BOOK REVIEW OF- River Rule

BY Ameeta Davis

Product details

·         Format: Kindle Edition

·         File Size: 1512.0 KB

·         Print Length: 301 pages

·         Page Numbers Source ISBN: 1999892828

·         Sold by: Amazon Asia-Pacific Holdings Private Limited

• Language: English

A BRIEF OVERVIEW-

The jungle is closing in.
First it sends a welcoming party of parakeets.
Next, a garland of disembodied chicken parts.
Finally the tribesmen and their spears arrive demanding human trades of Avi and Una, the property developer’s firstborn grandchildren.
Twice before, the jungle tried to take Una when she took risks.
Twice Avi foiled their attempts.
This time he’s not there — yet she can feel him somewhere near.

River Rule is a dark, urban fantasy, which pivots precariously on the friendship between a boy and girl from different cultural
backgrounds. It deals with deceit and treachery, but it shows that, even when familial unconditional Love is withdrawn, strength and kindness can be found elsewhere – even in a jungle

REVIEW OF THE BOOK-

Set in the villages of Uttarakhand, River rule gives us a different aspect of what friendship is. When we honestly ask ourselves which person in our lives means the most to us, we often find that it is those who, instead of giving advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with a warm and tender hand. The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing and face with us the reality of our powerlessness, that is a friend who cares.

The characterization of Una was beautifully crafted with context to the theme. It brings out the feeling of love keeping friendship in the backdrop. The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twist them to fit our own image. If in loving them we do not love what they are, but only their potential likeness to ourselves, then we do not love them: we only love the reflection of ourselves we find in them. Avi also plays a pivotal role in driving the plot of the novel as he introduces the concept of bonding and the feeling of togetherness. They had battled and bloodied one another, they had kept secrets, broken hearts, lied, betrayed, exiled, they had walked away, said goodbye and sworn it was forever, and somehow, every time, they had mended, they had forgiven, they had survived. Some mistakes could never be fixed – some, but not all. Some people can’t be driven away, no matter how hard you try. Some friendships won’t break.

It is not the dead rather the ones who lives through war have seen the dreadful end of the war, you might have been victorious, unwounded but deep within you, you carry the mark of the war, you carry the memories of war, the time you have spend with your comrades, the times when you had to dug in to foxholes to avoid shelling, the times when you hate to see your comrade down on the ground, feeling of despair, atrocities of the war, missing families, home. They live through hell and often the most wounded, they live with the guilt, despair, of being in the war, they may be happy but deep down they are a different person. Not everyone is a hero. You live with the moments, time when you were unsuccessful, when your actions would have helped your comrades, when your actions get your comrades killed, you live with regret, joyous in the victory can never help you forget the time you have spent. You are victorious for the people you have lost, the decisions you have made, the courage you have shown but being victorious in the war has a price to pay, irrevocable. 

You can’t take a memory back from a person, even if you lose your memory your imagination haunts you as deep down your sub conscious mind you know who you are, who you were. Close you eyes and you can very well see your past, you cant change your past, time you have spent, you live through all and hence you are a hero not for the glorious war for the times you have faced. Decoration with medals is not going to give your life back. the more you know, more experiences doesn’t make it easy rather make its worse. Arms and ammunition kills you once and free you from the misery but the experiences of war kills you everyday, makes you cherish the times everyday through the life. You may forgot that you cant walk anymore, you may forget you cant use your right hand, you may forgot the scars on your face but you can never forgot war. Life without war is never easy and only the ones how survived through it can understand. Soldiers are taught to fight but the actual combat starts after war which you are not even trained for. You rely on your weapon, leaders, comrades, god, luck in the war but here you rely on your self to beat the horrors, they have seen hell, heaven, they have felt the mixed emotions of hope, despair, courage, victory, defeat, scared.

I enjoyed the novel not because I love reading romantic genre but because this book brings out a different version of love. This book proves that If you promise to love, trust, respect, support and stand by someone no matter what, do not just speak those words when times are good. Live those words when challenges arise. The stronger the love and commitment, the more unbreakable the bond. United hearts will never be easily divided.

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RATINGS-

Overall I would like to rate the book 42 on a scale of 50.

4 stars out of 5

1.     Originality of the plot and sub plots- 8/10

2.     Net emotions in the story- 8/10

3.     Usage of words and phrases-9/10

4.     The title, cover and the illustration-9/10

5.     The net impact on the readers- 8/10

KUDOS TO Ameeta Davis

Reviewed by-

Sayan Basak

Kolkata