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Brutal
"You are in real, real danger." - A school teacher gets a creepy warning in his mailbox. Seven days later, he murders eleven of his students. Two months later, he is gunned down in broad daylight by an obscure militant outfit. Justice served. The nation pacified. Case closed.
But not for two crime reporters. Seeking redemption through this case are Prakash and Seema, ace journalists but broken individuals. As they follow the story, they are led to the ominous wilds of Bandhavgarh where an eerily similar massacre had occurred eight years ago. Little do they know that they have stirred up a hornet's nest.
One by one their leads start turning up in body bags and they are chased by assassins at every corner. Soon they realize that they are pitted against evil powers pervading the business and political DNA of the country, with an unbelievably sinister agenda. People who are about to let Prakash and Seema know how brutal they can be.
But not for two crime reporters. Seeking redemption through this case are Prakash and Seema, ace journalists but broken individuals. As they follow the story, they are led to the ominous wilds of Bandhavgarh where an eerily similar massacre had occurred eight years ago. Little do they know that they have stirred up a hornet's nest.
One by one their leads start turning up in body bags and they are chased by assassins at every corner. Soon they realize that they are pitted against evil powers pervading the business and political DNA of the country, with an unbelievably sinister agenda. People who are about to let Prakash and Seema know how brutal they can be.
270 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 5, 2015
21 people are currently reading
421 people want to read
About the author
Uday Satpathy
1 book13 followersUday Satpathy is an Information Technology Expert in the world of Healthcare and Life Sciences. He has a degree in electrical engineering and an MBA from one of the top B-schools in the country. Brutal, his first novel, was born out of a love for thrillers with intricate plots. He is a movie connoisseur, a cricket fanatic, a quizzing enthusiast and a travel freak. He has a special place in his heart for cooking as well.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
October 21, 2020
What I liked:
The issues handled were journalism, PTSD, mass murder.
The sniper mystery was really good.
The investigation on the criminal was pretty realistic and detailed.
The humor parts were good.
I loved reading about the struggles of being a journalist.
The writing style is good and gripping.
The whole book is full of action and unexpected turns.
What I didn't like:
Character description is vague and assuming.
The romance part was really superficial, vague and annoying.
Seema(the love interest) was really unappealing and way too boring.
The book could have been shorter though.
Some parts were deliberately dragging for no reason.
Between book 1 and 2, I really lost interest in the investigation.
And this book has some gross scenes which I regret reading.
The ending was really disappointing.
*I read both book 1 and 2 together.
Book 1 is much better.
The issues handled were journalism, PTSD, mass murder.
The sniper mystery was really good.
The investigation on the criminal was pretty realistic and detailed.
The humor parts were good.
I loved reading about the struggles of being a journalist.
The writing style is good and gripping.
The whole book is full of action and unexpected turns.
What I didn't like:
Character description is vague and assuming.
The romance part was really superficial, vague and annoying.
Seema(the love interest) was really unappealing and way too boring.
The book could have been shorter though.
Some parts were deliberately dragging for no reason.
Between book 1 and 2, I really lost interest in the investigation.
And this book has some gross scenes which I regret reading.
The ending was really disappointing.
*I read both book 1 and 2 together.
Book 1 is much better.
August 15, 2015
When I read the blurb for this book, I knew I had to read more. I'm a huge fan of thrillers and I love writers who can really pull the reader in the story and hold their attention throughout the book. For a first time author, Uday Satpathy, has been successful in doing just that. I was totally engrossed in the world the author created right from the word go.
The author paints an exciting and a believable picture. As the story progressed, I was engulfed in the mysterious, dramatic and suspenseful investigations along with Prakash and Seema. Though there are multiple sub-plots, but all are nicely linked to give a narrative that is crisp and tight. There’s an deadly assassin who wants to retire after his current and last assignment. There is a doctor who is on a mission that would destroy humanity. A Foreman in a local sugar mill joins hand with the evil forces to create a phoney Jihadi organization. A business family’s scion has dangerous and over ambitious plans. All these subplots integrate well with the main plot and advance the story at a satisfying pace.
The characters are real. Both Prakash and Seema have their own horrors and demons to tame. Both of them follow different aspects of the same investigation hitherto unknown to each other. Both are committed to their jobs and risk their lives as they follow the clues, connect the dots in a chase across various cities of the country, revealing the various tiers of organised crime and deranged obsessiveness of the human mind. Even the lethal and efficient sniper, Raman appears human. Brutal successful captures the various moods in the story viz menace, fear, helplessness, humour, pathos and triumph.
The book is divided into three parts and the first part is absolutely racy and keeps you at the edge of your seat. It’s the second and the third part that were a bit of a dampener for me. In the second part nearly everything is revealed and that made the third part totally redundant. I mean, in the third part there were no surprises in the end, no frantically turning of pages and no feeling of ‘unable to wait to discover how everything unfolds’!!
There is no denying that the book is well written and I liked the research that must have gone into writing an interesting book like this.
Brutal is a must read that will certainly chill and thrill you!
http://shilpaagarg.com/2015/08/brutal...
The author paints an exciting and a believable picture. As the story progressed, I was engulfed in the mysterious, dramatic and suspenseful investigations along with Prakash and Seema. Though there are multiple sub-plots, but all are nicely linked to give a narrative that is crisp and tight. There’s an deadly assassin who wants to retire after his current and last assignment. There is a doctor who is on a mission that would destroy humanity. A Foreman in a local sugar mill joins hand with the evil forces to create a phoney Jihadi organization. A business family’s scion has dangerous and over ambitious plans. All these subplots integrate well with the main plot and advance the story at a satisfying pace.
