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Book: The Disappearance of Tejas Sharma…And
other hauntings
Author: Manish Mahajan
Publisher: Cinnamonteal Publishing (www.cinnamonteal.in)
Genre: Horror
Price: Rs 250
Pages: 83
My rating: 4 out of 5
Review: You know what a great cover illustration
can do to a book, even if it happens to be a really shoddy piece of a novel. As
you can see above, this stunning cover design is the stuff dreams are made of
(rather, nightmares are made of). And to add to that, if I tell you that far
from being a shoddy work, this book is simply brilliant, then your curiosity is
bound to pique.
‘The Disappearance of Tejas Sharma…and
other hauntings’ is a collection of short stories which travel through the
various sub-genres of the horror genre. Being the greatest fan of spooky things
that I am, this book is a treasured object for me. With barely 83 pages in its
urn, this book is quite skinny (though the fat price of Rs 250 more than makes
up for its skinniness). The tales are all extremely short, some barely lasting
a couple of pages. But they are good, really good. The horror can be subtle in
one story and gory in the other. The author Manish Mahajan, who makes a debut
into the world of literature, has taken help of very few words to cast his
presence on the literary podium and to make me look at him with respect,
bordering on reverence.
Here is what I jotted down at the end of
each story the moment I read them:
The peepal tree of Lachhmangarh
4/5
An arresting tale of a haunted tree,
this story draws inspiration from myths, hearsays and rumors that have always
revolved around the much-feared ‘Peepal’. Manish Mahajan unleashes his fiery
imagination, takes you along and dumps you right before this tree where you are
left alone with one Mr. Rathore, our vengeful protagonist.
13, Church Street
3/5
Hmmm..makes for a good read. Ends too
soon to leave a deep impact! The quaint settings offer a nostalgic touch.
Begunkodor Ghost Station
3/5
Once again, the author amalgamates
imagination and reality to weave a tale which is not entirely fictitious. ‘Why
does a dead woman knock at the door of a railway station master on duty?’ To
find out, read this chilling account that relives the horrors of 1967.
Her Unkept promise
4.5/5
Brilliant plot, chilling climax! What
can happen if an author’s stories begin to come true one by one? This tale
gives you the answer.
The secret in the photograph
5/5
Oh my God (make it omfg). What a deep,
disturbing and original plot. This is the story that makes you marvel at the
ingenuity of the author. A photograph that has a unique secret to it!
Valley of the Dead
3/5
A story of flash fiction genre which is
engaging but lacks the punch. Setting is eerie, language offers detailing….
Raag Bhimpalasi
4/5
Another fresh story, unique plot,
gripping and chilling execution. ‘Raag Bhimpalasi’ is about a room that
emanates flute music every Sunday morning. What’s the secret? Read and find
out.
Strefford’s Roll Call
3/5
Though the story keeps you hooked and
promises some astonishing revelation towards the end, that moment of climax
never arrives. The plot churned around ‘crossings’ and ‘ticks’ over graves is
fresh, but the story ends on a cryptic note. An unsolved mystery whose beauty
lies in staying unsolved…
The Disappearance of Tejas Sharma
4/5
This story has an Edgar Allan Poe-esque
narrative. The 1st person account of a friend’s disappearance,
marked by a sharp vocabulary, makes this a classy story. If you pine for
classics (the way I do), then this story will bring back reminiscences of
Holmes and Poe.
Lost
2.5/5
This is a pretty ordinary story, an
anomaly to this-otherwise wonderful book. Narrative is weak as compared to the
rest and the plot has nothing exceptional to offer.
Burn the old papers
3.5/5
This story is very chilling, despite the
cliché in the plot. Narrative has an arresting quality and though the end is
predictable, the story does offer its share of goose bumps.
The greatest dare of all time
3/5
It is a typical old Indian ghost story.
No subtlety here. Skulls, corpses, apparitions do show up, drumming up fear and
chaos. Not the best story of the book, but an engaging tale nevertheless.
Rustic setting adds authenticity and the author’s narrative does the rest.
Final verdict:
Do buy the book or else cajole the author to send you a free review copy or try
stealing it from me (that would be the greatest dare of all time) *wink wink*
~Ritesh Agarwal
Email: ritzy182000@gmail.com
PS- This Review has been done in
association with The Tales Pensieve. These guys are funny. They send you free
books and then request you to write a few words on them, which is like giving
Tendulkar a new bat and then requesting him to play some shots with it. He is
going to do it anyhow. ;)
Follow these guys here
[ Smiles ] That is a great book, but I wouldn't want to have it read to me as a bedtime story.
ReplyDeleteBedtime and horror walk hand in hand......i will try reading it to you on some thunderstorm night ;)
DeleteMore than the review, I loved the reference to Tendulkar :-P
ReplyDeletehee hee....i do that quite often :D
Deletedeep review :) liked the way of reviewing and ending a review on a funny note :) will consider it for buying once current lot is completed :P
ReplyDeleteThanks....hehe, I can understand that sometimes we have a lot more at hand than we can chew....Personally, I have around 30-40 unread books sitting with me :/
ReplyDeleteRitesh, this is an incredible review. Trust me I have had several till now but this is the first one which has actually rated each story individually. Thanks for the effort and interest in reading the book. Incidentally, I happen to agree with most of your ratings as well!
ReplyDeleteSharing your review on FB. Cheers:-)