The Blogchatter Book of Thrillers: Multiple Authors

Book: The Blogchatter Book of Thrillers
Author: Multiple Authors
Publisher: Readomania

I was provided a Media Copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Do you think a short story can give you spine tingling chills?

What goes on in the minds of people on the threshold of doing something drastic? A woman convinced there's a presence at her window that only she can see; a collector who has an unusual interest in fingerprints of her victims; an unsettled man blaming everything on his wife; a low-caste child trying to make sense of India's freedom; a haunted guest house room and the ghost that goes away; a reclusive and aggressive teenager who loves lizards—the stories explore times long ago, realms we never knew existed, the deep recesses of the human mind, and fears that become aggressions. The Blogchatter Book of Thrillers features 15 thrilling stories from Blogchatter's community writers—these tales will chill, scare and stay in your head and heart.

The book is a collection of 15 stories that explore various aspects of human & non-human entities and their interaction with the human world. The stories are not just thrillers or filled with spook, but they also comment on the society and evils that reside inside it. Each of the stories have been written wonderfully, and I loved that no two stories were similar. The fifteen stories keep you gripped as you turn the pages and the climax of the stories sent a chill down my spine. Out of the fifteen stories, the ones that really caught my attention were One Night by Tarang Sinha, The Dactyist by Anushree Saha and Hartoli’s Duty by Suchita Agarwal because of the amazing storytelling and the impact the climax had on me. One Night stood out because of the theme as well as the way it is narrated which makes you visualize the story as it unfolds. The Dactyist was something I didn’t expect and each paragraph brought a twist into the story. The way scenes unfold, you are terrified to the core, and the last paragraph just makes you look up from the book and check your surroundings. Hartoli’s Duty as a story was quite interesting and kept me wondering as to where this was going until the moment when the boat stops and you realise the point of the story.

Overall, this is a wonderful collection of stories that will enthrall you, scare you but also make you think. The book scores a 4.5/5 for me.

Get a copy of the book here.

List of Authors in this Anthology:

1. Against my Windowpane: Rehana Sultana
2. The Last Rasam: Anuradha Shetty
3. The Secrets of Nandini Rutuja: Roma Gupta Sinha
4. Memory's Missing Piece: Kajal Kapur
5. What Tomorrow Holds: Deepti Menon
6. The Encounter: Chinmayee Sahu
7. Fragments of Yesterday: Huma Masood
8. The Fields: Nirmiti Narain
9. One Night: Tarang Sinha
10. The Dactyist: Anushree Saha
11. Black: Dr. Alpna Das Sharma
12. A Husband's Guide to Set a Wife Right: Rahul Vishnoi
13. The Silver Anklet: Harshita Nanda
14. What Runs in our Blood: Roshan Radhakrishnan
15. Hartoli's Duty: Suchita Agarwal

The Grande Matriarch of Malabar-Sajita Nair

Book: The Grande Matriarch of Malabar
Author: Sajita Nair
Publisher: Readomania

I was provided a Media Copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Do you think that some traditions should adapt to changing times or should they hold fast like rocks?

How far will you go to hold on to your heritage? Is the house more important than the people who live in it? Dakshayani Amma—the grande dame of matrilineal Kalyedath—must ensure its longevity, but having a differently abled daughter jeopardizes her hope of an heiress. As her challenge turns into an obsession, she disregards her well-wishers and overlooks the stakes. But there is a price to pay.   When Rohini visits India from the US, she has only one objective in mind—the sale of the Kalyedath Tharavad bequeathed to her. But when unexplained hurdles befall her, she is forced to revisit the past.  How are the two women’s lives intertwined? What happens to the Tharavad? Does it become a relic like the traditional joint families?

Sajita picks up the continuous struggle people are facing today-retain your heritage or adapt to modern times. The book explores the struggle of a matriarch to keep the traditions of her Tharavad alive while the world around her changes. Opening the book with Rohini, the granddaughter of Dakshayani Amma, the matriarch, coming to the Tharavad to sell it off post the death of Dakshayani Amma, but she faces unnatural hurdles in doing so. This is when she revisits the past, and we get to know the story of the traditional matrilineal household and the history of the house as well as her family. Through the story, the author has tried to put forth the question of traditions versus change, and to think whether in this race of getting modern, are we leaving a part of our culture behind. Another thing I liked about the book was its descriptive nature and Sajita takes due care to paint a picture of the Tharavad as she explains the setup and the surrounding areas. The storytelling is powerful and Sajita explains the plight of the elder son of the family as he grows up keeping the wishes of the matriarch fulfilled. The book moves at a comfortable pace and keeping the drama in the story till the last page. The climax has been well plotted and Rohini’s decision brings the story to a nice close.

The beauty of the story lies in the characters and Dakshayani Amma’s character has been created intricately. There are multiple layers to her character and each one of them has been explored quite in detail. Her respect for the tradition as well as the well-being of the Tharavad and its members has been put forth in the story. I also loved the character of Achuthan and the way his character arc develops and closes the story in the end.

Overall, this is a wonderful story of family, tradition and changing times. The book scores 4.56/5 for me.

Get a copy of the book on Amazon India.