pen.books.and.scalpel

BOOK NAME: THE FORMIDABLE MISS CASSIDY AUTHOR NAME: MEIHAN BOEY GENRE: HISTORICAL FICTION / MYTHOLOGY PUBLISHER: EPIGRAM BOOKS BOOK BUY LINK:   https://www.amazon.in/Formidable-Miss-Cassidy-Meihan-Boey-ebook/dp/B09NV4Z97C BOOK COVER IMAGE BOOK REVIEW It's 1890, and Singapore is heavily distraught with British colonisation, Chinese immigrants and locals in poverty. Miss Cassidy comes to Singapore as a paid chaperone to Sarah Jane, the only surviving child of Captain Bendemeer. As she learns about the customs and cultures of Singapore, she encounters fantastical elements like magic potions, Pontianak, toyols, and mythical beasts. She is caught in a situation where she must find the missing daughters of the new master, Mr. Kay, whom she works under, and Miss Cassidy might be forced to reveal her identity. Mr. Kay is not just her employee; they have started to hit a connection. Will this revelation affect their possible relationship?  I really loved Miss Cassidy's character, w...

BOOK NAME: FIREFLY LANE AUTHOR NAME: KRISTIN HANNAH GENRE: CONTEMPORARY FICTION / CHICKLIT PUBLISHER: PANMACMILLAN BOOK BUY LINK:   https://www.amazon.in/Firefly-Lane-Kristin-Hannah/dp/1447229533 BOOK COVER IMAGE BOOK REVIEW If there is one author whom I would blindly trust for both realistic and heroic portrayal of women, then that is Kristin Hannah. But tell me, who held a gun to her head and made her write this? Who and why?! It's the story of two friends -Tully, who is extremely passionate and high-spirited with a traumatic childhood and Kate, who is calm and shy with a blessed family and is often bullied at school. They meet one day in Firefly Lane when they are twelve. Over the years, their friendship is threatened by many things that break them apart and bring them back together. With two polar besties and one stunning perfect man in the middle, you know that's a recipe for a disaster. Initially, I was so angry with myself for not liking the book. But as the story pr...

  BOOK NAME: MORNINGS IN JENIN AUTHOR NAME: SUSAN ABULHAWA GENRE: HISTORICAL FICTION PUBLISHER: BLOOMSBURY BOOK BUY LINK:   https://www.amazon.in/Mornings-Jenin-Susan-Abulhawa/dp/1408805871 BOOK COVER IMAGE BOOK REVIEW "The earth is closing on us, pushing us through the last passage, and we tear off our limbs to pass through... Where should we go after the last frontiers? Where should the birds fly after the last sky?" This book, my God! Words fail me when I try to put my feelings down in letters. Never once did I imagine them as mere characters but as real people who lived through the horrors of it. This multigenerational historical fiction starts with Israel invading Ein Hod, a small town in Palestine. People are forced to seek refuge in Jenin camps after losing their homes in the Nakba to zionists. Amal is born to Dalia and Hasan in the refugee camp, and she fails to understand why her mother is dead inside even when she is alive. As Amal grows, she realises her father...

BOOK NAME: ONE OF THE GOOD GUYS AUTHOR NAME: ARAMINTA HALL GENRE: THRILLER PUBLISHER: PANMACMILLAN BOOK BUY LINK:   https://www.amazon.in/One-Good-Guys-Araminta-Hall/dp/103501811X BOOK COVER IMAGE BOOK REVIEW This is one of those rare books that ended up exceeding my expectations because of the mixed reviews. From my last reading experience, I learned to brush through the negative reviews as well (without spoilers) before reading a book and dreaded not liking it at the end. But to my surprise, it turned out the exact opposite for me. I am now confused about whether I have to continue this practice of looking at reviews or not because they have worked completely opposite every time. Cole and Mel are separated as they both want different things in life, and Cole finds it challenging to move on. He meets Lenni at the seaside, where he has moved, and they start a new chapter together. Two girls campaigning for a women's movement go missing nearby, and things start unfolding in a wa...

BOOK NAME: KILLING COMMENDATORE  AUTHOR NAME: HARUKI MURAKAMI GENRE: MYSTERY/ FANTASY PUBLISHER: VINTAGE BOOKS BOOK BUY LINK:   https://www.amazon.in/Killing-Commendatore-Haruki-Murakami/dp/1784707333 BOOK COVER IMAGE  BOOK REVIEW It would be fitting to say that Murakami's world is mysterious, vivid and contagious. His characters are memorable and the colours in his bookish world are transferable to your soul that they follow you even in your dreams. Reading a Murakami after so long made me realise why he is a living legend in the world of writing. There is no one like him to blend World War 2 and magical realism so effortlessly.  The unnamed protagonist in this story is an artist whom his wife abandons for another man. Dejected, he leaves for Tomohika Amada's neglected house, never to paint again. In his new home, strange things start happening after he accidentally stumbles upon a painting in the attic titled 'Killing Commendatore,' which opens a portal to an u...

