(I got the book as a part of the review program by the author.)
What I expected when I read the title and the blurb and saw the cover: An out and out thriller with a touch of seduction and dark romance and a surreptitious affair.
What I got: A light and breezy read with mostly forbidden romance as the highlight.
The blurb: The blurb does not do justice to the book.
The desperation and urgency and the thrill in the blurb does not translate to the pages of the book. Prisha (if I were writing the blurb) is a girl-next door who 'thinks' she is ambitious and career driven, but is more romantic than pragmatic in her approach to life. (How else would explain her risking her first 'dream job' for a supposed investigative story and/or for a fiery romance that sets her loins on fire every time she thinks of it.)
The story that Rajesh is trying to hide from the editor, Priya, is far from investigative. In fact, the entire plot of the book is based around this supposedly front-page shattering story, except there is nothing woah-I-did-not-see-that-coming about it. Also, there is no good explanation offered as to why the protagonist had to hide this story from the editor. None whatsoever. The blurb, again, over-hypes this part as well.
Lastly, the blurb and the title makes reference to a 'seductive affair' that is absent in the entire book. The story is of a typical boy-meets-girl-and-instantly-falls-in-love one. Nothing 'seductive' about it. I can't say for sure whether it qualifies as an 'affair' either, which is often more scandalous.
The story: As I have mentioned before, the book is mostly a romance with a dash of suspense; just a little, almost negligible.
The language: The language is simple, flowy and easy to understand. There is no unnecessary use of jargon, but the author has also not managed to paint a picture with his words. The intimate description failed to incite even a pitiful tingle. Like I said, it is simple.
The characters: The characters are sketched decently, but I failed to form a connection with either of them. I did not find the character of Prisha relatable either. The supporting characters are, well, just mentioned sporadically, and hence it becomes easier for the reader to guess a lot of things in terms of story-line.
There are some things about the book that triggered my OCD and I am hoping the next editions will take care of these:
1. In the blurb, the name of the protagonists is mentioned as Prisha Khatri and Rajesh Lagheri. However, in the book itself, the protagonist introduces herself a Prisha Lagheri. :/
2. The editor informs Rajesh that his co-reporter would be unable to accompany him to Bengaluru. However, Rajesh and Prisha take the flight to Mumbai and the conference actually ends up being there instead. :/
Final views: The book is an ok read. The first 50 pages were quite interesting; there was a lot of build-up that falls flat as you proceed further. There is a love story, there is intimacy, but that is mostly all that there is.
One time read, if at all.
*****
Find out more about this book here.
Follow my reviews here.
Follow my bookstagram here.
What I expected when I read the title and the blurb and saw the cover: An out and out thriller with a touch of seduction and dark romance and a surreptitious affair.
What I got: A light and breezy read with mostly forbidden romance as the highlight.
The blurb: The blurb does not do justice to the book.
The desperation and urgency and the thrill in the blurb does not translate to the pages of the book. Prisha (if I were writing the blurb) is a girl-next door who 'thinks' she is ambitious and career driven, but is more romantic than pragmatic in her approach to life. (How else would explain her risking her first 'dream job' for a supposed investigative story and/or for a fiery romance that sets her loins on fire every time she thinks of it.)
The story that Rajesh is trying to hide from the editor, Priya, is far from investigative. In fact, the entire plot of the book is based around this supposedly front-page shattering story, except there is nothing woah-I-did-not-see-that-coming about it. Also, there is no good explanation offered as to why the protagonist had to hide this story from the editor. None whatsoever. The blurb, again, over-hypes this part as well.
Lastly, the blurb and the title makes reference to a 'seductive affair' that is absent in the entire book. The story is of a typical boy-meets-girl-and-instantly-falls-in-love one. Nothing 'seductive' about it. I can't say for sure whether it qualifies as an 'affair' either, which is often more scandalous.
The story: As I have mentioned before, the book is mostly a romance with a dash of suspense; just a little, almost negligible.
The language: The language is simple, flowy and easy to understand. There is no unnecessary use of jargon, but the author has also not managed to paint a picture with his words. The intimate description failed to incite even a pitiful tingle. Like I said, it is simple.
The characters: The characters are sketched decently, but I failed to form a connection with either of them. I did not find the character of Prisha relatable either. The supporting characters are, well, just mentioned sporadically, and hence it becomes easier for the reader to guess a lot of things in terms of story-line.
There are some things about the book that triggered my OCD and I am hoping the next editions will take care of these:
1. In the blurb, the name of the protagonists is mentioned as Prisha Khatri and Rajesh Lagheri. However, in the book itself, the protagonist introduces herself a Prisha Lagheri. :/
2. The editor informs Rajesh that his co-reporter would be unable to accompany him to Bengaluru. However, Rajesh and Prisha take the flight to Mumbai and the conference actually ends up being there instead. :/
Final views: The book is an ok read. The first 50 pages were quite interesting; there was a lot of build-up that falls flat as you proceed further. There is a love story, there is intimacy, but that is mostly all that there is.
One time read, if at all.
*****
Find out more about this book here.
Follow my reviews here.
Follow my bookstagram here.
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