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When I discovered The Edge of Desire by Tuhin A. Sinha, I wasn’t sure what to expect. The blurb sounded promising and the reviews gave a positive feedback. But, the thing about Indian writing is that I could never feel connected to it. Some books just work out fine for me, while others lead to utter disappointment. So it is obvious that I was a bit skeptic about it. Still, I decided to give it a try, and I kept an open mind. Well, after reading this book, all I can say is I am glad I made the right choice.

The story starts with three simultaneous scenes, one of a jail, where our protagonist, Shruti Ranjan is sitting inside a cell; the second of a bookstore where Shruti’s book, The Edge of Desire is becoming a successful novel and third scene is that of Shruti’s ex-husband, Rohit’s house where across him lies a copy of her book. Everything comes down to one story, the story that is going to unfold in the next 300 pages. Thus, The Edge of Desire starts off with a very intriguing start. I was drawn into the novel instantly. The story is about Shruti Ranjan, how the men in her life shaped her future, and the circumstances those led from one incident to another, leading to a whole new life for Shruti.

The book gives an insight into what India really looks like. Deep inside the beauty, cultures and traditions, there is a very dark side; a side which everyone is familiar with, but nobody wants to talk about. Tuhin Sinha, brilliantly talks about the truth, and makes us realize how dirty things can get.

When Shruti Ranjan has a really bad experience, she fights against it. But due to the political fiasco, money-backed criminals escape the punishment that they deserve. When things appear to be the darkest, Sharad Malviya, charming, yet intelligent gives an ultimate solution to her problem, a ticket to elections to win and grasp the justice she deserves. What ensues is a string of events, which convinces Shruti that the things that appear to be correct, are in reality, wrong.

“Good and evil keep happening in this world. It just takes a little longer for us to take the bad in our stride. And just when we think we have come to terms with the bad, we are shocked to be haunted by that one query whose answer is ever as elusive – why on earth did it have to happen to me ?”

In this book there is love and hatred, lust and betrayal, attachment and revenge. I was never interested in the politics of our country, but reading this really opened my eyes to what is reality and what is not. Even though things did turn bland and repetitive in the middle, it quickly took momentum.

Something else which I really loved were the characters and how realistic they felt. Shruti is like any other Indian girl and like any other girl, she is exposed to the crime in India. She represents every Indian girl and her fears and insecurities, whether it is related to crime, marriage or love. Rohit represents every narrow minded man this country has while Sharad represents every open minded and progressive male in the country. Salim Yadav, our villain, characterises every corrupt Indian, who uses money power to escape the hands of justice.

This book is an eye-opener which deserves to be read, because inside lies a lesson that needs to be learnt by all Indians.

Title : The Edge of Desire
Author : Tuhin A. Sinha
Publisher : Hachette India
Pages : 324
Genre : Fiction/ Thriller
Rating : 3.75 of 5
Reviewed for : The Tales Pensieve Pick of the month – November 2015

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