Book Review - I Kick and I Fly by Ruchira Gupta + Giveaway

 

I Kick and I Fly by Ruchira Gupta is about a young Indian girl who tries to escape her fate of being sold into the sex trade by her father.  Heera and her family are a part of the Nat culture whose people are nomadic and are unable to find work due to cultural differences  with the local peoples. Heera is a fourteen year old girl who currently lives on the outskirts of the Red Light District in Bihar, India. She knows it is only a matter of time before she is sold to provide for and feed her family. Her fate is virtually sealed, just like every other female member of her family and community.

Heera hates watching her cousin, Mira Di, live this lifestyle. Heera has seen her cousin, once vibrant and happy, now use drugs to numb herself. She also sees how abusive and cruel men treat Mira Di. As she grows older, Heera is afraid that her time to break free is running out. 

 

Due to Heera’s nomadic roots, she struggles to fit in with others at school. It doesn’t help that her best friend’s (Rosy) brother goes out of his way to torture and bully her. Heera decides to stand up to her bully and she gets expelled after hitting him. She fears that after this recent run in, that her time has become even more limited. Since Heera is no longer able to attend school, her family feels that she should start contributing to the household.

 

When a local hostel owner and activist, Rini Di, shows up at Heera's home, Heera feels that her luck might have finally changed. Rini Di is able to provide Heera and her family enough money to repay their debts and allow Heera to return back to school. Rini Di feels for Heera and her plight and wants to help the family out.

Heera is given opportunities that she didn’t have access to before and that will change the trajectory of her life. She is able to learn kung fu and readily has access to food. She no longer has to worry about her next meal. While she learns martial arts, she starts to realize that she has more control over her body than she thought. That she is more than just a commodity to be sold or preyed upon and that her body can protect herself and loved ones.

 

As Heera learns that she can disrupt her own perceived destiny, her beloved friend goes missing. Heera is determined to find out what happened to Rosy and she is willing to stop at nothing to find out the truth. When she finds out that Rosy is in New York, she decides to embark on a daring rescue mission in a country she has never been to.

 

The novel is based on experiences and stories that survivors shared with the author when they were working as activists. The book was a heart wrenching and eye opening read. I had a general idea of sex trafficking but it was very limited. Reading about Heera’s story helped me empathize with victims and made me realize it’s a lot more common than previously I thought.

 

The characters were realistic, well developed and relatable. I found myself crying over the treatment and situations that  Heera and others faced. I also found myself rejoicing when Heera and her mother found their voices and were brave enough to stand up against their oppressors.  I enjoyed reading about the Nat culture and the challenges they faced as a nomadic community.  I liked that the author included resources for readers who want to get involved or to learn more. I think this is a good read for anyone who is interested in learning about different human experiences.

**Disclosure - I received a free unedited copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion**

 

About The Book:

Title: I KICK AND I FLY

Author: Ruchira Gupta

Pub. Date: April 18, 2023

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, Audiobook

Pages: 352

Find it: Goodreads, https://books2read.com/I-KICK-AND-I-FLY

"In I Kick and I Fly, Ruchira Gupta has given young readers an irresistible story, and also one that could save lives. This book is a gift." -- Gloria Steinem

A propulsive social justice adventure by renowned activist and award-winning documentarian Ruchira Gupta, I Kick and I Fly is an inspiring, hopeful story of triumph about a girl in Bihar, India, who escapes being sold into the sex trade when a local hostel owner helps her to understand the value of her body through kung fu.

On the outskirts of the Red Light District in Bihar, India, fourteen-year-old Heera is living on borrowed time until her father sells her into the sex trade to help feed their family and repay his loans. It is, as she's been told, the fate of the women in her community to end up here. But watching her cousin, Mira Di, live this life day in and day out is hard enough. To live it feels like the worst fate imaginable. And after a run-in with a bully leads to her expulsion from school, it feels closer than ever.

But when a local hostel owner shows up at Heera's home with the money to repay her family's debt, Heera begins to learn that fate can change. Destiny can be disrupted. Heroics can be contagious.

It's at the local hostel for at risk girls that Heera is given a transformative opportunity: learning kung fu with the other girls. Through the practice of martial arts, she starts to understand that her body isn't a an object to be commodified and preyed upon, but a vessel through which she can protect herself and those around her. And when Heera discovers the whereabouts of her missing friend, Rosy, through a kung fu pen pal in the US, she makes the decision to embark on a daring rescue mission to New York in an attempt to save her.

A triumphant, shocking account inspired by Ruchira Gupta's experience making the Emmy-award winning documentary, The Selling of Innocents, this is an unforgettable story of overcoming adversity by a life-long activist who has dedicated her life to creating a world where no child is bought or sold.

