The Redeemers by Suresh Taneja (Book Review)!!!

       

   After a long while, I picked up a book that's published by Frog/Leadstart publication. Though this is a self-publishing company but I acknowledge some of the book that I have read from this source. And the amazing part has been that either I have loved the books very much or I have directly rejected them. But the book that I have just completed is the one that I found mediocre- Neither very good nor very bad. "The Redeemers" by Suresh Taneja- who is a chartered accountant by profession and is looking after the financial affairs of a listed company. He published his first book We can pull it off in 2010. This book is an improved and complete version of his earlier book. Suresh aspires for maximum readership of the book, particularly by children and youth. 

             Suresh strongly feels that the youth need to play a leading role in shaping up the future of our country which presently is plagued with alarming proportions of corruption, malpractices and declining moral values. The intent behind this book is to kindle a sense of awareness amongst the youngsters on their possible role, encouraging them to be creative in finding solutions and inspiring them to translate their thoughts into action. Suresh writes regularly to express himself on a variety of issues. His writings are generally inspired by his life experiences and keen observations. Suresh does not wish to confine himself to issue based books only; he is keen to experiment with different genres and capitalize on his knack for storytelling.

Synopsis of the book says-

One bizarre vacation marked a turning point in the lives of four teenage friends. It dawned upon them that corruption and malpractices had become rampant and deeply ingrained in our culture. They felt anguished and shocked at the shameful state of affairs. They pledged to redeem and change the destiny of the country. They had only two weeks of vacation left to take some big initiatives. The pressure on them was immense. Status quo or failure was not an option for them. Read the inspirational story of a unique movement masterminded by youngsters through innovative ideas and creative thinking. Not a single family could escape from its unrelenting onslaught. It was a rewarding outcome for their persistence and hard work, as they nostalgically recall in 2030.

          Coming to the author, Suresh Taneja does have a great ambition of spreading message through his writings and it can be clearly seen in every page of the book as he does not leave the focus from the subject/issue. He also has good imagination. The only problem that I feel is with the execution of the stories that are in his mind. It's either because of no hand in writing before or bad command in the language. The story that he has written has almost everything that should have been in a book that is based on a group of friends trying to eliminate corruption from India but there's an X-factor which is missing throughout. There are moment that excites you but because the language isn't as fluid as it should have been, you don't jump off from your bed but read the whole sequence with just a smile on your face. 

        Book is written with a good style of going into a flashback while the current year is said to be of 2030 where 1 Rs=100$. Though it makes us greedy to experience such a moment but it seems to be so unrealistic that we sit down again. India is being talked of as superpower in 2030 according to the author. And then he goes to the flashback where he tells about how it all happened because of just 4 young college students who lead the scenario. The first incident of road accident that enlightens the brain of these 4 Indians is given a good justice. Later on, the conversation that makes this children take a step forward towards eliminating everything is also exciting. Then how the whole thing comes up is wonderfully written. The part of the media and Zarine is discussed briefly. The family tree of the protagonists shown in the first page of the book is a very good idea. I liked it. Else everything is fine.

       Coming to the drawbacks, as I said that initially everything looked exciting but the book failed to create that feeling of extravaganza because of bad execution. Though the story selected and plot chosen could have been favorite of Indian readers as its inspired from one of the movements that took place recently but its kept too simple for a book that lies in a genre "Fiction/Drama". Even when this book is re-written and released with a new title, I still think that there are many limitations. I would rate this book a strict average- 2.5/5. If this would have been a Non-fiction, I would have given it 3.5 but as its a fiction book, we expect some drama, twists and goosebumps-giving sequences. 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

That Kiss in the Rain by Novoneel Chakraborty (Book Review)!!!

     

     So, on the same day, I am done reading Novoneel Chakraborty's second novel- That Kiss in the Rain. This is a 204 pages novel which also has the tagline- "Love is the weather of life". This book is yet another book by Srishti Publication while Novoneel C is one of those writers who turned Bestseller with Srishti and later left it for Random House Publication at the time when his 3rd book was about to come in market. Novoneel has surprisingly done very well since the start of his writing career. It's just that he is little cut off from the social world that is making his fans get little disloyal towards him. I hope he interacts with his fans more often that he does. Let me give his introduction once again- Novoneel Chakraborty has written three bestselling novels. He also writes screenplays. As a screenwriter, he has collaborated with a National Award winning filmmaker from Bengal. His other novels are - A Thing Beyond Forever - The Reward For Every True Love is Not Love..., and How About A Sin Tonight? The author also works as a scriptwriter for the Hindi film industry. He maintains a blog called Novosphere, which he regularly updates with his writings and updates on his novels.

            Coming to the synopsis of the book-

Hasil is a young businessman, who had everything he wanted in life. He had married the girl he loved, and the business he had started with his friend Nitin is going well. Then, his world turns upside down when he is involved in an accident in which he loses his beloved wife, and also loses his memory.

The story of That Kiss In The Rain..: Love Is The Weather Of Life begins when his friend Nitin visits him at the hospital. Talking to him, Nitin soon realizes that Hasil has lost his memory and does not know that his wife is dead. Nitin decides that it is better not to reveal that fact to him. He helps Hasil realize who he is and comes up with various explanations for his wife’s absence.

Meanwhile, Hasil has to get on with his life. But his life is different as he keeps wondering about Palki. Two other women enter his life. Pallavi, a girl who was adopted by a rich family, and Swadha, who was rejected by her family because she is a female.

These two women could not be more different, and their contrasting characters are highlighted by the author.

Pallavi had loved and lost once. This failed romance makes her believe that it has killed her capability to truly fall in love again.

Swadha is a simple girl with modest ambitions. She just wants a job that will take care of her needs. And then, she meets Hasil.

Meanwhile, Hasil is still puzzled about what happened to his wife. When Pallavi and Swadha enter his life, it just gets more complicated. He knows how much he loves his wife, but what happened to her? And what about the two girls who are in love with him?

The personalities of the main players in the story are well developed, with background stories providing the reasons for their attitudes towards life. The three main characters drive the story as the author unravels the romantic tangle they have got themselves into.

     

  Coming to the author Novoneel, I would say that yet again with this book, he hasn't surprised me as he again delivered his best. It seems as if he has millions of thoughts in his mind which he has to put in a book and he ends up putting only 1% of it. The desperation of giving the best can be seen in every sentence that is a part of his stories. With this book, I am now done with all the three books of Novoneel and I can undoubtedly say that he is one among the rare authors who love to write a character-based novel where we are told everything about the characters since their birth. It gives us an insight into the characters of the people involved in the book which makes us understand their state of mind before reading what they actually think during an important scenario of the book. His language might seem difficult for some starters but its as smooth as the flowing water of river. Oops, even I started writing like him. Haha!!!

          This book is an exceptionally well-written story where the character of each of the three main characters is portrayed descriptively which makes us feel attached with each and every sentence. Again, I would say, the way Novoneel narrates the teenage love does not make the part look cheesy and childish but even that has so much of philosophy and deep meaning involved in it. As a youth, I also got to learn as to what shortcomings a parent goes through while nourishing a child which I'll have to take care when I will become a father. :-) This book consists of everything- a boy losing his memory, he forgetting everything about his wife and wanting to meet her, his friend trying to fool him, his childhood admirer coming back to his life, a new girl wanting to get close to her, the changes that a girl feels when she attains puberty, experience of a girl during her first period, feeling during the first sex encounter, a family's outlook towards a baby girl, how a girl gets physically abused by a respected member of the family just because there's no respect for girls involved in the family's culture, what consequences an ambitious model faces in the Bollywood industry, how a girl saves herself when a MMS of hers is recorded etc etc etc. 

           This book is full of twists and turns and everything that you want in a book. Though, I felt that the second half gets stretched too much. Or to be precise, the pre-climax part of the book. The climax is once again not satisfying as it does not happen the way we predict the story to end. :-) And I am also doubtful about Novoneel C's style of closing a story that you feel something is incomplete. He leaves the end for the reader to decide. This is something that may be his specialty but I find it very contradicting to my choice for the climaxes of the beautiful stories as of those Novoneel C writes. :-) In all, I would give this novel 3.75/5. Waiting for the 4th novel of the author to release soon. :)

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

A Thing beyond Forever by Novoneel Chakraborty!!!

         

   I am done reading one of those books by Srishti Publication which got released long back in 2010. I have this book since then but I, finally, got time to read it now. "A thing beyond forever" which also has a tagline "The reward for every true love is not love" is a debut 212-pages novel written by the then debutante- Novoneel Chakraborty- is an Indian author and screenplay writer. His other works include That Kiss in the Rain and How about a sin tonight? His writing is inspired by the likes of Haruki Murakami, R. K. Narayan, and Ayn Rand. It explores various aspects of life, particularly the tug-of-war between the light and dark sides of human nature. Novoneel Chakraborty is a full-time writer. He is working on two Hindi film projects as a scriptwriter. He has also written a script for an award-winning Bengali filmmaker. He maintains a blog titled Novosphere, where he writes one-paragraph stories on inspiration and life. Chakraborty is based in Mumbai, India.

               The synopsis of the book says- 

A Thing Beyond Forever -  The Reward For Every True Love Is Not Love presents Radhika Sharma, a doctor who has an aura of being arrogant and unemotional. Yet, she is a sensitive woman, who still deeply feels the pain of the loss of her one true love.

She fell in in love with Raen while they were both at high school. Raen, however, is attracted to another girl, Savera. But eventually, Radhika’s bold expression of her feelings for him turns him towards her. Yet, he still seems to remain attracted to Savera.

It is now 15 years since that time. Radhika is now a successful doctor and seems dispassionate and free of any softer sentiments in her life. Yet, an innocent enquiry from a boy at the hospital sets in motion a series of events that prompt her to reexamine her attitude towards life.

Radhika, by her own confession, has not even looked at a picture of Raen for years. But, she has always kept his personal diary through the years. She hadn't read it, but the boy’s question prompts her to do so now.

The story then unfolds in the form of a personal journal. The plot takes many strange twists and turns, going into philosophy and the idea of rebirth. For Radhika, the answer to her questions about life and love are slowly revealed. And now, she has to make a decision about her future based on these revelations.

The book goes beyond chick-lit romance and explores deeper questions. The author attempts to answer some of those questions, while the rest are left to the readers’ interpretations. The interesting, complicated story line and the well-crafted characters are the highlights of this love story.

     

  Coming to the author, Novoneel has been one of the young authors who have been favorite of many readers who like reading love stories. But I find him more matured than just a chic-lit author. I read his 3rd and the most recent book- How About a Sin Tonight? and I found him a good intense writer who tries to bring out the secret and back ground of the whole movement that he is writing on. There he wrote on Bollywood industry and it made me read this novel that is his first. And I have found this love story a book on philosophy and some one-liners that can give you answer of some confusing questions about life. Hence, it can be easily said that Novoneel is not just a story teller but is helping youths through his writings. Just after this, I am going to read his 2nd novel with which I would have read all the 3 novels written by him till date. :-)

         A Thing Beyond Forever does not seem to be a work by a debutant writer instead you will feel as if its written by someone who has experienced a lot in life. It's hard to believe that its by a writer who is as young as me. :-) Book starts with a love making scene which turns out to be dream of Radhika. A good way to start a book by giving an erection to male readers and equally orgasmic sensation in female readers. Haha. As soon as the Raen's diary part begins, the story becomes interesting as we come to know how Radhika's past has been and what connection does Raen has with her. Then the way Raen's confusion over two girls is been narrated confuses us because we find his dilemma obvious. Story makes us sympathize with Radhika. Later on, as soon as the diary parts end, a shocker comes which gives reader an unwanted sensation as he expects a good event. Later on, the little adventure which Radhika goes through also makes us curious to know about what relation does she have with a 9 years old boy. In the end, I would say I was expecting much with the climax but it wasn't up to the mark. In all I would give the book 3.75/5. A perfect read. 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!