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The Body by the Shore
A novel of suspense and intrigue set in the post-pandemic world
Harris Maloub, a killer with an erased official past, now in his fifties, is visited by someone who could not be alive and given an assignment. In Aarhus, Denmark, Jens Erik, police officer on pre-retirement leave, somehow cannot forget the body of a Black man recovered from the sea some years ago. On an abandoned oil rig in the North Sea, turned into a resort for the very rich, Michelle, a young Caribbean woman, realizes that the man she has followed to this job is not what he claims to be. And neither is the rig, where a secret laboratory bares to her a face that is neither human nor animal. Behind all this, there lurks the ghost of a seminar in 2007: most of the participants of that seminar are dead or untraceable. Why was their obscure research on plants and fungi and microbes so important? What is the secret that killed them? What is the weapon that powerful syndicates are trying to obtain – or develop?
Narrated from the perspective of the post-pandemic world around 2030, but moving back in time to cover all of the 21st century, and even bits and pieces from the 20th and the 19th, The Body by the Shore is a novel of suspense and speculation about the complexity of life and intricacy of the earth. It is also a novel about reason and emotion, love and despair, greed and hope, human beings and microbes. When the narrative strands come together, a world of great terror and beauty is revealed to the reader.
Harris Maloub, a killer with an erased official past, now in his fifties, is visited by someone who could not be alive and given an assignment. In Aarhus, Denmark, Jens Erik, police officer on pre-retirement leave, somehow cannot forget the body of a Black man recovered from the sea some years ago. On an abandoned oil rig in the North Sea, turned into a resort for the very rich, Michelle, a young Caribbean woman, realizes that the man she has followed to this job is not what he claims to be. And neither is the rig, where a secret laboratory bares to her a face that is neither human nor animal. Behind all this, there lurks the ghost of a seminar in 2007: most of the participants of that seminar are dead or untraceable. Why was their obscure research on plants and fungi and microbes so important? What is the secret that killed them? What is the weapon that powerful syndicates are trying to obtain – or develop?
Narrated from the perspective of the post-pandemic world around 2030, but moving back in time to cover all of the 21st century, and even bits and pieces from the 20th and the 19th, The Body by the Shore is a novel of suspense and speculation about the complexity of life and intricacy of the earth. It is also a novel about reason and emotion, love and despair, greed and hope, human beings and microbes. When the narrative strands come together, a world of great terror and beauty is revealed to the reader.
- GenresFiction
280 pages, Paperback
Published June 7, 2022
10 people are currently reading
111 people want to read
About the author
Tabish Khair
42 books58 followersTabish Khair was born and educated in Bihar, India. He worked in Delhi as a Staff Reporter until his late twenties and is now a professor at Aarhus University, Denmark. Winner of the All India Poetry Prize, his novels have been shortlisted for the Man Asian Literary Prize (Hong Kong), the Hindu Best Fiction Prize and the Crossword Vodafone Literature Awards (India), the Encore Award (UK) and for translation prizes in Denmark and France.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
April 29, 2023
It’s not great but not bad. I liked all the Danish references, not so much all the science. Interesting story but I wish fewer characters were involved and that there was more action than background story telling.
September 3, 2022
Terrific and relevant political thriller where climate change, global health issues and racism are at the center of the intrigue. Supported by a cast of credible and interesting characters, Tabish Khair masterfully unfolds a labyrinthine plot that will fully satisfy the most demanding reader. Absolutely recommended.
PS: it would make an excellent movie too...
PS: it would make an excellent movie too...
December 24, 2022
Utterly inconsequential
April 22, 2023
Solid mystery.
November 7, 2022
It's difficult to put it into a single genre! It is of Science Fiction, Crime Mystery and Thriller genres.
⏳ The story is told through the eyes of three central characters: a retired Danish police officer, a young Caribbean housekeeper, and a former covert operations mercenary, each of whom approaches the novel's central mystery from a different perspective.
⏳ Switching from one narrative thread to another cleverly builds up the information available to readers, but it also disguises and hides things, much like the swirling North Sea waters around the decrepit oil rig.
⏳ The Body By The Shore has a Scandi-noir vibe (Scandi noir, is a genre of crime fiction usually written from a police point of view) thanks to Jens Erik's Danish location and sensibilities, while the science fiction aspect felt like a Black Mirror storyline, albeit one told in much greater depth than an hour-long tv show can achieve.
