Rosh's Reviews

AUTHOR: Kath O'Connor GENRE: Literary Fiction RATING: 3 stars. In a Nutshell: A novel with an emotional story and an even more poignant backstory. I wish it had worked better for me, but the writing was too meandering, and the plot not exactly as promised. Story Synopsis: 2016. Rose, an oncologist, is planning to go for IVF. During the initial testing, she discovers that she is a carrier of a mutated BrCa1 gene, which makes her highly susceptible to certain types of cancer. While she deals with the shock of this news, she learns about her grandmother Nellie, whose early death from stomach cancer was traumatic to the family. Rose also has to deal with her aged father’s health situation, which adds to her mental load. The story comes to us in the alternating perspectives of Rose – written in the third person present tense, and Nellie – written in first person past tense. First the backstory of the novel: Author Kath O'Connor was a writer and General Practitioner in Australia. She...

AUTHORS: Various GENRE: Anthology RATING: 3.85 stars. In a Nutshell: Loved this anthology of stories pertaining to mothers and motherhood. You don’t need to be a mother to love it. "There's no way to be a perfect mother and a million ways to be a good one." - Jill Churchill The above quote sets off this anthology of twelve stories, all of which are about mothers. You might assume that such a theme would get repetitive too soon. Yes, there were certain themes in common, primarily connected to love (or the lack thereof.) Regardless, each story still feels distinct from each other in terms of content and hence the book doesn’t get boring. A good short story for me is one that keeps me invested from start to end regardless of its length. And this is what happened to me for most of the stories in this collection. The tales aren’t limited to stories about pregnancy or new motherhood. Rather, we get to see single mothers and stepmothers, dedicated mothers and disgruntled mothers...

AUTHOR-ILLUSTRATOR: Wendy Xu GENRE: Graphic Novel RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: An interesting graphic novel about the relationship between an inventor and a lifelike humanoid. Covers interesting themes. Needed more explanation for some plot points. But a good read nonetheless. Story Synopsis: Aspiring scientist Clementine Chang has newly moved to Mars for a fresh start, and is keen to begin her new job working with her idol Dr. Marcella Lin, an AI pioneer. Lin’s humanoid AI assistant named Kye is proof of how skilled she is. Clem herself has a little AI companion named SENA, who is somewhat moth-shaped. Clem and Kye hit it off with a great friendship, which creates trouble with Lin. The trouble are further worsened after Kye starts suffering glitches after his interactions with Clem. What is behind Kye’s glitches? Will Clem be able to continue with her dream job after risking so much for Kye? Bookish Yays: ✔ A compelling plot that is quite intricate for a YA graphic novel. ✔ Women c...

AUTHOR: Jesmyn Ward SERIES: A Point in Time, #7 GENRE: Short Story, Historical Fiction RATING: 3.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A literary-style short fiction focussing on the extent to which people can go to ensure survival. Good story, okay ending. Story Synopsis: Afice is the only one left from nine generations of women who escaped from slavery, and survived in the swamp. Each woman battled animals, sickness and hunger, and ensured the continuity of her line through a special arrangement with another group of male survivors. But now, Afice is all alone. And at seventeen, she has reached the age where she must set out on the path of survival, honouring her forebears and ensuring survival. The story comes to us in the first person perspective of Afice. Most of this historical fiction short story is compelling. It depicts the battles fought by a strong woman while escaping from slavery and her decision to continue amid the swamps with her line of daughters. Each generation highlights women po...

AUTHOR: Gemma Chilton GENRE: Literary Mystery RATING: 3.25 stars. In a Nutshell: An indie literary mystery from the land Down Under. Began very well for me, but the second half became somewhat hodgepodge. I still liked it, but not as much as I had wanted to. Story Synopsis: Almost-thirty year old Liam lives life unsatisfied. His job is boring, he’s having an affair with a married woman, and his past still affects him. When he learns that his mom has breast cancer, he uses it as a golden chance to escape his dreary routine and move back to his hometown of Elanora. But the ghosts of his past are still alive, and Liam’s return leads to some long-kept secrets coming tumbling out. The story comes to us in the third person perspective of various characters and from various timelines. Bookish Yays: 😍 Though a long and complicated read courtesy multiple timelines and characters, the plot progression is steady. 😍 I like it when authors make use of their location to provide an authentic feel. ...

