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The Things We Fear by Sharit Sinha
Book Reviews

The Things We Fear | A Book Review

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The Things We Fear By Sharit Sinha This one starts off with the dramatic incident of two collegians in the nearby Cemetery and the birth of Zombies.  Cut to their HGRE College where the quiet, brooding Harsh is bullied by the College Football Star Rohit and his cronies as his girlfriend Rita watches in glee.  A humiliated Harsh assaults Rohit not paying any heed to his timid friend, Deep as Lata, the college newspaper editor encourages him to fight back.  Enter the main college bully Rudra Pratap who thrashes Harsh for daring to hit his man, Rohit.  Talk about clichés galore. In an unexpected turn events, enters our Superhero and new entrant, Neel.  He’s here to do what he does best- fighting zombies, witches and vampires while also taking down the odd Bully or two.  Naturally the Ghostbuster soon becomes their Savior. A strange twist of faith results in this motley group of 6 suddenly finding themselves in a most unlikely adventure when they have to face their own deepest, darkest fears discovering strength, friendship and brotherhood in the most unrealistic circumstances as they rush to save themselves from the ultimate witch- Akshita.  Recommendation:  Having started off reading about Zombies, I was totally dismayed and skeptical about this one.  To make matters worse, the language wasn’t all that great.  It took me a good 100+ pages to actually start getting into the book despite its supernatural theme.  That’s when the story picked up with friendships being formed and inner conflicts being addressed.  The characters suddenly became a bit more interesting what with them having to deal with their inner most demons.  As they say, Horrors lie not just in the obvious ghosts and monsters but in ordinary people and their evil actions as well.   Rating: 2.5/5

The Chennai Killings by Chital Mehta
Book Reviews

The Chennai Killings | A Book Review

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The Chennai Killings by Chital Mehta Inspector Vikram has been reeling ever since his younger sister, Priya’s mindless murder 2 years ago.  Despite trying his best to move on, he seems to be stuck in limbo unable to accept the grief as the cold blooded killer seems to have gotten away.  Anusha, his wife keeps reminding him of his duties to her and their 7-year-old son Aarav but Vikram just can’t let go of the past. The spine chilling murder of another collegian, Sandhya leads to Vikram being assigned to the case.  This one seems to hit a bit too close to home.  As he goes about trying to piece together the murder, he comes upon the most unlikely connections between the two victims.  As the plot unravels with the entry of new characters, Vikram tries his best to keep it together and not let his emotions cloud his thoughts and perceptions.   While dealing with the girl’s family members and friends, the Inspector slowly starts connecting to dots in order to figure out the whole agenda behind the sinister death.  Vikram edges closer and closer towards discovering the real truth; one that will finally set him free or will it really?  Does he make sure that Justice is served or does the culprit manage to get away with it all?  Recommendation:  A gripping read that kept me guessing till the very end.  Initially the plot felt fairly simplistic with more focus on the play of human emotions rather than any real mystery.  I mean, the murder itself didn’t feel like there was any real mystery and that’s wherein the true brilliance lies. The well-defined characters and respective backstories were enjoyable and have been pieced together without letting the tautness of the main plot drop.     However as the plot unfolded, a series of events and characters enfolded quick and fast.  Not once could I have predicted the final twist.  This one turned out to be a brilliant book that I practically read from cover to cover.  Good thing it wasn’t too long. Rating: 5/5