⏳ The author - Khair - has a lot to say about modern racism, how our behaviours are shaped without our knowledge or consent, and how wealth disparities are fueling increased unrest around the world. His blend of murder mystery and social commentary is great in the book. I don't have the expertise to comment on the scientific aspects of The Body By The Shore, but the sociological observations felt so accurate that I was never dragged away from the novel's atmosphere by doubts about its veracity. In fact, I could easily accept the premise of The Body By The Shore as true in the real world!
⏳ However, the first few chapters of the book were unable to bind me to the book, and I had to force myself to bind myself to the book. That could have been improved. This is not for beginners who want to try this genre; they will struggle to finish it and will conclude that this genre is not for them.
⏳ The story is told through the eyes of three central characters: a retired Danish police officer, a young Caribbean housekeeper, and a former covert operations mercenary, each of whom approaches the novel's central mystery from a different perspective.
⏳ Switching from one narrative thread to another cleverly builds up the information available to readers, but it also disguises and hides things, much like the swirling North Sea waters around the decrepit oil rig.
⏳ The Body By The Shore has a Scandi-noir vibe (Scandi noir, is a genre of crime fiction usually written from a police point of view) thanks to Jens Erik's Danish location and sensibilities, while the science fiction aspect felt like a Black Mirror storyline, albeit one told in much greater depth than an hour-long tv show can achieve.
⏳ The author - Khair - has a lot to say about modern racism, how our behaviours are shaped without our knowledge or consent, and how wealth disparities are fueling increased unrest around the world. His blend of murder mystery and social commentary is great in the book. I don't have the expertise to comment on the scientific aspects of The Body By The Shore, but the sociological observations felt so accurate that I was never dragged away from the novel's atmosphere by doubts about its veracity. In fact, I could easily accept the premise of The Body By The Shore as true in the real world!
⏳ However, the first few chapters of the book were unable to bind me to the book, and I had to force myself to bind myself to the book. That could have been improved. This is not for beginners who want to try this genre; they will struggle to finish it and will conclude that this genre is not for them.
December 19, 2022
~~If microbes were to be eliminated from earth, many infectious diseases would disappear. But much of life would disappear too. Slowly we would perish. Painfully.~~
Genre - Science based Thriller
#plot
Michelle finds herself on an abandoned oil rig when Kurt sweet talks her into working here for more money. But she notices something odd about the oil rig and she is curious to find out.
Jens Erik, a police officer who hates immigrants, or so his daughter believes, had discovered an unidentified body of a black man in the sea which he cannot forget and sets in to investigate.
Harris is living a life with the past erased and a new identity, when he is assigned a task by a man he calls Mermaid.
As all 3 of them are trying to find their respective answers they come across something extremely shocking and disturbing.
#bookreview
The Body By The Shore is a speculative fiction which is heavy on science. By blurb it seems to be a normal thriller but it is not.
The action takes place switching from one character to another at every chapter.
Initially i found it a bit hard to get into the story as it was all scene settings and science stuff. But as i read further it all came together and made so much sense and from thereon it was irresistible. It was like storm in a tea cup.
Although it is fiction, it felt well within the bounds of possibility. I enjoyed the ending as it was nail biting. The language is high level but i liked the way the author narrates. It was something different i read in a long time. It was both informative and thrilling for me. Because it made me think that something like this could be possible.
I wont recommend this to beginners. If you are someone who loves to read scientific stuff you can go for it.
Genre - Science based Thriller
#plot
Michelle finds herself on an abandoned oil rig when Kurt sweet talks her into working here for more money. But she notices something odd about the oil rig and she is curious to find out.
Jens Erik, a police officer who hates immigrants, or so his daughter believes, had discovered an unidentified body of a black man in the sea which he cannot forget and sets in to investigate.
Harris is living a life with the past erased and a new identity, when he is assigned a task by a man he calls Mermaid.
As all 3 of them are trying to find their respective answers they come across something extremely shocking and disturbing.
#bookreview
The Body By The Shore is a speculative fiction which is heavy on science. By blurb it seems to be a normal thriller but it is not.
The action takes place switching from one character to another at every chapter.
