Ayingbi Mayengbam, a well-meaning primary school teacher, wants to take on some part-time work over the summer, ideally a job through which she can help people. When her first day as a volunteer at a suicide hotline ends in her finding a dead body, she is done with this line of work. But soon, she is approached by the winsome Dr Rastogi, a man who runs another suicide hotline with a more altruistic approach, and she is unable to say no.
While initially shy and uncertain, Ayingbi learns quickly, her warmth and sincerity enabling her to connect well with callers, her fierce determination to save lives compensating for lack of experience. Over time, however, Ayingbi is confronted with an unfortunate realization: when working at a suicide hotline, you simply can’t save everyone. On top of that, there is something sinister afoot at Rastogi’s agency, least of which are the three phones in Ayingbi’s cubicle, one of which begins to ring without being plugged in . . .
Catagory: Literature & Fiction
All He Left Me Was a Recipe
Part fact, part fiction, All He Left Me Was a Recipe is a never-ending pursuit of love, a quest for the ever-elusive ‘Mr Right,’ all while kissing the ‘Mr Maybes’. It’s a rollercoaster ride through the fabulous and often hilariously complicated world of modern dating where love, lust and culinary metaphors are on the menu.
From ‘a-ha’ moments to giggles and even some epic heartbreaks with a fair share of tear-shedding, this book is a VIP pass to Shenaz Treasury’s heart in all its shapes and forms over the years. Every story wraps up with
a recipe—a memento from each of these unforgettable encounters—along with some timeless life lessons.
So, pour a glass of wine, get comfy and dive into a world that’ll make you laugh, shed a tear or two, and who knows, you might just find yourself along the way.
Angria
Kanhoji Angre is born to Tukoji Sankhpal, keeper of the Suvarnadurg Fort for Shivaji, emperor of the Marathas. A child of the seas, Kanhoji is as much at home in the turbulent waters of Konkan as in the forts and forests of the Desha mainland.
But the enemies of their empire are never too far away.
The Mughals are in constant battle with the Marathas on land, while the Siddis and the newly arrived Portuguese threaten to destroy them at sea. There’s also the British East India Company who have arrived as traders and settled on the island of Kulaba, paying taxes to Kanhoji.
Kanhoji must rise above conspiracy, deceit, war and family politics to become the Samudratala Shivaji—‘Shivaji of the Seas’.
An astounding debut, Angria is the tale of one of history’s most feared naval commanders. Amid the smell of gunpowder and salt, Sohail Rekhy brings to life a momentous era when the war for swaraj was fought on the seas of India and when only one man stood between the firangis and the Desha. This is the chronicle of a hero whose story has been lost to the waves of time.
The Henna Start-up
Abir Maqsood is angry.
She has things to do: a career to carve, money to earn, and, in the small stuff, a dining table to fix. But there are many obstacles in the way: lack of money, her parents’ over-protective attitude, and a most annoying distraction in class called Arsalan.
When her mother is not paid her dues for her henna service, Abir resolves to help her by creating a henna app. Her college is also running a program for student start-ups so things look most fortuitous. But the path to getting funding is littered with more thorns than roses.
As Abir navigates through college, friendships and social pressures with determination, will she find the freedom that she is truly looking for?
Winner of the Neev Book Award 2024 • the Crossword Book Award • the BK Children’s Book Award • the Auther Award
All That Sizzles
A spicy meet-cute that will delight your rom-com palate!
Wedding planner Tanvi Bedi is all fired up about her latest project, the $100 million wedding of a media heiress. The only hitch is her high-profile client’s wishlist chef, Nik Shankar. Weddings are a complete no-no for Nik, but there must be something—or someone—he can’t resist.
Nik Shankar’s lifelong dream of inheriting his ancestral home is in jeopardy due to his estranged grandfather’s absurd caveat—Nik must get married to claim the property. When Tanvi storms into his office, an inconceivable solution presents itself: Nik will craft the wedding if Tanvi pretends to be his fiancée.
What starts as a recipe for disaster whips up into a delectable feast of simmering chemistry and fiery passion. But as the line between fake and real blurs, Tanvi and Nik must confront their inner demons before their charade goes up in smoke.
Could love be the secret ingredient they need?