The Soul of Truth by Shaji Madathil Taranslated by Dr. Jessy Skaria
Book Reviews

The Soul of Truth By Shaji Madathil | A Book Review

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Publication: Bloomsbury India Publishing Pvt. Ltd.               Page Count:  360 pages Review: Fiction This book starts off where we would usually expect most to end.  After all, it’s not every day that one would start off reading about the death of the main protagonist.  I mean isn’t that the most unlikely if not shocking way to begin a book.  The sudden and unexpected death of Uthaman in Bahrain sets off a whole flurry of events.  The initial actions and reactions of his friends, workmates, employers and of course his family are expressed in such a matter of fact manner that one can simply look on in a detached manner.  According to Hindu customs, over the next 42 days, the Soul takes its time to get ready and move on to the next realm of its onward and upward journey.  That is when the final rites are performed and the soul is set free. Over this period, the Author takes us back and forth telling us about the short life of Uthaman.  The youngest and eagerly awaited boy born after several sisters in an idyllic village of Kerala.  His journey from childhood to college is interspersed with glimpses of young love followed by the inevitable hurdles, responsibilities and youthful dilemmas.  Despite his initial reluctance, Uthaman does take on the mantle of responsibilities though unfortunately succumbing way earlier leaving behind the distraught women and innocent son who regroup and slowly build on their inner quiet strength.      Recommendation:  Despite its morbid theme, this novel turned out to be quite the page-turner.  Simply yet beautifully written, the author manages to keep you engrossed right till the very end.  The characterization is well defined and you can actually imagine as the events unfold. Though inherently a tragic book that deals with a young death, you still find some kind of hope and peace by the end.  Not really philosophical but you do get insights about Hindu traditions and culture.   Rating: 3/5

The Lost Gold by Kaushikk Yegnan - A Book Review
Book Reviews

The Lost Gold by Kaushikk Yegnan | A Book Review

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 Who can ever give you company throughout your life, I know no one can, but cant we walk a few steps together. – Ahmad Faraz This novel doesn’t last long reading wise but it makes you think. Think about people, situations, dreams and chase towards those dream. When I saw this 65 pages novel, I thought this is a piece of cake, to eat in one gobble but the taste of the author’s narration is still lingering around. I would have loved to read more of this story and that is the only complaint I have about this novel The Lost Gold by Kaushikk Yegnan If pain doesn’t provide visible proof.You suffer, and suffer alone, for lack of proof.  This novel is about sportsman’s 69 years journey across the Olympics of times in the search of the lost gold. As a child protagonist Andrei Kaufmanns attends the 1936 Olympics in Berlin and from there his love for long jump and dream of winning Olympic gold begins. In between because of World war II, he could not win Gold and chase towards Gold medal begins.Author has not written about big war story instead it’s about small stories which seems insignificant in world’s history which describes human pain and emotions affected because of war. If love could move mountains, a mother’s love could realign the universe. My favorite part of novel was a story about Andrie’s servant Bretta and her 4 year old son Boris.It wasn’t a happy story but it is still replaying in my mind.‘The most painful state of being is remembering the future,  particularly the one you’ll never have! – SOREN KIERKEGAARD ‘.In these 65 pages father – son relationship, Mother’s devotion for her only son, journey of sportsman towards his dream and many more feelings are covered which makes you wonder about life and many other things.For this gripping novel of worst times of human history world war II I would like to rate 4.5 out of 5.

Chaos in Romance, Sexuality and Fidelity By Raksha Bharadia | Booxoul Book Review
Book Reviews

