Backflap: The Sentence
The Sentence
by Gautam Bhatia.
Westland. Pages 364. Rs 599
An impoverished young man, Jagat, is found guilty of murder and is sentenced to the sleep of death for a century. A century later, tensions run high in Peruma. As an uncertain future looms, Nila, a young guardian, is approached by a mysterious woman who insists that Jagat’s case be reopened before it’s too late. Drawn by the prospect of undoing a possible historical injustice, Nila agrees. But as she begins to unearth the past, forces, known and unknown, thwart her at every turn.
Divine Benevolence and Other Stories
by TC Ghai.
LG Publishers Distributors. Pages 199. Rs 499
Written over many years, these stories delineate a range of themes, concerns and issues varying from the personal and individual to the social, cultural and political. A few stories attempt to delineate the nature of the state and its relationship with people; a few others view the woman in the traditional Indian society; yet others show how our deeply entrenched prejudices and traditions refuse to die and warp our response to issues in life.
The Murder of Sonia Raikkonen & The Sane Psychopath
by Salil Desai. Westland.
In ‘The Sane Psychopath’, bus driver Shanker Lande goes on a rampage through the streets of Pune, crushing 10 people to death, maiming 70 for life. Varun Gupte, a young lawyer, defies the bar association’s boycott and takes on Lande’s case. Varun confronts difficult questions about justice, revenge and the human psyche. In ‘The Murder of Sonia Raikkonen’, the author’s fictional homicide detective is faced with the death of two people with no connection to each other. Both the books are reprints.