Initially i found it a bit hard to get into the story as it was all scene settings and science stuff. But as i read further it all came together and made so much sense and from thereon it was irresistible. It was like storm in a tea cup.
Although it is fiction, it felt well within the bounds of possibility. I enjoyed the ending as it was nail biting. The language is high level but i liked the way the author narrates. It was something different i read in a long time. It was both informative and thrilling for me. Because it made me think that something like this could be possible.
I wont recommend this to beginners. If you are someone who loves to read scientific stuff you can go for it.
February 12, 2023
I am someone very generous in how many stars I give a book. I say that because I had to literally drag myself through this book. It has pacing issues. The first 2/3rd of it felt impossibly dragged out for no reason. The last 70 or so pages are the climax and where the story actually starts paying off and starts feeling rewarding. However, 200 pages of slow burn? Really? It is the sheer opposite of a book that you cannot put down. It doesn’t do much to hook you in and thus it’s very easy to just lose interest. It almost put me in a reading slump and for that, I’m very cross. But the ending was good. It felt like the three main characters had a good character arc and the experience did change them, in ways, for the better. I had not really heard of Tabish Khair before this, turns out he is an Indian author and I will be reading more of his work in the future and I hope it will be better than this.
January 20, 2026
The Body by the Shore is a novel that rewards patience. It’s quiet, atmospheric, and deeply reflective, the kind of book that unfolds slowly rather than racing toward answers.
What stayed with me most was the mood. Whether set on an isolated oil rig, in European towns, or in historical and scientific reflections, there’s a steady sense of unease beneath the surface. The settings mirror the characters’ inner tensions, creating a feeling that something unseen is always at work.
The novel weaves together personal stories with history, science, and philosophy, raising questions about bodies, identity, control, and longevity. Some sections are dense and require focus, but they add depth rather than distraction. The book trusts the reader to make connections instead of spelling everything out.
What stayed with me most was the mood. Whether set on an isolated oil rig, in European towns, or in historical and scientific reflections, there’s a steady sense of unease beneath the surface. The settings mirror the characters’ inner tensions, creating a feeling that something unseen is always at work.
The novel weaves together personal stories with history, science, and philosophy, raising questions about bodies, identity, control, and longevity. Some sections are dense and require focus, but they add depth rather than distraction. The book trusts the reader to make connections instead of spelling everything out.
September 16, 2022
Its 2030. The world is run by mutant-offsprings of Big Corporations and amoral Governments. Laws rules, regulations, Constitutions are all obstacles to be pushed aside in pursuit of amoral profits.
The tide of political and climate-devastated refugees from Africa and South Asia flocking to the global west, provides new spinoffs for unscrupulous immigration agents.
In collaboration with shadowy big-pharma and corporate medicine, amoral profits can be generated literally from the bodies of these nowhere refugees.
Jens Erik, a slightly politically clueless Danish policeman planning early retirement, who has a distrust for immigrants is pulled into this investigation; as is the ex-spy Harris.
Seekers of intellectual-literary stimulation will love this novel.
The tide of political and climate-devastated refugees from Africa and South Asia flocking to the global west, provides new spinoffs for unscrupulous immigration agents.
In collaboration with shadowy big-pharma and corporate medicine, amoral profits can be generated literally from the bodies of these nowhere refugees.
Jens Erik, a slightly politically clueless Danish policeman planning early retirement, who has a distrust for immigrants is pulled into this investigation; as is the ex-spy Harris.
Seekers of intellectual-literary stimulation will love this novel.
January 28, 2026
The Body by the Shore is a slow-burning, atmospheric novel that stays with you more because of its ideas and mood than any single dramatic moment. It’s a book that asks for attention and patience, and it rewards both.
One of the strongest elements is the sense of unease that runs throughout the story. Whether the setting is an isolated oil rig, a quiet European town, or a historical or scientific detour, there’s a constant feeling that something is slightly wrong, just out of reach.
This isn’t a fast-paced or comforting read, but it’s an intelligent and thoughtful one. Readers who enjoy literary fiction that combines atmosphere, big ideas, and quiet tension will likely find The Body by the Shore both challenging and rewarding.
One of the strongest elements is the sense of unease that runs throughout the story. Whether the setting is an isolated oil rig, a quiet European town, or a historical or scientific detour, there’s a constant feeling that something is slightly wrong, just out of reach.
