Here is why you should read

  Continuing on the Songs of Freedom Series, A Conspiracy in Calcutta can be read as a standalone. This could not have been coincidentally well timed than 23rd January - the 125th birth anniversary of Subhash Chandra Bose - the true son of the soil. I have always been so fascinated and touched about the Indian freedom struggle and how much had transpired not only at a national level but also in every home. When I speak about Indian history to my students, I never fail to tell them that this part of history must never be forgotten. It makes us whatever we are - good, bad or ugly. And no country is perfect. We have to strive to make it perfect and keep it running like a well-oiled machine.  A Conspiracy in Calcutta is a sweet story of how little Bithi is all inspired by her dada [older brother], who is actively participating in the freedom struggle by being part of secret revolutionary groups and spear heading rallies and talks. Every young man in Calcutta is charged to make a d...

  If your heart is thumping louder than normal, if your mouth feels dry and you are able to anticipate abnormal behaviour, you are reading good content.  Jasmine Owens is married to the man of her choice and dreams. He has never made her feel bad or awkward. Never has he let her down. Almost too good to be true. All this goodness and great behaviour goes down the drain when, on their anniversary, Jasmine chooses to invite hers and Adam's, her husband's, friends over for dinner. Nothing much is said that night but the silent treatment that he is giving Jasmine has her palpitating all evening. What was so wrong in giving a surprise party? Well, she did not know that he didn't like surprise parties at all! Now she would have to face the consequences once everybody left. This was just one off incident. Many more were to follow. Where did Jasmine land herself in? If this marriage was going to turn out like this, she might as well end it. But would she be able to? Will Adam leave...

Dating apps. Marriage sites. Online data about people you are free to meet. As much as I want to be liberal in my thoughts and open minded, I somehow don't like the sound of these sites that host people to further their relationships. Most often than not, you bump into someone who will change your life forever. For good or for bad! The story is cleverly divided between a Before and Now timeline. The Before timeline talks of youngsters Tom and Daisy who were high school sweethearts. Tom comes from a fragile and volatile family background. His father often beats up his mother. Daisy's best friend does not want Tom to be close to Daisy; she does not trust him one bit. What has Tom done that is so bad? Or does he have bad company who do bad things? In the Now timeline, there is Sydney , just another person, on the look out for a date/life partner. The people she is currently meeting on the dating app are pathetic. She met a Kevin online and after one date,   Sydney realizes  that ...

  Three years ago, Olivia was abducted from the safety of her home. Who encroached her space? What did they do to her? How did she escape? These are questions you are immediately forced to ask, to which there are very vague answers. We know she survived.  On the anniversary of that very traumatic incident, Olivia was to meet her best friend Zoe and record an interview for a podcast. Zoe and Olivia have been friends from their journalistic days and to be with the times, Zoe had moved on to record true crime podcast. She researched on missing persons cases. Olivia's interview would surely add value to her podcast. As Zoe wrapped up her podcast for the evening, she received a message on her phone, paralyzing her with fear. Olivia had received a message from Zoe the previous evening that she would like to meet to discuss the questions to be asked during the interview, but that meeting never happened, because Zoe did not turn up to the decided place. Super unlikely of Zoe to not ke...

  Tara has been married for close to three odd decades now to Deven. Their marriage was one of compromise and in "those" days, arranged marriages were just that. Tara always wanted to study further but as typical Indian households would want it, irrespective if they were in India or anywhere on this planet, would suggest that the daughter of marriageable age first get married and then do whatever she would like with the permission of her husband and new family. Having come to that understanding Tara agrees to be married. But, obviously life does not turn out that way. Deven wants to set up his practice first and Tara's life has to take the back seat. Life moves on. Tara and Deven have two beautiful daughters - Heena & Nikki. Tara brings them up as self sufficient, learned women of the new century.   But, she has one wrong expectation of them - that they live their life, sans marriage, on their own terms and confidently etc. It was wrong to have even be holding the ide...

  I chanced upon the show on Amazon Prime a few years ago and I just could not stop watching as one episode rolled into the other. The show is a book adaptation of the novel by the above mentioned author and is brilliant. You could see through the emotions without really spelling it out.  Having heard of the myth that movies don't do justice to books, I had to read or listen to the book to make that judgement. Would the book be better than the televised series. The draft of this post has stayed on my blog since 2022, I realize! Little Fires Everywhere [LFE] is all about Motherhood and every possible emotion that this status brings to women -  Hyped. Overrated. Deep. Intense. Fearless. Fearsome. Perfection. Flawless. Helplessness.  LFE to me was mostly about strong mothers - two main characters and two sub characters.  Let's meet the Richardsons. Wealthy, well read, well settled, well known. The Richardsons have four kids - Trip, Lexi, Moody and Izzie. Their live...