*Book Review : Betwixt Twists and Turns: A Potpourri of Short Stories by Mona Mohanty

Name of the Book: Betwixt Twists and Turns: A Potpourri of Short Stories

Author: Mona Mohanty

Publisher: Partridge India

Blurb: Dragonflies are said to be harbingers of rain, but they may be much more for one unsuspecting woman. A household dog finds a reprieve when Grandma comes to stay. A young man stops by an ATM at night and finds himself encountering robbers-and a young woman who may not be what she seems. In Betwixt Twists and Turns, author Mona Mohanty presents a series of short stories born from random thoughts that popped up out of nowhere, overheard bits of conversation, parables of family lore, and anecdotes from friends. These tales come from a variety of viewpoints-an older woman who receives an unexpected telegram, a businessman who encounters what might be a ghost, and various animals sharing their impressions of human life. These stories vividly capture the routine of existence-but with a surprising twist. This collection of short stories set in India features tales with unexpected outcomes from a wide range of perspectives, both human and animal. (Via Amazon)

Verdict: As the blurb states Betwixt Twists and Turns is a short story compilation book which carries varied short stories inspired from the daily life or from the conversations with friends and family. These stories revolve around all forms of life – human and animal, their emotions and impressions of life. Their situations and how they react to such circumstances that happen all of a sudden in their life. As the name suggests, these stories carry a tinge of twist and turn in their existence. Will the author successfully take off the twist and turns in the stories? Or will that fail to hold readers curiosity and greed to complete the book in one single read? Let’s find out!

Positives:                   

1) The book cover is good.

2) The language used throughout is quite simple for readers to understand and there are quite few new words one can learn too.

3) The pictures used before each short story is a nice idea.

4) The short stories are literally very short and for a change it feels good to read them and some of them can give you goose bumps by their turns in the end.  

5) The paper quality of the book is quite good too.

Negatives:

1)   There was one word missing in a sentence in a story. (that’s all I could find out)

2)   The book is quite over priced as compared to the number of pages and the fact that it’s a short story compilation.

To sum up the review it’s a great book to read and relax one’s mind from the hustle bustle of daily life chores. It certainly perks up one’s mood and creates excitement to find out what other stories hold in them for the readers. The twists and turns are great in some of the stories. Some will like the real shortness of the stories while others won’t but you will definitely like the stories itself. All in all it’s a good read.

Ratings: 4 OUT OF 5.

Book Details:

Title: Betwixt Twists and Turns: A Potpourri of Short Stories

Publisher: Partridge India

Author: Mona Mohanty

Edition: Paperback

Language: English

ISBN-13: 978-1482874174

ISBN-10: 1482874172

No. of Pages: 122

Price:  299 Rs

Purchase Link:   Click Here!

©Heena Ahuja

24^th August, 2016

*The book copy has been given to the reviewer by Tushti.