This isn’t a fast-paced or comforting read, but it’s an intelligent and thoughtful one. Readers who enjoy literary fiction that combines atmosphere, big ideas, and quiet tension will likely find The Body by the Shore both challenging and rewarding.
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January 28, 2026The Body by the Shore is a novel that feels deliberately unsettling, not because of constant action, but because of the ideas it quietly plants and lets grow. It moves between personal stories, historical fragments, and scientific reflections in a way that slowly builds a larger, more disturbing picture.
One of the most compelling aspects of the book is how it handles isolation. Whether it’s physical isolation, emotional distance, or intellectual separation, the characters often seem cut off from certainty and safety. The settings reinforce this feeling, cold seas, controlled environments, quiet towns, places where observation matters more than comfort. There’s a constant sense that the body itself is something fragile and not entirely under one’s own control.
One of the most compelling aspects of the book is how it handles isolation. Whether it’s physical isolation, emotional distance, or intellectual separation, the characters often seem cut off from certainty and safety. The settings reinforce this feeling, cold seas, controlled environments, quiet towns, places where observation matters more than comfort. There’s a constant sense that the body itself is something fragile and not entirely under one’s own control.
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January 29, 2026The Body by the Shore unfolds slowly and deliberately, drawing the reader into a world where certainty is rare and everything feels faintly unstable. It’s a novel that values atmosphere and thought over speed, and it leans into that choice with confidence.
What makes the book compelling is the way it connects personal stories to larger historical and scientific ideas without forcing them into neat explanations. Themes of isolation, control, and vulnerability run throughout, especially in how the body is portrayed as something influenced by forces beyond individual will. The settings, from remote, controlled spaces to ordinary towns filled with quiet tension, reinforce this sense of unease.
What makes the book compelling is the way it connects personal stories to larger historical and scientific ideas without forcing them into neat explanations. Themes of isolation, control, and vulnerability run throughout, especially in how the body is portrayed as something influenced by forces beyond individual will. The settings, from remote, controlled spaces to ordinary towns filled with quiet tension, reinforce this sense of unease.
February 7, 2026
The book engages deeply with questions about the human body, longevity, and influence, not as abstract concepts, but as lived realities shaped by culture, power, and belief. The scientific material is presented in a way that complements the narrative rather than overwhelming it, inviting curiosity rather than demanding expertise. These passages add texture and depth, encouraging readers to think about how biology and history intersect with personal identity.
The pacing is steady and intentional. This is a novel that values reflection, asking the reader to slow down and pay attention to detail, language, and implication. The prose is precise and controlled, often rewarding rereading, especially in passages where ideas quietly echo across different sections of the book.
The pacing is steady and intentional. This is a novel that values reflection, asking the reader to slow down and pay attention to detail, language, and implication. The prose is precise and controlled, often rewarding rereading, especially in passages where ideas quietly echo across different sections of the book.
February 18, 2026
The Body by the Shore is a novel built on careful layering. It combines personal narrative, historical inquiry, and scientific reflection into a structure that feels deliberate and cohesive. Rather than driving toward a single dramatic climax, the book gradually accumulates meaning, allowing ideas to echo and expand across chapters.
One of its strongest qualities is the way it situates individual lives within broader systems of knowledge and belief. Characters are shaped not only by their immediate circumstances but also by the intellectual and historical forces surrounding them. This gives the novel a sense of scale, connecting intimate human experiences to larger patterns of thought and discovery.
One of its strongest qualities is the way it situates individual lives within broader systems of knowledge and belief. Characters are shaped not only by their immediate circumstances but also by the intellectual and historical forces surrounding them. This gives the novel a sense of scale, connecting intimate human experiences to larger patterns of thought and discovery.
February 20, 2026
The Body by the Shore is a carefully constructed novel that moves fluidly between storytelling and intellectual exploration. It brings together personal experience, historical context, and scientific thought in a way that feels deliberate and integrated rather than fragmented.
One of the novel’s notable strengths is its sense of structure. The different narrative strands do not compete with one another; instead, they gradually reveal thematic parallels. As the chapters unfold, patterns emerge around questions of identity, embodiment, and the influence of knowledge on human behavior. The result is a book that feels architecturally sound, with each section contributing to a larger conceptual design.
