Inner Confines

The Jasmine Bloom by Rajat Narula My rating: 3 of 5 stars Blurb- Sameer Chadha is in a mid-life crisis – unhappy with everything around him, even his name. His corporate career is languishing and he is increasingly alienated from his family. His wife Kavita, a part-time poet and a full-time mother, lives more in the past than the present. When their lives collide with that of Ritu, a younger woman coping with an abusive husband and an autistic son, a chain of events gets triggered that puts all their lives into a tailspin. The Jasmine Bloom is a story of love, lust, ruin and resurrection. It is a commentary on the fragility of modern family life; of terrible secrets and shocking choices. However, at its core, it is the tale of a man learning to be happy in the here and now. My views - The Jasmine Bloom by Rajat Narula is an fictional story of Sameer and his result of mistakes. Cover is the first impression of mine towards novel it's wonderful, name

8 Hours by Upendra Namburi My rating: 3 of 5 stars Blurb -  Aratrika Reddy, the charismatic CEO of ARYA Holdings Ltd., has just 8 Hours to save her company from certain bankruptcy. The multi-billion dollar hotels to steel conglomerate, founded by her mercurial father, liquor baron Madhusudhan Reddy, has many suitors, all of them plotting a hostile takeover. Aratrika’s estranged husband, Siddhartha is one of them. His inside knowledge is the real ace up his sleeve. The Rathores, the Reddys’ arch-rivals are looking to buy ARYA too and thereby settle old scores. Aratrika has to weave her way through a litany of lawyers, politicians, bankers, bureaucrats, investors, power brokers and her dreaded family. Behind the scenes, Jagannath Rao, her wily uncle, is playing a dangerous double game of manipulation. Her father Madhusudan is furiously pulling the strings from behind the scenes. To add to the confusion, overseeing the whole sale process is her old flame, Peter.

Fear Is the Key by Juggi Bhasin My rating: 3 of 5 stars Blurb - A bitter winter wind blowing outside spoke to me. There was no one else. And then it struck me. She might have truly disappeared! Sometimes, you get a sense of these things . . .' It's been one hell of a tough week at Yummimages, a digital infotainment site, with controversies seeping into the politicking within the office. To calm things down, Rahul, the founder, plans a party at his home. His goal is to set things right between his fiancée-to-be, Simone, and his business partner and close friend, Suhel. With the party in full swing it's time for Rahul to have 'the talk', but suddenly Simone is nowhere to be found. As all investigations come to naught, Rahul takes matters into his own hands and soon has a few suspects lined up. It's just a matter of time before he knows the truth. But reality can be so twisted, so bizarre, so utterly unbelievable . . . This book, by the c

Grievances Of Life by Shilpa Pitroda My rating: 3 of 5 stars Blurb - Life is strange. Sometimes it gives you the best times to cherish as long as you can. But then, it also gives us the most challenging tasks. The beautiful moments turn ugly when things take the most dramatic turn.  The lives of Aahil, Dhyey and Mithil takes drastic turns and they are left stranded in the course of life. Their choices and decisions make or mar their very existence. Grievances of Life brings these guys together as they have their own pains and turmoils. They have one more common thing: the addiction to Drugs.  Check out these short stories that will force you to ponder and value that you already have. Grievances of Life is the story of three men who are unaware when Life hits them in such a way that they lose their sensibilities and seem to get drowned in the ocean of pain and distress. My views - Griverances Of Life by Shilpa Pitroda is an short story about three persons Aahil,

Transit Lounge by Sunil Mishra My rating: 4 of 5 stars Blurb -  “Transit Lounge” is a contemporary book consisting of short incidents, observations and reflections while travelling to 30 countries across six different continents during the last 15 years. The book is a personal account of travels to places in Africa (Nigeria, Ghana, Egypt and Mauritius), South America (Venezuela and Argentina), Asia (China, Iran, Kuwait, UAE, Singapore, Indonesia, Sri Lanka,Malaysia and Thailand), Europe (UK, France, Italy,Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Belgium, Georgia,Turkey, Croatia and Romania), USA, Australia and New Zealand. It was interesting to observe all these different cultures and people from an Indian perspective. The book is a compilation of small incidents and events during such travels; it includes losing an air ticket, dealing with difficult custom officials or getting mugged in a prime location in a foreign country."   My views -  Transit Lounge by Sunil Mish

Letters in the Rain by Anubhav Shrivastava My rating: 3 of 5 stars Blurb - Quite early in his life, Aman had been labelled a 'weirdo'. His side-parted, oil soaked hair and gawky physique made him the butt of jokes among his peers. There is nothing spectacular in his life—he studies all day, has never had an interaction with a girl that lasted more than five minutes, and scribbles his inner musings into his best friend, a personal diary. Deep down, however, the guilt of being considered a social killjoy by the society starts to have a negative impact on him. When forced out of his solitary shell into the action-infused warehouse that is 'college', Aman's life takes a drastic U-Turn. Owing to a Chemistry project, he is forced to partner up with Kiara—a cheerful, carefree soul who tucks away her dark, brooding past upon arriving in Manipal. What follows is a series of awkward encounters and quirky adventures; ones that throw them in the deep end and

The Wild Cat by Taanya Sarma My rating: 4 of 5 stars Blurb - Based on true events, this erotic thriller novel tells the tale of a young, naive woman named Tanya who enters the online dating and chat world. Her first foray into this digital realm initially proves to be bland and disappointing; however, sex, suspense, power struggles and attempted murder soon unfold. These unwelcome adventures interfere with her business and her sanity as she aspires to live up to her deceased parent’s standards. A conman named Sam ensnares Aaron, a handsome investment banker, into his ploy and uses him as a pawn to lure women into doing things they normally wouldn’t do. Sam then exposes their personal information as well as their images, sometimes in the act of cyber sex, and posts them on a very successful porn website that he owns. Tanya’s encounter with these two men evolves into a long, winding road, with each turn bringing irreparable changes in her life. Enraged by the deceit

Wedding Pickle by Neha Sharma My rating: 4 of 5 stars Blurb - Avni is an independent, fun loving girl who loves the idea of being in love and having a happy ever after, only she knows this idea is too good to be true in this world, true love is nothing but a farce. Embroiled in her fears, doubts and her haunting past, does she get past her reluctance toward marriage? Does she find someone she can have a happy ever after with? Or does she actually prove her own point that true love is nothing but a farce in today’s world. My views - Wedding Pickle by Neha Sharma will be an another story you hear through your friends/neighbors or you see yourself in the society. When everyone or every other things requires multiple times to shape up to be perfect but in arrange marriage for each chance we take the more reflection we get in return from society. The story is of about Avni, just an another girl you see in this society she is independent with certain boundarie

A Few Last Laughs by R S Ramanujam My rating: 4 of 5 stars Blurb - Marriages are made in heaven, and arranged down here in some parts of the blue ball, The Earth, the place we call home. What do you do when people with bloated egos and gossip-mongering tendencies derail a prospective wedding? Get bogged down or worked up, take it out on the adversaries or Lament? Or, do you simply slay your inner demons and adversaries and seize the chance to triumph over them all like Smitha and Anand? "Dear life, try to steal our laughter and joy. But beware, we will always have the last laugh" - so they say. How, you ask? Let’s Ask Smitha and Anand, shall we? My views - A last few laughs by RS Ramanujam is an novella about a cute love story behind their arrange marriage. The narration of author left a good flow as story moves little slow and deeply. Who are all responsible for marriage? Bride? Groom? Their parents? Are these society? Why can't a family c

Dead to Them by Smita Bhattacharya My rating: 4 of 5 stars Blurb - Moira Madhwa is the typical young, beautiful and successful urban woman until the day she goes missing. Her friends start looking for her, but quickly realize nothing is as it seems. Moira had kept devastating secrets—secrets that could wreck their lives if revealed. As days roll by, one by one, skeletons tumble out of closets, and each of Moira’s friends’ looks guilty. But did one among them hate her enough to do the worst? A nail-biting, psychological suspense thriller, Dead to Them weaves a web of deception, lies, and paranoia in the city of Mumbai, where every face hides a dark story and uncovering it can lead to disastrous consequences.   My views - Dead To Them by Smita Bhattacharya is an suspense thriller, story is so intriguing enough to make you glued in one place. The plot is an usual finding out an missing person but the way author portrayed it makes thrilling. What if your best