A RIVER ON THE WALL

Imagine that you are at your favorite hill station. A place, you think you know all too well. But on that day, you are approached by a tourist guide, who tells you about a breath-taking view, you may have missed. You are apprehensive, but decide to give in to his persuasive nature. Elated, he grabs your hand, but walks you through those same roads you’ve been before! The shops, restaurants, and marketplaces you pass by are all familiar. “What is the catch?”, you wonder, and just as you begin to protest, he pulls you into a dark alley. You feel jittery and decide to bring the cheeky little guy to a halt. “What are you up to?” you ask. He stops, grins and vehemently kicks open a door. What you see, thereafter, leaves you breathless!One-third into “A River on the Wall”, that is exactly how I felt. It was, as if, a forgotten bulb in the room had suddenly got switched on, after which everything became clearer. It was then that I realized, that here is an author, who is both brave and crafty, and that the title she has chosen is perfect for the book.I was introduced to this book by an author friend who had written a detailed review of it in a reader’s group on Facebook. I was intrigued and had included it into my “TBR list” immediately. But I must admit, that I began reading it with some pre-conceived notions. I had thought of it to be a “lingering melancholy” with realistic, empathetic characters. It’s a genre that I do read but this book wasn’t just that, despite the underlying pathos, which was unmistakable. It is an epic tale of love, loss, betrayal, despair, guilt and guarded secrets. But there is more to this book than what meets the eye.The author is a Professor of English, so my expectation with language and grammar were high. But what caught my eye was her choice of words—poetic and appropriate. Authenticity wasn’t sacrificed at the altar of demonstration, thankfully! The other commendable aspect of the writing was the use of allegories, metaphors and idioms which lent symmetry to the writing, thereby helping the reader visualize the scenes better. In fact, there were many instances where I felt that this book has the potential to be converted into a screenplay. Here are a few noteworthy quotes from the book:“Sometimes, life is like an autumn wood, golden leaves and amber paths, dappled with sunshine.”“Human emotion is such a complex thing. At times it is right there for the world to see. At others, no matter how deep one dives, an endless void meets the eye, an abyss of nothingness”“And though Ryeed was relatively young, he felt old and tired, like Lear on the heath, alone in the storm.”However, more than language, it is the intelligence with which the story has been crafted that deserves praise. The author weaves several impactful moments by treading through what may seem like the mundane. Hence, when these moments arrive, they do pack a punch. The generous use of soliloquies and one-to-one conversations is also interesting and they manage to take you into the mind of the characters.The most impressive aspect of the storytelling though was the use of wit. Subtle humor to be precise. When you make bold decisions with your plot you can easily tilt to extremes with your storytelling and make it overdramatic or outlandish. But this is where the author shines. She uses humor and pathos intelligently, and by doing so keeps the story and its characters real and believable. In other words, she takes a big risk by being deceptively outlandish but comes out keeping all the traits of good literature intact, and that’s the newness that Stormy Hazarika brings to the table.This is not to say that the book is without any flaws. The story covers several years in the life of its lead character (Ryeed), often jumping timelines, and there were moments where I felt that the author could have invested a little more to let the emotions linger. Also, I felt that the protagonist’s (Ryeed) character could have had a few more layers. However, different readers will perceive these aspects differently. Personally, if a book keeps me emotionally engaged from start to finish, it has served its purpose. And “A River on the Wall” does that without a shadow of doubt!Hence, I strongly recommend this book to all who like reading good contemporary fiction. It deserves to be read because it is witty, clever, brave and skillfully crafted. I will give Stormy Hazarika’s “A River on the Wall” – 4.5/5. She is a remarkable storyteller, and I am looking forward to her next.

I met Stormy Hazarika aka Carol Hugh on Facebook, where she introduced her book to me. The blurb sounded intriguing, so I decided to read it. To call that a great decision would be an understatement.After reading the first few polished pages itself, I felt that this book might be special. After finishing it now, I know that it is a literary gem.The story is about the complex relationships between a father, his young lover, and his son. It is a multi-generational, epic saga of love, betrayal, guilt, secrets, and second chances, and the story is so gripping and wonderfully narrated that you will not be able to keep your eyes off it even for a second.There are only a few characters and all of them are given justice in this sprawling narrative. None of the characters are perfect - they have gray shades like real people - but I found all of them likable. I could relate to all of them and formed an emotional bond with them. This shows the depth of characterization that the author has managed to accomplish.The narration is equally well executed and there is a conspicuous maturity in the writing. The writing in this book follows the middle path that is rare to find nowadays. It is neither an inaccessible, abstract, high-brow literary fiction nor a cheesy bestselling romantic novel. It is a mature, well-written story about relationships, love, and regret with an inspirational undertone that never seems preachy or hackneyed. I am constantly on the lookout for such books, and this one totally fulfilled my craving.The language is par excellence. It is littered with garden-fresh metaphors, similes and wordplay of the highest order. I recently read a Booker Prize winning book and I am amazed to say that the writing in it seemed bland compared to this masterpiece. The prose is so beautiful and poetic that I was re-reading and highlighting sentences in almost every page. I can wax eloquent about it but it won't be sufficient to describe the luscious writing in this book. You have to read it to experience it. The grammar is also perfect apart from a few missing punctuation marks here and there.The descriptions are beautiful and vivid and I could picture every scene as if it were happening right before me. And the author, unlike many, knows how to draw a line and maintain brevity and prevent the prose from becoming over descriptive.There were so many scenes that left me breathless with anticipation and a few scenes where I found myself teary-eyed as well. The ending is also impeccably executed, making this one of the best books I've ever read.This book deserves to be published by the likes of Penguin and HarperCollins and be highlighted in bookshelves and read by readers all over the country. The other thing it deserves is a prestigious award. Trust me, it's that damn good.4.9 stars to this literary masterpiece. I highly recommend all readers to try out this book. You will not regret it.

A tale of forbidden love, a love so impossible just like it’s impossible for a river to run on the wall, yet so fulfilling in many ways, rarely do I stay up till 3am to finish a work of fiction, Yes, I finished the book in 5 hours straight to see for myself what happened to these characters in the end, much like I’d do for a gripping Netflix series!Very simple yet nuanced, endearing character sketches, picturesque descriptions of the beautiful Ranikhet, the bylanes of Delhi and Kolkata, it’s a enriching tale of love and loss and hope and practical wisdom and all those curve balls life throws at you in between!One particular scene stayed on with me, an endearing coming of age conversation between the lead character and his daughter, which strung an emotional chord in me, and dear writer, if you manage to moisten the lashes of a reader with your words in an art of fiction, your job is done, and a damn good job I must say! Congratulations!!If you like simple yet nuanced writing (the likes of Ruskin Bond stuff), you will definitely like this one!