Rosh's Reviews

AUTHORS: Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett GENRE: Comic Dark Fantasy, Satire. RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett – such a writing pair-up ought to deliver, right? Brilliant, humorous, original, thought-provoking, and memorable.  Story Synopsis: As per a prophecy written by Agnes Nutter, a 17th century witch, the world is due to end next Saturday. Two people, or rather, two beings – one ethereal and one occult – aren’t happy about this. Aziraphale the angel and Crowley the demon have lived in Earth since ages, and have grown fond of it and its quirky denizens, despite their flaws. They are ready to go against their superiors and stop the upcoming Armageddon. However, with the Antichrist, the Them and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse already stirring things up, and the planet’s last two witch-finders getting ready for a fight, the going is quite complicated. Add to this some weird planetary shifts and zoological incidents, and you will begin to wo...

AUTHOR: Nathan Whitlock GENRE: Literary Fiction, Satire? RATING: 2 stars. In a Nutshell: Could have been outstanding, but messed up big-time in its execution. Such a wasted opportunity! Don’t pick this up if you were expecting a story about a woman battling an emotional breakdown as the blurb promises; the focus is more on the man in her life. Story Synopsis: Thirty-eight-year-old Cat is having a heck of a day, and not in a good way. Within a few hours' span, she discovers that she is pregnant, she has cancer, and her husband has done something idiotic. Cat falls apart emotionally and runs away from her home, without telling her husband Donovan or her two young kids or anyone else. What led to Cat's taking such a drastic decision? How do the people in her life respond? We learn the above through various third-person perspectives, including that of Cat. As the blurb focusses on Cat's snapping point after the traumatic events, I expected a strong woman-oriented story about...

AUTHOR: Andrea Hahnfeld ILLUSTRATOR: Anastasia Khmelevska GENRE: Picture Book for Adults RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: A picture book for adults! Will work nicely as a companion gift for wedding showers or weddings. Story Synopsis: A newly married monster couple is quite excited about opening their wedding gifts. While they love most of their gifts, one of the presents leaves them befuddled. It is a plant that has almost entirely withered. There’s no sign of who gifted it as the attached note simply says, ‘The Gift of Love.’ As they can’t throw it away, they decide to do their best to nurture the plant back to life. Their results initially seem to bear fruit (or perhaps, I should say, ‘bear flowers’) but soon the growth takes a turn downwards, and the couple is forced to ask themselves some tough questions. I loved the story. It is a beautiful allegorical take on how it takes two to nurture a marriage. Both the husband and the wife are shown as equally concerned and equally involve...

AUTHOR: Victoria Williamson GENRE: Middle-Grade Fiction. RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A sweet little middle-grade novel about two animal-loving friends who, through their personal struggles, learn to empathise and support, and along the way, rescue some animals as well. Loved its wholesomeness! Story Synopsis: Eleven-year-old Norah does her best to ensure that she isn’t taken away from her father and sent to foster care. The two of them live in temporary accommodation and take assistance from food banks. However, this doesn’t stop Norah from lending a helping hand to any animal in need. Eleven-year-old Adam has lived a sheltered life ever since he was diagnosed with leukaemia. Though he is now in remission, he isn’t allowed out of the house, nor can he do anything deemed “risky”. The two kids bump into each other over a nest of orphaned baby robins. Initially apprehensive of each other, they soon realise that they have plenty in common, despite their drastically opposite circ...

AUTHOR: Kris Waldherr NARRATOR: Barrie Kreinik GENRE: Historical Fiction, Retelling RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: The story of Victor Frankenstein and his monstrous creation, but coming to us from the point of view of the three female characters in the classic. As a retelling, this is outstanding. As a Gothic horror, decent. As a women-oriented historical fiction, quite good. Story Synopsis: You might already have read or have heard of Mary Shelley’s horror classic, ‘Frankenstein’. This novel tells us about life in the Frankenstein household before, through, and after Victor Frankenstein created “The Creature”, revealed to us from the thoughts of the three key women characters. Caroline Frankenstein: Victor’s mother, Elizabeth’s guardian, Justine’s rescuer. The woman who loves her family and is ready to do anything to keep them safe, especially considering the current political climate. But she soon discovers that things are going out of her control. Elizabeth Lavenza: Indebted to Ca...

AUTHOR: Raven Oak GENRE: SFF Anthology RATING: 3.6 stars. In a Nutshell: An eclectic collection of tales rooted in the SFF genre. Unusual protagonists and interesting storylines. This indie anthology of eleven stories (or possibly, ten stories and what looked like a novellette) is a compilation of stories written by the author over a period of ten years. The stories have been divided across two collections; this is the first volume. Of the eleven stories, five stories have been a part of other multi-author anthologies. The remaining six make their first public appearance through this book. Of these six, two are stories featuring a character named Ida from the author’s Boahim Trilogy, which I haven’t read. So when I read the first story having Ida and some other characters from the Boahim universe, I felt like I was missing out on some information and couldn’t connect with the story at all, because of which I skipped the second Ida story. My review and rating is thus based on ten st...

AUTHOR: Vibha Batra ILLUSTRATOR: Jemma Jose GENRE: Middle-grade Fiction. RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: A cute little novel focussing on a little boy’s passion for kolam art. Love how it shatters gender stereotypes! Will work better for the younger side of the MG age range. Story Synopsis: Nine-year-old Bharathi spends a lot of time at the Paradiso apartment building, where his parents work as domestic help. He loves playing with his friends Tabassum (aka Tabu) and Alagu, but most of all, he loves drawing elaborate kolams with animal motifs in the stairwell of the building. When a kolam “kontest” is announced as part of Paradiso’s Navrathri celebrations, Bharathi’s friends encourage him to register his name. Technically, he isn’t a resident of the building, but he does spend his time there, doesn’t he? And if there’s a hitch in the form of the dominating and scary Mrs. Subramaniam, Bharathi might just have a trick up his sleeve to bypass her decision. The story comes to us in Bhara...

AUTHOR: Tochi Onyebuchi SERIES: Trespass. #5 GENRE: Short Story, Historical Fiction. RATING: 2 stars. In a Nutshell: Doesn’t deliver as per the premise. Written in an epistolary format, the story is narrated through letters written by Nathaniel, a British missionary, to his wife Theresa. Nathaniel has travelled to an unnamed West African country, and feels passionate about “educating the natives” about his omniscient and omnipotent God. His initial confidence soon turns into misgivings, as he wonders how God cannot already be present in a place with such natural beauty. The pragmatic approach of the locals towards abstract concepts such as belief and faith doesn’t help. When Nathaniel sees some horrifying events, his head questions the actions of his fellow white men and his heart wonders about his purpose in the African land. The premise of the story is what made me grab it. Missionaries have wreaked quite a lot of damage in God’s name, whether knowingly or unknowingly. They genuin...

AUTHOR: Meena Kandasamy GENRE: Autofiction. RATING: 2.5 stars. In a Nutshell: Has its merits but I couldn’t connect with the writing style. Feels more like a feminist essay-cum-manifesto than a fictional story about domestic violence. Story Synopsis: Written in first person, our narrator, who remains unnamed throughout the book, tells us of her marital experience. Five years ago, she fell in love with a leftist university professor, who was much older than her, and married him for reasons other than love. Unfortunately, for her husband, marriage is akin to ownership, and he soon dominates her, dictating every move she makes. After resisting for four months, she finally makes her escape. ( This isn’t a spoiler but mentioned in Chapter One. ) Now speaking to us five years down the line, she dissects her marriage and her life choices. This book had created quite a buzz in Indian FB groups a few years ago as an eye-opening revelation of domestic abuse. ( Feminism-driven books are quit...

AUTHOR: Alexandra Chang GENRE: Slice-of-Life Anthology RATING: 3.2 stars. In a Nutshell: An anthology written in slice-of-life style. Some really good writing herein, but unfortunately, the writing didn’t work as expected for me. This is a collection of fifteen character-driven stories, all focussed on Chinese or Chinese-American experiences either in China or in the USA. The stories are literary in approach, meaning they focus more on character development than on plot progression. They are also slice-of-life in style, which means we don’t always get a traditional start-middle-end. Both of these factors work well for me in full-length or novella-length fiction, but are a hit-or-miss in short fiction. Without an author’s note, I couldn’t find a connecting theme to the stories except for the commonality of the Asian background and having a character-driven plot development. The stories cover a range of genres, from dramatic to fantastical. There is an undertone of melancholy to most o...

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Maggie Knaus GENRE: Children's Picture Book. RATING: 3.25 stars. In a Nutshell: Has some engaging moments but feels a bit lacking. Story Synopsis: Eleanor’s grandpa has shared a bond with her right since the day she was born under a harvest moon. The moon has watched over their relationship, and as the years go by, Eleanor learns plenty of moon-related facts from her grandfather. However, when her mother gets transferred to another city, Eleanor is worried that she and her grandpa will be as far as apart as the earth and the moon. But with the help of technology and letters, they keep in touch. And of course, the moon is still with them in both their locations. At its heart, this is a beautiful story, touching upon the loving relationship between a grandfather and his granddaughter. I loved the way they bonded over their shared passion for the moon, and how the moon kept them feeling close to each other even after they were physically apart. I especially...

AUTHOR: Rebecca Stead NARRATORS: Christopher Gebauer, Jennifer Blom, and Rob Dircks GENRE: Middle-grade Fiction. RATING: 3.75 stars. In a Nutshell: A cute little mystery for middle-graders. The library setting and the presence of a friendly book-loving cat adds to the fun. Story Synopsis: A mysterious little free library appears overnight in the small town of Martinville. Fifth-grader Evan is mystified, but he takes two books from its shelves. He soon realises that there's something odd about the two titles, and he ropes in his best friend Rafe to help him in his "investigation". The two boys soon discover that the books are connected to an event that took place two decades ago, but no adult is willing to talk to them about it. What's everybody hiding? The story comes to us in the third person perspectives of Evan and Mortimer the kind-hearted cat who monitors the little free library among other things, and in the first person perspective of Al the ghost librarian. ( ...

AUTHOR: Kari Ann Gonzalez ILLUSTRATOR: Rachel Suzanne GENRE: Children's Picture Book. RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: An egg-cellent picture book filled with enjoyable learning. Learning to read is an exciting plus scary prospect, but teaching to read is equally difficult. This book works for new learners as well as those who are teaching them to read, giving them simple techniques and a basic idea of milestones to reach on this journey towards textual grasping. Written in second person addressed to the reader, this delightful picture book offers step-by-step instructions on how to train your chickens to read. Why train chickens, you ask? Well, aren’t they always going “b-b-b-book”? 😉 Going from letters to common words to guessing word pronunciations based on their sounds, the book provides a technique to its own readers about how they can learn to read with the help of their guardians. The story itself is quite entertaining. There are plenty of humorous moments, courtesy the l...

AUTHOR: Rachel Greenlaw GENRE: Magical Realism. RATING: 3.5 stars In a Nutshell: 'Groundhog Day' meets 'A Christmas Carol.' Not as light-hearted or heartwarming as you would expect from the theme. But if you are looking for a more emotionally intense book, this will work well. Story Synopsis: Thirty-two-year-old Eva's life has been all about her new business since the last three years, after some personal tragedy caused her mindset to focus inwards. As her shop is due to launch on New Year's, she is busy even on Christmas, bringing her work and her assistant with her to a Cornwall manor to attend her friends Hallie and Kian's Christmas party. Overwhelmed by some news announced at the party, Eva attempts to escape the moors at midnight, when suddenly she is visited by the ghost of her dear grandmother. Her grandmother warns her of the self-destructive path she has chosen, and tells her that she needs to make better decisions. The next morning, Christmas day, ...