The characters are real. Both Prakash and Seema have their own horrors and demons to tame. Both of them follow different aspects of the same investigation hitherto unknown to each other. Both are committed to their jobs and risk their lives as they follow the clues, connect the dots in a chase across various cities of the country, revealing the various tiers of organised crime and deranged obsessiveness of the human mind. Even the lethal and efficient sniper, Raman appears human. Brutal successful captures the various moods in the story viz menace, fear, helplessness, humour, pathos and triumph.
The book is divided into three parts and the first part is absolutely racy and keeps you at the edge of your seat. It’s the second and the third part that were a bit of a dampener for me. In the second part nearly everything is revealed and that made the third part totally redundant. I mean, in the third part there were no surprises in the end, no frantically turning of pages and no feeling of ‘unable to wait to discover how everything unfolds’!!
There is no denying that the book is well written and I liked the research that must have gone into writing an interesting book like this.
Brutal is a must read that will certainly chill and thrill you!
http://shilpaagarg.com/2015/08/brutal...
November 3, 2015
Brutal by Uday Satpathy was selected for publishing through Bloody Good Book – a unique crowdsourcing and crowd curating method to discover new writing talent. And what a find! Brutal is an awesome page-turner and a thriller. I got hooked on to the book in the first 4 to 5 pages and simply had to complete the compelling narrative.
Seemingly ordinary people appear to commit extremely violent crimes without any apparent provocation. A school teacher massacres students in a class, and is later shot by a sniper while being taken to the court. Prakash and Seema are journalists who believe that there is more to the crime than what is seen. As they pursue their investigations, they are forced to run as they are chased by assassins.
Well, does sound like an ordinary thriller doesn’t it? This book by no means is an ordinary thriller. It is thriller that is handled in an extraordinarily competent manner to hold the attention of the reader. While some aspects of the plot are relatively easy to anticipate and guess (the breadcrumbs thrown are nice), the pace of the story as it unravels is fast. And there are a few unexpected twists and turns that keeps the reader hooked.
The editing is tight and the language unpretentious. For me, these are important qualities in a good thriller. In all probability, the story is likely to surface as a Bollywood movie in the near future!
Uday Satpathy, great job! Take a bow! I will definitely look out for other books that you would whip up in future.
July 14, 2015
The canvas of the book is very large. It tries to cover the shady stuff going on from Underworld to private security firm to a business house to a TV channel to medical world to assassins to the drug world to single parenting to generation gaps to terrorism to children killing massacre to many other arenas. It is quite possible to mess the things up when trying to explore many such worlds and linking their dots. The author however have control in his hand and apart from a few loose ends, he succeed in linking them pretty nicely in the tight manner.
Some of the incidents are written very nicely that you feel exploring a scene of a movie or quality TV Serial. Take an example of the scene where a sniper shoots Nitin Tomar. The incident have every little detail mentioned, which you expect in a crime thriller.
We however feel that the use of abusive language could have been avoided. Though it is common to see the usage of such stuff in various media, one can still stick to good language.
Some nicely written phrases from the book:
He was a mystery. The more I know him, the lesser I know him.
We have all kinds of rules here.Only nobody bothers to follow them.
Overall a good crime thriller. Which is "proof-read" well too. It deserves at least 3.5 stars out of 5.
Detailed reviews available at: http://www.thinkerviews.com/books/bru...
Some of the incidents are written very nicely that you feel exploring a scene of a movie or quality TV Serial. Take an example of the scene where a sniper shoots Nitin Tomar. The incident have every little detail mentioned, which you expect in a crime thriller.
We however feel that the use of abusive language could have been avoided. Though it is common to see the usage of such stuff in various media, one can still stick to good language.
Some nicely written phrases from the book:
He was a mystery. The more I know him, the lesser I know him.
We have all kinds of rules here.Only nobody bothers to follow them.
Overall a good crime thriller. Which is "proof-read" well too. It deserves at least 3.5 stars out of 5.
Detailed reviews available at: http://www.thinkerviews.com/books/bru...
November 17, 2015
Excellent!
I'm a big Baldacci fan, I would definitely like to compare Mr. Satpathy to be the Indian Baldacci!
It's a page turner! superb plot, very beleivable.
Some real class Indian thriller!
I'm a big Baldacci fan, I would definitely like to compare Mr. Satpathy to be the Indian Baldacci!
It's a page turner! superb plot, very beleivable.
Some real class Indian thriller!
December 4, 2015
Unique method always pulls out something unique. Brutal came up in the market through a unique platform named ‘Bloody Good Books’ and this thriller actually stands apart in the same category. I mean I am a great fan of thriller genre and anything ordinary doesn’t suits my taste but this particular book hooked me till the very end and I can say to the debutant that well done bro. You deserve a bow.
Brutal opens up with a court hearing of a teacher who brutally killed 11 children in school premises. On the day of court hearing that teacher was shot dead by a well-trained sniper. Two of the reporters starts investigating the case and digs out something really big but while digging up they themselves got stuck in the pit.
The scope of this book is too big to be handled but the author succeeded in the same with flying colors. There were too many important characters to describe and the way it has been written is actually commendable. Author made them look believable. There was no exaggeration in the characterization. Everyone had a past that shaped their nature and that was something which makes you feel the character. There were so many side stories but the author managed to tie every loose end till the climax part.
