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Arjun Arora Mystery #2
Remember Death
A fast-paced, multilayered thriller laced with buried secrets and sinister conspiracies
Detective Arjun Arora is summoned to Mumbai to track down an air hostess who has allegedly killed a bar dancer and vanished with a large sum of money. The search for Agnes Pereira sets Arjun on a nationwide hunt. But when their paths finally cross, everything spirals out of control.
From being hunted by a hitman to uncovering a deadly secret that implicates Delhi’s rich and powerful, Arjun’s life becomes an endless nightmare. Haunted by his personal demons and aware of his growing attraction to the beautiful, mysterious Agnes, Arjun realizes that sins from the past always cast their shadow over the present. But the closer he gets to the truth, the more terrifying the threat becomes to both of them.
Detective Arjun Arora is summoned to Mumbai to track down an air hostess who has allegedly killed a bar dancer and vanished with a large sum of money. The search for Agnes Pereira sets Arjun on a nationwide hunt. But when their paths finally cross, everything spirals out of control.
From being hunted by a hitman to uncovering a deadly secret that implicates Delhi’s rich and powerful, Arjun’s life becomes an endless nightmare. Haunted by his personal demons and aware of his growing attraction to the beautiful, mysterious Agnes, Arjun realizes that sins from the past always cast their shadow over the present. But the closer he gets to the truth, the more terrifying the threat becomes to both of them.
400 pages, Paperback
Published September 15, 2016
3 people are currently reading
127 people want to read
About the author
Ankush Saikia
12 books97 followersLatest: "Rough Streets", set in 1980s Shillong, available as an e-book. Author of "Tears of the Dragon" (Speaking Tiger, February 2023), the fourth book in the Detective Arjun Arora series ("Dead Meat", 2015; "Remember Death", 2016; and "More Bodies Will Fall", 2018; all from Penguin Random House India), also the environmental novel "The Forest Beneath The Mountains" (Speaking Tiger, March 2021), the noir thriller "The Girl from Nongrim Hills" (Penguin India, 2013), the crime thriller "Red River, Blue Hills" (Westland Books, 2015), and "A Natural History of Violence", a crime novella set in Delhi (2024). I've worked as an editor in journalism and publishing in New Delhi for over a decade. Currently based in Shillong and Tezpur in North-East India.
twitter & instagram: @ankushsaikia
twitter & instagram: @ankushsaikia
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 15, 2016
“We are products of our past, but we don't have to be prisoners of it.”
----Rick Warren
Ankush Saikia, an Indian author, pens his new crime fiction, Remember Death which is the second book in the Arjun Arora Mystery series, and this story welcomes the odd yet super smart detective Arjun Arora who has been assigned on a case to track down a suspected air hostess accused of murdering a bar dancer and looting the money of a crooked businessman, and that puts Arjun on the edges of death, yet once again, he needs to use his sharp wit to look beyond the narrated story, maybe he needs to start looking somewhere during the era of India's independence, all the while fighting against his own demons and past mistakes.
Synopsis:
Detective Arjun Arora is summoned to Mumbai to track down an air hostess who has allegedly killed a bar dancer and vanished with a large sum of money. The search for Agnes Pereira sets Arjun on a nationwide hunt. But when their paths finally cross, everything spirals out of control.
From being hunted by a hitman to uncovering a deadly secret that implicates Delhi’s rich and powerful, Arjun’s life becomes an endless nightmare. Haunted by his personal demons and aware of his growing attraction to the beautiful, mysterious Agnes, Arjun realizes that sins from the past always cast their shadow over the present. But the closer he gets to the truth, the more terrifying the threat becomes to both of them.
Arjun Arora has been flown down from Delhi to Mumbai to meet a rich yet crooked businessman who has asked him to track down a mysterious air-hostess who is suspected of murdering a bar dancer and running away with a lot of money that probably belonged to that businessman. And Arjun follows behind the trail that this strange young woman has left behind from one state of India to another, finally landing up in Manali, but before Arjun can fulfill his tasks, he identified the loopholes and the background of this girl, thereby leaving him and the woman on a death row. Can Arjun find out why this woman is actually targeted by a businessman? Is there more to the story?
