet either.]]> 10 Sonali Dev Shannon 5
This book really had it all and I loved seeing Mira stand up for herself against her homophobic parents and find the true love of her life where and when she least expected. Great on audio narrated by Soneela Nankani and perfect for fans of authors like Sara Desai. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!]]> 4.11 2025
author: Sonali Dev
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/02/12
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: aapi-books, cozy-mystery, netgalley-arc, lgbtqia
review:
I really enjoyed this latest from Sonali Dev that has Mira Salvi, an engaged Desi woman visiting her estranged gay brother in NYC finding a ring and trying to track down its rightful owner with the help of Krish Hale, a reporter with his own mysterious connection to the ring. Part family mystery, part romantic suspense and full of drama, romance and action.

This book really had it all and I loved seeing Mira stand up for herself against her homophobic parents and find the true love of her life where and when she least expected. Great on audio narrated by Soneela Nankani and perfect for fans of authors like Sara Desai. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 199793635 A steamy new rom-com from the popular author ofÌýHappy EndingsÌýandÌýFull Exposure,Ìýwhere two friends get the opportunity to work together on their dream project—a Cinderella rock musical with an all-Asian cast—and discover that falling in love was the easy partâ€�

Zoe Tran is living her best life, designing plus-size lingerie at her own award-winning clothing boutique, when suddenly her college best friend reenters her life. Derek Bui is offering a tantalizing chance to recapture a forgotten dream: designing costumes for the musical they created together years ago.

Derek has loved Zoe since freshman year but never had the guts to confess his true feelings. Now he’s directing the Vietnamese Cinderella rock musical they dreamed up in college. The stakes are high: it’s the first production with an all-Asian cast and creative team at Washington, D.C.’s largest theatre and if they can make it work, they’ll head to Broadway. But his real goal: get Zoe back in his life.

A proud demisexual, Zoe only ever saw Derek as her best friend, but working on their dream production together brings them closer than ever. Sparks ignite under the hot spotlights. But when the theatre’s artistic director pressures Derek to make the musical “less Asian,� he and Zoe clash on whether to stay true to their vision or compromise to keep the production alive.

Will Zoe and Derek finally let love take center stage or will their creative differences close the curtains on them forever?]]> 336 Thien-Kim Lam 0063237385 Shannon 4
Eventually all the forced proximity takes effect, despite Zoe's cat's dastardly interferences and all the white-washing attempts from Derek's anti-Asian play producer/mentor. Heartfelt, real and still super swoony, this was sex positive like all of the author's books and also great on audio. Highly recommended for fans of authors like Jackie Lau or Helen Hoang. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!]]> 3.72 2025
author: Thien-Kim Lam
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/06
date added: 2025/02/06
shelves: aapi-books, aspec-rep, netgalley-arc
review:
I really enjoyed this spicy best friends to lovers, dual POV romance featuring two Vietnamese American MCs. Zoe is a plus size, demisexual Lingerie store owner and designer working on her newest collection who gets surprised when her former college best friend, Derek shows up begging her to come work as a costume designer for the all Asian fairy tale inspired play he's trying to make happen.

Eventually all the forced proximity takes effect, despite Zoe's cat's dastardly interferences and all the white-washing attempts from Derek's anti-Asian play producer/mentor. Heartfelt, real and still super swoony, this was sex positive like all of the author's books and also great on audio. Highly recommended for fans of authors like Jackie Lau or Helen Hoang. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 197789113 Listening Length: 17 hours and 12 minutes

An epic and intimate tale of one couple across sixty years as world events pull them together and apart, illuminating the Chinese diaspora and exploring what it means to find home far from your homeland.

A single choice can define an entire life.

Haiwen is buying bananas at a 99 Ranch Market in Los Angeles when he looks up and sees Suchi, his Suchi, for the first time in sixty years. To recently widowed Haiwen it feels like a second chance, but Suchi has only survived by refusing to look back.

Suchi was seven when she first met Haiwen in their Shanghai neighborhood, drawn by the sound of his violin. Their childhood friendship blossomed into soul-deep love, but when Haiwen secretly enlisted in the Nationalist army in 1947 to save his brother from the draft, she was left with just his violin and a note: Forgive me.

Homeseeking follows the separated lovers through six decades of tumultuous Chinese history as war, famine, and opportunity take them separately to the song halls of Hong Kong, the military encampments of Taiwan, the bustling streets of New York, and sunny California, telling Haiwen’s story from the present to the past while tracing Suchi’s from her childhood to the present, meeting in the crucible of their lives. Throughout, Haiwen holds his memories close while Suchi forces herself to look only forward, neither losing sight of the home they hold in their hearts.

At once epic and intimate, Homeseeking is a story of family, sacrifice, and loyalty, and of the power of love to endure beyond distance, beyond time.]]> 17 Karissa Chen Shannon 4
CW: gambling addiction, side character with MS]]> 4.18 2025
author: Karissa Chen
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.18
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/03
date added: 2025/02/03
shelves: aapi-books, gma-books, historical-fiction, debuts, prh-audio, disability-books
review:
This was a moving, epic debut about family, friendship, loyalty and the circumstances that keep two star crossed lovers apart. Told in alternating reverse timelines that spans six decades and multiple countries, we get to see how Haiwen and Suchi overcome different ordeals as they live their lives separately and are eventually reunited later in life. I really liked the unique structure of this story although it was at times hard to figure what period in time I was listening to on audio. That said I learned a lot about Chinese and Taiwanese history. Fair warning it is a long story but worth the time commitment!

CW: gambling addiction, side character with MS
]]> 201853623 Infused with magic and romance, this sweeping fantasy adventureÌýinspired by the legend of Mulan follows a young womanÌýdetermined to choose her own destiny—even if that means going against everyone she loves.

The Three Kingdoms are at war, but Meilin’s father refuses to answer the imperial draft. Trapped by his opium addiction, he plans to sell Meilin for her dowry. But when Meilin discovers her husband-to-be is another violent, ill-tempered man, she realizes that nothing will change for her unless she takes matters into her own hands.

The very next day, she disguises herself as a boy and enlists in her father’s place.

In the army, Meilin's relentless hard work brings her recognition, friendship—and a growing closeness with Sky, a prince turned training partner. But has she simply exchanged one prison for another?ÌýAs her kingdom barrels toward destruction, Meilin begins to have visions of a sea dragon spirit that offers her true power and freedom, but with a deadly price.

With the future of the Three Kingdoms hanging in the balance, Meilin will need to decide whom to trust—Sky, who inspires her loyalty and love; the sea dragon spirit, who has his own murky agenda; or an infuriating enemy prince who makes her question everything she once knew—about her kingdom and about her own heart.]]> 14 K.X. Song 0593870433 Shannon 5 3.56 2024
author: K.X. Song
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.56
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/31
date added: 2025/01/31
shelves: aapi-books, dragons, fantasy-scifi, mythology, netgalley-arc, prh-audio
review:
This was a FANTASTIC Mulan retelling and start to a new romantasy series! I am kicking myself for waiting so long to pick this up because I could NOT get enough. It was EXCELLENT on audio read by my very fav narrator, Natalie Naudus and would be perfect for fans of authors like Sue Lynn Tan. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 213051958
“For the rom-com fans, you can never go wrong with a Julie Tieu book.�� Buzzfeed

Rachel Dang, once voted “Most Likely to Succeed� in high school, is funemployed for the first time. After years of doing everything her boss asked, it’s time to say yes to new opportunities. So when she gets invited to her twentieth high school reunion by none other than her former frenemy, Danny Phan, Rachel agrees despite their unresolved past.

As a teenager, Danny was seen as smart, but unfocused. Teachers often paired him with Rachel, hoping her work ethic would rub off on him. Though Danny and Rachel weren’t exactly friends, she had seen a different side of him, one that only existed online over intimate late-night AIM chats that never translated into real life. When they meet again, Rachel discovers their roles have reversed. Danny is thriving in his career while she’s the one flailing.

The reunion takes an unexpected turn when a simple errand takes them into town for a night of mishaps and misadventure where they run into a colorful cast of characters from their childhood. Rachel and Danny soon rediscover the feelings they once shared and must decide if this is only a quick trip down memory lane or a second chance for their happily ever after.]]> 320 Julie Tieu 006324523X Shannon 4 aapi-books, netgalley-arc
This was a fun single POV romance featuring a high school overachiever who finds herself suddenly let go from her company during layoffs and feeling lost in life and who finds herself reunited with her first crush/love at their twenty year high school reunion. Second chance romances are some of my favs and this was lighthearted, cozy and featured older MCs which I really enjoyed too. Great on audio narrated by Natalie Naudus (my absolute fav!) and perfect for fans of books like Reunion by Beth Reekles or The hookup plan by Farrah Rochon. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!]]> 3.46 2025
author: Julie Tieu
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.46
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/31
date added: 2025/01/31
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc
review:
3.5 rounded up

This was a fun single POV romance featuring a high school overachiever who finds herself suddenly let go from her company during layoffs and feeling lost in life and who finds herself reunited with her first crush/love at their twenty year high school reunion. Second chance romances are some of my favs and this was lighthearted, cozy and featured older MCs which I really enjoyed too. Great on audio narrated by Natalie Naudus (my absolute fav!) and perfect for fans of books like Reunion by Beth Reekles or The hookup plan by Farrah Rochon. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 221739725 A young woman who wields the unimaginable power of a dragon spirit must decide where her loyalties lie—and where her heart belongs—in this enthralling fantasy that reimagines the legend of Mulan.

The explosive sequel to The Night Ends with Fire!

The war may be over, but Hai Meilin is still paying a heavy toll. In spite of securing victory for the kingdom of Anlai, she is imprisoned upon her return. Her crime? Wielding a sword as a woman.

In the palace, Meilin is an outcast and a social pariah. But beyond the imperial walls, the legend of the woman warrior has taken on a life of its own. To the east, a new rebel leader needs Meilin to helm his people’s revolution. In the south, a former enemy prince, now a prisoner of war, seeks Meilin’s aid in restoring balance to the Three Kingdoms. And back home in Anlai, Liu Sky, Meilin’s commander and first love, requires Meilin by his side in his bid for the throne.

Pulled in all directions by those who seek to use her for their own ends, Meilin vows that this time, she will not be so quick to trust. Yet there is one she cannot help but listen to—for he dwells within her.

Beyond any human machinations, the sea dragon Qinglong has his own plans for the spirit realm. During the last war, Meilin wielded his power to cheat death and attain victory for Anlai; now the dragon has come to collect his dues. Meilin’s mother warned her long The spirits demand blood. And Qinglong is ravenous.]]> K.X. Song 0593641566 Shannon 0 4.67
author: K.X. Song
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.67
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/30
shelves: to-read, aapi-books, dragons, fantasy-scifi, netgalley-arc, prh-audio
review:

]]> 214571770
Obituary writer Nadine Barbault doesn’t mind being called “Lady Death�. It suits the ice queen persona she’s cultivated to survive the fast-paced Toronto Herald. So when Nadine learns that famous (and reclusive) author Dot Voline has died, she doesn’t hesitate to run the obituary…only to discover that Dot is very much alive.

Nadine’s screw-up has brought Wesley Chen of the rival Spear no end of joy—she’s been a thorn in his extremely ambitious side for years. But the renewed interest in Dot also surfaced chatter about a mysterious past scandal. Intrigued, Wes goes to the source to learn more—only to discover Nadine had the exact same idea…and the infuriating woman isn’t willing to respect dibs. Typical.

At first, Dot refuses to speak to either of the squabbling pair, but then they receive an unusual request—work together, and Dot will share everything. The offer seems too good to be true…and of course, it is: in a bitter twist of irony, Dot dies for real before she can finish recounting her story. Not all is lost, however. The estate’s executor allows Wes and Nadine access to Dot’s sprawling wonderland of a mansion for three weeks to find their answer. That’s three weeks of working together…three weeks of endless sweltering in tight spaces…three weeks of learning there could be something more between them than a desire to win at any cost.

And maybe, just maybe, under the rubble of all those could-have-beens they’ll uncover more than the secret of Dot Voline’s long-ago scandal—and Lady Death will finally embrace what she’s wanted from life all along.]]> 11 Lily Chu Shannon 4 3.48
author: Lily Chu
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.48
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/29
date added: 2025/01/29
shelves: aapi-books, romance-rom-coms, cozy-mystery
review:
This was a fun enemies to lovers, dual POV, forced proximity romance featuring two rival obituary writers chasing the same big story about a famous author who one mistakenly reports as dead only to learn she is very much still alive and willing to share a big story if the two can learn to work together. This was great on audio as an audible exclusive and I really liked that it was set in Canada. Highly recommended for fans of authors like Jackie Lau.
]]> 212715075

One night, Josiah spots Poppy singing at a navy club. Despite their different backgrounds, they fall for each other instantly, and soon Josiah is spending his nights at Poppy’s small wartime house. Their starry-eyed romance lasts until Poppy’s father comes to visit and the harsh reality of their situation is made clear. Determined to prove himself to Poppy, her parents, and the world, Josiah travels to Toronto where he’s finally given the chance to enlist. Josiah rises to the occasion, but is the world changing as fast as his dreams�


From the critically acclaimed author of We Two Alone, Jack Wang’s gorgeous debut novel explores what one man must sacrifice to belong in the only home he has ever truly known.]]> 392 Jack Wang 1487007612 Shannon 4
Moving, heartbreaking, action-packed and educational, this book brings out all the emotions and was great on audio too. Highly recommended for fans of books like The laundryman's boy. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review. I knew more about Japanese Canadians' experience during WWII but little about the Chinese Canadian experience and even less about parachuters during the war so this was a great read for me!

CW: abortion]]> 4.00
author: Jack Wang
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/26
date added: 2025/01/26
shelves: aapi-books, historical-fiction, netgalley-arc, wwii-fiction
review:
I really enjoyed this debut novel from Canadian author, Jack Wang that is set just before, during and after WWII and follows Josiah Chang, a Chinese Canadian without citizenship who falls hard for Poppy, a young white woman he meets in a bar while she's singing on stages. The two have a whirlwind interracial romance but the harsh reality of Josiah's status causes him to enlist in the hope he might be able to earn the right to be called an official Canadian.

Moving, heartbreaking, action-packed and educational, this book brings out all the emotions and was great on audio too. Highly recommended for fans of books like The laundryman's boy. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review. I knew more about Japanese Canadians' experience during WWII but little about the Chinese Canadian experience and even less about parachuters during the war so this was a great read for me!

CW: abortion
]]> 213763632
They call me the biotech Wunderkind or the cold billionaire with a tragic past. Controlled, focused, and always a step ahead. I built my seemingly limitless success by pushing boundaries but never crossing them. There’s no obstacle too difficult to overcome, and no situation is too complex to maneuver around. But after years away, coming home and seeing Sloan is a complication I can’t manage. She makes my mind wander to places it shouldn’t, making me want things I can’t have. She’s a forbidden temptation that could crack the defenses I’ve spent years building.


Sloan

My lot in life is to be the spare to a less-than-worthy heir, constantly living in second place. Relegated to the society pages instead of the business section, I’m determined to make a name for myself. A six-month assignment in London will do just that. I’ll secure my position as the youngest senior partner at my firm and prove to my family that I was the choice they mistakenly ignored. My eyes are firmly fixed on the prize until Marcus sweeps back into my life. My older brother’s best friend turned greatest business rival ignites something in me that I can’t ignore. He maintains a facade of cool indifference, but his eyes tell a different story. One that threatens to set our lives alight.]]> 1 Ava Rani Shannon 4 3.50 2023
author: Ava Rani
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/26
date added: 2025/01/26
shelves: aapi-books, bipoc-books, romance-rom-coms
review:
A spicy, dual POV, billionaire romance featuring Sloan and Marcus, two BIPOC leads who have known each other for years. Ava Rani is an indie turned traditionally pubbed author is new to me and I really enjoyed the first in her Biotech billionaires series. Good on audio and recommended for fans of Ana Huang's Twisted series. I'm excited for Sloan's brother, Henry's story next.
]]> 58297048
Raikama has dark magic of her own, and she banishes the young princess, turning her brothers into cranes, and warning Shiori that she must speak of it to no one: for with every word that escapes her lips, one of her brothers will die.

Peniless, voiceless, and alone, Shiori searches for her brothers, and, on her journey, uncovers a conspiracy to overtake the throne—a conspiracy more twisted and deceitful, more cunning and complex, than even Raikama's betrayal. Only Shiori can set the kingdom to rights, but to do so she must place her trust in the very boy she fought so hard not to marry. And she must embrace the magic she's been taught all her life to contain—no matter what it costs her.]]> 12 Elizabeth Lim Shannon 5
What I loved about this story:
*The unique blend of a Western fairy tale (The wild swans) with East Asian folklore
*A heroine cursed to be voiceless through the majority of the book, having a disability that makes her rely on lipreading and gestures to communicate (if she speaks her brothers will die)
*an adorable magical paper crane companion (Kiki ftw)
*the most swoon-worthy love interest in the form of the man she was supposed to marry, who wrote her letters trying to get to know her and she completely ignored him until she is forced into his company in her silent state
*secondary characters that are soooo much more than traditional tropes (the relationship between Shiori and her stepmother gave me all the feels
*a snarky shape-shifting DRAGON
*forbidden magical abilities
*SOOOO much food love!!!

If this book isn't on your radar yet, I BEG you to add it! I swear you won't be sorry. I absolutely loved it and it will be one of my favorites from 2021 hands down. Great on audio with the amazing voice talents of Emily Woo Zeller! Do you have a favorite fairy tale/myth retelling?? This just moved to the top of my list but other favorites from this year include, This poison heart, For the wolf, Sisters of the snake and She who became the sun.]]> 4.02 2021
author: Elizabeth Lim
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2021/07/28
date added: 2025/01/25
shelves: fantasy-scifi, ya-fiction, aapi-books, disability-books, 2021-favorites, dragons
review:
I went into this one totally blind. A new to me author that intrigued me by the fairy tale retelling premise (I love a good retelling!). This TOTALLY blew me away and has left me with the biggest book hangover. I am so grateful this was the first book in a series and there will be more but I will be waiting IMPATIENTLY for the next one.

What I loved about this story:
*The unique blend of a Western fairy tale (The wild swans) with East Asian folklore
*A heroine cursed to be voiceless through the majority of the book, having a disability that makes her rely on lipreading and gestures to communicate (if she speaks her brothers will die)
*an adorable magical paper crane companion (Kiki ftw)
*the most swoon-worthy love interest in the form of the man she was supposed to marry, who wrote her letters trying to get to know her and she completely ignored him until she is forced into his company in her silent state
*secondary characters that are soooo much more than traditional tropes (the relationship between Shiori and her stepmother gave me all the feels
*a snarky shape-shifting DRAGON
*forbidden magical abilities
*SOOOO much food love!!!

If this book isn't on your radar yet, I BEG you to add it! I swear you won't be sorry. I absolutely loved it and it will be one of my favorites from 2021 hands down. Great on audio with the amazing voice talents of Emily Woo Zeller! Do you have a favorite fairy tale/myth retelling?? This just moved to the top of my list but other favorites from this year include, This poison heart, For the wolf, Sisters of the snake and She who became the sun.
]]> 60304678 A journey to the kingdom of dragons, a star-crossed love, and a cursed pearl with the power to mend the world or break it...

Princess Shiori made a deathbed promise to return the dragon's pearl to its rightful owner, but keeping that promise is more dangerous than she ever imagined.

She must journey to the kingdom of dragons, navigate political intrigue among humans and dragons alike, fend off thieves who covet the pearl for themselves and will go to any lengths to get it, all while cultivating the appearance of a perfect princess to dissuade those who would see her burned at the stake for the magic that runs in her blood.

The pearl itself is no ordinary cargo; it thrums with malevolent power, jumping to Shiori's aid one minute, and betraying her the next—threatening to shatter her family and sever the thread of fate that binds her to her true love, Takkan. It will take every ounce of strength Shiori can muster to defend the life and the love she's fought so hard to win.]]> 12 Elizabeth Lim Shannon 5 3.53 2022
author: Elizabeth Lim
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.53
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2022/09/20
date added: 2025/01/25
shelves: aapi-books, fantasy-scifi, ya-fiction, dragons
review:
This was such a fun conclusion to the Six Crimson Cranes duology!! Full of romance, love triangles, Chinese mythology, fantastical creatures and adventure plus the most memorable and plucky animal sidekick. Amazing on audio, I was sad to see this story come to and end!! Highly recommended for fans to the Daevabad trilogy.
]]> 198821095 1 Tahereh Mafi Shannon 0 3.80 2024
author: Tahereh Mafi
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/25
shelves: to-read, aapi-books, fantasy-scifi, ya-fiction, dragons
review:

]]> 105186894
With the heat of a kiss, the walls between Alizeh, the long-lost heir to an ancient Jinn kingdom, and Kamran, the crown prince of the Ardunian empire, have crumbled. And so have both of their lives.

Alizeh, the heir to the Jinn throne, is destined to free her people from the half-lives they’ve been forced to live under human rule. When Kamran, the heir to the human throne, falls in love with her, he’s forced to question everything he’s been taught about Jinn.

Kamran’s grandfather lays dead at the hand of Cyrus, ruler of the neighboring kingdom of Tulan. Cyrus has stolen Alizeh away to his homeland and plans to marry her there, giving her everything she needs to become the Jinn queen—and when she assumes the throne he will have fulfilled his own bargain with the devil.

Alizeh wants nothing to do with Cyrus’s deal or the devil. But without a way to escape Tulan, and with the fulfillment of her own destiny tantalizingly close, she’ll have to decide whether she can set aside her emotions to become the queen her people need.

Kamran, meanwhile, is picking up the pieces in Ardunia. Facing betrayal at every turn, all he knows is that he must go to Tulan to avenge his grandfather. He can only hope that Alizeh will be waiting for him there—and that she hasn’t yet become the queen of Tulan.]]> 11 Tahereh Mafi 0063282968 Shannon 3 3.65 2023
author: Tahereh Mafi
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2023/03/01
date added: 2025/01/25
shelves: aapi-books, fantasy-scifi, favorite-covers, ya-fiction, dragons
review:
When the first book in the This Woven Kingdom series ended on such a cliffhanger I had huge expectations for book two. Sadly this one was a bit of a let down for me. I did still enjoy all the magic, dragons, royal court intrigue/politics and the Jinn elements but the overall story just wasn't quite as captivating for me as the first book. The end did pick up and again readers get kept hanging on the edge of their seats. I'll still be eagerly waiting for the next book in this series and it was really good as an audiobook. Plus what an absolutely STUNNING cover?!?!
]]> 212924526 This charming rom-com from an author whose writing is “deeply romantic, real, funny, and heartfelt� (Christina Lauren) is filled with Chinese traditions and a curse-breaking love story that will make readers of Helen Hoang, Jasmine Guillory, and Sarah Adams swoon.

In this charming rom-com filled with Chinese traditions and a family curse, an herbalist fake dates a star musician–perfect for fans of Helen Hoang and Jasmine Guillory.

Chinese herbalist Chryssy Hua Williams never actually believed in the Hua family curse. But after Break-Up #9, Chryssy stopped laughing. Now she and her aunties run a special healing retreat center for the broken-hearted. After all, there’s nothing a proper cup of herbal tea can’t fix...but Chryssy’s innocent run-in with celebrity cellist and bad boy Vin Chao has everyone brewing about a different kind of tea. So he offers her a deal: they’ll fake-date, he’ll “break� her heart (and increase ticket sales), and in return, he’ll promote her business.

It’s like Chryssy’s whole cursed love life has been leading up to this moment. But all it takes is one kiss—and a whole lot of unexpected chemistry—to land both of them in hot water . . .]]> 352 Lauren Kung Jessen 1538741636 Shannon 4 aapi-books, netgalley-arc 3.66
author: Lauren Kung Jessen
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.66
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/24
date added: 2025/01/24
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc
review:
This was a heartfelt fake dating romance featuring Chryssy, a traditional Chinese herbalist who strikes a deal with cellist Vin to pose as his girlfriend to promote his new album, let him break up with her and in exchange he'll help promote her family's heartbreak healing retreat. With a family love curse, family secrets and great chemistry, this book taught me a lot about traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and the ways it can benefit burnout and stress/anxiety. Good on audio and perfect for fans of authors like Roselle Lim. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 213974048 In this exciting historical romantasy in the spirit of The Hurricane Wars and The Time Traveler’s Wife—Outlander set in Japan—a young Scottish woman is magically transported to the last Samurai era, where she encounters ghosts from the past, her own Japanese ancestry, and a love that transcends time.

While in Japan researching her family’s history, a vicious typhoon sends Isla Mackenzie 128 years back in time, to the dawn of the Satsuma Rebellion. There she meets her ancestors, and a charismatic samurai, Kei, with whom she unexpectedly finds romance.

But, unlike her Beloved, Isla knows about the looming Samurai rebellion—and Kai’s fate. Should she attempt to change history or somehow make her way back to the life she’d had before?