The book is written in a manner that it keeps you hooked and thrilled throughout. So I would like to advice you that do not start reading the book if you are not having your next couple of hours free. You’ll regret leaving the book before finishing it up.
Brutal opens up with a court hearing of a teacher who brutally killed 11 children in school premises. On the day of court hearing that teacher was shot dead by a well-trained sniper. Two of the reporters starts investigating the case and digs out something really big but while digging up they themselves got stuck in the pit.
The scope of this book is too big to be handled but the author succeeded in the same with flying colors. There were too many important characters to describe and the way it has been written is actually commendable. Author made them look believable. There was no exaggeration in the characterization. Everyone had a past that shaped their nature and that was something which makes you feel the character. There were so many side stories but the author managed to tie every loose end till the climax part.
The book is written in a manner that it keeps you hooked and thrilled throughout. So I would like to advice you that do not start reading the book if you are not having your next couple of hours free. You’ll regret leaving the book before finishing it up.
June 7, 2018
SUMMERY- Brutal By uday satpathi is a by-the-numbers-, standard issue, generic thriller that’s average in all regards. It may not be very bad but it’s not top-notch stuff either. Plagued by un-impressive characters, clichéd dialogues, average plot and too much action for it’s own good.
PLOT- Prakash and seema are two journalists who work a murder mystery from their own separate angles. Of a mass murderer getting sniped-out from a kilometer away, just outside the courtroom and in front of riotous crowds.
Prakash and seema both have their inner demons BUT they are of generic quality. If you have seen enough Action movies, you would have stopped feeling sympathy for these particular problems of characters probably.
Prakash starts his investigation with the Jihadi Org. who claims responsibility of this shooting. With more than a little help from his brilliant geeky ex-stock market analyst,now researcher-for-hire Mrinal Dutta. A character who supposedly has more than meets the eye. But in my opinion the ultimate reveal about him was a wasted opportunity.
Seema starts hers, with an off the record tip from police inspector jagan who informs her of catchy spam emails like “You are in danger”, in the now dead mass-murderer’s email account.
From there on, lots of standard things follow. Going to different cities, interviewing wives, academics, psychologists, ‘supposed-to-be-dead-but-alive’ guys. Breaking in darkened houses and warehouses. Armed and unarmed fights. Sniper shots. Car chases. false leads and rescues. More murders and Zombiefied murderers. The usual masala stuff.
The problem arrives in the quality of these. Most of these things are too generic with nothing creative or interesting about them. The same “if you’ve seen enough action movies...” analogy apply. You won’t be disappointed but you probably won’t be excited about the events either. And you certainly won’t remember it afterwards. (I had to re-open the book to remember a lot of important points in writing this review.)
Fine tuning the abundant details.
That’s the missing ingredient here.
CHARACTERS : the Corleone ...ahem...Kushwahas and sons, Assassins-for-hire inc. private ltd. Since before Azadi; are... well what you’d expect them to be. They’ll do everything...for the right price. Historically each Kushwaha son had a different vision than his father and Tejeshwar Kushwaha seems to not only realize that but accept it as something inevitable. But only to a certain degree. In that sense, he is much more interesting than his son Vinod who has greed written all over him but ultimately fears his father. Over-all their family history is rich and interesting.
The Sniper Raman is the most interesting guy in this novel, in my opinion. Even with the clichéd ‘just this one last job and then I’ll retire’ attitude. His inherent dysfunctional moral compass comes off as more practical and reality oriented, rather than pure evil or brooding. He feels human even.
Anwar shah, the business tycoon whose sister Diya runs the media house Seema works in, has been given fine, complex motivations for helping our two protagonists; or so the author would have us believe. But in effect they come off as stupid, incomprehensible and downright irrational due to reasons which would be spoilers if I go into detail of them. Just take my word for it or read for yourselves. it's out of character for him.
Kunal Choubey is a mightily missed opportunity. He’s a survivor of a tragedy occurred in prologue, “brutally” traumatized and in hiding since last eight years. His character should definitely have been given more thought and color. But alas, he’s a scapegoat, both, for his captors and the author as well. Sad, really.
Side characters like the two police inspectors seema and Prakash meet, and prakash’s Ambala news contact and other people in news industry are fine and they do their job well. But some of them are... generic.
The deaths are rather 'Game of Thrones'-ish. There for shock values. But it works. So no complaints here.
WRITING STYLE, OVERALL FEEL: People say it’s racy. Well, maybe too racy for my tastes. (this might be a subjective opinion.) The plot jumps situations, places, characters and perspectives too fast to keep track of. Fortunately, there are almost zero typos or grammatical errors. The language is easy to grasp and it flows effortlessly. The book follows classic three act structure in which part I is all that shines. Full of suspense and finding the dots. II and III are rather too action packed with too little storytelling. The endgame is interesting though not terribly so.
One remarkable thing the author did worth applauding (though I’m not sure whether it was intentional or again, just lack of creativity) is keeping Prakash to the ground. He’s the clear protagonist in this novel. The good guy. But his methods of avoiding escape or entering restricted property or over-all handling the various mortal crises are noticeably civilian. He doesn’t pull some unique strategy out of thin air or have some creative insight, that, while looking good on paper, would be strangely out of character for him. The Sniper Raman even delights in some of the mistakes Prakash makes. This is definitely a thing to appreciate. Keeping a character acceptably dumb but not overly is a rather delicate piece of chemistry.
