C K Meena
The book is an interesting statement on gender and sexuality. Its also quite a compelling murder mystery, and even though it might turn into a ‘what is the connection’ than a whodunit in the second half, it retains its intrigue till the end.
The author also manages to create a series of well etched out characters, and devotes enough prose for us to figure out their motivations and notions about the events and circumstances in their life. They remain very ‘slice of life’ but when we peer into their lives, they get interesting.
The story is set in Chennai, Bangalore, Coimbatore and the Indian Railways, and centers around the murder of Uma, the ‘weekend wife’. Right from her purchase of Hrudayam during a journey, a magazine whose USP is forbidden love, and her figuring out that people would hesitate to initiate a conversation or borrow the magazine, her character promises to be interesting.
A promise that is delivered, as it is with another prime character, ‘Magnum’ Mahesh, the investigating officer. I quite liked the connection made with Parvathyamma, an older character who adds to the intrigue. You might get overwhelmed with the repeated influx of characters, but it’ll pass. 🙂
Though the book is studded with some excellent wit in the first half, it morphs into a layered seriousness in the second. The detailing is excellent, not just of characters, but of places, and events, and even the working of a person’s mind. The author manages to leap from descriptions of external phenomena to internal ones with amazing ease. It is difficult to say which is the backdrop – the murder mystery or the statement, such is the intertwining. This also means that you have to watch out for the subtext of both in the narration. All that, and the switching between time-frames and character viewpoints makes it a very gripping read.