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A Haunting in the Arctic by CJ Cooke

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 This was the first book from celebrated author C J Cooke that I was reading and I cannot believe I have been living under a rock, not having read anything from this prolific and talented author before!  A Haunting in the Arctic is exactly what the name suggests - a book that follows the harrowing journey of a whaling ship in the brutally cold extremes of the arctic and the lives of two women, Nicky and Dominique across two different timelines, closely linked to the fate of the ship itself. Let me state this at the outset that this book is not for the fainthearted and the narrative has some extremely disturbing scenes around sexual violence, so exercise caution and be aware of this if you ever pick up this book. Having said that, C J Cooke does a bang-up job of immersing us into this extremely poignant and heart-wrenching story, melding together elements of grief and longing in an intense psychological drama with a brilliant twist by the end.   The story is set across two timelines -

Godkiller by Hannah Kaner

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Godkiller  is  Hannah Kaner 's highly acclaimed debut, set in a richly realised brutal world, in the throes of a chaotic looming civil war. It is a world rife with with conflicts, between the Gods and humans sick of their tyrannical murdering world order, nobles scheming against royals, and the long-suffering citizens caught in the middle of all this, trying to flee from their own wretched destiny.  Hannah presents an interesting, refreshing take on the conflicts between Gods and humans, giving us a world that is teeming with strife, torn between half the populace on the side of the King, wanting to kill and eliminate the errant murderous Gods who are drunk on their concept of power derived from the desperate faith and the other half, clinging to hope that their prayers would still be heard by the Gods left. Cities are in ruins, where the shrines are destroyed and gangs of Godkillers, mercenaries who specialize in exactly what that name implies. The only city that still has Gods ro

The Silverblood Promise by James Logan

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I think I have zeroed in on my top fantasy debut of the year already :)   The Silver Blood Promise is James Logan 's debut - a masterfully crafted epic fantasy full of action, mayhem and magic that is right up your alley, falling somewhere between the Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch and First Law books by Joe Abercrombie. Ed McDonald calls it post-grimdark and he wouldn't be wrong. Because the staples of that grimdark genre which we all love are all in there; the hero with his regretful choices of his past, who is content drowning his life in wine (Parvan Red, anyone?) and gambling his wealth away in decrepit smoky dens, picking fights with shady goons, characters drowning in their own guilt and making illogical choices, back-alley fights and a flighty convoluted dash through a seedy city of merchants, underground criminals and power hungry nobles conspiring against each other.  The story primary centers around the character of Lukan Gardova, a minor nobility, a failed a

Manjaveyil Maranam by Benyamin ( Malayalam ) - Book Review

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  Manjaveyil Maranangal  is the first Malayalam novel that I have read fully; this also happens to be my first taste of  Benyamin , the celebrated Malayalam author of  Aadujeevitham . While I always knew that Malayalam language (my mothertongue) has had a fascinating list of literary greats, I frankly never knew the depth or breadth of this immensely talented bunch of writers. And after having thoroughly enjoyed this fascinating immersive and yet divisive novel, consider my mind blown. I am yearning for more now! It's like I have just got the keys to a whole new chocolate shop, all to myself, without any one to stop me from going insane as I go wild, stuffing my face with the choicest of flavours, shapes, colours, ready to gorge. It's a veritable treasure trove and I have just opened that lock on that hidden trunk. Malayalam Literature, here I come!  Manjaveyil Maranangal   ( Loosely translated to the Yellow Sunlight Murders!) is a crime thriller, but in reality it's a mosa

Weyward by Emilia Hart

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A clever mix of historical fiction and fierce feminist literature, Weyward is a timeless story that touches upon the topics of liberty, patriarchy, nature and what it means to be a woman, across the ages. By cleverly bringing together the lives of three women across different ages, connected by their steely resolve to maintain their individuality, dignity and pride, using their wits and perhaps aided in parts by something supernatural.  Weyward doesn't read like a debut, more like an assured work of fiction from a new voice, Emilia Hart, successfully stringing together an engaging narrative that doesn't flag, despite it being stretched across three POVs, three different timelines. Juggling the lives of three very different women, who are nevertheless, very similar - in that they are all "weyward" linked by their bloodline but also in their earnest need to protect what they believe so earnestly in. Their own freedom of expression, supported by an ability to be deeply

The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton

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The Devil and the Dark Water is the second book by award-winning author Stuart Turton, a delicious mix of historical fiction, fantasy and supernatural. As is usual with Stuart, the book defies genres giving us an impossible mystery on the high-seas in the times of Dutch East India Company of the 17th century, a devil onboard and a colorful array of characters who would leap out of the pages to park inside your heart, including the world's best detective Sammy Pips and his brawny bodyguard, Arent Hayes, whose mystery-solving exploits are famous across the world.  This is my first Stuart Turton book and I am truly blown away by it. I am in awe of his writing prowess, his narrative is truly a guilty pleasure, with the wild but very befitting comparisons, his clever turn of phrases and of course, the fiendishly clever construction of the whole puzzle, this mystery turns out to be. Needless to say, Stuart goes right to the top of my "must-read-authors" for any of his books n

Best TV Shows (2023 )

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It's that time of the year when you sit up and realize yet another year has rocketed past you!  But this year has been at least, a fairly soul-satisfying one for me, from a creative pursuits point of view. My writings are not been dead - I have finished rewriting about forty-thousand words of my previous manuscript with some solid new storylines which I think, is promising. Got a bite from an agent even! Took active participation in some writing contests, did a few nice short stories, even won an award for one of those shorts. The most soul-crushing aspect of publishing journey, which is the querying phase is on now and the agent research is in full swing now. So hey, not bad at all in terms of reviving that flagging part of my tired soul which had been caged up for like two three years past!  So coming to the topic I wanted to write on, the Best TV Shows for this year 2023 - I will run past a few of my favorites that I finally came around to watching, not necessarily released in 2