Book Review- The Prophecy Of Trivine

Book- The Prophecy of Trivine
Authors- Pulkit Gupta, Srivatsan Sridharan, Tnahsin Garg
Publisher- Good Times Books Pvt Ltd
ISBN- 938063970-7
Website- http://www.theprophecyoftrivine.com
Genre- Fiction
Price- Rs 250/-

This book review is a part of the book review program by The Reader's Cosmos

Now this is what I call a true work of labour and skill. It is intriguing how three authors have collaborated for this work of fiction and yet, the spirit of the book remains intact and more importantly, the language is not bumpy or uneven but very uniform. The books that I had previously reviewed recently did paint a worrisome picture of the Indian fiction scenario but this book works as a redemption and a saviour in this era of sacrificing the beauty of language for the sake of commercial viability. For that reason, I'd like to thank Nimi Vashi of Reader's Cosmos for this wonderful opportunity. The book begins with a Tolkien-esque map of a jungle and although there is Tolkien's imprint all over the book, it is natural to be inspired by good fiction writers. Trouble arises when one starts taking inspiration from bad fiction.

The authors are college friends with engineering background and are now excelling in their fields, I guess it is the chemistry which works best in the book's favour as the theme seems to be well chalked out and meticulously planned. I personally liked the names of the chapters best which had creativity stamped all over them and there was no attempt to sound archaic or classical. Incidentally, the story is also about three men- a scientist, a hacker and an artist who have their tryst with the puzzling ancient prophecy with an angle of science fiction, aliens etc thrown in. The mystery created by the back cover and the Introduction part is good enough for the reader's brain to start salivating in hunger for good, thrilling fiction and that is what he's served.

It is refreshing to note that the language is much better than what I've reviewed thus far and yet it is not too flowery to escape the reader's attention. I'd still not call it a literary novel but it at least matches up to the expectations of an intelligent casual reader. I'd really prefer if the three of them come out with more and more novels because there is a dire need in India to revive the love for language. The Chetan Bhagat generation needs an awakening.

The plot is well thought out and the tale is gripping which keeps one at the edge of his seat or wherever he is sitting or lying whilst reading the novel and it would be loved by geeky, fiction/ fantasy fans.

The pages are crisp and the quality of editing and publication is up to the mark, The publishers should also take a bar and I predict "good times" for them soon too.

I recommend this book to young adults.

Rating- **** (Four out of Five)

What's more? It has a trailer too. Enjoy-

Book Review- The Vigil And Other Stories- Gita V. Reddy

Title- The Vigil and Other Stories
Publishers- Frog Books www.leadstartcorp.com
Author- Gita V Reddy
ISBN- 978-93-82473-34-3
Genre- Fiction/ Short stories
Price- Rs 125/-

This review is a part of the book review program by The Reader's Cosmos.

I have in my hand this book of fifteen short stories written with much effort on the author's part and the same is visible in the plots of most her stories. The author has a background in mathematics and one would expect the stories to be a little more square but on the contrary, the stories are even more laced with human emotions and have a conclusive moral tone to them which are both a turn-on and turn-off depending on your reading choice.

This book does not fall in literary genre and the art of story-telling has taken a backseat to the actual story, but that would be an unfair basis to write off the author as most popular authors these days are following the same trend including international bestselling ones. Reviewing a short stories book is also difficult for the reason that it is more like reviewing 15 different books as each story has a soul of its own.

The cover art has been done by the author herself and is beautiful and adds to the book's structure. The first story- The Vigil is about a mother and her tryst with the myriad emotions with pregnancy. There seems to be an hasty attempt to define characters which has led the story to be leading nowhere until the middle. Then, it begins to make sense and ends with too much sense i.e. the author does the job of forming conclusions for the reader too which is something that defies the purpose of a short story. I think it could have been kept a little more cryptic and symbolic but then, objectivism has been a lost art since Ayn Rand.

Another story 'Delusions' is much better in terms of plot and unpredictability. The characters too are more nuanced and have an interesting 'air' about them. Although, there is a mess up with name of one of the protagonists, I still liked this story better. It is quite possible that what I liked in a certain story might be a turn off for a certain audience but in that spirit, this book has something for everyone. The stories and characters do not have common themes, they do have a larger than life, pulp-fiction-esque feel about them but the narrative is tight and the author has remained true to her instincts.

Talking about the language, you wouldn't need the dictionary for this book and also, it is almost lackluster when it comes to ornamental use of language or even figures of speech. The book could have used a better language but then it wouldn't have been readable to many people so, I guess it was the compromise our authors have to do for wider readership; that or maybe it is just something they are comfortable with.

This book is recommended for those who want to listen to tales and have a love toward lazy afternoon stories. A no-no for those who are Anton Chekhov fans and love story-telling over the story itself.

Happy reading.

My ratings- **1/2 (Two and a half stars out of Five)

Girls, right?

Book Review- Life Mantras by a Life Coach- Preeti Subberwal

ISBN- 9789383271665
Title- Life Mantras by a life coach.
Author- Preeti Subberwal
Price- Rs 385
Publisher- Self published


What I hold in my hands is this precious-looking, hardbound book beaming with positive messages and cheerful floral artwork. Much different from the work that I usually review, this book holds within itself some sunny positive quotes and some messages that a person who doesn't have life quite figured out- can benefit from.

About the author-

The author is a certified master spirit life coach and a licensed NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) practitioner. She is passionate about delivering personal and professional development workshops, seminars and coaching programs. She is also founder-director of 'Thoughtful Engagement ', a firm that facilitates personality development.

About the cover-

The cover uses bright purple shades and floral patterns to infuse positiveness in the reader's mind. The jacket highlights what the book is about and a quick glance at the back cover clarifies its target readership and main objectives.

About the book-

The book has been written in a simple and crisp way, there is no technical NLP jargon, nor is there any flashiness about the whole deal. The book doesn't claim to reveal any super secret recipe to success. It is not a key to all things but it's a way through which you can live a meaningful life. The pages are glossy and thick and the illustrations are one too many. It does give the impression of watching a powerpoint presentation instead of reading a book sometimes but it fulfills its promise of confining all the valuable life lessons into one.

The book is ideal for reading when one is at crossroads in life as these are lessons that one might already know but might be acting in a direction opposite to them. The book is divided into ten chapters which guide the person in taking different types of decisions at different stages of life. Literary aspect is zero in such books and it isn't supposed to be present either. The language is layman English and the messages are clear with no cryptic elements.

Here are some pieces that I did for the book as a part of the Reader's Cosmos team-

With the headings in each of its chapters, the book guides you through sane advice and acts as a wake up call. I think people facing dilemmas in life would benefit largely from it. The book also modifies your personality for the good by helping you reflect on your choices and decisions. This self-evaluative quality of the book is its USP. I'd recommend it to all those who want to get a hang of things and themselves and have been trying since long. I'd also recommend contacting the author for further coaching as some crises need to be addressed by professionals.

Radiology students. Dark Room

Boys make mistakes?

Jan"hit" mein jaari