Devika Fernando's Blog, page 47

Featured - Book Blitz for "Six Lies" by Ben Adams

About the BookGenre: Humour, Romance,
Release Date: 23/11/15
Publisher:  SilverWood Books
​
How would you feel if, one day, you discover that everything you thought you knew about your family was a fabrication? Your mother wasn’t your mother, your father was a liar and your whole upbringing was a sham.
 
Confronted with this exact situation, Dave Fazackerley doesn’t feel great. It doesn’t help that he has just buried the woman he thought of as his mother. Or that his wife, his one true soulmate, recently jumped into bed with a librarian. Even his band, his only escape from reality, is going through a rough patch.
 
How will Dave respond? Will he discover the truth about his family? Will his band ever play a gig again? More importantly, can Dave entice his wife back from the arms of the book-dork or will he take a chance on a new love?
​
BUY LINKS
AMAZON UK
AMAZON US
​ About the AuthorLike a lot of people, Ben went to school, then college and eventually grew up and got a responsible job, a house and a family. And then his mid-life crisis kicked in.
 
Realising that life was in danger of becoming all too serious, Ben started writing. Not in the way that Forrest Gump started running, but at least he started. He wrote on steamed up mirrors in the bathroom to make his children smile. Eventually he graduated to making up stories to entertain his kids at bedtime.
 
For some reason, his boys didn't seem interested in his tales of every-day life, relationships, family, trauma, farce and the occasional bit of debauchery. They preferred JK someone or other.
 
Following his short-lived career as a children's author, Ben now concentrates on writing stories for grown-ups. He writes for people who have lived, loved, worked, strived and suffered - people like him. People like you.
 
Ben lives in southwest London with his two boys and Albus, his dog.
 
AUTHOR LINKS
FACEBOOK
GOODREADS
BLOG
AUTHOR WEBSITE
Twitter: @benadamsauthor
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Featured - Book Club Blog Tour - "Soul Warrior" by Falguni Kothari (Review)

My ReviewAfter reading Indian mythology for the first time some months ago and enjoying it a lot, I was all to happy to receive a review copy of “Soul Warrior” by Falguni Kothari. The cover is a beauty to behold, and the book itself is beautifully written too.
 
The story started with a bang and had me enthralled straight away. I knew from the language style and the subject that I was going to love this book. Here are some of the first lines.
 
Death is hot.
That surprises me. I’d imagined death as cold and brutal. Merciless. But in truth, death is hot as blood, and constant like a heartbeat.
Thrum. Thrum. Thrum. My lifeblood ebbs to the rhythm. My head ripped from its torso by Anjalika, the arrow of death that burns even now with the energy of the sun. Struck from behind like some novice. Felled in battle by that lily-livered usurper the Heavens smile upon--
Prince Arjun. Brother Arjun.
What have I done?
 
Throughout the book, the author managed to keep me riveted, full of wonder and worry. The story is fast-paced, laced with detail and so immersed in the plot that the reader is pulled along. There were twists and dialogues that had me go through a dozen emotions in a few minutes. The contemporary / human feel to it gave it a sort of Western flair despite the Indian roots and characters, which made it all the more fascinating.
 
Definitely worth a try if you’re a fan of mythology, urban fantasy and powerful stories in general.
 
Rating: 5/5
​Spotlight on the Book WIN THE MEDALLION. TAKE PART IN THE RAFFLECOPTER