Ankush Saikia is one of my favorite current day Indian authors, whose writing is appealing and stories are equally challenging and intriguing that grips me right from the very first page itself. Moreover his multi layered stories has depth, unpredictable twists and even heart felt emotions that holds enough power to put me on an emotional turmoil. Similarly, this story is laid out in the form of a complex and twisted web of suspense and twists like traversing the paths of a maze on a dark and gloomy day.
The author's writing style is extremely articulate and is laced with emotions, suspense and tension that will hook the readers right into the heart of the story. The narrative is highly engaging and well projected through the character's voices, as the readers will find it easy to comprehend with the dialogues, even international readers will find it easy to contemplate with the local dialect used in the narration, as the author has properly used the English translated terms of such words. The pacing is really fast and the readers will smoothly sway with the progress of the story, moreover, the reading the story will feel like riding on a roller coaster ride that is high with adrenaline rushing actions scenes, mind twisting puzzles, and even some dark human psychological aspects.
The author has unraveled the mystery real skillfully enough with tension, bone-chilling drama, adrenaline rushing actions that make the readers turn the pages of this book frantically. The author has introduced the twists quite randomly thus it will feel like a slap on the face out of no where and the intensity of those twists can blow the readers mind, and mostly, those twists are unforeseeable and will keep the readers anticipating for the next clue like a child looking for his lost favorite toy.
The author yet once again excelled with a vivid backdrop. This story will take the readers to various locations of the country, India, from the enchanting hills in Shimla to the busiest streets in Mumbai to the elegant capital city to a small and soothing beach destination. The author has brought alive each and every destination with his eloquent words hence the readers will be able to visually imagine each and every scene right before their own eyes.
The characters from the book are really well developed, complete with realism and genuineness to make the readers connect with them on a personal level. The main character, Arjun, is a complex and multi dimensional man who has lots of psychological and emotional issues, yet somehow he manages to battle against them to concentrate and focus his mind on unraveling the mystery. For first time readers too, this protagonist will not disappoint at all as the author has developed the detective with enough depth and back story. Arjun is no doubt a brave and sharp man, but he also owns up and fulfills his responsibilities as a father as much as possible despite of his hectic schedule. Arjun is a unique modern day detective who has the ability to interpret the words and body languages of any other human on a psychological basis, especially his insight into matters are thorough and who doesn't love a brave hero who has so many personal issues? Even the supporting cast of characters are well crafted and will leave an impression in the minds of the readers.
In a nutshell, this is a compelling and extremely absorbing thriller which is dark, psychologically twisted and will keep the readers glued to the pages of this book. In short, a satisfying read for the crime fiction fans.
Verdict: An edgy and fast paced thriller that is a must read for one and all.
Courtesy: Thanks to the author, Ankush Saikia, for giving me the opportunity to read and review his book.
----Rick Warren
Ankush Saikia, an Indian author, pens his new crime fiction, Remember Death which is the second book in the Arjun Arora Mystery series, and this story welcomes the odd yet super smart detective Arjun Arora who has been assigned on a case to track down a suspected air hostess accused of murdering a bar dancer and looting the money of a crooked businessman, and that puts Arjun on the edges of death, yet once again, he needs to use his sharp wit to look beyond the narrated story, maybe he needs to start looking somewhere during the era of India's independence, all the while fighting against his own demons and past mistakes.
Synopsis:
Detective Arjun Arora is summoned to Mumbai to track down an air hostess who has allegedly killed a bar dancer and vanished with a large sum of money. The search for Agnes Pereira sets Arjun on a nationwide hunt. But when their paths finally cross, everything spirals out of control.
From being hunted by a hitman to uncovering a deadly secret that implicates Delhi’s rich and powerful, Arjun’s life becomes an endless nightmare. Haunted by his personal demons and aware of his growing attraction to the beautiful, mysterious Agnes, Arjun realizes that sins from the past always cast their shadow over the present. But the closer he gets to the truth, the more terrifying the threat becomes to both of them.
