My True Angel

“You don’t find love, it finds you. It’s got little to do with destiny, fate and what’s written in the stars.”

Sometimes, you are lucky enough to meet people in life who stay forever. But then other times, you find a person perfect, but you might just not be destined to be together. Life is this bitter-sweet journey of meeting new people and sometimes losing the old ones. In ‘My True Angel’, the author Irshad Thalakala has beautifully narrated the story of protagonist Iqbal and such special people – the angels in his life.

Iqbal is the oldest son of a middle-class Muslim family residing in a small town of Kerala.  He moves to Bangalore after graduation to find a decent job and support his family. But it is not a bed of roses for Iqbal. His struggle to find a decent house and a job is real. He faces more problems than usual because of his religion. He finally finds a job in a multinational company, and here is where the story of his angels begins.

These angels are 3 different women that Iqbal meets at different points in his life. He deeply loves one, strongly connects to the other and is morally related to the third. But destiny being destiny, a million reasons make sure that he doesn’t unite with his true angel so easily. He has a different story with each and learns something from each story. But who will Iqbal finally end up with? Who is his one true angel?!

The author’s message through this romantic, easy-to-relate story is very deep and important. Iqbal faces many issues in life because of his religion, which is what happens to a lot of us in the society even today. Religions should strive to unite people and attain a loving relationship. It should not separate two people because of their religions. Let’s be open-minded and loving towards everyone around us. 🙂

The story is simple and light. Ignoring a few grammatical mistakes, the language was easy and lucid. The pace towards the end of the story seemed faster than the other part, which could have been written in a different way. I loved the tour through Bangalore as I have a soft corner for this beautiful city. I recommend this book for a light, weekend read! 🙂

 

 

Love Beyond 22 Yards

Bolywood: a glamorous world full of romance and drama…

Cricket: an aspiring world full of heroes and their achievements…

And when these 2 religions of India unite, they create no less than pure magic! Through the years, there have been many stories of the heroes of Cricket legend falling in love with the silver screen beauties. But these stories have not all been like a bed of roses. The brave lovers have fought against many odds and have come above media criticism, family issues, career goals and religion differences.

Well, love knows no bounds, does it? Sourabh Mukherjee has beautifully collated these short biographies in ‘Love Beyond 22 Yards’ and they are worth reading! We might have read these stories in gossip columns but the way the relationships are described here are truly moving. My favorite story is of the hero Azharuddin and his controversial relationship with Sangeeta Bijlani. When life gave them lemons, they stood together and fought them. Their love is really inspiring.

It is a very small and light book, a lazy Sunday afternoon read. More stories would have been even better. 😊 Overall, ‘Love Beyond 22 Yards’ is a very insightful and inspiring read!

Men and Dreams in the Dhauladhar

When you visit a dam brimming with water on a warm evening, do you pause for a moment and think about the making of the mammoth structure, the stories of life and death of the workers who made it possible, and the hard work and sweat which would have added for water to reach your home? Most of us have not, right? But this book ‘Men And Dreams In The Dhauladhar’ opens a new line of realization for you. The story based on the men working to build a hydel power dam on the Dhauladhar ranges of Himalayas is truly an eye opener and a thriller.

The author of this incredible story, Kochery Shibu, is originally from Kochi and is now based out of Bangalore. He has served in the Indian Navy and commanded two warships! Post his retirement, he has executed hydroelectric projects across various rivers. His experience talks in this book and comes out as an original story.

The mighty ranges of the Dhauladhar themselves have a mysterious story to tell. They are strong and make their presence felt. The massive hydel power plant is being constructed at the foothills of Dhauladhar ranges. The nature here is not easy to the workers. There is no time for injuries or death. Everyone moves on in no time. The machines used in the dam construction, the planning, processes and the people involved, everything is overwhelming.