AUTHOR: Ivy Pochoda NARRATORS: Frankie Corzo, Kimberly M. Wetherell, Sophie Amoss, and Victoria Villarreal GENRE: Literary Crime Thriller. RATING: 3.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A gritty cat-and-mouse chase thriller focussing on one woman’s obsession with another, the differentiator being that both women are just-released prisoners. A bit too grisly for my taste. But the author *can* write, no doubt! Story Synopsis: Florence Baum, known to her prison mates as “Florida”, portrays herself as an innocent prisoner caught as an unlucky bystander. However, her ex cellmate, Diosmary Sandoval aka Dios, is convinced that Florida is lying and not at all innocent. When both women are released much before their sentence is over due to covid restrictions warranting clearance of space in prisons, Dios is determined to show Florida how similar they both are. This turns into an unhealthy obsession, leading to dangerous repercussions. The story comes to us mostly in the third person perspective of Florida ...

AUTHOR: Meg Shaffer GENRE: Contemporary Fiction RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ without the “wonkiness”. [Pun intended.] I loved this book almost till the end. A sweet and beautiful read that will warm the cockles of your heart despite some sappy elements. Story Synopsis: Six years ago came the last book in the long-running Clock Island series. Since then, children’s book author Jack Masterson has stayed reclusive. Until now, when he has announced a brand-new Clock Island book and a special competition, offering the winner a mind-blowing prize. Lucy Hart has always been a huge fan of the Clock Island series and of its author. As a teacher’s aide, the twenty-six year old shares her love of reading with her little charges, especially with seven year old Christopher, an orphaned child who loves his teacher more than anyone else. Lucy dreams of adopting Christopher, but her financial situation doesn’t allow her to fulfil her dream. Masterson’s compe...

AUTHOR: Nadine Aisha Jassat GENRE: Middle-grade Novel-in-Verse RATING: 3.75 stars. In a Nutshell: A novel-in-verse. More of a mystery than what I had expected from the title. Nevertheless, a solid read for middle graders, with a strong theme of self-identity, racism, bullying, friendship and family. Story Synopsis: Twelve-year-old Nyla, a mixed race child, lives a life focussed on those around her. Her loving but busy single mom—who works double shifts to support their family, her beloved grandmother—who has Alzheimer’s, and her best friend Jess—who has acting ambitions, are the key people in her life. Nyla has always been told that her father passed away when she was four. But when her grandma insists that she saw him in the local supermarket, Nyla wonders if Grandma was right or was it her disease creating trouble again. As Nyla decides to investigate her grandma’s claim, she also hopes to discover more about her mixed identity and where she fits in this world with its preset notions...

AUTHORS: Boria Majumdar & Nalin Mehta GENRE: Sports Nonfiction. RATING: 3.5 stars. In a Nutshell: Part exposé, part biography, part aspiration. Highlights Indian sports, sports players and the governing bodies with a special focus on the Olympics and the then-upcoming Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Recommended to Indian sports lovers. Most sports lovers in India who belong to my generation or are younger have seen India reach the pinnacle of sports consistently in only one game - cricket. A game that is not even played at the highest level in most countries. A game with just a few truly competent international teams. But as the Indian team is (quite possibly) the best in this game at present, cricket gets all the attention, all the fame, and consequently, all the moolah. We forget that field hockey is the national game of the country and that we were (and are) the record holders for winning the maximum number of Olympic gold medals in the sport, though the heyday is long in the past. We beco...

AUTHOR: Piyusha Vir GENRE: Anthology RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A quick and interesting anthology. Indie Indian work. Enjoyed it! This little indie story collection has just about 32 pages and three stories. So it is a super-quick read. But the short length or the indie tag definitely doesn’t indicate a lack of quality. Even more surprising to me was the fact that this is a debut work. The author has a strong control over where she wants the story to go. What’s common to these three stories is that they take place in the course of a day. A day that is “just another day” in the life of the central character. But it turns out to be a day of unpredictable changes, a day that changes their lives for better or worse. All the three stories are written in the first person. As such, we get to see the inner thoughts of the narrators in each of the tales. Two of the stories are written in a casual conversational style, with fillers also being present in the writing. But the first person a...

EDITOR: Dane Cobain GENRE: Anthology. RATING: 3.55 stars. In a Nutshell: An unusual anthology with an unusual theme, hinted by the title. Has hits and misses, but the hits are really good. Multi-author anthologies are usually unified by some kind of a theme that ties the stories together. However, for this book, there is no common theme. On the contrary, you could consider this anthology the result of a creative writing exercise. Each contributing writer had to provide a writing prompt containing a subject-verb-object in a short sentence. These prompts were then randomised and distributed across the authors, who then wrote a story for the prompt they were allotted. Thus, this collection has eighteen stories by eighteen authors. When I read this ‘backstory’ in the introductory note, I was quite impressed. But as I proceeded with the collection, I realised the pitfalls of the method. The prompt sentences are quite varied, and the writers’ core genres are also quite varied. This results i...

