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Amavas
This ebook contains two short stories:
AMAVAS
Minal is petrified. She has just discovered that her family is irretrievably linked to the serial killings that have been terrorising Delhi for the past four new moons. Each new moon (amavas) has brought slit throats. Tomorrow will be another amavas. Minal must do everything she can to save her family.
GULSHAN PANDEY
Abhinav, a journalist, has always wanted to experience prison first hand, even if it is just for a day. When an opportunity comes up, he is delighted. But is he tempting fate?
AMAVAS
Minal is petrified. She has just discovered that her family is irretrievably linked to the serial killings that have been terrorising Delhi for the past four new moons. Each new moon (amavas) has brought slit throats. Tomorrow will be another amavas. Minal must do everything she can to save her family.
GULSHAN PANDEY
Abhinav, a journalist, has always wanted to experience prison first hand, even if it is just for a day. When an opportunity comes up, he is delighted. But is he tempting fate?
24 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 1, 2017
14 people are currently reading
58 people want to read
About the author
R.V. Raman
10 books119 followersABOUT MY CORPORATE THRILLERS
Surely, there must be men like Professor Moriarty in corporate India. They may not be such intellectual colossuses or consummate masters, but they would share some key traits with him – wile, ingenuity, drive and utter ruthlessness. And they would understand the psychology of temptation.
What kind of schemes would such men device? That is the question I seek to answer through my novels.
Apart from bringing in truckloads of money, these schemes would have to satisfy the fabled professor’s taste for elegant, water-tight designs; designs that ride on the motivations and vulnerabilities of intelligent but weak-minded men. My antagonists may not have Moriarty’s guile or panache, and my detectives may be intellectual pygmies before Holmes. Nevertheless, I have taken a shot (four shots, actually) at crafting credible stories of intelligent crimes in corporate India. Each of my four novels is set in a different industry.
FRAUDSTER is set in the banking world, INSIDER in the Indian stock market, SABOTEUR in the red-hot Indian eCommerce industry (Bangalore), and CONSPIRATOR in the world of fake news, paid news and tailored news – the media industry.
These corporate thrillers construct elaborate white-collar crimes that take advantage of gaping holes in corporate India’s control and governing mechanisms. Not surprisingly, these lead to murders and other ‘regular’ crimes. For the lay crime fiction reader, these novels are a blend of whodunits and thrillers – complete with clues, red herrings, deductions, misdirection and twists. For those who are interested in the intricacies of corporate India’s inner working, there is an additional layer of how high-stakes crime works in our business world.
ABOUT MY WHODUNITS
After four corporate thrillers, I’ve turned to writing a series of murder mysteries (whodunits) with a new protagonist (Harith Athreya). The first of the series, A WILL TO KILL, is set in a colonial mansion in the misty hills of the Nilgiris. Needless to mention, murder strikes and there is no paucity of suspects or clues. A DIRE ISLE, the second in the series, which is titled GRAVE INTENTIONS in the UK and India, uses another classic setting - an isolated archeological mission in Bundelkhand, a place rich in history and legend. The third mystery (PRAYING MANTIS), which is set in another remote and picturesque location in India, will be out soon
I’ve tried to model my whodunits on the Golden Age Mysteries, while keeping them current with modern technology like mobile phones. And, as is the case with all my writing, I eschew vulgarity and profanity so that my stories are appropriate for readers of all ages. The only exception is the rare cuss-word that is used as an intensifier for emphasis.
Meanwhile, I am also experimenting with short stories (crime) set in contemporary India. Some of them are available on Amazon.
MY BACKSTORY
After a corporate career spanning three decades and four continents, I’ve moved away from full time roles to pursue my other interests. I now serve as an independent director of company boards, teach business strategy at an IIM and write. In an earlier avatar with global consulting firms, I advised companies, banks, regulators, stock exchanges, governments, etc. on matters of strategy and operations.
Tired of extensive physical travel, I now prefer less punishing mental excursions into fictional worlds of my own creation.
The list of my full-length novels so far:
Fraudster
Insider
Saboteur
Conspirator
A Will to Kill
A Dire Isle / Grave Intentions
Praying Mantis
Website.
RV Raman on Facebook
Surely, there must be men like Professor Moriarty in corporate India. They may not be such intellectual colossuses or consummate masters, but they would share some key traits with him – wile, ingenuity, drive and utter ruthlessness. And they would understand the psychology of temptation.
