Meet Anu - An author, reader and a teacher in an NGO

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• Hello, please tell us something about yourself.

I am a published writer written for several anthologies and a reader and learner. I also teach in an NGO.

• Please tell us something about your book ‘Altitudinis’

This book is a collaborative work. We all were writers with different styles of writing and different wavelengths. But it was a pleasure working with all because everyone was willing to listen to others slash their egos for a larger good. Tireless editing also helped the book into a cohesive whole.

Meet Shagun - Author who writes from the Heart

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• Hello, please tell us something about yourself.

An intuitive Reiki practioner with a scientific background, I believe there’s something good in every individual or situation. A mom, homemaker, friend and writer with heart in the mind spot, I believe in the power of thoughts. To keep my soul ignited I write on my blog Twisted Fabric at the writingsofshagun.wordpress.com.
On a personal note, as a child, I often fantasised about the fairy tales and wanted to write my own. As a grown up woman, it’s been another story altogether. I’ve often felt the restraints of time cut sharply on my day-dreaming thoughts. A mom of two super active and curious young boys, I do not adhere to the mantra of study-study-and-only-study. So for us, its hands-on practical fun too mixed with studies. And in all that fun, my food very often gets burnt …. looking beyond constipated! So while the food gets sorted and the homework gets done, I feel a soft nudge from a grey cell in my mind, to find a quiet corner for my laptop and me. I try to focus as I sit and write away whatever that interests me. I so hope that it would touch the readers’ soul and ignite a spark as they just might read along with me.

Meet Madhu - Who Finds Blessings in Everyday Tasks

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• Hello, please tell us something about yourself.

A traveller and seeker, appreciate the daily miracles happeing around like the day and night, than waiting for some. Trying to follow an effortless lifestyle and find happiness in gardening and farming.

Meet Kusum - Journalist turned Writer

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• Hello, please tell us something about yourself.

I’m Kusum Choppra, long time journalist, turned writer, with interests from environment, alternate
medicine to numerology.   In the last decade, Altitudinis is my five book out, this time with company. Novel experience.  BTW voracious reader of material to do with real people n history, total genre gypsy, from hard core history to nostalgia to feminism to senior romance to a thriller! 
You guessed it, crazy as a cookie, headlined the collaborative novel with a chapter written years ago and the oldest in the group at 70.  Love creating stories, tiny grains of truth surrounded by verbal embroidery; twists in the tale are my forte, with verbal emoting rather than yarns of descriptions. 
My literary joy & pride: after over two decades of digging, the only book with two endings: MASTANI that has earned me the prestige of Mastani’s biographer in some circles.

Meet Kalpana - A Content Writer and A Dreamer

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• Hello, please tell us something about yourself.

I am a content writer by profession and a dreamer by hobby. I often need to be dragged from the classrooms at Hogwarts and the gardens at Manderley by my boss, to focus on work. When not earning my dues, I can be found creating little worlds for other dreamers to walk in one day. A non-conformist by nature, I am frequently found scrutinizing social norms and dissecting human nature. My philosophy in life is to create a balance between speech and action. My love for good food and good life is well known, and I believe that when one laughs, it should truly be a loud one. With Altitudinis, I got a chance to channel my wild imagination. I am now hoping to publish my solo novel in the years to come.

Meet Indira - Be the Change, You want to See!

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• Hello, please tell us something about yourself.

As a voracious reader and in the teaching profession for 45 years, I believe in combining the home and workplace to perfection! An avid traveller, I enjoy every moment of life ensuring that when I work I do the best and when I play I enjoy it to the hilt. 

BookReview - Altitudinis - A unique book by 10 authors

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Title:  Altitudinis: Seekers, Sinners and Secrets

Author: 10 Authors

Publisher: MultiPen Publishers

Pages: 364

Price: Rs. 249

My Rating: 4.5/5

Blurb:

Two scientists are inching towards formulation of a serum to enhance oxygenation for high altitude troops posted at the merciless Siachen Glacier.

Meanwhile, MI agent Nirali arrives to investigate an unidentified corpse at MHOW, the hometown of her first love Nikhil, a much married adventure camp entrepreneur. Even as Nirali struggles to keep her emotions in check, a kidnapping drama involving Nikhil’s family and the appearance of a suave NRI stranger in their midst throws everyone in a tizzy.

But when one of the scientists is found dead in his laboratory, the ex-lovers set aside their personal demons and rise to the task of securing the USB that holds the formula, despite a string of disasters.

From the snow-clad peaks of Hanuman Tibba to the sleepy cantonment town of MHOW, Altitudinis is a tale of international intrigue, underworlds dons and romance of intimate couples and disgruntled ones, that intertwines ordinary people in extra ordinary situations.

Review:

To start with the type of book: when I was approached to review this amazing book, I was actually shocked. Writing a book between 2 authors is a complicated task, however, this one book is written by 10 different authors. Kudos to all of them for managing this feat.

Book - The Sleepless Beauty: A funny, witty and beautiful fairy tale.

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Title: The Sleepless Beauty

Author: Rajesh Talwar

Publisher: Kindle

Pages: 70

Price: Rs. 90 

My Views: A nice read

Blurb:

THE WEST GAVE THE WORLD 'THE SLEEPING BEAUTY'.

NOW, FROM THE EAST, COMES ANOTHER CHARMING AND EXCITING FAIRY TALE - 'THE SLEEPLESS BEAUTY'!!

In a small kingdom somewhere in the Himalayas, the beautiful young Princess Ramya cannot sleep. It all started soon after her mother, the queen, passed away, when the princess was only twelve. Her father, the king, tries everything to make his little princess sleep, but nothing works. The princess develops such an inability to sleep that she becomes known in her kingdom and far beyond as the Sleepless Beauty.

The king wishes Princess Ramya to marry and take over the reins of government, but the princess is determined not to marry till such time as her sleep is restored. Eventually, the king announces a competition whereby whichever prince succeeds in getting Princess Ramya to sleep will win her hand. Meanwhile deadly foes of the kingdom wait and watch in the wings, planning to launch a surprise attack. This exciting, romantic tale, with comic interludes, will appeal to readers of all ages. 

Review:

The sleepless beauty is another beautiful tale by Rajesh Sir.  I have read his few other kids stories and I must say I like everything he writes. 

Book - DareDreamers: A Story that motivates you to dream Big.

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Title: DareDreamers: A Start-up of Superheroes 

Author: Kartik Sharma , Ravi Nirmal Sharma

Publisher: Rupa Publications India

Pages: 296

Price: Rs. 50 

My Views: A must read

Blurb:

India’s first start-up of superheroes with a mission of saving lives is here to kick ass. Rasiq is riding the highs of life thanks to his successes as an investment banker. But his arrogance soon gets the better of him and he ends up losing everything he holds dear. Managing to salvage only his grit from the wreckage, Rasiq reboots his life and teams up with five uniquely talented superheroes to start a rescue venture DareDreamers. These superheroes Nick: a crazy inventor; Halka: an inhumanly strong man; Arjun: a champion shooter; Natasha: a Bollywood stunt-double; Dr. Vyom, a medical Sherlock Holmes; and, of course, Rasiq: the mastermind combine their unique talents to deliver spectacular rescue operations. Their skyrocketing success, however, comes at a price an enemy hell bent on tearing down their fame and reputation.Will DareDreamers defeat its wily adversary? Or will it become yet another failed start-up?Treachery, action and adventure come alive to make DareDreamers a page-turner.

Review:

Now, this is a book we all love to read... 

Book - From Ashes to Dreams: Life, Dreams and Hopes

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Title: From Ashes to Dreams

Author: Rashmi Trivedi

Publisher: Blue Rose Publishers

Pages: 220

Price: Rs. 100 

My Rating: 3.5/5

Blurb:

Sometimes life brings you at a crossroad, where you have no choice but to live every day as if it was your last one. Naina was at such a crossroad! An orphan, she did not have much to look forward to in life, until she fell in love. Love gave her wings and she started to fly, only to come crashing down as the wind beneath her wings turned into a storm. She tries putting an end to her now wretched existence, but fate has some other plans for her. She comes to know that she has limited time to live and decides to start living everyday instead of merely surviving. She lives every moment without worrying about the future she does not have or the past that could not be undone. She falls in love once again, this time with life! Will fate respect her fortitude?

Review:

It is a story of Naina and her friends. How everything changes for her and she endures everything.

Book: Innocent Wings - A must read for every parent

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Title: Innocent Wings: Dyslexia | Childhood | Parenting

Author: Shilpi

Publisher: Kalamos Literary Services

Pages: 167

Price: Rs. 199 

My Rating: 5/5

Blurb:

Mother Nature is kind enough to accept one and all, irrespective of their differences. But we as human being create classes of differences and disregard those whom we think are not at par with the norms stated by us. If we would also accept people with a variety of differences equally, then there wouldn’t be any issue left in the society. Little Rudra and many other children like him face various issues because of their incapability in academics and other fields. We have assumed that the benchmark of the child’s performance is his good grades, otherwise, he or she is incapable. Innocent wings is about a child who with assessment and interventions, became from no one to the one in his school. All that is required is lots of love and little care to support their capacities.

Review:

By looking at the title one might feel that only the parents with Dyslexic kids should read this book, but it is so not the case.

Every parent - new, old or planning - should read this book.

Why?

Book - Aavya: Love that is alien to today's world

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Title: Aavya

Author: Rishabh Puri

Publisher: Kalamos Literary Services

Pages: 230

Price: Rs. 199 

My Rating: 4.5/5

Blurb:

What do you do when your one true love is snatched away from you? Do you find a new love? Or do you go on loving? Raj has known aavya since they were kids. It is only now, at the threshold of adulthood that he has woken up to her beauty and grace. He is a dreamer while she is a realist. Together, they make a perfect pair. Both are visionaries who want to change the world in their unique way. But life has other plans for Raj. Aavya is spirited away across oceans by enraged parents, while Raj recuperates in a hospital. A decade later, Raj has been chasing aavya’s ghost across continents. Will their love find a way back to each other? And can love last when there is no promise that the lovers will ever be United? Aavya is the story of love, perseverance and finding hope in the darkest of times. It unfolds in letters spanning decades; written by those who lived it. At its heart is a hopeless romantic who makes his own world when the world rejects him - Raj.

Review:

Aavya is one of a kind book... seriously.

The way it is written, it is not in chapter form or in chronological order. It is written in letters form and has 'seasons' to depict the time frame.

Book - Everyone Deserves a Second Chance: A Story That Can Save Lives

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Title: Everyone Deserves a Second Chance

Author: Shubham Sharma

Publisher: Kalamos Literary Services LLP

Pages: 175

Price: Rs. 199 

My Rating: 4.5/5

Blurb:

What happens when you feel there’s no chance of getting your life back on track? You take a diversion. But what if someone tells you, ‘You can get a second chance to bring it back on the right track.’ Would you believe it? Will you be able to find the courage to run on the same track again? Ahaana, a broken teenager, who has lost her determination for her life. Ansh, a careless teenage boy, who kept on letting everyone down around him. Two teenagers, one purpose, giving life another chance.

Review:

Some stories are for fun... and some are for inspiration. EDASC to me was the latter.

Book - Blue Crayons: A Collection of 40 Unique Stories

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Title: Blue Crayons: tales from life and beyond

Author: Rahul Rawal

Publisher: Zorba Publishers

Pages: 172

Price: Rs. 199 

My Rating: 4/5

Blurb:

 Four years after her marriage broke up, Neha gets a mysterious late-night message from “the other woman.” Her mind tells her to ignore it, her intuition tells her something strange is going on . . .

 When his fancy degrees don’t get him a job or even an interview, Rajesh decides that a publicity stunt is required to get the attention of the world – only, it succeeds in a way he never dreamt of . . .

 When a Railway Engineer is sent to inspect a railway line in a small, remote station he is amazed to find that no one gets off the train there at nights. Determined to ignore all warnings, he sets off on a short walk in the dark . . .

Bitter-sweet love stories, a brush with the paranormal, the darker side of human nature, modern day heartbreak – this engaging and inventive collection of short stories presents different perspectives that will put a smile on your face and bring a tear in your eye.

Book - A Cage of Desires: A Mix of Romance, Passion and ...

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Title:  A Cage of Desires

Author: Suchi Singh Kalra

Publisher: Penguin

Pages: 232

Price: Rs. 150 

My Rating: 4.5/5

Blurb:

'There's a kind of love that makes you go down on one knee, and there's the kind that brings you down on both. You don't need the latter, because no matter what you do, you cannot make anyone love you back.'

Renu had always craved love and security, and her boring marriage, mundane existence somehow leads her to believe that, maybe, this is what love is all about. Maya, on the other hand, is a successful author who is infamous for her bold, erotic books.

What do these two women have in common? How are their lives intertwined?

Renu's thirst for love and longing takes her on a poignant journey of self-exploration. The answers come to her when she finds the courage to stand up for herself, to fight her inner demons and free herself from the cage of desires . . .

Review:

A Cage of Desires is a different book. Though the essence of the story is very common, the way the storyline has developed, that makes it different.

Book: Road to Cherry Hills: A Motivating Story

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Title:  Road to Cherry Hills

Author: Sohini Bagchi

Publisher: LiFi Publications

Pages: 176

Price: Rs. 225 

My Rating: 3.5/5

Blurb:

Road to Cherry Hills takes us into the world of Rimjhim, as she walks down the memory lane to her campus days where she meets Ankit, falls head over heels for him and thought her life has changed forever. Of course it did, but in the most unexpected ways, as she soon finds her life taking a completely different turn. Rimjhim, now a single mother and a successful professional, moves on to fight her own battle. She didn't need special power to do so, but a strong willpower to overcome difficult times. That willpower which we all have but we are only one step away to realise it. The story narrates her trials and tribulations, her dilemmas and achievements, her darkest fears and her deepest desires as she embarks on a journey of self-discovery.

Review:

As I started reading through the initial pages of the book, I was mesmerized by the natural beauty of Cherry Hills as it is so beautifully depicted by the author. The initial pages made me wish for a vacation... [sigh!]

Book - For a Girl in a Star - Love, Friendship and Too Much Melodrama

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Title:  For a Girl in a Star 

Author: Ratna Chandu

Publisher: Srishti Publishers

Pages: 224

Price: Rs. 146

My Rating: 2.5/5

Blurb:

What do you do when your best friend, the one person who has stood by you through thick and thin, knows you better than you know yourself and literally saved your life falls in love with the same girl as you? Avinash and Sahas, two village boys arrive in Bangalore in search of art and in pursuit of ambition. Sahas, hardworking and nervous, antonym to his friend, has emerged from a troubled past only to find that his future doesn’t come without encumbrances. Their friendship is the one constant in the two boys’ lives, but that is tested when they each meet Aarti, a mysterious, compassionate, beautiful girl who captures both their imaginations and sets their hearts aflame. Will their passion for the same girl and an untimely tragedy, sunder the two friends forever? A compelling tale with twists and turns reminiscent of India’s melodramatic films, For a Girl in a Star deals with the age old staples of young love, heartbreak and what it means to be a true friend.

Review:

The title of the book and the cover are just stunning. The beautiful sky and depiction of triangulated love story provides a hook. There is a beauty in the cover which forces a reader to pick it up. But what about story?

To me the story line and plot is decent. Sahas moves in with Avinash and a new chapter of their lives begins. They both lead different lives but they are woven together -much more deeply than they know. They both fall in love with same girl -kind of cheesy. It happens in movies that two boys of different worlds find one girl and fall in love with. Talk about coincidence but it happens with these childhood friends. And of course, this love-triangle drives a wedge between them! The story revolves around their struggles and the way they cope up with grief and situations.

The characterization is good. Sahas, Avinash, Aarti and all others (there are a few more characters) are described well. The bond between Sahas and Avinash - their friendship - is beautifully portrayed. You can't help but remember that one childhood friend who used to be your lifeline!

Every book has pros and cons, above mentioned are all pros, however (and unfortunately) there are a few cons too.

To start with, though the story is good, it is very slow. At times it has been dragged which makes it difficult to read.

Also, there is a predictability to the story line which makes the rhythm suffer.

And lastly, there is way too melodrama. Yes it does happen in some relations but story lacks a sense of maturity which just doesn't go with the flow.

Overall, it a decent read. 

My rating for it 2.5/5

Lots of Love

Book - The Bearded Prince: A Simple yet Cute Kids Story

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Title:  The Bearded Prince

Author: Rajesh Talwar

Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub

Pages: 118

Price: Rs. 64 (Kindle Edition)

My Rating: 3.5/5

Blurb:

After much persuasion, Princess Roopali, ‘the beautiful one’, agrees to have a swayamvara. This is an ancient Indian ceremony in which an unmarried girl who has come of age chooses a husband from among several suitors. According to the tradition, at the end of the ceremony, the princess is required to place a marigold garland around the neck of the prince she has decided to marry. She is happy to meet with all the princes who will attend the ceremony, and are keen to be chosen by her. She explains to her parents, the king and queen that she does not, however, wish to meet anyone with a beard. Over the past few years there have been a string of armed robberies by a gang of tough-looking bearded thugs. The princess has come to dislike beards. Her father, the king, explains to her that it would be discourteous for them not to extend an invitation to any eligible prince, but he would be surprised if any of them still sported a beard. Will Princess Roopali find the prince of her dreams? A delightful tale set in Ancient India the story provides a window into an exotic culture and will appeal to children from all age groups – particularly those from the ages of five to one hundred.

Review:

This is a story of Roopali who is set to get married. She meets fifteen eligible princes from various kingdoms.

Roopali is a kindhearted princess who wants one true love. And as is in all fairy tales, she meets him.

The story is pretty straightforward and predictable. But while reading it soothes. It is like one of those romantic soft tales which is known, yet it appeals.

I like the narration and character-description of all.

The cover doesn't do justice to this book. To me it is simply one of the books you can read to your kids.

I enjoyed reading it.

You should try it too.

Love and cheers