If someone has to speak of having a sound, relaxed sleep, then it definitely shouldn't be me. Because I hardly follow 'early to bed, early to rise' even though I preach to my patients to have 8 hours of nap every day. Are you even a doctor if you strictly follow what you advise your patients to do?! But, hey, it's not me; it's my work schedule and the innumerable emergency night calls that don't let me have what I want. But let me tell you what I do on other days and how to make your sleep peaceful, even if it's just for a few hours. Because, well, I am at least qualified to. CIRCADIAN RHYTHM - THE BEAT OF LIFE Have you ever wondered how you start feeling sleepy just as the broad daylight dims? Why should humans sleep at night and wake in the morning? Why do we struggle to keep our eyes open at night when demanded? That's simply because we all dance to the rhythm that chimes within us - the circadian rhythm or cycle. This internal clock in our brain cont...

BOOK NAME: THE SHORTEST HISTORY OF ISRAEL AND PALESTINE AUTHOR NAME: MICHAEL SCOTT-BAUMANN GENRE: NONFICTION PUBLISHER: PANMACMILLAN INDIA / PICADOR INDIA BOOK BUY LINK:   https://www.amazon.in/Shortest-History-Israel-Palestine-Intifadas/dp/8119300505 BOOK COVER IMAGE QUOTE FROM THE BOOK "Let them breathe, and they will find out that life is more beautiful than death" - Amira Hass, Haaretz journalist, when asked about the radical ways that the Gazans used against the Israeli army to show their resistance. BOOK REVIEW As readers, we all like to believe that we know it all, don't we? But there is always something that remains unshrouded from human minds, waiting to be discovered. When I finished this book, I had this gnawing feeling of how uninformed I was about most things regarding Israel's occupation of Palestine and the latter's retaliation and massacre. I was so ashamed of myself for not having read the history in detail before. I always thought I knew enoug...

Ta-da! It's that time of the year when you enrol for the year's TBR challenge to outdo yourself from the last year. As someone who has been a part of this challenge successfully over the past two years, I can assure you that it is a boost  to see yourself move up the readerboard ladder every time you finish a book. So, what is this fuss around the TBR challenge about? Every year, Blogchatter comes up with this amazing TBR challenge where readers enrol themselves with an achievable reading target for the year. Any count from 1 to infinity is considered, and credit points and stickers will be added once readers complete the challenge successfully. Once a participant completes reading a book, the book review or reading experience must be submitted as a blogroll and added to the TBR list later. You repeat this until you hit your number in the chart. And…Voila! The TBR challenge is now complete. So, I hope now you know how to hop into this challenge with other readers. Because I am ...

The line I was standing in was very uncharacteristically organised and obedient. It was like a trail of ants patiently waiting for their turn to meet the queen. Not once in my life had I seen a queue like this where no one tried bypassing the person in front. Instead, a few of them even moved behind, paving the way for others to defer their turn. Strange! The eerie silence made the voice at the entrance of the gate echo from all directions. "You may proceed this way. The guard over there will take care of the rest." The gatekeeper pointed to the first one in the line towards a gate painted golden yellow, making it appear like an entrance to heaven.  Minutes later, a sudden commotion broke out a few feet away from me, but the man before me obscured my view. I gently tapped on his shoulders to ask him what it was about.  "Excuse me! Excuse me, gentleman." My index finger stopped midway in the air, and I gasped when he turned to face me. I knew him very well, but I was...

BOOK NAME: THE COVENANT OF WATER AUTHOR NAME: DR. ABRAHAM VERGHESE GENRE: HISTORICAL FICTION - FAMILY SAGA PUBLISHER: ATLANTIC BOOKS BOOK BUY LINK:   https://www.amazon.in/Covenant-Water-Oprahs-Book-Selection/dp/1804710431 BOOK COVER IMAGE BOOK REVIEW When I tell you that a book has finally managed to reach the levels of 'A Little Life' and 'Valli' in their respective genres for me, you must know that I am going to rant about it forever and keep recommending it over and over again to everyone I know.  This multi-generational saga, spanning three generations from Big Ammachi to her namesake - her granddaughter in Parambil, Kerala, is a breathtaking piece of literature. It is a coming-of-age story of a 12-year-old moving to her marital house in Parambil to her 40-year-old husband, who later becomes 'Big Ammachi' - the matriarch of Parambil. Ever since Big Ammachi got married, she wondered why one person from every generation in her family had to die mysterious...