Soul Warrior: Age of Kali 
by  Falguni Kothari [image error]
Blurb
Fight fate, or succumb to destiny? In the dark Age of Kali, the Soul Warrior alone stands guard over the Human Realm, protecting its denizens from evil-willed asuras or demons. When a trick of fate appoints him guru to a motley crew of godlings, he agrees to train them as demon hunters against his better judgment. Suddenly, Lord Karna is not only battling the usual asuras with sinister agendas, but also rebellious students and a fault-ridden past. 
Spanning the cosmic realms of mythic India, here is a tale of a band of supernatural warriors who come together over a singular purpose: the salvation of Karna’s secret child. 
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Excerpt
Kuru Kshetra Battlefield. 
Day 17 of the Great Kuru War, seven thousand five hundred years ago.
Death is hot. 
That surprises me. I’d imagined death as cold and brutal. Merciless. But in truth, death is hot as blood, and constant like a heartbeat. 
Thrum. Thrum. Thrum. My lifeblood ebbs to the rhythm. My head ripped from its torso by Anjalika, the arrow of death that burns even now with the energy of the sun. Struck from behind like some novice. Felled in battle by that lily-livered usurper the Heavens smile upon—Prince Arjun. Brother Arjun. 
What have I done? I harness the thought. Cease all reflection and wrench free of my mortal body. I soar up, up into the gloaming, snapping the ties that tether me to life. Dead, I have no use for ties. 
“A matter of perspective, Karna, O son of my godsire.” The unearthly words strum through the air, and I quiver like a plucked bowstring, overcome as much by the voice as its blasphemous claim. “Bonds of devotion nourish the soul, brother.” 
There is that word again. Brother. Unpleasant laughter wells up in me. Alive, I am abandoned, denied my birthright—Celestial or royal. Death, it seems, changes everything. 
A bright, nebulous light brings forth Lord Yama, the God of Death, atop his divine mount. His elephantine thighs ripple beneath a silken dhoti, ochre and crimson of color, as he guides the mammoth water buffalo to a halt. An iron medallion sways against the God’s powerful cerulean torso, its center stone an ethereal blood orange. 
Hypnotic. Pulsing with life. I am drawn to the stone. 
“Piteous waste,” Lord Yama mutters, surveying the carnage of war far below us. 
I trace the trajectory of his gaze and behold the battered remains of my army drenched in the evidence of its mortality. Is it true? Have we died in vain? 
Words form inside me and I will them out. “Shall we go, my lord?”
 “Ha! Impatient to be judged, are you? Anxious to have your fate revealed?” asks the Judge of the Hell Realm. His red-black eyes burn with intelligence and compassion in a blue-tinged face that is long and lean and hard. “Rest easy, brother-warrior. You are not bound for the Great Courtroom.” 
Not bound for Hell? Where then? Fear has eluded me for so long that I take a moment to recognize it. A hollow-bellied feeling it is, as annoying as a bone stuck in my throat. 
“My lord, I have done bad deeds…terrible deeds in my life. I have waged wars, this horrendous bloodshed, and all because my pride could not—would not abide rejection. I have sinned. I must atone for my actions.”
Lord Yama smiles in a way I do not like. “You have redeemed yourself admirably, Karna. You forfeited your life for the greater good today. The deed far outweighs any misguided ones. Be at peace, brother, and enjoy the fruits of your karma.” 
There is but one place to enjoy such fruits—the Higher Worlds. 
I’d rather burn in Hell for eternity. I say so. “I won’t live amongst the Celestials.” Coexisting with the very souls who’ve spurned me is unthinkable. Watching her—for she would surely reside in Heaven soon—will be eternal torture. 
Yama shakes his head, the horns on his crown slashing to and fro. “I thought you might say that. Relax. Your destiny lies elsewhere.”
 “Am I to be reborn then? Am I to begin a new life, and forget the past?” Pain, sharp as a blade, lances through me at the thought. Forget my past? My family? Even her? Was that my punishment? To forget all that made me human? It must be so. For have I not betrayed them as surely as I’ve betrayed my prince regent? 
“Human rebirth is not your destiny, either. You are chosen, brother. Your war skills are needed for a higher purpose.” The God slips off his mount, his garments rustling in agitation. “This unjust war has pushed the Cosmos to the vortex of a cataclysm. Tomorrow, the Kuru War will end. Fearing its outcome, the Celestials rolled the Die of Fate and have unwittingly bestowed on Demon Kali untold powers.” Lord Yama bares his fangs in disgust at the foolish gamble. “Imagine the havoc that asura and his minions will wreak on the weak if left unchecked. The Human Realm must be safeguarded during Kali’s dark reign.”
 I can imagine the horror only too well as I have battled with evil all my life. But I am done with wars. I am done with defeat. I won’t waste another lifetime fighting. 
“With due respect, my lord, I am not the man for this task.”
 “You are not a man at all,” Yama thunders, fists shaking. “You are the son of Surya, the Sun God. Accept that you are no ordinary soul.”
 I say nothing. I think nothing. I feel something but I squash it down. 
Lord Yama’s thick black brows draw together. “Demon Kali will try to pervade every particle of good that exists in the Cosmos, beginning with the corruptible Human Realm. Once he obliterates all of humanity, he’ll set his sights on the Celestials. Kali will not stop until he’s destroyed our way of life. But you can stop him. You are light to his darkness. Do you understand now why you had to betray him? Your beloved humans need you, Karna. I need you. Our father believes in you. Claim your rightful place in the Cosmos.”
 Impatiently, Lord Yama removes the iron medallion from his neck and holds it out. The vermillion sunstone glows as if its soul is on fire. Nay! It is my soul that is on fire. Indescribable energy curls through me. I gasp, though not in pain. I shudder and feel myself grow large, grow hot. Was this rebirth? 
I am strong, full-bodied and lethal once more. Then I roar as light bursts forth from my very core and I throb with glorious, blinding power. When I come to myself, my world has changed again. Bubbles of color shimmer all around me: cobalt and saffron, azure and rose. By karma! They are souls. Infinite floating souls.
“Behold the spectrum of life: the worthy, the notorious, the righteous and the sinners.” The God of Death’s soul was a worthy sapphire blue with a tinge of silver. “Your duty, should you choose to accept the office of the Soul Warrior, is to hunt down the red-souled asuras and crush them. Whatever you decide, I wish you a long and successful Celestial existence, Karna,” Yama booms out and vanishes into the purpling sky.
The parley has stunned me. The world of color holds me in thrall. I was dead. Yet, now I am not. A new path lies before me. Unwanted, unwelcome, I insist on principle. I close my eyes. Open them to stare at the medallion cupped in my hand—a golden-hued hand at once familiar and not—and know myself for a fool. I do want this. It’s what I am. 
Bastard-born. Rebel. Son. Husband. Father. Warlord. And protector. I fist the talisman, buoyed by its concrete warmth. This is who I am. 
I am the Soul Warrior.
About the Author   [image error] Falguni Kothari is a New York-based hybrid author, and an amateur Latin and Ballroom dance silver medalist with a semi-professional background in Indian Classical dance. She writes in a variety of genres sewn together by the colorful and cultural threads of her South Asian heritage and expat experiences. She is published in India in contemporary fiction with global e-book availability, and launches her mythic fantasy series, the Age of Kali, with SOUL WARRIOR. When not writing, dancing or being a domestic goddess, she fools around on all manner of social media, and loves to connect with readers.