One of the novel’s notable strengths is its sense of structure. The different narrative strands do not compete with one another; instead, they gradually reveal thematic parallels. As the chapters unfold, patterns emerge around questions of identity, embodiment, and the influence of knowledge on human behavior. The result is a book that feels architecturally sound, with each section contributing to a larger conceptual design.
February 17, 2026
The Body by the Shore is a novel that operates on multiple levels at once, narrative, historical, and scientific, weaving them together into a carefully structured whole. Rather than centering on dramatic twists, it builds meaning through connections and recurring ideas.
The book is particularly strong in the way it situates individual stories within broader intellectual and historical contexts. Personal experiences are not isolated events; they are shown as part of larger patterns shaped by knowledge, belief systems, and scientific discovery. This layered structure gives the novel a sense of depth and cohesion.
The book is particularly strong in the way it situates individual stories within broader intellectual and historical contexts. Personal experiences are not isolated events; they are shown as part of larger patterns shaped by knowledge, belief systems, and scientific discovery. This layered structure gives the novel a sense of depth and cohesion.
February 17, 2026
The integration of scientific concepts is handled with clarity and purpose. Discussions around the body, longevity, and biological interaction are thoughtfully embedded in the narrative, encouraging readers to reflect on how scientific understanding influences identity and perception. These elements expand the scope of the story without overwhelming it.
Stylistically, the prose is precise and composed. The pacing is measured, allowing ideas to develop gradually and giving readers space to absorb the thematic threads. The novel rewards attentiveness, as subtle parallels and motifs emerge over time.
Stylistically, the prose is precise and composed. The pacing is measured, allowing ideas to develop gradually and giving readers space to absorb the thematic threads. The novel rewards attentiveness, as subtle parallels and motifs emerge over time.
February 18, 2026
The integration of scientific material is particularly compelling. Discussions about the body and biological processes are presented in a way that enhances the narrative rather than distracting from it. These reflections invite readers to consider how scientific understanding informs identity, perception, and cultural assumptions.
Stylistically, the prose is measured and precise. The pacing encourages attentiveness, rewarding readers who are willing to follow the threads of connection woven throughout the book. Overall, this is a thoughtful and intellectually engaging novel that will resonate with readers who appreciate fiction grounded in both storytelling and inquiry.
Stylistically, the prose is measured and precise. The pacing encourages attentiveness, rewarding readers who are willing to follow the threads of connection woven throughout the book. Overall, this is a thoughtful and intellectually engaging novel that will resonate with readers who appreciate fiction grounded in both storytelling and inquiry.
February 20, 2026
The scientific material is presented with clarity and relevance. Discussions related to biology and longevity are not simply informative, they serve as lenses through which the reader can better understand the characters and their choices. This blending of disciplines gives the novel a distinctive tone, one that is both analytical and human.
The prose remains measured and controlled throughout, encouraging attentive reading. Rather than pushing toward dramatic resolution, the novel values reflection and connection. For readers who appreciate fiction that engages with ideas as deeply as it engages with character, The Body by the Shore offers a rich and considered experience.
The prose remains measured and controlled throughout, encouraging attentive reading. Rather than pushing toward dramatic resolution, the novel values reflection and connection. For readers who appreciate fiction that engages with ideas as deeply as it engages with character, The Body by the Shore offers a rich and considered experience.
February 20, 2026
The writing is composed and thoughtful, with a steady pace that allows themes to develop naturally. Readers are invited to notice recurring motifs and subtle connections across time and perspective. This approach rewards patience and engagement, offering depth that continues to unfold even after the final page.
Rather than offering definitive answers, the novel leaves space for interpretation. Its strength lies in the way it encourages reflection, both on the nature of the body and on the ways in which knowledge shapes how we understand ourselves. It is a work of literary fiction that values insight, coherence, and thematic resonance.
Rather than offering definitive answers, the novel leaves space for interpretation. Its strength lies in the way it encourages reflection, both on the nature of the body and on the ways in which knowledge shapes how we understand ourselves. It is a work of literary fiction that values insight, coherence, and thematic resonance.
Read
January 28, 2026A thoughtful, slow-building novel that mixes literary mystery with science and history, creating an unsettling mood that lingers long after reading.
