The Narrow Road to Palem

by Sharath Komarraju

Rudrakshapalem lies a few kilometers East of Godavari in the South Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. At first glance, it looks like just another sleepy little village. But as you walk along its borders and peer into the lives of its people, you will find that deep within its breast are hidden some dark secrets.

- In the temple compound roams a crazy man named Chander. He hugs a gold pendant and sings lullabies to it every night. What is his story?
- Subbarao, one of Palem's richest men, came up the hard way, having started life as the poor son of a snack seller. But what is the secret that gives him sleepless nights?
- A young couple dealing with loss stand in front of the road to Palem, and there is a seller of mirrors on the sidewalk, welcoming them in. Will they heed his words, or will they run away?
- How much are happiness and peace worth to Rama Shastri, the priest of Palem's Shiva temple? And to what extent will he go to ensure the well-being of his daughter?

In these ten delightful stories, Sharath Komarraju takes you by the hand and gives you a fully guided tour of Palem and its people. But don't fear, he will bring you back home safe and sound, long before it's dark.

Genres: Short Stories, Supernatural, Mystery, Horror

125 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 2, 2015

About the author

Sharath Komarraju is an author of fiction and nonfiction based in Bangalore, India. Once a software engineer, now he writes for a living, and on lazy days he watches cricket and talks to his wife (often at the same time).

His most popular work to date is the Hastinapur series, in which he speaks into the silences of the Mahabharata story through the epic's many women characters.

Reviews

[Nivedita · Rating 4 out of 5]

To review a book of short stories is a very difficult task. Always, the book contains some very good stories and some are just too plain. And just like any other book of short stories, this book was a mixed bag. There were some really powerful stories like, The Milk is Sour, Malli, Peaceful Are The Dead, etc, and some were good but too predictable or just too plain. But, overall, the book gives you an eerie feeling and leaves you long lost in Palem among its mysteries!

This book is written by one of my favorite authors, who writes fiction and fantasy so easily, that it almost feels real. He writes so beautifully, that it is impossible to leave the book and carry on with your lives. And even after you finish reading it, and try to go on with your life, it just pulls you back and keep you rooted in the stories. I've said this before and I say this again, reading a book by Sharath Komarraju just means a lifelong commitment to his stories and characters.

Coming to the stories, it is difficult for me to review all the ten stories separately, but it is possible for me to point out why I liked some stories more than the others.
The Ace of clubs, Malli, The Milk is Sour, Round and Round are definitely my favorites, because of how the story was told, how it provoked the coward inside me and I could find myself reaching for a support to finish through the stories. Other stories like The Sitarist of Palem, No Yellow in My Rainbow, The Barber and The Milmaid and Peaceful Are The Dead were good but predictable. I enjoyed reading them, no doubt, but the ending was very clear from the very beginning. The rest of the two stories were spooky, but having read a lot of horror, mystery books, they just seemed too plain.

Yet, these stories served the purpose of not just keeping the readers on edge but also to provide an insight in to the life of a village riddled with superstitions, ghost stories and myths, which to the villagers are true stories, which they live with.

Thank you Sharath for providing me a copy of this amazing book, I cannot wait to read your other works.

[Uday Kanth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, whether or not you've read the author's main novel 'The Puppeteers of Palem', this short story collection set in the same eerie village of Rudraskshapalem will undoubtedly evoke lots of chills and thrills for sure. It's good to see the expansion of canvas, and the village does really come alive in these pages. Because it's not just about the stories themselves, which are good, but the author also throws the same people and locations at you so very often that by the end of it, you know every place and person by the back of your hand. Palem is an intriguing and scary little village, and I'd love to read more of it though I'm not sure if I wanna go anywhere near it! :)

Coming to the stories themselves, they are not just shallow tales weaved with a simple goal to spook you. Each of them has an underlying humane conflict and there are also a lot of socio-political motifs tied which all adds up nicely resulting in a layered and textured plot.

So, if the prospect of a chilly adventure through a spooky village even remotely entices you, then you should definitely go for this one!

[Deba Jyoti Khawas · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most amazing short story collections that I have read.
I generally don't read short stories much, because I don't feel they take enough time to get the reader into the characters and the story, but this book turns the same factor into its defining point.
I almost felt like reading a Ruskin Bond book written by George RR Martin, where there is a heavy sense of nostalgia and familiarity while reading this book, while at the same time unexpected dark humor and twists keeps one on his/her toes.
Yesterday night, I was reading part of this book with my lights off, on my Kindle and I almost felt a chill running down my spine in a couple of stories.

