Penumbra
In the middle of one of the worst storms to hit the city, a mysterious letter arrives for Prakash Ray, an out-of-luck journalist, inviting him to a quaint, suburban bungalow, to celebrate the 60th birthday of an uncle he has never heard of..
As Prakash reaches the venue, he is introduced to a motley group of people, all gathered there for the old man’s big day: his son, his reticent brother, a dignified middle-aged lady who once owned the bungalow, a listless lawyer who manages his legal affairs, a mild-mannered young man who works as his secretary, his beautiful, young biographer, and his mysterious friend, who has never lost a game of chess to him.
As the storm lashes on through the night, one of the people in the bungalow is murdered! In a game of cat and mouse that follows, Prakash soon finds out that under the surface of apparent warmth and friendliness, nothing is as it seems and that the bungalow holds one shocking secret after another!
In a bid to save his own life, Prakash hunts for the truth, which lies in a mysterious penumbra of shadows and lights, covered in a sheath of deceit and guile, only to realize that the worst is yet to come!
Review
The author of this book gave an interview where he mentioned that a good murder mystery is a game of hide and seek between the protagonist and the perpetrator. I beg to differ.
A good murder mystery novel is a game of catch up played by the reader where he tries to guess the real perpetrator. Success of a novel will depend on the extent to which the author can keep us guessing as to the real culprit and the "drama" and emotional turmoil that comes at the end of the book and at the end of the "revealing". Enough should be hinted during the reading that the reader does not feel cheated as well.
In all these aspects, Penumbra scores No.1.
I will not write much since I do not want to give away anything in the plot but for anyone who plans to read this, please ensure that you have enough time at your hands to finish it in one go. I didnt....and I suffered....
As Prakash reaches the venue, he is introduced to a motley group of people, all gathered there for the old man’s big day: his son, his reticent brother, a dignified middle-aged lady who once owned the bungalow, a listless lawyer who manages his legal affairs, a mild-mannered young man who works as his secretary, his beautiful, young biographer, and his mysterious friend, who has never lost a game of chess to him.
As the storm lashes on through the night, one of the people in the bungalow is murdered! In a game of cat and mouse that follows, Prakash soon finds out that under the surface of apparent warmth and friendliness, nothing is as it seems and that the bungalow holds one shocking secret after another!
In a bid to save his own life, Prakash hunts for the truth, which lies in a mysterious penumbra of shadows and lights, covered in a sheath of deceit and guile, only to realize that the worst is yet to come!
Review
The author of this book gave an interview where he mentioned that a good murder mystery is a game of hide and seek between the protagonist and the perpetrator. I beg to differ.
A good murder mystery novel is a game of catch up played by the reader where he tries to guess the real perpetrator. Success of a novel will depend on the extent to which the author can keep us guessing as to the real culprit and the "drama" and emotional turmoil that comes at the end of the book and at the end of the "revealing". Enough should be hinted during the reading that the reader does not feel cheated as well.
In all these aspects, Penumbra scores No.1.
I will not write much since I do not want to give away anything in the plot but for anyone who plans to read this, please ensure that you have enough time at your hands to finish it in one go. I didnt....and I suffered....
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