Compulsively readable, historically grounded, and irresistibly immersive, Gate to Kagoshima is an unforgettable tale of duty, and of timeless love.]]> 320 Poppy Kuroki 0063410877 Shannon 5
The book starts in 2005 where Scottish Isla is spending a study year in the country of her mother's heritage. She herself is one quarter Japanese and is grieving the recent death of her grandfather. While trying to track down a connection to a famous Samurai, she somehow finds herself transported back to 1877 on the eve of the last great battle of the Samurais.

This book was full of action, romance, fascinating history and is sure to appeal to all the Outlander fans out there. I loved how the book ends and am really excited to see where this new series is going to go next! It was also great on audio narrated by Siho Ellsmore and the print copy has GORGEOUS sprayed edges!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and Librofm for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review. This is definitely going to be a favorite of mine for 2025 and I now have a new fav author!]]> 3.26 2025
author: Poppy Kuroki
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.26
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/24
date added: 2025/01/24
shelves: aapi-books, historical-fiction, fantasy-scifi, netgalley-arc, 2025-favorites
review:
WOW! I confess I dove into this book knowing nothing other than that it's been getting compared to Outlander and was about Japanese Samurais. I knew very little about late 19th century Japanese history and enjoyed this soo much!!

The book starts in 2005 where Scottish Isla is spending a study year in the country of her mother's heritage. She herself is one quarter Japanese and is grieving the recent death of her grandfather. While trying to track down a connection to a famous Samurai, she somehow finds herself transported back to 1877 on the eve of the last great battle of the Samurais.

This book was full of action, romance, fascinating history and is sure to appeal to all the Outlander fans out there. I loved how the book ends and am really excited to see where this new series is going to go next! It was also great on audio narrated by Siho Ellsmore and the print copy has GORGEOUS sprayed edges!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and Librofm for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review. This is definitely going to be a favorite of mine for 2025 and I now have a new fav author!
]]> 213243972 A young woman with Bollywood roots hires a barista to act as her boyfriend for her cousin’s wedding—only to learn you can’t fake chemistry like theirs—in this desi romance from the author of Match Me If You Can

Harsha Godbole has never felt love from her family, but she’s always been surrounded by their Bollywood business mogul wealth. Now back in Bangalore after studying in America, Harsha is ready to start her adult life without their money. But that becomes impossible when everything she’s worked so hard for comes crumbling down. Fearful of showing up to her cousin’s upcoming wedding as a failure—and worse, a single failure—Harsha decides to put her trust fund to good use . . .Ìý

Veer Kannan does everything for his family. He even gave up his dreams of becoming a Bollywood star to get a more consistent gig . . . although working as a barista wasn’t really the big break he was hoping for. It’s a humble life, but a happy one, nonetheless. Then financial aid falls through for his brother’s first year in business school, so now Veer needs to come up with a large sum of money, and fast.

Harsha’s outlandish plan to hire her favorite baristaÌýas her fake boyfriend for the weekend-long wedding bash is received surprisingly well by Veer, who hopes this will be his ticket to Bollywood. But Harsha and Veer get way more than they bargainedÌýfor in this heartwarming journey to finding unexpectedÌýlove and courage.]]> 272 Swati Hegde 0593722930 Shannon 4
Steam level: closed door]]> 3.74 2025
author: Swati Hegde
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/23
date added: 2025/01/23
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, prh-audio
review:
This was a really fun fake dating for hire romcom featuring two South Asian main characters living in India who make a deal where barista, Veer, will pose as aspiring photographer, Harsha's boyfriend for a number of family events. In exchange Harsha will pay Veer so he can help fun his younger brother's college tuition. Flirty and fun, with the perfect blend of family drama and romance. I also liked the chapter heading quotes from popular sitcoms and the LGBTQ+ side plot involving Veer's gay brother and his mother's slow acceptance of his sexuality. Good on audio narrated by Mehr Dudeja and perfect for fans of authors like Sajni Patel, Annika Sharma, Alina Khawaja or Naina Kumar. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!

Steam level: closed door
]]> 219599307 Two video game creators go head-to-head in this delightful, queer enemies-to-lovers workplace romance debut.

Cat Li cares about two things: video games and swoony romances. The former means there hasn't been much of the latter in her (real) life, but when she lands her dream job writing the love storylines for Compass Hollow—the next big thing in games—she knows it’s all been worth it. Then she meets her boss: the infamous Andi Zhang, who’s not only an arrogant hater of happily-ever-afters determined to keep Cat from doing her job but also impossibly, annoyingly hot.

As Compass Hollow’s narrative director, Andi couldn’t care less about love—in-game or out. After getting doxxed by internet trolls three years ago, Andi’s been trying to prove to the gaming world that they’re a serious gamedev. Their plan includes writing the best game possible, with zero lovey-dovey stuff. That is, until the man funding the game’s development insists Andi add romance in order to make the story “more appealing to female gamers.�

Forced to give Cat a chance, Andi begrudgingly realizes there’s more to Cat than romantic idealism and, okay, a cute smile. But admitting that would mean giving up the single-player life that has kept their heart safe for years. And when Cat uncovers a behind-the-scenes plan to destroy Andi’s career, the two will have to put their differences aside and find a way to work together before it’s game over.]]> 1 Tara Tai Shannon 4
Amazing on audio narrated by my very fav, Natalie Naudus, this had great women in STEM rep, lots of D&D gameplay, a cast of diverse, queer characters and the exact right amount of spice.

Perfect for fans of authors like Cathy Yardley or Jeevani Charika or anyone who enjoys a good videogamer romcom. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio and digital copy in exchange for my honest review!]]> 3.73 2025
author: Tara Tai
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2024/12/13
date added: 2025/01/22
shelves: aapi-books, bisexual-rep, lgbtqia, netgalley-arc, sapphic-romance, trans-nonbinary-rep
review:
This was a really fun dual POV Sapphic grumpy x sunshine coworker romance debut that sees two women videogame designers forced to work together to come up with some new romantic storylines.

Amazing on audio narrated by my very fav, Natalie Naudus, this had great women in STEM rep, lots of D&D gameplay, a cast of diverse, queer characters and the exact right amount of spice.

Perfect for fans of authors like Cathy Yardley or Jeevani Charika or anyone who enjoys a good videogamer romcom. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio and digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 217927445
Seventeen-year-old Jamie Taher-Foster has big plans for Senior Year. She's made a list of things and places in Toronto she and her boyfriend of three years, Ben Cameron, need to check off before graduating. And the biggest plan of all: a very special night for the two of them at the upcoming Winter Formal. But then Ben arrives back home after a summer away with an unthinkable announcement: he wants to break up.

And when Jamie discovers him with Olivia Chen the next day, she is determined to get him back. Even if that means fake dating the younger, curly-haired, TikTok dancer, Axel Dahini, whose bicycle she accidentally ran over.

Though she and Axel have nothing in common aside from their shared Arab heritage—she’s a messy, type A with anxiety, he’s carefree but meticulous—their forced time together brings them to better understand one another. And for Jamie, it just might mean learning that not all experiences or people need to be crossed off a list.]]> 336 Jackie Khalilieh 1774884755 Shannon 5 3.88 2025
author: Jackie Khalilieh
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/20
date added: 2025/01/20
shelves: anxiety, bipoc-books, disability-books, lj-reviews, netgalley-arc, ya-fiction, aapi-books, alcohol-addiction
review:
My new favorite from Palestinian Canadian author, Jackie Khalilieh!! This YA romcom features a mixed race Arab teen girl, Jamie who finds herself single after getting unceremoniously dumped by her longtime boyfriend, Ben. She then somehow stumbles into a fake dating relationship with Ben's younger neighbor, Axel who helps her let loose and explore Toronto in a way Jamie's anxiety hasn't let her before. There was a lot of family drama, identity issues and teen angst but also great disability and mental health rep (Jamie has a diagnosed anxiety disorder and IBS and she also sees a therapist). I loved it and highly recommend for fans of authors like Lynn Painter, Jane Igharo and Farah Heron. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 213870136 For fans of Disney’s GO FIGURE,Ìýa laugh-out-loud, heartfelt dual POV sibling rivalry story by acclaimed author Jessica Kim

Twelve-year-old fraternal twins Phoebe and Dexter Bae are polar opposites in every way except for their love of the ice. Phoebe is hyperfocused on pairs figure skating, and Dex loves his hockey team. But when Phoebe’s partner injures his knee just two months before competitions and Dex gets cut from his team in favor of a new hotshot goalie from Canada, they’re both left spinning.

