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Suicidal Very Short Story (VSS) 04 He stood staring at the calm river flowing under the bridge. There was a war within. A multi-dimensional conflict was tearing him apart. On one hand, he had a loving wife and 3 absolutely lovely and very beautiful daughters who filled his life with love and warmth. On the other hand, he had a failed crop for the third time in 4 years and he was deep in debt. The government’s compensation to the families of the farmers committing suicide seemed like the best thing he could do for his family. He took the biggest decision of his life. ----------------- Quick Note: Very Short Stories are approx./max. 99 word stories that i am going to write through the year. These very short stories are part of my writing resolutions of 2017. My target is to write at least 50 VSS this year. Quick Note 2 : Just realised that 2 consecutive stories have a suicide theme to them. Pls dont be creative and attempt to read b...

The Eyes of Abel by Daniel Jacobs My rating: 4 of 5 stars Eyes of Abel is an international social-economic political thriller with a touch of environmental sciences It touches upon the sensitive subject of Israel and its impact on the world as well as the impact the world has had on Israel. It touches upon the oil-economy and the heavy dependence of the world on oil/petroleum and how that is a political time bomb. It touches upon airport security and how it has only created more terrorists while keeping us all safe from the next plane bombing. It touches upon how the initiatives/research/work around the fresh new energy alternatives are crushed by those who want the oil economy to continue.  And to all that you add a high profile committed dedicated journalist and a girl who doesn’t seem to be what she says she is – at the same time, making the journalist fall head-over-hells for her … and you have a narrative that is political and social but keeps the interest levels...

Book Links: Amazon * Goodreads   The expectation from Book 2 were low after reading book 1 – I was expecting the whole book to be focused on one event and nothing much. It sure did and before the book ended, it gave me what I was looking for. A hint of mystery and suspense. Now the storyline will be more interesting. Carrying forward from Book 1, the color ceremony is conducted in first half while the second half is about some of the characters and their complex lives and colors. The auhors show that the story has potential to spin out of control and storyline branching out into innumerable branched. The color ceremony was indeed very colorful and glorious. The rest of the book was a bit of a suspense and other to support .   While i would look forward to the future books, the excitement level is not really high.  I personally like the series and the world that the authors have created. It has very exciting possibilities and there might ...

Book Links: Amazon  * Goodreads The book blurb sounded pretty interesting so I decided to pick this up for review. I expected a fresh new magical world inside the book … and I was not disappointed. The authors have created a very different world and it was quite enjoyable to explore this new world along with the authors. There is attention to detail and a sincere effort to create a parallel world with things that are different from our world. A strange world where reality has been replaced by ‘projections’. The story revolves around a bunch of young kids who are all looking forward to the ‘color ceremony’ which is something sort of a ‘big thing’ for them and for all around. It will decide the future course of their lives kind of important event. All that was fine. Lovely world created, a nice bunch of characters introduced who will no doubt make the story very very interesting. But … there is something that I did not like. The Book 1 serves as a ‘cha...

The Accidental Suicide   Very Short Story (VSS) 03  It was plain bad luck. They drove to their favorite spot on the hill station to catch the sunrise. They arrived in time and parked. Holding hands, they came to the edge to catch the most magnificent of sun-rise. That’s when their own car hit them from behind and pushed them over the edge, a 1000 feet fall broken only by boulders and rocky edges. Damn the hand brake that didn’t hold. Next day, it was reported as suicide, with people wondering why the happy couple committed suicide. It was a love marriage after all; arranged by their families.   ---------------- Quick Note: Very Short Stories are approx./max. 99 word stories that i am going to write through the year. These very short stories are part of my writing resolutions of 2017. My target is to write at least 50 VSS this year.

~ Release Day Blitz ~ A Way Back Into Love by Veronica Thatcher 21st February, 2017   Nothing is perfect. Life is messy. Relationships are complex. Outcomes, uncertain. People, irrational. But love… Well, that makes complicates everything complicated. When you are caught in a tangled web of secrets, lies, and complex affairs, someone is bound to get burned. Emily Stevens is a spunky, spirited college girl whose life is turned upside-down when she realizes she's in love with her best friend of fifteen years, Derek Thorpe. As Emily prepares to confess her feelings to Derek, something happens one night which changes her life forever. Five years later, Emily finds herself in Boston, alone and heartbroken. Will she ever be able to forget the past? And what will she find when she returns home... to the man she left behind? Book Links: Goodreads  * Paperback * eBook An Excerpt: Emily stepped back from him and shook her head. “Oh, you know damn well wh...

I read this story almost 11 years ago and found it again by chance while doing some 'gmail maintenance' (since I am at 96% capacity usage). Read the story again and had to read it again twice to make some sense out of it ... and realise all over again the brilliance of the story. Never knew the author and even a google search did not yield anything ... So if you are the author or know the author, pls leave a comment.   -------------------------   Kaalachakra Bar!   1975 Jan 1 It was about five in the morning. Father (I am not bothering with names) woke up with a start. Many years had passed since he had founded the orphanage. He had named it ' X-Orphanage ' , a rather funny name. But looking back, everything about his life seemed funny now. Hearing some noise outside, Father decided to have a look. A child lay there in front of the orphanage. It was a girl. Seeing her abandoned like this in the cold morning, Father felt a sense of anger for the mercile...

Very Short Story 002: Flying Umbrella It was a strange sight. A black umbrella, lying on the dry leaves strewn, wet road. As I drove towards it, it suddenly reminded me of couples sharing a private love-filled romantic moment on the Mumbai sea side, hidden by umbrellas. It reminded me of my own singular experience of 'kiss under the umbrella' at Bandra bandstand. My reverie was broken when the umbrella flew with a gust of wind. The umbrella soared and so did my heart. We hadn't spoken for over 3 decades and I wondered if she remembered our evening under the umbrella. I definitely did. --------------- Quick Note: Very Short Stories are approx./max. 99 word stories that i am going to write through the year. These very short stories are part of my writing resolutions of 2017. My target is to write at least 50 VSS this year. So far, I am behind target but hopefully catch up soon.

A Special Friend: Stories of 2017 - January Edition by Sharath Komarraju My rating: 4 of 5 stars An interesting collection of 5 stories. Most of them had a surprise in the end – often in the very last para/sentence. Gave you a kick after reading that and also made you go back and re-read the whole story. I would easily and readily recommend The first story – Kinnara - leaves you thinking. It leave a hundred questions in your mind. Could the characters have behaved differently? What happened to them after the end of the story? The second story – Rescue – You literally understand it in the very last sentence. A very well written suspense story with a touch of supernatural without being a horror story. The third story – The Good Son – had no surprises in the end though. Just the nagging feeling about the dead son. Was he a part of the story or not? Did he have anything to do with the outcome or not? Fortunately or unfortunately, the answer is both Yes and No … and that’s the real kic...

I am at Tasveer Art Gallery in Mumbai. I come here often. Most of the times, this particular room is empty. Once in a while, there is an exhibition next door and some people randomly walk in, stare briefly and leave right away. But I stand here, staring at the painting for hours. I see what others don’t.   I see dreams, laughter, ambition, aspiration, endless conversations, love, affection and silly cuteness. I see all that in the strokes of the paintings. I see my daughter in there. Because I can’t see her otherwise.   Just because some rich kid decided to drive while he was drunk. Stupid Idiot.