About Ruchira Gupta:

Ruchira Gupta has pioneered laws, policies, protocols, conventions and Best Practice approaches in the Feminist Abolitionist struggle against sex-trafficking in the UN, globally and India. Her work will be archived at Stanford Library and will be open access for students across the world to study. Her journey began as a journalist, when she made the Emmy-winning documentary, The Selling of Innocents. With the help of the documentary, she testified to the US Senate for the passage of the first Trafficking Victim Protection Act and to the UN for the passage of the UN Protocol to End Trafficking in Persons. She founded the Indian anti-sex trafficking organization, Apne Aap Women Worldwide, that supports thousands of prostituted and at risk girls in India. You can learn more about her organization here: apneaap.org

She is a visiting professor at New York University, and Distinguished Scholar at University of California, Berkley. She is the editor of a feminist journal for SAGE, Antyajaa: Indian Journal of Women and Social Change and two anthologies- River of Flesh & Other Stories and The Essential Gloria Steinem Reader. She has been presented the French Légion honneur, an Emmy, and the Clinton Global Citizen, UN NGO CSW Woman of Distinction award. She dreams of a world in which no human being is bought or sold.

Links- Instagram | All other social media- https://linktr.ee/ruchiraguptalinks

 

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will receive a finished copy of I KICK AND I FLY, US Only.

Ends May 6th, midnight EST.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

4/1/2023

#BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee Blog

Excerpt/IG Post

 Week Two:

4/2/2023	@gsreadingspree	Review/IG Post
4/3/2023	The Bibliophilic World	Review/IG Post
4/4/2023	@thrillersandhistoricalfiction	IG Review
4/5/2023	Lifestyle of Me	Review
4/6/2023	YA Books Central	Excerpt/IG Post
4/7/2023	Cara North	Review/IG Post
4/8/2023	Review Thick And Thin	Review/IG Post

 Week Three:

4/9/2023	Brandi Danielle Davis	IG Review/TikTok Post
4/10/2023	Country Mamas With Kids	Review/IG Post
4/11/2023	@evergirl200	IG Post
4/12/2023	Author Z. Knight’s Guild	Review/IG Post
4/13/2023	@carlysunshinebooks	IG Review/LFL Drop Pic
4/14/2023	Mythical Books	Excerpt/IG Post
4/15/2023	Jazzy Book Reviews	Excerpt/IG Post

 Week Four:

4/16/2023	Books and Kats	Excerpt
4/17/2023	Two Chicks on Books	Excerpt/IG Post
4/18/2023	A Dream Within A Dream	Excerpt
4/19/2023	Midnightbooklover	IG Review
4/20/2023	GryffindorBookishNerd	IG Review
4/21/2023	Kim's Book Reviews and Writing Aha's	Review/IG Post
4/22/2023	The Momma Spot	Review

 Week Five:

4/23/2023	More Books Please blog	Review/IG Post
4/24/2023	@enjoyingbooksagain	IG Review
4/25/2023	A Blue Box Full of Books	IG Review/LFL Drop Pic
4/26/2023	Breysreviews	IG Review
4/27/2023	OneMoreExclamation	Review/IG Post
4/28/2023	@froggyreadteach	IG Review
4/29/2023	Two Points of Interest	Review

 Week Six:

4/30/2023

Books with Brandie Shanae

YouTube Review/IG Post

Book Review - Dangerous Beauty by Melissa Koslin

 

Dangerous Beauty by Melissa Koslin is about a chance encounter uniting two people from different walks of life. 

Liliana Vela refuses to think of herself as a victim. She is a fighter and survivor. She will not let the past dictate how she lives her life.  Liliana witnessed her family being brutally murdered in her impoverished Mexican village before being kidnapped by the human traffickers. She was able to escape before the men made the exchange with her buyer.  Liliana is determined to take back her life after escaping from the men who held her hostage.  However, she realized that she has no connections or anyone to help her in America.  She feels she is all alone.

Meric Toledan decided to stop for water at a service station when he noticed Liliana needing help from some men that are following her.  He decided to help rescue her from these men, who he realizes are traffickers. When he realized that she had no one to rely on for help in a new country, he decided to marry her to keep her safe from the traffickers. The mysterious buyer refuses to let his prize be stolen away by someone else. Will Liliana be able to live her life free from the buyer in the end?

The book was an absolute borefest with almost no thrills or action. Liliana and Meric were one dimensional and dull. The two main characters always seemed to say the perfect thing to each other and they could do no wrong. The story got repetitive and moved slowly, with nothing happening plot wise. The author used the word “cold” to describe Meric’s personality in almost every other sentence.  I also found it weird that Meric is described as a cold, withdrawn, and prudent person, but then marries and wills all of his assets to someone who is practically a stranger to him. 

I felt that the plot and twists were unrealistic. It is mentioned that Meric isn’t a “people” person even with the people that work for him or are “close” to him. But Meric goes out of his way for Liliana, whom he just met but he simply found her too beautiful. Multiple times during the novel, it’s mentioned that Meric can’t be near her because her beauty is so overwhelming to him and he is afraid he can’t control himself. It all seems so shallow. I felt that if Liliana wasn’t beautiful he wouldn’t be willing to give her his entire fortune and help her with her predicament. The author’s description of Liliana’s beauty and Meric’s cold personality was repeated constantly to the point that  it got annoying. I felt that the author should have used that time and space to add more to the story’s plot.

The ending seemed far fetched and everything was neatly tied up in a bow. I felt that the ending didn't seem plausible. It left me with more questions about the validity of Meric’s familial connections. There were a lot of side stories that didn’t add value to the main storyline.  Liliana met a group of elderly residents and they seemed to be having fun and they even had an outing together. However, after an incident that wasn’t directly related to them, they were written out of the story with no additional mention of them. It made me wonder what the point was of including these characters for a few chapters. The book felt lackluster because the characters were bland, the story was long winded, and the plot didn’t feel feasible.

Book Review - The Stolen Ones by Owen Laukkanen

Photo Credit - Amazon

It is a rainy summer evening in Cass County, Minnesota when a deputy steps out of a diner and ends up dead a few minutes later. BCA agent Kirk Stevens is called to help solve the case as he is nearby on vacation. The local police have a suspect in custody, a young woman sitting over the body. The woman speaks no English, has no ID, and is holding the deputy's gun. 

As Stevens and his partner, Carla Windermere, dig into the case, they find themselves tangled in a massive web of international kidnapping and prostitution. The two agents will have to travel across the country to find the person behind the crimes. Will they be able to solve the case before more innocent people get hurt?

This was my first novel by the author and I can't say I am a fan. I thought the novel was pretty boring and straightforward. There were no surprises and the story goes exactly how you would expect it to go. I didn't care for any of the characters or even the main leads of the story.

**Disclosure -  This post may contain affiliate links which means I earn advertising and/or referral fees if you purchase an item through my link. Please note, there will be no extra charges to you. Thank you for your support.**

Book Review - Girls Like Us by Cristina Alger

Photo Credit - Amazon

FBI Agent Nell Flynn hasn't been home to visit her father in over ten years.  She and her father, Homicide Detective Martin Flynn never had much of a relationship since, her mother's death. Her childhood home always brings memories of the brutal murder of her mother, Marisol. 

Nell returns home after her father was killed in a motorcycle accident. After spreading her father's ashes and closing his estate, her father's partner Detective Lee mentions the case he was working on before his death. Lee requests Nell to help him investigate the murders of the two young women. As Nell and Lee work the case together, Nell becomes convinced that the prime suspect might be her father and his police friends are helping him cover his tracks. Nell also begins to doubt her father's innocence in her mother's murder. Will Nell be able to uncover the truth about her family's past and the murders? 

I thought the novel was an interesting read. A few things left unsolved but, a majority of the mysteries were solved. I felt like the ending was a bit rushed, like a flurry of activity while the rest of the story was moving at a solid pace.  The plot was a bit predictable but, there were still a few exciting pieces. This was my second book by the author and while, I liked this book better, I won't actively go out of my way to read more of her books.

 **Disclosure -  This post may contain affiliate links which means I earn advertising and/or referral fees if you purchase an item through my link. Please note, there will be no extra charges to you. Thank you for your support.**

Book Review - Murder in Disguise (A Preston Barclay Mystery Book 3) by Donn Taylor

Photo Credit - Amazon

When news of Preston Barclay's beloved friend committed suicide, Preston is unable to believe the news. However, when the evidence points to an open and close suicide case, he decides to let sleeping dogs lie. The victim's wife, Grace, doesn't believe it is a suicide and pleads with Preston to investigate her husband's death. Preston begins to question the suicide, when details are emerging that don't quite add up including the anonymous threats. Will Preston be able to figure out the truth behind his friend's death?

This was the third novel in the Preston Barclay series, but each book looks like it can be read as a standalone. The book was an easy read but a few pages in, the number of musical references was a bit overwhelming to the point of annoyance. I found my eyes glazing over paragraphs with the music reference and found myself too lazy to search what each song was. I also found the dynamic between Mara and Preston to be boring, petty, and unauthentic. Mara is jealous when Preston talking to another female, but she purposely needles him about other men without Preston is saying or doing much. I felt like Mara and Preston made a poor investigator and they seem to be more like, "Let's kick the hornet's nest and see what happens". The author keeps mentioning Preston's Special Ops training, but not once I made it seem like he actually puts any of that to use. If anything, when I think of Preston Barclay, I think of a frumpy grandpa with his pants mid chest along with a pair of oversized glasses.

**Disclosure - I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion**