The title and the blurb more than tell us what the book is about. And yes, this is not for the fainthearted. The story has enough crime, drug abuse, and gore to do justice to the title.
Talking about the plot would mean I might give away the storyline or the twists, so I’ll keep it brief.
The timeline goes back and forth between the present, past, and present. We also see the backstories of our lead characters. A major portion of the book is dedicated to the psychopath. The lover holds it all together while the cannibal drifts in and out in the second half of the book.
I wish she (our cannibal is a girl) had more space in the book when her story was the most moving compared to the other two.
The plot had been well-thought-out, which is always a good thing when it comes to this genre. The references to 90s pop culture reminded me of my school days. If only we had such good music even today. Sigh!
Considering that this is a debut work, it’s quite decent in terms of execution. No complaints with the plot, either. But the narration dilutes the story in many places. Information dump is a big no in novels. Some characters don’t need too many details when they have little role to play in the book.
While I had no issues with the sprinkling of Hindi, I did wish the narrative style was crisper and sharper. Stories like this one need the readers to stay hooked. Monotones can deliver the opposite results. And the recurring scenes of drinking and drinking and drinking do not add much to the plot.
If I were to use my reviewer’s voice, I’d say- edit, edit, edit. Tighten. Tighten. Tighten. Remove the fluff and make the crux of the story stand out. That will put the focus on the characters and allow for a better character arc.
Overall, this is a decent debut work by someone as young. The author just needs to keep writing and improving his craft.
We have a promising writer amongst us, and I wish him all the very best in his future endeavors.