Call of the Raven - book review

Call of  the Raven
by
Wilbur Smith and Corban Addison
Genre: Fiction

"And what use is freedom, if it is only the freedom to live
in a slum until you are worked to death? What use is a
wage if it does not buy you enough to eat?"  - Call of the Raven

The book opens with Cambridge Union debate between Fairchild and St. John arguing for and against slavery. But what exactly is freedom? This thread runs through the entire book, what exactly is freedom?

Mungo St. John returns from Britain to America only to find his father murdered and the love of his life, Camilla, a slave on his father's estate  murdered by the militia of his father's trusted banker, Chester Marion.  He has is penniless as his entire fortune has been pledged. While young St. John vows revenge on Chester Marion, he discovers his own family is not entirely innocent and finds himself on a ship to Africa to earn his fortune. He loses his innocence about all that he considers decent and is ready to do anything for revenge but then he discovers that Camilla is alive. He changes again and now all he wants is to rescue his love while destroying his enemy in the process. Will he?  

Reading the book was a revelation. I always thought I knew what freedom was and then began to wonder if I really knew while reading this book. It is amazing how we are all slaves and free at the same time when we think about it. Is the world really free from slavery now? Are we truly free or is our freedom just an illusion while we remain slaves in the hands of the system that controls us? Is selling and buying humans really off the table in this century when you compare it to the years of slave trade? Sure, most of us are not bound physically and dragged out to work in return for three meals a day and a roof over our head but has the system truly changes ?  

The writing is like picturesque and adventurous like any Wilbur Smith novel with heroes. I would recommend everyone to read this.

To buy the book  Click here.

 

The Madras Affair
by Sundari Venkatraman
Genre: Romance/Mystery


Sangita runs an NGO for downtrodden women in Madras. What motivated her to start one? When she is interviewed, the story is narrated in flashback. As we read on, we realise we really don't know Sangita or her family and are taken on a journey of her life. Enter Gautam Sinclair, who is an Indian-American, a Hindu-Christian - the man with hyphenated identities and handsome man who falls for Sangita and speaks Tamil and English with an American accent. If you expect her to be swept off her feet, it is more like he falls flat for her. There is a problem - Sangita refuses to marry him because she is absolutely scared of sex. What is the trauma that makes her flee from a physical relationship with Gautam Sinclair whom she adores and kisses madly but freezes if he tries to take it to the next level? Will they get married at all?

The author allows us a peak into the conservative culture of Madras, the music, the sounds, the people who  dream silently but live differently, the chaotic patriarchal system where the girl is a goddess and a victim to neighbour gossip, the relatives who use connections, etc.  The culture is familiar - everything from aiyo to thayir sadam that it makes you grin. If you are a reader who is looking for a romance with a dash of suspense to curl up with, I would recommend this book.

Move over Daniel Steele and Nora Roberts, we have our own Sundari Venkatraman.

You can buy the book here