Tag: Indian Fiction

Book Review of UNNS The Captivation

1 Comment

UNNS The Captivation by Sapan Saxena is a romantic thriller. This book is multi layered and will surprise you at every moment. The story surely keeps you hooked and I completed it in just 2 hours. Finally, I got a lengthy book of around 244 pages.

815Zlu71O4L

The cover of the book is fantastic as it has a white background, a blue royal rose which plays a majot role in the story ad also two people walking together under an umbrella.

The title makes the reader totally clueless but as we progress we get to know the meaning of it. UNNS is a Urdu word which is a stage in love. This stage signifies the seven stages according to a theory in Urdu which you will get to know in the book.

The plot is crisp and neatly woven. The story revolves around the lives of Atharva and Meher who are sweethearts from their adolescence, get separated and meet again with some reason. Life takes twist and turns in their lives.

The setting plays a significant role and can even be used as locations for the movies. The first part is played in India, then it shifts to Germany and then to a town in AMerica.

The story moves slowly as it has time gap and leaps of 15 years. The lovers meet and get separated. Everytime with a new purpose. This reminds of a concept where fate is the destiny. They were destined to meet hence destiny played the role. Though it sounds like character is the destiny but its the other way out.

Sapan has beautifully characterised his characters. Meher seems one of the most complex characters whose actions and thoughts are difficult to understand. Even at times we are at a doubt like whether loves Atharva or not. She is caught in her own demons.

Whereas Atharva is a strong character but comes out to be weak only in love. Love makes us weak and strong at the same time.

The style of writing is simple yet clear. Some historical facts and stories adds flavour to it and surely, doesnt bore the readers. Furthermore, the pace is steady. There were some facts which I didnt like. The start could have been better, plus the middle was totally predictable. Somwhere I could feel I was watching a movie. Yes, I could connect to the story and feel the emotions.

Grab your copies from : Amazon

 

Book Review of In the Flickering of an Eye

1 Comment

In the Flickering of an Eye by Neelam Saxena Chandra is a romantic fiction. This book is not like those lovey dovey romance. It highlights the spiritual concept of love, yes the ones we see in old generations. This type of love is always there and it never gets outdated. The story is set at a time when love was considered as a sin.

51XaTaw-PiL

Sneek Peek: Twenty five years worth of ‘what ifs’ and ‘if onlys’ have haunted and tortured Vinay. He cannot help but go back in time again and again to that one moment that changed his life forever. A chance encounter with a person from his past, and a journey through the majestic hills of Kalimpong lead him to some of his answers, in the form of an elusive woman, who bears a striking resemblance to the woman he loved and lost. Will he finally get his happily-ever-after? Or will his story, tarnished when he was nineteen by the gotra system, forever be punctuated with too many fullstops? Read on to find out more.

My Review:

The story is set in Dhanoi Village where love is considered as a crime and ghotra system seems to be prevalent there. Vinay and Manju are the protagonists whose love story seems to be the toughest. Life takes a turn when these two lovers get separated by fate. Things take a new way when they again meet after twenty years. In this book, Neelam has talked about ghotra system, illiteracy of the village people, stream of consciousness technique, fate, chance and separation of lovers.  The cover is eye catching where the title has uniqueness in it. The style is simple, lucid and easy to understand with. Neelam has beautifully described the surroundings in a novel. When the train is moving, one can feel travelling in it. The situations sound realistic and at times you feel you are watching a movie.

Grab your copies from : Amazon

Book Review of Dangle

Leave a comment

Dangle by Sutapa Basu is a typical instance of contemporary fiction. This book is roller coaster ride of events, emotions that will keep you glued till the end. I really loved the combination of stream of consciousness technique in it. This reminded me of Mrs. Dalloway by Virgina Woolf though the story is nowhere near to it.

img-20170301-wa0010

The cover is crystal clear and neatly done. The bluish colour adds flavour to it and this cover is the best for a photoshoot. The title is dangling as it says our life keeps on dangling. Honestly speaking, I did a lot of photo session with this book.

The title is to the point ‘Dangle’ but still we are in thoughts like what will happen next. The title reveals everything but doesn’t reveal an inch at the same time.

