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Tuesday 23 September 2014

Cover Reveal!!!



Presenting a luscious and bountiful feast for your eyes: the glorious book cover for Whole in the clouds


Cora Catlin is a misfit at best, and an outcast at worst. She feels out of place, as if everything is backward and something is missing from her life.

And then, on her first day of middle school, everything changes.

When Cora encounters an elfin stranger who speaks of the magical world Clouden, an entire kingdom hidden up in the sky, she can’t wait to leave her boring, humdrum life behind. As Cora travels to her new home, where children sprout from the ground and rivers flow with chocolate, she finds herself transformed—and if that weren’t enough, she has to adjust to royal parents, talking Pegasuses, a raging war, and an alluring love interest as well.

Exploring this new land, Cora unearths wonders and secrets beyond her wildest imaginings, discovering the meaning of true friendship, love, and what it means to feel whole.


Now what kind of a cover do you expect it to have? Gauge from the plot, the title and a bit from the tentative cover. And you know there's got to be clouds. Then there's got to be a graphic presentation of the digging up of mysteries.

Without anymore suspense, here we have the cover. Do let us know what you think about it in comments below



The cover reeks of magic. Even reminded me of pixie dust. With a girl standing as if on a quest, and an uncanny depiction of the clouds, the cover is really cleverly made up in consonance with the plot summary.

What do you think? Shower some love in comments below :)






Saturday 20 September 2014

Book Review: The Hidden Letters by Purba Chakraborty



About the book:


She is a successful author, a loving wife and the world's best mom. Her doctor husband dotes on her, her teenage daughter idolizes her and her readers yearn for her writing. Shouldn't all that respect and love make her happy? 
Yet, she is devoid of inner peace. In the wee hours of the night, her slumber is disturbed by horrifying nightmares. All her harmony is abducted and lost amidst the bunch of hidden letters kept in her cupboard. Those letters were written long back by her cousin,presently a patient at a mental asylum in Kolkata.
Haunted by her inner demons and tired by the long-time secrecy, she decides to put end to her misery by surrendering to her husband and daughter, The Hidden Letters. . . 
Will she lose her husbands love and daughters respect? Can she forgive herself for her own selfishness which rendered her cousin's fate malignant?




My Review:

Engaging? Check.
Contemporary? Check.
Predictable? Check.
Bland? Check.
If these words fail to convey my concise review, then read on. 
This story of a woman, who is portrayed as one living an ideal life, what with a loving family comprising of her daughter and husband, is a take on dealing with emotional roller-coaster of a twisted event rooted in someone's past.
What is most endearing about the novel is the fact, that unlike other contemporary crap, this book explores real emotions, and it does that in a realistic and believable manner. The prologue is a precursor to what lies in the plot.
No wonder the plot draws to a predictable close, even in a cliched Bollywood climax, yet there is something inexplicable that makes one read through the book.
What makes the book even more worthy of a read is the fact that one can peel layers which have deeper issues, inter alia, disease and sickness, relationships, dealing with shocks, valuing relations, seeking redemption.

My Judgement:

Worth your penny! A welcome change from the superficial contemporary novels out there.

Book Trailer:


Find the book here: 








Thank you for stopping by, and reading through!




Sunday 7 September 2014

Book Review: I am dead, but my heart beats by Priyank



About the book:

How a love story once hated saved 6 lives in a Communal Riot? 

Should community, language or tradition be the obstructions for true love from blossoming? 

How cruel can a married girls destiny be to throw her into prostitution? 

Have you ever attended an uninvited marriage reception with your beloved and got caught by the hosts? 

Why a boy decides to spend his entire life in a mental asylum? 

Why a girl at midnight runs away from her family? 

How worse it can be if you are caught by your girlfriend's parents while kissing her? 

I Am Dead but My Heart Beats is a fascinating saga of love, education, community, hatred, sacrifices and hope. It's about four youngsters from different communities speaking different languages - Aryan, Anshika, Zahid and Swati. Get ready for a heart-breaking journey of a complete real life story

My Review:

Without any circumlocution, I will get straight to the point: This is a novel with a cover page that entices you to buy it, and then somehow does not satiate a true reader's cravings.

No doubt the book has a plot line, which is evidently intended to bring about social change. Two stories going on in parallel is also a good literary way to keep us engaged.