What kind of schemes would such men device? That is the question I seek to answer through my novels.
Apart from bringing in truckloads of money, these schemes would have to satisfy the fabled professor’s taste for elegant, water-tight designs; designs that ride on the motivations and vulnerabilities of intelligent but weak-minded men. My antagonists may not have Moriarty’s guile or panache, and my detectives may be intellectual pygmies before Holmes. Nevertheless, I have taken a shot (four shots, actually) at crafting credible stories of intelligent crimes in corporate India. Each of my four novels is set in a different industry.
FRAUDSTER is set in the banking world, INSIDER in the Indian stock market, SABOTEUR in the red-hot Indian eCommerce industry (Bangalore), and CONSPIRATOR in the world of fake news, paid news and tailored news – the media industry.
These corporate thrillers construct elaborate white-collar crimes that take advantage of gaping holes in corporate India’s control and governing mechanisms. Not surprisingly, these lead to murders and other ‘regular’ crimes. For the lay crime fiction reader, these novels are a blend of whodunits and thrillers – complete with clues, red herrings, deductions, misdirection and twists. For those who are interested in the intricacies of corporate India’s inner working, there is an additional layer of how high-stakes crime works in our business world.
ABOUT MY WHODUNITS
After four corporate thrillers, I’ve turned to writing a series of murder mysteries (whodunits) with a new protagonist (Harith Athreya). The first of the series, A WILL TO KILL, is set in a colonial mansion in the misty hills of the Nilgiris. Needless to mention, murder strikes and there is no paucity of suspects or clues. A DIRE ISLE, the second in the series, which is titled GRAVE INTENTIONS in the UK and India, uses another classic setting - an isolated archeological mission in Bundelkhand, a place rich in history and legend. The third mystery (PRAYING MANTIS), which is set in another remote and picturesque location in India, will be out soon
I’ve tried to model my whodunits on the Golden Age Mysteries, while keeping them current with modern technology like mobile phones. And, as is the case with all my writing, I eschew vulgarity and profanity so that my stories are appropriate for readers of all ages. The only exception is the rare cuss-word that is used as an intensifier for emphasis.
Meanwhile, I am also experimenting with short stories (crime) set in contemporary India. Some of them are available on Amazon.
MY BACKSTORY
After a corporate career spanning three decades and four continents, I’ve moved away from full time roles to pursue my other interests. I now serve as an independent director of company boards, teach business strategy at an IIM and write. In an earlier avatar with global consulting firms, I advised companies, banks, regulators, stock exchanges, governments, etc. on matters of strategy and operations.
Tired of extensive physical travel, I now prefer less punishing mental excursions into fictional worlds of my own creation.
The list of my full-length novels so far:
Fraudster
Insider
Saboteur
Conspirator
A Will to Kill
A Dire Isle / Grave Intentions
Praying Mantis
Website.
RV Raman on Facebook
Ratings & Reviews
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 10, 2018
[Detailed Book Review is available at: https://thinkerviews.com/books/englis...]
Do you think "size does matter" when you read a book?
To me, if the story is gripping and keeps you hooked with itself based on various attributes, it works!
Well, the price also does matter, if the book is pretty small, without a doubt.
Recently I got a chance to read "Amavas" - a short story collection (of two stories) by Mr. R. V. Raman who is known for his thrillers.
The two stories explored in this book are:
1. Amavas
2. Gulshan Pandey
Amavas - is a story of a serial killer who performs his kill in the night of Amavas (no-moon-night). The story introduces us to a small nuclear family. A husband, a wife, and their daughter. Today is Amavas and it is already evening, so the killer might be on his spree!
Who will be his/her next target? And, how will it affect the lives fo this family?
Gulshan Pandey - is a story of an author. He, in order to explore the emotions of prisoners quite effectively in his work! So, he was looking for opportunities to spend a night or a day in real prison. The things, however, didn't work for him, as he was told that, he can be imprisoned only if he commits a crime.
But one day, he found an interesting advertisement in a local newspaper. Any interesting person is offered real prison experience for a very moderate charge/fees! So, will he jump and keep the opportunity? Well, his name is not Gulshan Pandey, so why the story is named so?