Stunning, svelte, smart Ipshita is a globetrotter. She treks across the world to gather bytes for the travel chats she designs and hosts for TV channels. Despite being a self assured and sophisticated entrepreneur, Ipshita is haunted by a nameless fear. Social interaction with men unleashes psychotic turmoil inside her, making her wary of male attentions. Yet, the cold and aloof Ips is inexorably drawn to the three men she meets at different points in her journey. Her arousal to the overtures of these men catches her unawares. Well-built defenses break as her dormant sexuality go into overdrive until she discovers the horrifying truth about them…and herself. Life puzzles. Secrets tumble out. Will she be able to reclaim her life or let it dangle.

The blurb seems to say alot but again it doesnt reveal the story. It just introduce us to the protagonists. Ipshita is the protagonist who seems to be around a lot of name and fame. The plot construction is superbly done. I really loved the way the author maintains a certain balance throughout the story.

I really loved the locations. I felt I was also travelling with the author through the reading process. The city of Delhi and Chicago along with the scenic locales of Manipur adds spice to the novel.

The story is fast paced and you feel you are feeling and experiencing the incidents. The story sounds really realistic and the thrill part is exceptional. I just couldn’t stop admiring the author.Furthermore, it cleverly throws light on women emancipation, insurgency in the north-east, domestic violence, sexuality and women, our changing mindset while travelling outside India, the scars from a disturbed childhood that remain within us and much more.

The charactersketches are beautifully done. Ipshita is the main figure of focus and the way her thought process, struggles are delineated is fabluous.She herself dangles in between courage and vulnerability, the past and present, her family and other relationships. We see the novel through her eyes.

The style of writing is mindblowing. The descriptions and narration is fantastic along with perfect editing skills. Kuddos to the author and the team. This book is a perfect package.

Grab your copies from :Amazon

 

 

Book Review of Bogus Read

Leave a comment

Bogus Read by Divyamaan is a political satire. Honestly speaking, I have not read this sort of book and genre but when I read this, I wasn’t bored, infact, I ended up laughing. If you want to make yourself laugh,then this book is the best choice.

512u0qSUn6L

The cover of the book is intriguing as the pictorial delineation and the remarks makes you hooked to the book. The white colour of the cover signifies a newspaper where we read all those news.

The title is even more enthralling and you are more curious to know the content inside the book.

“In a galaxy far, far away from Earth there were two countries. India and Pakistan. Both countries somehow remained in a perennial state of conflict since their independence. After badly losing thrice to India, Pakistan has now come up with the ultimate conspiracy – attack the minds of the Indian masses and capture the nation. In a partially successful attempt, it captures some portion of India. The Indian Government, led by its highly patriotic PM, Narendar Mody and His Royal Highness, Arnub Gooswamy, takes charge of the situation and comes up with a master plan of defeating Pakistan, using some of India’s most potent weapons – corruption, political-hooliganism and annoying celebrities. They are supported by five engineering students who, inspite of their otherwise mundane lives, get embroiled in the mess. They set themselves on a perilous journey only to discover how deep the whole conspiracy is and how dangerous are the brains behind it. Will they succeed in revealing the conspiracy to the Army? Will the lost territories be recaptured by India? To find out read ‘The Bogus Read’, an illogically-logical take on Indian politics, mainstream media, cinema and the television industry.”

The blurb is interesting and after reading it, I instantly fell in the love with the book. The blurb had so much information but that was just a start. The entire book is full of surprises.

Through this book, the author wanted to highlight the mind sets of so called Indians including us. These days we are more bothered about politics, politicians, actors and moreover, thos crazy tv serials that has taken away our ability to think logically. Not only this, a wierd imagination which sounds really absurd that our stars being kidnapped by Pakistan. There is an element of absurdity with loads of drama and mockery. I was impressed by the thought of the author, like how he came up with this concept? This book is a must read.

The combination and situation between Indian army and Pakistan army which seems to be linked with some students. These two are poles apart and when they are brought together, this made me realise, anything can happen in a novel and Divyamaan has proved it right. We writers have that ability where we can see those which are not possible in practical world. Kuddos to the author for being an exceptional.

The narration is simple and this simplicity kept us hooked and glued till the end. I completed this book in one go and couldn’t stop laughing. I won’t quote the sentences as every sentence is worth quoting and this might come up as a spoiler. This is the only book which you can pick up anytime and if you read and read again you will just end up lifting your mood.

Grab your copies from : Amazon

 

Book Review of Sensual Attractions

Leave a comment

Sensual Attractions by A.J. Karan comes with a disclaimer that it can be read by children above 18 years of age. This book is a collection of short stories that are intense and maintains a certain level.

Sensual Attractions

 

The cover of the book is eye catching but still it fails to relate with the themes and the thought process of the author’s point of view which makes it average.