Personally, I will recommend this book to all my friends who like Byomkesh Bakshi, Malgudi Days and Ruskin Bond while growing up.

[Advaita Shyam sunder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Take the scary house tour by devouring this book of short story collection namely, 'The Narrow Road to Palem'

I don't know the author personally, so please don't think I'm exaggerating his work. From an objective point of view, I can assure you that you will make a constructive use of time by reading these spooky stories as the ending of each story leaves you with a twinge of eeriness.
I agree even though we are intimidated by famous writers to pen reviews lauding their works, there are times when some writers are comparatively less known due to ignorance of the reader community. They don't try new books of budding writers as they feel they should stick to their favourite authors.

After reading this book, I encourage people to opt for contemporary Indian fiction and my faith in Indian English literature has been reaffirmed.
The fact is an amazingly written book like this needs to be recommended to as many people as possible. We need to urge people to read novels with a class.
The uniqueness to the book is that it is written in an RK Narayan style and I'm happy that young writers are bringing back the spirit of that legend.

I was surprised by the way Sharath Komaraju has handled the storytelling aspect with aplomb narration and characterization. Even though its horror, its not a cliche, every story in the book has an association with human psychology and is very much relatable. Its entertaining as well as thought-provoking. The horror is within us in the form of our insecurities and existential crises. Thats what the book says.

The practicalities of real life has been taken into consideration while creating these stories, for instance, Subbai's dilemma whether an ace of clubs card is the good luck charm behind his wealth or the curse behind his loss of loved ones to death. He is in two minds whether he should discard a playing card just because of the unfortunate ongoings after its entrance into his life or keep it as it has brought a lot of prosperity ever since he chanced upon it. The card has been effectively personified as the evil element and the writer has done justice to transforming an inanimate object into a pivotal character in the story.
The entire book isn't unrealistic fantasy inspite of having a supernatural underlying plot throughout the course of reading.

Switch of all the lights and read it in the night, well thats a dare which I cant do it...

[Shree · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note : This Review has been published in my blog Book and Ink

Short stories seem to be the “in” thing in town these days. Turns out this writer also caught up on this trend and managed to deliver a perfect book of horror stories.

Set in the fictitious village of Rudrakshapalem , the book is a collection of ten horror stories. All the stories have a paranormal element in play. Few of the stories were quite chilling while the others didn’t manage to make such an impact. My personal favorites were “The Milk is Sour” – A story which purely elaborates how guilt wrecks a person, “Peaceful are the Dead” – A story that combines values and folklore. One story which I couldn’t understand at all was “The Sitarist of Palem”- this story was a bit confusing. I felt the paranormal element at play wasn’t well executed. One story that totally stood out was “Dear House” – this story was narrated backward. As in,chronologically backward and completely spooked me at one point.

Overall, the way the writer built up the village piece by piece in all stories, reminded me of the village of Malgudi (from the book of Malgudi Days by R.K.Narayan), albeit a dark one. Obviously the writer managed to accomplish the intention of giving this eerie feel. It’s been ages since I read a book of this genre, needless to say, the narration, the plot and the characterization were good enough for me to enjoy the book !

MY SAY: A simple book that packed a punch.

RATING:

PLOT: 3.5/5

CHARACTERISATION: 3.5/5

NARRATION:4/5

BOREDOM QUOTIENT: 1/5 (Lower the better)

OVERALL RATING: 4/5

[Sameer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading in horror genre is new to me. I really enjoyed this short stories collection by Sharath set in 'Rudrakshapalem', a village on the bank of river Godavari. Palem is everything you don't wish for a village: gloomy, eerie atmosphere, presence of ghosts. But, you will long remember Palem after reading this.

[Neha Garg (thereadingowl_) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing. I could not put my kindle down until i finished the book.

[Raksha Bhat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some stories are for memory :-)

[Pooja T · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good! Such a satisfying read!

[Rekha Rajgopal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my second book by Sharath. I first read Murder in Amaravati, which I liked enough to read it non-stop. I can say the same for this book too. The stories are dark, disturbing and engaging enough for me to keep reading till the very end.

