Book Review : On the Way to Shirdi

 

On the way to Shirdi 
by
Archana Jayaseelan
164 pages, Fiction 

What is a pilgrimage to Shirdi like? More importantly, what does a pilgrim's journey entail? These and more questions are asked and answered in  Archana Jayaseelan's book, "On the way to Shirdi."

Sarah from Minsk visits India due to work. However, she misses her return flight. While she books the very next flight and checks out of the hotel, she meets her Indian colleague. This sets  in motion a series of events which leads Sarah to want to visit Shirdi. But does she get there? Does she get a darshan of Sai Baba/ Baba Sai/ Sainath at Shirdi? What happens to this Belarusian woman?

The writing is clear and crisp. 

The author has a twist in the end which readers might not expect. Nothing feels forced as the author gently weaves into the narrative the shift from pilgrimage to the pilgrim's journey along with quotes from the Sai Satcharitra.  

This book changes your perception of pilgrimage in India, or pilgrimage in general. Good book to read. 

You can buy the book here  Amazon

Book review : Choppiness on High Seas by Arvind Wadhera

 

Choppiness on  High Seas
by
Arvind Wadhera
Troubador Publishing, 2025
Genre: Fiction

"For predators of innocence and helplessness, money should not play a role in avoiding disgrace" - Choppiness on High Seas


With ongoing release of Epstein Files, the US-Israel war on Iran, worldwide oil shock, it is almost surreal when you read this book as it has covers all this and more.

Can wealth protect a family from ill health? How can it be in the public interest to invade an individual’s privacy? Is morality just a figure of speech in today's high society? Why do wealthy people spend vast amounts on indulgences but remain parsimonious regarding servants and cleaners? Why did corruption become the new paradigm after decolonization of Africa and Asia? How did US policy change after WW2?  These questions and much more are asked by the author and answered in his book, "Choppiness on High Seas."


The story begins with single mother Gail Stephens who gives birth to Mathew. She is a maid who cleans the houses of wealthy London families but realizes the important of education which she ensures Mathew acquires. Mathew Stephens grows up educated and works where he meets the love of his life Gwen. They marry and have Sally Stephens as Mathew starts building a shipping company right after the second world war. Mathew Stephens becomes a shipping magnate who stays away from the media glare. His success is phenomenal as is his personal tragedy. 

The author's observations are almost prophetic as the book was written in 2025 and it is happening again right now. The comparison to what happened during the Suez Canal crisis and the Strait of Hormuz now, is so alike. Canal closures, submersible explosives, wheeling dealing all over the world. The Epstein files atrocities are very similar to the rape of Asian kids by British Elite. Why does Britain scoff at Europe but bows before the States? The economy was about real things and merchandise. And the world was still run by humans, not robots.

The writing is  crisp and there is no dull moment in the narration. It is moving and inspiring  while it gives people who don't understand geopolitics and politics a ringside view.

This is a must read for all.

Buy the book here   👉Amazon

Book review : The Thirty-Fifth Page

 The Thirty-Fifth Page
by 
Lya Badgley
Atmosphere Press, 2025
Genre : Historical fiction



“Religion was…there,” he said, waving a hand vaguely. “But it didn’t define you. Not like now.” - The Thirty Fifth Page 

Why does art matter, especially books ? Are war correspondents scavengers or documenting truth? If yes, whose truth and at what cost? Are they just showing suffering in neat consumable packages which people can watch without guilt? Does history not stay in past but leaks into the present and it is just a circle if we pretend the violence and injustice of the past never took place? Is home a place or a person? These questions and more are asked and answered by the author in her book, "The Thirty Fifth Page."

