Book Review-Sonia Rao's The Magician

THE MAGICIAN 
(The Tarot Trilogy Book 1)
by 
Sonia Rao

Blurb

Fashion designer Sasha Kapoor always felt she'd missed out on love as she had an arranged marriage. And when her husband turns up at their 15th-anniversary party with a strange woman, she knows that her marriage is dying. With constant surprises and disasters to contend with, will Sasha ever get a chance at true love?

Shantha is much sought after for her tarot card readings on love, but can’t seem to help her own love life with a string of broken relationships behind her. Now, sparks are flying between her and a sexy bartender but will this relationship fizzle out too?

Young professionals Nilima and her husband are so besotted with each other, they give the word ‘soulmate’ a complex. Theirs is a match made in heaven…till tragedy strikes.

The Magician is a heart-warming story of these three dynamic women as they discover the meaning of true love through loss and longing.

Thoughts from the Author, Sonia Rao

Who is a Magician? If it is a Tarot Card, then it the Major Arcana card in the deck and symbolizes life-changing issues.

 But if it is a person, then it is Sasha, the main protagonist of my novel, The Magician. In this urban, contemporary romance, fashion designer Sasha, who caught within a loveless marriage, now seeks true love. It is also Shantha and Nilima who face their own challenges in love and try to rise above them.

 It is also every woman. This is because, as Shantha says to Sasha in the book, “Imagination is your strength. You have the power to visualize and then manifest what you want. You are the Magician.” Each one of us is The Magician because we hold within ourselves the power to create the life of our dreams.

But how did this cover happen? There is a lovely story behind it. While researching the many tarot decks online, I saw this card on the Attic Shoppe website and I knew at once that this was my “Sasha.”

Go back and have a look at the cover again. Doesn’t it just grip you too? Part practical, part whimsical, part traditional, part digital, this card, like the book, is a labour of love.

The designer, Bethalynne Bajema, created this card for her Black Ibis Tarot card deck.  The love she put in is very evident in the vibe one gets from it. Every time I see it, I am inspired to bring a touch of magic to the everyday routines of mundane life.

Carrying on the serendipity, Bethalynne immediately and graciously agreed to my request to make this card my book cover. Such generosity is hard to come by and I believe it is the Universe’s way of saying “you’re right on track.”  


(Bethalynne can be contacted here: Instagram)


My Review:

Narrating a story is an art. Interweaving emotions in the narrations and conveying it to the readers is a talent which only some authors possess.

The Magician – The Tarot Trilogy Book 1 is an intense, fast-paced story filled with mystery, betrayal, relationships and of course romance. 

This is the first time I read Sonia’s work and I loved it. The characters are well-described; the plot is engrossing and fast-paced. I loved the mystery part and how the suspense is revealed is commendable. 

While reading one can feel the turmoil of Sasha, the sadness and hurt of Nilima’s loss and love of Shantha and Danny. The Magician is roller-coaster ride on emotions and relationships. The cover image is apt to the title and story, use of simple and error-free writing, well-explained characters all make this book an interesting and enjoyable read. 

The Magician – The Tarot Trilogy Book 1 is a must-read. 

Read an excerpt

  
Grab your copy @

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About the author

"Sonia Rao is a writer, editor, and award-winning blogger. Her fiction has appeared in many prestigious anthologies such as Voices Old & New and Jest Like That (edited by renowned editor-writer Shinie Anthony).

 As NaNoWriMo’s Municipal Liaison for all-India and founder of the Wrimo India group on Facebook, Sonia has motivated thousands of people in India to write a novel every November since 2011. She has also curated and edited the first Wrimo India Anthology, Vengeance—A Sting In Every Tale.

Sonia likes to believe she is ‘high-minded’ but strangely, her fave hobby is thinking up torture devices for those autorickshawallahs who consider the roads to be their personal spittoon. Who knew?"

You can stalk her @

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Book Review-The Wrong Turn in the Time of Netaji

THE WRONG TURN:

Love and Betrayal in the Time of Netaji

by

Sanjay Chopra & Namita Roy Ghose

Blurb

1944, Kohima — a small, sleepy town in northeast India. Subhash Chandra Bose and his Indian National Army (INA) along with the Japanese, are on the brink of bringing the Empire to its knees and forcing the British out of India. But, inexplicably, the tables turn. The INA’s advance is thwarted and the victory march to Delhi is halted. Seventy years later, the British admit that the Battle of Kohima was the greatest battle they had ever fought. Even more so than the battles of Waterloo and Dunkirk. Was it then that old Indian curse — betrayal? Someone from within Netaji’s own ranks? Were there forces other than the British, waiting in the shadows closer to home, who stood to gain even more from the INA’s defeat? Or was it just love that irrevocably altered the course of India’s destiny? The Wrong Turn: Love and Betrayal in the Time of Netaji, is a sweeping tale of passion set against the freedom struggle. Debraj, the rakish playboy and scion of a distinguished Calcutta family, and Nishonko, the fiery revolutionary sworn to the cause of the INA, must not only fight their common enemy, but also for the love of Aditi, the rebel with the healing touch. A haunting tale of love, friendship and betrayal of an entire nation, The Wrong Turn veers inexorably towards a poignant redemption.

My Honest Review:

            Jealousy is that green-eyed monster which makes one do unthinkable, unmentionable work, which makes not only that person but also people related also to suffer.

           

Human nature is very strange. It believes what the eyes see and what the ears hear, without verifying the facts. And that’s why it's easy to manipulate people who are hurt, insecure and jealous.

           

The Wrong Turn is love triangle story and how the fear of losing one’s beloved and jealousy made INA lose a winning battle.

The Wrong Turn takes you to an era where India was under the British rule and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose with his Indian National Army (INA) and help from Japanese was trying to free India.

           

Like many historical love stories we have read or heard wherein love/hate either starts a war or a battle is won. The Wrong Turn is story of three main protagonists Debu (Debraj Mookerjii), Jhilik (Aditi Sen) and Nishonko and how fate brings them together in unexpected circumstances and how their relationship had an adverse effect on the Kohima war.

           

The plot is well developed but complex, can’t take it as a light read as it's intense but gripping too. All the characters, especially the protagonist and immediate characters are well developed. The book is a good cocktail of all human emotions in one. I especially liked the end of the story which is so different from the usual love triangle stories we usually get to read. Also the detailing of the war events is also worth a mention.

So if you like history and if you want to do some serious and intense read than The Wrong Turn is the one. 

Grab your copy @

Amazon.in | Amazon.com | 

Amazon.co.uk | Flipkart

About the authors

“The Wrong Turn is a story that traverses the cities of Calcutta, Singapore, Rangoon and Kohima caught up in the blaze of the Second World War. It is about the clash of four desperate forces as they come together in Kohima to vie for the brightest jewel in the crown -- India. Victory will come to those who possess not just the coldest steel but even colder hearts.”

SANJAY CHOPRA is an airline pilot and author of two collections of short stories.  Said and Done and Tailspin stories . He believes that his  office forty thousand feet in the sky and his travels provide him with a view that fuels his vivid storytelling that cuts a wide arc through time and space.

His stories have won the Invisible Ink, the Millennium writers and Southport awards in the UK and USA. In the words of his readers, ‘He is a storyteller like those of the old days, yet his stories are as modern as tomorrow.

He lives in Mumbai with his wife Tisca Chopra, an actress and he is currently working on a film script and a web series. 

You can stalk him @
      

               

Follow the Authors of The Wrong Turn @ Pinterest

  

“This was a story waiting to be told. So much about Netaji was smoke and mirrors, partial views foisted on us by the British and other vested interests. Here was a man who was a personal hero, who was part of the lore of my childhood. And here was a chance to set the narrative straight - through the lens of a very human yet universal story of love.”

During a school project on ‘The most memorable day of my life’, NAMITA ROY GHOSE wrote about a Russian girl on the day WW2 ended. She got her first rejection slip from the teacher for making things up. Ever since, Namita has established her storytelling skills through her scriptwriting, screenplays poetry, fiction, legendary advertising campaigns, and as a renowned advertising film director. A Creative Director with HTA, she left after 13 years to start her own film company, White Light, one of India’s top ad film outfits. A social activist, she is the founder of Vanashakti, an NGO that works to protect the environment. Namita has done pro bono work on issues like domestic violence, child welfare, sexual harassment and forest preservation. She is an avid traveller, a photographer, foodie and teacher.

      You can stalk her @ 

                          

   Praise for the book

Vidya Balan:  "I like historical fiction. This one is just gripping, racing along like a thriller. I am sure people will love it and I wish Namita and Sanjay all the best for the book".

Shekhar Gupta: “Gripping reading. This is one writer duo with story-telling imagination and uncluttered turn of phrase”.

Jug Suraiya: “A sweeping saga of war, love and betrayal, set at a climactic point of India’s fight for freedom”.

Lord Meghnad Desai: “An absorbing and indeed thrilling story of one of the most crucial events in India’s history”.

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