Monday, January 16, 2023

NO SHADOW WITHOUT LIGHT BY LUKE GRACIAS




Book: NO SHADOW WITHOUT LIGHT

Publisher: The Write Place

Author: Luke Gracias

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 368

Rating: 4*/5

Reading Time for the blog: 3 minutes

Order your copy here:

Paperback 

BOOK REVIEW:

The book is a work of historical fiction. It is the second book in the series as much as I could relate to the storylines. Not being read the first one truly makes a void that the author has tried to fill by writing a short version of the first book in this one.

 

A treasure hunt for the twelve missing pages containing the devil’s prayer starts for the elimination of the population. Characters in the story are Jess, Luca, Siobhan, and the red monks. The story starts pretty slow, but when it picks up; the speed made it interesting for me. A lot of twist and turns awaits in the path for Siobhan and Lucas.

 

Siobhan and Jess, both sisters of the devil's offspring, try to get their hands on the missing treasure, but one is the guiding light fighting for humanity and one is giving her all for the destruction of humanity. The picture in between makes the reading refreshing and interesting.

Lucas, a police officer, finds his friend in a bizarre situation where his legs and hands are seized. something is written on his body with a language long forgotten. He tries to find answers to all these while crossing the path with Siobhan. What will happen now? Is love about to bloom in both of their destiny? Will they ever find the missing pages? Who will find it first less or Siobhan?

Too many questions with a lot of twists and turns to keep the readers engaged. Language is lucid and simple. Every detailed explanation of the historical relics blew my mind away.

A few of the quotes I liked are " social media has taught us that people will believe what they want to believe "

Meaning, social media is easy to access to viral anything in our brain, as always it has both positive and negative sides of society but mostly it's used for the negative sides, and blindly following social media most of the time leads to miscommunication and crimes.

Social media is like a virus nowadays. People find facts to justify their narrative, which might not even be true. The author has talked about a lot of things in the author's note, which most of the readers skip, but we should read this one. Topics like - carbon dioxide, fossils, social media, hope, Noah's ark, mother earth, population, and deforestation should talk about openly and positively, and we should take steps in the direction to make it better. Survival of the fetus is the best example which suits the story too. Forests are the lungs of the earth - deforestation because of urbanization is the worst as they are home to a lot of endangered species- species that are likely to become extinct soon either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction, Because of overpopulation other species in our planet is going in danger which should be an alert sign to all of us.

 

"Protect the planet you are born on "- I agree with this completely as mother earth gives us so many things to count - water shelter, food, fuel, etc. It's our job to protect these for our and our future generations. Because of deforestation, the level of oxygen is going low, co2 rises to make a hole in the ozone layer.

There are many endangered species like - the giant panda, Amur leopard, tiger, Geer lions, Javan rhinoceros, koala, etc. fossils - footprints/ imprints found of the animals before us in the ground's depth.

As the title suggests - there is no shadow without light, which I find quite fitting to the story as Siobhan is the light and her sister Jess is the darkness.

Kindly let me know what are you currently reading now?

Check out another book DEV’S LETTERS TO HIS TEACHERS - A kid with an attitude of gratitude DEV’S LETTERS TO HISTEACHERS - A kid with an attitude of gratitude

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Sunday, January 1, 2023

5 Tips for a Fresh Start in the New Year 2023

Image Courtsey: Pixabay.com

 


5 Tips for a Fresh Start in the New Year 2023

 

Undoubtedly, we all go through difficulties in life. But always remember that we have one life to live and we should try to live in the best way possible. Covid-19 times taught us a lot of things unexpectedly, which shows that life is unpredictable. We can only try our best way possible to live happily and healthily.

 

For me, the first half year was exciting as my book “The Essence of Motherhood” got published in January, received a sympathetic response, and got featured in online newspapers, etc. But the second half year went in more of self-realization and in trying to conceive a second child. So, I had a lot of visits to the doctor and tried to follow a fitness routine, etc. Meanwhile, I also realized that I am grateful for so many people in my life who supported me all the time. There’s always something around that we’re grateful but in the hustle and bustle of life, we rarely notice that.

 

Here’re a few tips I would like to share with you on “How can you start afresh the new year 2023” positively.

 

5 Tips for a Fresh Start in the New Year 2023




1.   Be Grateful

 

Gratefulness is something that should come from within. Believe me, we all have something to be grateful for. We just need to learn to appreciate our daily life. Everyone has a story and a past to talk about, but it depends ever on the day we react to it. So, let’s try ‘being grateful’ every day for everything by writing or reading gratitude affirmations.

For eg.

  •  I am grateful for my family, friends, and relatives.
  • I am grateful to God
  • I am grateful for this new day.
  • I am grateful for another chance to live my life.




2.    Practice Mindfulness

 

Mindfulness is paying attention to a particular thing with no judgment. It helps you to stay focused and concentrate only on the moment. Be mindful while you’re eating and pay full attention to the food, the texture, the taste, etc. Same as if you’re playing with the kid. Try giving full attention to the kid etc. same goes for the work. Don’t merge two things together.,




3.  Set S.M.A.R.T Goals

 

Having a goal plays a crucial role in personal and professional development. 

 

S: Specific

M: Measurable

A: Attainable

R: Realistic

T: Time-bound

 

It simply means whether your goal is personal or professional or both. We should set it with real deadlines, trackable, quite possible, and real. You can start by setting a small goal based on the day, quarterly, or yearly, etc. Let’s do this in the upcoming new year 2023.




4.   Plan and Schedule

 

As mentioned in the above points, you should have a goal. After that, planning is equally important in how you are going to lead it.

Without planning and proper scheduling, you won’t be able to achieve your target. Though you can try out some planners here and check what’s working the best for you. Remember, it’s about you and your life.




5. Move On…!

One thing we should learn from the clock is that “it keeps moving on”. Whether it’s the morning, the afternoon, the night, etc. it doesn’t stop for anyone. Then why do we?

Let’s take a pause for some time from everything and relax, but then let’s start afresh with new hopes, new plans, and fresh memories.

 

So, today is the first day of the year 2023. Allow yourself to welcome the new year with new hopes and new opportunities.

 

Here’re a few positive affirmations to welcome the new year.



1.    I am worthy of a successful year ahead.

2.    I am entering the near year with an open heart and an open mind.

3.    I am healthy and full of energy.

4.    I am making myself a priority this year.

5.    I promise to be healthier, happier, and wiser.

 

I would like to know what are your affirmations for the new year. In what ways are you trying to keep yourself positive? Kindly comment in the box below… This blog post is part of the Let's Say Hello 2023 Blogging Activity hosted by Swarnali Nath 


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