The book blends personal narratives with history, science, and philosophy in a way that feels deliberate rather than decorative. The scientific and historical material isn’t there to show off, it deepens the novel’s exploration of bodies, identity, control, and the illusion of purity or autonomy. At times, the prose becomes dense and reflective, but those sections add weight and texture rather than pulling the story apart.
The book blends personal narratives with history, science, and philosophy in a way that feels deliberate rather than decorative. The scientific and historical material isn’t there to show off, it deepens the novel’s exploration of bodies, identity, control, and the illusion of purity or autonomy. At times, the prose becomes dense and reflective, but those sections add weight and texture rather than pulling the story apart.
February 6, 2026
The Body by the Shore is a thoughtful and layered novel that brings together narrative, history, and science in a measured and deliberate way. Rather than relying on dramatic momentum, the book builds its impact through ideas, connections, and careful observation.
One of the novel’s strengths is how it moves across different contexts and time frames while maintaining a coherent thematic focus. Personal stories sit alongside historical episodes and scientific reflections, creating a sense of continuity between individual lives and larger patterns. The transitions between these strands are handled with restraint, allowing the reader to see how knowledge, memory, and experience inform one another.
One of the novel’s strengths is how it moves across different contexts and time frames while maintaining a coherent thematic focus. Personal stories sit alongside historical episodes and scientific reflections, creating a sense of continuity between individual lives and larger patterns. The transitions between these strands are handled with restraint, allowing the reader to see how knowledge, memory, and experience inform one another.
February 19, 2026
The writing is restrained but purposeful, maintaining clarity while allowing space for reflection. Instead of relying on dramatic intensity, the book builds interest through ideas, contrasts, and parallels that gradually reveal themselves.
This is a novel that will appeal most to readers who appreciate layered storytelling and conceptual depth. It blends fiction with history and science in a way that feels integrated and intentional, resulting in a reading experience that is thoughtful, structured, and intellectually engaging.
This is a novel that will appeal most to readers who appreciate layered storytelling and conceptual depth. It blends fiction with history and science in a way that feels integrated and intentional, resulting in a reading experience that is thoughtful, structured, and intellectually engaging.
February 20, 2026
In The Body by the Shore, narrative and inquiry are inseparable. The novel moves across different settings and intellectual landscapes, yet maintains a clear thematic focus on how the human body exists within systems of science, history, and culture.
What makes the book compelling is its commitment to complexity. Characters are shaped by personal motivations, but also by broader frameworks of belief and knowledge. Historical references and scientific discussions are woven directly into the narrative, expanding its scope without disrupting its rhythm.
What makes the book compelling is its commitment to complexity. Characters are shaped by personal motivations, but also by broader frameworks of belief and knowledge. Historical references and scientific discussions are woven directly into the narrative, expanding its scope without disrupting its rhythm.
February 20, 2026
The Body by the Shore stands out for its ability to balance narrative momentum with intellectual substance. It does not treat science and history as background decoration, but as active forces within the story’s world.
The interplay between individual lives and broader biological and historical processes gives the novel a layered texture. Personal experiences are contextualized within systems of thought, suggesting that identity is shaped by more than immediate circumstance. This gives the book both intimacy and scale.
The interplay between individual lives and broader biological and historical processes gives the novel a layered texture. Personal experiences are contextualized within systems of thought, suggesting that identity is shaped by more than immediate circumstance. This gives the book both intimacy and scale.
July 26, 2022
I have read virtually everything Tabish Khair has written, but every time he releases a new book, I end up thinking "this is probably his best literary endeavour". Khair always manages to open fresh avenues in our minds, while delving into current-day issues, such as racism, climate change, greed, neo-liberalism and its grim consequences. A thought-provoking and insightful novel, "The Body by the Shore" deserves the reader's utmost attention.
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January 28, 2026Quiet, atmospheric, and intellectually rich, this novel blends history, science, and unease into a slow-burn story that rewards patient, thoughtful readers.
This is not a book for readers looking for speed or clarity at every turn. But for those who enjoy thoughtful, layered fiction that blends atmosphere, intellect, and quiet tension, The Body by the Shore offers a deeply engaging and lingering experience.
This is not a book for readers looking for speed or clarity at every turn. But for those who enjoy thoughtful, layered fiction that blends atmosphere, intellect, and quiet tension, The Body by the Shore offers a deeply engaging and lingering experience.
February 17, 2026
Overall, The Body by the Shore is a thoughtful and intellectually engaging work of literary fiction. It will resonate most with readers who appreciate novels that combine storytelling with historical and scientific inquiry, and who enjoy fiction that invites contemplation and layered interpretation.
October 16, 2022
4.5 stars. Similar to Three Body Problem, there’s a heavy dose of science throughout, though I found this a bit more accessible. While I didn’t fully follow some of the cosmic and biological storyline about microbes, I was drawn into the mystery and action on the oil rig.
December 15, 2023
A Deep Reflection on the Human Condition with the Pace of a Racy Thriller
--------------------------------------------------------------
The history of science resembles a series of burst bubbles of complacence rather than linear progression of knowledge. There have been answers to questions within these bubbles that have put the world in a lull until that one pesky question came along and threatened the status quo. And these questions – and their askers – have been systematically resisted by the might of institutionalised powers of that era. But each breakthrough – be it heliocentrism or quantum physics or discovery of inoculation – has led to a cascade of technological innovations which have, in turn, not escaped the attention of politics or religion and global capital that have harnessed them for rampant profiteering. Science, it appears, isn’t exactly an innocent enterprise driven purely by the thirst for knowledge.
It is close to the bursting of such a bubble we inhabit currently that this novel is located. It is set in a decade since the pandemic; not so far into the future where the imagination can run wild, unbound by the fear of verification in one’s own lifetime, and not so close to the present where our senses are too dulled from counting our dead to be closed to a little flight of fantasy. And here, it tells a thrilling, fast-paced story.
Microbes form the backdrop to this very human tale where the unlikeliest of characters cross paths. A retired Danish policeman who, while not a racist, prefers people to remain in ‘their own countries’. He is at loggerheads with his new-age, academic daughter. A young Caribbean woman who talks to her mother in her head is overcome by the need to transcend her limited world and follows a smooth-talking man with film-star good looks across the world to what turns out to be a sinister place. A retired secret agent who keeps swans for watchdogs gets involved in a secret mission with a hazy purpose. Another one who has lost her savings to cryptocurrency takes a strange new drug to calm herself. Scientists of every hue die, disappear, find spiritualism or common cause with the powerless of the world – all under mysterious circumstances – and play inadvertent roles in a larger plot. A phantom woman of singular beauty flits in and out of the dreams and visions of different characters. A journalist modelled after a real one – the veil over whose identity is so cleverly thin that one knows the author is very pleased with himself for giving her the name he did – is murdered just like her real counterpart. A fellow author is endearingly tuckerised. Then, there are shreds of stories of truncated research, bizarre medieval afflictions, evil geniuses with Nazi sympathies, and stream-of-consciousness meditations upon the earth, the stars, and the universe that waltz across the narrative. There is elucidation on the mysteries of microbiology: single-cell beings that induce suicidal behaviour in larger organisms in order to facilitate their own reproduction and growth. And then, there is the all-too-familiar evil and greed which not only have not changed since the great reckoning of the covid years but having profiteered from it are stronger and craftier than before. Climate change and the refugee crisis rather than continue to be a sore point for corporate capital – to be vehemently denied or ignored – are now the grist of a new money-making machine.
And these stories and theories culminate deftly in a cinematic climax of grappling bodies, gunshots, explosions, escape, and nail-biting suspense over the fate of the good guys. The triumph of individual will over organised evil may seem far-fetched at first glance. But perhaps it is the message of miracle we all need to survive the glaring faults of the world that is our home. Just like stoicism, humour, and dissociation keep one going, the strength of individual action needn’t be underestimated in making life worthwhile on the planet.
The Body by the Shore is an interesting and entertaining book which offers much to think about. But in its material and timing, it has a greater significance in the history of ‘Indian writing’ and conceit of strict compartmentalisation of literary genres in general. Perhaps it was important for India as a new nation to write its melancholy out in the early decades of the English novel. Even the greats of arthouse writing have resorted to navel-gazing in ways that aren’t always absolved of self-pity. But it is time that these patterns are broken and the Indian novelist looks more outward and into the future and tells stories that are not necessarily about oneself. Apart from Amitav Ghosh’s Calcutta Chromosome and a couple of other writers whose works have dabbled with dystopia, not many works of Indian authors come to mind who have put aside the rear-view mirror (or plain mirror) in their writing. We need good speculative fiction because having come face-to-face with the dramatic ways in which uncertainty poses itself, speculation is the new reality and speculative fiction that reflects on this is literary fiction. The Body by the Shore may just be the much-needed nudge in this direction.
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The history of science resembles a series of burst bubbles of complacence rather than linear progression of knowledge. There have been answers to questions within these bubbles that have put the world in a lull until that one pesky question came along and threatened the status quo. And these questions – and their askers – have been systematically resisted by the might of institutionalised powers of that era. But each breakthrough – be it heliocentrism or quantum physics or discovery of inoculation – has led to a cascade of technological innovations which have, in turn, not escaped the attention of politics or religion and global capital that have harnessed them for rampant profiteering. Science, it appears, isn’t exactly an innocent enterprise driven purely by the thirst for knowledge.
It is close to the bursting of such a bubble we inhabit currently that this novel is located. It is set in a decade since the pandemic; not so far into the future where the imagination can run wild, unbound by the fear of verification in one’s own lifetime, and not so close to the present where our senses are too dulled from counting our dead to be closed to a little flight of fantasy. And here, it tells a thrilling, fast-paced story.
Microbes form the backdrop to this very human tale where the unlikeliest of characters cross paths. A retired Danish policeman who, while not a racist, prefers people to remain in ‘their own countries’. He is at loggerheads with his new-age, academic daughter. A young Caribbean woman who talks to her mother in her head is overcome by the need to transcend her limited world and follows a smooth-talking man with film-star good looks across the world to what turns out to be a sinister place. A retired secret agent who keeps swans for watchdogs gets involved in a secret mission with a hazy purpose. Another one who has lost her savings to cryptocurrency takes a strange new drug to calm herself. Scientists of every hue die, disappear, find spiritualism or common cause with the powerless of the world – all under mysterious circumstances – and play inadvertent roles in a larger plot. A phantom woman of singular beauty flits in and out of the dreams and visions of different characters. A journalist modelled after a real one – the veil over whose identity is so cleverly thin that one knows the author is very pleased with himself for giving her the name he did – is murdered just like her real counterpart. A fellow author is endearingly tuckerised. Then, there are shreds of stories of truncated research, bizarre medieval afflictions, evil geniuses with Nazi sympathies, and stream-of-consciousness meditations upon the earth, the stars, and the universe that waltz across the narrative. There is elucidation on the mysteries of microbiology: single-cell beings that induce suicidal behaviour in larger organisms in order to facilitate their own reproduction and growth. And then, there is the all-too-familiar evil and greed which not only have not changed since the great reckoning of the covid years but having profiteered from it are stronger and craftier than before. Climate change and the refugee crisis rather than continue to be a sore point for corporate capital – to be vehemently denied or ignored – are now the grist of a new money-making machine.
And these stories and theories culminate deftly in a cinematic climax of grappling bodies, gunshots, explosions, escape, and nail-biting suspense over the fate of the good guys. The triumph of individual will over organised evil may seem far-fetched at first glance. But perhaps it is the message of miracle we all need to survive the glaring faults of the world that is our home. Just like stoicism, humour, and dissociation keep one going, the strength of individual action needn’t be underestimated in making life worthwhile on the planet.
The Body by the Shore is an interesting and entertaining book which offers much to think about. But in its material and timing, it has a greater significance in the history of ‘Indian writing’ and conceit of strict compartmentalisation of literary genres in general. Perhaps it was important for India as a new nation to write its melancholy out in the early decades of the English novel. Even the greats of arthouse writing have resorted to navel-gazing in ways that aren’t always absolved of self-pity. But it is time that these patterns are broken and the Indian novelist looks more outward and into the future and tells stories that are not necessarily about oneself. Apart from Amitav Ghosh’s Calcutta Chromosome and a couple of other writers whose works have dabbled with dystopia, not many works of Indian authors come to mind who have put aside the rear-view mirror (or plain mirror) in their writing. We need good speculative fiction because having come face-to-face with the dramatic ways in which uncertainty poses itself, speculation is the new reality and speculative fiction that reflects on this is literary fiction. The Body by the Shore may just be the much-needed nudge in this direction.
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