historical fiction provides an opportunity to make connections with the past. And, this is what The Counterstroke by Medha Deshmukh Bhaskaran offers you. It presents a story that took place during a notable period in Indian history. The book takes us to seventeenth century India when Aurangzeb (the Mughal prince) was planning to forge a bloody path to the Mughal throne and Shivaji (a Maratha landholder) had started creating trouble for the Mughal Empire.
Read moreIndian history. Ancient secrets. Mythological legends. Thriller. Reminds me of Ashwin Sanghi and The Krishna Key. Yes, when I read the blurb of this one it did remind me of The Krishna Key. A book blurb that has ancient Indian history mixed with some treasure hunting always intrigues me and, blurb of The Curse of Surya had these elements in
Read moreReady for the second contest of the month? Let your imagination loose. Get into the fantasy mode. Acquire superpowers. Be the superhero (or the superheroine) READY? PLAY NOW 1. Theme: Conquer the Valley of Beauty You are at point A and your destination is point V.
Read morePart of South Asian Challenge 2013, Debut Indian Writers Challenge 2013 and Reading Challenge 2013: First Reads Legend. Secrets. A cult of protectors. A child of destiny. What more does a fantasy fiction fan need? Fantasy fiction seems to be taking some steady, sturdy steps in Indian literature these days. This year at The Tales Pensieve we have had the fantastic Luwan of Brida
Read moreThe Shiva Trilogy by Amish for me will always represent that whiff of freshness that stormed the Indian literary scene that was nearly choking with louveeee in 2010! (not that the scene is any different now [after 3 years] but the winds are definitely changing). The mythological – historical – adventure – fiction series is all but immortalized as one of the trend changers amongst Indian books and Indian publishing
Read moreEntry no. #10 – Debut Indian Writers Month: October 2012 Part of Debut Indian Writers Challenge and South Asian Challenge 2012 Title: The Aryavarta Chronicles Book I: Govinda Author: Krishna Udayasankar Publisher: Hachette India ISBN: 978-93-5009-446-4 Pages: 444 Genre: Fiction Rating: 3.75 of 5 Reviewed for: Hachette India
Read moreThe festivities are back in Mumbai, with the queen of Arabian Sea bedecked as a bride and all around are sanskrit chants, blaring loud speakers, feverish dhol beats, out of tune aartis on mikes and ganpati bappa moriya. Every year, September reminds me of my first meeting with Mumbai’s favourite bappa. My first week in Mumbai and my aunt dragged
Read moreA child in Mary’s hand in a church where she is prayed to as a Virgin and this child is not a gift from god! The story seeker is on the quest again, on how did Virgin Mary end up with a child in her hands and this time it is an urban legend, not very far, actually right next
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