The Jasmine Bloom Review: The Forbidden Affair Of A Crestfallen Hero
I enjoy reading books exploring relationships. Last week, I reviewed a book on first love, this time I decided to pick something that dealt with more than just love. Something that was forbidden yet, for some people, inevitable. The Jasmine Bloom is the story about a man going through his mid-life crisis which inadvertently leads him into adultery. I am not a man and nowhere near my mid-life crisis but I could still relate to Sameer and understand his choices in life. I found myself sympathizing with him when it came to his dilemma on the work front but when it came to betraying a spouse, I only wanted to slap some sense into him. The plot is simple, the story is engaging and the characters are relatable. Here is what I feel about this quick read.
The Jasmine Bloom by Rajat Narula (Srishti Publishers and Distributors)
Sameer Chadha is going through a mid-life crisis and is unhappy with his life. His workmates do not respect him and his juniors are constantly finding ways to outshine him. At home, his teenage daughter has no interest in talking to a father who never really took interest in her life. His wife too does not connect with him anymore. His only solace his youngest daughter Pari who he loves to bits.
When life gets tough for Sameer, he bumps into Ritu who is having a horrid time with her cheating husband. Together they create a world of their own where they are couple away from all the vices of the world. While enjoying each other’s company, they forget that they have a ‘real’ life where they both have a family to go back to.
Points I Liked About The Jasmine Bloom
Writing: There is a scene in the book where Sameer is being troubled unnecessarily by the police forcing him to expose his illicit his affair. Though what happened to Sameer was wrong I enjoyed it because I hated Sameer for cheating on his wife and I was hoping the police humiliate him. At the climax of the book, there is a big revelation which pierced my heart and I had tears in my eyes while reading it. When a book evokes such extreme emotions in me, I consider it well-written. Throughout the book, I experienced a lot of emotions from being sad to angry to vindictive. I felt completely involved with the characters. So much so that when an important character died the book, I was bawling my eyes out. The way the people around the dead character reacted moved me to tears and their grief seemed palpable. I would applaud the writer for writing so beautifully that I wanted to smash Sameer’s head each time I read his intimate moments with Ritu.
Points I Did Not Like About The Jasmine Bloom
Nothing at all. There are a few spelling and grammar errors in the book, but I choose to ignore it only because the book overall was flawless.
Final View: I read this book from cover to cover and thoroughly enjoyed it. If you feel you need a break from regular romances, then pick this forbidden affair so you know the ramifications of threading the most disapproved path.
This book is a review copy but the opinion in this post is unbiased and 108% my own.
You can check out Amazon.in for a discount on this book.
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