Dialogues are a big, BIG let-down of this novel. Not only they are too clichéd ... they feel too ‘Hollywoodia’. I guess the writer was trying to appeal to British and American readers but they’d have their own set of difficulties in connecting to this one. Or maybe he just had a ‘firang’ editor. Who knows? Then there are inner thoughts of characters. They all think and feel in the same style. There’s absolutely no variation or personality to the inner voices or musings of all the various assortments of characters here. Its jarring and feels un-natural.
OVER-ALL : Brutal is a formulaic thriller with all the generic bells and whistles, good writing that feels ‘Non-Desi’, clichéd and colorless dialogues with average plot thrown in. It’s bells and whistles might ring a bell or two. And ultimately it’s echoes would die off in the twisty memory lanes of human mind, which was what Brutal was all about.
Human Mind.
And which author didn't use as much as he could have.
PLOT- Prakash and seema are two journalists who work a murder mystery from their own separate angles. Of a mass murderer getting sniped-out from a kilometer away, just outside the courtroom and in front of riotous crowds.
Prakash and seema both have their inner demons BUT they are of generic quality. If you have seen enough Action movies, you would have stopped feeling sympathy for these particular problems of characters probably.
Prakash starts his investigation with the Jihadi Org. who claims responsibility of this shooting. With more than a little help from his brilliant geeky ex-stock market analyst,now researcher-for-hire Mrinal Dutta. A character who supposedly has more than meets the eye. But in my opinion the ultimate reveal about him was a wasted opportunity.
Seema starts hers, with an off the record tip from police inspector jagan who informs her of catchy spam emails like “You are in danger”, in the now dead mass-murderer’s email account.
From there on, lots of standard things follow. Going to different cities, interviewing wives, academics, psychologists, ‘supposed-to-be-dead-but-alive’ guys. Breaking in darkened houses and warehouses. Armed and unarmed fights. Sniper shots. Car chases. false leads and rescues. More murders and Zombiefied murderers. The usual masala stuff.
The problem arrives in the quality of these. Most of these things are too generic with nothing creative or interesting about them. The same “if you’ve seen enough action movies...” analogy apply. You won’t be disappointed but you probably won’t be excited about the events either. And you certainly won’t remember it afterwards. (I had to re-open the book to remember a lot of important points in writing this review.)
Fine tuning the abundant details.
That’s the missing ingredient here.
CHARACTERS : the Corleone ...ahem...Kushwahas and sons, Assassins-for-hire inc. private ltd. Since before Azadi; are... well what you’d expect them to be. They’ll do everything...for the right price. Historically each Kushwaha son had a different vision than his father and Tejeshwar Kushwaha seems to not only realize that but accept it as something inevitable. But only to a certain degree. In that sense, he is much more interesting than his son Vinod who has greed written all over him but ultimately fears his father. Over-all their family history is rich and interesting.
The Sniper Raman is the most interesting guy in this novel, in my opinion. Even with the clichéd ‘just this one last job and then I’ll retire’ attitude. His inherent dysfunctional moral compass comes off as more practical and reality oriented, rather than pure evil or brooding. He feels human even.
Anwar shah, the business tycoon whose sister Diya runs the media house Seema works in, has been given fine, complex motivations for helping our two protagonists; or so the author would have us believe. But in effect they come off as stupid, incomprehensible and downright irrational due to reasons which would be spoilers if I go into detail of them. Just take my word for it or read for yourselves. it's out of character for him.
Kunal Choubey is a mightily missed opportunity. He’s a survivor of a tragedy occurred in prologue, “brutally” traumatized and in hiding since last eight years. His character should definitely have been given more thought and color. But alas, he’s a scapegoat, both, for his captors and the author as well. Sad, really.
Side characters like the two police inspectors seema and Prakash meet, and prakash’s Ambala news contact and other people in news industry are fine and they do their job well. But some of them are... generic.
The deaths are rather 'Game of Thrones'-ish. There for shock values. But it works. So no complaints here.
WRITING STYLE, OVERALL FEEL: People say it’s racy. Well, maybe too racy for my tastes. (this might be a subjective opinion.) The plot jumps situations, places, characters and perspectives too fast to keep track of. Fortunately, there are almost zero typos or grammatical errors. The language is easy to grasp and it flows effortlessly. The book follows classic three act structure in which part I is all that shines. Full of suspense and finding the dots. II and III are rather too action packed with too little storytelling. The endgame is interesting though not terribly so.
One remarkable thing the author did worth applauding (though I’m not sure whether it was intentional or again, just lack of creativity) is keeping Prakash to the ground. He’s the clear protagonist in this novel. The good guy. But his methods of avoiding escape or entering restricted property or over-all handling the various mortal crises are noticeably civilian. He doesn’t pull some unique strategy out of thin air or have some creative insight, that, while looking good on paper, would be strangely out of character for him. The Sniper Raman even delights in some of the mistakes Prakash makes. This is definitely a thing to appreciate. Keeping a character acceptably dumb but not overly is a rather delicate piece of chemistry.
Dialogues are a big, BIG let-down of this novel. Not only they are too clichéd ... they feel too ‘Hollywoodia’. I guess the writer was trying to appeal to British and American readers but they’d have their own set of difficulties in connecting to this one. Or maybe he just had a ‘firang’ editor. Who knows? Then there are inner thoughts of characters. They all think and feel in the same style. There’s absolutely no variation or personality to the inner voices or musings of all the various assortments of characters here. Its jarring and feels un-natural.
OVER-ALL : Brutal is a formulaic thriller with all the generic bells and whistles, good writing that feels ‘Non-Desi’, clichéd and colorless dialogues with average plot thrown in. It’s bells and whistles might ring a bell or two. And ultimately it’s echoes would die off in the twisty memory lanes of human mind, which was what Brutal was all about.
Human Mind.
And which author didn't use as much as he could have.
July 10, 2015
Let me open the review by strongly emphasizing: Uday, the author, has sound philosophical outlook of what hell means…. And he makes his characters experience it. Uday stayed true to the theme through out the book. I do not want to play the spoilsport here, but the readers will know what I mean when they are finished with the book. At the end of many chapters, one will find strange revelations. At that point the following happens:
1. You will be forced to turn back two pages and re-read them.
2. You will find yourself smiling that you previously missed the point of view.
Fast and simple, the reader will find himself drawn into the book. The chapters are short and lean. The reader will have no choice but to conclude that the title of the book has been aptly justified. As for the research, the terminology and the events used, show that the research was profound and deep. A great achievement for a debut novelist.
1. You will be forced to turn back two pages and re-read them.
2. You will find yourself smiling that you previously missed the point of view.
Fast and simple, the reader will find himself drawn into the book. The chapters are short and lean. The reader will have no choice but to conclude that the title of the book has been aptly justified. As for the research, the terminology and the events used, show that the research was profound and deep. A great achievement for a debut novelist.
April 27, 2019
Brutal starts off very promising but loses the charm after the first few pages. It becomes extremely predictable, repetitive and down right boring for a thriller.
It has plot points of Kingsman and a cast that frankly come off as painfully cocky and unreal. The characters are shallow and lousy, falling into stereotypes. The dialogues feel lazy and forced. The whole of second half is trying to hard to be something it isn't.
I appreciate the effort that Uday is put and the book is okayish for a first time author but it really should have undergone atleast three more cycles of editing. It couldn't keep up the hype it created and died down a slow painful death. The plot was flying out of control, a bizarre mix of Bollywood mainstream spy thriller meets a forced international arms dealing angle. The main component of the story lacked serious conviction. I read this in one sitting primarily because I wanted to get done with it.
It has plot points of Kingsman and a cast that frankly come off as painfully cocky and unreal. The characters are shallow and lousy, falling into stereotypes. The dialogues feel lazy and forced. The whole of second half is trying to hard to be something it isn't.
I appreciate the effort that Uday is put and the book is okayish for a first time author but it really should have undergone atleast three more cycles of editing. It couldn't keep up the hype it created and died down a slow painful death. The plot was flying out of control, a bizarre mix of Bollywood mainstream spy thriller meets a forced international arms dealing angle. The main component of the story lacked serious conviction. I read this in one sitting primarily because I wanted to get done with it.
August 23, 2015
Let me start with the truth. The only reason I bought this
book was it's price. One morning when I was checking my
Twitter timeline, I saw a tweet where it was mentioned,
'Brutal' it now available at only Rs.19 on Amazon. I
searched 'Brutal' on Google and then after reading some
good reviews of the book I bought it.
Thriller is not my cup of tea, I like reading love stories but
after reading this book, my taste completely changed. This
book made me fall in love with 'Thriller' genre. Though this
is the first work by the Author, I won't mind reading his
books in future.
To read the complete review where I have also interviewed the author click here:
http://sp-fadinghues.blogspot.in/2015...
book was it's price. One morning when I was checking my
Twitter timeline, I saw a tweet where it was mentioned,
'Brutal' it now available at only Rs.19 on Amazon. I
searched 'Brutal' on Google and then after reading some
good reviews of the book I bought it.
Thriller is not my cup of tea, I like reading love stories but
after reading this book, my taste completely changed. This
book made me fall in love with 'Thriller' genre. Though this
is the first work by the Author, I won't mind reading his
books in future.
To read the complete review where I have also interviewed the author click here:
http://sp-fadinghues.blogspot.in/2015...
August 12, 2015
Gripping - would be an understatement
24 is the most addictive series I've watched given its screenplay. This book gives 24 run for the money. Very nicely ended chapters to leave the reader look to the next one. It felt like watching a thriller series. Nice work Uday. Looking forward to your next book.
24 is the most addictive series I've watched given its screenplay. This book gives 24 run for the money. Very nicely ended chapters to leave the reader look to the next one. It felt like watching a thriller series. Nice work Uday. Looking forward to your next book.
September 18, 2015
Superb thriller with great characterization. Hope Indian thrillers turn a new leaf with such works. Faith restored in Indian non-literary fiction.
April 4, 2017
Writing was good even though some places exhibited amateurish phrases. NB-67 was not at all convincing. Plot was going international level while plot was flying loose.
April 18, 2018
The end justifies the means - The Brutal is a brutal one. 4 Stars to the debutant - Uday Satpathy
I give a full credit to author's gripping narratives to uncover the mysterious murders of students in cold-blood by their own teacher. This heinous crime leads the two protagonists to similar incidents, and then comes a race of ruthless assassins, political figures, and a crazy scientist.
Author creative thoughts relating real-life instances such as Israel-Iran conflict and connecting them to the plot naming infamous intelligence agencies like Mossad and RAW is icing on the cake.
Author has managed to keep the pace of the novel with an even tone, not shying away from its moments of horror & thrill. But same can't be said when it comes to dialogues. Given the fact that's its first thriller of Mr. Uday, one can be assured that he will flourish in this department in his next one.
Nonetheless, Brutal is one of the finer thrillers written by an Indian author and makes for a good one-time read and justifies the means.
I give a full credit to author's gripping narratives to uncover the mysterious murders of students in cold-blood by their own teacher. This heinous crime leads the two protagonists to similar incidents, and then comes a race of ruthless assassins, political figures, and a crazy scientist.
Author creative thoughts relating real-life instances such as Israel-Iran conflict and connecting them to the plot naming infamous intelligence agencies like Mossad and RAW is icing on the cake.
Author has managed to keep the pace of the novel with an even tone, not shying away from its moments of horror & thrill. But same can't be said when it comes to dialogues. Given the fact that's its first thriller of Mr. Uday, one can be assured that he will flourish in this department in his next one.
Nonetheless, Brutal is one of the finer thrillers written by an Indian author and makes for a good one-time read and justifies the means.
May 25, 2020
This story was like a web series.
I got introduced to brutal by one of my friend's recommendation. I was excited to read this book and now as I have finished it, I can tell that this book is one of the best thriller written by an Indian author. This story starts with a school teacher who gets a warning in his mailbox. And ends up killing 11 of his students. The crime reporters Prakash and Seema gets involved in the case and starts to dig it deeper to understand that the whole idea of killing was something bigger than they expected. And I liked the character of Mrinal also. He helped Prakash in whole case.
The back story of Prakash helps the reader to get attached with his character which gives a sentimental edge to his story. The book is written in such a manner that it keeps the reader hooked till the very end of it. The Revealation at the climax is something unexpectable and makes the overall experience of the reader a satisfying one.
I got introduced to brutal by one of my friend's recommendation. I was excited to read this book and now as I have finished it, I can tell that this book is one of the best thriller written by an Indian author. This story starts with a school teacher who gets a warning in his mailbox. And ends up killing 11 of his students. The crime reporters Prakash and Seema gets involved in the case and starts to dig it deeper to understand that the whole idea of killing was something bigger than they expected. And I liked the character of Mrinal also. He helped Prakash in whole case.
The back story of Prakash helps the reader to get attached with his character which gives a sentimental edge to his story. The book is written in such a manner that it keeps the reader hooked till the very end of it. The Revealation at the climax is something unexpectable and makes the overall experience of the reader a satisfying one.
January 15, 2025
Uday Satpathy's "Brutal" is a compelling and gritty thriller that explores the depths of the human soul. The work examines issues of survival, corruption, and power against a harsh, unforgiving background.
Readers are drawn into a dark, action-packed story by Satpathy's tense and vivid prose. It is a gripping book since the protagonist's path is full with danger and moral difficulty. Even though some readers may find the novel's brutal tone and unrepentant depiction of violence unpleasant, they enhance its overall reality and emotional effect. The twists keep readers on the edge of their seats, and the pacing is expertly constructed.
"Brutal" is a compelling read that explores human nature in harsh situations without holding back.
Readers are drawn into a dark, action-packed story by Satpathy's tense and vivid prose. It is a gripping book since the protagonist's path is full with danger and moral difficulty. Even though some readers may find the novel's brutal tone and unrepentant depiction of violence unpleasant, they enhance its overall reality and emotional effect. The twists keep readers on the edge of their seats, and the pacing is expertly constructed.
"Brutal" is a compelling read that explores human nature in harsh situations without holding back.
October 18, 2018
This one was a crisp and compact thriller, which could have, and should have concentrated on the biological aspects, but became too MI (with civilians) for its own good. After a while, the characters simply came out of such movies, and talked as well as acted strictly as per such movies, with tons of international politics thrown in.
And that's where it lost me.
But otherwise, the book was a good read.
And that's where it lost me.
But otherwise, the book was a good read.
March 17, 2018
I think the author is too much fascinated by bollywood movies and little mix with hollywood slangs which makes it a poor mixture.The
amateurity reflects in his book right from the start . There is unnecessary exaggeration of every character to make the book lengthy. In the end it was a very bad experience reading this book.
amateurity reflects in his book right from the start . There is unnecessary exaggeration of every character to make the book lengthy. In the end it was a very bad experience reading this book.
July 30, 2018
An entertaining, fast-paced thriller. The story has a very promising start, where the reader would find himself engulfed in the mysteries of the massacre incidents and its investigations. However, the last part of the story seems to be bit animated - . Nevertheless, it is a good read and won't end up annoying you. :)
December 28, 2016
3.5/5 Came to know of this book on hearing Rashmi Bansal speak at a Litfest. A great storyline with "light" writing devoid of any polish or character or scene buildups which stops it from being great.
Loved the first half especially which was full of suspense and baffling. A good timepass read.
Loved the first half especially which was full of suspense and baffling. A good timepass read.
July 31, 2018
The book was quick read n fun.. it’s like one of the Bollywood movie with good story.. author’s description of character is quite elaborated.. gives descent scope for imagination.. I would say.. one time in may be longer flights..
September 10, 2017
Amazing read !
December 18, 2017
A gripping story which make the readers to turn pages. Loved the Characterisation of the lead roles.
January 14, 2020
Brutal by Uday Satpathy is a fast pace crime thriller a perfect whodunnit for a lousy weekend
It also happens to be book 17 of the #passthebook_on initiative
DM TO GET IT !
