EMPTY FISTS
Fiza Pathan
Author
39 books
306 followers
Friends
May 30, 2025
OMG! This collection of social issue fiction short stories was really uplifting, motivating, and captivating. Stellar author Shivkumar Mangalam won me over with his first debut collection of short stories titled ‘Empty Fists’. I just could not get enough of the book. This is yet another reason why I most of the time always choose indie books!
‘Empty Fists’ is a collection of suspenseful social issue short stories focusing on the Indian scenario of the latter 20th century and early 21st century. It focuses on urban social issues faced by Indian men, women, and children in urban cities and towns and how they try to overcome the obstacles set in their paths. The collection is pulsating with raw energy and is certainly Shivakumar Mangalam at his best. I think this short story collection was even better than ‘Centurion’ which was the first short story collection I ever read of the author. If you want a dosage of reality-based thriller fiction, then Mangalam sir is the author you should be adding to your Kindle library right now!
From sexual assault to the many blues of news reporting work; from the extortion rackets of real estate agents to the grossness of eve teasing; from the hopeless scenario of the Indian glass ceiling effect to the abuse of minors in their own homes; from corruption in the bureaucracy in the 20th century to the horrors of alcohol abuse – all social issue topics that concern the Indian urban scenario are covered in ‘Empty Fists’ that can educate, inspire, and create an urge in the reader to make a positive difference wherever they can do so.
The short stories read like real thrillers or some excellently penned suspense fiction of the likes of Jeffrey Archer, James Patterson, David Baldacci, and Sidney Sheldon but within the context of an Indian urban setting. Mangalam beats modern big name publisher writers like Nidhi Upadhyay, Prajakta Koli, Nikita Singh, and Novoneel Chakraborty because his plots are way better, fully well managed, conclusive, suspenseful, sensible, realistic and his conclusions always create a perfect closure of the topic or theme.
Seriously, if you want some sensible social issue thriller fiction that makes sense and has perfect closure at the end of the likes of earlier Jeffrey Archer, James Patterson, and David Baldacci books of the latter 20th century, then please dump everyone else and pick up ‘Empty Fists’ by Shivkumar Mangalam. If you want to get some quality Indian thriller fiction, then come to the indie-market and not to the Big Publishers; they will only and always let you down! But Mangalam Shiva will rock your Black and White Kindle and give these so called present popular Big Publisher authors a real run for their money and publicity overdose.
From pariah dogs playing matchmaking to wife swapping turned into ‘wife slapping the wicked husband’ matches; from arranged marriages turning bitter to saintly fathers-in-law turning into mortal sinners; from independent women seeking a new work life to old male dogs wanting their old difficult to handle canine wives; from 70 year old men dying with nothing but empty fists to retelling the sad plight of the Indian urban girl child in a gist – ‘Empty Fists’ makes perfect reading for all social issue fans and for all those who value really good realistic thriller fiction and not plain garbage that we see displayed in the book market in our bookshops these days.
My favourite short stories in this series were ‘Stigma’ and ‘Shattered Dreams’ both which were women centric themes, and which really touched the core of my heart. In fact, where ‘Stigma’ was concerned, I could actually feel my goosepimples rising when the female protagonist was alone on the almost deserted causeway with her office driver. How she tackled her otherwise hopeless situation is something worthy to read in this excellent collection. Where ‘Shattered Dreams’ was concerned, I almost screamed at the farmer and the tree episode – indeed, these two short stories were thrilling but eye-opening at the same time.
I resonated very well with the female protagonist in the short story ‘Whirlpool’ and could empathize with her very easily, because her reality is something that even I have been facing for a long while currently as an urban working woman living and working in Mumbai. It would not be an outrage at times to say that we working women seem to identify with the rag dolls we used to play with when we were younger than our prim and proper Barbie Dolls. The poem contained in this particular short story dedicated to women is painful to read but must be read nevertheless and I am thrilled that Mangalam Shiva sir managed to pen this evocative poem for the reading public; it should not be missed at all!
All in all, a thrilling collection of suspenseful and well-crafted stories that can blow anyone’s mind away. I prefer my fiction more realistic and plausible than fantastical with an outlandish plot that even the author ultimately cannot untangle!
Mangalam Shiva sir gets 5 stars from me as always! As an 81-year-old senior citizen and dynamic writer of short fiction, he needs to be more widely read by the Indian public. Kudos to him on a job well done!
