Book Review + Giveaway! (U.S. only) The Serpent's Secret by Sayantani Dasgupta

Title: The Serpent's Secret

Author: Sayantani Dasgupta

Publication: February 27, 2018 by Scholastic Press

Purchase details: Received an Advanced Reader's Copy from Scholastic Press for Review

Get your own copy!:

Blurb: 

MEET KIRANMALA: INTERDIMENSIONAL DEMON SLAYER

(But she doesn’t know it yet.)

On the morning of her twelfth birthday, Kiranmala is just a regular sixth grader living in Parsippany, New Jersey… until her parents mysteriously vanish later that day and a rakkhosh demon slams through her kitchen, determined to eat her alive. Turns out there might be some truth to her parents’ fantastical stories—like how Kiranmala is a real Indian princess—and a wealth of secrets about her origin they've kept hidden.

To complicate matters, two crushworthy Indian princes ring her doorbell, insisting they’re here to rescue her. Suddenly, Kiran is swept into another dimension full of magic, winged horses, moving maps, and annoying, talking birds. There she must solve riddles and slay demons all while avoiding the Serpent King of the underworld (who may or may not want to kill her) and the rakkhosh queen (who definitely does) in order to find her parents and basically save New Jersey, her entire world, and everything beyond it… 

The Bengali Nomad vs. The Book Blogging World: 411 on physical review copies and ARCs (the South Asian version, at least)

** If you found this post useful please follow and share because a lot of work goes into these posts. For fun book haul/ARC photos visit TheBengaliNomad on instagram. More followers will encourage me to do giveaways!**

Book Birthday Celebration at The Bengali Nomad: Shadowsong by S. Jae Jones (READ AN EXCERPT!!)

HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY SHADOWSONG AND S.JAE JONES!!!


    

Synopsis: Six months after the end of Wintersong, Liesl is working toward furthering both her brother’s and her own musical careers. Although she is determined to look forward and not behind, life in the world above is not as easy as Liesl had hoped. Her younger brother Josef is cold, distant, and withdrawn, while Liesl can’t forget the austere young man she left beneath the earth, and the music he inspired in her. 

When troubling signs arise that the barrier between worlds is crumbling, Liesl must return to the Underground to unravel the mystery of life, death, and the Goblin King—who he was, who he is, and who he will be. What will it take to break the old laws once and for all? What is the true meaning of sacrifice when the fate of the world—or the ones Liesl loves—is in her hands?   


                                     

About S. Jae Jones (taken from Goodreads): S. Jae-Jones, called JJ, is an artist, an adrenaline junkie, and the NYT bestselling author of Wintersong.
 
Born and raised in sunny Los Angeles, she lived in New York City for ten years before relocating down to Dixie, where she is comfortably growing fat on grits and barbecue. When not writing, she can be found rock-climbing, skydiving, taking photographs, drawing pictures, and dragging her dog on ridiculously long hikes.

Snippets of the Past #2

Snippets of the Past is a weekly feature which is meant to highlight a book you've read a while back. A lot of the books that I will be highlighting for this feature are books I've reviewed in my old blog but that does not necessarily have to be the case. People are more than welcome to join in! Simple use the photo above on your post and be sure to explain to your readers what it is! Once you're done posting, come back and link up your post on the linky widget on this blog post. Also, be sure to include the link to my blog on your post so that other bloggers can also come back here and link up, should they choose to participate.   

Weekly Recap @ The Bengali Nomad #3

               

Since this weekly blog post will be linking up to both Sunday Post and Stacking the Shelves, I've decided to label it as Weekly Recap, just to keep things simple.  

Book Review: To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo

Title: To Kill a Kingdom

Author: Alexandra Christo

Publication (of my edition): March 6th, 2018 by Feiwel and Friends

Purchase details: Received an Advanced Reading Copy from Macmillan U.S.

Blurb:  Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all. With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection, she is revered across the sea. Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own. To punish her daughter, the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most—a human. Robbed of her song, Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen or remain a human forever.

The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home, even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world. Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby—it’s his calling. When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean, she’s more than what she appears. She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good—But can he trust her? And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy?

Snippets of the Past #1

Snippets of the Past is a weekly feature which is meant to highlight a book you've read a while back. A lot of the books that I will be highlighting for this feature are books I've reviewed in my old blog but that does not necessarily have to be the case. People are more than welcome to join in! Simple use the photo above on your post and be sure to explain to your readers what it is! Once you're done posting, come back and link up your post on the linky widget on this blog post. Also, be sure to include the link to my blog on your post so that other bloggers can also come back here and link up, should they choose to participate.   

Weekly Recap @ The Bengali Nomad #2

               

Since this weekly blog post will be linking up to both Sunday Post and Stacking the Shelves, I've decided to label it as Weekly Recap, just to keep things simple.  

Book Review: Reign the Earth by A.C. Gaughen

Title: Reign the Earth (The Elementae #1)

Author: A.C. Gaughen

Publication (of my edition): January 30th, 2018 by Bloomsbury U.S.

Purchase details: Received an Advanced Reading Copy from Bloomsbury U.S.

Blurb:  Shalia is a proud daughter of the desert, but after years of devastating war with the adjoining kingdom, her people are desperate for peace. Willing to trade her freedom to ensure the safety of her family, Shalia becomes Queen of the Bonelands.

But she soon learns that her husband, Calix, is motivated only by his desire to exterminate the Elementae—mystical people who can control earth, wind, air, and fire. Even more unsettling are Shalia’s feelings for her husband’s brother, which unleash a power over the earth she never knew she possessed—a power that could get her killed. As rumors of a rebellion against Calix spread, Shalia must choose between the last chance for peace and her own future as an Elementae.

This intense, richly drawn high-fantasy by the author of Scarlet will hold readers spellbound.

Book Review: The Cruel Prince by Holly Black + Giveaway! (International)

Title: The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air #1)

Author: Holly Black

Publication (of my edition): January 2018, Little, Brown Books

Purchase details: Ordered online from the Strand Book Store website.

Blurb:  Of course I want to be like them. They’re beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.

And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.

Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.

To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences.

In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.

It's Monday! What are you reading?

It's Monday! What are YOU Reading? is a meme hosted by Kathryn at the Book Date. In my opinion, the meme is a great way to share what you have been, are, and about to be reading over the week. In other words, basically yet another way for book nerds to gush over read/unread books. 

Book Review: Renegades by Marissa Meyer + GIVEAWAY!

Title: Renegades (Renegades #1)

Author: Marissa Meyer

Publication (of my edition) : November 2017, Feiwel And Friends (Macmillan). 

Purchase details: I received an advanced reader's edition of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Blurb:

The Renegades are a syndicate of prodigies—humans with extraordinary abilities—who emerged from the ruins of a crumbled society and established peace and order where chaos reigned. As champions of justice, they remain a symbol of hope and courage to everyone...except the villains they once overthrew.

Nova has a reason to hate the Renegades, and she is on a mission for vengeance. As she gets closer to her target, she meets Adrian, a Renegade boy who believes in justice—and in Nova. But Nova's allegiance is to a villain who has the power to end them both.

Book Review: The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan

Title: The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan (The Trials of Apollo #1)

Author: Rick Riordan

Publication (of my edition) : May 2016, Puffin Books (Penguin Random House). 

Purchase details: 
Purchased at Book Gallery, New Market, Dhaka. If you're located in Dhaka, PLEASE do try and visit this store. It's always good to support local booksellers and this one in particular has a pretty good collection. The uncle also offers to order in books if they aren't available in store. 

Blurb:

How do you punish an immortal? By making him human. After angering his father Zeus, the god Apollo is cast down from Olympus. Weak and disoriented, he lands in New York City as a regular teenage boy. Now, without his godly powers, the four-thousand-year-old deity must learn to survive in the modern world until he can somehow find a way to regain Zeus's favor. But Apollo has many enemies—gods, monsters, and mortals who would love to see the former Olympian permanently destroyed. Apollo needs help, and he can think of only one place to go... an enclave of modern demigods known as Camp Half-Blood.

It's Monday! What are you reading?

It's Monday! What are YOU Reading? is a meme hosted by Kathryn at the Book Date. In my opinion, the meme is a great way to share what you have been, are, and about to be reading over the week. In other words, basically yet another way for book nerds to gush over read/unread books. 

Weekly Recap @ The Bengali Nomad

               

Since this weekly blog post will be linking up to both Sunday Post and Stacking the Shelves, I've decided to label it as Weekly Recap, just to keep things simple.                                                            

Studying abroad in high school: The Nitty Gritty (NON UWC VERSION)

As someone who had the opportunity to study abroad before starting university, I do get a lot of messages from people who are interested in following my footsteps, especially after joining the Facebook group Bangladeshis beyond border. And while I am more than happy to help out those in need, even I myself get overwhelmed sometimes. That and I'm horrible with checking message requests on Facebook Messenger. Hopefully this post will help with answering most of the common questions and if need be, PLEASE send me a message using the form on my CONTACT PAGE. I am much more likely to see questions sent in through my contact page as opposed to message requests on Facebook Messenger. In this post, I will also give you the tools to do your own research so please try finding out as much as you can on your own first. I can give you pointers and advice every now and then, but as I am not your personal counselor (also since I am extremely busy with internships and schoolwork) I can't spoon feed you all the information. But I promise that I will try my best to help. Therefore without further ado, let's jump right into the general stuff.

Packing for the dorm room: Bengali Edition

If you're a Bengali set to embark on your journey of studying abroad, chances are that this post could be your goldmine. Or not. Most of your universities are likely to send you a general packing list, but I bet none of them is as catered to specific ethnic needs. Hope this helps you lovelies prepare for an exciting time ahead~!

The art of handcrafted mail (and giveaway!)

Anyone who knows me well enough knows that I am a huge enthusiast of handwritten/crafted mail. Let's face it: in this modern day and age, getting a letter or a package in the mailbox is a lot more exciting than receiving an electronic equivalent of it. Plus, something that is crafted by hand always conveys a deeper meaning. Not only does sending someone a handcrafted mail show how much you care for them; it also allows you to move a breadth away from the wired world, where you can sit and think about what you want to create. The best part about all of this is that you can literally personalize your mail in any way you want. I have friends whose parents send them handmade care packages, and these truly are some of the most adorable things I've ever seen. Here is a real piece of advice: if you know a person who is away for college or just living somewhere else on their own, sending them a letter, a postcard, or even a homemade care package could absolutely make their day. 

Dorming 101: The Roommate Situation

Hey Guys! To anyone who is old (and new): I've started blogging again! I wanted to do something beyond just book blogging so I gave up Daydreaming Bookworm for good. Of course, it's always a good addition to my resume so I won't be taking that blog down just yet. Anyway I'm really trying to make this happen so would greatly appreciate feedback/ suggestions for improvement. Since this isn't technically a book blog: I can't promise book giveaways but I will be giving away sweepstakes like postcards etc. every now and then, so it's in your best interest to subscribe. ;)