Arjun Arora has been flown down from Delhi to Mumbai to meet a rich yet crooked businessman who has asked him to track down a mysterious air-hostess who is suspected of murdering a bar dancer and running away with a lot of money that probably belonged to that businessman. And Arjun follows behind the trail that this strange young woman has left behind from one state of India to another, finally landing up in Manali, but before Arjun can fulfill his tasks, he identified the loopholes and the background of this girl, thereby leaving him and the woman on a death row. Can Arjun find out why this woman is actually targeted by a businessman? Is there more to the story?
Ankush Saikia is one of my favorite current day Indian authors, whose writing is appealing and stories are equally challenging and intriguing that grips me right from the very first page itself. Moreover his multi layered stories has depth, unpredictable twists and even heart felt emotions that holds enough power to put me on an emotional turmoil. Similarly, this story is laid out in the form of a complex and twisted web of suspense and twists like traversing the paths of a maze on a dark and gloomy day.
The author's writing style is extremely articulate and is laced with emotions, suspense and tension that will hook the readers right into the heart of the story. The narrative is highly engaging and well projected through the character's voices, as the readers will find it easy to comprehend with the dialogues, even international readers will find it easy to contemplate with the local dialect used in the narration, as the author has properly used the English translated terms of such words. The pacing is really fast and the readers will smoothly sway with the progress of the story, moreover, the reading the story will feel like riding on a roller coaster ride that is high with adrenaline rushing actions scenes, mind twisting puzzles, and even some dark human psychological aspects.
The author has unraveled the mystery real skillfully enough with tension, bone-chilling drama, adrenaline rushing actions that make the readers turn the pages of this book frantically. The author has introduced the twists quite randomly thus it will feel like a slap on the face out of no where and the intensity of those twists can blow the readers mind, and mostly, those twists are unforeseeable and will keep the readers anticipating for the next clue like a child looking for his lost favorite toy.
The author yet once again excelled with a vivid backdrop. This story will take the readers to various locations of the country, India, from the enchanting hills in Shimla to the busiest streets in Mumbai to the elegant capital city to a small and soothing beach destination. The author has brought alive each and every destination with his eloquent words hence the readers will be able to visually imagine each and every scene right before their own eyes.
The characters from the book are really well developed, complete with realism and genuineness to make the readers connect with them on a personal level. The main character, Arjun, is a complex and multi dimensional man who has lots of psychological and emotional issues, yet somehow he manages to battle against them to concentrate and focus his mind on unraveling the mystery. For first time readers too, this protagonist will not disappoint at all as the author has developed the detective with enough depth and back story. Arjun is no doubt a brave and sharp man, but he also owns up and fulfills his responsibilities as a father as much as possible despite of his hectic schedule. Arjun is a unique modern day detective who has the ability to interpret the words and body languages of any other human on a psychological basis, especially his insight into matters are thorough and who doesn't love a brave hero who has so many personal issues? Even the supporting cast of characters are well crafted and will leave an impression in the minds of the readers.
In a nutshell, this is a compelling and extremely absorbing thriller which is dark, psychologically twisted and will keep the readers glued to the pages of this book. In short, a satisfying read for the crime fiction fans.
Verdict: An edgy and fast paced thriller that is a must read for one and all.
Courtesy: Thanks to the author, Ankush Saikia, for giving me the opportunity to read and review his book.
March 2, 2019
Never trust a man who doesn't drink.
Winston Churchill
I like an old style thriller cum murder mystery. A private eye is an time tetesed hero for this kind of novel.
Arjun Arora is an ex Indian Army office turned private eye. His personal life is in doldrums but he is good at his job. Vikas, a mysterious man comes to him with a case for which he has to come to Mumbai. He goes there and meets Vishwanath who gives him twice his fee to trace a girl Agnes Pereira who is a murder suspect. What happens next?
The book takes you to different parts of India: Delhi, Mumbai, Goa, Himachal, Lucknow .. the journey is defined in details and the suspense is uncovered slowly. He has vey few clues to work on: a photos and pair of earrings.
The story spans a long time from British India to modern period. It covers Bollywood, politics, cricket betting, fake swamis, tawaifs and much more. The descriptions are vivid and most of the links are made.
However, the initial 2/3rd of the book is slow and could have been shortened. the book took a long time to come to the point and real action. I would have preferred early action.
Slight Spoiler: I was wondering throughout that Arjun took law into his own hand many times. Is it justified? More importantly he got away with it too easily which is improbable.
Anyway a very good book by Ankush. Highly recommended. 4/5 stars.
Winston Churchill
I like an old style thriller cum murder mystery. A private eye is an time tetesed hero for this kind of novel.
Arjun Arora is an ex Indian Army office turned private eye. His personal life is in doldrums but he is good at his job. Vikas, a mysterious man comes to him with a case for which he has to come to Mumbai. He goes there and meets Vishwanath who gives him twice his fee to trace a girl Agnes Pereira who is a murder suspect. What happens next?
The book takes you to different parts of India: Delhi, Mumbai, Goa, Himachal, Lucknow .. the journey is defined in details and the suspense is uncovered slowly. He has vey few clues to work on: a photos and pair of earrings.
The story spans a long time from British India to modern period. It covers Bollywood, politics, cricket betting, fake swamis, tawaifs and much more. The descriptions are vivid and most of the links are made.
However, the initial 2/3rd of the book is slow and could have been shortened. the book took a long time to come to the point and real action. I would have preferred early action.
Slight Spoiler: I was wondering throughout that Arjun took law into his own hand many times. Is it justified? More importantly he got away with it too easily which is improbable.
Anyway a very good book by Ankush. Highly recommended. 4/5 stars.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 13, 2020
Arjun Arora is back. He is tasked with finding a young woman who has disappeared from a hotel room with a lot of money and leaving a dead woman in her wake.
He tracks her down but soon the hunter has become the hunted. Arjun has to unravel the mystery before he is killed.
The book is well paced with a good story. Though not as dark as the previous one, this book offers a gripping read.
He tracks her down but soon the hunter has become the hunted. Arjun has to unravel the mystery before he is killed.
The book is well paced with a good story. Though not as dark as the previous one, this book offers a gripping read.
April 22, 2020
Remember Death is a thriller written by Ankush Saikia who belongs to Assam who has a long career in journalism and have written some thrilling novels like The girl from nongrim Hills and Dead meat. This novel is published by Penguin India and the cover is interestingly design by Devangana Das and Abhishek Chaudhary.
This novel is about private detective Vikram Arora ,a middle aged man of 42 whose body have starting to show the sign of disintegration due to his various Adventures in the past. He had an Army background so he has some scars from the past on the body and the soul as well.
Ankush Saikia has created a character who is quite mortal yet found himself in the middle of mysterious affairs which can lead to his final destination that is death. This novel has different story tracks which leads to the events which have happened in 1950 and 60s.
The story revolves around Agnes Pereira, a former air hostess who is wanted by some high-profile persons and they engage private detective Arjun Arora to track her. Arjun Arora starts his investigation and finally track her in The Hills of Manali where he encounter the glimpses of deaths along with Agnes Pereira in the mountain valleys of Manali. Right from the starting the story moves from sea shores of Goa to the Hills of Manali and to Bombay and then in Delhi.
Initially the tempo of the story is very slow and it gains some momentum when Arjun Arora starts its investigation about the past of Agnes. It Leeds him to The Secret past of three generations of lost movie star of yesteryears Munni. The Mysterious disappearance of Munni is a curious case of investigation which is related to the president of Agnes Pereira. This journey leads Arjun Arora to Lucknow where he faces the surviving past of the heroine. There is a lot of characters like Kailash Swami, Sunny Chadda, Viswanathan, Vikas which are related to the mysterious happenings in the life of a prominent political leader of the past Dinesh Chadda. A murder in a cottage of Mumbai of a bar dancer Savitri is the point where this all starts and interesting story of mistaken identity starts.
Here the plot wise the novel is a good combination of various plots and subplots related to the past of Agnes prayer and Arjun Arora. There is parallel track of family relationships between Arjun Arora his wife Saloni and his daughter Rhea. Although story is very slow in the beginning but when it catches it's Track then it is adventurous as well as action packed. The psychological dealing of Main character is very appropriate and relevant as a character of a middle aged men worried about he is marital future and aimless journey to the future. Agnes Pereira is portrayed as a meek, submissive and insecure women who unintentionally evokes the Wrath of a group of people who are sitting pretty at the top of social Strata. They become enemy of Aegnes when there Mighty position in society comes under question. A lot of print is devoted in the novel about the appetite and alcoholic tendencies of Arjun Arora and here Ankush Saikia as shown his liking to the great variety of Indian and western cuisine. There are minor characters like Lisa and Chandu as the personal secretary and handyman of Arjun Arora for minor cases to deal with. In the end we can say that Ankush Saikia is successful in creating an interesting mystery in Remember Death although it is slowly paced in the beginning as it deals with psychological portrayal of its main protagonist Arjun Arora. The novel qualified for the one time reading only.
My rating for the novel is ★★★
The book is available at Amazon and Flipkart.
This novel is about private detective Vikram Arora ,a middle aged man of 42 whose body have starting to show the sign of disintegration due to his various Adventures in the past. He had an Army background so he has some scars from the past on the body and the soul as well.
Ankush Saikia has created a character who is quite mortal yet found himself in the middle of mysterious affairs which can lead to his final destination that is death. This novel has different story tracks which leads to the events which have happened in 1950 and 60s.
The story revolves around Agnes Pereira, a former air hostess who is wanted by some high-profile persons and they engage private detective Arjun Arora to track her. Arjun Arora starts his investigation and finally track her in The Hills of Manali where he encounter the glimpses of deaths along with Agnes Pereira in the mountain valleys of Manali. Right from the starting the story moves from sea shores of Goa to the Hills of Manali and to Bombay and then in Delhi.
Initially the tempo of the story is very slow and it gains some momentum when Arjun Arora starts its investigation about the past of Agnes. It Leeds him to The Secret past of three generations of lost movie star of yesteryears Munni. The Mysterious disappearance of Munni is a curious case of investigation which is related to the president of Agnes Pereira. This journey leads Arjun Arora to Lucknow where he faces the surviving past of the heroine. There is a lot of characters like Kailash Swami, Sunny Chadda, Viswanathan, Vikas which are related to the mysterious happenings in the life of a prominent political leader of the past Dinesh Chadda. A murder in a cottage of Mumbai of a bar dancer Savitri is the point where this all starts and interesting story of mistaken identity starts.
Here the plot wise the novel is a good combination of various plots and subplots related to the past of Agnes prayer and Arjun Arora. There is parallel track of family relationships between Arjun Arora his wife Saloni and his daughter Rhea. Although story is very slow in the beginning but when it catches it's Track then it is adventurous as well as action packed. The psychological dealing of Main character is very appropriate and relevant as a character of a middle aged men worried about he is marital future and aimless journey to the future. Agnes Pereira is portrayed as a meek, submissive and insecure women who unintentionally evokes the Wrath of a group of people who are sitting pretty at the top of social Strata. They become enemy of Aegnes when there Mighty position in society comes under question. A lot of print is devoted in the novel about the appetite and alcoholic tendencies of Arjun Arora and here Ankush Saikia as shown his liking to the great variety of Indian and western cuisine. There are minor characters like Lisa and Chandu as the personal secretary and handyman of Arjun Arora for minor cases to deal with. In the end we can say that Ankush Saikia is successful in creating an interesting mystery in Remember Death although it is slowly paced in the beginning as it deals with psychological portrayal of its main protagonist Arjun Arora. The novel qualified for the one time reading only.
My rating for the novel is ★★★
The book is available at Amazon and Flipkart.
December 19, 2016
Thriller set around INDIA and over on our blog we are #TalkingLocation with Ankush Saikia
http://www.tripfiction.com/thriller-s...
Remember Death is the second in the Arjun Arora private detective series (the first was Dead Meat – click here for our review…). Arjun is hired to track down Agnes Pereira, an air hostess who is quite possibly involved in murder and theft of a large sum of money. But he soon discovers that the businessman who hired him may well have his own, less than honourable, motives for trying to track her down. Motives that go back years to the disappearance of Munni, an early Bollywood star, in pretty suspicious circumstances.
As with Dead Meat, Arjun’s investigations lead him into the upper echelons of Indian society, and into the murky world of gangsters and other undesirables. The book moves apace to a final, and very frightening, denouement. No more for fear of a spoiler. It is a great and exciting read.
It is, though, for me considerably more than that… It absolutely captures the spirit of India, from the chaotic traffic jams of Delhi to the corrupt police of Manali in the foothills of the Himalayas. The people and places that Ankush describes are vivid and they are real. Arjun is Delhi based, and Delhi is where the story begins. But it soon moves down to Mumbai (still known as Bombay to those who live there), and on to Gorkarna – a resort on the West Coast south of Goa, before heading back up to Manali and over to Lucknow – and finally returning to Delhi. In TripFiction terms it is a tour de force of exotic locations that capture India wonderfully well. And food is not to be left out! Arjun is an excellent cook (he once thought of opening a restaurant) and we can pick up all sorts of recipe hints from the dishes he prepares for himself. Ankush also describes the eating specialities of the areas that Arjun visits on his travels. All mouth watering stuff, that makes me want to return to the country I was privileged to visit last year!
To a Western reader, Remember Death offers a great read. Yes, it is a really well written and exciting thriller, but it is also an insight into the culture and places of a wonderful country. It is highly recommended.
http://www.tripfiction.com/thriller-s...
Remember Death is the second in the Arjun Arora private detective series (the first was Dead Meat – click here for our review…). Arjun is hired to track down Agnes Pereira, an air hostess who is quite possibly involved in murder and theft of a large sum of money. But he soon discovers that the businessman who hired him may well have his own, less than honourable, motives for trying to track her down. Motives that go back years to the disappearance of Munni, an early Bollywood star, in pretty suspicious circumstances.
As with Dead Meat, Arjun’s investigations lead him into the upper echelons of Indian society, and into the murky world of gangsters and other undesirables. The book moves apace to a final, and very frightening, denouement. No more for fear of a spoiler. It is a great and exciting read.
It is, though, for me considerably more than that… It absolutely captures the spirit of India, from the chaotic traffic jams of Delhi to the corrupt police of Manali in the foothills of the Himalayas. The people and places that Ankush describes are vivid and they are real. Arjun is Delhi based, and Delhi is where the story begins. But it soon moves down to Mumbai (still known as Bombay to those who live there), and on to Gorkarna – a resort on the West Coast south of Goa, before heading back up to Manali and over to Lucknow – and finally returning to Delhi. In TripFiction terms it is a tour de force of exotic locations that capture India wonderfully well. And food is not to be left out! Arjun is an excellent cook (he once thought of opening a restaurant) and we can pick up all sorts of recipe hints from the dishes he prepares for himself. Ankush also describes the eating specialities of the areas that Arjun visits on his travels. All mouth watering stuff, that makes me want to return to the country I was privileged to visit last year!
To a Western reader, Remember Death offers a great read. Yes, it is a really well written and exciting thriller, but it is also an insight into the culture and places of a wonderful country. It is highly recommended.
March 26, 2023
Exciting and amazing at every page. The best detective author on Indian platform
October 11, 2024
As a newspaper review niftily put it - Arjun Arora is 'marvelously desi' and that is by far my overwhelming sentiment through this book.
The loner detective with a penchant for drink, damsels in distress and danger is a well-worn cliche in print and on the silver screen. Think Ian Rankin's Rebus series, to Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe and I'm sure many more in between. But most good detective novels are also about the setting - it is almost a second protagonist. When you think Holmes, you think Victorian London. Perry Mason takes you to early 20th century California, Agatha Christie and Peter Wimsey to the English countryside, Rebus to Edinburgh and so on. As we meet Arjun Arora of CR Park in Delhi, there is a wonderful feeling of familiarity that washes over you as with every page you turn you're thinking 'Yes I know this place/person/setting' or 'I can precisely visualize this kind of place/person/setting'.