Chaos: in Romance, Sexuality and Fidelity | A Book Review

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CHAOS: In Romance, Sexuality and Fidelityby Raksha Bharadia I am not sure where to start. This book was, from the word go an out and out engrossing read. Author Raksha Bharadia made sure to write the book in a manner that even fiction readers not for one moment would want to put down it. So many things to love! Reading this book was a lot like watching an interesting documentary on the life and its inception on earth. And one can surmise through reading it that a colossal amount of research and some interesting interviews with the people ranging from psychologists, marriage counselors, medical experts and general practitioners (and boy is it beautiful) has gone into the making this book, Chaos in romance, sexuality, and fidelity by Raksha Bharadia. With incredible and insightful information and details, the book analyzes various aspects of relationships quite well. The author in her book ‘Chaos in romance, sexuality, and fidelity’ explores the history of love between men and women over the centuries and takes the readers one step at a time – not being too preachy and not too judgmental. And every aspect of romance, sexuality and fidelity are dealt beautifully with chapter by chapter. Raksha also sheds some light on how problems have emerged in familial relationships and the rapid rise in divorces shows that people in the country can’t seem to face the challenges/conflicts arise in their life. She presents the facts as it is. But in the process, the book doesn’t get boring. In fact, she makes it more fun to read by using some fantastic references and quotes. It gives readers the right balance of information, entertainment, and reader satisfaction. And by entertainment, I mean that the book contains some funny illustrations which also works as visual information for the mind to store in its database. This book is a definite “fuel for thought” and will rattle for a long time in my head. The book is divided into 5 sections. And each section is a delight to read. From the beautiful presentation of the content inside to the narrative style of the author and to the language, that is impeccably graceful and well-balanced. To sum up, it isn’t a self-help book that will help you mend your relationships. No, in fact, this book is an analysis of relationships that will give you a new perspective to look through. Rating- 4.5

She Stood by Me by Tarun Vikash - Book review
Book Reviews

She Stood By Me | Book Review

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She Stood by Me by Tarun Vikash Love is not a relationship Most of us have experienced first love, first heartbreak, that we occasionally remember, and this novel She Stood by Me by Tarun Vikash, is a reminder of those memories. Like the subtitle implies love is much more than a friendship. This romantic fiction is about a love story that begins in teenage years and grows with the age of protagonist. Aparna and Abhi who starts their relationship as friends with a one-sided crush, and then their friendship is transformed in time into a lovely story of love. Their friends Manish and Nidhi also have their own love story, and they are an integral part of the life of Aparna and Abhi. Abhi who comes from a lower — middle — class family, he has responsibilities waiting for him in the future, he is career-oriented, but he believes in romance and first love concept. On the other side, Aparna comes from an upper — middle — class family with an urge to prove the world about her existence. She is career-oriented but somehow she doesn’t believe in love, in a better way to say that she doesn’t have time for love. This Love story ought to be difficult as one person is madly in love and another person is aloof with love as a feeling and living in denial. Their love story has many obstacles like studying in different cities, job pressure, and then family drama. In small cities Love and then Love marriage is still considered as a taboo. Most of us have experienced first love, first heartbreak, that we occasionally remember, and this novel She Stood by Me by Tarun Vikash, is a reminder of those memories. Like the subtitle implies love is much more than a friendship. This romantic fiction is about a love story that begins in teenage years and grows with the age of the protagonist.⁣⁣Author Tarun has very aptly defined the feelings of love, responsibility towards the family that are so contrasting to each other. Though this book She Stood by Me is his debut novel, he did quite a remarkable job with the characters and the story.⁣⁣Every character in this book has been nicely thought of and then put on paper. The character I most connected to was Manish, as he reminded me of Bollywood movies that had one best friend who made fun of the Hero, pulled his leg, but then he also stood with him in every thick and thin of the situation.⁣⁣Unfortunately, my problem was that most of the novel was like reading Abhi’s private unrealistically goody – goody diary with individual dialects and dialogues, which became quite uncomfortable instead of smooth flowing reading, which I am used to. Somehow the story seemed little stretched with too much detailing of unwarranted information which could have been omitted.⁣⁣I would like to rate this YA romantic fiction novel 3.7 out 5. It is one time read that is quite entertaining in its own way. This book will remind you about your first crush, first love and your life before 25 hit you.⁣

Women Author Awards
Book Reviews, Lifestyle

Women ruling even the literary World

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The AutHer Awards 2020 Longlists for best women authors in Fiction, Non-Fiction, Children’s Literature and Debut were announced today by a panel of 12 eminent judges. The Times of India received a whopping 850 entries submitted by both publishers and individual authors for the coveted national award, the first of its kind in India.The AutHer Awards – a joint venture between JK Paper and Times of India — are a celebration of women authors who have added value and creativity to the literary space. The jury considered books by women published in India between December 2018 and November 2019. The chairs for the AutHer Awards jury consisted of author Ashwin Sanghi (Fiction), actor and author Sonali Bendre (Non-Fiction), columnist and author Shobhaa De (Debut), and author Bulbul Sharma (Children’s books).Talking about women’s writing in literature, Shobhaa De says, “Women’s voices in Indian literature today are exploding several myths and stereotypes. They are speaking a new language which is honest, irreverent and out there. There is enormous confidence and talent emerging through their work. It is our job to acknowledge and reward the best! It has been a fantastic process of reading all these wonderful women authors sharing their stories with so much verve! Good luck to the winner. And a big thank you to all participants.” While sharing her experience of the AutHer Awards, Bulbul Sharma says, “I really enjoyed reading these amazing new books for children by women authors. Each book painted a vivid picture of a new facet of our society and dealt bravely with different, somewhat difficult concerns. What a variety of prose and rich ideas; what a long way we have come. We must thank TOI for taking women writers on a most exciting journey ahead.” The other jury members were author Jaishree Misra (Fiction), author and former Deputy Secretary, Sahitya Akademi Gitanjali Chatterjee (Fiction), author Yasser Usman (Non-Fiction), author and journalist Manimugdha Sharma (Non-Fiction), author and comic writer Arjun Gaind (Debut), Co-founder of ScoopWhoop R ishi Pratim Mukherjee (Debut), actor, compere and Director of The Study School Shivani Wazir Pasrich (Children’s books), and author Ramendra Kumar(Children’s books). Sharing his experience of being a part of the AutHer Awards, Ashwin Sanghi says, “I am delighted to be part of the jury panel for The Times of India’s Women AutHer Awards 2020. It has been a painstaking process to read and review the final selection to arrive at the longlist. Jaishree Misra and Gitanjali Chatterjee (my fellow jury members) and I have burnt the midnight oil in attempting to ensure that we look at each book holistically. We too have gained by being part of this terrific initiative because we all ended up reading books that we may have otherwise missed. In fact, even determining the Longlist was difficult because there were several more that deserved mention.” Actor and author Sonali Bendre, who also hosts her own book club for fellow readers, called it an “enriching experience”. Sonali Bendre says, “Going through the AutHer selection was such an enriching experience. From the 21 non-fiction books that we read, these 9 were the ones that stood out and unanimously got voted in to be part of the AutHer Longlist! It’s been a pleasure discussing these books with Yasser Usman and Manimugdha Sharma… it’s been a smooth and thoroughly enjoyable journey.” The books under consideration went through multiple layers of screening before reaching the final jury. The Times editorial teams were helped in the initial screening by authors Kulpreet Yadav and Sujata Parashar, Write India winner and teacher Vasudha Gulati, and Dr Anjana Neira Dev, Associate Professor of English, Gargi college. Vinita Dawra Nangia, Literary Director of the Awards, says, “It has been an eye-opener to see the range of books submitted for the Awards and the process through which our judges painstakingly selected the best. Our effort is to be all-inclusive and neither dismiss any genre, nor favour another. The Women AutHer Awards have been launched to recognize and encourage the contribution of women writers, and to acknowledge their unique space in the literary arena.” The AutHer Awards Shortlist will be announced tomorrow. The AutHer Awards winners will be announced at a grand ceremony on Sunday, March 8, at Taj Palace, New Delhi. A prize worth Rs 1 lakh each will be given to the top winners of all four categories and a Lifetime Achievement Award will be given to a woman author for her lasting contribution in the field of literature. For the Longlist, please log on to : https://autherawards.in/

Book review of The Flute and the Sword - The Story of Meera and Jaimal and the Rise and Fall of Merta by Karuna Sinh, Randhir Sinh
Book Reviews