It also happens to be book 17 of the #passthebook_on initiative
DM TO GET IT !
June 1, 2021
Brutal. Violent. Fast paced. Good thriller.
January 26, 2024
It's an amazing book. In the beginning until u reach the half book it's kinda boring but the later part is amazing. it was kind of predictable. Overall a big thumbs up 👍🏻.
January 26, 2023
Two crime reporter's instinct leads them into the dark underbelly of India's socio-political conspiracy.
Undoubtedly a page-turner.
Undoubtedly a page-turner.
September 15, 2016
I bought this book on amazon a few months back and was eager to read it as the ratings were pretty good. And to my pleasure the book turned out to be a hundred times better then what I thought it would be. It had all the elements of a thriller. To my surprise the book turned out to be a medical thriller in the end, which I love by the way. As I am a huge fan of Robin Cook novels. The story also had political aspect to the twist, which is even better. By the end of it I was wondering why Uday Satpathy did not write more books. What was lacking in the book was that the character’s seemed very unrealistic and the situations and circumstances where a little unbelievable and impractical. Though the description was very vividly described. It lacked substance. In the end of the book the author very much rushes through, and it feels like the main protagonists and all the work they had done seemed trivial. The events did not have a proper continuity and connectivity. But despite all that I would still give it a four stars and will recommend it to all thriller and suspense lover. Because the book had what a thriller and a well selling book required. And also even after reading the book almost a year back I still consider it a striking piece of work as all the faults were over shadowed by the amazing plot of the story.
The protagonists are Seema Sharma and Prakash Sinha, two journalists who are torn individuals fighting with their own demons. They both work for two different media companies. And are good friends. Prakash and Seema work for Globe news an illustrious news agency.
The story starts with a man running through the forest at night being chased and hunted by some thing or someone you cannot tell. There is blood all over him and he is carrying a bloody weapon with him, terrified with the voices and images inside his head! We find out the fate of this man latter in the book. Then a few years latter a school teacher completely sane and without any history of violence and criminal activity kills a class full of little children in a school without any hesitation. This sparks a nationwide outrage. The country is demanding to hang the man for his outrageous crime. But the perpetrator claims he is innocent! But before the man can even appear for his trial he is gunned down in public just before his prosecution. Though it was obvious to the nation that the man would have been found guilty our two journalist wonder why the man was shot and who was responsible. Seema and Prakash dive head first into these mysterious circumstance of these events. They team up with a few sidekicks Mirnal, as they investigate they begin to uncover more and more similar cases which have happen over the years. This triggers a chain of mind-blowing events. Which they suspect may have national and even international implications. They unfold a major international assassination being planned within India which could most probably cause another major World War leading India to destruction!
The protagonists are Seema Sharma and Prakash Sinha, two journalists who are torn individuals fighting with their own demons. They both work for two different media companies. And are good friends. Prakash and Seema work for Globe news an illustrious news agency.
The story starts with a man running through the forest at night being chased and hunted by some thing or someone you cannot tell. There is blood all over him and he is carrying a bloody weapon with him, terrified with the voices and images inside his head! We find out the fate of this man latter in the book. Then a few years latter a school teacher completely sane and without any history of violence and criminal activity kills a class full of little children in a school without any hesitation. This sparks a nationwide outrage. The country is demanding to hang the man for his outrageous crime. But the perpetrator claims he is innocent! But before the man can even appear for his trial he is gunned down in public just before his prosecution. Though it was obvious to the nation that the man would have been found guilty our two journalist wonder why the man was shot and who was responsible. Seema and Prakash dive head first into these mysterious circumstance of these events. They team up with a few sidekicks Mirnal, as they investigate they begin to uncover more and more similar cases which have happen over the years. This triggers a chain of mind-blowing events. Which they suspect may have national and even international implications. They unfold a major international assassination being planned within India which could most probably cause another major World War leading India to destruction!
October 2, 2015
I love thrillers and when I came to know about the concept of first crowd curated novel I couldn’t pass the chance of reading it. ‘Brutal’ lives upto its name the moment one begins reading the novel, including the prologue which fully justifies its presence. I was completely invested in the story from the first page. Though this review is coming a bit late, I had finished the novel in one sitting.
A school teacher, Nitin Tomar, opens fire on a class of students, killing many, and is captured. While going to the court, he is gunned down by a sharpshooter in front of the hysterical crowd and media. Why is Nitin gunned down when he was already on death or life sentence? The questions reverberate in the minds of the readers as well as the main protagonists.
Prakash and Seema are journalists attached with different news agencies and are good friends. Unknown to each other, they begin investigating Nitin’s case pursuing different leads, risking their lives, unearthing the horrible facts behind the various murders and reach at the same point where they are ambushed once again by people driven to hide a blood curdling secret.
The plot becomes all the more complex as layers of suspense, a deadly assassin and external agencies right from RAW, IB, Mossad and independent Security Firm come into play. But the author has done an excellent job of weaving and integrating the sub-plots in the main plot, leaving the reader turning the pages.
The characters are real life and believable. Both Prakash and Seema are ambitious as well as, hardened professionals battling their own problems in life. Mr Satpathy has done immense justice with the supporting characters as well.
The narration is simple yet riveting and engaging and I am sure lots of research would have gone into coming up with such an incredible, complex storyline. The author painted just the right kind of pictures, be it of the warehouse, train station, village, hotels or the place where the grisly experiments were going on. Each scene was painted vividly in my mind.
