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Book Review : The Selfish Betrayals

Name: The Selfish Betrayals
Writer: Abhishek Kapoor
Publisher: Self published
Publication date: 19 May 2019
ISBN-10: 9353611822
ISBN-13: 978-9353611828
Pages: 272
Price: Rs.499
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★★


Blurb: 

An egocentric and personable man with an unforgettable history that could emotionally haunt any ordinary human, Monty, still in his early thirties, was officially single despite a reputation of having plentiful amorous adventures. He was internally annoyed with the constant cynical jibes about his obscure profession; an independent investigator during the day of petty crimes like frivolous thefts, but an impeccable lady’s man by night. When destiny presented a sudden unanticipated chance, with the sole intention to shut the blabbering jokers up, he decided to investigate the mysterious murder of a lonely glamorous girl, with minimal aid from his apprentice and without any access to forensic science. What followed the crime scene investigation was a series of confrontation with perhaps the cleverest and astute accused people, strange events and confusing outcomes. Did he succeed even before the police and media could break the news to the innocent citizens of Kanpur? Remember, betrayals hurt more when they are wrapped in sweetness. Betrayals are encouraged by three selfish needs of human mind: Money, Love or Hate and Helplessness. The novel also contains a focus on the culture, lifestyle and the wide social divide that exists among the people of the small Indian city, Kanpur. The novel is divided into nine chapters and each one has its own significance and is closely related to the ones preceding and following it.

Chapter 1: Betrayal is intangible truth Chapter 2: Redemption lies in remembrance Chapter 3: Aim big, small aims are a crime Chapter 4: Do good and good will return Chapter 5: Is the road to success same as the road to failure? Chapter 6: Can someone blaze inside with outer ease? Chapter 7: Fight for right Chapter 8: Is being affluent a curse or a blessing? Chapter 9: Time moves so slow yet so fast

My thoughts:
Plotline: 
The story revolves around the life of a famous private detective, Monty who, in reality, isn’t satisfied with his job, particularly the petty cases he usually deals with. His life takes an exciting but mysterious turn when he comes across the brutal murder of a famous model Scarlett White.
He sees this as a perfect opportunity to prove his skills and thus, decides to work on the case with his companion Chetan Prasad and find the culprit before the police even starts their investigation.
He shortlists three main suspects – a driver, a tailor and the victim’s ex-husband. Upon further investigation, he is faced by several disturbing revelations that leaves Monty perplexed.

Will Monty be able to get hold of the actual culprit? Will he succeed in solving the case before the police gets to know of it? Will he be able to recreate a new strong imagine of himself?

Language and writing style: 
❃ The writing style of the author in the initial chapters neither caught my interest nor my attention. But the story does progress a lot faster from the third chapter, which was a plus point.
✽ The story is divided into 9 interrelated chapters, each focusing on betrayals from different characters.
❃ The vocabulary employed by the author was exceptional.
✽ All the characters had a well-developed background story.

Title and book cover: 
✦ The title of the book is really intriguing. It did give me the thriller vibes for all the right reasons.
✧ The book cover may seem a little simple, but is actually appropriate as per the story.

Dislikes: 
The story is extremely slow paced in the initial chapters which made it difficult for me to continue reading. A lot of instances have been explained in details, which at times, didn’t really seem necessary.

Recommend? 
The book is really different from the other thriller novels often published in India. You should definitely give it a read.

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