AUTHOR: L.E. Harper GENRE: YA Fantasy RATING: 3.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A YA Fantasy covering some really dark topics. Took me some time to get into it, but I loved the ending. Will work better for YA readers. Check out the triggers. Story Synopsis: Our protagonist is an author who escapes from the pain of her real life by writing a YA Fantasy series set in the imaginary realm of Solera. Her books include interesting larger-than-life characters including shapeshifters and dragons. She loves all her characters, or as she calls them – her ‘darlings’, but knows that she can even kill them if it is right for the story. But one morning, she wakes up in Solera without knowing how or why, with her beloved darlings thinking that she is Kyla, their leader and the main protagonist of the Solera books. The real Kyla is nowhere to be found. The author has entered their story at a point just before a major war. Now she must put her writing chops to real use, trying to figure out an ending that wo...

AUTHOR: Fran Pintadera ILLUSTRATOR: Ana Sender GENRE: Children's Picture Book RATING: 3.75 stars. In a Nutshell: A lovely children’s picture book about accepting fear as a valid emotion. Scary artwork though. This book was originally published in Spain under the title ‘Per què tenim por?’ in 2022. This is the English translation, coming in June 2023. The premise is quite simple. During a power cut, Max is watching the flame of the candle lit by his dad when he suddenly asks his father if has ever been afraid. Max’s dad thinks about his son’s query for a moment, and then launches into his response, covering the fact that adults too feel fear, and a list of things that can scare people. The story ends with the lights coming back on, in various ways. I liked the structure of this book. The setup involves a parent confessing that he also has been afraid sometimes, which is so important for kids to know. It justifies fear as an actual emotion, and shows that it is okay to be afraid, an...

AUTHOR: Sally Hepworth NARRATORS: Barrie Kreinik and Jessica Douglas-Henry GENRE: Domestic Suspense RATING: 2 stars. In a Nutshell: No soul, no mate. Better if read as a family drama than as a domestic thriller. Even better if you skip it. Hello once again from Outlier Island! Story Synopsis: Gabe and Pippa live in a cottage by a cliff along with their two little daughters. This cliff-side is unfortunately a suicide hotspot, and Gabe has become something of a local hero by rescuing people from jumping off to their deaths. But he doesn’t succeed in saving the latest person, a woman. When Pippa learns that Gabe has not told her the entire truth and that he actually knew the victim, she begins to ask questions and discovers many new secrets. But Gabe is her soulmate, and it is her duty to keep him safe, isn’t it? The story comes to us in the first person perspective of Pippa in two timelines – Then and Now, and also in the first person perspective of Amanda (the victim) in two timelines –...

AUTHOR: Emily Norris ILLUSTRATOR: Malgorzata Detner GENRE: Children's Nonfiction, Music RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: A beginner’s guide to playing the piano. Works nicely as a first piano book because of the range of information and the variety of songs. Might get a bit overwhelming at times. G-sharp the giraffe is our narrator on this musical journey where kids can understand the basics of piano playing. The book begins with the essentials such as correct posture and positioning, and then moves on to one new concept per chapter, thus covering quite a lot by the time they complete chapter ten. Every chapter begins with information about a few terms and then illustrates the same with a couple of simple popular songs such as ‘Hot Cross Buns’ or ‘London Bridge is Falling Down.’ The lyrics have been modified in certain cases to avoid complicated notes. Every song in the book is played only with the white keys, thereby skipping out all mention of sharps and flats. The songs begin w...

AUTHOR: Smita Das Jain GENRE: Contemporary Romantic Drama. RATING: 2.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A brave choice of protagonist for this genre, as the leading lady pretty much drives the show in a ruthless and selfish way. The writing style, however, wasn’t a match to my reading preferences, and the somewhat clichéd approach in certain plot elements also reduced my enjoyment. A decent book, but I wanted more. Story Synopsis: 2018. Gurugram, India. Sonia seems to have everything going right for her. A management grad from India’s best institution, twenty-seven year old Sonia works in a job she is passionate about, and married to her classmate from IIM-A. Her reporting heads idolise her, and her assistants are also in awe of her. The glitch in this perfect world is that her husband Sameep isn’t happy with the way Sonia seems to be working 24x7, even at the cost of their personal time together. Sonia’s decisions are dominated not just by her ambitions but also by her past. How long can Sonia...