My only grouse is that there were too many back stories explained, which slowed the pace and took me away from complete immersion. Mere mention of the sub-characters’ motivation would have been good enough to set the context.
All in all, a very promising debut. I recommend this book to all thriller lovers and look forward to the next one from Mr. Satpathy’s pen. Definitely an author to watch out for!
http://www.iluvfiction.com/2015/10/bo...
A school teacher, Nitin Tomar, opens fire on a class of students, killing many, and is captured. While going to the court, he is gunned down by a sharpshooter in front of the hysterical crowd and media. Why is Nitin gunned down when he was already on death or life sentence? The questions reverberate in the minds of the readers as well as the main protagonists.
Prakash and Seema are journalists attached with different news agencies and are good friends. Unknown to each other, they begin investigating Nitin’s case pursuing different leads, risking their lives, unearthing the horrible facts behind the various murders and reach at the same point where they are ambushed once again by people driven to hide a blood curdling secret.
The plot becomes all the more complex as layers of suspense, a deadly assassin and external agencies right from RAW, IB, Mossad and independent Security Firm come into play. But the author has done an excellent job of weaving and integrating the sub-plots in the main plot, leaving the reader turning the pages.
The characters are real life and believable. Both Prakash and Seema are ambitious as well as, hardened professionals battling their own problems in life. Mr Satpathy has done immense justice with the supporting characters as well.
The narration is simple yet riveting and engaging and I am sure lots of research would have gone into coming up with such an incredible, complex storyline. The author painted just the right kind of pictures, be it of the warehouse, train station, village, hotels or the place where the grisly experiments were going on. Each scene was painted vividly in my mind.
My only grouse is that there were too many back stories explained, which slowed the pace and took me away from complete immersion. Mere mention of the sub-characters’ motivation would have been good enough to set the context.
All in all, a very promising debut. I recommend this book to all thriller lovers and look forward to the next one from Mr. Satpathy’s pen. Definitely an author to watch out for!
http://www.iluvfiction.com/2015/10/bo...
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March 7, 2016Brutal – the author claims this to be his first attempt to write a novel! I am shocked. This is probably the best of the lot that I have read (and reviewed as well) until now. Please do not take this statement as if I am bragging just to attract your attention; I truly mean it by heart.
Usually, the ‘thriller’ genre is overlapped with suspense and with adventure as well but the real punch of thriller is something that can only be felt while reading (or sometimes watching). The story and plot should be able to excite you to find out what happens next. It need not necessarily throw hints to bring out that detective in you. It is ought to bring those nerves into function so that every single body part rises to goose bumps! This is what this story will pamper you with.
Yes, this story has other elements as well but they are such beautifully and intricately interwoven into the plot that you almost forget those rushes rising in your body, mind and spirit alike. It’s a wholesome story with a realistic plot which portrays the real society, at large. Starting with an intriguing teaser chapter that engulfs you right from the first sentence to find out how the drama develops; and proceeding further to the next chapter to accompany a reporter who digs into the case under discussion. To start with, it seems that all is clear and evident but the plot develops as investigation deepens and unearths the ‘BRUTAL’ in them.
Often books from thriller genre have elaborate explanations of scene and splendid descriptions of expressions with actions and this scenario, the plot occupies lesser writing space. Nevertheless, it is not in this case. You will have loads of material (read it as content) with twists and depths to imbibe and admonish the real definition of BRUTALITY, as it exists in our society. You will admire and appreciate how this debutante has observed the developments and systems around us and hand-picked an emotion, which has inter-links with all influential strata of society.
This review comes as a special shout-out for the film-makers and script-writers who are hunting hard for some nice material for their next venture. Don’t waste this opportunity and grab it as soon as possible before somebody else snatches it away from you; just in front of your eyes. (I hope respected author and the publishers are willing to take this potentially strong script to next level).
Source: https://booksnewsindia.wordpress.com/...
Usually, the ‘thriller’ genre is overlapped with suspense and with adventure as well but the real punch of thriller is something that can only be felt while reading (or sometimes watching). The story and plot should be able to excite you to find out what happens next. It need not necessarily throw hints to bring out that detective in you. It is ought to bring those nerves into function so that every single body part rises to goose bumps! This is what this story will pamper you with.
Yes, this story has other elements as well but they are such beautifully and intricately interwoven into the plot that you almost forget those rushes rising in your body, mind and spirit alike. It’s a wholesome story with a realistic plot which portrays the real society, at large. Starting with an intriguing teaser chapter that engulfs you right from the first sentence to find out how the drama develops; and proceeding further to the next chapter to accompany a reporter who digs into the case under discussion. To start with, it seems that all is clear and evident but the plot develops as investigation deepens and unearths the ‘BRUTAL’ in them.
Often books from thriller genre have elaborate explanations of scene and splendid descriptions of expressions with actions and this scenario, the plot occupies lesser writing space. Nevertheless, it is not in this case. You will have loads of material (read it as content) with twists and depths to imbibe and admonish the real definition of BRUTALITY, as it exists in our society. You will admire and appreciate how this debutante has observed the developments and systems around us and hand-picked an emotion, which has inter-links with all influential strata of society.
This review comes as a special shout-out for the film-makers and script-writers who are hunting hard for some nice material for their next venture. Don’t waste this opportunity and grab it as soon as possible before somebody else snatches it away from you; just in front of your eyes. (I hope respected author and the publishers are willing to take this potentially strong script to next level).
Source: https://booksnewsindia.wordpress.com/...
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