The Secret of the Palamu Fort-Razi

Book: The Secret of the Palamu Fort

Author: Razi

Publisher: Storymirror Infotech Pvt. Ltd.

Where there is an old fort, there are folktales of curses attached to them. Being a country of a rich history and even richer folklore, there are multiple stories that we can hear if we take a closer look.

The Secret of the Palamu Fort is set in the city of Ranchi, Jharkhand. The story opens with a prologue that set the tone of the plot when a couple of local thieves enter the Palamu Fort at night and discover the ghost of the folktales of the Palamu Fort.

We move on to the main plot where we see that an Associate Professor of History, Dr. Anand Tigga is found dead under suspicious circumstances. Since the case was a bit different from the usual cases, Inspector Patrick Minj enlists the help of a local lad, Detective Robin Horo, who had assisted the police during earlier cases as well and was appointed as a consultant to the police. As Insp. Minj details the case to Robin, he also asks about a friend of theirs, Babulal, who appears within the hour at Robin’s house and together they go to the crime scene. At the crime scene, they meet with the housekeeper Bheem and a friend of Prof. Anand, Prof. Anil. They all tell the group the same story of seeing a ghost and smelling Garlic at the same time along with some smoke. Add to that, the murder weapon is an ancient dagger. As the intriguing case progresses, the killer-ghost makes some more appearances. Detective Horo then unearths a clue that links the case to happenings which go as far back as 350 years. All the detective has with him is an ancient riddle and some old trinkets.

What happens next is the entire plot of the story.

The author has taken up a nice concept of a folklore to build up a suspense thriller that keeps you on your toes throughout. The plot of the book is suitably paced and at no point does it seem confusing or boring. Each aspect of the folklore is detailed and even the untangling of the suspense is gradual. This pace of the book helps the reader connect with the characters in detail and helps them keep pace with the plot.

The characters are built properly. Each of them is given due time and their personalities are quite definitive and distinctive. The one problem that I faced was the introduction of a couple of characters. They are introduced as if we know them from before, which is not the case. The development of these characters could have been a bit more detailed, but since they are not so crucial to the plot, the concession can be given to the author for keeping a concise storyline.

The climax of the book is good and does justice to the journey of the plot.

I would rate the book 3.5/5.