The story construes very interesting independent stories of three different people. Nanda is an engineer from Kochi with a dangerous past of revenge. Khusru is Kashmiri youth threatened by the terrorism. Rekha is a respectful doctor in search of love. These interesting people end up together at the camp site and are dragged in the mystery that the ranges have to offer!

This is a very unique story and the description of the dam construction will leave you knowing much as you turn the pages. I loved how the author has separately built all the three characters and their different stories. He has then merged their stories towards the end with a very thin line. The technicality of the construction comes from author’s experience and is explained in detail, but it can get a little tough to understand at times. Also, I felt that the ending was a little abrupt and could have been written differently. However, the overall feel of the book is way above these small notes.

I would recommend the book to fiction and thriller lovers, and specially those who want to know about the stories of the men in Dhauladhar!

‘8 Hours’ – Book Review

‘Blood had been spilt, and yet it was a legacy that Aratrika had to honour.’ After reading this first line, you can hardly find a moment in this story where you would want to keep the book down. The story is about 8 thrilling, painful and life-changing hours in which ARYA Holdings Ltd. could either rise from ashes or it could be sold to vultures in form of other companies. A lot of secrets unearthed, tremendous power shifted from one person to another, many conspiracies formed and failed – you cannot predict who takes the baton in the end.

The author of ‘8 hours’, Upendra Namburi, has written other such novels with interesting titles like ’60 minutes’ and ‘31’. He is a marketing professional with over 20 years of experience in the industry. We surely look forward to more books from him!

Aratrika Reddy, the MD and Vice Chairman of ARYA Holdings Ltd., is the charming protagonist of the book. She is independent and determined, but has many skeletons in her closet related to her past. The multimillionaire conglomerate of steel and luxury hotels, ARYA, is bankrupt and pointed at for breaching laws. The Imperial bank has given them just 8 hours before they would take over the company!

Aratrika doesn’t know how long her company would stay afloat. They are in too much debt and everything around her was collapsing. But she is not the one who would lose so easily. In the time between 1 am to 9 am, she has to make a miracle for her company for which she has given her entire life, a family and her marriage.

But her path is not a bed of roses. Madhusudhan Reddy, Aratrika’s dreaded father and a liquor baron, is making it extremely tough for her by strategizing behind her back. He has hurt his wife and family to the extreme extent, yet Aratrika is the MD for his company while hating him all the time. Back from the past are the Rathores of Elixir group, who are the biggest enemies of ARYA and have placed a deal in the market to buy out the company. They have made professional ties with many companies to group against ARYA and bring it down.

Aratrika also has her estranged husband Siddhartha making strategies as he has too much knowledge about the Reddy family. To make it all more complicated, Peter, Aratrika’s lover, is seen plotting with the Rathores! Her wily uncle, Jagannath seems to be the most helpful and smart person around. But he has a deep secret due to which the dangerous Madhusudhan Reddy also fears him.

Aratrika has to weave her way through all these people in her life as well as a string of politicians, bankers, investors and ministers. It is not the time to be polite, ethical or kind. It is the time to be ruthless, strong and smart. Will ARYA be saved from the demons or will it fall into the hands of its enemies? Is Aratrika capable enough to do it in 8 hours only? Those hours of the night will take you on the most interesting business ride.

I was lost in the story most of the times. It is extremely interesting and inspires you from the strong and smart characters. I felt a little confused sometimes when the story got too technical in terms of market, investors, financials and company deals. The technicality could have reduced to some extent such that readers without such a background can follow the story with ease.

Overall, I loved the book and recommend it to everyone who likes thrillers with a business genre. Kudos to Upendra Namburi!

Beyond Secrets

Before reading this book ‘Beyond Secrets’, you would look at everything around you in a very normal way. Maybe not even notice some things which you are so lucky to have: a family, loving parents and siblings, a happy childhood and so on… And then when you read chapter after chapter of this book, you start looking at the smallest things with an entire new value. It suddenly makes you realize that you could easily be among the many unfortunate ones in the world.

