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

The Sari woven in prison by Nehru for Indira Gandhi's wedding

The Red Sari
by Javier Moro
Genre: Non-fiction
Available in different formats and languages.

In India, Sonia Gandhi is a mystery, especially for the generations born after 1960 in India. While some may remember Indira and Rajiv Gandhi and their horrible assassinations which wounded their psyche as children and chose to forget it as it is too painful that made the rise of the Hindu Right in the late 80s possible, this novel makes it hard to forget and gives a glimpse into the life of Sonia Gandhi.

The Red Sari is almost a biographical account of Sonia Gandhi and addresses most of the accusation filled rhetoric of the media and  politicians of different parties in India against Sonia Gandhi who they describe as "a person with power but no responsibility." Her Italian origins are mocked at and some go to the extent of claiming that she is a foreign spy. This book answers their accusations.

The style is crisp. It lifts the curtain behind the mystery that is Sonia Gandhi and introduces the reader to her family, her love story, the story of Indira, Sanjay and Rajiv ever since she became the elder daughter-in-law, her children and grandchildren, the 1971 war, the emergency, Operation Blue Star, the Bofors scandal, the security scares and the reason she agreed to become Congress President finally even though she was offered it on a platter again and again since Rajiv's murder. It is like reading the history of India from 1968 with all its triumphs and tragedies and the challenges faced by the leaders.

This is a must read for all Indians born after 1960 and for those interested in Indian politics. Amazing this book has been ignored by the media.

You can buy the book here  or here in India