In 1992, American Miriam aka Miri Adler takes up a research project of the Sarajevo Haggadah and Jennifer Cooper is a war correspondent expecting war to break out in Yugoslavia. Enter Malcolm Pyre, a stringer from San Francisco who Miri is attracted to but distrusts. When Sarajevo is bombed, Miri is given the Sarajevo Haggadah and asked to protect it by her Bosnian friend, Jusuf, who is in charge of the Sarajevo museum when it is bombed.. While Malcolm offers Miri a chance to sell it, she turns it down. Then she meets a young girl Vila whose grandmother is shot dead in front of the journalists. While Miri decides to return to America, she also decides to drop the  Vila at her village. This is where the book actually begins as Miri has to escape Serbian Army who seem to be searching for the Sarajevo Haggadah. How did they know it is missing? Who is Vila and Malcolm? Who is Goran Markovic who helps Miri ?

Miri returns after 23 years in 2015 at the request of the Sarajevo museum as they wish to honor her. Once she lands, it starts all over again. The book disappears. What happened to Goran? What about Malcolm and her friend Jusuf? What about the Sarajevo Haggadah itself which now has a new page ? What does this mean?

While reading , the reader will find the story of Yugoslavia breaking up into Bosnia and Serbia very similar to that of Ukraine and Russia including the colors of the flags.

The writing is clear, insightful with a beauty so profound that the reader should be prepared to mark many passages. It is kind and humane that the author will make most readers rethink our stated positions in politics and international affairs.I understood why there is a sudden rise of the right wing worldwide . The genre though stated as historical fiction, encompasses thriller, mystery, magic, horror, fable and fantasy.

This is a book everyone should read as it ends with hope- Hope for humanity irrespective of religion, race, language or region. Good book to end this year with.

Buy it here . Amazon

Book Review: The Grand Oxford Mystery

 

The Grand Oxford Mystery 
by Manjiri Prabhu
312 pages, Comm Dot Media Publishing
Genre :  Destination Thriller


How did Oxford get its name? What is a letter locker? What is the Oxford Mystery and why does it have to be solved in Oxford right away if no one is to die? These questions and more are asked and answered by author Dr. Manjiri Prabhu in her destination thriller, "The Grand Oxford Mystery"

Emma is a tourist guide at Oxford. She works part time for Paul, an elderly novelist  who dictates chapters to her which she types and takes print outs. Something is strange about Paul. He has a pet dog which he refuses to feed. He  pays Emma not just to take down his dictation, give him printouts of  his novel but also Emma feed the dog which she does happily. Then one fine day, Emma arrives to find Paul had committed suicide but why? 

Re Parkar, an investigative journalist has a horrific vision of his sister in flames. So he arrives at Oxford, so his mother Maria can reassure him. There he gets to meet his mother's friend Professor Jeffery. Emma is the niece of professor Jeffrey. Re and Emma team up when Jeffrey receives a note stating that something horrible is going to happen at the Oxford award ceremony the next day. They have 28 hours and the note is from Paul who is dead.  The novella itself is the clue and the eight chapters are scattered across Oxford. Will they be able to solve the mystery on time and stop a catastrophe from happening?  

The author's admiration for Oxford University comes through as she takes you across Oxford with her descriptions as the protagonists look for clues.The writing flows well keeping the reader guessing. Some readers will try to solve the puzzle before the protagonists do. The pace is staccato in the beginning and becomes almost breakneck as it reaches the end. So be prepared for a roller coaster ride.  This is a mystery set inside a thriller. 

For writers and authors, each chapter will make you ponder about your own writing life. For others, this is a mind game  book with  each chapter set as a maze - what is Paul up to and why was his plan to threaten from the grave? Isn't it unusual ?  Have fun reading this book. 

You can buy it here Amazon

Book Review of Shattered Peace : A Century of Silence

 

Shattered Peace : A Century of Silence 
by Julie McDonald Zander
Genre: Historical Fiction
292 pages, St. Helens Press

"Let’s pray the tragedy that unfolded on the streets of Centralia in November 1919 are never forgotten ... and more importantly, never repeated." - Julie McDonald Zander


Colleen Holmes's grandma gifts her the family home in Centralia, Washington state. Colleen is a war veteran who lives with nightmares of the Iraqi war and struggles through it. While she accepts the gift and moves to Washington State from Colorado, she decides the two story house is too big and decides to redo the top floor. In the process, she finds the diary of her great great grandmother Bridget.

Zipping back to the first world war and its aftermath in America to the present day USA seamlessly,  the author zeroes in on what is a little known incident to the outside world and probably to many young  Americans themselves - the friction between Industrial Workers of the World ( IWW) who demanded better wages, working conditions and reasonable working hours for all American labourers. The IWW wanted to form a single union for all labourers. One of  IWW's most important contributions to the labor movement and broader push of social justice was that, when founded, it was the only American union to welcome all workers, including women, immigrants, African Americans and Asians, into the same organization. They had no beef with the American veterans from WW1. The friction was ignited by the IWW members questioning why young Americans need to be sent abroad to die in foreign countries while the American vets feel they are belittled on hearing this. The politics of this leads to a clash in Centralia, Washington which led to deaths. Who were the other players who benefited from this friction by calling members of the IWW as communists and radicals, I will leave the reader to find out.  How Colleen's story and her great-great grandfather's story are so similar is amazing. 

The writing is amazing, crisp and well paced. It makes the reader wonder why even after 100 years, young Americans are still being sent to fight foreign wars and those who return alive, live with PTSD in USA today and feel unappreciated is still going on.  This is an important book to read. 

Do buy it here -Amazon

Book Review : Crime Songs

Crime Songs
Edited by Sean O'Leary
Close to the Bone Publishing, 2025
Genre: Fiction

This is a novel attempt as this is an anthology of crime stories inspired from rock or pop songs. The editor Sean O'Leary has done a stellar job of compiling the short stories on crime ranging from theft to murder.All the 16 authors have named their short stories after title of their favourite song.

Many readers may not be familiar with some of the songs but with the internet, you will be able to find all of them.So be prepared to listen to the songs before you read the stories.It gives you a better understanding of why certain car models or dialogues are used. At least, that is how I read it. It was fun too as being a writer, I needed to know the lyrics of the original song before I read the short story.  It is nice both the title and the band are mentioned. 

Some crime writers have literally written the story from the lyrics of the song while others do an interpretation of the lyrics. Some have just taken the title and made up their own stories. Maybe it is just me but I felt "Sympathy for the Devil" by The Rolling Stones was almost like reading about the Epstein case that I ended up searching for Epstein's family. The proper whodunit was "Right Place, Wrong Time" and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  

The best way to read this book is to have the song play in the background. It is up to the reader - you can always read it without knowing the song. That would also work too. 

You can read this book in any order as it an anthology. The style varies with each short story as they are written by different award winning authors.The writing flows well but you will definitely end up with some favorites.
I think it would have been nice if someone had chosen "Bohemian Rhapsody"and "Every Step You Take" and wrote a story based on it but that is just me!

If you like songs and reading short stories about crime - anything from theft to murder, this book is definitely for you. 

You can buy the book  here Amazon

Book Review : The Case of the Missing Turtles

 

The Case of the Missing Turtles
Mallika Ravikumar
Speaking Tiger Books, 2024
Genre : Children's Fiction


This is the second book in the M4 series. If the first was a crime thriller, this one is an environmental thriller as the title suggests.

Mirchi is approached by Shimplya whose father has been arrested for smuggling turtles by the police. Strangely enough, someone has planted a bag full of river turtles on his boat while the fisherman only ventures out to the sea to catch fish. So who has done it becomes a case for the M4 to solve. 

Step in NGOs that protect wildlife, the M4 and the readers are schooled on which are protected wild life and which are not in India,the Asian wildlife smuggling network and how children are used in it. As the M4 investigate pet shops, they are shocked by how easily the pet shop owners are able to access protected wildlife 

The writing is crisp, fast paced and provides awareness of wildlife law in India. It also provides awareness about police arrests and the legal procedure for getting bail. 

While there is a happy ending, it shocks  the reader how commonplace wild life smuggling is in India.   

To buy the book go here Speaking Tiger Books