Sambhala: The journey begins by Shariful Hasan

"Sambhala: The journey begins" by Shariful Hasan, translated from Bengali and adapted by Arindam Mukherjee. This book is published by Grapevine India in 2014 and has 295 pages.

An old man starts behaving strangely in a village in Bangladesh. The cult of Lucifer is after a book in Dacca. Rashed, a college going youngster is suspected of murder. Nicolas Carson, a famous archeologist is searching for Count of St Germain.

Are these incidents related? What is the relation? What is the legend of Sambhala? What is the secret?

Sambhala (शम्भल) is a mythical kingdom hidden somewhere in inner Asia. Vishnupuran (विष्णु पुराण) mentions it as birthplace of Kalki. Gradually it came to be seen as Buddhist pure land. This book has the legend of Sambhala as the theme.

There are few legends in Indian mythology. This is one of the few used to write a fiction. Although it's Indian mythology and it's a Hindu and Buddhist legend, the story takes place in Muslim country of Bangladesh. That's mainly because the author is Bangladeshi. Elixer of life is a most sought and never achieved mirage in human history. The book deals with this subject.

Writer has an elaborate writing style. He uses all the words he needs to convey the point without worrying about the length. But the book does not become uninteresting. Characterization is proper except for the character of Arfin, who undergoes change of personality for no apparent reason. Majid's necessity to kill innocent people is also uncalled for.

Author's idea of a character that lives very long and tries to alter the course of history of mankind for good, sometimes succeeding and sometimes failing, is fascinating.

The book turns out to be an eventual anti climax because story never goes to Sambhala. That is left for the sequel. So although book is good, reader is disappointed. Why name it Sambhala?

The book looks small, but it isn't. It uses a small font. With normal font another 70-100 pages would have been added.

Arindam has done a good job of translation and adaptation. The sequels of original Bengali book are a big success. Don't know if English translations are available.

Read it for a change or if you want to read the sequel, whenever it's available.

The Puppeteer by Arindam Mukherjee

"The Puppeteer" by Arindam Mukherjee. This book is published by Grapevine India in 2013 and has 254 pages.

President of Pakistan has agreed to acknowledge the line of control in Kashmir as international border. This is a big victory for India. Lasting peace seems to be a real possibility. But Pakistani multimillionaire business tycoon and pro Islamist Aamir Ben Kalish is livid. He doesn't like the stance of the President who also happens to be his personal friend. He summons his second in command Zuair and his son Omar to assassinate the President while on tour of India.

Can his plan come to fruition? Can his team infiltrate India? Can they find agents to assassinate the president? Will they succeed? Can Indian intelligence stop them?

This is Arindam's first fiction novel. He has put up a credible effort. The seed is imaginative. Execution is also good. He has managed to churn a decent story. Characterization, though, needed more efforts.

A large portion of the book is spent on elaborating first the reason and then the perpetration for the plot. The Indian intelligence does not get the whiff of the assassination plot until two third of the book is over. This means that the tantalizing cat and mouse game gets limited page space.

It also appears that the Pakistanis had not done their home work thoroughly and they improvise the plot as it develops. Such plots usually do not succeed. Side story of Mafizul and his lust for Salima appears weak.

Author has introduced a special twist in the tale in the epilogue. I don't know why he waited till epilogue for reveling the twist.

OK book. Read if you have time.