The Story of Meera and Jaimal | Book Review

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The Flute and the Sword: The Story of Meera and Jaimal and the Rise and Fall of Merta by Karuna  Sinh, Randhir Sinh Meera (Mirabai) has been an important part of me growing up. My siblings and I have always woken up listening to her songs. Songs that were the love and devotion of Meera to Lord Krishna. Since then, I’ve been taken to her serene and beautiful aura. So yeah, reading this book ’The Flute and the Sword by Karuna Sinh, Randhir Sinh, was the most exciting and learning experience, I had.  About a few days back, I finished reading this delight of a book with all the satisfaction a reader has when reading such a gem. Every turn of page took me closer to the culture I share with Meera and Jaimal; Each chapter was a  revelation that brought smile and tears equally. It was told so beautifully that all came alive before my mind: the characters, places and everything in between them. It is a truly remarkably narrated story. Reading The Flute and the Sword: The Story of Meera and Jaimal and the Rise and Fall of Merta,  felt to me like lapping waves of emotions, I was neck deep submerged, in Meera’s devotion for Lord Krishna and Jaimal’s constant struggle to save his kingdom. This book beautifully captured the nuances of emotions like nothing else in recent time, through pain, heartbreak, death and love. This was legit one of the most moving, riveting, eye opening saga that I read in recent times.  Written in a very simplistic language, the story of Meera and Jaimal is fictionized for the entertainment value, it has the backing of facts and research that has made the book quite an eye-opener.  This engrossing high paced book is sure to sweep you off your feet. I highly, highly recommend this book  to all the fiction and non fiction fans of history, and who’d like to know more about the history of Merta. 

Book review of V Q E- The Tale of an Indian Physician in the United Kingdom of the 1980s by Vivek V Gumaste
Book Reviews

V.Q.E: The Tale of an Indian Physician in the United Kingdom of the 1980s | Book Review

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V.Q.E: The Tale of an Indian Physician in the United Kingdom of the 1980s By Vivek V Gumaste I believe writing is a powerful enough weapon that can bring upon changes unimaginable. It also is a time machine, that can transport you to any part of the world, whether future or past. V.Q.E: The Tale of an Indian Physician in the United Kingdom of the 1980’s by Vivek Gumaste is one such book that took me to 1980’s UK. The stark reality, that life in this ex-colonial country was a constant struggle to make one’s worth, especially for Asians. This is a story of one such Asian, or I would rather say a medical memoir of a Doctor, whose dream is to move to the United States, and make a mark there. And to achieve this, he first moves to the United Kingdom, where he explores and experiences their work culture and pass professional tests, which will make his transition to the US a little bit less cumbersome a task. Reading this book V.Q.E by Vivek Gumaste made me realize that life as an immigrant isn’t all hunky-dory as it seems. It is fraught with one’s struggles to make a name, every step is a precarious knife’s edge, one move can make or break one’s future. Vivek has very skillfully interwoven his professional journey with the political turmoil, the then UK was going through, giving me a glimpse in of the 1980s UK. Through the author’s eyes, I got see the aftermath of some of the famous political decisions, racial discrimination that was rampant then, the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana and the madness of it that spread throughout the world like a wildfire. It was a journey, that did not disappoint me at all. Vivek’s V.Q.E is not a story, which has a high-octane drama filled with twists at every turn of the page, neither it is filled with words that are worth writing in a diary, instead it is a gently remarkable book about a doctor’s journey in the UK and how it shaped and prepared him for the ultimate goal of his, that was to move to the US. Vivek spun the web of words quite elegantly with the ink of his memories and bowled me over with his exquisite language and style; a flowing but succinct and easy to read prose. In addition, he did not overly stretch the story. He put that specific part of his life on papers that we could peruse in a very simple way. I strongly recommend the book V.Q.E: The Tale of an Indian Physician in the United Kingdom of the 1980s by Vivek Gumaste to readers of the genre of Memoirs/Biography/Autobiography and to the future doctors are persuing Medical degree in foreign lands. This book has earned 5 on 5 for its sheer simplicity and high engagement quotient.

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