The author has set such an unpredictable flow to this deep story that you smile, cry, gasp or sigh at any page of the book without expecting it. The tag line which explains it all…All that is required to change life is sometimes just a truth. Just..one..truth.

The author the ‘Beyond Secrets’, Alka Dimri Saklan, holds a MBA degree in HR and worked with a leading MNC before turning to a full-time writer. Born and brought up in Vadodara, a city in Gujarat, her roots hail from Uttarakhand. She is the author of “45 Days in a Cancer Hospital” and “Beyond Secrets”. Her debut novel “45 Days in a Cancer Hospital” was longlisted for the prestigious Crossword Books award 2013.

Noel, the protagonist of the story, is a young counsellor against the wishes of his father, who wants him to help in the business, just like his twin brother Sam. Sam’s characteristics always made Noel wonder, how could he be so different despite being his twin brother? Sam was sophisticated, well-mannered and slim, while Noel considered himself aggressive and bulky and had an ugly scar on his face. These differences and issues with the family made him an aloof and mysterious person. To continue his interest in counselling, he decided to join an orphanage called Aashiyana as a counsellor to the kids.

Nidhi has almost completed her graduation. Well she is an epitome of a mystery lady too! She is very tough from outside but from inside she is broken and in so much pain. She is constantly running away from the dark side of her past and joins Aashiyana to get some time away from her family. But she has another motive of being here. She is here to find answers to a lot of questions she has about her life. Answers that only this orphanage could give her.

The dark and interesting side of the book starts when Noel begins to get a feeling of déjà vu in the orphanage. He remembers minute details about the orphanage but doesn’t know why he knows that as he had visited this place for the first time. Well that’s what he believed! This mystery keeps the reader hooked to the story till the end. It turns out that Noel has a shocking past himself. A past about his family that he had never imagined and which makes him question his own identity…

The story is dark and very emotional, but the parts about the lives of orphanage kids and their hopes; and the budding love and companionship between Noel and Nidhi makes the story light when needed. The author has dealt the sensitive topic of orphanage and the life of kids there in a very matured manner. I felt that some parts in the story were redundant. They could probably be rewritten or avoided. Also at some point, I felt that absolutely everything was going wrong with the characters’ lives. There could be some positive twists added which could give hope to the readers.

Overall, I enjoyed reading ‘Beyond Secrets’. My favorite character is Noel, who has such a dark and sad past but struggles through it all and comes out as a strong, forgiving person and a life-saver. This isn’t a weekend-chill book. It is a story to be read with patience and with a pace you are comfortable in. I was constantly in tears and was so thankful for having a great life, starting with the Kindle in hand! This unpredictable book is totally a must read.

‘I received a copy from Writersmelon in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.’ 

My rating – 3.5/5

You Never Know – Akash Verma

You Never Know…Sometimes love can drag you through hell. I read aloud this book title, look at the bright red book cover depicting blood, and feel a chill run down my spine. This is going to be an exciting thriller, I think. And I couldn’t be more right! This unputdownable book is sure a thriller. The characters are entangled in a love triangle, which take such a dangerous turn midway that it tests the love and their life choices in an extreme manner.

Taking a minute to talk about the author, Akash Verma is an entrepreneur and co-founder of two Internet start-ups in fashion and food sectors. Prior to this, he has worked in organizations like Coca-Cola, Big FM and Red FM. He has travelled across the country for work and he uses this experience in his novels. His other works include novels like It Happened That Night, A Broken Man and Three Times Loser. You Never Know is my first novel by Akash Verma, but after this read, my Amazon wishlist is surely going to include more of his works! 🙂

Going straight to the gist of the book, the story is based in the backdrop of a bustling Gurgaon city. One of the main character of the story Dhruv Saxena is a happy man, married to a beautiful and smart psychiatrist Shalini and they have the perfect kids, Kabir and Sia. Dhruv cannot be more successful at work. He is a favorite at C&M, the advertising company that he works for, and is promoted to the coveted post of Delhi branch head. He has a new car and a posh apartment and he just couldn’t ask for more.

And then Anuradha, a beautiful and smart woman, walks into his office one fine day as the new creative head for C&M. She brings with her a wave of familiarity and beauty and sweeps Dhruv off his feet. He tries to stay away from Anuradha but she impresses him even more by doing an amazing work for a difficult client and saving the company. Dhruv wants to spend all his time with the magical woman and continues to get attracted to her. As much as he knows how wrong it is for a married man to feel this way for another woman, he absolutely cannot control himself. It seems to him like it is meant to be.

Anuradha begins reciprocating the same, she feels a similar pull towards Dhruv, even though she knows that Dhruv had a happy family of his own. Before either of them can realize, Dhruv and Anuradha are part of the evil territory called extra-marital affair. Dhruv begins lying to Shalini to spend more time with Anuradha. Day by day, his family starts growing apart, Anuradha being the reason for it. But Dhruv has never been so happy before and he cannot stay away from this woman.

But how long can this be smooth and stable? A wave of unpredictable circumstances hit these happy people’s life, and it is surprisingly not from Dhruv’s family. Anuradha has a not-so-happy past with her ex-boyfriend Sid. Sid had an unfortunate life full of debts he couldn’t pay and the dangerous creditors behind him. He committed suicide in Lal Tibba, Dehradun. The creditors, Hemant bhaiya and his gang, now turned towards Dhruv and Anuradha, with the aim of disrupting their lives till they find that one secret that Sid had before he died, a secret that could blow the gang’s life. And to get that from Dhruv, they can go to any extent.

The story takes such a very interesting twist and Dhruv is faced with dangerous people who could harm him and his family. How does Dhruv, the hero of the story, save everyone and puts back the pieces of his and his family’s life? What is the story behind Sid’s suicide and how is Anuradha related to it? You need to read this book to find out. 🙂

I couldn’t keep my eyes open last night but I could not put down the book till I finished it. My favorite character in the book is Dhruv. He started off as a character I couldn’t relate to, with his action of extra-marital affair and cheating on his wife. But somewhere through the book, I realized that he genuinely loved Anuradha and he had taken the decision to spend time with her because he strongly felt like it. Anuradha’s character is strongly built too and she is the wind-keeper of the story.

If I could change something in the book, I would describe the characters in more details in the beginning of the story. Also, I would add more to the part where Shalini suspects Dhruv’s unusual behavior and Dhruv feels guiltier for what he is doing. I loved the ending, thumbs-up on that!

I would recommend the book for those who want a light but interesting read over a weekend or holiday. Thank you Writersmelon and Amazon for the book. It was an enjoyable long-weekend read! 😊

 

 

Mistress of Honour

If asked to express our patriotism in words or speech, we would all dig out that hidden I-love-my-country feeling and prove ourselves to be the best citizen a country can have. But what if we are asked to go to war to save our country? Would we be willing to sacrifice our luxurious life and our family for the nation so that the others can live peacefully? Would we think it to be fair if we would achieve appreciation for the gory nightmares from only 5% of the people we would be fighting for? Wouldn’t most us fall back if asked for such commitments and sacrifices?

But there are brave hearts in the country, willing to fight, kill and even die if need arises. They are the Indian Army, Navy and the Air Force. Many of us have failed to completely realize the importance of the sacrifices that these defense officers and their families make so that we can live a peaceful life. ‘Mistress of Honour’ by Bhaavna Arora, a book inspired from real-life stories, is one such heart-touching tale of sacrifice, courage and bravery.

The story begins with the description of 1984 Operation Blue Star where Deepak Potnis, a senior officer in Indian Army meets Parminder Kaur Sodhi “Pansy” while saving the citizens from the Golden Temple. Pansy, a journalist from Britain, had lost her family in the riots. Love blossoms between Potnis and Pansy and they get married. Soon, they are blessed with a girl named Rihana.

The small, happy family does not get to stay together much as Potnis is called for duty to various places like Srinagar, Assam and Tamil Nadu during emergencies. So Pansy has to take complete responsibility of Rihana and wait for Potnis’ safe return. The anxiety of Pansy and Rihana while Potnis is away is emotionally shown. Bhaavna Arora has nicely shown the great bravery with which Potnis, his junior Officer Shamsher and his team tackle emergencies and terrorist activities, paying no heed to the threats that they receive, and fighting without worrying about their life. The care and love between Pansy and Potnis is beautifully shown.

History repeats itself when Rihana and Advik, his school friend, fall in love and decide to get married. Advik had recently finished his Air Force training from the NDA. Just after their engagement, Advik is called on duty for the Kargil war. Rihana now has an important decision to make. What is that? Will Advik return to her second love Rihana safely or will he cheat on Rihana for his first love, his country? The end is really interesting and effective. I got teary-eyed as I finished the book.

Guns and planes, tanks and bombs may sound cool but it requires guts to use them against those who want to kill you. The military has to pass through phases of emotional nightmares and they do it without complaining because they commit to the uniform even before wearing it. They fight for the humanity, not for any religion, language or caste. Above this, Bhaavna has shown that their families, specially the women have an equally important role. They have to constantly live in anxiety and worry for the safety of the men. And still, they know they always come to a close second while the men serve their first love, the country faithfully. They have to be a mistress of honour, of daring and of courage.

Bhaavna Arora has carried out the story beautifully, the description of the characters is done nicely and the female characters are depicted strongly. “It takes more than grandeur to kill and die for the nation!” A light and delightful read, ‘Mistress of Honour’ will take you on a journey of true patriotism, courage and sacrifice.

The Bestseller she wrote

Imagine the glittering world of an author who is a bestseller. After numerous steps such as planning a plot and preparing the manuscript, editing and publishing, pre-bookings and book launch, comes out a book which turns into a bestseller. People worship the author and follow his life closely. But what happens if the author falls into a trap of dalliances, vengeance and betrayal and his career reaches a point of destruction beyond redemption? Ravi Subramanian’s new book “The Bestseller She Wrote” is all about love, betrayal and redemption, as the attractive book cover promises us.

Ravi Subramanian, an Indian author famous for his thrillers about bankers and banking, is a banker by profession. He has written many praised and popular books such as ‘If God was a Banker’, ‘The Bankster’, ‘Bankerupt’ and many more. An alumnus of IIM Bangalore, batch of 1993, Subramanian spent close to two decades in the financial services industry.

In his new book “The Bestseller She Wrote”, Ravi Subramanian has told us a story about bestsellers and their glittering world. The plot of the story, his first book on a romantic intrigue, is different than his usual stories based on the theme of banking. This story revolves around two main characters. Aditya Kapoor is a banker turned into a very famous author. He has a balanced yet starry life and a perfect family of a loving wife and a young son. His books are so popular that he gets the fame that only Indian actors can hope for. The middle-aged paperback king has an impeccable personal and professional life, a life that a man can only dream of.

And then enters in his life Shreya Kaushik, a beautiful and young IIM-B student with high ambitions and strong determination to become a celebrated book writer. She is reckless, bold and competitive. She gets employed in Aditya’s team at the National Bank and both the author and his fan fall into a risky dalliance. Shreya is a fabulous writer but she ‘wants’ Aditya to help her become a bestseller, even more famous than the guide himself. Even if that means risking Aditya’s career. What will happen when the worlds of a superstar author and his enthralling protégé collide? To what extent will Shreya go to obtain Aditya’s unshared love and attention? The author has nicely depicted Aditya’s dilemma whether it was possible to love two persons at the same time.

The language is simple yet eloquent. Few dialogues are very effective. My favorite being ‘If guilt could kill, Aditya would have died a thousand times’. There are a few characters in the book but each one is well-defined and has an equally important role in the story. My favorite characters are Aditya Kapoor, his best friend Sanjay and also Shreya’s best friend Sunaina.

I am an aspiring author myself and so I got to know a lot about the process through which a book goes through before going out in the market. The plot becomes a bit predictable halfway through the book but then the story turns thrilling once again and ends with justified and surprisingly unpredictable turn of events. The only thing that I disapprove in the book is the direct and intentional/unintentional mention of author Chetan Bhagat a few times in the story which clearly defames him. In my opinion, this isn’t ethical and is against respectful writing.

I recommend this book to thriller lovers. It is definitely a one-time read, a book to gorge upon in the weekends with a cup of hot coffee.

Happy reading!

I am reviewing ‘The Bestseller She Wrote’ by Ravi Subramanian as a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!

Curse of Surya

Among the variegated genres of books, crime thrillers can be the most interesting stories to read provided they have a gripping plot and are written in a way that keeps you guessing the next move of the protagonists and the suspects till the last chapter. Dev Prasad’s third book, “The Curse of Surya” is one such fantastic thriller but with a uniqueness of a fiction written in a mythological background.

The author, Mr. Dev Prasad, is an IT professional residing in Bangalore. For his first book “Krishna: A journey through the Lands and Legends of Krishna”, he had done five years of intense research and numerous travels to Mathura, Vrindavan, Dwarka and other holy places associated with Lord Krishna. During these visits, many of his questions remained unanswered and hence the fiction “The Curse of Surya” was born in which he knit together all the mysterious places and these unanswered thoughts. His book “Pitch It!” was also highly praised.

“The Curse of Surya” is the mythological fiction about a race to find a jewel called the ‘Shyamantaka’ lost 5000 years ago during the time of Lord Krishna. Sangeeta Rao, a smart and beautiful reporter at a famous TV channel in Singapore, while on an important assignment in Agra, meets Alan Davies, a charming Welshman, who introduces himself as a teacher of Archaeology from England. They decide to attend a much-talked-about religious convention at Krishna Janmashthan Temple, Mathura where Swami Brij Mohan was, in his talk, going to reveal the place where the jewel was hidden. The Shyamantaka that belonged to the Sun God had a legend that said that the jewel produced gold in large quantities and hence many countries had been trying to find this jewel hidden by Vajranabha many years ago.

The mystery begins when a terrorist attack on the temple during the talk turns the duo, Sangeeta and Alan into fugitives. Sangeeta and Alan, with the help of Anton Blanchard, a museum curator from US, espaces from the UP police lead by SP Nisha Sharma and finds themselves in a race against time to find the lost jewel. The hunt leads these three people from different countries closer to the place of the hidden jewel every time they decrypt the set of Sanskrit clues left behind by Vajranabha. A series of events follows and Sangeeta finds herself caught in a treasure hunt filled with horror, deceit and mysteries. But with the police following their trail, will they be able to find the valuable lost jewel without getting caught? Who is the person with the wrong intention to steal the jewel and the one behind the murders? The story keeps you guessing till the end.

The plot is strongly built and the suspense scenes are written very well. The moment you start predicting the story, it takes an unbelievable twist. All the chapters end in a way that would urge you to move to the next chapter. The fast-paced thriller is written against the backdrop of religion and Indian history and the author’s research shows in the book. He has seamlessly blended the authenticity of places and life of Lord Krishna and the fiction of his unanswered thoughts, thus giving out a story that leaves us with bated breath in this chase for the Shyamantaka. I now realized that mythological fictions can be really interesting.

This gripping story has characters that seem real. Sangeeta and SP Nisha Sharma were my favorite characters for their strong roles and daring personalities. The book can be compared with the thrillers by authors like Sidney Sheldon and Dan Brown. “The Curse of Surya” would be a treat for young readers and fans of mystery and thrillers.

P.S. A big thank you to Mr. Dev Prasad who taught me that no person is great if he doesn’t have humility. Your beautiful replies to my mails made my day, Sir!