Author: Keerthana

07 Jun

Posted at 07:25h in fiction
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The book is by the author who had many best sellers in her kitty like The Forest of Enchantments and Palace of Illusions. She is not only an author but also an activist and a teacher of writing. Her work has been published widely, in magazines and anthologies. Plus, her books have been translated into 29 languages. So now let’s get into the plot of the book! PLOT HIGHLIGHT: The book is all about Rani Jindan’s journey from her teens to her demise. The book is a work of fiction through the characters in the book are real! The plot is divided into the time when Jindan Kaur comes to Lahore with her father and brother, her marriage to the king, then she becoming the Queen, and finally her demise! Her father being the kennel keeper of Maharaja Ranjit Singh never expected his daughter to be not only the king’s consort but also his favorite. We see in the book how she has to face the wrath of the King’s eldest wife and how most of the courtiers cannot accept her because she is not of the royal bloodline. Each section of the book not only shows the events in the life of Rani Jindan but also the emotional turmoil that she has to go through. The book describes really well the weight that a Queen has to carry when she also wants a life of a regular human being! REVIEW: The book is truly remarkable and it is quite an interesting read. Though...

07 Jun

Posted at 07:16h in fiction
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  Being an Agatha Christie book, we all know what to expect, yes you have guessed it right, it is a crime thriller! And this one of her Jane Marple series! The Hercule Poirot series is far more interesting than the Jane Marple series! So I would usually suggest that if you are a beginner in Agatha Christie's books, do take the Hercule Poirot series. PLOT HIGHLIGHT We have the main character Jane Marple, an old lady who loves or let's say gets involved in crime mysteries most of the time. She lives in a small town called St. Mary Mead. She gets a curious letter from the lawyers (Mr. Broadribb and Mr. Schuster) of one Mr. Rafiel who had recently passed away! When she visits them, there is a strange request from the late Mr. Rafiel of her going for a tour with Famous Houses and Gardens of Great Britain. It is at the tour she meets a few of her fellow passengers and as fate would have it one of them dies! Now Jane Marple gets into a fix as she realizes as one of them who is traveling with her could be the killer and then the investigation is on! REVIEW: Quite frankly if you miss out on this one, no hell will break loose! A typical crime thriller and most probably if you are a regular reader of Agatha Christie you may realize why the murder has been committed! The writing skill is to perfection as I have nothing to say there....

02 Feb

Posted at 04:41h in life chronicles
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It's quite unbelievable that we have successfully survived the year 2020 and entered 2021. Like everyone around, I am extremely anxious about the uncertainty every year brings forth. Every individual had a life-changing experience. I know that sometimes the unknown can be scary but trust me being ignorant is a bliss. We already have so much on our head whether it be work or personal so why worry about the future. We have to believe that whatever happens always happens for our good. If some event occurs that wasn't meant to be, whether bad or good it is our karma. The true path to a happy and healthy life is not just a good diet or meditation. It is more of our life choices. We cannot just blame or complain about the mishaps that happen onto others, like how the whole world decided to shut down a country for the release of a virus. The accountability of the disease is not just one person or the country it is actually we all humans. We have done enough mean and bad things to our Planet and in return, she only supported us with water and food. We forget that we are just a part of the ecosystem and not the entire ecosystem. It is quite sad that even after this pandemic hit us so hard, we still find people not realising that we should save our dear Earth, not just for us but for our future generations. The selfish and greedy...

17 Sep

Posted at 16:56h in fiction
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This is another book from my favourite author Agathe Christie and it was her 130 birth anniversary on 15th September and  I had a special post on my Instagram page. A true Queen of Crime! I haven't read another author with so much calibre for crime thrillers. This book brought tears to my eyes not that it is a bad book, but the reason why the crime was committed. The plot goes as this, there is a cocktail party arranged by the gorgeous actress Marina Gregg when she moves into a new town where Miss Marple stays. In this lavish party almost all the townspeople are invited. One among them, Ms Heather Badcock is overly excited to meet her movie idol and then she goes on and on how she first met her. But the next second we find her lying dead after getting a severe seizure because she drank the poisoned cocktail.  It seems that the cocktail was meant for Marina Gregg but why was she a target. As the police are absolutely clueless, Miss Marple unwinds the cobwebs and the deepest darkest secrets that lie in that house to reveal the true murderer. I haven't much to say other than this is one of my favourite Miss Marple's series. I am more of Hercule Poirot fan! The book is a one time read and not something that you would take to re-read especially if you have a reading slum. I give this book a rating of 3.5 out of 5...

12 Sep

Posted at 09:25h in non fiction
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Do you believe in Arranged or Love marriage, or in marriage itself? I would love to get your feedback on this! Before we dive into the review, let me thank the author for sending me this book via email and saying that my review is honest and unbiased! The author, Meryl Elizabeth Mathew, a master’s graduate in Global Business and a content writer, is also a freelance writer with Times -Kuwait since 2018 and Bazaar Magazine since 2019. To top it all, she also teaches creative writing to kids in Kuwait since 2020. A truly zealous person! Now let’s get into the review of the book. Just as the name suggests, the stories are short and simple. The main highlight of the book is that we get to read true stories! The author did change the names of the people whose stories we read to respect their privacy. The main subject is Arranged Marriage which is quite controversial among the millennials. Arranged or Love Marriage has its advantages and disadvantages. When we read this book we get to know the events that take place when a family decides their son or daughter should go for an arranged marriage. The book has 12 amazing stories that can cheer you up! Some are truly hilarious and some are worth using your grey cells! Living in the 21st century doesn’t mean we have to forget our age-old traditions and sometimes we find true love via matrimonial websites! The book is only 75 pages and it is...

10 Sep

Posted at 11:34h in fiction
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The Mysterious Affair at Styles, the first book where the Belgian detective Hercule Poirot is introduced. The narrator in the book is by one Mr. Hastings who knows both the family that's involved in the murder and the detective. The book revolves around the Cavendish family who stays at their country place, Styles Court. The main characters are Mrs.Inglethorp ,her two stepsons John and Lawrence. Accompanied by John's wife Mary, Cynthia and Evelyn who is a constant personality in Mrs. Inglethorp's life. Everything was going smoothly until Mrs. Inglethorp decided to get hitched with Alfred who is 20 years younger to her and everyone knew the obvious reasons why this young man married this old lady, her immense wealth and the fantastic property! When Hastings comes to visit his old friend John Cavendish, the entire household seems tensed about something. In the middle of the second night of his stay, Mrs Inglethorp had an unfortunate incident that lead to her ingenious murder! Everything gets out of control when the family members realise that Mrs.Inglethorp died due to poisoning. And then we have the entry of Hercule Poirot and then let's say you should read it to find out who the culprit is! Though from the beginning it's so obvious who the culprit is, but no way you can be sure of what you think and I can guarantee this book is a good read! ...

10 Sep

Posted at 11:23h in fiction
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'It is romantic, yes, it is peaceful. The sun shines. The sea is blue. But you forget, Miss Brewster, there is evil everywhere under the sun.'- Hercule Poirot A beautiful beach resort at Leathercombe bay where old and young couples along with Hercule Poirot comes for a vacation. Everyone was happy and was having the best time of their life until a family, Kenneth Marshall his wife, Arlena Stuart & his daughter Linda arrived! The minute Arlena Stuart stepped in with her beautiful bronzed body everyone including Hercule Poirot couldn't take off their eyes from her exquisite beauty! And then the happiness of all the customers at the resort took a bad turn when a body was found on the beach and it was none other than Arlena Stuart! Almost all the customers who were there had a motive to kill Arlena Stuart, yet the true murderer is a cunning devil! The murder was done in broad daylight and no one saw or heard the cries of the poor Arlena. Yet it is Hercule Poirot who solves the case. The little grey cells as he says, we should often use them for our well being. The world is rushing to find a vaccine for the pandemic that we are facing. I sincerely hope we find one soon before this corona murders us all! ...

03 Sep

Posted at 05:58h in non fiction
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Before we delve into the review of the book, we must talk about the author Manu S. Pillai. He is been my favorite author from the time I read this book. He is truly a gem in this era in the field of historical non-fiction novels. There are also many webinars that he takes part in and his knowledge about Indian History is mind-blowing. He has an Instagram account @waatcoconut where he posts most of his recent work and also historical paintings which is a delight for both his fans and followers. This is his first book and his two other marvelous books that is equally spellbinding. Now, let us start with a review of the book. The book is divided into 20 chapters: A Painter Prince The Queen of the Kupakas Three Consorts The Second Favorite Her Highness The Maharajah A Christian Minister Malice Domestique Tea and Troubles The Boudoir Dewan Black Magic In Letters of Gold Mother and Son La Revanche A Real Little Grande Dame A Palace Coup The Ultimate Eclipse The Villain of the Piece Rivers of Blood The Reluctant Princess Once I Had a Kingdom Each chapter is more interesting than the next one! Each page is wound into a wonderful marvel, too exotic to be true! The author has done absolute justice in the retelling of the extraordinary life of the last and forgotten queen of the house of Royal Travancore. The Kings and Queens of the Royal Travancore House is the epitome of class! So different...

02 Sep

Posted at 08:49h in fiction
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'Hercule Poirot delves back into the past and discovers that old sins leave long shadows.' Welcome to yet another review of Hercule Poirot's decoding of crime. As you already know the author of the book is none other than my favorite Agatha Christie. Now without further adieu let's jump directly into the review. As the title suggests let me break the bubble that this book has no elephants in it but an old memory surfaces and just like an elephant, certain memories stay etched in our minds. When Mrs. Oliver( a writer I presume) goes to a luncheon that had invited all the great literary artists of the time, she meets with one Mrs. Burton Cox. This lady approaches Mrs. Oliver with no particular warning and starts bombarding questions about her goddaughter Celia Ravenscroft who is going to marry her son. The talks about her Goddaughter brought her a special warmth but all that vanished when Mrs. Burton Cox asked if Celia's mother killed her father or vice versa! This left Mrs. Oliver completely speechless and said she has no clue about this matter whatsoever. But even after the luncheon, this did not leave her mind and at once she went to visit her dear friend, our Belgian detective Hercule Poirot. The events that follow after this is so twisted as it's quite impossible to believe how can true love be a reason for a horrible crime.The book is good but not good enough compared to other Hercule Poirot books. With that said I would like to add that...

02 Sep

Posted at 08:27h in fiction
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'This crime is so complicated that it must be quite simple', declares Hercule Poirot. Ah yes, Hercule Poirot! The author of the book is none other than my personal favorite Agatha Christie. So we all know it a murder mystery and I am a total addict to them. As I have read and have most of her books I will be adding their reviews one by one on my website. It's better late than never right! Before we dive into the review let me assure you that though I am a die-hard fan of Agatha Christie my review of her books is unbiased. With that cleared let's start with the review of 'The Clocks'. We have the narrative of Mr. Colin Lamb who is in the police department. He was an innocent passer-by on the street Wilbraham Crescent when suddenly a girl ramped onto him screaming there is a dead man's body with an old woman walking around him! When he reached the address the girl gave him, he saw a blind old lady Miss Millicent Pebmarsh who owned the house was standing with blood-stained clothes. The girl was right! There was a dead body but the most inquisitive part was the different clocks placed around his body. When Mr. Lamb questioned the girl Sheila Webb of why she was in the house, she said that Miss Pebmarsh had called in their center to send help. But Ms. Pebmarsh denies this statement and says she is completely capable of looking after herself. The police are baffled with the...