The title is intriguing and gives us a tinge hint that it might have some sensuousness in it.

The blurb of the story actually is okayish and doesnt attract the readers which turns out to be on a negative side.

Since it is a collection of short stories, some of the stories like Friendship Pact, Love Jeopardy, Corporate Espionage, Emotional Conflict, Prodigal Son have been my favourite. I really loved the way the author has used the thought process, mind schemes and also the character delineation. They have been beautifully expressed. The plots have been amazing throughout.

Whereas, Hotel1 and Hote2, Perilious Liasion couldnt catch my attention. I felt the same old love stories and love making which one can notice in those love lorn novels or you can say Mills and Boons. They came out to be overrated for me.

The stories, narration could have been improved and the errors could have been avoided. For me, it was a one time average read.

Grab your copies from : Amazon

Confessions of Bibliophile : My Youtube Channel

Leave a comment

I hope you are doing well. You must be thinking that I missed the previous episode update.. Actually, the previous episode was on Drama and Classics which I did live on Facebook where I had talked about the plays I was reading.. Stay Tuned for more updates..:)

Confessions of Bibliophile

Episode 6 – My Youtube Channel

Hello lovelies,

I hope you are doing well. You must be thinking that I missed the previous episode update.. Actually, the previous episode was on Drama and Classicswhich I did live on Facebook where I had talked about the plays I was reading..

Today’s episode is about Book tubing and my brand new channel.. Actually, we all have that youtube channel with us when we make a Google or Gmail account but people like me who are naive never get to know this.. Recently, I have been following many booktube channels like Helly’s Bookstore, Finix Post by Manpreet Kaur, The Bookworm by Anmol and Sameeksha..These beautiful people have created a trend of Vlogging, Book tubing and some of them blog about lifestyle too.. Things keep on changing with passage of time.. I thought we need some professional thingy to…

View original post 292 more words

Book Review of State V/S Amrit Kumar

2 Comments
State vs Amrit Kumar by Dr. Govind Sharma is a story of a police officer Amrit Kumar who is held responsible for a crime. He has been honest throughout the years of his service. He has been framed by the corrupt people. Will lawyer Sukumar be successful in helping Amrit Kumar win this battle that life has thrown against him?
sv
The cover and the title seems perfect and complimentary to each other. The title perfectly justifies the story whereas the ouer appearance of a police officer and a lawyer adds soul to it.
Blurb: 
Amrit is an honest and aggressive police officer who is driven by a desire to rid society of criminals. His virtuous campaign is impeded when he is charged with the murder of a man he tried to arrest. Harvard-educated lawyer Sukumar pleads Amrit’s bail, and learns interesting details about Amrit’s family and friends. He also contests Amrit’s friend Ajay’s case, and here an abundance of wealth works like a poison in the absence of values. 
Set in the fictional town of Rajapur, the novel tells the story of two generations from 1990 to 2016. There are situations where villains disguise themselves as innocent individuals to take advantage of the unsuspecting nature of credulous people. Advocate Sukumar frequently quotes from Hitopadesh to emphasize the importance of being careful to avoid being deceived by the wolves in sheep’s clothing. Will he be able to swing a verdict in Amrit’s favor? 
The novel also raises an important issue on the accountability of the police. Are honest police officers justified in overstepping the boundaries of the law for good reasons? 
The plot is neatly woven. The story revolves around a police officer Amrit Kumar who is held reponsible for a crime. He has been loyal throughout the year. Will Lawyer Sukumar save him?
The author has taken the risk of multiple point of views and multiple characters. If any of these fails to touch the hearts of the readers, it is a flop show for the author but luckily, both these risks have been proven right. The characters help in the plot construction. Further, The multiple views can be seen in different set of stories. It is amazing to see that all these separate stories look incompletely complete. This is because when they all get merged and meet together it sounds as if a territory is meeting the main river. It is quite relatable.
The themes of love, relationships, friendships, corruption can be noticed. It aches my heart to see how can corruption and greed  of a person can change him so much.
The style of writing of the author is languid. it has alacarity in it. The way the quotes from Hitopadesh have been quoted makes it stand out. The fictional town makes it a regional novel. Further, the multiple point of views, apt mystery and suspense makes it loveable. It you are looking for a crime related novel then grab this book surely.

Book Review of A Walk in the Rain

2 Comments

A Walk in the Rain by Udai Kumar Yadla is a romantic fiction blended with socialistic factors. The book is full of twist and turns which keeps you glued till the end. Plus, the name of the characters are somewhere relatable. The author depicts the simplest emotions to the darkest miseries in this novel.

