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Drowning Shadows
Set in the world of fashion in Karachi, Drowning Shadows is a thriller with a spiritual angle. As the protagonist, Hyder Waseem, battles for life, the book retraces his journey at two levels – the physical where he is a successful fashion photographer, and the metaphysical where he is trapped in the haze of his obsession, and forced to confront his failings.
Linked to Hyder are the stories of three women: Natalia, Pakistan’s latest supermodel; Anab, Hyder’s smart and efficient secretary; and Sophie, the fiancée of Hyder’s friend, Osman. The novel explores the characters of these three women and how their past shaped them. It also paints how seemingly different they are, yet inherently similar in terms of their desires and insecurities. Between the four of them pans out a powerful story that weaves together love, pain, lust, revenge and power. Chilling and dark, Drowning Shadows is a devastating depiction of the intricacies of human relationships as well as the ruinous effects of wild ambition.
Linked to Hyder are the stories of three women: Natalia, Pakistan’s latest supermodel; Anab, Hyder’s smart and efficient secretary; and Sophie, the fiancée of Hyder’s friend, Osman. The novel explores the characters of these three women and how their past shaped them. It also paints how seemingly different they are, yet inherently similar in terms of their desires and insecurities. Between the four of them pans out a powerful story that weaves together love, pain, lust, revenge and power. Chilling and dark, Drowning Shadows is a devastating depiction of the intricacies of human relationships as well as the ruinous effects of wild ambition.
258 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2012
3 people are currently reading
25 people want to read
About the author
Umair Naeem
2 books8 followersUmair Naeem is a marketer by profession and the author of “Drowning Shadows – A Novel”, a thriller set in the Karachi fashion world. "The Runaway," is his second novel.
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February 28, 2016I can not BELIEVE the stuff I'm forced to read for my blog. "A thriller with a spiritual angle"?
On the one hand, this book starts out with the advantage of my exceedingly lowered expectations; on the other hand, I so look forward to tearing this apart.
On the one hand, this book starts out with the advantage of my exceedingly lowered expectations; on the other hand, I so look forward to tearing this apart.
March 29, 2016
Dear Indian Publishing Industry,
Please do not publish each and every manuscript just because it comes to you from Pakistan. This puts our contemporary English fiction in bad name. I know some of you think you need to understand our enigmatic country through the writings of your fictionists but I can assure you, not every thing is worth reading, let alone worth publishing.
It's lots and lots of bad writing. I really mean BAD WRITING. It's so bad I felt like suing you for hurting my aesthetic sensibilities, especially when the author descends into one of this dreamy tirades. It's so bad I was embarrassed on the author's behalf for what I was reading. It's so bad I can't even find a coherent line worth quoting.
I hope your sales returned the costs. Please burn the rest of the copies and forget that you even published it.
Postscript: I'm being a mean bastard. This is a debut novel and I should cut some slack or just shut up. I'm sorry for the author, I really am, and I would apologise to him profusely if he ever reads this. But I stand by my literary judgement of the novel: it's worthless and fit to be burned at stake for committing blasphemy against the art of writing.
Please do not publish each and every manuscript just because it comes to you from Pakistan. This puts our contemporary English fiction in bad name. I know some of you think you need to understand our enigmatic country through the writings of your fictionists but I can assure you, not every thing is worth reading, let alone worth publishing.
It's lots and lots of bad writing. I really mean BAD WRITING. It's so bad I felt like suing you for hurting my aesthetic sensibilities, especially when the author descends into one of this dreamy tirades. It's so bad I was embarrassed on the author's behalf for what I was reading. It's so bad I can't even find a coherent line worth quoting.
I hope your sales returned the costs. Please burn the rest of the copies and forget that you even published it.
Postscript: I'm being a mean bastard. This is a debut novel and I should cut some slack or just shut up. I'm sorry for the author, I really am, and I would apologise to him profusely if he ever reads this. But I stand by my literary judgement of the novel: it's worthless and fit to be burned at stake for committing blasphemy against the art of writing.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews