Ode to Broken Things

by Dipika Mukherjee

Colonel S--biomedical engineer, explosives expert, and the Malaysian government go-to hitman--has been doing the dirty work of the rich and corrupt for years now and is ready for his final job. One that will ensure the domination of the Muslims over the Malaysian state. The target? Kuala Lumpur International Airport. All he needs is a little help from his old friend and protégé, Dr. Jay Ghosh. Despite the dangerous circumstances and Jay's own tragic Malaysian history, which he has been running from for 30 years, he cannot refuse the man who once saved his life. But, when Jay contacts Agni, the daughter of his first love with dangerous secrets of her own and a hunch that Colonel S is not all he seems, Jay is torn between righting the wrongs of his past and remaining loyal to a blood oath he has finally been called on to repay.

Set in modern day Malaysia, divided by religions vying for control of the state with violence and manipulation,  Ode to Broken Things  rings true in an increasingly dangerous world fraught with warfare, conflicting cultures, dysfunctional governments, and terrorism. However, Dipika Mukherjee's focus on the characters' interwoven histories forms the story's overarching message that, despite race, ethnicity, or religion, the same blood runs in our veins.

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Asia

231 pages, Paperback

Published May 17, 2016

Reviews

[Baljit · Rating 3 out of 5]

Intriguing. Bold for a Malaysian book, as the writer spells out the political and racial sentiments without much self censorship. She captures the feel of the city and countryside without romanticizing, a common flaw for many of diaspora.

[S. Suresh · Rating 3 out of 5]

The back cover of Ode to Broken Things has the following description [with my critical comments in parentheses]:

Ode to Broken Things is a fast-paced literary thriller [it’s not; this is a drama, pure & simple; at best, a complicated drama] that pits the forces of tradition against globalization [hardly], faith against conservatism [to an extent], and diversity against discrimination [agree] to paint the portrait of a modern nation wavering at the brink of terror [that I don’t have any comment on the last thought tells how weak my knowledge and understanding is of Malaysian politics].

Ode to Broken Things was a fascinating read with its brilliant juxtaposition of race, religion, and cultural differences woven inside the lives of three promiscuous immigrant families in Malaya over three generations.

[World Literature Today]

This book was featured in the Nota Benes section of the January 2017 issue of World Literature Today Magazine.

https://www.worldliteraturetoday.org/...

[Rikki · Rating 1 out of 5]

what a pointless book.

[Hena · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I was worried I wouldn't finish this in time before my book club meeting in a week, but then I started the book on Saturday night and stayed up Sunday night to finish. Definitely kept me intrigued and wanting to know what happened next. Mukherjee managed to combine just the right amounts of family secrets, ethnic tensions, rising extremism, and politics to keep me interested but without it being too much to squeeze into one novel. A good read!

[Laurie · Rating 3 out of 5]

An informative read for me as I was unfamiliar with the political and historical background of Malaysia. Because of that I sometimes found it difficult to follow the plot...where do the character's sympathies lie and why? Learning new things about different places in the world is one of my greatest joys of reading fiction. The author's poetic descriptions of the physical environment are very well done. I felt the humidity pressing down on me and heard the rain splattering against the side of the house. I enjoyed the juxtaposition of high tech bio engineering with the colonel in his shack down a muddy road slaughtering a chicken that he plucked as it was pecking the dirt in his yard, the truth of the underlying current of desire and it's power to shape so much of what we do and who we are. In the end I was left with too many unanswered questions. I do recommend this book despite only giving it three stars. I look forward to reading this author's next book when her craft has further matured.

[Thomas Hale · Rating 3 out of 5]

This disappointed me! After the first few chapters promised a deep and tangled web of interpersonal drama, political horrors and dark secrets waiting to be uncovered, the book lost all steam and continued to chug along joylessly for what felt much longer than its 220 pages. I will say that Mukherjee paints a vivid portrait of Malaysian life and culture, emphasising tradition, religion, superstition, gender politics and deep socio-political division. It made me go and look up the region's history and politics and cuisine, and I feel richer for it. However, the book itself left me unsatisfied and frustrated. By the time of the climax and its aftermath, I had lost all enthusiasm for the narrative.

[Maygirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gave an insight into the mass immigration of Indian and Chinese population in 1940's led by Britishers when they colonized South Asian region. I especially empathized with the ethnic assimilation issues faced by their great grand children in Malaysia today. After 5 generation of living in a country can you ask these great grand children that Malaysia is not your country, just because you are Indian or Chinese or of a different religion who came here 5 gen before? It makes you to think.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

a thoroughly engaging, vivid but unromanticised story focussed on the Indian minority community of Malaysia. but for some weird reason it has a kinda/sorta science-fictional story about explosive biomaterials tacked on, which never quite worked and is left mostly unresolved. i think i would have got more out of it if it had focussed more on Agni's story, and had maybe provided a little more historical and cultural context.

[TC · Rating 3 out of 5]

This could have been a much better story than it was- it had everything; politically tense environment, compelling characters, interwoven generational narratives, etc. It was all there. I enjoyed reading this book but feel that it could've been better written

[Alphabetgenie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly made me want to learn more about Malaysian history than anything. I was hoping for a more concrete ending and wrap up because there seemed to still be some things left unanswered but I liked the way it played out, and almost everyone got an answer they were looking for

[Joyce Yarrow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thunder Demons is everything a thriller should be, and more.

It is difficult to weave political, personal and multi-cultural themes into a storyline so that each thread is equally convincing and contributes to forming a satisfying whole. Dipika Mukherjee has done exactly that. Her characters are well drawn and complex, enabling the reader to understand the ‘why’ behind even the most extreme of actions. The political and social issues are not merely a backdrop – they are as alive and real as the passionate people who populate this book.

Along the way to the suspenseful and shocking end of this dark, unique, and powerful thriller, I found myself effortlessly absorbing the complex colonial history as well as the deep cultural divides that define Malaysia today.