Author
39 books
306 followers
Friends
May 30, 2025
OMG! This collection of social issue fiction short stories was really uplifting, motivating, and captivating. Stellar author Shivkumar Mangalam won me over with his first debut collection of short stories titled ‘Empty Fists’. I just could not get enough of the book. This is yet another reason why I most of the time always choose indie books!
‘Empty Fists’ is a collection of suspenseful social issue short stories focusing on the Indian scenario of the latter 20th century and early 21st century. It focuses on urban social issues faced by Indian men, women, and children in urban cities and towns and how they try to overcome the obstacles set in their paths. The collection is pulsating with raw energy and is certainly Shivakumar Mangalam at his best. I think this short story collection was even better than ‘Centurion’ which was the first short story collection I ever read of the author. If you want a dosage of reality-based thriller fiction, then Mangalam sir is the author you should be adding to your Kindle library right now!
From sexual assault to the many blues of news reporting work; from the extortion rackets of real estate agents to the grossness of eve teasing; from the hopeless scenario of the Indian glass ceiling effect to the abuse of minors in their own homes; from corruption in the bureaucracy in the 20th century to the horrors of alcohol abuse – all social issue topics that concern the Indian urban scenario are covered in ‘Empty Fists’ that can educate, inspire, and create an urge in the reader to make a positive difference wherever they can do so.
The short stories read like real thrillers or some excellently penned suspense fiction of the likes of Jeffrey Archer, James Patterson, David Baldacci, and Sidney Sheldon but within the context of an Indian urban setting. Mangalam beats modern big name publisher writers like Nidhi Upadhyay, Prajakta Koli, Nikita Singh, and Novoneel Chakraborty because his plots are way better, fully well managed, conclusive, suspenseful, sensible, realistic and his conclusions always create a perfect closure of the topic or theme.
Seriously, if you want some sensible social issue thriller fiction that makes sense and has perfect closure at the end of the likes of earlier Jeffrey Archer, James Patterson, and David Baldacci books of the latter 20th century, then please dump everyone else and pick up ‘Empty Fists’ by Shivkumar Mangalam. If you want to get some quality Indian thriller fiction, then come to the indie-market and not to the Big Publishers; they will only and always let you down! But Mangalam Shiva will rock your Black and White Kindle and give these so called present popular Big Publisher authors a real run for their money and publicity overdose.
From pariah dogs playing matchmaking to wife swapping turned into ‘wife slapping the wicked husband’ matches; from arranged marriages turning bitter to saintly fathers-in-law turning into mortal sinners; from independent women seeking a new work life to old male dogs wanting their old difficult to handle canine wives; from 70 year old men dying with nothing but empty fists to retelling the sad plight of the Indian urban girl child in a gist – ‘Empty Fists’ makes perfect reading for all social issue fans and for all those who value really good realistic thriller fiction and not plain garbage that we see displayed in the book market in our bookshops these days.
My favourite short stories in this series were ‘Stigma’ and ‘Shattered Dreams’ both which were women centric themes, and which really touched the core of my heart. In fact, where ‘Stigma’ was concerned, I could actually feel my goosepimples rising when the female protagonist was alone on the almost deserted causeway with her office driver. How she tackled her otherwise hopeless situation is something worthy to read in this excellent collection. Where ‘Shattered Dreams’ was concerned, I almost screamed at the farmer and the tree episode – indeed, these two short stories were thrilling but eye-opening at the same time.
I resonated very well with the female protagonist in the short story ‘Whirlpool’ and could empathize with her very easily, because her reality is something that even I have been facing for a long while currently as an urban working woman living and working in Mumbai. It would not be an outrage at times to say that we working women seem to identify with the rag dolls we used to play with when we were younger than our prim and proper Barbie Dolls. The poem contained in this particular short story dedicated to women is painful to read but must be read nevertheless and I am thrilled that Mangalam Shiva sir managed to pen this evocative poem for the reading public; it should not be missed at all!
All in all, a thrilling collection of suspenseful and well-crafted stories that can blow anyone’s mind away. I prefer my fiction more realistic and plausible than fantastical with an outlandish plot that even the author ultimately cannot untangle!
Mangalam Shiva sir gets 5 stars from me as always! As an 81-year-old senior citizen and dynamic writer of short fiction, he needs to be more widely read by the Indian public. Kudos to him on a job well done!
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by
Fiza
(new)
Jun 01, 2025 10:29PM
This was really a superb debut collection by Mangalam Shiva sir! Please grab your copies of this book 'Empty Fists' today! Check out my review of the same in the above blog post. If you have not read Mangalam Shiva yet, you are missing something big time! Happy Reading to all! :)
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