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Featured - Book Club Blog Tour - "The Brown Sahebs" by Anupam Srivastava (Review)

My ReviewI received a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased, honest review – and I’m glad, because it was an enjoyable read. Or maybe I should rather say, a thought-provoking read.
 
In an interesting mix of non-fiction and fiction woven together, “The Brown Sahebs” by Anupam Srivastava is unlike any book I’ve ever read. It has a bit of everything, like many pieces to a grand puzzle that will only reveal itself when you have finished and lean back to savour it in its entirety. History, politics, socio-critical analyses, a dash of romance with a clever love triangle, economics, religion and philosophy all make an appearance. Sometimes it is almost a bit too much to take in. I certainly didn’t breeze through the book the way I often do it, but the ‘effort was worth it, for each chapter held hidden delights. I like the way the father-son dynamics between the Raja of Teekra and his son Pratap were handled, and the way Pratap, Malati and Kavita were thrown together was a masterful stroke too.
 
I am by no means an expert on India’s history, though I know enough about Gandhi – who also makes an appearance – and the British Raj followed by the pre- and post-Independence struggle to understand the value of this novel. I have to say this is exactly where the strongest and weakest point of the book lies: In the unapologetic and complex way it handles the broad subject, assuming the readers know enough to not lose their way and to enjoy every detail. I’m sure I missed quite some subtleties, and I am left with a few questions, but I like it when a story makes me think. The characters were well-fleshed out, especially Vidhya Babu the freedom fighter.
 
Overall, I appreciate the clean, neat style and language of the novel and that it seems jam-packed with knowledge. The prologue and first chapters had me hooked and I never lost interest in the story. I can recommend this book to anyone interested in India’s past, stories with historical flair and sharp-brained insights into the human mind, and books that involve well-known personalities. It is no easy read, but a commendable feat from the author’s side.
 
Rating: 4/5
​Spotlight
THE BROWN SAHEBS BY ANUPAM SRIVASTAVA [image error] Blurb The Raja of Teekra, a dusty and forgotten kingdom near Lucknow, gets lucky when the British Resident visits him but also brings with him a leading revolutionary. The Raja enters India's struggle for freedom and is rewarded with a berth in the cabinet of free India. He is shocked to see the ministers and officers living and operating like their imperial masters but is suitably rewarded for his silence. As he begins to enjoy the good life of Lutyens' Delhi, the British capital which India's freedom fighters abhorred, he faces only one adversary in his plans—his journalist son Pratap. A novel that will blow you away with its depiction of love, passion, intrigue and betrayal.
Buy @|amazon. com | amazon.in | amazon.co.uk | Flipkart |
About the Author  [image error]
Anupam Srivastava was born in Lucknow, India, where his novel, The Brown Saheb's first part is set. However, he never lived there as his father and mother, Ashok and Veena Srivastava, lived in different parts of India. However, Anupam spent some of his childhood and most of his vacations in Lucknow where he flew kites and learnt about the craft of pigeon-flying. He went to a boarding school near Delhi, the Motilal Nehru School of Sports, Rai, where he played cricket but earned his college colours at St Stephen's College, Delhi, in cross-country running. He studied English literature (BA Hons and MA), won the college annual poetry prize while pursuing his MA, and being sure his vocation was writing and journalism, became a journalist with The Times of India in 1993. In 1999, he was awarded the British Chevening scholarship by the British government.
In 1999, he left journalism to work with the United Nations Population Fund in India in communications. Subsequently, Anupam worked with Oxfam India Society, Unicef and other development agencies. The Brown Sahebs is his first novel and tells the story of India not taking off its colonial clothing even as it became a democracy.
Anupam is married to Radhika Srivastava, and they have two children who figure in his children's novel, A Family Secret.
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Featured - Book Club Book Blitz - "Vengeance: A Sting in Every Tale", Edited by Sonia Rao

Designed by Neil D'Silva 
Vengeance -A Sting in Every Tale A WRIMO INDIA anthologyEdited bySonia Rao Disclaimer : Every Cent from this novel goes to Wrimo India to encourage all future aspiring writers.  [image error] Designed by Sujata Patnaik 
Blurb A reply to a perceived injustice can take many forms one of which is vengeance. An eye for an eye can only end up making the whole world blind, is what Mahatma Gandhi once said. And it seems to be coming quite true, if latest events world-wide are an indication.
Is there any hope or are we hurtling towards extinction?
Hopefully, the stories will explore some of these questions. But that is on the macro level. It might be easy to look at things objectively, in black and white, when it is other nations involved. Or even other people. We are able to be more forgiving of transgressions when they don’t involve us personally.
But how would one react if they found themselves in the maelstrom of situations that do fall somewhere in the grey area of life? With no definite black and white answers?
How would a jilted lover react in face of infidelity? Or how would a friend avenge the murder of her best friend? Or, is it fair to be punished for a crime that you were not brave enough to prevent?
These and many more questions connected to vengeance have been grappled with in this anthology.
created by Archana Sarat EXCERPT OF FIRST CHAPTER
Bus number 131 whirred away, pulling its own weight unwillingly. It was one of the many buses to pass through the Relief road, a busy road in the old part of Ahmedabad. Shazia had an option, the crowed 88 or the overcrowded 131. She preferred to be 30 minutes before time to board 131. Her choice was motivated by her love for the palindromic 1-3-1. Her undying infatuation with prime numbers was inexplicable. Nineteen year old Shazia loved numbers, and to be more precise, she adored Mathematics in all its form. She also loved the rules, the principles, the working theorems, the equations which tried to make sense of the majestic menagerie of numbers. She was fascinated even by the mere shape of numbers. She did not remember when or even how her romance with Maths began. But in her earliest memories, she preferred practicing her numbers over the alphabet, she remembered that she recited tables better than her nursery rhymes. She was short and a bit stocky. Also, a couple of shades darker than was acceptable in the marriage market. However, her looks never bothered her, nor did she ever yearn for fairer skin, or thinner body. What she craved was a disheveled mass of hair, for some uncanny resemblance to Einstein, the only pop icon modern science managed to have produced. But her mother plaited her hair, dashing her hopes to ground. She also longed for a pair of spectacles with glasses so thick that it blurred her eyeballs, indicating the wearer’s brilliance. But she, despite getting checked for vision from her mother’s ophthalmologist, was denied the hallowed implement. Thrice. Shazia valued her bus ride a lot. She had to convince Papa to allow her to commute to her college on her own. She had concealed her indignation about needing her father's permission for every little trifle, even after being categorised as an adult by the Government of India. Papa consented only after he was told that Noor too would start using the bus if Shazia were to give her company.

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ABOUT THE EDITOR SONIA RAO
[image error]


The editor of the Anthology, Sonia Rao (writer-editor-awardwinningblogger) is the NaNoWriMo Municipal Liaison for All-India region. The stories which are part of the anthology are written by Wrimos homed in to Asia::India region. Most of them are also published writers of short fiction and novels.She blogs @ https://soniaraowrites.wordpress.com/ 
Find out more about Wrimo India @Wrimo India on FB:  https://www.facebook.com/NaNoWriMo.India/Wrimo India on Twitter:  https://twitter.com/wrimosindia Wrimo India blog: https://wrimoindiawrites.wordpress.com/ NaNoWriMo:  http://nanowrimo.org/
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Featured - Author Interview with Julie Tetel Andresen

I do so love chatting with fellow authors to find out what makes them tick and influences their writing. Today I'm having Julie Tetel Andresen over, and she has a lot of interesting things to say. :-) Author Interview with Julie Tetel Andresen ​1. What do you like most and least about being a writer?
 
I love getting up in the morning and writing my stories. What a great job! And the worst part? A negative review. Horrible!
 
2. You write historical romance novels set in various eras. Do you have a favourite era – and if yes, what makes it so special?
 
My first novel is My Lord Roland , set in 13th-century England. I thought I would always write medievals, because I find that time-period spectacularly romantic, and not only because it was the time when the romance narrative form came into being. Castles, knights, ladies, jousts, heraldry – I thought I’d never get enough of it.
 
However after writing three medievals, I knew I had mined what I wanted from the time period: My Lord Roland explores castle life, Catherine of York takes a tour through town life, and Simon’s Lady is all about court life. So that was that.
 
The Regency period is also endlessly romantic, but here again I’ve only written three: Lord Laxton’s Will , The Temporary Bride , and French Lessons .
 
As I started exploring other eras I came to realize they’re all equally compelling. Here’s an unusual one: London in 1950. Sure, there are plenty of stories set in WWII London. Regency London is superb as a setting. So is contemporary London. But 1950?
 
I had a story I just had to write, and it was set in London in 1950. It involves an architect who feels pressure to help rebuild the bombed-out city and a young woman who comes to work from him. I loved immersing myself in the time period, reading up on architecture, even reading issues of the London Times from 1950. The result is Drawn to Love .
 
3. What inspired the Timeslip Series and its intriguing titles?
 
I thought I’d always be a historical writer (just like I thought I’d always write medievals), but then I started traveling a lot internationally, and I realized I was going to all these amazing places that I wanted to write about. But I didn’t want to give up historicals, so I figured writing timeslips – aka reincarnation romances – would give me the best of both worlds.
 
The three books of the trilogy are all stand-alone, but they share common elements: a double romance (one 100 years ago, one contemporary), 3 global locations (different ones in all 3 books), karmic pods of characters (usually about 6), and a science mystery. 
 
As for the titles, the Book of Hours is a Christian devotional book popular in the Middle Ages (speaking of medievals!) and is the most common type of illuminated manuscript. I’ve always thought those books were gorgeous. They mark the passage of time, and at the same time they’re extraordinary and out-of-time. So my Timeslip Series is my version of a Book of Hours.
 
I chose the colors to go with the themes of the books.
 
The Blue Hour is moody and thematizes Impressionist painting, and it was easy for me to think of the blues in Monet’s Water Lilies. L’heure bleue is a perfume by Guerlain. I bought a bottle when I was writing the story and discovered I didn’t like the scent. But I still like the name. The story is set, in part, in Paris of the 1880s and the present.
 
The Crimson Hour deals with red tides (an oceanic phenomenon), communism/post-communism, Chinese wedding dresses (traditionally red), anger, and anything else red I could think of. Two of the three global locations, namely Romania and Hong Kong, have a relationship to communism.
 
The Emerald Hour has an eco-plot involving rubber trees. So green was the obvious way to go. Brazil is a location, both Rio and the Amazon. So is Kew Gardens in London. So the plot and the settings involve lots of plants.
 
4. Do you have to do a lot of research for your books? How do you go about it?
 
Historicals: Like any other historical novelist, I’ll say that I use 10% of my research. We historical novelists love our research. We know not to use all of it but rather just a sprinkling of it.
 
Since I can’t evoke the whole of a time period, I use my research strategically, by choosing only a couple of elements in a time period to foreground. In Suspicious Hearts , a romance/murder-mystery set in early 18th-century London, I chose to focus on three elements: i) the vogue for chinoiserie, which was the European interpretation of Chinese style in art, furniture, and even clothing; ii) funeral customs; and iii) the background of Marlborough’s Wars, since the hero is an ex-soldier.
 
Contemporaries: I travel, travel, travel and pay lots of attention to where I am. I like to stay in a place for a while to learn the language and really get a sense of things.
 
In 2012 I lived for 6 months in Vietnam. I had no idea I was going to write any stories set there, but one day I woke up and started writing Tied Up , then came Captured , and this past September Knocked Out was published. The three stories together are my Forest Breeze Series.
 
5. Any hidden talents or crazy facts about you?
 
I’m a pretty darned good bowler.
 
6. You have lived in various countries. Has that influenced your writing in any way?
 
Yes, yes, and yes. I spend summers in Romania. One of the 3 global locations in The Crimson Hour is Bucharest, Romania. I know the place really well. Vietnam, as I’ve just said, has also been an inspiration.
 
In 2014 I spent a couple of months in Ulan Bator, Mongolia. I don’t currently have a story in mind for that location, but who knows, maybe one day I’ll wake up and there it is. 
 
7. Tell us about the one thing you can’t write without.
 
Iced tea.
 
8. Do you have any advice for (aspiring) authors?
 
Be true to yourself and your voice. Aspiring authors sometimes lack confidence – understandably, given how hard it is to get a story onto the page and then to imagine if anyone else in the world would be interested in it.
 
As an aspiring author, believe that the world – whatever subsection of it may be relevant – needs your story. Yes, needs. It’s taken me a long time to understand this about my own writing. If you do your job with heart and integrity, there will be a reader who will find something they need in your story – whether you intended it or not. You, the author, produce what you produce. It’s not your job to determine what it will mean to another person. But know that someone will need it.
 
9. If you had to live in one of your contemporary novellas as a protagonist, which one would you choose?
 
What a wonderful question! I’ll say Dayna DeMarco from DeMarco’s Café because she was born and raised and lives in the coolest place in New York City, namely Soho.
 
10. What are you currently working on?
 
I just finished Love After All, which is a story about a pair of 50-somethings who are at the top of their professional game but rusty on dating chops. I loved getting into the heads and lives of older characters.
 
So now I’m moving into shape-shifter romance. I have a trilogy in mind, but before beginning on that, I’ve just started a long short story (100 pages) called The Alpha’s Edge that I will serialize on my blog this spring.  About the Author Julie Tetel Andresen has written about language and love for more than 20 years. A professor of linguistics at Duke University, Julie has also written more than twenty romance novels and novellas. Before moving to publish exclusively on the Amazon Kindle library, Julie was published by Fawcett Crest, Warner Books, and Harlequin. Her novels cross many sub-genres of romance, including mystery, contemporary, BDSM, motorcycle club, and historical fiction. Her latest novel, Love After All, will be released in Spring 2016.

Book Club Blog Tour - "The Brown Sahebs" by Anupam Srivastava

THE BROWN SAHEBS BY ANUPAM SRIVASTAVA [image error] Blurb The Raja of Teekra, a dusty and forgotten kingdom near Lucknow, gets lucky when the British Resident visits him but also brings with him a leading revolutionary. The Raja enters India's struggle for freedom and is rewarded with a berth in the cabinet of free India. He is shocked to see the ministers and officers living and operating like their imperial masters but is suitably rewarded for his silence. As he begins to enjoy the good life of Lutyens' Delhi, the British capital which India's freedom fighters abhorred, he faces only one adversary in his plans—his journalist son Pratap. A novel that will blow you away with its depiction of love, passion, intrigue and betrayal.
Buy @|amazon. com | amazon.in | amazon.co.uk | Flipkart |
About the Author  [image error]
Anupam Srivastava was born in Lucknow, India, where his novel, The Brown Saheb's first part is set. However, he never lived there as his father and mother, Ashok and Veena Srivastava, lived in different parts of India. However, Anupam spent some of his childhood and most of his vacations in Lucknow where he flew kites and learnt about the craft of pigeon-flying. He went to a boarding school near Delhi, the Motilal Nehru School of Sports, Rai, where he played cricket but earned his college colours at St Stephen's College, Delhi, in cross-country running. He studied English literature (BA Hons and MA), won the college annual poetry prize while pursuing his MA, and being sure his vocation was writing and journalism, became a journalist with The Times of India in 1993. In 1999, he was awarded the British Chevening scholarship by the British government.
In 1999, he left journalism to work with the United Nations Population Fund in India in communications. Subsequently, Anupam worked with Oxfam India Society, Unicef and other development agencies. The Brown Sahebs is his first novel and tells the story of India not taking off its colonial clothing even as it became a democracy.
Anupam is married to Radhika Srivastava, and they have two children who figure in his children's novel, A Family Secret.
Stalk Him @
                              
         

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Follow The Book 's board The Brown Sahebs by Anupam Srivastava on Pinterest.


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Featured - "The Darkest Days" by Liza O'Connor

Recently Sara discovered either the pup or Cannon had bit Ham (short for Hamilton). The boy never cried out, so the first she knew of the incident was when Sara bathed him.

​Vic scolds Cannon and Arroo when she learns of their misbehavior. She reminds them that Ham is a member of their pack, and since he will soon be larger than either of them, he will be able to protect them later in life.
Later, when talking to Tubs, she asks if he thinks they might have bitten the boy because they thought he actually was ham, which is their favorite food.  That is exactly what Tubs thinks happened.
​When the pot has too many cooks a feast can be ruined, and that’s exactly what happens with Xavier and Vic’s new cases. Each proves more complicated than initially thought with criminals dropping out of the sky, wreaking havoc upon Xavier, Vic, and their excellent employees. By the end, Vic threatens to open a school that teaches criminals how to stay out of each other’s way.
Worse yet, a treasured member of the staff is shot in the heart while attempting to save Vic and the Queen’s cousin. 
​Vic sighed heavily as she collapsed onto her carriage seat and stared at Tubs seated opposite her. “Being a parent is hard work.”
“I think you’re doing fine,” Tubs said.
She frowned at him. “Why didn’t you tell me my pups bit yours?”
He shrugged. “It didn’t even break the skin. Boy’s got to be tougher than that.”
“Well, I don’t wish him to have your childhood,” she muttered.
“Not even possible living with so many happy, good people. Ham will grow up to be a good man.”
The Darkest Days
Book 6
Free with Amazon Kindle Unlimited
 
Need to catch up?
Book 1
The Troublesome Apprentice
Book 2
The Missing Partner
Book 2.5
A Right to Love
Book 3
The Mesmerist
Book 4
Well Kept Secrets
Book 5
Pack of Trouble
 
All Xavier & Vic books are Free with Amazon Unlimited
​ Liza O’Connor was raised badly by feral cats, left the South/Midwest and wandered off to find nicer people on the east coast. There she worked for the meanest man on Wall Street, while her psychotic husband tried to kill her three times. (So much for finding nicer people.) Then one day she declared enough, got a better job, divorced her husband, and fell in love with her new life where people behaved nicely. But all those bad behaviors has given her lots of fodder for her humorous books. Please buy these books, because otherwise, she’ll become grumpy and write troubled novels instead. They will likely traumatize you.

You have been warned.

Mostly humorous books by Liza:

Ghost Lover —Two British brothers fall in love with the same young woman. Ancestral ghost is called in to fix the situation. And there’s a ghost cat that roams about the book as well. (Humorous Contemporary Romance)
Saving Casey — Cass wakes up in the body of a troubled teen who has burned every bridge imaginable. Her only choice is to turn this life around, but that’s much harder than she ever imagined.
Untamed & Unabashed —The youngest of the Bennet sisters, Lydia, tells her story. A faithful spinoff from Pride & Prejudice.

A Long Road to Love Series: (Humorous Contemporary odd Romance)
​
Worst Week Ever — Laugh out loud week of disasters of Epic proportions.
Oh Stupid Heart — The heart wants what it wants, even if it’s impossible.
Coming to Reason — There is a breaking point when even a saint comes to reason.
Climbing out of Hell — The reconstruction of a terrible man into a great one.
The Hardest Love — Is to love oneself. Sam’s story.

The Adventures of Xavier & Vic Sleuth series: (Late Victorian/Mystery/Romance)
​
The Troublesome Apprentice — The greatest sleuth in Victorian England hires a young man who turns out to be a young woman.
The Missing Partner — Opps! The greatest sleuth in Victorian England goes missing, leaving Vic to rescue him, a suffragette, and about 100 servants. Not to mention an eviscerating cat. Yes, let’s not mention the cat.
A Right to Love — A romantic detour for Jacko. Want to see how amply rewarded Jacko was when he & Vic save an old woman from Bedlam?
The Mesmerist — The Mesmerist can control people from afar and make them murder for her. Worse yet, Xavier Thorn has fallen under her spell.
Well Kept Secrets — The problems with secrets is that they always come to light, no matter how you wish to silence them.
Pack of Trouble — Changes are a part of life, but these changes almost kill Vic.
The Darkest Days — Muddled cases make Vic very grumpy. FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT
LIZA O'CONNOR
Investigate these sites:
Liza's Blog and Website   Facebook   Twitter
​

Teaser Tuesday - Excerpt from the FIRE TRILOGY

As some of my readers might know, Felicia - the heroine from my paranormal romance series FIRE TRILOGY - is a redhead. I've always wanted to write about a passionate woman with red hair, and what better chance to do that than pick a fire witch?

It's #TeaserTuesday and #KissAGingerDay today, so this excerpt from "Playing with Fire", Book 1 in the series and available as a free download, seems perfect.
​​Felicia's nerve endings were on fire.
When Joshua lifted her head and tilted it slightly toward him, her tongue flicked out to lick her lips in anticipation of a kiss she longed for with all her body, her heart and her soul.
His gaze shot to her mouth and she could feel his body tense, fingers still, breath held. He drew closer until their faces were barely a couple of inches apart, his gaze lifting to meet hers.
“I’m giving you a lot of credit. For all kinds of things.”
The way he said it made a delicious shiver run down her spine. His icy blue eyes were unfathomably deep and sparkling with an invitation she wanted to meet with fiery passion.
“You have an odd way of showing it,” she countered, her voice no more than a whisper.
“Any suggestions of a better way?”
There was a hint of humor and a sexy promise in his voice.
Her pulse hammering in her throat, she answered, “I think I do.”
Without waiting for his reaction, she bridged the gap and kissed him.
Her lips barely touched his at first, but the mere contact was enough to make her limbs turn liquid. Before she knew it, their kiss was passionate and deep and hungry, his fingers pressing her head closer, one of her hands coming up to squeeze his hard, cool arm.
Thinking was a thing of the past as the fire dragon inside her purred and stretched its limbs and grew bigger.
Yet again, he was the one to break the kiss.
With a groan so soft she wasn’t sure she had heard it, he backed away. Withdrawing his hand from her glowing red curls, he ran his fingers through his hair and stared at the ground for an instant, visibly pulling himself together.
When he looked at her next, there was a small smile on his face, and his eyes were still sparkling magically.
“Better?”
Fighting with her emotions and the light tremor in her voice, she answered, “Better.”

Featured - The Book Club - "The Other End of the Corridor" by Sujata Rajpal

Check out the contest and win cash prizes
The Other End of the Corridor by Sujata Rajpal 
Blurb 
When your dreams are tainted with lies and deceit, you have no other choice but to walk to the other end of the corridor.Leela has nothing extraordinary about her except the dream to become famous. Her desires take wings when she gets married to a handsome boy from a respectable family in Delhi. But her dreams are shattered even before they have a chance to take flight. She happens to meet two friends from a long forgotten past, which infuses hope and opens new avenues to realize her dormant aspirations.
Leela delves into previously unexplored paths of deception and forbidden passions that only make her stronger. 
In an attempt to rediscover herself, she falls in love with life and with herself but her life takes a sudden turn again…No matter what, Leela will continue to chase her dreams.
Where does this journey take her?
Grab your copy @ amazon.in | amazon.com | flipkart
Excerpt"The corridor, I was walking down didn't have a trace of illumination. I couldn't see the other end. But I kept moving and now, I realize that more than the light, you need the determination to keep moving, keep struggling for your dreams, for your existence, for your survival."
I had lived in a dream world all my life, always blaming the circumstances for my own weaknesses. I could never gather courage to stand up to circumstances. For how long would I keep blaming others for my own shortcomings. And for how long would I keep dreaming- my dreams never aligned with the real world; my dreams and real life never converged at any point. ‘I definitely had experience but only in building castles in the air.’
About the Author  Author’s profile :Sujata Rajpal is a Corporate Communication & PR professional turned a full-time author. She holds an MPhil degree in Economics and has studied Mass Communication from Panjab University, Chandigarh. She also writes articles and short stories for publications and journals. Sujata is a yoga enthusiast and enjoys being a Toastmaster. She currently lives in Mysore.
The Other End of the Corridor is her first novel.

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Happy New Year (poem)

I ended 2015 on a creative note by finishing the first draft for my upcoming contemporary romance novel "Seduced in Spain", part of the "Romance Round the World" series that also contains "Saved in Sri Lanka". And today I started 2016 on an equally creative note by writing a poem. New Year, New Start ​A new year, a new start
Put your best foot forward
Make a wish in your heart
That you’ll find your mission
That you’ll play your part
That you’ll expand your vision
That you’ll be real smart
 
A new year, new hopes and dreams
Don’t forget this time
That not everything is what it seems
And make your own decisions
Don’t let others get you down
Keep your chin up
Wear your smile like a crown
So others see you as a shining example
Dare to be different and shine
Be your own light in the dark
Speak up, don’t just pretend you’re fine
Make everyone see your worth
And value yourself because you matter
Don’t worry about what you can’t change
But strive to make your life better
By giving it all you have
Carpe diem, seize the day
Live in the here and now
Believe in yourself, come what may
And you’ll make it through somehow
 
A new year, a new start
Use every chance you get
Make a wish in your heart
That you’ll come out on top
That you’ll jump the hurdles
That you won’t give up
That you’ll be real smart
 
© Devika Fernando