Tag: bookoholics

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Review of Circus folk and village freaks

BLURB

Meet the beautiful people of the Circus, and the freaks who live in the Village next to them. Mangled, jangled, misunderstood, all find place in the rich tapestry of this book.

Siamese twins separate to lose half a heart each, and find snake-man and tiger-taming lovers. A man bitten by a crocodile becomes a God, and a Devadasi woos the entire countryside with her culinary artistry.

Fates intertwined lead sometimes to tragedy, sometimes happy summits of fame. A clown finds his place in Hollywood and mute animals break unspeakable chains. A twisted man falls in love with a mirror and a white man is unmade by the Indian sun.

In this book are tales for every season and every reason. Tales of human depravity that take innocent lives, and of a murderers’ insanity that follows, a fitting revenge by nature, red in tooth and claw.

These stories are told in the form of narrative poems in rhyming couplets.

Look inside and you will find, you have been to this Village. Surely, you have been to this Circus too.

MY REVIEW

A book telling you stories in the form of poetry in the current trend is indeed refreshing. Not many people have a liking for poetry reading, since it is not easy to understand the inner meaning of what is being put out in words. But this book is different with about 18 tales in the form of poetry.

The book is about the inmates of the circus and villagers from around. The villagers at times become the inmates of the circus.

Each one of the tale has a moral to tell you. They leave a mark in you to make you think of it. The stories presented makes you want to do a comparison of the circus we live in and contemplate.

The cover of the book is yet another gem. It looks so colorful and vibrant that makes you want to pick the book up immediately and read.

The narration in poetic form is very good. Some are direct, some have inner meanings. This is my first time one reading a book of this kind and I enjoyed reading it. Kudos to the author for coming up with such a thought.

BOOK DETAILS

Published by : Viswakarma publications

Format : hardcover

Length : 156

MY RATINGS

Plot : 4/5

Title :4/5

Cover : 5/5

Writing and presentation :4/5

Overall :4.5/5

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Review of Divyastra

BLURB
“Thousands of years ago, Indian Yogis possessed the knowledge to obtain the weapons of the gods. However, this knowledge could only be transferred from a Guru to his disciple by word of mouth. In today’s world, one mystic, who calls himself Guruji, still possesses this knowledge and is using it to empower an innocent person’s life. Only, this empowerment could be a deception and the innocent person is a thirteen year old boy with a stutter… In this intertwining tale, an ambitious yet unsuccessful Shankar, in search of his identity, is manipulated to embark on a never-told-before fantasy tale; only to rediscover the father he never knew and unmask the mystical Guruji. Amidst this confounding concoction of ancient myths, deluding personas and dispersed emotions, will Shankar ever be able to separate fact from fiction and find his true identity?”

MY REVIEW

The book is a definite must in the list of people who love mythological thriller. With this book going in rounds in social media say promos or reviews ,it sure did create a lot of attention.

The book starts with an eminent physicist, giving a lecture to a mass gathering. During the course of his lecture he is being questioned by a young lad who seems to be intellectual,but does have a lot of questions in mind and those definitely would need to be answered only by Vyas, the scientist.The young lad has a flashback which has a connection with what is happening currently.

The lecture was given with the thought that the modern weapons that are being created or developed were actually in existence as per the ancient scriptures and Vedas.What does the title divyastra mean? What connection does it have in the story between a physicist and the young man.

The author has done a commendable job taking us through the plot. No place in the book gives you a feeling to keep the book down. The book does not bring in complicated terms. There is a glossary behind incase you need it.The parts of lecture explaining the existence of weapons in ancient times does give us a lot of information. This really shows the amount of effort put in by the author.

The narration is simple and lucid. The blurb not revealing any of the mystery in the book is another positive aspect.

BOOK DETAILS

Publisher : WorditCDE

Pages : 233

MY RATINGS

Title 4/5

Plot 4/5

Cover 4/5

Writing and presentation 4/5

Overall 4/5

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Review of Bestseller

BLURB:

Akshay Saxena, an out of work editor of a defunct literary magazine in the UK, is told to move to India for a year to help shore up the value of Kalim, an ailing Indian publisher. Akshay finds himself in a job where he has to do the impossible. Angus Lee, the new owner of Thomson Lee Books, wants at least five bestsellers in the coming year, failing which the business would be wound up. He has to find a way of making a success out of books he would never publish or would never even read. To complicate things further, he has to contend with motley crew of has-beens and misfits working for the publishing house as well as wannabe writers, dealing with their follies and derisive tactics, and battle his own affections for Zorah Kalim, the impulsive daughter of his former boss. Will he succeed in bringing out that one ‘bestseller’ from his publishing house? And what about his own life and love in office? Find out in this riveting read.

MY REVIEW:

A sudden burst of reviews and promos for the book really did make me want to read this. And must say the decision to buy this was worthy. Writing something about the publishing business in India and with elements of friendship, romance in it couldn’t have been widely thought of.

The author has taken up a different plot for the satire genre and has done complete justice to it. The books clearly lists out the various happenings that take place when a book is into publishing to become a “bestseller”. The humorous elements out into the plot makes it an engaging read.

The book is about an Indian who returns from UK and takes up an Indian publishing house job and to revive the business of the failed enterprise. Does he keep up his job by Publishing five bestsellers a year is the rest of the story.

It is a light read and a great book to go with your relaxing time. The book cover makes more sense as you progress through reading the book. The plot could be easily visualized giving credit to the narration and the simplicity in writing.

Overall it was an engaging read and I would definitely recommend this to people who prefer humor since there are a lot of LOL moments in the book making it an interesting read.

BOOK DETAILS:

  • Paperback:196 pages
  • Publisher:Rupa Publications India (3 November 2018)
  • Language:English
  • ISBN-10:9353332648
  • ISBN-13:978-9353332648

MY RATINGS:

Title: 4/5

Writing and presentation: 4/5

Plot:4/5

Cover: 4/5

Overall: 4/5

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Ahmed Faiyaz is the bestselling author of Love, Life & All That Jazz…, Another Chance, Scammed and the editor of the Urban Shots anthologies. He was born and raised in Bengaluru. Apart from being a passionate writer, he dabbles with film-making and travels to lesser-known destinations to better understand life and the times we live in. He lives and works in Dubai, with his two boys and their tabby cat named, Bob.

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Review of Aavya

BLURB:

What do you do when your one true love is snatched away from you? Do you find a new love? Or do you go on loving? Raj has known aavya since they were kids. It is only now, at the threshold of adulthood that he has woken up to her beauty and grace. He is a dreamer while she is a realist. Together, they make a perfect pair. Both are visionaries who want to change the world in their unique way. But life has other plans for Raj. Aavya is spirited away across oceans by enraged parents, while Raj recuperates in a hospital. A decade later, Raj has been chasing aavya’s ghost across continents. Will their love find a way back to each other? And can love last when there is no promise that the lovers will ever be United? Aavya is the story of love, perseverance and finding hope in the darkest of times. It unfolds in letters spanning decades; written by those who lived it. At its heart is a hopeless romantic who makes his own world when the world rejects him – Raj.

MY REVIEW:

If you are looking for a light read and a person who does not feel bored to read letters and email exchanges, this book is for you.

Raj and Aavya, love each other. They did not realize that until they kissed. Post this they start having feelings for each other. They decide to elope and get married. But destiny as we know had other plans.

Aavya’s parents are clearly not interested in their relationship make her move abroad. Raj on the other hand is recuperating at a hospital. The book brings out feelings of unconditional love to the reader and makes you wonder if one can love unconditionally. Raj loves Aavya unconditionally and never gives up. He still waits for the day to come when he and Aavya can unite.

The book comprises of a series of letters and email exchanges between characters- Raj, Aavya, their friends. The letters and emails are so full of love and thoughts about intimacy and secrecy.

The narration makes you feel as though a box is pulled up from an old pile of stuff at the attic which has letters from parents which give us a whole new meaning f what their relationship was about. The author has penned down thoughts to appreciate family, love and friendship. The story swings back and forth between past and present and keeps you intrigued about the ending.

The initial thought of reading letters made it a slow read but picked up pace somewhere in the middle that I was able to complete it.

BOOK DETAILS:

  • Paperback:230 pages
  • Publisher:Kalamos Literary Services LLP; First edition (10 January 2019)
  • Language:English
  • ISBN-10:9387780171
  • ISBN-13:978-9387780170

MY RATINGS:

Cover: 4/5

Title: 4/5

plot: 4/5

Writing and Presentation: 4/5

Overall: 4/5

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

RISHABH PURI is an entrepreneur of Indian origin with business in Nigeria, Dubai, and China. Despite his demanding day job, he finds time to indulge in his passion for writing fiction. He is a national bestselling author with three books penned under his name – ‘Inside the Heart of Hope’, ‘Flying Without Wings’ and ‘Seductive Affair’. His readers have loved and enjoyed all his books immensely, and ‘Aavya’ is his fourth book. Diagnosed with life-threatening heart disease at the age of 1, Rishabh’s early life was mostly limited to talking to doctors and visiting hospitals for several major surgeries and regular checkups. Now, armed with the resilience and experience his fierce battles with the disease brought him, Rishabh has taught himself to live life to the fullest against all odds. His writings too are mostly centered on the beauty of hope, love, and life. Rishabh is also an avid traveller and a supercar enthusiast. He is based in Lagos, Nigeria but visits India regularly, returning to his birthplace, Chandigarh, which remains immensely close to his heart.

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Review of In love with Simran #superbloggerchallenge #instacuppa

BLURB:

Sanjana’s best friend in college is murdered. She was in love with a business tycoon named Nik Sethi, and Sanjana is certain that he killed her. In an effort to find proof, she decides to get close to him. Good looking and rich, Nik falls in love with Sanjana instantly, but a month later, when he accidentally discovers her real agenda, he throws her out of his life. Determined to nail him, Sanjana’s desperation exceeds all limits when she realizes that she too, like her friend, has fallen in love with a killer. After she escapes an attack one night, Sanjana quits college and goes into hiding. Now her only ambition is to punish the killer and her only weapon is her body. In a last, desperate attempt, she uses herself as bait and pursues her best plan. There are only two options: she becomes a victim or she becomes a victor. Through the story of Sanjana and Nik, In Love with Simran explores the boundaries of the basic instincts of the young: love, sex, trust and survival.

MY REVIEW:

The book starts with a classroom scene wherein the professor asks a question. Simran, a simple down to earth girl comes up with an answer that leaves everyone stunned. She replies that the distance between the moon and back is a kiss. The professor silences the class and proceeds to teaching.

Sanjana is Simran’s bestie. During a break at the canteen, she asks her what made her give the reply to the Professor which is when Simran confesses that she’s fallen in love. Sanjana quickly understands it’s Nik Sethi whom Simran is in love with, which doesn’t seem approving. But since her friend is happy she also joins her happiness. Not knowingthata the happiness is short lived, Sanjana receives call at night stating Simran is at the hospital.

Dropping everything at that instant Sanjana reaches the hospital only to know Simran is at the mortuary. She is surrounded by her family members. Sanjana is astounded and doesn’t know what to say, when she is taken aside by a police officer who introduces himself as inspector Khan, in charge of Simran’s case. He tells her that Simran was pregnant. Sanjana is shattered and immediately collapses on the floor. She then recuperates after two days and leaves the hospital. She is very sure that it was Nik Sethi who was responsible for the murder. She decides to make him feel guilty and confess the murder. She also helps inspector Khan providing vital information and only at a later point comes to know that he is working for Nik.

She decides to intern at a magazine in order to interview Nik and is successful at securing a job and an opportunity to interview Nik even after being refused of an opportunity by his assistants. She decides to encounter him directly sat the gym and ask for time to interview and succeeds. When she reaches his office and he behaves as if nothing happened and wasn’t guilty at all. Instead, he takes a liking for her. She is warned by his PA Ruby to stay out of the way or else she would end up like Simran. This terrorizes her but makes her more firm to believe that Nik is behind the murder. She is being followed by strange people. So she decides to take cover at her mom’s place in Dharamshala for few days prepare herself physically to take on Nik.

Due course of time, after her arrival from Dharamshala, she hires a detective to help her out in this case. The detective helps Sanjana but also saves her from few instances from life threats. While all this is happening Ruby the assistant and Pathan, Nik’s assistant is also being murdered and that too with the same weapon Simran was murdered.

The story takes a series of turns as to who would have committed the crime, there is also an angle accusing Nik’s mom; Rajbala. Sanjana falls for Nik and they both get married. What happens in the end?

Does she find the murderer? Is Nik guilty? Why did he kill three people? Is the rest of the story?

The author has taken the plot in a nail biting sequence as to who would have committed the crime of Nik’s close counterparts. Initially, we also have few alibis which make us suspect who would it be.

What started off as a quest to find the murderer by Sanjana continues in a way that she falls in love with the same guy who killed her friend. This point initially was difficult to accept but at a later point, we do come to know that Nik also has a story to tell. We have only been listening to one half of it.

Sanjana initially was full of rage and wanted to get hold of Nik and make him pay for his crime. The efforts she takes to make him confess and how swifts she wanted to take up a job just to meet him and make him speak are all accolades to her quick thinking.

Nik is smart and quick thinking, He says he deeply loves Simran and is sad that she had to depart soon. But one thing that makes me puzzled is why would he fall for Sanjana, within a short gap of Simran’s demise.

The narration is simple and intriguing to read.

The cover design is perfect and kudos for that.

What looks to be a romantic tale takes a twist.

BOOK DETAILS:

  • Paperback:224 pages
  • Publisher: Srishti Publishers & Distributors; First edition (10 January 2019)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10:9387022536
  • ISBN-13:978-9387022539

MY RATINGS:

Cover: 4/5

Title: 4/5

plot: 4.5/5

Writing and Presentation: 4/5

Overall: 4/5

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

One of the leading fiction writers in India, Kulpreet Yadav retired voluntarily from the armed forces to pursue a career in writing in 2014. Now also a motivational speaker, he regularly speaks at schools, colleges, and global corporate brands. Kulpreet’s latest spy novel, Murder in Paharganj, was published in 2017. Winner of “Best Fiction Writer, 2018″, at the Gurgaon Literature Festival, Kulpreet lives in Delhi.

“Note: This article is written as a part of SuperBloggerChallenge2019 conducted by Healthwealthbridge.com,Allaboutthewoman.com and should not be repurposed, republished or used otherwise. The content herein is owned by the blogger. SuperBloggerChallenge2019 is not responsible for any kind of infringement caused.”

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Review of Was it love

BLURB:

Leila Rajput is a young girl, struggling with life and relationships, dealing with the trauma of a past life-event. Unaware of her true potential, she has almost given up on life, till she meets this dynamic, near-perfect Vikrant Rao via internet. He identifies her potential and offers her a strange arrangement to be her mentor. He teaches her the basics of life, makes her realize her dreams and helps her in achieving them step by step. Under his guidance, she evolves into a confident and independent woman. They eventually fall in love and Vikrant relocates to her city, where he meets her friend Maya. While he solves Maya’s life conflicts and helps her elope with Shahan, he charges a fee none could ever imagine. Is Vikrant a villain or a victim of greed? Did he truly love Leila or was she just a puppet to reach his next victim? Was it Love? is a story of Leila’s journey through emotions, trials, betrayal and the devil called love.

MY REVIEW:

The book starts with childhood friends Leyla and Maya, on their way to attend an annual party of corporate Inc, which is where Leyla’s boyfriend Vikrant Rao works. Leyla and Maya are now 20, completing MBA and joining the same investment banking company. Maya fumes as she is not okay with Leyla’s rash driving. They end up reaching the party on time. They are received by Vikrant and Shahan(Maya’s boyfriend). Vikrant introduces his beautiful girlfriend to all his colleagues.

Leyla meets Vikrant over the internet( he stays in US), a few years back when she was in college. They started commenting on a blog platform and which in turn bloomed into daily ritual of talking to each other over voice chat. Leyla is insecure and is being mentored by Vikrant to be a better human being and refining her thought process. The mental relationship with Vikrant costs Leyla her relationship with family friend, Avi. He dumps her and she is broken. Vikrant molds and motivates her at this point where she fails in love with him.

They come to a point where they cannot be with each other. Vikrant relocates to Delhi. Leyla makes him meet her friend Maya and offer her some piece of advice since she is in a personal turmoil.

She is in love with Shahan and there would be a religion problem if they come to seek parental consent for marriage. Shahan plans to move to US to pursue executive MBA. Vikrant advises gun to leave and makes a plan for Maya to pursue fashion design in the US so that she and Shahan can elope and live happily together.

Shahan and Maya were delighted on hearing the plan however Leyla is skeptical about it. She somehow notices a change in behavior of Vikrant. Shahan leaves to the US and Maya frequently visits Vikrant to discuss their plans. This goes on for a while until things are uninformed to Leyla and Vikrant starts to ignore her.

Leyla becomes disturbed which is noticed by her boss, Aman. He in turn decides to help her out. Leyla confesses the whole story. Aman, discovers a gruesome truth about Vikrant which leaves her shocking. Aman helps her with the situation and also confesses his love to her.

What happens to Maya? Does she reunite with Shahan? What is the truth about Vikrant? Why does he avoid Leyla and what are his intentions? What happens to Leyla, does she reunite with Vikrant ot she accepts Aman is the rest of the story.

The book is a short read. Initial chapters consist of the chat exchanges between Vikrant and Leyla, which was kind of monotonous. They have poetic exchanges which tends to slows down the pace of the story.

The character of Vikrant is very hard to predict. At one moment he seems to be too pleasing when he talks to Leyla, at a later point he looks to be behaving with a reason to accomplish something else. Leyla on the other hand is gentle, insecure and vulnerable.

The narration is good, except for the dialogues part which could have been minimized. The ending could have been better. I would not term this as a suspense read, since I found that element missing. It was overall a light and a quick read.

BOOK DETAILS:

  • Paperback:192 pages
  • Publisher:Srishti Publishers & Distributors; First edition (10 August 2018)
  • Language:English
  • ISBN-10:9789387022300
  • ISBN-13:978-9387022300
  • ASIN:9387022307

MY RATINGS:

Cover: 4.4/5

Title: 4/5

plot: 3.75/5

Writing and Presentation: 4/5

Overall: 4/5

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Neha Sultania belongs to a culturally rich Punjabi family that originally hails from undivided India, now Pakistan. After her post-graduation in Business Administration, she took up banking as her career choice. A creative bent of mind has made her inclination strongly towards storytelling and poetry. Interest in mysteries and mystical nature of the universe has also made her wander into the deep occult sciences, making her a student of Vedic astrology.

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Review of together forever to never

BLURB:

No one can love like you… if I lose you, I will be left with nothing’ So says Sariyanka, a girl from a small town, madly in love with Samar. Having lost true love once before, Samar too believes that Sariyanka is his other half whom Zeus, the Greek God had separated from him.. In a chance conversation with his friend Mayank, Samar discovers some shocking truths. As the story unravels, a series of events follow that forever change the meaning of love for Samar. Is Sariyanka the one Samar calls his ‘other half’? Will Samar get the love that he always longed for? This highly anticipated novel by Satish Goyal is an emotional roller coaster that bravely explores the highs and lows of love. It’s a story of love – unshaken and unquestioned; yet unfulfilled and unrequited. A saga of deceit served on a platter of lies. About the author: Satish Goyal is a finance professional and works at a US multinational company. Since his days at the university, he had dreamed of writing on subjects close to his heart, but had put those dreams on hold to focus on his family and career. He finally plucked up the courage to put pen to paper with his first novel ‘Together Forever To Never”. Satish believes that success cannot be measured in terms of wealth or titles. The true measure of success is happiness that one is able to achieve in life. Satish is now writing his second book, “The Coaster Series”.

MY REVIEW:

Samar and Monali, sweethearts at young age, married happily for ten years. Samar, the protagonist has everything in life-great career, a loving wife and an adorable son. If life is described as a fairytale, their story should definitely be one of the chapters.

While the story goes on happily, a tragedy struck. Monali exits their world and leaves Samar in deep sorrow. Human spirituality, psychiatrist’s advice, he embraced life again. There we have another entry. Sariyanka came into his life. That is when he realizes he has found his better half. They fell in love madly with each other.

One fine day, when he was conversing with his friend Mayank. He comes to know a shocking truth. The truth gets proved by a couple of evidences which raises a doubt of loyalty on Sariyanka. After deep thinking, he confronts her and gets shattered. He moves on after a long struggle. A very engaging tale that makes you enjoy the feeling of love.

I loved the way it was printed the quality of paper used. Being a debut novel, it was written well and sequences placed at the right points. The narration was good and the character portrayal was really good.

Love makes you blindly trust people, that makes you forget everything. But falling in love with the right person makes the difference.

I just loved the way the cover is designed, that makes you want to pick it up and read it right away.

BOOK DETAILS:

  • Paperback: 188 pages
  • Publisher: Paper Towns Publishers; 1 edition (15 December 2018)
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B07LDVQL3J

MY RATINGS:

Cover: 4.5/5

Title: 4/5

plot: 4.5/5

Writing and Presentation: 4.5/5

Overall: 4.5/5

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Review of The new dewtas

BLURB :

Neer, the head priest of the Himalayas, is troubled by the horrifying visions in his dream. On Ganga Maiyya’s behest, he embarks on a journey to the doomed island of Bali. The island, plagued with cyclic torments of Sekala and Neskala and suffering from constant rainfall, faces an imminent danger of drowning in sea. However, Neer’s power was no match for the strong evil forces that kidnapped the king and the queen, activating the volcano of Mt Agung. With the neighboring king of Java on his toes to attack and conquer the struggling island of Bali, will the gritty prince Erlangga, assisted by Neer, be able to save his kingdom? Read to find out how people turn towards the new dewtas introduced by Neer as the end becomes evident and how Eka-dasa-Rudra helps in arousing the most furious energy of this world, Rudra.

MY REVIEW:

The plot begins with Neer, the head priest of the Himalayas being troubled by horrifying visions about the island of Bali in his dreams. Erlangga, the prince of Bali is trying to save his land and his life at the same time from his maternal uncle, Gajah Meda. Kebo Chiwa, the army chief of Bali also accompanies his prince.

Kebo Chiwa tells, Neer about how the queen of Bali under the influence of their Priest Empu Rahuraan has converted into the wicked witch, Rangda. Her evil forces and glimpses of destruction are the visions that Neer gets in his dreams. On a directive from Ganga Maiyya Neer sets out on a journey to save the island of Bali.

During the course of his journey on the ship, the captain who’s already a friend of Neer introduces him to Erlangga and narrates the evil happenings in Bali. Neer then discloses the visions and about his mission. Neer has a magic stone that keeps him in his well-being and on orders from the captain that the precious thing might get lost, he secures it in a safe place. But the absence of the stone and the touch of it on his body takes a toll on his health and due to which he is forced to keep the stone with him as always; against the orders of the captain.

As they set out on the journey, they face horrific storms, during which the captain makes a decision to have the prince, Neer and the army chief transferred to a ferry boat, since the ship is out of control and is on course into a horrific storm. Together, the three of them get going on the boat, the captain also gives them his lucky coin as a token of love and for the wellbeing of the three who are about to witness, the dispute between good and evil.

As they set out on the journey, Erlangga under the guidance of Neer try to save Bali from the evil forces of Rangda and Gaja Medah. The continuation of how they accomplish destruction of evil and bring in new Gods to the beautiful land of Bali is the rest of the story.

What was the guidance given by Neer, do they save the land and what happens to Erlangga , who rules the land then on is the rest of the story. I am not giving it out now. The characterization is simple, with few characters the author has conveyed a good message and each character served its purpose.

The writing style is simple and crisp. If you are a lover of mythological genre, then the book is an apt read for you. The cover design could have been better. I do not see the copy as a reprint but I thought the quality could have been better.

BOOK DETAILS:

  • Format:Paperback
  • Publisher:Leadstart Publishing Services Pvt Ltd (2018)
  • ISBN-10:9352010779
  • ISBN-13:978-9352010776

MY RATINGS:

Cover: 3.5/5

Title: 4/5

plot: 4.5/5

Writing and Presentation: 3.5/5

Overall: 3.5/5

About the Author :

The author, Suraj Kothiyal, hails from the beautiful city of Dehradun with his family roots belonging to the Himalayan region. A mechanical engineer and an MBA in marketing, Suraj, had five years of corporate experience before he started his own entrepreneurial journey. Today Suraj’s construction firm develops beautiful living spaces for its customers in Dehradun. He has been writing since childhood. Initially the hobby started out as writing poems in Hindi for school magazine. His collection of Hindi poems can be seen on his personal blog that goes by “poems.surajkothiyal.com”. As a child, whenever Suraj went close to the mighty mountains of Himalayas, they whispered a story in his ears. These stories later ignited a passion in him to write historic fictions and it’s his endeavor to bring to light the highly diversified and rich cultures across the world. This book is inspired by a popular folklore in Bali that talks of a Hindu saint namely, Maharishi Markandeya, who came to Bali from India and introduced Hinduism on the scenic island.

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Review of Once upon an IAS exam

BLURB:

Vishy’s worst nightmare-failing the UPSC’s Civil Services exam-has come true. He is plagued by insecurity, fear and doubts. The mother of all competitive examinations has rejected him and he needs a reason to live. So, what does he do? He tells his best friend Rithika, ‘I love you. Will you marry me?’

In Once Upon an IAS Exam, twenty-five-year-old Vishy tries to overcome the uncertainty and confusion about his future and figure out ways of convincing Rithika to marry him. Things turn even more interesting, funny and emotional as Vishy reattempts to conquer ‘Mount IAS’. As he tries to take his academic and love life towards safety, he seeks refuge in the world of IAS coaching centres.

Set in the bustling Civil Services exam coaching hub of Anna Nagar in Chennai, this book is a hilarious account of the actuality, stress and struggle faced by millions of candidates who prepare year after year for one of India’s toughest exams. Join Vishy as he sets out to prove his mettle to the world-and himself. Will Rithika accept the love of her best friend? Will Vishy overcome his sense of failure? Will there be a happily ever after?

MY REVIEW:

Once upon an IAS exam is a hilarious, motivating read by Dr. Vijayakarthikeyan. It tells us the struggles of a UPSC exam aspirant and the hardships they go through to achieve success. The protagonist Vishy alias Vishwanathan is introduced as a person who is in serious search hunt for a good UPSC coaching center after having flunked the prelims. He goes about the streets of Annanagar,one by one of each coaching center and finally settles to getting admitted to one- Great minds run by husband and wife duo Geetha and Natarajan.

They are themselves staffs who handle one of the optional subjects in the coaching center. He also confesses his feeling to his long time BFF from school Rithika. Rithika is a typical girl next door kind of character, who seeks a time out to think of and decide if she’s in love with him. They part ways and continue with their own life. Time and again their thoughts cross each other but respect each other’s privacy and understand their primary goal and stay away. Rithika took up the usual job in one of the top MNCs in the city.

Vishy became friends with Vinod and Ashok who are also IAS aspirants from the same coaching center. Ashok and Vinod stay in the hostel sharing room, which is primarily a storehouse for their books and they actually spend a lot of time in terrace. All three spend a great deal of time with each other having fun and also study together. Vinod is love with Neena from the neighboring coaching center which is at arm’s reach from their classrooms. After constant support and courage from Vishy and Ashok , Vinod finally opens up his feelings in a hilarious and silly way to Neena

Rithika, on the other hand has a bunch of friends- Sid, badri, harini and dharini who makes her workplace fun. There comes a corporate singing competition where in all of them except Sid participate. It’s also the time Vishy loses track of where he kept his hall ticket for UPSC prelims. Rithika though is one of the finalists for the competition leaves it and makes sure she finds his hall ticket and helps him reach the examination venue with peaceful mind. Rithika not only stops here but also does another wonder, which takes everyone by surprise. At one point where everyone is cursing her, she blurts out the surprise leaving everyone awestruck.

It becomes a ritual that Vishy’s father unknowingly gets hurt every time before his exam and which proves successful for him, that is something like a lucky charm. What his father does when he is about to turn up for an interview is a wonderful gesture.

The book has its elements of humor, pace, seriousness, friendship, bromance, romance and perseverance being portrayed in a beautiful manner. The characterization of everyone including the protagonist is etched to perfection. Vishy would now stand as an inspiration of person who had never ending belief to achieve success. Ashok, never shows out that he is the son of business magnet, leads a simple life and also aspires to clear UPSC. Babu(you will know once you read) will definitely be a role model for every UPSC aspirant.

The writing style is crisp and clear and couldn’t find any mistakes in editing. The author has made the serious subject of clearing UPSC a wonderful read by mixing elements of romance and humor in it.

BOOK DETAILS:

  • Paperback:142 pages
  • Publisher:Rupa Publications India (20 October 2018)
  • Language:English
  • ISBN-10:9353045959
  • ISBN-13:978-9353045951

MY RATINGS:

Cover: 3.5/5

Title: 4/5

plot: 4/5

Writing and Presentation: 4/5

Overall: 4/5

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

The author is the current Commissioner of Coimbatore Corporation, who has drawn from his experiences of becoming a civil servant. He has authored three Tamil bestsellers, Ettum Dhoorathil IAS, Adhuvum Idhuvum and Orey Kallil 13 Maangai.

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Review of The closure : Journey to my true self

BLURB:

Aarti slid back and started staring outside the window. It was not the first time she was getting married, but this time she was making the decision after a long haul of struggle.

Sahil: “I have no intention of being physical with you again, but this can be an accord of providing for each other as companions so that you can realize the aspects of your life that you deserve.”

Rishabh: “Maybe I needed her to go away from me before I could realize her importance. God! I miss her.”

Ansh: “You’re evil and the worst person, I’ve ever met. I’d like to think that you’re probably dead now A.. A..Ar… Aarti…”

It’s not a midlife, neither is it an existential, nor an identity crisis, but just a need, an urge deep-found in human wishes: an appeal for closure. That’s what the journey of Aarti is all about, from being a happily invested mother-cum-housewife to a fulfilled, self-aware human being.

MY REVIEW:

The book revolves around the plot where the main protagonist Aarti, is married to Rishabh and is mom to 15-year-old Ansh. She soon loses interest in marital life. She fails in her business collaboration with a friend and there goes a big lot of money into pothole. She decides to shift her focus and learn guitar.

There comes the entry of Sahil, a young guitar teacher at an institute. Aarti falls in love with him. Will she separate from Rishabh, what will happen to ansh? Is the remaining part of the story.

The current generation relationship issues such as carefree attitude, no empathy and too much importance for career than relation is conveyed very well in the book. The book also shows how the children get affected due to restrained relationship between parents and what effect it has to people around them.

The book depicts complete drama and can be adapted onto big screen since it has all the required elements.

The writing style is simple and crisp but I would mention that there were more grammatical errors which at items give you a letdown to continue with the book. If not for that the book can be termed a good read. Though the plot is usual, its slow paced and at places a bit dragging.

The characters are brought out well and unique from one another.

BOOK DETAILS:

  • Paperback:178 pages
  • Publisher:Notion Press, Inc.; 1 edition (6 September 2018)
  • Language:English
  • ISBN-10:9781643248691
  • ISBN-13:978-1643248691
  • ASIN:1643248693

MY RATINGS:

Cover: 4/5

Title: 4/5

plot: 3.8/5

Writing and Presentation: 3/5

Overall: 3.5/5

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Sometimes writers are born from common walks of life. Sweta Sureka is a 1985 born, Economics Graduate from St. Xaviers, Kolkata, a certified transformational life coach and an inspirational writer.

The Closure is her first venture as a writer and she aspires to write more on issues which she finds are reflections of the society on her and others alike. Her notion of writing is guided by one simple thought that books should be comprehensible first and then awe-inspiring later. Sweta aims to bring back the quaint era when writers used to mirror the life around.

Sweta lives in Kolkata with her husband and two children.