21 March 2018

Review #700: A Closetful of Skeletons by Tanushree Podder



My rating: 3 of 5 stars


“Unfortunately, the clock is ticking, the hours are going by. The past increases, the future recedes. Possibilities decreasing, regrets mounting.”

----Haruki Murakami



Tanushree Podder, an Indian writer, has penned an interesting and slightly intriguing thriller called, A Closetful of Skeletons that revolves around an actress of yesteryear who escapes the silver screen glory to a quiet life at a sleepy hamlet somewhere up on the hills, but her life drastically changes when she meets an ambitious and mysterious young woman, whom she asks to ghost-write her autobiography. But little did the actress knew that her birthday party with her guest list of ex-lovers would go so terribly fatal when she announces about her tell-all autobiography.


Synopsis:

Ramola withdrew from the public eye at the peak of her stardom, choosing a life of quiet anonymity over the glamour of the silver screen. Surrounded by retired couples spending their twilight years gardening and gossiping, Ramola s life is idyllic.

Or at least it was, till the night of her birthday party, when she announces that her tell-all memoir will soon be published. The book, documenting her rise to fame, puts each of her ex-lovers careers in jeopardy. As each desperate man tries to save himself, Ramola is drawn back into the very web of lies and deception she d left behind.

And by the time the party is over, Ramola s neighbour, retired army officer and amateur sleuth Colonel Arjun H. Acharya has found his first murder to solve.
A Closetful of Skeletons reels you into a cosy world of fresh mountain air, long-drawn poker games and bloody murder.



Owing to heartbreak, Ramola, the famous actress from Bollywood, has escaped the glitz and glamour of the tinsel town to somewhere idyllic, quiet and peaceful. Ramola has got a hill-side cottage at a sleepy Himalayan hamlet, but one fine day, her life drastically changes when her paths cross with the mysterious and very intriguing young woman named, Tia, who claimed to be from Mumbai and on a sabbatical from her journalist job. Soon the two forms a bond of trust as a result, Ramola asks Tia to ghost write her autobiography, in which she will narrate about all those high-profile ex-lovers, who left her heart broken and also helped her to shape her career. So Tia advises Ramola to invite all the men of Ramola's life on Ramola's 40th birthday bash at her cottage. But little did anyone knew that, followed by the announcement of her autobiography to her ex-lovers, would leave Ramola dead. Even though the initial suspicious falls on those ex-lovers of Ramola, but gradually, the story takes a major turn when a sinister motive is unraveled by the local cop who too had a crush on the ever glamours actress, Ramola.


The writing style of the author is okay-ish. The first half of the story line is laced with enough thrill and power-packed tension to keep the readers rooted in their seats. Sadly, by the second half, the story has taken a sour turn and I was in a desperation to be done with the story. The major turn off for me was the usage of Hindi dialect in the already engaging English narrative. Hindi dialect and usage of Hindi words, doesn't make the story sound regional, instead, it makes the story sound annoying. The prose is articulate and flows freely through ups and downs of the story. The pacing is really fast and I'm glad for that.

The mystery, in the beginning, will feel like something grisly, twisting and mind-blowing, but gradually, the mystery becomes way too predictable and meaningless. Even the turns and the suspense will seem to be way too foreseeable. Moreover, the climax makes no sense at all, and will eventually leave the readers with a lot of questions, whose answers don't fit into the story line in any possible way.

The characters felt like a boon in this story. The brownie point goes to the multi-layered cast of myriad characters who will keep the readers second guessing. But then again, their perfect demeanor falls flat once the story starts unraveling towards the climax. The realistic, and well developed characters and their presence are hence lost amidst the blunt plot.

In a nutshell, I would not recommend this book to the seasoned crime fiction readers, but yeah its pretty much enjoyable, if you don't mind the logic. Honetsly, the story could have been much better, as the plot has a lot of intensity, tension and drama to keep the hunger of the readers alive till the very last page.

Verdict: Could have been much better!

Courtesy: Thanks to the publishers from Harper Collins India for giving me an opportunity to read and review this book.
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Author Info:
Born at New Delhi, she worked in the corporate sector for eight long years before Tanushree quit the rat race to wield her pen and found her calling.
A well know travel writer and novelist, she is also known for the hundreds of ‘Middles’ that entertained readers of almost all English dailies in the country for over a decade. Tanushree is passionate about travelling and writing. If the lady is not packing her bags to zip around the world, she is sure to be found tapping the keys of her computer.
Among her bestselling books in non- fiction genre are Death of a Dictator - The Story of
Saddam Hussein, Secrets of Happiness, The Ultimate Food for Body, Mind and Soul, The
Power of Relaxation. The book Smart Memory has also been translated into Tamil and Spanish.
Visit her here



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