Ankush Sakia spends a lot of time helping Arjun Arora just get from one place to another, throwing observations about roads, neighborhoods and people all the time. In Delhi that means observations of kids playing in those so-typical-to-Delhi sector parks in evenings, the view from a restaurant in CP, the old Delhi homes and markets of GK and Sunder Nagar, traffic on grey and rainy days, the new age restaurants of Gurgaon and more. There is something immensely comforting to hear a story set in a place you can relate to, in a world you know - and it is perhaps something I hadn't quite realised myself in all these years. And this is coming from someone who's only stayed in Delhi for a few formative years, but I've not really 'grown-up' there. I remember experiencing a similar sentiment back when I read Sujata Massey's Parveen Mistry series, but even that was set in a Bombay of 100+ years ago. If you have grown up in the capital in the current era, the effect will be even better.
A large part of the book is also spent traipsing across the nation on the trail - to Mumbai, Gokarna, Pune, Manali, Lucknow and so on by car, overnight bus, Shatabdi, sleeper coaches and flights - and having had the fortune of having visited or stayed in most of these places and travelled by the same modes - the observations of each of them are relatable as well - from the driver who doesn't tire after hours on the road, tourists and waiters you meet at shacks and restaurants, apparel shop owners, the decidedly unfancy guesthouse/lodge and more.
A couple of other extremely relatable pieces scattered through the book- the sense of evolving family (aging parents with their medical eccentricities, a judgemental teenage daughter), friends and society (the househelp who is in a foul mood). And then of course the food and drink - across dhabas, hotpot restaurants, fancy irish bars, local takeaway restaurants, breakfast cooked by the househelp, and meals thrown together at home, always combined with a variety of alcoholic beverages (with a relatable favorite of Blenders Pride!) and chai.
So far, so good. The atmosphere and setting is great. The plot - is well, let's call it good in parts and strictly passable in others.
My pet peeves:
- Too many deus-ex-machina's and used too generously. Whether it is a real-estate flyer conveniently found in multiple places, a convenient guidebook which was handy to draw a far-fetched assumption, a vehicle plate number conveniently written on a newspaper, everyone remembering details from 30 to 50 years ago, everyone being available and always willing to entertain the detective and talk to him. Some coincidences and serendipity is good and make things fun (and the occasional leap of faith is necessary). Too many of them tend to take away from the credibility of the detective's well - 'detection skills'.
- There are so many random details scattered throughout that after a point everything seems like the proverbial Chekovian gun. If there are red herrings which aren't linked, they probably got lost in the detail and were never addressed later. Anyone mentions any detail in any conversation, you can bet Arjun will connect it to something, somewhere soon (unless it's food or commute related). I love complex plots but towards the end this started to feel too smart for it's own good.
- Superman effect - The denouement is almost caricaturishly Bollywoodish (in a Rohit Shetty style). The last act has our protagonist (MILD SPOILERS) enter and dig-up the private flower bed of a very influential person, get captured and drugged to be buried-alive in a coffin, break through from said coffin which is hammered and nailed shut by using only his knees (because his arms are fractured and bound), kill a man, set fire to the place, escape without detection, drive home with fractured arms, then shortly later - use aforementioned plastered arms to climb on the ledge of an 8th floor construction site, have another fight (which he wins - duh). This is not even talking about the many-layered deduction as to why we got here, this is just the how of it. For a book which largely 'keeps it real' and eschewed leaps of faith, this felt disappointment.
So in summary - Remember Death is a 3 star plot with a 5 star atmosphere. But read it for that atmosphere of #DesiNoir, a well-etched and relatable protagonist and a journey through modern, urban India!
The loner detective with a penchant for drink, damsels in distress and danger is a well-worn cliche in print and on the silver screen. Think Ian Rankin's Rebus series, to Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe and I'm sure many more in between. But most good detective novels are also about the setting - it is almost a second protagonist. When you think Holmes, you think Victorian London. Perry Mason takes you to early 20th century California, Agatha Christie and Peter Wimsey to the English countryside, Rebus to Edinburgh and so on. As we meet Arjun Arora of CR Park in Delhi, there is a wonderful feeling of familiarity that washes over you as with every page you turn you're thinking 'Yes I know this place/person/setting' or 'I can precisely visualize this kind of place/person/setting'.
Ankush Sakia spends a lot of time helping Arjun Arora just get from one place to another, throwing observations about roads, neighborhoods and people all the time. In Delhi that means observations of kids playing in those so-typical-to-Delhi sector parks in evenings, the view from a restaurant in CP, the old Delhi homes and markets of GK and Sunder Nagar, traffic on grey and rainy days, the new age restaurants of Gurgaon and more. There is something immensely comforting to hear a story set in a place you can relate to, in a world you know - and it is perhaps something I hadn't quite realised myself in all these years. And this is coming from someone who's only stayed in Delhi for a few formative years, but I've not really 'grown-up' there. I remember experiencing a similar sentiment back when I read Sujata Massey's Parveen Mistry series, but even that was set in a Bombay of 100+ years ago. If you have grown up in the capital in the current era, the effect will be even better.
A large part of the book is also spent traipsing across the nation on the trail - to Mumbai, Gokarna, Pune, Manali, Lucknow and so on by car, overnight bus, Shatabdi, sleeper coaches and flights - and having had the fortune of having visited or stayed in most of these places and travelled by the same modes - the observations of each of them are relatable as well - from the driver who doesn't tire after hours on the road, tourists and waiters you meet at shacks and restaurants, apparel shop owners, the decidedly unfancy guesthouse/lodge and more.
A couple of other extremely relatable pieces scattered through the book- the sense of evolving family (aging parents with their medical eccentricities, a judgemental teenage daughter), friends and society (the househelp who is in a foul mood). And then of course the food and drink - across dhabas, hotpot restaurants, fancy irish bars, local takeaway restaurants, breakfast cooked by the househelp, and meals thrown together at home, always combined with a variety of alcoholic beverages (with a relatable favorite of Blenders Pride!) and chai.
So far, so good. The atmosphere and setting is great. The plot - is well, let's call it good in parts and strictly passable in others.
My pet peeves:
- Too many deus-ex-machina's and used too generously. Whether it is a real-estate flyer conveniently found in multiple places, a convenient guidebook which was handy to draw a far-fetched assumption, a vehicle plate number conveniently written on a newspaper, everyone remembering details from 30 to 50 years ago, everyone being available and always willing to entertain the detective and talk to him. Some coincidences and serendipity is good and make things fun (and the occasional leap of faith is necessary). Too many of them tend to take away from the credibility of the detective's well - 'detection skills'.
- There are so many random details scattered throughout that after a point everything seems like the proverbial Chekovian gun. If there are red herrings which aren't linked, they probably got lost in the detail and were never addressed later. Anyone mentions any detail in any conversation, you can bet Arjun will connect it to something, somewhere soon (unless it's food or commute related). I love complex plots but towards the end this started to feel too smart for it's own good.
- Superman effect - The denouement is almost caricaturishly Bollywoodish (in a Rohit Shetty style). The last act has our protagonist (MILD SPOILERS) enter and dig-up the private flower bed of a very influential person, get captured and drugged to be buried-alive in a coffin, break through from said coffin which is hammered and nailed shut by using only his knees (because his arms are fractured and bound), kill a man, set fire to the place, escape without detection, drive home with fractured arms, then shortly later - use aforementioned plastered arms to climb on the ledge of an 8th floor construction site, have another fight (which he wins - duh). This is not even talking about the many-layered deduction as to why we got here, this is just the how of it. For a book which largely 'keeps it real' and eschewed leaps of faith, this felt disappointment.
So in summary - Remember Death is a 3 star plot with a 5 star atmosphere. But read it for that atmosphere of #DesiNoir, a well-etched and relatable protagonist and a journey through modern, urban India!
March 27, 2024
Sometime fast sometime slow but you have a arjun Arora with his mystery case and lot of Delhi traffic, coking, drinking.
September 25, 2016
The story starts with Arjun Arora being flown to Mumbai to meet a businessman who wants him to track an air-hostess Agnes Pareira, who has allegedly killed a bar-girl and run away with lots of money that belonged to the businesswoman. It turns out that there is more to it as Arjun tracks the air-hostess. The story is a multilayered and there is new twist in the story with every page you turn. It keeps you glued and thinking about the outcome when you are not reading it. Like all his books, he has a fast and vivid narrative, that makes you visualise the scene and relate to the story. You will like the book.
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