Blood and Beloved: A collection of dark poetry from Hell by Krimson Ravyn

The Blurb says:

Blood and Beloved, India’s first Gothic horror poetry collection, includes abstract, horror, and Gothic themes such as darkness, psychological horrors, child-rape, death, etc. Each poem from the book showcases elements of melancholy, depression, mania, occult, a darker philosophy of life, and the like. With a vivid, dark imagery, the book aims at being a fusion of the horror and poetry genres. 

How I felt about the book:

The book has 45 poems all of which did full justice to the genre and theme. All the poems are short with few of them even served their purpose in 5 to 6 lines.

I think, writing horror is one of the most challenging task as there is a very thin line which makes it funny or scary. I must appreciate the sincere efforts of author for staying inside the lines.

There are some poems which really left me feeling shocked and thrilled with fear. May be because of the emotions it evokes in your heart, I could not read more than 3 to 4 poems in a go. Here are titles of some of the poems I like:

1. The Last Judgement
2. The worship – among the horror and darkness, I felt it showed a light and asks the reader to be the best version of yourself.
3. In The Labyrinth of The Lost Self – This was again a poem which led to finding oneself
4. The Doom of Eliana – This was scary
5. The Legend Of The Black Tower – I kept on saying “Poor child”
6. I Died Twice – This was probably the smallest but one of the best ones
7. The Lullaby Of The Doll – The best one! Meant to be read two ways – top to bottom and bottom to top. It sent chills down my spine as I read it bottom to top!

There were more notes which I took off the post as I hate spoilers.

The writing style is very Gothic and extremely dark which suits the theme of the book. At the same time, I think it could have been a little simple. I kept on opening my dictionary very often which caused a distraction.

Apart from the difficult vocabulary and some repeated phrases/messages in a few of poems, I think the horror or Gothic lovers should like this book. 

Once Upon a Reunion: A Romantic Suspense Novel by Nithya Sashi

The Blurb Says:

Have you ever sat late into the night, missing an ex, and going over hundreds of 'what-if' scenarios? 
Have you loved someone to the point of losing your mind? 
Like most Indian women who have loved, lost, and settled for an arranged marriage, Nirmala secretly pines for her ex-lover, Suresh, even as she leads a happy, mostly peaceful life with Sreenivas, her husband. 
Memories of her first love resurface occasionally, disturbing her present life. 
Unable to fully love Sreenivas with the insane intensity she had felt for Suresh, she is conflicted and lives in a parallel world, always tormented by the probability of a what-if!
It is at this time that her school friends plan a high school reunion, which her ex-lover, Suresh would also be attending. Nirmala sees this as an opportunity to bring a closure to that chapter of her life. But she is torn by the uncertainty and the upheaval this might cause. She fears that her meeting with her ex-boyfriend might ruthlessly tear apart the delicate fabric of her marriage. 

And at the reunion, her world turns on its head.
Suresh is found dead.
Was it suicide? If not, who was the murderer?
Nirmala is crippled by the shock. But blame quickly falls on her as the ex with a motive and before she realizes she is in the police net. 

How does she manage to escape? And what effect does this have on her marriage?

What I Felt About The Book:

“Once upon a Reunion: A Romantic Suspense Novel” as the title suggests is a love story with mystery involved and very obviously set up around a reunion which is generally organized by school or college alumni.

The author Nithya Sashi kept the language simple and urban. There are what’s app conversations, corporate lifestyle and daily issues which most of the current generation can relate to very easily.

The characterization for all the roles - lead as well as supporting is also very real. As some one wells said that nothing is perfect, author Nithya proved that right and added just the right amount of grey sides to all.

The title as suggests that it’s a suspense, there were small hints here and there right from the beginning. I would not say that I did not like anything, but honestly the boos was more than 50 percent done and the reunion had not begun. And then, it took may be even less time to wind up as the long wait it arrived. Revelation of suspense felt like just summarizing. I am sure of the author had given a few more pages and detailing of the final plot, t would have be so much better.

Apart from the never ending beginning and flying speed mystery solution, I quite liked the story. It was not a typical love story for me, but yes, a decent one time read.

Kalam: Kuch Ulte Panne by J. Alchem

About The Author: J. Alchem has proudly taken many award home which includes - Amazon Pen to Phblish Award, The Best Author of the year award 2017-2018, StoryMirror and Superhero storyteller award.Clearly he has been making Indian authors proud. Head on to his website to know more - J. Alchem.

About the Book:

The Blurb Says: मैं पहली बार छह: महीने पहले मिला था उस से. अख़बार डालने आता था वो हर दिन. फिर एक इतवार के रोज़ वो अख़बार के साथ साथ एक कहानी भी ले आया. मुझे सुनाने को. सुनते सुनते पता चला की वो कुछ पन्ने थे, जिन्हें वो उलटा पढ़ रहा था. एक कहानी में पिरो कर. एक कहानी जिसमें वक़्त पीछे की ओर भाग रहा था.

What I Felt About The Book:

“Kalam: Kuch Ulte Panne” - I am not sure if the readers or the author is going to like it, but the truth is that I picked this book by mistake. I liked the title and as many times I do, I did not not notice that it’s a Hindi book! 

But all is well that ends well - I was glad that the lines were not the typical ones we used them dread and had to pronounce carefully!

Coming to the story line, it’s not something readers would expect but they are going to enjoy every bit of it. The description about respected former president Dr. Abdul Kalam kept me smiling and nodding all the time. It had a unique mystery around the lines which kept me hooked.

There were some errors in the “matras” and grammar which I was so relieved that the author gradually thought upon and conveyed that he would get them corrected. Now, I did not intend to keep this section, but guys, this paragraph is only here because I truly liked the attitude Mr. Alchem has displayed. Kudos to you dear. I am sure the readers are going to get many more wonderful stories.

Luckily, I picked up the book even if it was by chance, It was a thoughtful and story reminded me of old stories I used to read in Hindi newspapers during my school days. It was a one time read, but a very thoughtful and good one.

The Ring o’ Bells Mystery by Enid Blyton

I found this little book with rusty pages in one of my cupboards. I picked it up out of curiosity and thought of being traveling back to childhood. And then, there was no stopping till it was finished.

It’s a mystery thriller meant for kids. The story goes as below:

When Roger, Diana and Snubby go to stay at Ring O’Bells village, their old friend Barney hitchhikes over with his monkey, Miranda, to join them. Barney has nowhere to stay so he decides to sleep in deserted Ring O’Bells Hall. Bit eerie things happen - bells start to ring, strange noises are heard in a secret passage, and there are some unfriendly strangers about. 

Something very mysterious is going on and the friends mean to find out what...

Now, I totally read it with a kid’s mind. There is a secret passage, a village and people resembling children’s favorite bed time story - “Little Red Riding Hood”. Last but not the least, there are dogs! The description of dogs doing everything they could possibly do to show off and to gain attention of is just hilarious. I was smiling really-really wide as I could so relate that to the Labrador – Skipper at one of my cousin’s house. He is always picking up shoes or anything he can possibly get his mouth on while we are at their place to make sure that we do not indulge too much in our conversations and forget pampering him. To sum up this paragraph, there is something for everyone who reads it. 

The plot is just perfect for the age group “Ring O’Bells Mystery” is targeted for. Although it is obviously a little predictable for an adult, I totally put that aside as I thoroughly enjoyed reading it all.

All the characters and the language also very good which kept me engaged and not wanting to put it down till the end. If I had the luxury of sleeping through the day, I would have sat all night up to finish and reach to the end of truly adventurous journey.

I am all praises for this and recalled the "Famous Five" series! There are more books for sure, coming up in my book shelf soon to accompany it! I am waiting for my kids to grow up to the right age to introduce it to them.

Together Forever To Never by Satish Goyal

The 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”.


The Book
Title of the book actually gives enough hint on what’s in store and goes well with the cover page. I also liked the blurb which generates right amount of curiosity. The author managed to pump up the desire of reader to continue reader till it finds the reason of incident mentioned right in the beginning of the book.

The language is very simple and reader can make good progress in a short span of time without skimming through pages.

About the book, usage of good vocabulary is quite prominent from the very beginning. At the same time, it is simple enough to not let the reader refer a dictionary every now and then.

Another thing I liked was - There were a letters here and there! Any one who reads me does not need an introduction to my fascination about them.

Samar, lead character is portrayed as an ideal partner a girl would look for - faithful, hardcore romantic, responsible, innocent, successful, supporting... I am falling short of adjectives.

The story moves really fast but then suddenly goes on slow motion in second part.

There is a section in the book where preaching of life are mentioned. Again, it’s my personal choice that I am not into self help reads and tend to skim through these sections.

There were few sequences which I felt were repeated and felt already read in same book with different language.

Romance is my favorite genre but at the same time, book failed to make me fall in love. Overall, it is a decent one time read very much relevant to present times. The era and behavioral pattern we see nowadays has been existing in society ever since but then it’s now that we have become open and started talking about.

Answer in 10 seconds: What’s the best thing someone has ever done for you?

                                                             

The Sameness in a Consistent Change by Sujay Malik

The Blurb Says:

The wheel of time is a fascinating force. Sometimes it seems to only crawl along, while at other times it simply hustles. And when you tend to look behind, you expect that most puzzles would fall in place. But do they eventually?

Ramanuj, a village boy is confused about most things. He shares a strange rapport with his father, who, despite financial issues doesn’t stall his education. But Ramanuj has no idea what to do with himself.

Then one day things change and change permanently. There is no looking back from this bend; there cannot be. He meets Mr. Shrirangpure, through a chance meeting in a hospital through his daughter Pallavi. Something prompts him to appear more ambitious than he would like to have been.

Impoverished and submissive, he manages to rise above the shackles with time, even though everything is still stuck to his past. But now he cannot get back. He doesn’t want to. Until a revelation, prompts him to go back to his roots again. To the same tree, with which he shares a bond; to the drain water, with which he has shared many a memory; and to the same surrounding, which formed his core once.

This is a story of a boy who tried to end his life once. He loved as well and tried to rise to a level to become worthy of it. A boy, whose journey is all about mostly looking back.

‘The Sameness in a Consistent Change’ is a story of this interesting journey. A journey, devoid of a destination, perhaps. But the fun, sometimes, lies only in the journey.

How I Felt About the Book:

The Cover:

I kind of found the cover page quite creative after reading the book and understanding the context. But then, if I would pick it up in a book store? I am finding it difficult to answer it, so I would say may be.

The Book:

“The Sameness In A Consistent Change” is a short story and can be well finished in 1 single sitting. I however, took a few days to finish it – Yes, I belong to slow reading club.

Coming to the book, it was a simple story with almost no twists and turns. The author – Sujay Malik has used few complex words out of his vocabulary, which made me feel that I might need a dictionary! But at the same time, they are blended the lines and story line which did not make me go back to the dictionary every now and then.

I found the story line and characters quite average. Little more details about the characters other than Ramanuj might have made the book more interesting.

At the same time, there were few instances which could emotionally connect. For example, below extract where one could easily relate to being able to share the successes with your parents:

“when he achieved his dream of becoming something in his life after clearing the coveted Civil Services Exam, his was sapped of all energy and excitement. He was thankful but restrained. The Ramanuj of old would have reacted differently. But this was not the Ramanuj of old. He wanted to go to meet his father. It was not possible. He wanted to go to meet Mr. Shrirangpure.”

It was a one time read for me and before I finish, here are a few lines I highlighted.

He was no less a bird, who had come back to his nest in the evening. The evening of his life!

Life went on and he fell behind trying to leap ahead.

Written in so simple words yet so powerful!

Truths are good. But most falsities are better.

The sound of silence is beautiful.”

Catch Me If You Can by Rafaa Dalvi

The Blurb:

What happens when the world's best detective realizes that his prodigy has become a wanted global con artist? Prepare for a wild cat-and-mouse chase around the world.

What I Felt About The Book

Catch Me If You Can is a really really short  book - just 18 pages. The author used very simple language and started with a comic incident.

I so wish I could write more good lines in addition to above. I so hate to write a review I would not like to read for myself! But then, I cannot be dis-honest in my own blog.

The blurb says that it’s a cat and mouse chase which again fell flat. Honestly, sometimes, I have found comedy TV shoes more gripping and comical at the same time. The only time I smiled was in there beginning section where the making of one of the main characters is described.

Considering it was a short story, I still felt that a few more lines or paragraphs on the character building could have been better. The book just began and ended when the I began to gain interest.

A grammatical mistake is the biggest turn down in any book. While everyone is bound to make mistakes, including myself on this very blog, but still- an error -  that too in such little book!

In between everything, I managed to highlight 1 line - which earned a star from me :P

If history has taught us anything, it's that you either eat or get eaten up."

I felt it was very hurried attempt! Honestly, it could have been a good story and a nice read if more time, words and twists were given to it.

The Next person You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom

The blurb says: The accident that killed Eddie left an indelible mark on Annie. It took her left hand, which needed to be surgically reattached. Injured, scarred, and unable to remember why, Annie's life is forever changed by a guilt-ravaged mother who whisks her away from the world she knew. Bullied by her peers and haunted by something she cannot recall, Annie struggles to find acceptance as she grows. When, as a young woman, she reconnects with Paulo, her childhood love, she believes she has finally found happiness.

As the novel opens, Annie is marrying Paulo. But when her wedding night day ends in an unimaginable accident, Annie finds herself on her own heavenly journey - and an inevitable reunion with Eddie, one of the five people who will show her how her life mattered in ways she could not have fathomed.

What I Felt About The Book:
"The Five People You Meet in Heaven" is my all time favorite books. It is one of those books, I keep on recommending whenever someone asks me for a good book to read. Recently, I started feeling I am sure I am not overrating it. Then, one day, I noticed the sequel to be coming and guess what? I pre-ordered it that very moment. I received the copy a few days earlier to the expected date of delivery and was glad to hold it. Don't buy the excitement, here is what I shared on Instagram as I got an update about the arrival -

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The Next Person You Meet in Heaven - Mitch Albom ... sequel coming up for one of my #favroite #novel “The Five People You Meet In Heaven”... read my review here - http://mydatewithbooks.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-five-people-you-meet-in-heaven-by.html?m=1 I so hope the sequel would be equally amazing if not better... #thefivepeopleyoumeetinheaven #thenextpersonyoumeetinheaven #mitchalbom #mitchalbom @mitchalbom #5peopleyoumeetinheaven #the5peopleyoumeetinheaven #alltimefavorite #reading #books #book #bookstagram #preorder #cantwait

A post shared by Amita Sehrawat (@amitagulia) on Sep 28, 2018 at 7:31am PDT

"The Next Person You Meet in Heaven" is a simple yet powerful book which succeeds in letting it's reader enjoy the story and teach simple yet important life lessons at the same time. Not every book is capable of doing so.

There is some or the other part in the story line which anyone would be able to relate to. My personal favorite part was Annie first encounter. No! I am not going to write a spoiler. Its is so true that we never ever realize how or what impact we might make by which of our decisions either knowingly or unknowing. Sometimes, the level of impact goes all over to generations.

There were one or two plots in the story that I could predict but then I did not regret it. They were written so beautifully yet. The writing style Mitch Albom uses is also really simple and goes with the flow. Regarding the supporting characters, there were few I already knew the feelings deep within even before I read them on paper.

I would recommend any one who loves general fiction to read this. It is not at all required to read the first book in order to get it. If someone has read it, it's actually an advantage  in terms of reliability and speed of reading!

It's one of those books which can be finished in single or two to three sittings easily. It is also one of those books which makes you cry but leave a smile at the lips every now and then throughout the end.

I am not done!!! Here are few lines I could not resist share as quotes.

My Favorite lines from "The Next Person You Meet In Heaven"


Get the book from amazon:

  Hard Cover                                          Paperback                                      Kindle
                                                      

National Post Day - India

My dear daughter,

I hope this letter finds you in the best of health and spirits. I am doing fine too.

My love, I want to remind you that yo are most precious gift I have ever had...

There was once a time when post was the only medium to stay in touch with the loved and dear ones. People used to wait for days, months and even years for that one letter from someone they missed. I truly miss that essence these days.

Technologies have converted the waiting time to less than a second and we can always see and talk face to face with anyone any-where in the world. Still, there are some things which cannot be replaced.

Time and again I have expressed my love for letters. See the posts here:

Posts which reminded me of Letters.

This post is thus dedicated to National Post Day - India celebrated on 10th October. Britishers gave  this gift to India in 1774 which is still a medium of communications in many places.

Did you know that the India Post is among the largest postal networks around the world?

When was the last time you received a letter from some one - not the official posts and reminders, an actual letter!

Banned Books Week

Hola readers!

Do you know there is a whole week dedicated to books that are banned because of any reason? Yes, it is #BannedBooksWeek!

Banned Books week is an annual event celebrated worldwide which aims at celebrating freedom to read. I think, it’s also a tribute to freedom to express and write. Ever since books have been existence, many of them have been challenged by some one or the other as they found the content inappropriate. It was launched in the year 1982 and is held during the last week of September.

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#bannedbooksweek #bookstagram #reader #book #bookstagram #bibliophile #bannedbooksweek2018 #bannedbooks #booksbanned

A post shared by Amita Sehrawat (@amitagulia) on Sep 25, 2018 at 6:40am PDT

Who bans books?

There are several authorities which play role in banning a book.

1.    International associations

2.    National associations, government bodies, courts.

3.    Local associations, courts etc.

Why are books banned?

As much as we all have the freedom of speech, the freedom of expression is also exercised equally. Published content either fiction or non-fiction, can be interpreted differently by everyone. Any person who has any kind of objection on a book or is contents can be challenged and thus lead to a ban if found reasonable at various levels like local, national, etc.

Below are some of the common reasons which mostly combined with one another have led to banning of a book

1.    Racial Issue

      Racism had been the most common social issue all over the world. Despite of the fact that fiction books clearly states that all content is purely fiction, many books have been challenged and subsequently banned because of this reason. Most common examples would be
“To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee 
“Gone with The Wind” by Margaret Mitchell.

2.    In appropriate usage of words and Violence -

      Offensive language is one of the major reasons of the most commonly banned classic book - “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Many groups find a few books to be too violent to read. This combined with racism and sexually explicit language is the top most reason to result in banning a book. Here is another example:

“Lord of the Flies” by William Golding

3.    Sexual content

Sex - oh I typed the taboo word! Yes, this is one of the most common reason leading to a book being banned. This might also be the biggest list if made. Here are a few.

“Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl” by Anne Frank

“The Color Purple” by Alice Walker

“I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings” by Maya Angelou

4.    Religious Issue

Religion is another sensitive topic and the most debatable one too. Unfortunately, many books have been taken of the shelf as they hurt or disrespected some religious beliefs.

“The Satanic Verses” by Salman Rushdie

“The Da Vinci Code” by Dan Brown

5.    Political Issue

Politics and politicians have also been a popular subject of inspiration for many authors. Here are some books that were banned considering various political references or allegations or challenges:

“Nineteen Eighty-Four” by George Orwell

“Mein Kampf” by Adolf Hitler

Then there are of course some books which cannot be sold or purchased in some parts of the world all due to strange reasons.

What are the books you know of were banned based on unthinkable grounds?

PS; The books I have mentioned are not necessarily banned everywhere. Also, the list is long and keep on growing with each new release.