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Book Review : 9 Yards of Silk

Book Title : 9 Yards of Silk 
Author : Sakshi Kiran
ISBN : 9789384315788
Publisher : Half Baked Beans Publication

Genre : Mythological Fiction / Romance
Publication : 2017
Pages : 150
Format : E-book


BOOK BLURB:
Shakuntala lives with her son Bharat in a deep forest. One fine day Bharat reminds her of his father, resulting to upset her. As the child goes out to play a celestial maiden Menaka appears in front of her who offers friendship, suggesting to share their stories with each other. Menaka tells her about Kaushik, a sage to whom she was sent by Indra for disturbing his fierce penance and how they ended up falling for one another. Shakuntala also shares her story of meeting and marrying the charming prince of Hastinapur who later abandoned her. During the conversation Shakuntala finds blessings in her life, why she was abandoned by parents at birth and how her estranged husband was just a victim of circumstances for leaving her. After Menaka's departure, Dushyant returns to her in the hope of reuniting with family. Now it is Shakuntala's turn to decide. What would she choose?


RATING: 3 ☆'s


REVIEW:
First of all, I would like to congratulate the author for her debut novel and thank her for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.
Coming to the book itself, the book is set up in a mythological premise and fictionalises the actual events as portrayed in our scriptures.

WHAT I LOVED:
  1. The Plot --- I loved how Sakshi has weaved the life of the two female leads in the story and fabricated the whole book around their relationship
  2. Strong Female Characters --- as the story revolves around the lives of its two female leads, I am happy to see that both of them are portrayed as females with strong character and a mind of their own - they aren't depicted as soppy weak women


WHAT I DISLIKED:

  1. Language --- one thing that puts me off immediately is bad language. Though the language of the book is better than most new age Indian authors and their books, I could still find many grammatical errors. But more than that, what bothered me was that the language didn't match the period for which it was written. Usage of words like - hey, yeah made me feel like the book is rooted in today's times rather than the era it was supposed to depict
  2. Misplaced Genre --- the characters and the events that were used as a Base for the book were no doubt from a mythological premise, but at the heart of it - it is a romance novel. The story would have still made sense if the mythological premise was removed - so was it really a mythological fiction or a romance novel with a twist?


THE VERDICT:

A generally fast paced and short book with an interesting plot. Loved the fact that author kept the plot crisp and didn't indulge in unnecessary drama or lengthening of the book.

READ, IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR:
  • A Light Read
  • A Romance Novel with a Twist
  • A Fast Paced, Short Read


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