Also, the writing is crisp. He does not get all romantic and poetical when describing nature or the setting of a place, etc. His writing is descriptive and creative at the same time (It is annoying when writers romanticize everything from a cloud to a puddle just to fill a novel or showcase their creativity!!). Another book in which I did not find any flab. Concise, good storytelling.

Among the current crop of Indian writers, I find Sharath unpretentious, very to-the-point and he has some good stories to tell.

Some of the stories were a little vague but I still enjoyed them. Towards the end perhaps the dark theme got a little repetitive but I still read on. Full marks for creating the village of Palem as a dark grey one and making it so spooky.

This is an author I would read again...

[sneha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not a fan of horror but boy, did I enjoy this book? Wonderful stories that will have to at the edge of your seat!

[Kavya Janani U. · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘The Narrow Road to Palem’ is an anthology of horror short stories written by Sharath Komarraju. This book is a Kindle edition which I received through a giveaway conducted by the author himself. Though I have heard about the author through his blog posts, I have never read any of his previous works. So when I started to read this book, I had no expectations at all. But behold! The very first story The Ace of Clubs captivated me right from the beginning. Sharath has created a fictional village by the name of Rudrakshapalem which is a trove of eerie secrets. The daily life of the villagers, their lifestyle, their familial discords, their problems and insecurities have been eminently portrayed by him.

There lies an undercurrent of horror in each tale. But this isn’t a book which consists of the stereotyped ghost stories. Sharath gracefully blends human psychology into every aspect of the stories, making them as psychological thrillers rather than horror stories. The endings of each tale will make you crave for more. Sharath’s poise narrative style makes sure that you are on the edge of your seat with every turning of the page. There are many nail-biting moments in the book which will give you an adrenaline rush. He also provides an earthy and raw dimension to each story that you will feel like living the life of the characters. Some stories even have the capacity to riddle you to such an extent that you’d immediately need answers to your puzzling questions. But a deeper sojourn into each tale will surely make you understand the underlying moral which Sharath has tried to convey.

My favorites in this book are Malli, Round and Round, The Narrow Road to Palem, Peaceful Are The Dead, Dear House and No Yellow in My Rainbow. I would recommend this book to all those who want to relish horror in its true essence. This spooky collection is sure to give you goosebumps and chills down your spine!

[Ashok Anbalan · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Narrow Road to Palem" by Sharath Komarraju is a collection of heart-rending short stories. While there exist numerous villages like Rudrakshapalem all over India, what makes Palem special is Sharath's flawless description of characters that brings the village to life.

His choice of words is simple yet powerful with the result that one can seamlessly visualize a rural setting and the daily challenges that the harsh country life presents (including death, inclement weather, lack of facilities unlike urban India etc.). The individuality of characters coupled with their responses to unexpected scenarios have been amazingly portrayed in the book. We have all heard of weird anecdotes that every proud villager in India wants to share with the urban folk (who lead a rather monotonous life in their opinion). Sharath skillfully weaves the personage and the anecdotes in this page-turner.

Of all the stories that I read, the one that captured my imagination was the dilemma faced by Subbiah in the Ace of Clubs . Should he set afire the card that brought him both pain and grief in equal measure or should he leave it untouched lest Subbarao garru degenerates to Subbai?

This is a book both for:
(a) foreigners, who want a palpable glimpse of rural Indian lifestyle.
(b) Indians, who would like to stay connected with their roots at a time when the country is experiencing rapid urbanization.

Gandhi said “India lives in her villages, not in her cities.", and we need master story-tellers like Sharath to retain India's uniqueness.

PS: Reading this book on Amazon Kindle using the Bookerly font has been sheer pleasure.

[Gourav Salanke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although the stories varied for me in their intensity and amount if interest they generated, the overall collection leaves impression.

I had first imagined these to be horror stories and was skeptical as I never liked that genre. However, they are very interesting ghost or supernatural stories and definately not scary. Oh wait, I think "Round and Round" and "The sitarist of Palem" are exceptions. I could not fully understand the later but could not dare to read again.
I loved the title story a lot for the simplicity within the twist. The story "Peaceful are the dead" has ripeness of a folklore.

I in fact got reminded of RK Laxman's Malgudy Days as the stories collectively give a persona to the town of Rudrakshapalem.
There are cross references about places and people of town spread through the collection. The linking increases in the trail end of the collection. It no where appears as a forced attempt and comes natural especially in the story "Dear House". That reminds me, the twist in that story gets unfolded very nicely and gives a happiness similar to learning complex origami piece by going reverse opening each fold.

Looking forward to read the sequal and hoping it awakens further mysteries of the otherwise sleepy town of Palem.

[Samdisha Malhotra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Once you start reading the book you obviously have got something in mind because of the author's reputation of writing marvellous novels. However, this one did not meet the expectations. Though it is suppose to give you chills as the same has been written with a mysterious and a horror perspective but it comes out to be not that great. Plus the first point where this book is lacking that it is still not available in a paperback format. For the readers who like their book as a physical format will not much appreciate the kindle version of it. All in all, a one time read.

To know the author's best works read Winds of Hastinapur or Crows of Agra and you will jump to applaud him.

[Harshit Gupta · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book was a different read, as I do not read ghost stories generally. However, the simplicity of the stories was touching. There was a touch that you often find in the books of RK Narayan, Ruskin Bond, and even Sudha Murthy, though I'm not that big a fan of Mrs.Murthy's writing style. But the fact remains that Sharath's characters, as well as his places, are very real. The funny part, in retrospect, is that you are able to identify with most of the ghosts even.

The book has a couple of stories which may sound similar, but now that it's over, it feels like quite a variety of stories, considering they were all related to ghosty stuff.

[Veena Soujanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sharath's "The Narrow Road to Palem" is a book about the stories of the haunted people of Rudrakahapalem which haunt us too. I felt every story is ended in an incomplete manner as though the characters fate is left to our imagination. Stories like "The milk is sour" and "A Narrow road to Palem" gives us goosebumps. The author's narration is simple yet effective giving us a thrill while reading without much twists and turns. A four star from my side for the plot, simplicity in narration and specially the haunted feeling the stories leave behind them.

[Vee]

Palem comes alive as a spooky village, on the banks of the Godavari river in south India, where the macabre and ghostly compete for attention with the commonplace humdrum affairs of life. From simple first loves to parental dilemmas, jealous lovers to separated souls, Sharath has covered all bases with a Ruskin Bond-esque penchant for suspense. Disclosure: Bought and liked Banquet of the Dead, got this one free.

[Aparna H S · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading "The Puppeteers of Palem", I really wanted to read more of the eerie stories of Palem. This book contains amazingly woven spooky tales by Sharath Komarraju! Some of the stories really gives you the chills! If one enjoys these stories, the novel "Puppeteers..." is a MUST read! Waiting for more stories, novels based on Palem :)

[Hemant Jain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sharath at his spookiest best.

not only are the stories good and spooky but the climax of this series shocks you and surprises you.

After reading the last 2 stories, i felt that i would now have to go back and read all the earlier stories all over again :) and i will surely do it again ...

i will easily recommend this one to anyone who would like a little spoook in life ...

[Hemanth Chandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is just an ok book from Sharath. It is not a novel. It consists of few fictional stories that happen in Palem. The stories are good, but I am not able connect well with them. I personally didn't like the concept of small stories embedded as a novel. In the preface, it could have been mentioned that this is not a novel but a bunch of fictional stories.

[Preetham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a good read, all of the short stories have a nice flow to them. While reading them you get a feeling of being in a village in Rayalseema area of Andhra. Only criticism would be certain degree of similarity in each of the stories. So the later stages stories can get a bit boring. Overall its a good book.

[Jairam Mohan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although I am not a big fan of the horror or supernatural genre of books, I would surely recommend this book to all book lovers, simply because of the sheer flair and style with which each of the short stories here have been written.

Detailed review put up at https://mahabore.wordpress.com/2016/0...

[Raji Amarnath · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mind gripping

Each of the stories have an inner dark deep connection,making the reader wonder beyond the written words.. I got involved so much that I started enquiring my friends from Andhra that if there is a town called Rudrakshapalem. Would recommend myself to read again ..

[Chandu · Rating 4 out of 5]

A day to day incidents marked with their effects, The Narrow Road to Palem is an interesting collection of short stories which describe the human nature, the good & bad, all along with their characters interlinked. The description is as if you are right at the spot in the story.

[Abhishek Sakhaparia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting story following paranormal line of event in a small village in South eastern part of India.

[Harsh Tibarewala]

Book of short stories. Some of the stories were interesting some were very average.