Views and Reviews
Writing a short story, and that too in the "thriller" genre is quite a challenging task. You cannot go much into the detail as there is a very short space you've got and you cannot leave everything for the reader to assume!
Mr. Raman is in full control here, in both of the stories. If you love watching thriller (movies) then you will surely guess the end of the second story around midway, but for the first story, it may not be the case.
The stories are dark, so go for them only if you love exploring such stories.
There are a few misses (with many hits) in the book, but talking about them will reveal the content, and I want to avoid spoilers as much as possible.
Strong characters make the stories quite interesting. Mr. Raman is good at detailing scenes. You almost feel that you are visually experiencing the place/surrounding yourself. That is the success of the author.
Summary:
Overall, a little pricey short Ebook which is enjoyable for the thriller lovers who love reading the darks ones.
Our Rating:
I would give it around 7-7.5 stars out of 10.
PS: You can get this book for free to read if you are Amazon Prime member :). There is one more way to get this book for free which we've mentioned in our detailed review article.
Do you think "size does matter" when you read a book?
To me, if the story is gripping and keeps you hooked with itself based on various attributes, it works!
Well, the price also does matter, if the book is pretty small, without a doubt.
Recently I got a chance to read "Amavas" - a short story collection (of two stories) by Mr. R. V. Raman who is known for his thrillers.
The two stories explored in this book are:
1. Amavas
2. Gulshan Pandey
Amavas - is a story of a serial killer who performs his kill in the night of Amavas (no-moon-night). The story introduces us to a small nuclear family. A husband, a wife, and their daughter. Today is Amavas and it is already evening, so the killer might be on his spree!
Who will be his/her next target? And, how will it affect the lives fo this family?
Gulshan Pandey - is a story of an author. He, in order to explore the emotions of prisoners quite effectively in his work! So, he was looking for opportunities to spend a night or a day in real prison. The things, however, didn't work for him, as he was told that, he can be imprisoned only if he commits a crime.
But one day, he found an interesting advertisement in a local newspaper. Any interesting person is offered real prison experience for a very moderate charge/fees! So, will he jump and keep the opportunity? Well, his name is not Gulshan Pandey, so why the story is named so?
Views and Reviews
Writing a short story, and that too in the "thriller" genre is quite a challenging task. You cannot go much into the detail as there is a very short space you've got and you cannot leave everything for the reader to assume!
Mr. Raman is in full control here, in both of the stories. If you love watching thriller (movies) then you will surely guess the end of the second story around midway, but for the first story, it may not be the case.
The stories are dark, so go for them only if you love exploring such stories.
There are a few misses (with many hits) in the book, but talking about them will reveal the content, and I want to avoid spoilers as much as possible.
Strong characters make the stories quite interesting. Mr. Raman is good at detailing scenes. You almost feel that you are visually experiencing the place/surrounding yourself. That is the success of the author.
Summary:
Overall, a little pricey short Ebook which is enjoyable for the thriller lovers who love reading the darks ones.
Our Rating:
I would give it around 7-7.5 stars out of 10.
PS: You can get this book for free to read if you are Amazon Prime member :). There is one more way to get this book for free which we've mentioned in our detailed review article.
July 13, 2017
Two stories. Both gripping. Loved them.
December 11, 2018
Liked both the stories. Like two tequila shots!
Read
July 6, 2019Well written, but a very disturbing plot.... could not have guessed the murderer... well done
August 19, 2019
Two short, breezy ones.
June 26, 2022
twist(s) in the tales
November 23, 2017
4 stars - amavas was good, fairly taut - I give it a 3. But gulshan pandey gets a 4, maybe even a 4.5.
January 18, 2017
Raman enthralls us with the genre of crime and thrill he has mastered so well but this time not white collar crime and not a novel but two short and great stories.
Of the two, I liked Amavas and loved Gulshan Pandey. The latter is a blinder and will leave you gasping at its enormity in the end.
Kudos RVR!!
Of the two, I liked Amavas and loved Gulshan Pandey. The latter is a blinder and will leave you gasping at its enormity in the end.
Kudos RVR!!
January 14, 2017
Two more clean stories. Very gripping.
January 16, 2017
Nice! Short and intense.
January 21, 2017
Two crisp stories. The second one leaves you rather uncomfortable.
November 26, 2021
Two crisp and neatly written stories. The second story especially leaves the reader with goosebumps.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews