Category: Book Reviews

• 

Statistics –

Format : Kindle (Ebook)

Length : 72 pages

Genre : Short stories, fiction

Publisher : Self-published

---

Blurb –

Love, loss, life, laughter and more is a small collection of stories on emotions each one of us has either experienced or seen in life. You could know or be Rami or Niti or Mahi or even the man who got duped. Every story has something for you which may be nostalgic. How they end or what happens next is either for u to decide or could let me know and I will bring in some more.

---

My Review :

Love, Loss, Life, Laughter And More by Ritu Kakar is a collection of 10 short stories on various emotions like love, tenderness, trust and happiness.
~
The stories almost deal with every theme whether it be self love, family problems, friendship, freedom or loss.
~
Something which I really liked about the book is that most of the stories are women oriented with strong and smart female characters and how they don’t hesitate to make a decision.
~
The main theme in each story is well explored and the characters were written finely but the narration was not very compelling and had scope for improvement. There were also grammatical errors, which hindered the reading experience.
~
Some stories had me greatly interested whereas some couldn’t appeal to me.
One story which I really liked was ‘Soulmates’, it was a delightful story with well written characters.
~
The book includes stories with themes of cheating and some with description of sensual scenes which might be set-offs for you.
~
This book is a light and fine read but could have been better with a more well-planned execution.
~

---

My Rating

3/5⭐

---

Find the book here

Once There Was Me by Bobby Sachdeva is an autobiographical and part fiction account of the author being a survivor of 1984 riots in India and his life after that.
~
‘Hum kyun chalein us raah par
Jis raah par sab hi chalein,
Kyun na chune woh raasta
Jis par nahin koi gaya.’
These lines are mentioned in the book and are the most suitable lines about the author.
~
The book primarily talks about the 1984 Sikh riots in India. The book pursues the journey of teenage boy, being the survivor of the riots, the effect of the riots on his life.
~
Religion is a delicate and crucial issue, and is something that everyone has different views about. The author talks about religion, faith,god and godmans in a way that makes you question your belief. The book also talks about religious discrimination and social injustice.
~
The writing style is the highlight of the book. The events in the author’s life are written in a very interesting way. It keeps you hooked and makes the book a page turner.
~
The author’s journey is very inspiring. From being a riot survivor, and also goes abroad, he goes on to become a successful business man and finally becomes a writer.
~
This book does talk about sensitive issues like religion, violence and corruption, which might be triggers for you.
~
Poignant, powerful and emotive. Once There Was Me will definitely give you a one of a kind reading experience.
~
Rating : 4.5/5

The Story Begins At the End by Sujay is a collection of 16 short stories about love, trust, fondness and warmth.
~
Love is something we all look at differently, have different perspectives about. This book is just like that.
~
About different people with different outlooks about love. The stories cover many aspects regarding love.
The collection also has a few stories with a military background.
~
The highlight of the book is the unique nature of each story. The stories don’t seem repetitive. The language used is quite good.
~
The characters are well written but I felt that the narrative could have been more compelling. Some stories could not grab my interest.
~
One story I liked is ‘Rainbowed’, about two people who share a special connection. The story has philosophical quotes which I particularly liked.
~
This book is a fresh read, do read it if you are someone who likes reading romance.

My Rating : 3.4/5

Flipped : School Stories is the third book in the Flipped Series. It is an anthology written by various authors with two themes : School Stories and Sports Stories.
You get two covers and two sides to choose from,how cool is that? Just flip the book for a new story. Each section has 6 stories.
✏️
School time is the best time of our life,some of us didn’t like going to school but now all of us miss it.
✏️
The School Stories are witty, interesting and cover a diverse range of topics right from the fear of an exam to a school sleepover, how nice is that!
✏️
With going to school comes Sports and most of us had the PE and Games period as our favourite.
✏️
The Sports Stories are well detailed,they show how joyful it is to be associated with sports in some manner in your life.
✏️
The book is very engaging and relatable.Being a mother of two school-going girls, it was pure joy for me to read this book. The tales also cover the most important theme of our school lives – Friendship.
✏️
The book is well written with intriguing tales and appealing illustrations by Shamika Chaves which add to the overall charisma of the book. The book also has a enjoyable comic strip with a good message.
✏️
Clever and charming,do read the book to take a trip down the memory lane.
✏️

Thank you HarperCollins India for the review copy.

Quirky History : The Swan Car of Nabha & Other Unusual Stories from History is a purposeful book that emphasizes on the fun and unusual events from the history of India.
~
Live History India is India’s fastest growing digital platform dedicated to the subcontinent’s rich history. The stories have been written by LHI’s team of reserachers and the book has been curated by LHI’s curator – Mini Menon.
~
Divided into 7 sections,these fun stories cover a wide range of topics,right from the Nawab of Junagadh who hosted a wedding for his dog which was attented by over 700 guests to the story of the delicious food items Khichdi and Biryani. From stories about animals to the stories of games like ludo. From the chronicles of India’s treasure trails to accounts of India’s Spectacular Journey and also the tale of the man behind the Shampoo. The stories are so knowledgeable yet so lively
~
Belonging to a family of philomaths,this book was really enjoyable for me to know about some bizzare and hilarious tales from history. The best part of the book is that it is really diverse and covers accounts from every part of India.
~
Writing History is a courageous read. This book is a fresh and entertaining narrative on India’s history with with witty tales. There are lovely illustrations by Anitha Balachandran which compliment the tales very well and add a lot to the charm of the book.
~
Do read it if you are looking for something super fun and knowledgeable to read.

Thank you HarperCollins India for the review copy.

Cloudburst written by Wilbur Smith and Chris Wakling explores the story of Jack Courtney who has spent his life in London. He is headed to Congo,Africa with this parents and friends,Amelia and Xander to attend a summit.

He has an adventure of a lifetime there,his parents are abducted by mercenaries.Now,Jack and his friends have to go to the tantalum mines to find his parents.

Smith mainly writes about the nature involving adventure and this book is quite well written.

“Life is an adventure and that is best lived boldly.”
Jack personifies this quote and is a wonderful character who is clever and considerate.

But my favourite character has to be Amelia. She is a wise person and has information on everything which reminds me of my twin daughters.

The book has a great flow and you don’t get bored even once.The mystery in the book is written quite brilliantly. It keeps you hooked.Smith explores themes like friendship,love,environment and power in an excellent way.

It’s set in the rainforests Africa,and the location keeps changing so it is quite intriguing to read different incidents happening at different locations. Nature is nicely involved in the story.

The character development is good. Every character gets his/her space. The narration is compelling and the story has a strong base. The plot is well detailed and fast paced.The way the mystery unravels in the climax is appreciable.

Do read it if you are looking for an adventurous and action-packed story.

Huge thanks to HarperCollins India for the ARC

Get your Copy

Dream Beyond Shadows is a travelogue written by Kartikeya Ladha. I love travelling and this is one of the best travelogues I have read.

The cover is very beautiful. The shades of pink and purple are beautiful. The cover is really attractive.


Hellen Keller said “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all”
This quote sums up the book.
The author left his scintillating job to explore himself. It is very courageous to leave everything and follow your heart.

He goes to Amazon forest in Peru to experience Ayahuasca and in this journey he experiences working in an NGO to working as a bartender in a hostel.
In every destination he finds something new about himself. He also meets new and interesting people from whom he learns something.

The book is part autobiography,part travelogue. There are also wonderful poetry pieces.

What I really liked was this is not some typical wanderlust story but a story about truly exploring yourself. The story reminded me of a quote by Rumi “What you seek is seeking you”

The author’s writing style is such that the book keeps you hooked from the first and keeps getting more interesting as you progress with the reading.
The language is lucid and you can easily enjoy the book.

Spiritual,Stirring and dynamic. I recommend this book to everyone.