This was about the intent of the book. But coming to its content, it is written in a juvenile manner, and demands being proof-read. While it will garner maximum support from casual readers, regular and fierce reader like me ill have a hard time really liking the novel, given its overall jejune quality of writing.
That is not to say that any of it render it unreadable. The interplay of the theme of community, teenage love, education isomething to find in this book, a first in India.

My Judgement:

Do not pick the book if you are a grammar Nazi, or are very choosy about the books you read.

Book Video:


Find the book here: 













Thank you for stopping by, and reading through!


Book Review: Business Doctors by Sameer Kamat


About the book:


Ivy League educated management consultant, Michael Schneider, gets hired by an unlikely client. A mafia boss wants to make a last desperate bid to revive his family business that spans across gambling, drugs and porn. A reluctant Schneider takes on the challenge to give the underworld organization a makeover. Join Schneider as he takes on the most challenging management consulting job ever!

  • Publisher: Booksoarus (24 April 2014)


About the Author:

Sameer Kamat is among the best career counsellors in India. He also shares writing & publishing tips and ideas on getting self-published in IndiaThe author is a multi-faceted personality. Hi earlier book Beyond The MBA Hype, published by HarperCollins, advises MBA applicants on the pitfalls and opportunities of applying to international MBA courses. Within 3 months of getting released, the first print run was sold out. He i the founder of MBA Crystal Ball, an MBA admissions consulting venture that helps Indian applications get into the top international MBA programs. He left hi Mergers & Acquisitions career and bid adieu to the corporate world in 2011 to focus full-time on the entrepreneurial aspirations. He serve on the Editorial Board of the Journal of General Management (UK), a leading UK-based academic publication that has a global readership.

My Review:

This is actually a four-and-a-half star from me.
This book peels its layers one after the other, and delightfully, to the readers' expectation and beyond, all layers are equally enthralling, if not more, and all of them have been woven to keep up the pace of the plot and simultaneously the intrigue and unalloyed attention of the reader.

Lets talk about the title first up. When the titles reads, "Business Doctors", it isn't just an oxymoronic play of words. It is for the reader to find out. And here begins a journey of the reader foray into the uncanny plot twists the story will take.
The story opens up with one set of characters and is carried forward by others.
Enter Stephen Woody: he makes killing look easy, he drummed his fingers to create a tapping sensation thereby building tension and suspense. In other words, he is an underworld boss.

The place he operates from is called the Dungeon.
With his foot in handful of businesses like casino, porn industry et al, his business is going through a lean patch. Scratch that. His business is on the brink of ruin. He desperately seeks some professional advice.
His wife (mafia's wife) comes into picture and changes it.
That is all that can be said without spoilers. How she changes it is for you to find. Suffice to say, the way she changes the equations is very pivotal to the plot.

Another layer to the book is the insightful management gyaan on offer. Right from the consulting expertise to the human resource management lessons in the alleyways and lanes of the plot, everything happens in an uncanny way. And why shouldn't it? This is certainly not any regular consultancy client!

Another commendable part of the novel is that the author has done justice to each character no matter how trivial or pivotal the role or however long or short the duration of that role.

Humour has taken vivid forms and shapes. The most enjoyable read is between the pages of those chapters which are a demonstration of an unusual sort of people-management.
*Spoiler alert*
The transformation of criminals and miscreants into valuable human resources( still criminals) is just hilarity in leaps and bounds.

Best Lines:

Usually I list out the quotable lines here, but this time around I shall make an exception, and state  an excerpt, for the sheer wit and humor:
Woody was reputed and feared as a man who had 
uncommon strength when enraged. This was not just rumor 
– two of the men present in the chamber had seen their 
boss twist off the arm of a rival goon - mercilessly –
agonizing screams echoing from the victim, till the arm was 
just hanging off via loose tendons. Suffice to say the doctors 
could not sew back Woody‟s handiwork


My Judgement:

In this era of an abundance of books, if you do have to make a choice among a plethora of books, do read this for it is worth the investment in money, efforts and time, with returns in the form of an added vocabulary, a fulfilled reading experience and insights into the forms that management consulting can take.

Book Trailer:




Find the book here: 






Thank you for stopping by, and reading through!



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