The Man Who Avenged Bhagat Singh
In 1929, Bhagat Singh surrenders after a daring bomb attack in the heart of Delhi’s assembly. Behind bars, he prepares for an ideological battle against the empire. However, a shocking betrayal shatters his world.
Phanindra Nath Ghosh, a trusted comrade, becomes a British approver, revealing every secret of the HSRA. His damning testimony leads to multiple arrests, and then the British hang Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdeo. Popularly known as the ‘king’s witness’, he had singlehandedly brought on an armed revolution.
But with their leaders gone and British oppression at its peak, surviving HSRA members rally around one burning desire: revenge. Their target is the man who dismantled their life’s work. But with limited resources, their hopes rest on a lone figure.
From the shadows emerges Baikunth Sukul, an unassuming teacher and devoted admirer of Bhagat Singh. He swears to exact revenge on behalf of the martyrs and the HSRA.
Will he succeed in this nearly impossible mission?
What happens when he locks horns with the formidable British Raj?
And to what lengths will he go to avenge Bhagat Singh’s death?
India’s journey to Independence was filled with deeds of forgotten heroes. This is one such story of sacrifice and revenge—of a patriot against a traitor, a common man against the empire.
The Patient in Bed Number 12
A hate video goes viral. A dying father sets out in search of the living. A daughter risks all to follow her head and heart.
The Patient in Bed Number 12 is a remarkable novel framed as a confession from parent to child, from child to parent. In this profoundly moving exchange, secrets long buried tumble out, mysterious and dreamlike: a grieving mother finds solace in a newspaper photograph; a ghost comes to life in an abandoned fridge; children fill empty jars with the night’s darkness; a young couple plan how to seek permission for their love; and three men with a phone camera turn a family’s world upside down.
Just as one breath holds in its end the beginning of another, each story’s close becomes the opening for the next—linking fragile strands of individual lives into a tapestry of hope and heartbreak. From Raj Kamal Jha, India’s ‘novelist of the newsroom,’ comes a searing investigation of the pulse of today’s India: a billion-plus young people, restless and ambitious, trying to shed the burdens of their past—and yet haunted by ghosts of mistrust and hate.
His Majesty’s Headhunters
Surprisingly little is known about the siege of Kohima, considered a game-changing event that altered the course of world history during the Second World War. His Majesty’s Headhunters adds to our understanding of this battle and shows how it redefined a whole era.
Providing a unique perspective of Nagaland and its warriors, this book uncovers the untold story of the siege, regarded as one of the more celebrated battles of D-Day and often referred to as the ‘Stalingrad of the East’ by Western scholars. Historians even believe that this was the last battle of the British Empire
and the first battle of the ‘New India’.
However, that is just the tale told so far by everyone except the Nagas. The real history of this battle—which involved the Japanese Army, led by Lieutenant General Sato, and the Allied forces—is yet to be recounted. As Lt Gen. Sato is said to have remarked, if it were not for the Naga people, the Allied forces would have been defeated in Kohima, and the Japanese Army would have easily secured the Dimapur railway station and moved victoriously towards Bengal via Assam, thus reversing the outcome of the war.
This rare and deeply researched historical account, drawing on records left by the officers and soldiers who fought in Kohima, is a page-turner. It brings to light the valour and spirit of the Naga ‘headhunters’, who made the supreme sacrifice to protect the honour of their people.
Starry Starry Night | A graphic novel that explores death, grief, friendship and music
After Kunal’s mother dies, he is sent off to a boarding school in the hills. Till he has a hostel room, he stays with Tara, his father’s cousin, who teaches a special music programme in the school.
Teaching music helped Tara after her best friend died—that, and perhaps the company of the enigmatic figure known as Death, whom she sees everywhere.
Tara and Kunal must try to live together, their lives entwined by their separate losses—which neither is comfortable talking about.
This is a tale of love and loss, of the healing and illuminating power of friendship, art and music.
Vazhga Vazhga and Other Stories
Imayam is considered one of the most important Tamil writers today and this powerful collection of stories reveals just why that is. Whether he is depicting a lack of political morality in the novella Vazhga Vazhga, questioning whether religion unifies or divides in Tiruneeru Sami, or narrating his unique spin on Samban, a character from one our epics, Imayam’s unsparing gaze on society gently and subtly reveals the inequalities people must live with and navigate.
Beautifully translated by Prabha Sridevan, the stories in this collection are layered, and told with deep empathy and humour.