Meera Nair's Blog, page 11

The Scapegoat by Daphne du Maurier

Set in the French countryside in the 20th century, The Scapegoat is a story of doppelgängers, John and Jean. When the two meet by accident, John had been leading a life as a university professor; his lack of motivation and low self-worth marring all his actions.

But when he wakes up after a night of hanging out with Jean, he realizes that the latter has disappeared with all his belongings, and John is now being mistaken for his look-alike despite him insisting otherwise.

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The Genesis of Seven by Sara M. Schaller

Jordan Conway has lived in an orphanage all his life, oblivious to a prophecy that will change his reality. When Sister Helen, the head nun, urges him to flee the orphanage and seek out the help of an archangel, Jordan gets caught in an ancient battle between the 7 archangels and Satan’s army of the fallen.

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The premise of this book has everything a fantasy fiction reader would want:

The chosen one tropeAn adventure that takes the protagonist across bordersA ba...

Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica

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When a mother and her six-year-old daughter go missing shortly after a young woman disappears from their peaceful suburban locality, the community folks begin to consider the presence of a serial kidnapper.

More than a decade later, the daughter, Delilah, comes back, reopening the investigation into the disappearances. Mary Kubica’s Local Woman Missing is an intriguing exploration of the battle between self-preservation and morality.

I was hooked to the book ...

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

Ryland Grace, a molecular biologist-turned-science-teacher, wakes aboard a spaceship with no recollection of who he is or why he is there. Gradually, as his memories return to him, he realizes that an alien lifeforce has been draining the sun’s energy, threatening devastation on Earth. Grace has been tasked with finding a solution through the Hail Mary mission.

I occasionally tend to pick up sci-fi books for the mere purpose of getting to read about unique systems and worldbuilding.

Ima...

The Muse and the Moon by Lincy Ann Matthew

The Muse and the Moon is a story about finding love and what it takes to sustain a healthy relationship in the long run. Anagha works as a copy-editor at an e-publishing firm.

Despite how smitten she is with her colleague, Rudran, she knows there can be no office romance on the cards because he is married. So when their small talk blossoms into something more, Anagha begins to wonder if she’s found the one for her.

One of the things that appealed to me about this book was getting to read ...

Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier

Prepared to fulfil her mother’s dying wish, Mary Yellan heads to Jamaica Inn to live with her aunt Patience. She soon realizes that her aunt’s life is nothing like they’d thought; her marriage with Joss Merlyn is far from the rosy picture she’d painted in her letter.

As days pass, Mary unwittingly becomes intrigued by the nefarious activities at the inn and comes to understand why the place has garnered such a reputation amongst the townsfolk.

Reading more and more of Daphne du Maurier’s w...

The Birds and Other Stories by Daphne du Maurier

A collection of short stories that traverse the landscape of the absurd and the fantastical, The Birds and Other Stories is guaranteed to leave an indelible impression on you with the depths of the themes explored over the course of the 6 multi-genre stories.

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After having read and loved Rebecca, I joined a book club to read all of Daphne du Maurier’s works. And so far, it hasn’t disappointed!

I didn’t know what to expect from this collection as I’m used to th...

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid

A multi-generational saga that tests the bonds between family, Taylor Jenkins Reid’s 2021 historical fiction novel is set in a coastal neighbourhood in Malibu.

With the grace of the waves that the Riva siblings surf on, Reid writes about a family tradition (an annual party where all the rich and the famous gather every year) that inevitably transforms the lives of the Riva family.

I hadn’t expected to like this book as much as I did, considering the amount of infidelity in it. And that i...

A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins

When a man is found stabbed to death on the boat he lived on, three women fall under suspicion for various reasons. Paula Hawkins’ latest release explores, through a cast of unusual characters, how circumstances govern human perspective and behaviour.

The plot promises a typical murder mystery. But I was pleasantly surprised to see how the storylines of different characters have been woven together.

In the beginning, the plot execution is weighed down by these individual stories, so much...

The Stationery Shop of Tehran by Marjan Kamali

Marjan Kamali’s Tehran is a canvas of class hierarchies, rich cuisine, literary loves, and youth politics. Roya Khanom’s visits to the quaint stationery shop begin to take a turn when Mr Fakhri (the owner) introduces her to a young man who also frequents the establishment.

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What starts out as a heady sense of love soon spirals out of control when on the day of their marriage, Bahman goes missing.

This has to be one of the best books I’ve ever read! The storyt...