51vdqafjsfl

The cover of the book gives us a glimpse of a couple who are walking in the rain with hands in hands. This picture gives us a clear cut idea of a romantic fiction.

The title perfectly fits the cover of the book. A Walk in the Rain is a sort of journey of two lovers whose destiny is decided by rain. Thats what we can make out from the title but here plays the role of author who always surprises his readers.

Love is elixir that keeps you alive. Love is poison that kills you. Unreciprocated love keeps you alive but kills every day.

Heartbroken Sunny lives a reclusive life, trapped in the past, living in his memories. He has no complaints about his life but refuses to embrace the present.
Saloni is a prostitute who is desperate to earn money by any means. She does not care about exploiting others to fulfill her purpose.
Fate unites the loner and the prostitute to embark on a life changing journey of retribution and self discovery.

Lovelorn Sunny turns misogynistic after Sandy, the only girl he loved walks away from his life, unannounced. He suffers painful solitude for almost two decades with the relentless haunting of her thoughts. A distressed friend Imran, vows to change his life forever. A surprise planned for his birthday turns into a tragedy that claims the life of his dear friend, triggering a series of unbelievable events. As Imran gets killed by a stranger, Sunny’s calm life suddenly turns into a turbulent storm. With nothing left to live for, vengeance becomes his ultimate mission. His reluctant alliance with a prostitute to trace the killer sets him onto a nerve racking adventure of life and death.

Both are bound to a common goal with different motives but destiny has its own motive. A walk in the rain is an intricate tale of intense emotions, driven by hair raising twists and turns.

The plot is knitted well but it was predictable. Although the meeting, separation, drama and everything was at the right place. The characters also helped in the plot construction.

This book talks about Human Trafficking, prostituition. These two issues are a blot on the society we live in. But circumstances force people to indulge in these activities and the sufferers have to go through so much because of this.

Saloni and Sunny are the protagonists of the novel. Sunny is a bitter, misogynistic man who hates the world. Even when he needs Saloni’s help, he can’t bring himself to trust her. Life has been hard on Saloni. In spite of her desperate straits, she manages to hold on to her small shred of self-respect. It is hard for Sunny to trust on someone as he had taken so much.

The writing style is simple, lucid and condensed. The use of flashbacks and prologue has made it beautiful. The thought process is loved by the readers. Its hard to believe that its author’s debut as he has comprehended the thoughts so well. This book deserves to be converted into a movie.

Grab your copies from : http://www.amazon.in/A-Walk-Rain-Udai-Yadla/dp/9381841543

Book Review of The Coffee and The Cola

Leave a comment

The Coffee and The Cola by Kapil Muzumdar is a type of book that adds new flavourism in your life. The way the author has juggled with first person and third person narrative is exceptional. The concepts of Coffee and The Cola makes it appreciable.

cc.jpg

The cover of the book is average and has some artistic spots of brown coffee as if someone splashed the coffee or a water colour paint similar to coffee. The cover is related to the title but doesnt gives us any clue about the thought process of the author.

The title is unique and a person like me whose addicted to coffee is instantly in love with it. We surely some clue about it. As slowly the title and cover starts making sense to me.

The book has two plots which gets merged in the end. This concept of main plot and sub plot is slightly tricky as at times things get against the author but kuddos to the author as everything falls at right place. The story has a narrator who is author himself but he narrates about a dear one, protagonist, Rahul and about his life. Radha’s character has traits of coffee while Nora’s character has traits of Cola. All these combined together makes an interesting combination. Surely, the readers get bit confused with these cola and coffee concept but as you start reading you fell in love with the book. I must suggest that do grab a coffee while reading it.eh!

The characters are equally intriguing and binds the interest of the readers. The way the narrator talks about Rahul and his life story is impeccable. Rahul’s character is complex as he seems confused while deciding like what he wants in life. Radha or Nora? Both seems perfect. If Radha believes in eternal love then Nora believes in intimacy, physical love. Rahul is seen juggling between the two types of love. Whom he choose is the rest of the story and you better grab this book to know about it.

Radha is categorised as Coffee and Nora is categorised as Cola. Both serve as a foil to each other. THey both have their set of stories with Rahul and Rahul is the lead which links them to each other somewhere. Radha is ambitious and career oriented while the latter believes in enjoying life, partying and making love. These contrasting characters makes the plot construction strong.

