Thanks to All About Books for sending this book for the review.
45 Days in a Cancer Hospital is authored by Alka Dimri Saklani. This is a debut work of the writer and she has definitely done a good job with this one.
🙂
Book Review
Book-Look : The Title puts across straight that you got to live in an around a hospital and cancer patients no less than 45 days. The theme looks different and hence it succeeds in attracting audience for sure.The Cover picture is a simpleton but goes with the theme. Pink and black are the colors that go well in here.The blurb gives you the right picture and the readers know what lies in store for them. Its not just a novella which has a compilation of diary entry of 45 interesting or stressful days but there’s a murder mystery too.
One sentence : A medical murder mystery, with an interesting plot that successfully hooks the reader all through it.
Thumps Up: Cancer is a deadly disease and a book revolving around it is a good idea. A suspense thriller that sensitizes us to the reality of life and death. The conversations with the Cancer patients have been written with a soft touch and bang on, they do give us a glimpse of the sufferings of the affected people. The twists and turns are well timed and the suspense is carried forward well. The author needs a applause for putting across a plot that’s not easy to handle. Also she makes sure she loses it nowhere and holds on the suspense till the end. The mystery remains intact and the chills, thrill us all. Acknowledgement piece is nice, I liked the fact that the writer has named the male character Animesh after her brother.
😉 🙂
Story: This is a story of an author, who is the protagonist called Ashritha. She is in the Umeed Hospital, a medical foundation to cure Cancer patients, and she is there to write a book on cancer patients. The aim was to meet the patients, make friends and try to make them comfortable, read their thoughts, their anxieties, their sufferings and more and capture it best in the pages of her book. But things become complicated when the lady with bone cancer dies. A series of murders follow and tale becomes gripping.
The author transforms into a detective and she really does justice to it. She is smart to grab the clues and remains determined to move forward to unravel the truth.(Reminded me of Nancy Drew) The love story part is also good and I was glad it was not exaggerated and it din’t act as a spoiler as well. Thus work was placed above romance.
Good and Bad go hand in hand: We readers are never satisfied and always want more. 😉 I was little disappointed when the name of the murderer unravels in the last because it had almost become predictable. Also one who is least suspected turns out to be the culprit quite often. But what I found interesting was that the story had two parts to the whole mystery and during the mid way one aspect was revealed. In fact that revelation with respect to Dr. Chatterjee makes the reader become all the more curious, at least that was the way with me. 😉
The language is simple and easy to comprehend, could have been tailored better in few chapters. But easy language has an edge as well. It helps to keep the flow, appeals to the masses and makes us read faster, thus we unravel the psycho and greedy mind early. The concept of 45 days is nice. With each day, I had new expectations in the story and most of them were met and the book does turn out fun in many ways.
Do catch up with this one. Its a nicely cooked meal and it makes you feel full. I did have a lovely time.
Happy Reading!!!
🙂 🙂 🙂
I like the way you evaluated the book. Leaving out no aspect. And yes, I enjoyed reading the book as well 🙂
Thanks Saumya… I love evaluating the book from all aspects..
Have you read Gunter Grass’s The Tin Drum. Or maybe, Saul Bellow’s Herzog. Or maybe, Philip Roth’s The Human Stain? Or maybe, The Slap by Christos Tsirkas, or maybe, Bringing Up the Bodies by Hiliary Mantel, or maybe Umbrella by Will Self. I think you should. Maybe this small list will make you realize the difference between ‘mediocre impressions printed on paper’ and ‘real writing’. And then maybe, just maybe, you would stop wasting your and your reader’s time on such ‘mediocre impressions printed on paper’, and talk about ‘real books’ a.k.a ‘superb writing’ a.k.a ‘something really worth reading.’
Warm regards Ankush
postscript: I really like some of your posts. And even your book reviews are darn good! Its your choice of books which are unpalatable. Anyway, think about it, and if possible, then act on it too..Cheers(this is coming from a sensitive reader.)
________________________________
Hi Ankush,
Looks like u really don’t appreciate Indian writers and have a dislike towards their books.
Thanx for suggesting some great books of your choice. Also I am happy you liked my book reviews but I wrote them because I liked them. Maybe my choice of books are not up to your standards but I am not wasting anyone’s time, not mine and not my readers as well.
🙂
Manjulika you certainly have a way with words and I found the review a wholesome read:)
Thanks Sir.. Its fun to play with words and evaluate the book wholeheartedly.. I am glad u enjoyed reading it. 🙂
This is an excellent review! In my opinion, the cover is not so appealing but the 45 days, day-to-day journal type of story sounds interesting, especially when it comes to mystery solving. I guess one of the most difficult things for authors is to keep the mystery unpredictable. The more curiosity the better. The book certainly sounds like a good read.
Thanx Zunnur.. Yeah the cover page could have been more interesting. Its mysterious and does make the reader curious..
I am sure u will enjoy it. 🙂
Nicely cooked meal 🙂 that’s a good way to put it 🙂