With their skating dreams dashed, their mother suggests that Dex fill in as Phoebe’s doubles partner. It’s a hard sell—the two haven’t been close since their father passed away two years ago. For Dex, working with a perfectionist like Phoebe would be a challenge, but if it means he’d improve his skating technique enough to get back on the hockey team—and he’d have something to keep his mind off his dad—it’d be worth it. Phoebe isn’t thrilled either, but what choice does she have if she wants to bring home the gold, something that would’ve made her dad happy?

Can these siblings skate past their differences toward victory?]]> 240 Jessica Kim 0593698142 Shannon 4 3.93 2025
author: Jessica Kim
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/18
date added: 2025/01/19
shelves: aapi-books, middle-grade-fiction, prh-audio
review:
This was a heartfelt middle grade sports book about sibling athletes forced to work together when things don't go the way they want. If you like skating/hockey player pairings and movies like The cutting edge, this is sure to delight. It was also good on audio and had a great cast of diverse, Korean American characters. Highly recommended, especially to fans of books like The comeback or Ana on the edge. Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 214255041 The long-awaited follow-up from one of the most original and hilarious voices writing today.

Scaachi Koul’s first book was a collection of raw, perceptive, and hilarious essays reckoning with the issues of race, body image, love, friendship, and growing up the daughter of immigrants. When the time came to start writing her next book, Scaachi assumed she’d be updating her story with essays about her elaborate four-day wedding, settling down to domestic bliss, and continuing her never-ending arguments with her parents. Instead, the Covid pandemic hit, the world went into lockdown, Scaachi’s marriage fell apart, she lost her job, and her mother was diagnosed with cancer.

Sucker Punch is about what happens when the life you thought you’d be living radically changes course, everything you thought you knew about the world and yourself has tilted on its axis, and you have to start forging a new path forward. Scaachi employs her signature humor and fierce intelligence to interrogate her previous belief that fighting is the most effective tool for progress. She examines the fights she’s had—with her parents, her ex-husband, her friends, online strangers, and herself—all in an attempt to understand when a fight is worth having, and when it's better to walk away.]]> 288 Scaachi Koul 1039056121 Shannon 4 4.25 2025
author: Scaachi Koul
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/17
date added: 2025/01/17
shelves: aapi-books, canadian-memoirs, biographies-memoirs, lgbtqia, netgalley-arc
review:
A personal collection of essays in which Canadian writer Scacchi Koul shares her experiences with divorce, rape, body image, disordered eating, life during the pandemic and more. This was good on audio narrated by the author herself but I'm not sure I liked it quite as much as her first book. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 214269390 A swoony romance between driven, practical Lynda Fan and her rich, arrogant classmate, Angela Wu. When Angela offers Lynda the chance to design characters for her otome game, Lynda discovers things she never knew about herself…or her heart.

Love is an art.

Sixteen-year-old Lynda Fan has the skills and the drive to get into the Rhode Island School of Design—but not the money. Her parents are too busy paying for her stepsister’s violin lessons to help Lynda get into art school.

So when her rich and arrogant classmate, Angela Wu, offers to hire Lynda as a character designer for an otome game—a love story-based video game—she jumps at the opportunity.

Lynda isn’t exactly a romantic, but in pursuit of her dreams, she discovers things she never knew about herself while also finding love with every heart she draws.]]> 320 Alice Lin 0593814827 Shannon 3 3.67 2025
author: Alice Lin
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/14
date added: 2025/01/15
shelves: aapi-books, ya-fiction, lgbtqia, sapphic-romance, netgalley-arc, prh-audio
review:
This was a cute YA opposites attract Sapphic romance between two Asian American teen girls. I liked it well enough and would recommend to fans of authors like Adiba Jaigirdar. It was also well done on audio narrated by Katharine Chin. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 212807260 Your table awaits at the Chibineko Kitchen, where a soul-nourishing meal in the company of the resident kitten will transport you back in time to reunite with departed loved ones—for fans of Before the Coffee Gets Cold and The Midnight Library.

In a remote seaside town outside of Tokyo, Kotoko makes her way along a seashell path, lured by whispers of an enigmatic restaurant whose kagezen, or traditional meals offered in remembrance of loved ones, promise a reunion with the departed. When a gust of wind lifts off her hat, she sees running after it a young man who looks like her recently deceased brother. But it’s not her brother; it’s Kai, the restaurant’s young chef, who returns her hat and brings her to the tiny establishment, where he introduces her to Chibi, the resident kitten, and serves her steaming bowls of simmered fish, rice, and miso soup—the exact meal her brother used to cook for her. As she takes her first delicious bite, the gulls outside fall silent, the air grows hazy, and Kotoko begins a magical journey of last chances and new beginnings.]]> 192 Yuta Takahashi 0143138618 Shannon 4 4.03 2020
author: Yuta Takahashi
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/14
date added: 2025/01/14
shelves: aapi-books, books-about-food, lj-reviews, prh-audio
review:
Translated from the Japanese, this is a feel-good novel made up of four interconnected stories that is perfect for fans of Before the coffee gets cold and The Kamogawa food detectives in which a special restaurant can help reunite people with their dead loved ones over a favorite dish. The book tackles love, loss, second chances and cute kittens. It was good on audio and I look forward to what might come next in what appears to be a new series. Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 223134269 A woman’s investigation into her sister’s death exposes the dark side of a secret life in a gripping novel of power, money, and murder by a Wall Street Journal bestselling author.

Sisters Nadia and Cass Brenner are heirs to Ocean House, a decades-old empire that builds superyachts for the rich and emirs, oligarchs, and titans of industry throughout America and Europe. They’re a next-generation success with the design of their soon-to-be-commissioned megayacht for a Chinese billionaire. But the sisters� entrée into the coveted Asian market is tragically cut short when Cass falls from a fortieth-floor hotel window.

A Singapore detective rules suicide. Nadia’s been in the yacht business too long not to be suspicious. Especially when she discovers Cass’s involvement in dangerously illicit activities. Pulled into the same web of betrayal, lies, and secrets that trapped her sister, Nadia is on the most perilous mission of her life. Because uncovering the truth behind her sister’s death could tear the Brenner family apart—and it just might get her killed.

From Seattle to Austria to the South China Sea, Nadia must hold on to the one thing that can keep her safe. It’s the Brenner family Trust no one.]]> 12 Barbara Nickless Shannon 3 3.20 2025
author: Barbara Nickless
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.20
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/12
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: aapi-books, mystery-thriller, netgalley-arc
review:
This was a new to me author's book that was really well done on audio narrated by my very fav, Natalie Naudus. The book starts off really strong with a sister sent to Shanghai to help finish a big yacht build with her sister only to be told her sister has committed suicide by jumping off a 43 storey building. From there it turns into a mystery/detective story but it gets complicated by a history of Nazis and CIA conspiracies. I eventually lost interest/focus towards the end and felt the story lost some of its steam. Just an okay read for me overall. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 211399755 For fans of Frankly in Love and Tokyo Ever After comes a romantic dramedy about finding love and reconnecting with your culture in the most surprising ways.

Taiwanese American Catie Carlson has never fit in with her white family. As much as she loves her stepmom and stepsister, she yearns to understand more about her culture and find her biological mother.

So Catie is shocked when an opportunity comes knocking on her Her summer spa coworker, Toby, says he’ll teach her Mandarin. In exchange, she needs to teach him how to date so he can finally work up the courage to ask out his crush. The only problem is that Catie doesn’t actually have any dating experience. But she can fake it.

With her late father’s copy of The Five Love Languages and all his annotated notes, Catie becomes the perfect dating coach. Or so she thinks. As she gets dangerously close to Toby and to finding out what really happened to her biological mom, she realizes that learning the language of love might be tougher than she thought.

Stefany Valentine’s debut novel is both a fresh, fun romance as well as a profound, luminous story about grief, family, transracial adoption, and what it means to truly follow your heart.]]> 304 Stefany Valentine 0593750969 Shannon 4 3.92 2025
author: Stefany Valentine
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/10
date added: 2025/01/11
shelves: aapi-books, prh-audio, ya-fiction, debuts
review:
I really enjoyed this YA debut about a biracial teen girl trying to track down her birth mother in the wake of her white father's death. This gave off a bit of Cinderella mixed with Jenny Han vibes and I really enjoyed it!! There was miscommunication (a fake boyfriend), an exchange of language lessons for dating lessons and lots of focus on identity and heritage. I also really enjoyed the way the author wove the Five Love Languages book into the story, expanding and updating the author's original intent of a widely popular self-help book. Great on audio too! I look forward to reading more by Stefany Valentine!! Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 222923644 1 Kim Jiyun Shannon 2 aapi-books, netgalley-arc 3.86 2023
author: Kim Jiyun
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2023
rating: 2
read at: 2025/01/08
date added: 2025/01/10
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc
review:
I typically really enjoy translated works from bestselling Asian authors. Books like the Before the coffee gets cold usually deliver cozy, feel-good interconnected stories so I was looking forward to this one being similar. Sadly, I couldn't get into it. The stories felt disjointed, I didn't like the narration and overall it was a struggle for me to keep listening right to the end. Maybe it would be have translated better as a print read? Anyways this one was a miss for me. On to the next. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.
]]> 210158999 An empowering, uplifting tale of two women from opposite sides of society, and their extraordinary journey of sisterhood, betrayal, love and triumph.

1800s China. Tightly bound feet, or "golden lilies," are the mark of an honorable woman, eclipsing beauty, a rich dowry and even bloodline in the marriage stakes. When Little Flower is sold as a maidservant—a muizai—to Linjing, a daughter of the prominent Fong family, she clings to the hope that one day her golden lilies will lead her out of slavery.

Not only does Little Flower have bound feet, uncommon for a muizai, but she is extraordinarily gifted at embroidery, a skill associated with the highest class of a lady. Resentful of her talents, Linjing does everything in her power to thwart Little Flower's escape.

But when scandal strikes the Fongs, both women are cast out to the Celibate Sisterhood, where Little Flower’s artistic prowess catches the eye of a nobleman. His attention threatens not only her improved status, but her life—the Sisterhood punishes disobedience with death. And if Linjing finds out, will she sabotage Little Flower to reclaim her power, or will she protect her?]]> 383 Jane Yang Shannon 5 4.42 2025
author: Jane Yang
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.42
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/08
date added: 2025/01/09
shelves: historical-fiction, netgalley-arc, debuts, aapi-books, disability-books
review:
I really enjoyed this moving and heartbreaking story of two young 1800s Chinese women from opposite ends of society who find their lives intertwined when Little Flower is sold to Linjing’s wealthy family to serve as an indentured servant, effectively ending her chance at a good marriage thanks to her embroidery skills and beautiful, bound “golden lily� feet. Filled with class struggles, cruelty (Little Flower loses the use of some of ger fingers) and jealousy but also hope and perseverance. I highly recommend this strong debut especially for Lisa See fans. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early ALC in exchange for my honest review.
]]> 201924482
As a child in Beijing in the 1970s, Lai lives with her family in a lively, working-class neighborhood near the heart of the city. Thoughtful yet unassuming, she spends her days with her friends beyond the attention of her Her father is a reclusive figure who lingers in the background, while her mother, an aging beauty and fervent patriot, is quick-tempered and preoccupied with neighborhood gossip. Only Lai's grandmother, a formidable and colorful maverick, seems to really see Lai and believe that she can blossom beyond their circumstances.

But Lai is quickly awakened to the harsh realities of the Chinese state. A childish prank results in a terrifying altercation with police that haunts her for years; she also learns that her father, like many others, was broken during the Cultural Revolution. As she enters adolescence, Lai meets a mysterious and wise bookseller who introduces her to great works-Hemingway, Camus, and Orwell, among others-that open her heart to the emotional power of literature and her mind to thrillingly different perspectives. Along the way, she experiences the ebbs and flows of friendship, the agony of grief, and the first steps and missteps in love.

A gifted student, Lai wins a scholarship to study at the prestigious Peking University where she soon falls in with a theatrical band of individualists and misfits dedicated to becoming their authentic selves, despite the Communist Party's insistence on conformity-and a new world opens before her. When student resistance hardens under the increasingly restrictive policies of the state, the group gets swept up in the fervor, determined to be heard, joining the masses of demonstrators and dreamers who display remarkable courage and loyalty in the face of danger. As 1989 unfolds, the spirit of change is in the air�

Drawn from her own life, Lai Wen's novel is mesmerizing and haunting-a universal yet intimate story of youth and self-discovery that plays out against the backdrop of a watershed historic event. Tiananmen Square captures the hope and idealism of a new generation and the lasting price they were willing to pay in the name of freedom.]]> 528 Lai Wen 1954118392 Shannon 0 3.97 2024
author: Lai Wen
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/08
shelves: to-read, historical-fiction, aapi-books
review:

]]> 211400171 A vacation in the Hamptons goes terribly wrong for three friends with a complicated history.

“I absolutely loved The Note. Trust no one in this irresistible page-turner.� —Ashley Elston, #1 New York Times best-selling author of First Lie Wins

It was meant to be a harmless prank.

Growing up, May Hanover was a good girl, always. Well-behaved, top of her class, a compulsive rule-follower. Raised by a first-generation Chinese single mother with high expectations, May didn’t have room to slip up, let alone fail. Her friends didn’t call her the Little Sheriff for nothing.

But even good girls have secrets. And regrets. When it comes to her friendship with Lauren and Kelsey, she's had her fair share of both. Their bond—forged when May was just twelve years old—has withstood a tragic accident, individual scandals, heartbreak and loss. Now the three friends have reunited for the first time in years for a few days of sun and fun in the Hamptons. But a chance encounter with a pair of strangers leads to a drunken prank that goes horribly awry.Ìý

When she finds herself at the center of an urgent police investigation, May begins to wonder whether Lauren and Kelsey are keeping secrets from her, testing the limits of her loyalty to lifelong friends.

What had they gone and done?

The Note is a page-turner of the highest orderÌýfrom one of our greatest contemporary suspense writers.]]> 450 Alafair Burke 0593537092 Shannon 3
For me, there was way too much going on and I would have rather the story focused on just one of the plot points (preferably the one in the present) but things do eventually tie together. Just an okay read overall for me and not one I would go out of my way to recommend.

I did like that there was an emphasis on post-covid rise in anti-Asian sentiments/violence, a second chance romance, older female MCs, complicated female friendships, secrets and a BRCA1 gene diagnosis that leads to preventative surgeries and early onset menopause and infertility.

The audiobook narration was well done but it didn't make up for everything else. Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC and NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!]]> 3.85 2025
author: Alafair Burke
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/06
date added: 2025/01/06
shelves: aapi-books, mystery-thriller, netgalley-arc, prh-audio, disability-books
review:
I haven't read a lot of Alafair Burke before but this one has been getting decent buzz and a vacation friend trip where a drunken mistake leads to accusations of murder had me intrigued. Full disclosure this type of story isn't my go to and while I was pulled in initially, this multi-POV, multi-timeline story quickly got way too complicated for me and I struggled to keep track of all the characters and just what was going on.

For me, there was way too much going on and I would have rather the story focused on just one of the plot points (preferably the one in the present) but things do eventually tie together. Just an okay read overall for me and not one I would go out of my way to recommend.

I did like that there was an emphasis on post-covid rise in anti-Asian sentiments/violence, a second chance romance, older female MCs, complicated female friendships, secrets and a BRCA1 gene diagnosis that leads to preventative surgeries and early onset menopause and infertility.

The audiobook narration was well done but it didn't make up for everything else. Many thanks to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC and NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 208538077 Founder of advocacy organization Diversability and creator of the viral Anti-Ableism Series on TikTok, Tiffany Yu takes readers on a revelatory examination of disability—how to unpack your biases and build a disability-inclusive and accessible world.

As the Asian American daughter of immigrants, living with PTSD and a permanent arm injury sustained at age nine, Tiffany Yu is well aware of the intersections of identity that affect us all. She navigated the male-dominated world of corporate finance as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs before founding Diversability, an award-winning community business run by disabled people building disability pride, power, and leadership.

Organized from the personal to the professional, the domestic to the political, the Me to the We to the Us, The Anti-Ableist Manifesto frames context for conversations, breaks down the language of ableism, identifies microaggressions, and proposes real actions that lead to genuine and authentic allyship.Ìý How do we remove ableist language from our daily vocabulary? How do we create inclusive events? What are the advantages of hiring disabled employees, and what market opportunity are we missing out on when we don’t consider disabled consumers? With contributions from disability advocates, activists, authors, entrepreneurs, scholars, educators, and executives, Yu celebrates the power of stories and lived experiences to foster the proximity, intimacy, and humanity of disability identities that have far too often been “otheredâ€� and rendered invisible. The Anti-Ableist Manifesto is an essential book for going beyond mere awareness and becoming an active anti-ableist working form a more equitable society for all.]]> 283 Tiffany Yu Shannon 5
I found this really well written, easy to digest, relatable and so important. Some chapters that really resonated included the ones about workplace accommodations, intersectionality, the importance of representation, micro-aggressions, calling out vs calling in, why it's not okay to think/talk about disabled people as inspirational and ways everyone can do better and be positive allies.

Great on audio read by the author herself and highly recommended for fans of Alice Wong's work. This book should be required reading for HR workers and anyone concerned about improving accessibility and inclusivity. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Fav quote: "Nothing about us without us."]]> 4.75 2024
author: Tiffany Yu
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.75
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at: 2024/12/31
date added: 2024/12/31
shelves: disability-books, netgalley-arc, aapi-books
review:
This was a really comprehensive #ownvoices guide about ableism and ways for everyone (disabled or not) to help improve the ableist world we live in. The author shares her own personal experiences (she has PTSD and a permanent arm injury that was the result of a car crash when she was young). She also relies on research and other disability advocacy work to help inform the suggestions in this book.

I found this really well written, easy to digest, relatable and so important. Some chapters that really resonated included the ones about workplace accommodations, intersectionality, the importance of representation, micro-aggressions, calling out vs calling in, why it's not okay to think/talk about disabled people as inspirational and ways everyone can do better and be positive allies.

Great on audio read by the author herself and highly recommended for fans of Alice Wong's work. This book should be required reading for HR workers and anyone concerned about improving accessibility and inclusivity. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Fav quote: "Nothing about us without us."
]]> 203956637 May should be thrilled. But some of her teammates, including her supposed-to-be-friend Ralph, aren’t too pleased with the attention she’s getting—and they’re even questioning her skills. Backed into a corner, but not one to back down, May makes a move as bold as any of her chess tactics: She bets Ralph she can win the school’s internal tournament and be chosen as team captain for nationals.
The crown is May’s for the taking . . . except she’s starting to crumble under the weight of everyone’s expectations. Anxious feelings begin to affect her performance and, what’s worse, eat away at her love for the game. Now May is left to wonder: Can you still play for fun when you’re playing to win?]]> 240 Kyla Zhao 0593615867 Shannon 4 4.09 2024
author: Kyla Zhao
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2024/12/31
date added: 2024/12/31
shelves: aapi-books, middle-grade-fiction, disability-books, mental-health
review:
A fun middle grade story about an Asian American chess-obsessed prodigy dealing with self-imposed pressure to be the best. The book has good anxiety rep, a diverse cast of characters and great insights into the Chinese Chess programs of the past. I really enjoyed it on audio narrated by Annie Q Riegal and would recommend to fans of books like Not an easy win by Chrystal D Giles or the movie, Akeelah and the bee.
]]> 177067912 From the award-winning author of Amina’s Voice and Amina’s Song comes a tenderhearted middle grade novel about a young Pakistani American artist determined to manage her anxiety and forge her own creative path. Deena’s never given a name to the familiar knot in her stomach that appears when her parents argue about money, when it’s time to go to school, or when she struggles to find the right words. She manages to make it through each day with the help of her friends and the art she loves to make. While her parents� money troubles cause more and more stress, Deena wonders if she can use her artistic talents to ease their burden. She creates a logo and social media account to promote her mom’s home-based business selling clothes from Pakistan to the local community. With her cousin and friends modeling the outfits and lending their social media know-how, business picks up. But the success and attention make Deena’s cousin and best friend, Parisa, start to act funny. Suddenly Deena’s latest creative outlet becomes another thing that makes her feel nauseated and unsure of herself. After Deena reaches a breaking point, both she and her mother learn the importance of asking for help and that, with the right support, Deena can create something truly beautiful.]]> 237 Hena Khan Shannon 4 4.00 2024
author: Hena Khan
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2024/12/24
date added: 2024/12/24
shelves: aapi-books, disability-books, mental-health, middle-grade-fiction
review:
This was a heartfelt, new middle grade novel featuring a young Desi girl who loves to draw but struggles with anxiety and panic attacks. I loved how this book tackles social media addiction and mental health and offers some coping strategies to young children who have a lot of worries and don't know how to handle it. Great on audio and perfect for fans of books like Popcorn or Ain't it funny.
]]> 217546076 1 Sue Lynn Tan Shannon 3 3.47 2025
author: Sue Lynn Tan
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.47
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2024/12/22
date added: 2024/12/22
shelves: aapi-books, fantasy-scifi, netgalley-arc
review:
I feel like there is a glut of romantasy books on the market these days and sadly this one didn't stand out for me. Usually I am a sucker for anything Natalie Naudus narrates but even her voice talents couldn't save this one for me. If you loved Sue Lynn Tan's previous books you might still like this one but sadly it was a miss for me. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 216785385 If you could swap your life for a better one, which would you choose?

On the outskirts of Rainbow Town, there is an old, abandoned house. They say that if you send a letter detailing your misfortunes there, you could receive a ticket. If you bring this ticket to the house on the first day of the rainy season, you'll be granted entrance into the mysterious Rainfall Market—where you can choose to completely change your life.

No one is more surprised than Serin when she receives a ticket. Lonely and with no real prospects for a future, Serin ventures to the market, determined to create a better life for herself.

There, she meets a magical cat companion named Issha and they search through bookstores, perfumeries, and fantastical realms while Serin tries to determine what her perfect life will look like.

The catch? Serin only has one week to find her happiness or be doomed to vanish into the market forever.

And all the while, a shadow follows quietly behind them…]]> 206 You Yeong-Gwang 0593952669 Shannon 4 3.48 2023
author: You Yeong-Gwang
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.48
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2024/12/20
date added: 2024/12/20
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, prh-audio, fantasy-scifi
review:
This was a fantastical new story from a best-selling Japanese writer about Serin, a lonely young woman who sends a letter to the mysterious 'Rainfall market' where its rumored people can get tickets and a chance to improve their lives. Surprised when she is the lucky recipient of a rare 'golden ticket,' Serin travels to the market where she meets a magical cat companion and together they search for Serin's ideal future possible life. Great on audio and perfect for fans of books like the Before the coffee gets cold series. I really enjoyed this one a lot and LOVE the cover! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 209253166 For readers of Crying in H Mart and In the Dream House, aÌýsearing, intimate and blisteringly honest memoir about mothers and daughters, grief and healing, and finding your voice.

Minelle Mahtani had taken a leap of faith. A new mother in a new life, she'd moved across the country for love, and soon found herself facing the exciting and terrifying prospect of hosting her own radio show. But as she began to find her place in the majority white newsroom, she was handed devastating her Iranian mother had been diagnosed with tongue cancer.

Just as Minelle was finding her voice, her mother was losing hers.

What does it mean to amplify the voices of others while the stories of your ancestors are being buried in your mother's mouth? Why do we cling to superstition and luck when we’ve lost all faith in healing those we love? And how do we juggle bearing the burden of looking after an ill parent when we are trying to parent our own children?

In exquisitely lyrical and inventive prose, Mahtani recounts the experience so many of us a life calibrated through calculating when to speak and when to be silent in a world that feels like it forces us to be broken.]]> 335 Minelle Mahtani 0385675216 Shannon 4 4.50 2024
author: Minelle Mahtani
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2024/12/16
date added: 2024/12/16
shelves: aapi-books, biographies-memoirs, disability-books, canadian-memoirs, bipoc-books, ocd
review:
A moving memoir by former Canadian radio host and journalist about growing up in Iranian and Indian in Canada, her parents divorce, motherhood challenges, the complicated relationship she had with her mother and her grief when her mother dies from tongue cancer. Minelle also talks a lot about her career as a radio host and how debilitating her counting number compulsions (a form of OCD) came to be particularly after her mother's death. Great on audio narrated by the author herself and highly recommended for fans of books like Older sister, not necessarily related, My mother's daughter Listen to the squawking chicken and Crying in H Mart.
]]> 61121126 Han Kang’s most revelatory book since The Vegetarian, We Do Not Part tells the story of a friendship between two women while powerfully reckoning with a hidden chapter in Korean history.

One winter morning, Kyungha receives an urgent message from her friend Inseon to visit her at a hospital in Seoul. Inseon has injured herself in an accident, and she begs Kyungha to return to Jeju Island, where she lives, to save her beloved pet—a white bird called Ama. A snowstorm hits the island when Kyungha arrives. She must reach Inseon’s house at all costs, but the icy wind and squalls slow her down as night begins to fall. She wonders if she will arrive in time to save the animal—or even survive the terrible cold that envelops her with every step. Lost in a world of snow, she doesn’t yet suspect the vertiginous plunge into the darkness that awaits her at her friend’s house.

Blurring the boundaries between dream and reality, We Do Not Part powerfully illuminates a forgotten chapter in Korean history, buried for decades—bringing to light the lost voices of the past to save them from oblivion. Both a hymn to an enduring friendship and an argument for remembering, it is the story of profound love in the face of unspeakable violence—and a celebration of life, however fragile it might be.]]> 256 Han Kang Shannon 0 4.03 2021
author: Han Kang
name: Shannon
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/12
shelves: to-read, aapi-books, historical-fiction, prh-audio
review:

]]> 214369383 “I’m once again blown away by Laura Gao’s ability to make me relate to someone completely different from myself. Get ready to experience the epic highs and lows of high school rock climbing.��Sonora Reyes, National Book Award finalist and bestselling author of The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School

Once dubbed the Queen of Balance as her school’s top rock climber, Kirby Tan suffers an injury that sidelines her for the rest of the season. Now she’s forced to join the newspaper club for some desperately needed extra credit. Worse, she’s recruited by crystal-wearing, tarot-reading Bex Santos for her astrology-based love advice column. As Kirby reluctantly agrees to orchestrate “matches made in heaven� with Bex, she begins to wonder if their own stars could be aligned. But loving who she wants isn’t so easy when her family and church community are on the line. Can Kirby pull off her greatest balancing act yet?

From Laura Gao, the acclaimed creator of Messy Roots, comes an authentic slow-burn romance and coming-of-age story perfect for fans of Heartstopper, lovers of astrology and tarot, and anyone looking for answers on the right way to fall (in love).Ìý]]> 304 Laura Gao 006306779X Shannon 4
I loved the great cast of queer friend side characters, the complicated relationship Kirby has with her widowed single mother and the secondary storyline involving Kirby's grandfather who suffered a stroke when she came out and is now confined to a wheelchair. Full of family drama, high school antics, great illustrations, anxiety rep and tons of heart.

Recommended for fans of books like Laura Dean keeps breaking up with me by Mariko Tamaki. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!]]> 3.63 2025
author: Laura Gao
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.63
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2024/12/11
date added: 2024/12/11
shelves: aapi-books, lgbtqia, mental-health, graphic-novels, netgalley-arc, ya-fiction, sapphic-romance, disability-books, trans-nonbinary-rep
review:
Another great YA graphic novel from Laura Gao, this time a Sapphic opposites attract romance between Kirby, a star rock climber and Bex, an astrology loving relationship advice geek. When Kirby falls in a competition and hurts her wrist she needs to find another extracurricular activity and chooses the newspaper club where she gets paired up with Bex working on an astrology-based matchmaking/advice column.

I loved the great cast of queer friend side characters, the complicated relationship Kirby has with her widowed single mother and the secondary storyline involving Kirby's grandfather who suffered a stroke when she came out and is now confined to a wheelchair. Full of family drama, high school antics, great illustrations, anxiety rep and tons of heart.

Recommended for fans of books like Laura Dean keeps breaking up with me by Mariko Tamaki. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 211399750 She needs a divorce from her husband—but a hurricane threatens to dredge up their stormy, passionate past in this sizzling reimagining of Sweet Home Alabama from the bestselling author of Say You'll Be Mine.

It's been years since Meena has seen her husband, Nikhil . . . years since they first laid eyes on each other back home in Texas, years since they eloped in Las Vegas and she felt true happiness. A high-powered lawyer on Capitol Hill, ready to move on (or at least, she thinks so) with another successful lawyer, Shake, Meena has returned home. This time, finally, to obtain a divorce.

But there's one thing Meena couldn't have accounted for: a hurricane forming in the Gulf, veering right toward them, giving them no choice but to hunker down in the home they had built together. Suddenly, she finds herself trapped amid gale-force winds and pelting rain with the man she once loved.

As they spend more time together, Meena begins to remember everything that drew her to Nikhil: His small-town charm, his thoughtful nature. . . his absurdly good looks. But things make sense with Shake. He’s steady and ambitious and wants exactly what she wants. She’ll stick to her plan, come hell or high water. But will her windswept heart make the right choice, when the storm settles and the eye passes over?

With sharp observations about second chances at love, ambition and Indian American identity, and with characters who share an undeniable chemistry, Flirting with Disaster is a modern romance with the sensibility of a classic.]]> 320 Naina Kumar 0593723902 Shannon 4
Full of heart and great Gilmore Girls vibes, this second chance romance featuring Meena, a strong D.C. lawyer with political aspirations and Nikhil, the man she wants to divorce in order to move on with her current boyfriend, gave me ALL the feels. When Meena travels back home to get Nikhil to sign divorce papers she discovers there are still a lot of unresolved feelings between them.

This was absolutely amazing on audio narrated by one of my favs, Soneela Nankani and perfect for fans of books like Fool me once by Ashley Winstead. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!]]> 3.57 2025
author: Naina Kumar
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.57
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2024/12/07
date added: 2024/12/08
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, romance-rom-coms, prh-audio
review:
I really, really enjoyed this sophomore novel from Naina Kumar that has the BEST Sweet Home Alabama vibes, features two South Asian leads who are technically still married after a Vegas Wedding years ago and end up forced to weather a Texas Hurricane together.

Full of heart and great Gilmore Girls vibes, this second chance romance featuring Meena, a strong D.C. lawyer with political aspirations and Nikhil, the man she wants to divorce in order to move on with her current boyfriend, gave me ALL the feels. When Meena travels back home to get Nikhil to sign divorce papers she discovers there are still a lot of unresolved feelings between them.

This was absolutely amazing on audio narrated by one of my favs, Soneela Nankani and perfect for fans of books like Fool me once by Ashley Winstead. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!
]]> 52323056 One lie snowballs into a full-blown double life in this irresistible story about an aspiring stand-up comedian.

On the outside, Yumi Chung suffers from #shygirlproblems, a perm-gone-wrong, and kids calling her "Yu-MEAT" because she smells like her family's Korean barbecue restaurant. On the inside, Yumi is ready for her Netflix stand-up special. Her notebook is filled with mortifying memories that she's reworked into comedy gold. All she needs is a stage and courage.

Instead of spending the summer studying her favorite YouTube comedians, Yumi is enrolled in test-prep tutoring to qualify for a private school scholarship, which will help in a time of hardship at the restaurant. One day after class, Yumi stumbles on an opportunity that will change her life: a comedy camp for kids taught by one of her favorite YouTube stars. The only problem is that the instructor and all the students think she's a girl named Kay Nakamura--and Yumi doesn't correct them.

As this case of mistaken identity unravels, Yumi must decide to stand up and reveal the truth or risk losing her dreams and disappointing everyone she cares about.]]> Jessica Kim Shannon 0 3.95 2020
author: Jessica Kim
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/05
shelves: to-read, aapi-books, middle-grade-fiction, debuts
review:

]]> 63057863
Shy, nerdy Tanvi has always thought of her perfect cousin Mimi as her sister. Not only did Mimi’s family raise Tanvi after the tragic death of her parents, fierce Mimi has always protected Tanvi at school. At least until Mimi fell under the spell of their flawless, rich classmate, Beth . . . Tanvi’s biggest bully.

Fearing another terrible year, Tanvi decides to take a desperate, preemptive strike—and captures an incriminating photo of Mimi and Beth at a party. When Tanvi wakes up the next day with a bump on her head, scratches on her leg, and no memory of what caused her injuries, Mimi is gone.

When the investigation for the missing girl takes a dark turn, Tanvi begins to fill the gaps in her memory, hoping to bring her cousin home alive. She questions Mimi’s friends and enemies—including Mimi’s shady boyfriend, who refuses to answer her questions, and Beth, who catalyzed the split between the once-close cousins. Meanwhile, the cops announce that they are now hunting a murderer—are they hunting Tanvi?

To preserve her family and find the truth, Tanvi must revisit the worst night of her life and the darkest parts of her past to discover if she’s capable of murder—and the truth of what happened to Mimi.


PRAISE for When Mimi Went Missing:

"(A) heartstopping Debut" -- Teen Vogue
She Reads Most Anticipated YA Thrillers of Fall]]> 288 Suja Sukumar 1641295368 Shannon 3 3.67 2024
author: Suja Sukumar
name: Shannon
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2024/12/05
date added: 2024/12/05
shelves: aapi-books, netgalley-arc, ya-fiction, disability-books, mental-health, debuts
review:
I enjoyed this YA thriller debut that has Tanvi, trying to piece together what happened to Mimi, her cousin and the girl she thought of as a sister when she wakes up not remembering what happened at a party the night before. This was a twisty psychological thriller featuring a South Asian lead who has anxiety and panic attacks that was good on audio. Definitely recommended for those looking for a fresh take on the genre and fans of A good girl's guide to murder. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!
]]>