The style of writing is poignant. The use of backstory, flashback and flash forward makes the book glow inceredibly. The author has even included himself in the story which makes sense when the author uses first person narrative blended with third person narrative style. The descriptions remain impersonal. The use of epistolar concept can also be noticed. The unique concept of stating the behaviour of coffee and cola in every chapter at the start. Also, some of the questions dance in my mind.

Was this story an account of author’s encounter or was it solely focussed on Rahul? And the question might sound spoiler so I will keep it preserved. I can generalise by saying that Meera’s character was mysterious. Although, the cover made sense according to its motive but I feel it could have been more better which might have attracted quick attention. I would surely recommend this book to the readers who are looking for unique concepts of writing.

Grab your copies from : http://www.amazon.in/Coffee-Cola-Ordinary-Narrative-Extraordinary/dp/1946048917/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1484288596&sr=8-1&keywords=the+coffee+and+the+cola

 

Book Review of Soulless

Leave a comment

Soulless by MV Kasi is a stream of consciousness novel. The book deals with serious issues like child abuse, drugs, alcohol and depression. Since its a serious issue type book but the author has balanced the seriousness with wit and humour.

soulless-book-cover

 

 

The cover of the book is dark. The chess game gives us a glimpse that it has mystery and suspense in it. At times, it seems unmatchable with the title and the theme of the book.

The title is Soulless which stands for a person who doesn’t care about anyone and their emotions. The title is apt as the protagonist has heartless traits. Still, there are many reasons behind this title which are uncovered as the reading proceeds further.

The format of the book is an ebook. I wish the author could have converted into a paperback, it would have a different essence.

This novel can be categorised in many ways. It is a social novel as the social issues like child abuse, drug addiction, sex addiction, alcohol addiction are concerned. Further, we can call it a psychological novel as it is difficult to deal with Sia’s psychology who seems addicted to many things and the way she behaves. We need to know psychology a bit if we are analysing her character. This can come under young adult or dark romance category as we say many intense love making scenes. Not only this, it can be further categorised a stream if consciousness novel as we come to know about the thought process of various characters.

They say when you take revenge you lose a part of your soul.

But Sia hadn’t felt her soul in a very long time. She only knew the soul-crushing fear and helplessness. Especially during the nights, when she fought an invisible enemy that terrorized her during the nightmares.
Her days weren’t any better either. She spent most of them trying to desperately gain control of her life while battling her various fears and addictions.
She was only twenty three, but she had resigned herself to live the rest of her life that way. Fearing the unknown.

Until it all changed one day…

Now she knew. She knew that the monster from her nightmares was real. And also that her soul had been ripped apart from her.
The memories had brought in fear, rage and pain, along with a strong craving for a swift payback.
But revenge was a dish best served cold. And it required a complete absence of emotion.
So now?
Now she plotted. And she schemed. She prepared herself in every possible way to hunt and destroy her enemy.
But every mission, however well planned can go awry. Sometimes it’s because even though one can be soulless, there is always the heart. A very weak and desperate heart that was being stolen by a man.
A man who was like a bright spark of vivid colors in her otherwise dark and dreary life.
A man…who was only supposed to be collateral damage.

The plot is neatly woven and is really crisp. The story revolves around Sia, who is a mysterious girl with so many secrets in her bag. She has a big motive of revenge which we come to know at the end of the book. The story is written in her voice and at times we hate her and at times we feel sympathetic towards her.

The characters are beautifully delineated. Sia’s character seeks a lot of attention as she is mysterious, bit cranky, rude and soft at the same time. She wants to avenge someone, for which she plans and plots. During this course she comes across a man who changes her life. She is a tormented soul and when things began to heal slowly, her past knocks at the door. The story ends in such a way that it makes a way for the next part. I feel Sia’s portrayal have been the toughest task for the author as she had to create a heartless character who was soft at some point.

The style of writing is simple, lucid and creative. The thirs person narrative along with vivid descriptions makes it poignant. The way the point of views is used, its mind blowing. The author surely confuse our minds at various points. It further has an episolar as well stream of consciousness technique in it. This book can be converted into a movie and I am sure, it will be a hit. There were minor errors in the editing as I could find some missing words, yet the subject matter cannot be ignored. The author has done a tremendous job in highlighting the serious issues which are often ignored.

Grab your copies from : https://www.amazon.in/Soulless-MV-Kasi-ebook/dp/B01MFDEERI?ie=UTF8&keywords=Soulless&qid=1485778233&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1